LG Electronics has revealed that its 2022 and 2023 TVs are going to be updated to the new and improved webOS 24, which means they’ll gain Chromecast functionality and various other features.
Unfortunately, those TV owners will have to be patient, as LG said that it won’t get around to pushing the update until sometime next year, which means they’ll be almost one year behind anyone who buys one of its 2024 models. LG’s new TV lineup for this year will integrate webOS 24 from the get-go.
Flatpanels HD reported that LG only committed to start upgrading its older TVs to the latest version of its TV operating system last year, saying it would ensure that models from 2022 and 2023 will always remain up to date with the latest new software capabilities it creates.
The company calls this initiative the webOS ReNew Program, and has promised to deliver four webOS version upgrades for each TV it releases, backdated to its 2022 models. Those four updates will be delivered over a course of five years, and once that timeframe expires, it’s unlikely they’ll receive any future updates. Still, that’s a pretty good run for any TV these days, as TV manufacturers have always been notoriously non-committal and slow to upgrade the software on their sets, even the most premium models.
Under the webOS ReNew Program, anyone who buys a 2024 OLED TV can expect to receive continuous upgrades all the way through to 2029. So they’ll likely get updated to webOS 25, webOS 26, webOS 27 and finally webOS 28 over the duration of that period. After that, LG is probably hoping users will decide it’s time to buy a completely new TV.
According to Flatpanels HD, the timeline for the upgrades for its 2022, 2023 and 2024 models has already been published, as shown below. Though users should note that these plans are not set in stone, as they merely indicated “targeted update timing”. TV makers often experience problems in rolling out new software features, meaning there is potential for some delays to the release schedule.
Regarding the delay for the 2022 and 2023 models, LG said this is necessary to ensure the stability and performance of webOS 24, as there may be some compatibility issues with the older hardware that need to be ironed out.
The webOS 24 upgrade will introduce support for Chromecast, meaning users will be able to push content from their smartphones or tablets onto the TV, giving them more options besides streaming or plugging in some kind of media. Less exciting is the fact that the new OS will also deliver a refreshed user interface, with more room for ads than before.
HDTVTest recently obtained a first look at LG's 2024 OLED TVs, which provide a hint of what the new webOS 24 version will look like:
