LG 42" C4 OLED Review - A Small TV or a Good Monitor?

If you have energy saving turned to auto I doubt you'll get burn in

My best use case for this tv as a monitor:
Create a custom resolution of 3840x1600 in windows, and set a 21:9 aspect ratio in the tv game optimizer settings:

Then it becomes a 38 inch ultra wide monitor for computer use

Just got the LGC4 42in for a monitor and its great.

How does this compare to the Alienware AW3225QF

I'm using the 48"' c4 on a MacBook M1 and I absolutely love it. The MacBook M1's HDMI port is HDMI 2.0 so it's necessary to DISABLE HDR to get 4:4:4. Running 4:4:4 SDR in native non-scaled 4K resolution I notice no text fringing on MacOS. ClearType on Windows even through Remote Desktop can also be configured to use grey instead of RGB, although since disabling HDR it hasn't been much of an issue if I don't tweak the ClearType settings.

Even with 4:4:4, I wasn't having any luck forcing RGB mode until I installed BetterDisplay. It just wasn't worth the fuss when BetterDisplay has a free 14 day trial and then only costs $20, although 8 bit RGB over 8 bit YCbCr might not be all that important.

I know there are USB to HDMI 2.1 adapters that allowed for 120Hz until more recent MacOS releases broke that workaround. Will those adapters allow me to get 4:4:4 HDR without fringing at 60Hz? Will it allow 10-bit instead of 8-bit SDR at 60Hz? I need to find out, but 8-bit SDR in game mode has no noticeable latency to me and looks great. Brightness is also more than adequate for productivity use and avoiding excessive brightness logically will reduce the likelihood of burn-in.

I do hide the Dock after I found a way to make it reappear without delay. I don't currently hide the menu bar but I might look for a hack to alternate the menu bar text between black and white.

Hammerspoon and LGWebOSRemote are working well for powering down and powering up the TV when the display needs to sleep and or wake. M3 MacBooks apparently can do this using HDMI CEC (and also have HDMI 2.1 120hz without any special hacks).

Please test the 42 inch s90d

So how is gamma/color accuracy with full rgb input and 444 passthrough? I know my C9 hates those.

Specially 444 chroma which needs pc mode enabled which has bad gamma tracking in comparison...

The issue with using a TV as a monitor is that they usually don't support SRGB gamma, just 2.2. So if you want to use SRGB gamma on windows for SDR content, you'll have to enable HDR in windows and keep it on even when viewing SDR content.

I returned mine after a week, the dimming in game mode is absurd. Went with the Sony A90k instead that doesn't dim in game mode and is more detailed with reality creation on.

I’d consider it for a monitor is they add DisplayPort. Need it for Radeon on Linux.

Lots of comments about bad panels, must be a lottery though. Bought my 42"c4 2 weeks ago and critically inspected it, literally none of these issues people are having, mine is perfect. Maybe I got a golden sample? Definitely a risk when purchasing though

Using 42c2 and I see no difference yet again, very happy with my purchase.
I guess be waiting for that C5 or C6 if I am to upgrade

People who maybe interested in this TV (as a moniotor) would probably already own the legendary C2 42 - I think your video could be useful if you could at least compare it to the older model instead of just glossing over S90D 42 (which you don't even have the data to compare)

It's not about whether you should get this TV as a monitor alone, but also about whether you should upgrade from your current set up with C2 42

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why you not mentioned
green-pink tint problem? not green tint problem when viewing from an angle but when you sitting in the center of a screen? It's especially visible on white bg (different color temperature between center and both sides) and if moving around - tint also moving. Delta E 7-10 on both sides with spectroradiometer according to man in comments below.

like if sitting in the center of the screen clearly visible that on center color temperature much warmer than on both sides. not a just a little bit. It's distracting and annoying. why no one mention it in reviews? Cause reddit full of hundreds and hundreds posts about this problem.

It's almost invisible in games, but in desktop mode, for example, when surfing or working, or in movies like Dune - problem absolutely visible and annoying.

As a current G2 owner I love LG OLEDS and want to replace my bedroom tv with a C4 sometime between Black Friday and Super Bowl Sunday and was all set on the 48” size but wow the 42’s & 48’s are rip offs. Only $200 more for the 55” I’m definitely going to get the 55”

7.0 text clarity? Pass

seriously considering this 42" as its on sale on amazon at the moment. How bad is the text fringing on this thing? Have they made any improvements since earlier models or is it inherent to the pixel layout and unfixable? I watch videos and play games but I also do a lot of web browsing/reading.

I would prefer a 34” or 36” option. Also these LG oled tv panels have a distracting green tint on the glass when viewed at an angle and don’t have the improved sub-pixel text layout. So I would not use the C4 as a monitor.

Whats the best HDR peak brightness Setting in Windows HDR? 780? On the 42 c4

I have been testing C3 for a few days and i didnt notice a single problem with text clarity or sharpness... 🤷‍♂
Currently waiting for discounts to get C4...

Would this work well as an Autocad / Revit monitor, requiring very good detail? My secondary use would be to watch TV and movies. I currently use (2) 27" Asus 1440 dp monitors, but would like a big monitor in the middle. I would prefer Oled for watching TV & movies also. I thought the C4 would be it, but after this review, I don't know. It has to render quality lines, text, & colors.

