Projectors

Meilin's first flight home as the giant red panda is a vibrant cavalcade of colour, with a gorgeous depiction of cherry blossom and pottery tiles, and the rich hues and textures of the creature itself. Colour gradations are smooth, with no overt banding.

Dynamic Tone Mapping, which analyses every frame in real time, is available to optimise HDR10 performance (the projector has no truck with the dynamic HDR10+ and Dolby Vision formats). Of course, HDR as managed by a projector like the HU715Q isn't comparable to the experience of a flatscreen TV, but this LG does a decent job of lifting specular highlights.

Into The Archives
The real challenge is just how well this projector handles near-black detail, and, inevitably, there's a limit to how profound its black level is. The shadowy work environments of videotape archivist Dan Turner in supernatural drama Archive 81 (Netflix) are depicted with more mysterious gloom than the director probably intended, and the show's night-time New York City street scenes are distinctly smudgy; still, close-up fine detail, as Turner meticulously restores his demonic Video8 tapes, is convincing.

The projector's image preset selection mirrors what you'd find on an LG TV: Standard, Cinema (and Cinema Home with HDR content), Sports and Vivid, plus Filmmaker Mode, Expert Bright Space, Expert Dark Space (for day or night), and Game Optimizer. I don't feel the various cinematic modes really show the HU715Q at its best. The Filmmaker Mode, and even Cinema Home, undersell the potential of its laser light engine; the image is just a little flat and stripped of colour volume. Standard is the more obvious crowd-pleaser.

Another familiar LG technology – TruMotion – is present here, and its options are extensive and effective. The Smooth setting works well with fast-moving sports, and even the Cinematic Movement option isn't objectionable when watching movies. Give it a try.

As for the smart platform, this 6.0 iteration of WebOS offers a strong selection of apps, including Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+, YouTube, Sky Store, Rakuten.TV and Apple TV, plus a Home Dashboard for connected smart devices and LG's ThinQ voice recognition. There's no Freeview tuner, but it's all very slick, and a cut above most rivals. The same can't be said for the HU715Q's audio. This isn't as punchy as its pictures, with a somewhat boxy and confined feeling to the soundstage. Still, there's copious volume, and enough mid-range weight to prevent everything sounding thin. You could couple the projector with a soundbar or external system, although that would seem a bit odd, given the form factor.

Hitting The Heights
Minor niggles aside, LG's latest UST model is a compelling proposition. It's an outstanding bright room performer, and while I have some reservations about black level proficiency, colour vibrancy and fine detail score high. Well suited for sports and movie use, and with slick smarts too, the HU715Q is easily recommended.

HCC Verdict

LG HU715Q

Price: £2,999
www.lg.com/uk

We say: Easy operation, sensible styling and WebOS smarts make LG's latest CineBeam UST projector a joy to use. Images can also be jaw-dropping, day or night.

Overall: 4/5

Specifications

3D: No 4K: Yes. 3,840 x 2,160 via Texas Instruments fast-switching DMD HDR: Yes. HDR10; HLG CONNECTIONS: 3 x HDMI inputs; optical digital audio output; 2 x USB BRIGHTNESS (CLAIMED): 2,500 Lumens CONTRAST (claimed): 2,000,000:1 ZOOM: No DIMENSIONS: 533(w) x 153(h) x 315(d)mm WEIGHT: 11.1kg

FEATURES: Laser light engine; DLP projection technology; 2 x 20W built-in audio; HGiG support; 20,000 hours claimed lamp life; 26dB-30dB (Eco/Bright) claimed fan noise; 0.22:1 throw ratio; TruMotion processing; LG ThinQ voice recognition; Apple AirPlay 2; WebOS 6.0 smart system; Wi-Fi; Bluetooth; Dynamic HDR Tone Mapping; MiraCast; keystone correction; Brightness Optimizer with Ambient Sensor; colour management system