LG 37LH55

Black Level (5.47)

The LG 37LH55 didn't have the deepest black level. We measured it at 0.32 cd/m². To put this in perspective, our current average is 0.21 and a good score is below 0.10. LCD HDTVs typically have a problem with reaching a deep black because they use a backlight. Plasmas, on the other hand, do not have a backlight and therefore are capable of a very deep black level.

Black Level

The reason black levels are important is because they allow the TV to have greater detail in dark scenes. The majority of movies have at least one night scene, or something involving a spooky cave or haunted, dimly-lit mansion. If you were to watch these scenes on a TV with a poor black level, you lose detail in areas too dark for the screen to display. Intricate patterns will show up as a flat patch of darkness.

Peak Brightness (9.05)

We found the 37LH55 had a decent peak brightness level. It was capable of outputting a bit over 370 cd/m², which is better than our current average of 270. A high peak brightness means you won't lose details in bright areas and external light sources won't wash out the picture.

Peak Brightness

Contrast (6.26)

Due to the TV's poor black level, its contrast ratio wasn't anything to write home about. We measured it at about 1156:1. Our current average is almost twice that, at a little over 2076:1. Contrast ratios are important, because the human eye is keen to pick up on differences between light and dark areas.

Contrast

Tunnel Contrast (9.88)

In this section, we test to make sure the black level remains constant retardless of what percentage of the screen is actually comprised of black. The 37LH55 did well on this test, with a rock-solid black level across the board. Even when the screen was overwhelmingly white, the black level didn't increase much.

Tunnel Contrast

White Falloff (9.81)

This test is the same as the one above, only we're testing brightness instead of black level. We keep the center of the screen white, then gradually make our black frame larger and larger, until only a tiny part at the center of the screen is white.

The 37LH55 did well on this test as well, which a consistently high white level.

White Falloff

Typically LCDs do well on this test and the one above. Plasmas usually do poorly, being unable to maintain its brightness as the percentage of white on the screen climbs.

Uniformity (8.25)

The 37LH55 had a uniform screen overall. We really didn't have many complaints. On a white screen we noticed some shadowing towards the left and right edges, and on a black screen that was some slight flashlighting at the corners. Otherwise, the screens were uniform and smooth.

Greyscale Gamma (7.06)

The TV has a pretty solid greyscale gamma. This means that black will transition evenly to white, which means all the degrees of grey between the two will be emphasized an appropriate amount. TVs with a poor greyscale gamma lead to a loss of detailing, as it leads to poor differentiation between two different brightnesses.

Greyscale Gamma

Resolution Scaling (5.77)

The 37LH55 can display 1080p content, but currently the only way to get true 1080p is via Blu-ray. The harsh reality of HDTVs is they'll need to upscale (or, for lower-end sets, downscale) content. This processing can often cause artifacting or other anomalies to crop up, which is precisely why we have this section. 

480p (7.15)
This format is more commonly referred to as 'standard definition.' The 37LH55 did a pretty good job with 480p content. We ran into some minor issues with legibility and fine patterns with high contrast, like zebra stripes or herringbone patterns. The TV also had a 1% overscan. Though this suffered from slight issues in a few categories, none were particularly significant on their own. Overall, the 37LH55 did well here.

720p (6.75)
While the TV didn't have any overscan here, it did have slightly bigger problems with fine patterns. One pattern, which was alternating black and white stripes, lost a lot of differentiation between the stripes.

1080i (4.50)
Surprisingly, 1080i had the most problems of all. Although there was no overscan, all of the other aforementioned problems were present and exaggerated. Fine details that were supposed to be black and white had a green cast to them. Also, text tended to run together, even medium-sized lettering. Further, alternating black and white stripes looked like blocks of grey.

Compare the LG 37LH55 to other HDTVs
LG 32LG40 32 inches	Toshiba Regza 40XV645U 40 inches	Samsung LN40B650 40 inches