The LG UN7300 is an okay budget 4k TV. It's a follow-up of 2019's LG UM7300, and it offers largely similar performance and features. Like its predecessor, it has an IPS panel with a low contrast ratio and mediocre black uniformity, which isn't ideal for watching movies or gaming in the dark. Its viewing angles are just okay, causing a slight loss in image accuracy when viewed from the side. It has excellent reflection handling, but visibility can still be an issue in well-lit environments because it doesn't get bright enough to overcome intense glare. It has a decent response time and its input lag is low enough to satisfy most gamers; however, those looking for advanced gaming features like variable refresh rate technology will have to look elsewhere. Lastly, it can't display a wide color gamut and doesn't get noticeably brighter in HDR, so HDR content doesn't look much different from SDR.
Our Verdict
The LG UN7300 is okay for most uses. It performs well enough for watching TV shows or for gaming; however, its low contrast ratio, mediocre black uniformity, and lack of local dimming make it a poor choice for watching movies. Also, it delivers a sub-par HDR experience due to its low HDR peak brightness and lack of a wide color gamut. It has a decent response time and low input lag, but sadly, it doesn't support any variable refresh rate technologies to reduce screen tearing when gaming.
- Excellent reflection handling.
- Mediocre SDR peak brightness.
The LG UN7300 is mediocre for watching movies. It isn't well-suited for dark rooms, as it has a low contrast ratio and mediocre black uniformity, resulting in blacks that look grayish. Also, it doesn't have a local dimming feature to improve black level. On the bright side, it doesn't stutter much in low frame rate content such as movies, and it can remove judder from 24p sources and native apps.
- Can remove judder from 24p content.
- No local dimming.
The LG UN7300 is good for watching TV shows. It upscales lower resolution content from cable TV well, without any artifacts. It has excellent reflection handling, but it doesn't get very bright and might struggle to overcome intense glare in well-lit environments. Its viewing angles are just okay, which means that the image degrades a bit when viewed from the side.
- Excellent reflection handling.
- Decent gray uniformity.
- Mediocre SDR peak brightness.
The LG UN7300 is satisfactory for watching sports. It has a decent response time that results in only a small amount of motion blur in fast-moving scenes, but it doesn't have a Black Frame Insertion feature to improve clarity. Unfortunately, even though it has excellent reflection handling, it doesn't get very bright and might not be able to overcome intense glare. The viewing angles on its IPS panel are just okay, making it more suitable for a small-to-medium-sized room. It upscales lower-resolution content like cable sports well and has no risk of permanent burn-in.
- Excellent reflection handling.
- Decent gray uniformity.
- Decent response time.
- Mediocre SDR peak brightness.
The LG UN7300 is good for gaming. It has a decent response time, so there's only a little bit of motion blur behind fast-moving objects. Input lag is extremely low, but unfortunately, the refresh rate is limited to 60Hz, and it doesn't support any variable refresh rate technology to reduce screen tearing. Also, it has a low contrast ratio and mediocre black uniformity, making it a poor choice for dark rooms.
- Low input lag.
- Excellent reflection handling.
- Decent response time.
- No FreeSync support.
The LG UN7300 is sub-par for watching movies in HDR. It has a low contrast ratio and lacks local dimming, so blacks look more like gray when viewed in the dark. There's visible backlight bleed, which can be quite distracting in dark scenes; however, uniformity can vary between units. Sadly, it can't display a wide color gamut and doesn't get bright enough to make highlights stand out the way they should. On the upside, there's very little stutter in lower frame rate content, and it can remove judder from 24p sources and native apps.
- Can remove judder from 24p content.
- Sub-par HDR peak brightness.
- No local dimming.
The LG UN7300 is okay for gaming in HDR. It performs well for gaming due to its low input lag and decent response time, but it doesn't support any variable refresh rate technology to reduce screen tearing. It can't deliver a satisfying HDR experience because it can't display a wide color gamut and doesn't get very bright. Also, the contrast ratio is low, and there's no local dimming.
- Low input lag.
- Decent response time.
- Sub-par HDR peak brightness.
- No FreeSync support.
- No local dimming.
The LG UN7300 is a good TV for use as a PC monitor. It has a low input lag and decent response time, delivering a responsive desktop experience. The viewing angles are okay, so the image doesn't degrade too much at the edges if you sit up close. It supports most resolutions and can display chroma 4:4:4 properly for optimal text clarity. Also, there's no risk of permanent burn-in.
- Low input lag.
- Excellent reflection handling.
- Supports chroma 4:4:4.