Stop moving your hands so much.

very informative and sadly need to keep watching hope you do a top 10 4k monitor round up for end of years would be great merci prendre en consideration

Is there a way to fix color banding? I'm on an Nvidia 4090 and it's absolutely ATROCIOUS

Please Help Me:
I just installed this exact TV and only actions I’ve done so far is plug HDMI from new  Mini Mac Pro and paired my HK speakers via BT and also plugged in the 3.5 jack as backup.

I get some LG prompts asking for a code so it will default to  I put it something but I can’t find any code waiting on screen or on any device and I’m stuck on this screen.

Far as sound, i am hearing a random tick from the speakers when things are not making sound like a paused video or just on Home Screen as if someone is tinking with a cable. Should I remove the 3.5 jack and rely on BT for my HK sound sticks or use the 3.5 and not BT for the best audio experience possible?
Do I need to shut off the TV speakers maybe as that might conflict or will that help with more stereo like sound?

Just the review I’m looking for since I’m looking for a TV for my small condo unit lol

hands, lol

It's a great monitor. I've had my C2 for a while now and I've also tried the AW3225QF amd Asus pg32ucdm. I kept the C2 as both qd-oled monitor were far to dim in comparison

Compare price of this TV and the monitor, i prefer to buy TV. Much monitors oled only reach 1440p resolutions and in small sizes. O seached a lot for my next screen, this tv is complet for me. But, i fear about the time response. It's 5ms😢

Why not review the g4 as a monitor especially because it has multiview???

What they dont mention is that whites appear slightly green, and explosions in movies and games have a slight green tinge.

What do you mean by a small TV? The biggest TV in my house is 43" and the smallest one is 22" but I plan to replace that one with 32". Those extremely large sizes, I have basically no where to fit. Maybe in place of that 43" I could fit a 50" but even for that I'm not 100% sure, I'd have to measure it.

Text is insanely sharp. No fringe. And burn in is BS unless you're an idiot. Case in point: I've had a BX with heavy use for 4 years.

I have the LG 42 C3 as a PC monitor. The first thing you need to know about using a TV as a monitor is that its a TV! You need to turn it on and off with the PC. Something a monitor will automatically do is turn on and off with your PC. Sure you can use LG companion to do this. But its still not the same. Oled is great for games. Looks breathtaking! However, when you want to do any word documents, productivity or even surf the web. You can really see the disadvantages of oled. The text clarity is not that great. I mean its not bad, and I am also using Mactype to help with this; It still is a minus when using this TV as a montior. Honestly the best monitor I have used all around has been the LG 38 with 144hz, or what I really want is the Dell 40 inch 120hz 5k monitor. Excellent PPI and text clarity.. with medium gaming experience.

I got a C2 and a C4 as monitors. And their text is crystal clear. Gaming on them is a dream.

the 42" don't have the EVO panel which is brighter. why? and it happens again like in C2 + C3. who makes these terrible decisions? Samsung and Sony do the same nonsense. Samsung S90C is QD-Oled. the 43" size is not. what???
SDR brightness 6.4? and they want to market this for PC gamer where most people have their PC in a lit area and not in a basement with 0 lights? ? i wanted to get a TV for bigger size but not big like 55" or 65" cause it's too big, but as it seems i'll buy a OLED monitor. the TV's brightness is not good for PC gaming. i choose the smaller size and brighter over the bigger size and darker. 3rd gen and still can't get it right for PC gaming. maybe in 10th gen they will. until then i'm buying an OLED monitor.

I use it as a monitor. Only downside for me is having to use the remote to turn it on and off instead of using Windows sleep.

C4 is a good hybrid. You can game, work and watch movies in this screen.

Can you game on 1440p on the LG C4 42" 4k?

I have a 4060(planning to upgrade to 4070 super or 4080 soon). but at the meantime can I game using this GPU on LG C4 42" which is a 4k monitor? Is there an option to use 1440p resolution in that TV?

Also can anyone share their experience using this TV as a monitor? how does it compare to a normal monitor?

did you really took a bite on that orange?!? hahaha as a child I did once and wow hahahaha my lips were on fire lol

Does filmmaker mode have the same doubled input lag as cinema mode? Visually, Filmmaker mode looks identical to Game optimizer mode but brighter at the same OLED pixel brightness setting number, and filmmaker mode is supposed to disable image processing.

This TV looks like a scam. I have a 48" LG OLED A1 and want to get the 42" C4 for my bedroom because I assumed it would have a much better SDR and HDR brightness. Looks like the 55" and other models do have much better brightness but the 42" is just slightly better or even worse in some cases than my current A1 though it costs a lot more than my A1 did.

C2 user, and I'm just amazed at this TV as a monitor, gaming on this is like watching a movie in the cinema, pure action!

Hi, I wanted to know why when I play on PS5 with my LG C4 I notice a lot of flickering wen I move the camera, I've tried everything to resolve it, the only solution I've found is to disable all the response time functions and activate OLED Motion but the image becomes much less bright, I wanted to know if it's normal to have a lot of flickering and above all if OLED Motion is safe to always have active, or do I risk damaging the panel? Thanks



Does PH have HdR ?

So no one talks about eye strain when using it as a monitor. I cant use mine :/

I have been happy using the 55" C1 OLED 4K TV for the last 3 years as a monitor. 3080ti playing at 4K. I wont go back to anything smaller to play on.