49” LG NANO85 HDMI 2.1 4K@120Hz IPS TV as monitor?

Scrith

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Has anybody tried the 49” LG NANO85 as a monitor? It has HDMI 2.1 for 4K@120Hz, an IPS panel (like most computer monitors) with no burn-in problem, and it’s only $499 at Best Buy.
 
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Its terrible for gaming. The only gaming TV you want is the C9/CX Oled's. The Nano's cant even compete.
 
So every non-OLED monitor is terrible for gaming? Don’t tell the computer monitor manufacturers about that! How about after 3 months when the OLED that costs 3x as much is suffering from burn-in because you used it for something other than gaming one day?
As far as gaming is concerned the LG NanoCell series is listed on the nVidia website as an HDMI 2.1 LG TV supported by the RTX 30 series of video cards (and the 8K NanoCell models are the only ones supporting 8K with RTX 3000 cards, it seems), so it seems unlikely that it is "terrible for gaming."
 
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So every non-OLED monitor is terrible for gaming? Don’t tell the computer monitor manufacturers about that! How about after 3 months when the OLED that costs 3x as much is suffering from burn-in because you used it for something other than gaming one day?
And the NANOCELL series is listed on the nVidia website as an HDMI 2.1 LG TV supported by the RTX 30 series of video cards (and the 8K NANOCELL models are the only ones supporting 8K with RTX 3000 cards).
I've been using my CX daily for 8+ hours longer than that and it has zero burn-in.

The LG Nano seems to have pretty low input lag for a TV so it should be fine for gaming. According to Rtings.com review it has pretty bad HDR performance. It also uses PWM backlight dimming which might cause headaches for some people using it all day.

The same main caveats that apply to the CX 48" apply to the LG Nano as well. It's a big TV. Using it as a desktop monitor you are going to have to put it 1+ meters away to make it a comfortable viewing experience. Unless you have a stand or desk that lets you do that, expect to budget for a floor stand or wall mount.

As a CX owner I can tell you that if the CX OLED wasn't the best damn gaming display on the market, I would rather use something smaller. I make it work for me and enjoy its image quality but if this was just a LCD I would not deal with it when smaller LCDs more suitable for monitor use are on the market.
 
I’ve come very close to pulling the trigger on a CX purchase, but the downsides always stop me: this monitor is for a computer I use all day for work (and all PC gaming, usually outside work hours), so I really think burn-in is going to be an issue due to certain windows and icons being visible throughout the entire day (for which there is no real workaround), and, secondly, the room where this office-like setup is located has several windows that I don’t want to cover during the day (I prefer not to work in a cave), and I know an LG OLED’s screen is extremely reflective (a problem with my other LG OLED TVs)...and the NanoCell TV has a relatively matte finish, like most IPS panels (another reason they are used with computers).

Distance-wise, a 48” 4K monitor has the same resolution and pixel size as 4 24” 1920x1080 monitors, of which I already have 3 in my current workspace, so I’m already accustomed to working with a large screen area with that dot pitch.

For $499 it seems like an interesting experiment for a 4K 120Hz computer monitor...I was just curious if anyone else had tried using one as a monitor.
 
I’ve come very close to pulling the trigger on a CX purchase, but the downsides always stop me: this monitor is for a computer I use all day for work (and all PC gaming, usually outside work hours), so I really think burn-in is going to be an issue due to certain windows and icons being visible throughout the entire day (for which there is no real workaround), and, secondly, the room where this office-like setup is located has several windows that I don’t want to cover during the day (I prefer not to work in a cave), and I know an LG OLED’s screen is extremely reflective (a problem with my other LG OLED TVs)...and the NanoCell TV has a relatively matte finish, like most IPS panels (another reason they are used with computers).

Distance-wise, a 48” 4K monitor has the same resolution and pixel size as 4 24” 1920x1080 monitors, of which I already have 3 in my current workspace, so I’m already accustomed to working with a large screen area with that dot pitch.

For $499 it seems like an interesting experiment for a 4K 120Hz computer monitor...I was just curious if anyone else had tried using one as a monitor.
The 48” TV is still a little different than 4 24” monitors, specifically in that the TV is fully flat, whereas your monitors are probably independently angled toward you. At closer viewing distances, this could be a big deal. I would try arranging your monitors all flat first to see if that’s really what you want. If you’re still ok with it, then go for it.
 
Here’s a video review of someone using it with an RTX 3080. Not much discussion of using it as a monitor for Windows though.
 
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Here’s a video review from someone using it with an RTX 3080:

Keep in mind that it’s $499 at Best Buy right now...

