This week, LG is rolling out a firmware update to its LG 2020 and 2021 televisions that will dynamically switch the frame rate of movies and TV shows played through the Amazon Prime Video app. Most modern TVs come with an option that lets users automatically upsample films and TV content to either 60fps or 120fps for a smoother experience called motion smoothing. Unfortunately, this creates a soap opera effect as upsampled content may look overly smooth to some peoples’ eyes. For some, the upscaling feature could be nauseating. It’s called the soap opera effect because it makes the video look like daytime television, which may not be what the filmmakers intended.
Most external set-top boxes offer users the ability to match the television’s frame rate currently being displayed. However, even more tech-savvy users can go into LG televisions and turn off the upscaling feature.
Now, LG televisions will automagically enable what LG calls Filmmaker Mode, which dynamically changes the TV’s frame rate in the Amazon Prime Video app based on what’s currently being displayed on the TV. LG says, “Filmmaker Mode automatically turns off any picture processing settings that can make movies feel somewhat unnatural and cause them to display differently to how their directors would want while also maintaining the film’s original aspect ratio, colors and frame rate for a more authentic experience.” The new feature will be available for customers on a 2020 or 2021 4K and 8K UHD LG TV models running webOS 5.0 or later.
But Is It Any Good?
![LG Smart TVs Kill ‘Soap Opera Effect’ Automatically For Prime Video](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Split-image-of-Rooney-Mara-in-Girl-with-the-Dragon-Tattoo-James-Stewart-in-Vertigo-and-Brad-Pitt-in-Fight-Club-with-the-Prime-Video-logo-on-top.jpg)
It sounds like the new Filmmaker Mode goes beyond just adjusting the frame rate. At least that’s what LG is implying. The new process could potentially switch color profiles and aspect ratios on the fly to make sure users are getting as close to an experience as the director attended. This is great for casual users who don’t typically play with a TV’s settings to tune the TV to the most preferred settings.
If LG’s new feature works well, the company should bring this tech to all of its apps and make it the default option for all content. Users should have the best and most authentic experience out of the box. This would also negate the need for power users to have to go into the settings to adjust and calibrate a new TV if it’s done already. If the feature doesn’t work as intended, power users will manually disable Filmmaker Mode and tweak the TV’s settings on their own. Only time will tell if this new mode is any good.