LG's new 48-inch OLED TV is here — and jaw-droppingly expensive

LG CX OLED
(Image credit: LG)

LG's 48-inch CX OLED TV is likely going to be a fantastic way to watch movies and play games, but it's going to be quite expensive. 

The new smallest version of LG's flagship OLED series (via TechRadar) has its UK price set at £1,499, while it's $1,500 in the US. That may be too pricey for most people, so you might want to wait a few months after its release (May 11 in the UK, June for the US), so you can pick it up for less.

The LG C9 OLED series that this replaces was one of our favorite TVs of last year, excelling in color, performance, sound and smart TV features. The only problem was its high price, which seems to have been passed down to the next generation as well.

LG does also offer the B series of OLED TVs, and while they're generally cheaper, there's likely to be little price difference between the 48-inch CX OLED and the 55-inch BX OLED. While it's good to have a smaller size available for consumers looking for a TV to fill a smaller space, there's not an obvious meaningful difference, although we're still waiting on the full details and release dates for the BX series.

Beyond LG, Samsung offers a 49-inch QLED TV for $1,099, or a rather less favorable £1,399 in the UK. QLED doesn't quite match up to OLED in image quality (although the gap is closing over time), but it does show how expensive OLED TVs still are for their size.

If you are interested in the 48-inch CX OLED, it'll be available in the UK from May 11. The larger 55-inch (£1,799) and 65-inch (£2,799) models are coming on April 6, and the largest 77-inch (£4,999) model will release on May 4. As for the US, the $2,800 65-inch model arrives in April, the $5,000 77-inch model in May, and the 48-inch version in June.

Richard Priday
Assistant Phones Editor

Richard is based in London, covering news, reviews and how-tos for phones, tablets, gaming, and whatever else people need advice on. Following on from his MA in Magazine Journalism at the University of Sheffield, he's also written for WIRED U.K., The Register and Creative Bloq. When not at work, he's likely thinking about how to brew the perfect cup of specialty coffee.