LG Infinia 42LV5500 42″ LED HDTV Review – Weighing The Pros And Cons

Posted on by

It’s a fact that in our modern high tech world everything is better in high def. People are filling their homes with high definition home theaters and surround sound systems and creating a truly magnificent and unique home entertainment experience. Some of the top names in home electronics have always been Samsung, LG, Toshiba, Pioneer and Vizio. These and other brands keep coming up with the latest and greatest in home video and sound. The Blu Ray players, for example, now come with built in WiFi, which we did not have a couple of years ago, like the Pioneer Elite Players, that allow you even more media options via streaming from the Internet.

One such product is the LG Infinia 42LV5500 HD LED television that provides a ton of attractive features. With an excellent picture, sound and Internet connection for streaming music, movies and tv shows from various Internet services, this televisions sounds great. But, let’s see the various pros and cons and if the price tag for this HDTV might be too ambitious.

Key Features

  • Retail: $850-1,259
  • Released: 2011
  • 3D-Ready: No
  • Screen Size: 42″ LED-Lit with 1920 x 1080 pixels resolution
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:09
  • Contrast Ratio: 5,000,000:1
  • Refresh Rate: 120 Hz
  • Viewing Angle: 180°/180° Horizontal/Vertical
  • Response Time: 2.6 ms
  • Connectivity: Wi-Fi Ready
  • HDMI Inputs: 4
  • Dimensions: 39.8 x 1.2 x 24.3 inches

The Pros Of The LG Infinia 42LV5500

Picture Quality
Considering the “lower” price tag of this set the picture quality is extremely good and is usually seen only with more expensive brands of HDTV. It delivers an excellent contrast ratio, showing excellent range of dark colors, super sharp resolution, along with good motion display thanks to TruMotion 120Hz technology. The good motion display means that you will not have to be annoyed by images that blur as with other models, a truly essential features for action movies and sports shows.

Picture Controls
Most HDTV models usually need some tweaking out of the box in order to create the kind of picture quality that you want, like brightness, contrast, color. The picture controls on the LG Infinia 42LV5500 are very user friendly, because of the built-in “picture wizard”. This is a step by step guide which will guide you through every one of the options.

The LG Infinia 42LV5500 also features automatic brightness adjustment as an element of its energy saving functions. As the light in the room changes, so the television will automatically adjust to save power.

Wi-Fi Connection
Usually it is only the really expensive high end models that come with Wi-Fi included as a standard, and since this LG HDTV does and in its price class that a big bonus for any potential customer. Also, the ability to download various compatible apps means you can connect to your favorite video and social networking websites right from the television.

Remote
There are two remotes, one is the standard remote and the other is called a “Magic Motion” remote, which is the minimal option and it looks and feels totally great.

LG Smart TV And The Customizable Dashboard
Another feature of the LG Infinia 42LV5500 that makes it a superior model is that it comes with LG Smart TV. This feature allows you to arrange all the your downloaded apps into your own personalized dashboard which in turn makes it easier to organize and access your faves.

Sound Quality
The reviews are mixed concerning the sound quality of the LG Infinia 42LV5500. This is not surprising considering the fact that no HDTV is going to have the best quality sound because of their very thin design it is difficult to fit quality speakers, which is why most people add the surround sound speakers or home theater sets. But one of the biggest pros of the LG is that many users report that the sound is actually quite excellent with this model of HDTV, especially when compared to other models in its price range on the market. But, keep ion mind, in order to have the true to life cinema experience you will need to get a surround sound system.

The Cons Of The LG Infinia 42LV5500

The Cost
One of the cons is the price since it is little more than you’d usually pay for an HDTV with this screen size. It is in fact the Wi-Fi connectivity along with the apps that has made the price so high.

Poor Selection Of Apps
Another big con is the amount of apps, where many users are finding that the LG Infinia 42LV5500 is behind when compared to other models and their available apps.

No Flash On The Web Browser
Despite the fact that there’s an integrated internet browser, which is definitely a benefit, it doesn’t feature Flash support. This indicates you won’t be able to watch videos on most websites, or view websites that use Flash. This is a major negative aspect for those who use their television and Internet together a lot.

Remote
While the remote is great, it could have been better had it included a full Qwerty keyboard. A lot of the top internet-ready TVs feature one due to the fact that it can make it easier to browse the web, update Facebook status and much more.

The Bottom Line

Regrettably, the LG Infinia 42LV5500 falls short when it comes to the Internet features. while the picture quality is good and it does have a lot of extras for a model in its price class if the Internet capability and consequent features is important to you then you might want to look elsewhere. If the Internet is less of or a non existent concern then this is certainly a top quality and highly recommended HDTV model.

Comments are closed.