To be honest it already sounds like you made your mind up? Why haven't you bought it yet?
 
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To be honest is already sounds like you made your mind up? Why haven't you bought it yet?
Yeah, I was thinking that too. He glossed right over the pluses of oled and the easy ways to mitigate potential burn in. His loss, I guess.... Can't say I care what he gets honestly.
 
Yeah, I was thinking that too. He glossed right over the pluses of oled and the easy ways to mitigate potential burn in. His loss, I guess.... Can't say I care what he gets honestly.
Sorry, I got tired of reading about how easy it is to mitigate burn-in after about 20 pages of the 150-page CX thread. I use my monitor for 8+ hours a day for work these days, much of which consists of looking at windows in fixed positions full of text (with the occasional game window that is usually paused and full of debug text). There is literally no way to do that on an OLED without making your computer screen look like a Halloween decoration, based on that CX thread (switch to all-black backgrounds, hide task bars, use a screen saver that turns the screen black after one minute, move the windows regularly, etc.). Seriously, that thread is just a bit one-sided in its assumption that the only thing that matters when it comes to displays iis how good they are for action games and movies, almost like listening to drag racers trying to justify why their hot rod works great in city traffic. OLEDs are great for TV, that’s why I have 3, but if you actually need to regularly perform some sort of non-gaming activity on your PC for hours at a time, it isn’t realistic to use them due to their limitations with bright static pixels, no matter how great it looks when you start watching a movie or playing a 3D action game (without a bright static UI, hopefully).

Anyway, my main interest is knowing how doing something like reading or writing a document works on a TV like this. Gaming-wise it seems to be at least as good as the old HP 1920x1080 monitors I’m using now.
 
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Sorry, I got tired of reading about how easy it is to mitigate burn-in after about 20 pages of the 150-page CX thread. I use my monitor for 8+ hours a day for work these days, much of which consists of looking at windows in fixed positions full of text (with the occasional game window that is usually paused and full of debug text). There is literally no way to do that on an OLED without making your computer screen look like a Halloween decoration, based on that CX thread (switch to all-black backgrounds, hide task bars, use a screen saver that turns the screen black after one minute, move the windows regularly, etc.). Seriously, that thread is just a bit one-sided in its assumption that the only thing that matters when it comes to displays iis how good they are for action games and movies, almost like listening to drag racers trying to justify why their hot rod works great in city traffic. OLEDs are great for TV, that’s why I have 3, but if you actually need to regularly perform some sort of non-gaming activity on your PC for hours at a time, it isn’t realistic to use them due to their limitations with bright static pixels, no matter how great it looks when you start watching a movie or playing a 3D action game (without a bright static UI, hopefully).

Anyway, my main interest is knowing how doing something like reading or writing a document works on a TV like this. Gaming-wise it seems to be at least as good as the old HP 1920x1080 monitors I’m using now.
Just to put the record straight as someone who actually uses it for 8+ hours a day for work (programming) and uses it for gaming etc I can tell you it works fine. Will it be without burn-in in 3+ years? I don't know, but I am willing to take that chance. By that time I expect something better to be on the market.

Doing burn-in mitigation isn't as much work as you think. I don't know about you, but I rarely even see my desktop background so it being there is irrelevant. Thanks to true blacks OLED actually looks pretty cool with windows floating in a void. Hiding taskbar/topbar/dock is not a real problem, there is rarely anything that relevant there anyway. Turning the display off from the remote when taking a longer break is second nature by now. Using dark mode wherever it is available is certainly the biggest concession. Not all apps offer it so those that don't can look pretty bright in comparison.

I am willing to work with the impracticalities of my LG CX 48 to get the OLED image quality. Given the choice, I would like this in a smaller 38-43" display or alternatively a 8K version of the same. That does not exist so it's just a compromise you need to deal with if you want OLED.

Since you already own OLEDs, just give them a try as a desktop monitor and make a decision if that is an acceptable way to work for you as far as things like text clarity, desktop space, using it etc goes. The same things will apply to the 49" NANO.

I totally get that the "OLED or nothing" mentality gets pretty old, there are certainly viable LCDs on the market too and it sounds like for your situation it's not great if you want to use it in a room with lots of light and possibly bright reflections. I just don't think the 49" NANO is it. It is still a large TV with all the caveats that brings, on top of being just a mediocre LCD TV with bad HDR and not that great pixel response times. I think it would be an ok desktop display but a pretty bad gaming one. Its lower cost to me does not mitigate the fact that it does not have anything going for it but 4K 120 Hz and low input lag.

