LG OLED And LCD TV HDR Gaming Lag Update: Great News. For Some [Updated]

[Update: While LG's official press channel has stubbornly refused to issue any useful update information on every model that might be receiving an HDR Game mode update, an unofficial LG source has revealed via my good friends at HDTV Test that an HDR Game update for the B6 OLED models not covered by the current update will definitely come eventually. More details can be found in the italicised update section added to the original story below.]

Over the past few weeks I’ve covered in numerous stories the efforts of videogame-playing LG TV owners to get LG to reduce the latency of its TVs when they’re running in HDR mode.

Now I’m happy to report that all that people power has paid off, as LG has started to roll out a new firmware update for many of its latest OLED and LCD TVs that not only reduces HDR input lag (the time a screen takes to render image data received at its inputs) but even introduces a dedicated HDR Game picture preset.

What’s more, it seems the update really does do what LG TV owners wanted it to do, at least for the brand’s latest OLED TVs.

The guys over at HDTVtest have measured the input lag in HDR Game mode on LG’s E6 series of OLEDs at just over 34ms. This is a good step down from the nearly 60ms of lag the TVs suffered with before, and makes the TVs genuinely competitive as monitors for serious gamers. Rtings has just confirmed, meanwhile, that a roughly similar amount of lag is now experienced on LG's C6 OLED models.

Input lag measurements aren’t available yet for LG LCD TVs that have received the HDR Game update, but the hope obviously has to be that they get figures similar to the OLED sets. It’s worth reflecting, though, that some of LG’s 2016 LCD TVs suffered really extreme HDR input lag of more than 100ms previous to the new firmware update, so maybe LG won’t have been able to get these models’ lag down quite as far as it has with the OLED TVs. I’ll update this story as soon as new LCD lag figures are available.

Well done LG

Assuming the LCD input lag figures turn out to be decent, this is a genuinely outstanding effort from LG. However - there’s always a however, isn’t there? - there is still one small problem: namely that the update doesn’t cover all of LG’s 4K HDR TVs. I’ll give you a full list in a moment, but particularly conspicuous by their absence are the highly popular 2016 B6 OLED range, or any TVs from LG’s 2015 range.

I’ve heard from more than one contact that LG customer services is reassuring B6 owners that an update will come eventually; they use different chipsets to those found in LG’s other 2016 OLED TVs, and so apparently need slightly different new firmware. But I haven’t received official confirmation of this from LG’s press people yet, despite asking the question early yesterday.

[Update: After nearly two weeks of apparent investigation in response to me asking for clarification on which models may be affected by the HDR Gaming update, LG's official PR outlet has sent me the following essentially pointless statement: "Other than the information previously shared, LG does not have any more detail to give at this stage."

However, on pretty much the same day I received that non-committal official communication, a separate LG contact informed HDTVTest that an HDR Game mode for LG's B6 OLED TVs would indeed happen. No date was given for when the B6 HDR Game firmware update might appear, but on balance, given the repeated unwillingness of LG to say anything useful through official channels, I consider the information HDTV Test has received from an alternate source to be credible! Original story continues below.]

You should also note that so far as I am aware, the update is only currently available to US consumers; the word is that it is coming to other territories in the ‘coming weeks’. Hopefully it won’t take too long given the potentially huge number of PS4 and Xbox One S games consoles likely to find their way under Christmas trees come December 25th…

Gaming in HDR via an Xbox One S should now feel like a much more responsive experience on LG TVs... [+] receiving the new firmware update. (Pic: Microsoft)

The update is available for download to USB stick on LG's US website. Just go to the site, search for your TV model, and click on Software, Firmware and Drivers to find the link to the HDR Game mode update.

Anyway, as promised here is what I believe to be a comprehensive list of the TVs for which the HDR Game mode update is now available in the US. If you own a model not shown on this list but you have received the update, let me know via one of the contact options at the end of the article. Same if you live in a territory outside the US and you notice the update suddenly popping up on your LG TV or your area's LG website.

OLED

OLED65G6P-U

OLED77G6P-U

OLED65E6P-U

OLED55E6P-U

OLED65C6P-U

OLED55C6P-U

LCD

86UH9500-UA

65UH9500-UA

75UH8500-UD

65UH8500-UA