Changelog
- Updated Jul 23, 2021: Added real content local dimming video and checked for 1440p @ 60Hz support.
- Updated Mar 01, 2021: Converted to Test Bench 1.6.
- Updated Nov 03, 2020: Updated review for accuracy and clarity.
- Updated Sep 15, 2020: Uploaded some higher-resolution photos.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the 55" LG UN7300PUF (55UN7300PUF) and for the most part, we expect our review to be valid for the 43" model (43UM7300PUF), 65" model (65UN7300PUF), 70" model (70UN7370PUC), and the 75" (75UN7370PUE) model. The model code also changes depending on the retailers. In Canada, there's a variant with a model number ending in PUB, which lacks the HDR Dynamic Tone Mapping feature.
There appear to be two versions of the UN7300 with the same model code. The one we tested has an IPS panel and is identified as a "Real 4k IPS" on the box. The other variant has a VA panel and is identified by the text "Real 4k Display" on the box. Unfortunately, there doesn't appear to be any way to know which one you'll get when buying online. The 50" (50UN7300PUF) model has a VA panel as well.
| Size | US | US - Costco and Sam's Club | Canada | Best Buy Canada | Europe |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 43" | 43UN7300PUF | 43UN7300AUD | 43UN7300AUD | 43UN7300PUD | 43UN73006LA |
| 49" | - | - | 49UN7300AUD | 49UN7300PUB | - |
| 50" | 50UN7300PUF | 50UN7300AUD | 50UN7300AUD | - | 50UN73006LA |
| 55" | 55UN7300PUF | 55UN7300AUD | 55UN7300AUD | 55UN7300PUB | 55UN73006LA |
| 65" | 65UN7300PUF | 65UN7300AUD | 65UN7300AUD | 65UN7300PUB | 65UN73006LA |
| 70" | 70UN7370PUC | - | 70UN7370AUD | - | - |
| 75" | 75UN7370PUH | - | 75UN7370AUH | 75UN7370PUB | - |
If someone comes across a different type of panel or if their LG UN7300 doesn't correspond to our review, let us know and we will update the review. Note that some tests, such as the gray uniformity, may vary between individual units.
Our unit of the 55UN7300 was manufactured in February 2020; you can see the label here.
Popular TV Comparisons
The LG UN7300 is an okay TV for most uses, but when compared to its predecessor, the UM7300, it's a small step down. It has a lower SDR peak brightness, narrower viewing angles, and its response time is slower. For other options, see our recommendations for the best TVs, the best smart TVs, and the best budget TVs.
The LG UN7300 and the Samsung TU7000 perform similarly overall; however, they use different panel types with different advantages and disadvantages. The LG uses an IPS panel that has a better viewing angle at the expense of a lower contrast ratio. The Samsung, on the other hand, uses a VA panel, which has a much better contrast ratio but a narrower viewing angle.
The LG UN7300 and the LG UN7000 perform similarly overall. Each TV is available with either a VA or IPS panel, which affects performance, but we reviewed ones with IPS panels. The UN7300 gets brighter in SDR, it has better reflection handling, and it displays native 4k content without issue. However, the UN7000 gets brighter in HDR and has wider viewing angles.
The LG UP8000 and the LG UN7300 are very similar overall. The UP8000 has wider viewing angles, but it doesn't handle reflections as well as the UN7300. The color gamut is worse on the UP8000, and the same can be said of its color volume. It has better response times, though, and it can remove judder from all sources, whereas the UN7300 can only do it when the signal is from a 24p source or native apps. The UP8000 no longer has a composite input, so you might need an adapter if you want to plug in older devices, like a DVD player.
The LG UN7300 and the LG UP7000 are similar TVs. The models we tested each have an IPS-like panel, but they're also available with VA panels. Even though the UP7000 gets brighter, the UN7300 is still a better choice for bright rooms because it has significantly brighter reflection handling. The UN7300 comes with LG's Magic Remote with a point-and-press feature and a mic for voice control, and the basic remote that comes with the UP7000 doesn't have either.
Test Results
The LG UN7300's design is decent and almost identical to the LG UM7300. It's simple but it has pretty thick bezels that protrude from the screen. The stand is slightly lower-set than its predecessor and the back of the TV is plain except for a fine texture.
The feet are set as almost as wide as the TV itself, so it requires a large table. It supports the TV well and there's only a little bit of wobble.
Footprint of the 55" model: 44.2" x 9.1"
The back of the TV is plain except for a fine texture that's etched into it. There's a plastic cable tie included in the box, but otherwise, there's not much in terms of cable management.
