A couple of months ago I bought the LG G5 to replace the LG C1 that I’d been using for the past 5 years.
Deciding on this TV was a really tough decision, it was between this or the Samsung S95F.
But after using the LG G5 for the last month or two, a few things were beginning to frustrate me…
And so, I did what any sane person would do and last week, I also bought the Samsung S95F.
This post isn’t sponsored, I bought both of these with my own money - and so I hope you find my honest thoughts on both of these TV’s useful. And hopefully it helps YOU when deciding on which TV to buy.
Unboxing
As far as the unboxing experience goes, both are very straight forward. All I’ll say is that I would recommend two people, especially if going for the larger sized models, to unbox them.
But it’s a straight forward experience, with BOTH TV’s this year including a stand in the box. Previously the LG G5’s were wall-mount only, so I’m grateful that there’s a stand now.
Sizes
These TV’s come in a range of sizes. The Samsung S95F comes in 55, 65, 77 and 83” sizes.
Whereas the LG G5 ranges from 48” right through to 97”, if you have the budget.But for the size of the room this TV will end up in, I went for the 55” Models for both.
The Samsung is definitely thinner than the LG Panel, if you care about that. Considering this isn’t a Mini LED, I thought the LG Panel would be thinner than what we’ve got, but generally speaking once the TV is setup and on it’s stand or on a wall, you’re not really going to notice, or probably care.
Key Differences
In terms of the key differences, this is really where I found most of my decisions boiled down to.
The LG G5 offers true Dolby Vision on a Glossy Display.
Whereas the Samsung S95F has a VERY good anti-glare matt coating along with another benefit, some would say, of the OneConnect box, which can move all of the messy wiring away from the back of the TV, and replaces it with one Single Cable.
Use Case
In terms of my specific use case. I stream shows on all the various streaming services, I use an Apple TV, I play Console Games, more recently I’ve been playing PC Games, and so it’s a real mixed bag when it comes to my actual day-to-day use, which - I think, is probably similar to how a lot of people use their TV’s nowadays.
No Live TV, I barely touch the smart features, I don’t game directly on the TV… but, I will touch on those later in this post.
Connectivity & Specs
Firstly, let’s just talk specs and connectivity.
The LG G5 is a 4K OLED powered by the a11 AI Processor, with support for Dolby Vision and up to 120Hz Native or up to 165Hz with Variable Refresh Rate.
4 HDMI Ports, all supporting 4K 120Hz, one of which supports eARC.
3 USB A, 1 Ethernet, and one Optical
Whereas the Samsung S95F is also a 4K OLED Display, powered by Samsungs NQ4 AI Gen 3 Processor, with support for HDR10+, up to 100Hz or up to 165Hz.
4 HDMI Ports with all 4 supporting up to 165Hz and one supporting eArc, 3 USB A, 1 USB C, Ethernet, Optical, which is all provided by the separate OneConnect box, which can either attach directly on the TV Stand, OR be connected up to 2.5m away with the included cable, or up to 5m away with a cable purchased separately.
This is actually one of the big reasons why I previously bought the S95C for my living room, because I wanted to move all of the messy wiring away from behind the TV.
Except when I bought this TV, Samsung decided to not make any cables longer than what came in the box, so now I’m stuck with an awkwardly placed shelf unit with the OneConnect box balanced precariously on top.
Which the Cat seems to love sitting on as it’s always nice and warm… so at least there’s that I guess!
WebOS vs Tizen
And then we do have a big difference between the two, which is LG’s WebOS software, compared to Samsung’s Tizen software.
Both of these have their positives, and of course negatives.
With the LG G5, WebOS is an interface that you can navigate using the remote which acts as a mouse cursor that you control by waving the remote around. Which - I actually don’t mind, it’s pretty intuitive.
And Samsung’s Tizen is a similar but I would say less confusing interface that is controlled normally with a remote.
And this is really where LG’s WebOS pushed me to also buy the S95F.
Firstly, during setup you are encouraged to use the LG ThinQ app to speed through the setup, which just outright failed and refused to work. So I ended up having to go through the setup manually.
And secondly, I know every year we hear about how the processors have been upgraded to make these smart TV’s incredibly fast, and AI Powered.
But, how is it that an Apple TV is still SO much better than any Smart TV interface? And why does both LG and Samsung just have so much bloatware installed right out of the box?
Browsing around WebOS and launching various streaming apps is really sluggish. And even trying to change input sources is just a delayed nightmare.
And that’s not to say that Samsung’s Tizen is any better. I find it slightly quicker when browsing around the smart interface, but it can still be very sluggish at times.
This really is the reason why so many people will just slap an external box like an Apple TV or Google TV and set their TV input to permanently just that, and control the rest from their Apple remote instead.
Speaking of which - if you do like using the Samsung Interface, then that’s another key feature of the Samsung S95F, as you will have native integration with the Smart Things platform, including integrating your Samsung phone device and even being able to control some TV functions with a Samsung Galaxy Watch - that you just don’t get on LG.
Of course - if you have other LG Appliances around your home, then you might be able to make better use of their whole ThinQ integration.
