Samsung Frame vs LG Gallery TV: which is better?
If you want your TV to blend into your home, you can’t beat these two entrants from Samsung and LG. But which is better? We put them to the test.
The battle for the world’s best aesthetic TV rages on. LG has a new ‘Gallery’ TV, and Samsung has updated its famous Frame. So which is better?
Our take
As usual, the answer is complicated. But in 2023, it gets a little simpler.
It all comes down to what you value most: aesthetics or performance.
I have reviewed both LG Gallery TVs and Samsung Frame TVs for the last four years. The battle between the two has been fierce.
It has always been about creating a TV that looks as good while it’s off as it does when it’s on.
But this year, LG seems to have other priorities. After a decade of OLED leadership, the new ‘Gallery’ TV prioritises picture over design.
The Frame, meanwhile, prioritises design over picture.
2023 LG G Series (‘Gallery’) TV
First things first: LG has told me it isn’t calling it a ‘Gallery’ TV anymore. It’s just ‘G’. It’s cleaner.
The new name should give you a pretty big hint as to how it compares with the new Frame from Samsung.
Samsung wants to create the unparalleled style TV, LG wants to create a TV with a picture so good it will boggle your mind. It certainly boggled my mind at LG’s TV briefings this week.
The picture quality is second-to-none, and it sits at the top of LG’s latest range of OLED TVs. What makes it special is how much is going on between the pixels and your eyes to make it so crisp and vibrant.
LG told me this week that it has put a number of layers and ‘lenses’ on top of the panel to make sure that the billions of pixels perform at their best.
The new Alpha9 processor is also no slouch. LG told me that it analyses 20,000 areas of the panel to optimise the power and light distribution. Combined with the insane layering tech, it’s an amazing experience I’m absolutely in love with.
I’ve never looked at a TV that has had more vivid colours, deeper blacks or better performance. It’s the best performing TV I think I have ever seen with my own eyes.
But the name still gives it away. It’s a G Series now. Not a ‘Gallery’. As a result, Samsung still runs rings around it when it comes to how good it looks while it’s off.
The art mode still leaves a lot to be desired. And there aren’t partnerships with major galleries around the world built-in like there are on The Frame.
When you turn it off, it’s still just a big black rectangle in the middle of your lounge room.
2023 Samsung The Frame
Then there’s The Frame. The best-looking TV ever made. I’ve never been happier to call it that.
Samsung is pretty happy with it too, given that The Frame in 2023 is almost identical to The Frame from 2022.
As I mentioned in my comparison between The Frame 2022 and The Frame 2023, Samsung has forgone a screen upgrade for quality-of-life enhancements. There’s no new panel – it’s still QLED – but you do get new metal bezels (optional extra), and a new Art Store with NFT support.
It’s better at looking good when it’s off than the LG Gallery TV thanks to an anti-reflective matte screen coating, and the new Art Store to boot.
With The Frame 2023, however, you need to be careful. Not every model in the range gets the latest gear. Samsung told me at its launch last week that only the larger sizes of The Frame get the good stuff. Screen sizes under the 55-inch are only 1080p instead of 4K, feature older processors and have slower refresh rates.
If you want the absolute best Samsung Frame you can get in 2023, you need to be looking at either 55-inches or above.
Which one should you buy?
After going eyes-on with them both this week, they’re still both fantastic TVs. You won’t be disappointed with either The Frame 2023 or LG’s new G Series Gallery TV.
This year (more than ever), it’s the best in style versus the best performer.
The Frame from Samsung looks more natural in the home than ever. With the matte display, new art store and new bezels, it’s the best looking TV ever made.
But The Frame still features a QLED panel from Samsung. QLED can’t contend with the sheer picture power I saw in the new LG G Series TVs this week.
The new OLED Evo panel has so much going on behind the scenes it’s hard to comprehend. The vibrancy of the colour and depth of the black is better than ever before. LG has thrown absolutely everything at it to make it the best OLED on the market, and succeeded.
But the LG G Series is still a bloody big black rectangle in your space. It can’t do a good job of showing arty images when it’s off. And even when it tries, the glare reminds you it’s a TV posing as art.
If you want a TV that performs well and looks incredible, you’re a Samsung Frame customer. If you’re someone who wants picture quality that defies industry standard, you’ll want an LG G Series OLED 2023.
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