The TV is of medium thickness. It shouldn't stick out much when wall-mounted unless you use the back-facing inputs.
The build quality is decent. It's mostly plastic and there's some flex on the back panel; however, it feels sturdy overall and it doesn't wobble much.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
Like most IPS panel TVs, the contrast ratio is mediocre. This results in blacks that look grayish when viewed in the dark. Note that the contrast ratio can vary between units.
There appear to be two versions of the UN7300 with the same model code. The one we tested has an IPS panel and is identified as a "Real 4k IPS" on the box. It's possible to find a VA version of it, which is identified by the text "Real 4k Display" on the box. Also, the 50" model has a VA panel. We expect the VA models to have much better contrast, but worse viewing angles.
Mediocre SDR peak brightness. It's better suited for a dark to moderately-lit room, as it can't get bright enough to overcome glare in a well-lit environment. The brightness is consistent across different content except for a slight dimming of the 2% window caused by the TV's CE dimming (frame dimming).
We measured the SDR peak brightness after calibration, using the 'Expert Dark' Picture Mode and with Brightness set to maximum. We disabled all other image processing.
If you don't mind losing image accuracy, you can get a brighter image by setting the Picture Mode to 'Vivid' and Dynamic Contrast Enhancer to 'Medium'. These settings allow us to achieve 347 cd/m² in the 10% window.
Update 07/23/2021: Added the real content videos.
There's no local dimming feature on this TV. The video is for reference only, so you can see how backlight on this display performs and compare it to a similar product with local dimming.
Update 07/23/2021: Added the real content videos.
There's no local dimming feature on this TV. The video is for reference only, so you can see how backlight on this display performs and compare it to a similar product with local dimming.
Sub-par HDR peak brightness. Although the brightness is consistent, it isn't nearly enough to deliver a satisfying HDR experience, so HDR content won't look much different from SDR. The 2% window is dimmer due to frame dimming. If you want a TV that gets brighter in HDR, look into the LG UN7000.
We measured the HDR peak brightness before calibration, using the 'Cinema' Picture Mode, and with Brightness and Contrast set to maximum.
If you want to make HDR content brighter and don't mind losing accuracy, set the Picture Mode to 'HDR Vivid' and Dynamic Contrast Enhancer to 'Medium'. These settings allowed us to achieve 408 cd/m² in the 10% window.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
Our LG UN7300 has decent gray uniformity; however, this can vary between individual units. There's vignetting at the corners and some dirty screen effect as well. Thankfully, uniformity is significantly better in dark scenes.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
Black uniformity is mediocre; however, this can vary between individual units. There's some clouding throughout the screen, and the backlight bleed at the bottom left corner is visible in dark scenes, even in normal content.
If you want a TV with better black uniformity, check out the Samsung TU7000.
The viewing angles are okay, although it's a bit of a step down from the LG UM7300. It should be fine for a small to moderately-large room, but not for a large room or wide seating arrangements.
There appear to be two versions of the LG UN7300 with the same model code. The one we tested has an IPS panel and is identified as a "Real 4k IPS" on the box. It's possible to find a VA version of it, which is identified by the text "Real 4k Display" on the box. The 50" model also has a VA panel. We expect the VA models to have much better contrast, but worse viewing angles.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
Excellent reflection handling. It has a semi-gloss finish that diffuses light well, very similar to the LG UM7300.
Out of the box, the color accuracy is okay. There are inaccuracies with several colors and white balance is off. The color temperature is colder than our 6500K target, which results in a blueish tint. Darker scenes are mostly displayed at the correct brightness, but brighter scenes are over-brightened. Note that color accuracy can vary between units.
After calibration, the color accuracy is outstanding. White balance and gamma are nearly perfect, and the remaining inaccuracies shouldn't be noticeable to the naked eye. Unfortunately, the color temperature is still on the colder side, and we weren't able to bring it any closer to our 6500K without affecting other calibration settings.
You can see our recommended settings here.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
480p content such as DVDs is upscaled well and without any issues.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
Upscaling of 720p content such as cable TV looks good and there are no visible artifacts.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
1080p content such as from Blu-Rays is upscaled well.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
Native 4k content is displayed perfectly without any issues.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
The LG UN7300 uses an ADS (Advanced Dimension Switching) panel, which performs and behaves similarly to an IPS panel.
