LG QNED evo AI QNED85A 86.4"

The LG QNED85A is an 86-inch Mini-LED beast that delivers incredible value, especially if you find it at the lower end of its $745 to $2,237 price range. It's a gamer's dream with a 120Hz panel, VRR, and four HDMI 2.1 ports, all running on the excellent webOS 25 platform. The picture is vibrant and bright, but the lack of Dolby Vision and mediocre built-in audio are the main trade-offs for this much screen at this price. If you want a massive, future-proofed display for gaming and streaming without spending OLED money, this is it.

The Mini-LED panel here is the star of the show, and it delivers where it counts. With hundreds of individually controlled local dimming zones, black levels are deep and blooming is well-controlled, though not invisible. The 100% color volume means colors stay saturated and accurate even in bright scenes, which is a big deal for a TV this size in a room with windows. The display performance ranks in the 83rd percentile, making it a standout among its peers. Motion Pro processing keeps fast action smooth, and while it's not the absolute best we've seen, it handles sports and action movies without turning everything into a soap opera effect mess unless you want it to.

For gaming, this thing is a joy. The 120Hz native refresh rate combined with FreeSync Premium and VRR means your frame rates stay buttery smooth without screen tearing. Input lag in Game Mode feels nonexistent, and ALLM automatically switches the TV into its low-latency mode when you fire up a console. The gaming score sits in the 85th percentile, which is impressive for a non-OLED. The HDR performance is more middle-of-the-pack, supporting HDR10 and HLG but missing Dolby Vision. That's a bummer if you're a Netflix or Disney+ power user, as those services lean heavily on Dolby Vision for their best-looking content. Peak brightness is good but not eye-searing, so HDR highlights pop but don't dazzle quite like they do on pricier sets.

The QNED85A's most direct competition comes from the Samsung Neo QLED QN800D and the TCL QM7K Series. The Samsung is the premium alternative. It gets brighter, has better local dimming processing, and supports HDR10+, but you'll pay a significant premium for that Samsung badge and the extra picture refinement. If you're a cinephile who notices every shadow detail, the Samsung is worth the extra cash. But for most people, the LG gets you 90% of the way there for a lot less money.

Then there's the Sony BRAVIA XR XR77A95L, which is in a different league entirely. It's an OLED, so its contrast and black levels are perfect, and Sony's processing is the best in the business for motion and upscaling. But it's also a 77-inch screen that costs significantly more. You're trading size for perfection. On the budget side, the TCL QM7K and Hisense U7 Series are nipping at LG's heels with their own Mini-LED offerings that often include Dolby Vision and can be even cheaper. The LG's advantage over those is its superior smart platform, better gaming features, and that rock-solid connectivity suite. The Roku Plus Series is the simplest and often cheapest option, but its picture quality and gaming chops don't come close to this LG.

Let's talk about the elephant in the room, or rather, the 86-inch elephant on your wall. The price spread on this TV is wild, ranging from $745 to $2,237 across different vendors. If you can snag this at the lower end of that spectrum, you're getting an almost suspiciously good deal. An 86-inch Mini-LED TV with 120Hz and four HDMI 2.1 ports for under $800 is the kind of value that makes you double-check the listing for typos. Even at the higher end, you're still getting a lot of screen for your money compared to similarly sized OLEDs that can easily cost three to five times as much.

The budget score of 90.1 out of 100 tells the real story. This TV is for people who want to maximize screen size per dollar without giving up modern gaming features. You're sacrificing ultimate picture quality and audio fidelity, but those are things you can fix later with a soundbar and some bias lighting. You can't fix a screen that's too small. If you find this set priced closer to $745, it's a no-brainer. At $2,237, you start to enter territory where a slightly smaller but significantly better-performing TV might make more sense.

LG's QNED85A is a fascinating beast. It's a massive 86-inch screen that uses Mini-LED backlighting, which is the tech everyone's excited about right now because it gets you much closer to OLED-level contrast without the OLED price tag. This set is clearly aimed at two groups: people who want a cinema-sized screen for movie nights and sports, and gamers who need a big, fast display that can keep up with a PS5 or Xbox Series X. The spec sheet reads like a gamer's wish list with a native 120Hz panel, FreeSync Premium, VRR, and four full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 ports, which is a connectivity score that lands in the 97th percentile in our database. That's basically best-in-class for plugging everything in without a switcher.

But here's the thing about a TV this big and this affordable relative to its size: you have to understand where LG made the trade-offs. The picture quality is solid, sitting well above average, but it's not going to melt your eyeballs like a high-end OLED. The a8 AI Processor 4K Gen2 is a capable chip for upscaling and smart features, and webOS 25 remains one of our favorite smart TV platforms. It's snappy, intuitive, and the smart home integration is top-tier, scoring a 93 out of 100 in our testing. If you're deep in the Alexa, Google, or Apple Home ecosystem, this TV will fit right in.

The real story here is value. You're getting an 86-inch Mini-LED TV for a price that, depending on the vendor, can dip as low as $745. That's an absurdly good deal for this much screen real estate. The budget score of 90.1 out of 100 reflects that. You're not paying for the absolute pinnacle of picture processing, but you are getting a feature-packed, future-proofed giant screen that will make any living room feel like a private theater. Just don't expect it to be portable. At 50kg, once this thing is on the wall, it's part of the house.

If you're a home theater purist who prioritizes perfect black levels and the best possible HDR experience above all else, you should skip the QNED85A. The lack of Dolby Vision and the just-average HDR brightness mean you're not getting the definitive cinematic experience. You'd be much happier with a smaller OLED like the Sony BRAVIA XR A95L, which will give you true blacks and stunning HDR highlights, even if it costs more per inch. Similarly, if you're putting this in a bright room with lots of windows and no curtains, you might want a TV with a higher peak brightness and better anti-reflective coating, like Samsung's Neo QLED line.

Also, if you're not planning to add a soundbar, be warned. The built-in 2.0 channel speakers are a weak spot, scoring in the 56th percentile. For a screen this immersive, tinny audio will immediately break the spell. Budget for at least a basic soundbar, or factor that into your total cost when comparing against TVs with better built-in sound systems.

If you're a gamer looking for a massive screen that won't break the bank, the QNED85A is one of the easiest recommendations we can make. The combination of size, 120Hz, VRR, and four HDMI 2.1 ports is a killer feature set for a multi-console setup. You can have a PS5, Xbox Series X, gaming PC, and a soundbar all plugged in with full bandwidth, and that's a luxury most TVs don't offer. The smart platform is a joy to use, and the Mini-LED panel provides a genuinely immersive experience for both games and movies.

For movie purists, the recommendation gets a little more complicated. The lack of Dolby Vision is a real drawback if your primary viewing is on streaming services like Netflix and Disney+. The HDR performance is good but not breathtaking, and the built-in audio is frankly weak. You'll want to budget for at least a decent soundbar. If you're willing to make those compromises for the sheer scale of an 86-inch screen, you'll be very happy. But if picture accuracy and HDR impact are your top priorities, you might want to look at a smaller OLED or a higher-end Mini-LED set from Sony or Samsung.