42 inch LG TV

In a pantheon of TVs as vast as LG's, it can be tricky to pinpoint exactly where the sweet spot is. But by balancing smart TV with awesome networking, albeit wired myriad ins and outs, and a thoroughly decent picture, the 42 inch LG TVcould be just that.

Full HD resolution features on this Edge LED-backlit LCD panel, while the LG 42LS570T also counts a Free view HD tuner, an element of home networking, digital file playback from three USB slots and a generous helping of four HDMI inputs.

In terms of picture quality there's 200Hz double-scan motion processing, which at this price-point of £499.99 is another boon.

Two features fast becoming defaults on modern TVs are, however, slashed; 3D doesn't make an appearance on this 42-inch television, and nor does Wi-Fi, although a dongle is available from LG.

However, smart TV's holy trinity of BBC iPlayer, YouTube and an open web browser makes the LG 42LS570T a real stand-out at its price.

Looks-wise the LG 42LS570T is nothing special, combining a simple 15mm-wide gloss black bezel with a slightly larger undercarriage. The latter is fitted with speakers and a 11mm-wide grey plastic strip that's designed to look like brushed metal.

The same may not apply to the desktop stand, which is a little heavy duty, though it’s central gap proves a great place to store idle TV remotes, or gaming accessories such as aKinect.

Part of LG's LS570 Series, the 42-inch LG 42LS570T is joined by the 32-inch LG 32LS570T and the 37-inch LG 37LS570T, the latter an increasingly rare screen size that's not likely to last for another year (expect 39-inch screens to replace them due to recent advances in glass-cutting tech).

In comparison to sets lower down LG's ranges, such as the LG LS5600, LG LS3590 or LG LS3500 Series, these LS570 TVs are the lowest priced sets with free view HD tuners included.If you really can't do without a Wi-Fi module, a variant is available; the 42-inch LG 42LS575T is exclusive to Curries.

The step-down LG LS5600 Series, which encompasses the LG 32 inch TVModel-32LS5600, 37-inch LG 37LS5600, 42-inch LG 42LS5600 and 47-inch LG 47LS5600, drops to basic Free view and also manages just two HDMI inputs as well as a mere 100Hz refresh rate. Read more about Compare LG TV prices …