With CES about to start, LG has unveiled some hints about its new top of the line TVs for 2020. In this era, that means jumping from 4K to 8K, and the company will have eight new models that it says promise “Real 8K” performance that “exceeds” the CTA’s spec for 8K. The way LG sees things, even though Samsung’s QLED tech may be certified as 8K, that doesn’t make it “real” without surpassing a minimum test for contrast modulation (CM) threshold requirements.
Those eight 8K models include two LG Signature OLED sets in 88- and 77-inch sizes (88/77 OLED ZX) as well as six of its NanoCell-branded LCD televisions (75/65 Nano99, 75/65 Nano97, 75/65 Nano95) in 75- and 65-inch sizes. In terms of getting 8K content (whenever and wherever that’s available), they can handle YouTube’s preferred AV1 codec as well as HEVC and VP9, 8K inputs from USB or HDMI, and finally, 8K 60FPS via streaming as well as 8K 60P via HDMI.
For a new year, LG is bringing a new third-gen version of its Alpha9 AI processor, which of course is ready to do all the upscaling and sharpening necessary for its 8K TVs, as well as AI Sound Pro processing. That’s supposed to identify between five different types of content and adjust accordingly so words are clearer and scenes are upmixed to 5.1.
While we’ll have to wait and see how many of these features trickle down to cheaper televisions, the 8K line will also feature LG’s ThinQ AI tech, with a webOS software package that can handle voice control, plus Apple AirPlay 2 and HomeKit, Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa. That all sounds similar to last year’s TVs, but now LG is also promising that it will be compatible with Amazon’s Alexa Premium Far-Field Voice “in the future.” That’s supposed to give third-party devices the same level of voice recognition performance as Amazon’s own Echo devices, and it may finally start to appear widely on the market this year.