LG announces US prices for its new OLED TVs, and there’s mixed news
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LG has announced the price and release date (well, release window, really) for its 2023 OLED TV range, which includes the LG C3 and LG G3. You can find all the prices below, but the important thing to know is that the LG C3 and LG G3 will be available for pre-order directly from LG from 6 March 2023 and will be released at the end of March.
The more affordable LG B3 will be available in April – and there’s no cheap LG A3 model for US buyers this year (although it will be available elsewhere in the world), and that’s a shame for reasons we’ll explain in a moment. But here’s what you really want – the big price list:
| Mate | LG B3 price | LG C3 price | LG G3 price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 42 inches | N/A | $1,299 | N/A |
| 48 inches | N/A | $1,399 | N/A |
| 55 inches | $1,699 | $1,799 | $2,499 |
| 65 inches | $2,399 | $2,499 | $3,299 |
| 77 inches | $3,299 | $3,499 | $4,499 |
| 83 inches | N/A | $5,299 | $6,499 |
There is good news and bad news here. The good news is for people considering buying the smaller sizes of the LG C3 as they are cheaper than the LG C2 when it launched last year which bodes well for these models being well priced all year round , especially when they become price drops after summer (if prior years are anything to go by).
The 42-inch and 48-inch LG C3 models are both $100 cheaper than the LG C2’s equivalent launch price, while the 83-inch model is $200 cheaper. The other models are the same as the C2’s launch price, which is actually pretty good in this age of inflation, so we have no complaints on that.
The disappointment, however, comes from the other models: the 55-inch LG B3 is $200 more expensive than the same-sized LG B2 at launch, and the 65-inch model is $400 more expensive.
That makes all models of the LG B3 only $100 or $200 cheaper than the same size LG C3, and I can’t think of anyone who wouldn’t go for the LG C3’s brighter screen, better processing, and better connectivity for that price difference.
With no super-cheap LG A3 model in the US this year, the average price to buy an LG OLED in 2023 has skyrocketed, and that’s a huge shame – we thought the LG A2 was a great value TV for movie buffs on a budget. We had hoped that the price of the LG B2 would not be too bad drop to fill the gap left by the lack of the A3, but we couldn’t have been more wrong.
G3 goes even more premium
The LG G3 is getting the sharpest price increase of all compared to last year’s LG G2 launch. The 55-inch and 65-inch models are $300 more, while the 77-inch is $500 more. The 83-inch model actually remains the same price as last year.
The above makes sense when you know that this year LG has incorporated new technology into the 55, 65 and 77-inch G3 models, making them 70% brighter than what you’d get from the LG B3. We’ve seen them in person and the difference is amazing. It has to be real because LG’s higher prices put the G3 right in line with what we know about the Samsung S95C QD-OLED TV so far, and in our first hands-on Samsung S95C review it turned out to be the brightest OLED available. we’ve ever tested. The battle is on for visual supremacy in the high-end, price be damned.
We’re happy to see the smaller TVs come down in price, and the LG C3 has generally done a good job avoiding a price hike. We’ll see if it’s enough to ensure it stays at the top of our best TVs list. But the price hike for the LG B3 is a huge disappointment when coupled with the lack of cheap OLED TVs in the US market this year.
Part of Europe will get the A3 and the Philips OLED708 – both intended to be the most affordable OLED option out there. Those in the US will instead have to rely on the mini-LED prowess of the likes of the Hisense U8H and TCL 6-Series Roku TV (2022).