Picture Quality
With all of that said, you’re going to spend a lot MORE time watching content on this TV, than you will be browsing through the menu system.
Both of these TV’s are colour accurate and have various modes for movies such as FilmMaker mode to watch movies as the director intended.
And both TV’s are pretty even overall when it comes to brightness.
The Samsung S95F does take the edge in bright environments because of that insanely good anti-reflection coating. It really is something that you have to see in person.
Viewing angles are excellent even when placed directly in front of bright light sources and with one that doesn’t noticeably cause any degradation in image quality.
With that said, if you put these two TV’s side by side, that’s when the LG G5’s Glossy screen really stands out.
One, because that Glossy display really does show off how good Samsung’s anti-reflective coating is.
But Two, because you will notice darker blacks on the LG, as the Samsung does raise the black tones.
And also - Three. The LG G5 supports Dolby Vision, whereas Samsung still does not, opting for HDR10 instead.
To some people, not having Dolby Vision is a reason to immediately buy the LG. To others - once you actually have the TV Setup and are watching content, I would argue that you probably couldn’t tell the difference.
Especially if you don’t have these TVs side by side like we did in this demonstration.
Speakers
As far as the speakers go - I would recommend getting a soundbar with either of these TV’s.
It’s actually why a LOT of the time these TV’s often come with a free soundbar.
But if you are just casually watching TV with the family then I would say that the LG G5 has the slight edge here.
Even though the LG technically delivers less wattage, up to 60w compared to 70w for the Samsung. It sounds better, fuller than the Samsung does.
Whereas if you do want the very best experience, then either a soundbar or a proper wired setup would obviously be best. I actually wrote a post comparing the latest Sonos Soundbar to a traditional 5.1 setup which you can read here: https://www.petematheson.com/sonos-vs-3-000-home-cinema-setup-why-i-got-both/
Gaming
Many of my hours are spent playing games every evening - both console gaming which both of these TV’s have been pretty flawless at, and more recently PC gaming, where you can benefit from the highest 165hz refresh rates.
And after putting in SO many hours on games like Fortnite and Doom, they both perform the same. There’s no noticeable difference in the gaming experience that I can tell.
You do get an ever so slightly faster input lag on the Samsung, just under 10ms compared to the LG.
The Samsung does have a whole Gaming Hub, which offers convenient access to game directly on the TV, you can even pair a bluetooth controller - and for casual gamers this is cool - you can stream games from Xbox Cloud, but if you are playing any games that involve reaction times, especially online multiplayer games, then I just found the gaming experience pretty bad.
It’s very reliant on your connection speed so ideally you want the TV to be wired in rather than Wireless, except the wired connection on both of these TVs is capped at 100Mbps, and so actually you get faster speeds over WiFi, when it's reliable.
Pricing
Pricing is always one that’s worth discussing, but always difficult because the offers on both of these TVs change constantly.
Depending on the time of the year, the Samsung is likely to have more discounts available via things like coupon codes, trade-in deals and even sometimes free gifts, whereas LG doesn’t usually have as many going.
Plus I also factored in how much I could sell my old LG C1 for when pricing both up, because honestly the LG C1 is still an excellent TV and incredible value for money.
When I bought my LG TV I actually got a free soundbar included, which I then sold, and an extra years warranty. So it’s worth looking around.
Warranty
Speaking of Warranty, it varies depending on where you are buying - but here in the UK and with both of these TV’s, they come with a 5Yr Warranty, and actually it’s more like 6 years due to consumer law here.
But I’d check what extended warranties are available in your country depending on how long you’re planning on keeping your TV - since most people tend to keep them, for a very long time.
Issues
There are other issues to consider.
I’ve heard that if you opt for the 83” Samsung S95F, this model doesn’t use Samsungs QD-OLED Panel, instead it uses the LG Tandem RGB Panel which is the same as the LG G5.
I can’t personally comment on that as I just couldn’t afford to buy the 83” Model, since I was buying two TV’s … but it’s worth being aware of.
Quality Control
Another common thread I’ve seen whilst browsing Reddit on these two TV’s is Samsung is definitely perceived as having worse quality control. And that may be true - but it will definitely come down to personal experience.
I did have to return a few of their older widescreen G9 Monitors before I got one that worked as advertised, many years ago, but since then I’ve not seen any issues, personally. From the S95C and all the variants of the G9 Ultrawide screens I’ve purchased.
Which one should you buy?
The question on which TV is ‘the one’ is fairly simple, I think.
I’d recommend the Samsung if you are placing it in a bright room, however, you might want to move the OneConnect box away from where the TV is placed to keep things super clean, and especially if you can get the Samsung S95F at a good price.
Whereas the LG offers the better overall picture quality, but with a glossy display that could be problematic in bright environments. Albeit at a price that’s most likely more than the Samsung.
But honestly, they’re both amazing TVs, and unless you put them side by side to compare, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.
If you want to see my comparison of a Sonos setup vs a traditional 5.1 setup then click here, otherwise see you next time: https://www.petematheson.com/sonos-vs-3-000-home-cinema-setup-why-i-got-both/
