The LG G4 77" — A TV People Buy, Then Question, Then Love

The LG G4 77" OLED has become a kind of benchmark TV in enthusiast communities. It shows up constantly in home theater forums, gaming PC build threads, and upgrade debates — not because people are unhappy with it, but because it keeps being the thing other people are measuring against. That's a good sign.

Before diving in: the sources available here are real-world user mentions rather than a single structured review. What follows is a synthesis of what actual owners and prospective buyers are saying in the wild.

Picture Quality: Genuinely Exceptional, But Don't Expect Magic if You're Already on OLED

If you're coming from a non-OLED TV, the G4 will almost certainly blow your mind. Multiple users describe their first OLED experience as producing "oh my god that's amazing" reactions — particularly around black levels and the sense of depth in dark scenes. One commenter who recently upgraded put it simply: they'd never buy anything else now.

The more nuanced picture comes from OLED veterans. One user who moved from a 7-year-old LG C8 to the newer G5 (the G4's successor) noted something honest and a little deflating: the upgrade felt smaller than expected. The gains were real — noticeably better brightness, improved whites, fewer ABL (auto-brightness limiting) issues in dark scenes — but the core picture character of OLED remains consistent across generations. You're not entering a "new world" when upgrading between OLED generations. You're refining an already excellent experience.

For the G4 specifically, users who tracked the upgrade path from older OLEDs (B8 to CX to G4) consistently found each step worthwhile — brighter highlights, better HDR performance, and improved aesthetics. The G4 was praised for noticeably better peak brightness and more vivid highlights compared to prior models.

Gaming: This Is Where the G4 Genuinely Shines

The G4 supports 144Hz at 4K, and this detail keeps coming up in gaming discussions. One PC builder specifically structured an entire CPU selection debate around the G4 as their display, noting its 144Hz capability as a meaningful ceiling for their build. The consensus in that thread was that DLSS and upscaling at 4K effectively bring the CPU back into play more than native 4K benchmarks suggest — so the G4's 144Hz support isn't wasted headroom even if you game at 4K.

For console gamers, PS5 owners in particular benefit from the G4's full HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, enabling 4K/120fps in supported titles. The enthusiast community has built out detailed settings guides specifically for this TV (RTINGS calibration settings, HDTVTest guides, and dedicated Reddit spreadsheets exist for optimizing G4/G5 OLED settings across PC, PS5, Xbox, and Switch).

One practical tip that surfaces repeatedly: spend time with the settings out of the box. The G4's picture modes are not all created equal, and the difference between a well-calibrated G4 and a factory-default G4 is significant. Community-recommended starting points include disabling certain AI processing features and adjusting the OLED pixel brightness for your room's ambient light conditions.

Size and Placement: 77" Is the Sweet Spot — With Caveats

The 77" size comes up in context repeatedly. Users building dedicated theater rooms, living room setups, and even considering 9-foot viewing distances gravitate toward 77" as the right call for OLED. One theater builder with a 13.5' x 12' room was debating between the G4 77" and a 98" QLED at a similar price — the consensus from the community was clear: don't compromise on the panel technology. Go OLED and take the size trade-off over going QLED for more inches.

That said, for truly large dedicated theater rooms or very long viewing distances, a projector may make more sense. Several commenters in theater-build threads pointed this out honestly. The G4 is a living room and medium-sized theater room champion, not a 150" cinema replacement.

The One Quirk That Annoys Everyone

This came up unprompted in multiple threads and it's worth flagging: the UI brightness. When you're watching Dolby Vision content in a dark room and you accidentally trigger the settings menu — or the volume bar pops up — it's described as eye-searing. One G5 owner (G4's successor, same issue) wrote that he has to warn his wife before opening settings so she can look away. It sounds minor, but if you're using this TV in a dark home theater environment, you will encounter this. Repeatedly. It's a real annoyance LG has seemingly not addressed across generations.

The Competition Question

The main alternative that surfaces in the sources is a 98" TCL QM8 at around $4,000 on sale — similar pricing to the G4 77" depending on when you catch it. The community's consistent answer: take the smaller OLED over the larger QLED for most use cases. Black levels, contrast, and overall image quality on OLED are genuinely different in a way that raw brightness and size can't fully compensate for.

Projector setups are the other legitimate competition for dedicated theater rooms. If you're building a truly light-controlled space and want cinema scale, projector + screen can outperform any flat panel at these price points for pure movie watching.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Is the LG G4 77" worth buying over a larger QLED at the same price?

A: For most users, yes. The community consensus is strongly in favor of OLED picture quality — specifically the black levels and contrast — over gaining extra screen size with QLED technology. Multiple enthusiasts specifically recommend prioritizing panel quality over raw size.

Q: How good is the LG G4 77" for gaming?

A: It's excellent. The G4 supports 4K at 144Hz with full HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, making it one of the better gaming displays at this size. It handles PS5, Xbox Series X, and high-end PC gaming effectively. The 1% lows and frame consistency benefits from pairing it with a strong CPU are worth noting if you're building a PC around it.

Q: Is upgrading to the G4 worth it if I already own an older LG OLED?

A: It depends on how old your current panel is. Coming from a 6-7 year old OLED like a C8, the gains are real but more modest than marketing implies — primarily better brightness, improved highlight detail, and reduced ABL throttling. It's a refinement, not a revolution. If your current OLED is 3-4 years old, the case is harder to make.

Q: What settings should I change on the LG G4 right away?

A: The enthusiast community strongly recommends against using default factory settings. Community resources like the RTINGS calibration guide and LG OLED settings spreadsheets (covering PC, PS5, and movie modes) are widely recommended as starting points. Key areas include disabling aggressive AI processing and adjusting OLED pixel brightness for your room.

Q: Does the LG G4 work well in a dedicated home theater room?

A: Yes, especially in light-controlled environments where OLED's black level advantage is most visible. For rooms larger than 15 feet viewing distance or very large spaces, a projector may be worth considering instead — but for typical theater room builds (9-13 feet), the G4 77" is a strong choice.

The LG G4 77" is the kind of TV that earns its place as the default recommendation in enthusiast circles — not because it's perfect, but because it's the right answer for most people asking the question. If you're setting up a serious living room or home theater and OLED is within your budget, the G4 is a very safe bet. Just don't expect miracles if you're already on a recent OLED, and do spend an evening dialing in the settings.