SAMSUNG UN55KS9500
If bigger is better, we’ve found a winner
WORD TO THE WISE: Unless you are seriously considering a large UHDTV like the Samsung 9 Series as some kind of PC monitor, don’t try one just for fun. It will ruin you for conventional PC monitors. It makes almost every other monitor seem tiny.
Take the LG 38UC99. It’s a 38-inch beast, with a 21:9 aspect ratio, and by any sane metric, it’s a big PC monitor. But we set it up after assessing this Samsung monster, and it looked pitiful. At 55 inches, this Samsung 9 Series model is nothing special by UHDTV standards (they go up to 78 inches), but set up as a PC monitor at PC monitor viewing distances, it dominates your field of view, and recalibrates your definition of big.
However, don’t go thinking this screen is a one-trick pony. This isn’t like the bad old days of large HDTVs, where size was all you got, and everything else—color accuracy, response, pixel pitch—sucked. Thanks to that 4K 3840x2160 grid, the pixel pitch is reasonable, if not awe-inspiring. Just as impressive is the out-of-the box calibration and ease of use. Hooked up to a modern graphics card with HDMI 2.0 support, in this case an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080, this thing just works. What’s more, both black and white scales show plenty of detail, and gradient rendering is smooth. There’s little, if any, noticeable input lag, either. In other words, it leaps all the hurdles that TVs used to stumble over when used as a PC monitor.
That’s thanks in part to the fact that this 9 Series Samsung is a member of the brave new army of HDR TVs. With support for the HDR 1000 standard come several features that help it perform in the exacting environment of a PC, including expanded color space, with 10-bit per channel capability, and an LED backlight augmented by local dimming and quantum dot tech.
The result is stunning, but has its limitations. As a gaming monitor, it is staggering. The huge panel with plenty of curve makes for an incredibly immersive experience. It is the most impressive gaming display we’ve experienced, though the lack of both 120Hz-plus refresh support and adaptive frame synching means it can’t check every gaming box.
It’s stellar for 4K video content, too. But as a conventional PC monitor for web browsing or productivity work, it’s less convincing. While the pixel pitch is tolerable, fonts aren’t nearly as crisp as a 32-inch 4K monitor. And you don’t actually get any additional screen real estate. The practicality of such a huge screen is questionable to say the least, too. And while the quantum dot-powered panel packs an incredible punch, it’s hardly the last word in accuracy.