Samsung QE55Q80T
The Q80T QLED is the first mid-range 55-incher we’ve seen this year –and it sets a formidable benchmark for its rivals
Samsung has rather made a mess of the naming structure of its 2020 TVS, so the TV you’re looking at may not be the replacement for the 2019 model you’d expect. Take the Q80T, for example. Samsung insists it’s not a replacement for last year’s Q80R, but is the successor to the Q70R, even though the specs seem closer to those of the former. The QE55Q80T looks much like every other QLED of the last few years, all dark silver metal, straight edges and pointy corners. Unlike the higher-end Q95T model, which has a single-piece pedestal, the Q80T’S stand is a slightly less suave two-piece design. It still has a compact footprint and the sort of low profile that makes for easy placement of a soundbar.
One Connect box is missing
The Q80T lacks the flagship’s One Connect box, through which all of the Q95T’S connections (and power) are routed. Samsung says customers have been reticent to spend the extra money the One Connect adds to the price of a TV, and so it’s now restricted to the flagship 4K (Q95T) and 8K (Q950T) models. We’re big fans of the ingenuity and neatness of the system, so it’s a shame to see its availability reduced but, on the other hand, Samsung’s 2020 TV prices are lower than 2019’s.
With all of the connections and processing kit that would otherwise be in a One Connect box now in the main chassis, the Q80T is a bit thicker than the Q95T, measuring 5.4cm rather than 3.5cm. It’s still slimmer than the Sony KD-55XH9505 (7cm) that could emerge as its closest rival this year, and not much thicker than the more expensive LG OLED55CX (4.7cm) either.
The Q80T has a standard array of connections. The four HDMIS aren’t 2.1-certified, but they support key 2.1 features, including EARC (Enhanced Audio Return Channel), HFR (High Frame Rate), ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode) and VRR (Variable Refresh Rate).
Such is the abundance of apps that come with the Tizen platform, you can get a huge amount out of a Samsung TV without connecting an external source. Subscription-based 4K HDR streaming is available via Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ and Apple TV+; pay-asyou-go content (also largely 4K HDR) is available via the Apple TV app, Rakuten and Google Play Movies & TV.
Catch-up TV is available via BBC iplayer, ITV Hub, All 4 and My5; and Now TV and BT Tv/sport are also available, for Sky and/or BT content without the contract. If using your TV to listen to music is your thing, the Q80T packs in apps for Spotify, Tidal, Apple Music, Amazon Music and Deezer.
Samsung has left pretty much no streaming stone unturned, but Tizen is designed in such a way that it’s never overwhelming and so that content is always at your fingertips. This is helped by the remote, which lacks the smart finish of the Q95T’S zapper, but has the same stripped-back selection of buttons.
The only real cause of frustration in the Q80T’S feature set is Samsung’s continued stubbornness in resisting Dolby Vision in favour of its own advanced HDR format. Though the amount of HDR10+ content is slowly increasing, with much of Amazon Prime Video’s 4K catalogue featuring the format and the occasional new disc appearing, such as 1917, Dolby Vision is still far more prevalent and growing much faster, particularly with Disney+ and Apple TV joining Netflix in streaming content in the format.
The Q80T responds well to the same picture tweaks we made to the Q95T. We use the Standard preset for all content, switch Local Dimming to High, switch Picture Clarity to Custom and turn the Noise Reduction off.
With our chosen settings, the Q80T does an excellent job with Blade Runner 2049 on 4K Blu-ray. We’re immediately struck by the depth of the set’s blacks and the consistency of its backlight. Many non-oleds in the mid-range segment suffer bloom when lighting a bright object on an otherwise black background, but you rarely notice the Q80T’S backlight in action, you simply see a bright image emerge from an otherwise almost entirely black screen.
The Q80T’S peak brightness is rated at 1500nits, which is 500nits lower than that of the Q95T but still very bright indeed. It also has fewer dimming zones, so holds back a little more than its premium sibling in these high-contrast scenarios, but compared with its rivals it provides a fabulously dynamic image.
Brighter and clearer
As we get our first glimpse of K in the cockpit of his car, the rudimentary LED panels of the dashboard are brighter and clearer than from rivals, punching out from the dark more effectively. The contrast combines with sharply drawn edges to create a three-dimensional image, with K standing out from the screen somewhat. As the focus shifts to his hands, we can see every crease, wrinkle and vein.
The Q80T also combines a neutral colour temperature with the ability to produce real vibrancy, and that’s strikingly effective with this film’s broadly cool palette. The abundant greys are just as miserable and washed out as they should be, but the flashes of colour – Sapper Morton’s shiny red gloves, the holographic billboards, the flashing lights of K’s flying car – all punch through the murky gloom beautifully.
There are rare occasions when playing an HDR video that the Samsung’s vibrancy seems a touch exaggerated – Luv looks a little artificially rosy when she enters Niander Wallace’s yellow-lit chamber – but the Q80T’S approach to colour is one of its greatest strengths.
Blade Runner 2049 contains some stern tests of motion handling, and the Q80T proves a dab hand here, too.
The Q80T is the lowest model in Samsung’s 2020 TV range to get the new Object Tracking Sound tech, which uses extra drivers to create a more spacious sound stage. While the Q95T has eight drivers, this model has six: two midrange drivers and two woofers along the bottom, and two extra drivers at the top.
The Q80T sounds solid and the degree to which the sound isn’t restricted to the TV is impressive. There’s no surround effect as such, but the bullets fired at K’s car in Blade Runner 2049 emerge into the room satisfyingly. It’s a more open and engaging sound than expected at this price. There’s good tonal balance, too. The surprisingly deep bass is free of the artificiality that’s common of TVS with small drivers, the midrange is clear and naturally weighted, and the treble is rounded off enough to avoid harshness.
The Q80T is the first mid-range 55in set we’ve seen this year, and thanks to its dynamic and solid picture, substantial sound and exhaustive app selection, it sets a formidable benchmark.