With the Gaming Shelf, LG is introducing a special surface to its current TVs. Also, one wants to emphasize cloud gaming.
The new Gaming Sheld comes to LCD and OLED TVs from webOS 6.0. Thus, the surface for televisions of the years 2021 and 2022 stands out. In the new user interface, LG wants to group functions, applications and content for gamers, very similar to Samsung with its Gaming Hub. Blacknut will start for LG TVs in September 2022 and Utomik will follow in November 2022.
Select Nvidia GeForce Now titles are also available through the Gaming Shelf. LG claims that the functionality of the game shelf will be gradually expanded. For example, future updates will also bring the option to access Google Stadia through that user interface. In principle, Stadia is already available for current LG TVs.
You can access the Gaming Shelf on compatible TVs directly through the home screen. We see this as a quick counterattack to Samsung’s Gaming Hub. After all, LG markets its TVs very offensively to gamers. However, you will still have to do the same for some apps. For example, Samsung has already released the Xbox app for its game hub.
Gaming: increasingly important for TV manufacturers
Gamblers are generally a popular target group as they are seen as willing to pay. Especially since more and more people play on consoles and PCs. LG understood this trend early on, making it one of the first manufacturers to use HDMI 2.1 in its TVs, starting with 2019 TVs. However, Samsung moved faster with its Gaming Hub, so LG will probably felt the need to capture in this regard, which has now been implemented.
Incidentally, LG now includes an NFT marketplace on its smart TVs as well, but only in the US for now.
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