If I was going for an LCD, I'd rather have the 49" Samsung G9 super ultrawide or the 38" AW3821DW. Those are more practical desktop size things and do pretty nicely for both work and gaming. They are pretty expensive though. I own the G9 predecessor CRG9 and while it's far from perfect for gaming, I really like it as a desktop display. The G9 improves on the gaming front. Still mediocre HDR.
 
Thanks Kassaka, that information is helpful. I spend my day programming too (PC and console video games) and appreciate tall displays (2 of my 1920x1080 monitors are oriented vertically), so getting 2160 vertical vs 1920 seems like a good thing, and it also means the ultra wide monitors aren't going to work for me. When testing and debugging I'm usually running the game in a window or full screen on one of the 1920x1080 monitors (which are also hooked up to devkits). Visual Studio is on full time, with its many bars full of icons, along with several other apps, so, really, an OLED just isn't in the cards no matter how wondrous they look for full-screen game graphics and video.

This idea that somehow all other monitors became obsolete the minute someone plugged an OLED into a computer is just silly...even the manufacturers plainly acknowledge this (not a single one is selling an OLED as a regular computer monitor, despite having access to many types of OLED panels). Anyway, maybe I'll just take a flyer on it, given the price.
 
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Thanks Kassaka, that information is helpful. I spend my day programming too (PC and console video games) and appreciate tall displays (2 of my 1920x1080 monitors are oriented vertically), so getting 2160 vertical vs 1920 seems like good thing, and it also means the ultra wide monitors aren't going to work for me. When testing and debugging I'm usually running in a window or full screen on one of the 1920x1080 monitors (which are also hooked up to devkits). Visual Studio is on full time, with its many bars full of icons, along with several other apps, so, really, an OLED just isn't in the cards no matter how wondrous they look for full-screen game graphics and video.

This idea that somehow all other monitors became obsolete the minute someone plugged an OLED into a computer is just silly...even the manufacturers plainly acknowledge this (not a single one is selling an OLED as a computer monitor, despite having access to many types of OLED panels). Anyway, maybe I'll just take a flyer on it, given the price.
I'd still say a single 49" vs 3x24" is a different game because of the single flat display vs several you can angle a bit towards you. If it were up to me the CX 48" would also be curved.

For the record my typical work setup is 3 virtual desktops on MacOS. 1: Terminals, a couple of browsers, iOS and Android emulators and Visual Studio Code. 2: Communications apps like Teams, Slack, Outlook as well as some random stuff like Spotify, Reminders, time tracking etc. 3: Just a large Vivaldi browser window for personal stuff when I want to take a break and browse some websites or watch a YouTube video. I switch between the virtual desktops enough that it's not an entirely static screen. I prefer to run at 120% scaling to get a font size that is comfortable for my viewing distance even if I lose a good chunk of desktop space like that.
 
Thanks Kassaka, that information is helpful. I spend my day programming too (PC and console video games) and appreciate tall displays (2 of my 1920x1080 monitors are oriented vertically), so getting 2160 vertical vs 1920 seems like good thing, and it also means the ultra wide monitors aren't going to work for me. When testing and debugging I'm usually running in a window or full screen on one of the 1920x1080 monitors (which are also hooked up to devkits). Visual Studio is on full time, with its many bars full of icons, along with several other apps, so, really, an OLED just isn't in the cards no matter how wondrous they look for full-screen game graphics and video.

This idea that somehow all other monitors became obsolete the minute someone plugged an OLED into a computer is just silly...even the manufacturers plainly acknowledge this (not a single one is selling an OLED as a computer monitor, despite having access to many types of OLED panels). Anyway, maybe I'll just take a flyer on it, given the price.
https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/new...0qf/apd/210-auds/monitors-monitor-accessories
https://www.amazon.com/ProArt-PQ22U...eature_three_browse-bin:724229011&s=pc&sr=1-2
 
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I had the Lg nano85. I didn't like it at all. I know it has the new console specs like 4k 120hz, vrr. But, at the moment is not worth it for ps5 owners( I don't own a gaming PC nor Xbox series X). I think the only 120hz is call of duty. And, ps5 does not support vrr at the moment.
I will link what I posted in another thread.

https://hardforum.com/threads/new-sony-xbr-x950h.1995788/
 
I switched from 3 x 24" to a 43" 4k LG 43UD79 a few years ago. You get use to sitting back a little further. It isn't much difference to anyone who has mutli-monitor setup.

My primary task is development work (doesn't leave much time for gaming). I've been debating justifying the cost of the 48CX versus 49NANO. Most likely going to buy the 49NANO and get a new office chair (Steelcase).
 