Although the LG UN7300 has a decent color gamut, it can't display a wide color gamut. The EOTF follows the PQ curve well; however, the roll-off starts very early. The 'Game' mode EOTF is nearly identical. If you find HDR content too dim, you can make it brighter by using the 'Vivid' Picture Mode and it results in this EOTF.
The color volume is okay. It's an upgrade from the LG UM7300, but it still has difficulty displaying bright colors. Also, it doesn't display dark colors well due to its low contrast ratio. The VA variants and the 50" model have a VA panel and likely a much higher contrast ratio, so they may perform differently.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
Decent gradient handling. There's banding in the darker shades of all colors and it's particularly visible in the grays. Enabling Smooth Gradation can help, although it had very little effect on our test pattern. Also, enabling Smooth Gradation can cause the loss of fine details in some scenes. If banding bothers you, then check out the LG UP8000. It has significantly better gradient handling.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
There are no signs of temporary image retention; however, this can vary between units. The 0.05% deviation is caused by noise.
Although some IPS panels can suffer from temporary image retention, this doesn't appear to be permanent as the IPS panel in our long-term test appear immune.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
The LG UN7300 has a decent response time. There's some blur trail behind fast-moving objects and some overshoot that results in motion artifacts. There's visible duplication of the image due to the backlight's 120Hz flicker. If you want a TV with a quicker response time, check out the LG UN6950.
This TV uses Pulse-Width Modulation (PWM) to dim the backlight. It always flickers at 120Hz. If you're bothered by the flickering and you want a TV with a flicker-free backlight, check out the Sony X750H.
This TV doesn't have an optional Black Frame Insertion feature.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
This TV can interpolate lower frame rate content up to 60fps. It works okay most of the time, but there's duplication of the image due to the backlight's flicker and there are artifacts in more intense scenes.
To enable motion interpolation, set TruMotion to 'User' and adjust the De-Judder slider to '10'.
Due to the TV's slower response time, there's only a little bit of stutter in 24fps content. If the stuttering bothers you, enabling motion interpolation can help.
The LG UN7300 can only remove judder from 24p content. To do so, enable Real Cinema.
The LG UN7300 doesn't support any variable refresh rate technologies.
The LG UN7300 has outstanding low input lag as long as it's in 'Game' mode. There's an 'Automatic Low Latency Mode' that switches you to 'Game' mode when the TV detects a game being launched from a compatible device, such as an Xbox One or a PC. To use it, enable Instant Game Response.
Update 07/23/2021: We checked to see if it properly displays 1440p content. We used our RTX 3070 PC and had to force a 1440p resolution at 60Hz. However, it doesn't display it properly because text was blurry with chroma 4:4:4 and 4:2:2.
This TV supports most common resolutions at 60Hz, except for 1440p. It displays proper chroma 4:4:4 at 1080p and 4k. 1080p @ 120Hz appears as an available option; however, it skips frames and causes a lot of flicker retention. 1440p @ 120Hz also appears as an option, but it can't display a proper image and shows this instead.
To display chroma 4:4:4, make sure that the input in use is labeled 'PC'. For high-bandwidth signals, HDMI ULTRA HD Deep Color must be enabled.
It doesn't support HDMI 2.1, but if you want a similar TV that does, check out the LG UN8500.
Unfortunately, LG has dropped DTS support in 2020, which is a downgrade from the LG UM7300. It doesn't support eARC, either, which is disappointing. The newer LG NANO75 2021 does, so if you're planning on connecting your TV to a new receiver or soundbar, it might be a better choice.
The LG UN7300 has a mediocre frequency response. Although the sound signature is bass-heavy, there's almost no low-bass at all, so you won't get any thumping or rumbling. It gets fairly loud, but there's also some compression when playing near max volume.
Mediocre distortion performance. The total amount of distortion is quite good at moderate volume levels, but there's significantly more when nearing max volume. That said, it depends a lot on the content and may not be audible to most people.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
This TV runs on LG's WebOS. It generally runs smoothly but it lags a bit when trying to access the settings menu.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
There are ads and suggested content on the home screen and within the app store. Unfortunately, there's no way to opt-out of them.
Update 09/15/2020: We previously uploaded a low-resolution photo. The mistake has been fixed.
LG's app store has tons of apps available for download and they run smoothly for the most part.
The remote hasn't changed and is the same Magic Remote as the LG UM7300. It can be used as a pointer or like a regular remote, and it can be programmed to work as a universal remote for other devices, even if the devices don't support CEC. It has a built-in microphone for voice control, which you can use for content search and general inquiries. Changing settings via voice control is a bit of a hit or miss; we were able to change the input source, but not the TV's brightness.
