LG has announced that a beta program for owners of compatible 2022 LG TVs in the US and Europe has arrived that will enable them to update from webOS 22 to webOS 23, as reported by FlatpanelsHD.
The beta, which is available as an app called ‘Beta Program’ within the LG apps store on the TV itself, will run until March 1 and if everything goes smoothly, we can expect a public rollout of the webOS 23 update after that. Compatible models for the beta test (and subsequent update) are some of the best OLED TVs from 2022: the LG A2, B2, C2, G2, CS and LX ( according to FlatpanelsHD).
It’s worth noting that after installing the beta, you cannot revert back to webOS 22. So what are the key differences between the two versions?
Although largely similar in style, webOS 23 saw the introduction of ‘Quick Cards’ to the home menu, which allowed you to organise your apps via different categories such as Movie, Sport, Music and more, enabling quicker and easier navigation.
The home menu also took on a less cluttered look, reducing the amount of recommendations on screen. This meant that the home page (on average) was slimmed down from several pages to two. There was also the introduction of the Quick Menu, which in 2023 we described as a ‘game changer’.
An upgrade?
In our reviews of LG OLEDs from 2022 and 2023, such as the LG C2 and LG C3, both webOS 22 and webOS 23 received positive write-ups. Compared with some of the other best smart TV platforms, we found webOS to be an easy to use and simple to navigate platform with very few negatives.
However, when comparing webOS 22 with webOS 23, it was clear that webOS 23 was the superior smart TV platform. Changing settings, such as picture mode and sound output, on-the-fly with the Quick Menu allowed for easy customization if a picture mode didn’t suit a certain source or program. Also, the Quick Cards as mentioned above make organization that much easier.
Overall, it comes down to personal choice. If you’re happy with webOS 22, then you’d best avoid this beta as there’s no going back once you install it. But, if you fancy a change, then get signing up to the beta.
