LG OLED65C56LA C5 65-Inch TV Review: Premium theater experience at home?

Pros & Cons

Detailed Review

First Impressions

When the delivery guys hauled this 65-inch beast into my Bangalore flat, I genuinely worried about my wall mount. At roughly 18kg without the stand, it’s manageable but you’ll want two people for installation. The panel itself is impossibly thin – we’re talking about 4-5mm at the thinnest point. The new stand design sits lower than the C4, which I appreciated since my soundbar actually fits underneath now.

How I Tested This

I’ve been using this TV for about three weeks now. Watched the entire IPL season on it through JioCinema, binged Panchayat Season 3 on Prime Video, and gamed extensively on my PS5. I specifically tested it during afternoon viewing with my west-facing windows letting in harsh Mumbai summer sunlight – this is where the improved brightness really matters. Also ran several HDR demo clips and my usual 4K Blu-ray torture tests including Dune Part Two and Oppenheimer.

Performance

The picture quality is, frankly, ridiculous. Those perfect blacks that OLED is famous for? Still unmatched. But what impressed me more is how the C5 handles bright scenes. LG claims about 20% brightness improvement over the C4, and while I can’t measure that precisely, watching cricket during daytime genuinely felt better. The AI processing does a decent job with upscaling – even 720p JioCinema streams looked cleaner than expected.

For gaming, the 144Hz refresh rate with G-Sync and FreeSync support is fantastic. Input lag in Game Mode hovers around 9-10ms at 4K/120Hz, which is excellent. I noticed zero issues with VRR flicker that plagued some earlier OLEDs.

webOS 25 is snappy and familiar. All the Indian apps are here – Hotstar, Prime, Netflix, JioCinema, Sony Liv. The Magic Remote still feels premium, though I mostly use voice commands now.

Value for Money

Here’s where I have to be honest – at launch pricing of ₹2.3-2.5 lakhs, this feels steep when the C4 is available for significantly less. The improvements are real but incremental. If you’re coming from a C2 or older, absolutely worth it. C4 owners? Maybe wait.

Sound quality is passable for casual viewing but you’ll want a soundbar. I paired it with my Sony HT-A5000 and the eARC worked flawlessly.

Concerns

Burn-in remains a theoretical worry for OLED, though LG’s panel protection features have gotten robust. I’ve seen plenty of C1 and C2 TVs still going strong after years of use. The 2-year warranty LG offers in India provides some peace of mind.

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