Tips For Lowering TV’s Brightness, Improving Its Input Lag and Making It Easier to See in the Dark

When you buy a TV, it comes with some default settings that aren’t ideal. But you can easily tweak the TV’s software to improve its performance. Here are some tips on lowering your TV’s brightness, improving its input lag, and making it easier to see in the dark.

Turn Off Motion Smoothing

If you watch a lot of sports or action movies, the TV’s motion smoothing feature can be annoying. It tries to reduce blurriness by analysing adjacent video frames and making an educated guess at what the in-between frames would look like if they’d been captured. Unfortunately, it can also create noticeable judder. The good news is that most sets let you disable the two effects separately. You can often find a setting in the TV’s menu called ‘frame rate’ or ‘motion processing’ that lets you deactivate both features.

Reducing Backlight

LED screens use a lot of power to shine bright, so lowering the backlight saves energy. It will also make the screen look dimmer and less impressive at first, but your eyes should adjust after a day or so. At lower backlight settings, LEDs can last for over 10 years, so reducing the backlight will help you avoid the need to replace your TV before then.

Increase Sharpness

If a resolution upscales blurrily, try increasing the TV’s sharpness. This will add definition without creating harsh lines or big halos around objects. Some TVs even have noise reduction features that can reduce the appearance of grain and artefacts.

Turn Off Input Lag

Most gaming-ready TVs have a setting to reduce input lag. Whether it’s called ‘motion smoothing’ or ‘game mode’, turning it off can make games feel more responsive and allow you to enjoy them more. But you can also get similar results with other software-based settings.

Install a Drop Down TV Mount

If you want to be able to view your TV in the dark, consider installing a wall mount that drops down when you need it and raises up when you’re done. A lift mount like the TY-05-40 (opens in new tab) will allow you to do just that, with up to 75″ of travel.

If you’re looking for a more discreet solution, there are also plenty of kits that allow you to cover or camouflage wires behind your TV. This can be a great way to keep your home looking neat and tidy, while still allowing you access to the ports you need. lowering TV’s