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I think the only real problem with the NANO TVs, is the backlight bleed and IPS glow, from reviews I have seen, it's worse than older IPS models and PC monitors, by far.
 
I picked one up today. Man, what a huge improvement over my old 24" 1920x1080 monitors! Yeah, it's only an IPS, but my screen is full of text on white backgrounds that would probably burn-in in a couple of days on an OLED (I have zero interest in converting my desktop to a pitch black working space to make it OLED compatible).

This is the biggest $499 upgrade I've ever made, I think. Backlight-bleed wise, I'm really not seeing a major problem (much less so than the old 3 old HP 24" monitors it replaced), but I'm running at 50% brightness and 80% contrast in power-saving mode (otherwise I'd probably go blind staring at a giant wall of code and text).

A true bargain for 4K at 120Hz via HDMI 2.1, in my opinion.

By the way, I just checked Best Buy and it looks like they raised the price...it's now $599 there (but might be cheaper elsewhere).
 
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I've been using this for work and gaming (two PCs) for over a month now and I still love it.

No, it's no an OLED. But an OLED would get burned-in pixels after about one week with the type of work I do, I'm guessing. This thing will probably last at least 5 years (based on past experience with IPS panels).

4K? Check.
120Hz refresh rate? Check.
HDMI 2.1 Inputs (w/ full 48 Gbps support) for consoles and/or PC? Check (2 HDMI 2.1 ports).
GSync compatible? Check.
HDR Support with good brightness (I run it in Windows with the backlight at only 70)? Check.
IPS Panel with zero burn-in issues? Check.
Same pixel pitch as a 24" 1920x1080 display? Check (it's equivalent to 4 of them without borders).
LG TV interface with support for Netflix, Amazon Prime, YouTube, etc. built in? Check.
Under $500-$600? Check.
 
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Does it support Gsync, VRR, etc? Sounds like a pretty good deal, my 1440p 144hz monitor with gsync was $550 (2-3 years ago but still)
 
Does it support Gsync, VRR, etc? Sounds like a pretty good deal, my 1440p 144hz monitor with gsync was $550 (2-3 years ago but still)
Yes, it supports GSync (nVidia specifically mentioned that the LG NANO85 series is GSync compatible on one of its web pages, as I recall). I've verified it using a couple of games (including Cyberpunk 2077, which is amazing in 4K at 120Hz).
 
I picked one up today. Man, what a huge improvement over my old 24" 1920x1080 monitors! Yeah, it's only an IPS, but my screen is full of text on white backgrounds that would probably burn-in in a couple of days on an OLED (I have zero interest in converting my desktop to a pitch black working space to make it OLED compatible).

This is the biggest $499 upgrade I've ever made, I think. Backlight-bleed wise, I'm really not seeing a major problem (much less so than the old 3 old HP 24" monitors it replaced), but I'm running at 50% brightness and 80% contrast in power-saving mode (otherwise I'd probably go blind staring at a giant wall of code and text).

A true bargain for 4K at 120Hz via HDMI 2.1, in my opinion.

By the way, I just checked Best Buy and it looks like they raised the price...it's now $599 there (but might be cheaper elsewhere).

I bought one in early Jan and very happy with it. My primary use is for work and have had no issues using it for extended hours.
 
Hello!
I am thinking about doing same thing and using LG-s tv as monitor.
I found that store has these models:
49NANO813
49NANO803
49NANO863
The last one is about 80eur more expensive than others. The first two difference is in the stand and "legs". But are the first two models different to the 863 and how?
The LG model names are tricky.
 
499 for those specs it's a fantastic deal! it might not have the oled blacks but price wise it's by far the best choice.
 
Seems to be 599 everywhere now, which would be a great value if I didn't know it was 499 not so long ago! Anyone have any tips as to where to get it now at that price? Interested in any further feedback on first hand experiences with this TV as a mixed console/ PC monitor device.
 
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Got tired of waiting for it to go back to $499 so I bought it at the $599 price from best buy. I use it solely as my desktop monitor and it was buy far the best decision I've made in a long time. I mounted it with a floor mount (https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=39657) and had to pull my desk back a bit for proper viewing distances but I can't see ever going back to a normal monitor again. I was torn between this set and the LG OLED but wasn't comfortable mitigating burn-in with all of the work arounds (auto hiding taskbar, black backgrounds, constant worry over static images, etc). My advice....make sure you have a newer graphics card that supports HDMI 2.1 so that the 120hz works and go for it.
 
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