Samsung 2018 QLED TVs
THE BEST LCD TVS EVER MADE.
SAMSUNG PLAYED A big part in killing Plasma TV technology when its first batch of super-thin, LCD LED TVs appeared. It’s been leading the LCD TV charge ever since but, in recent years, it’s been getting its bottom kicked by OLED technology.
While OLED TVs rely on illuminating organic compounds to produce an image, Samsung’s top TVs are more contrived. Firstly, there’s the usual LCD technology, where an image is displayed by shining light through a layer of liquid crystal. Usually this makes a bright image with poor contrast: there are no true blacks, plus dark areas (like letterbox bars in movies) are washed out and distracting. But Samsung’s Q9F Series uses hundreds of different rear-lighting zones which enable true-blacks to appear. Samsung has also added new anti-reflective layers to ensure that bright Aussie homes don’t blight the midday footie with reflections while other layers and technologies strive to prevent light leakage and distracting halo effects. There are also prismatic layers to ensure that colours look as good from wide viewing angles as they do from the front. These features, combined with Samsung’s typical bright screens and vibrant QLED colours, mean that its top QLED TVs are the best LCD TVs we’ve ever seen and the difference between them and OLED rivals is often barely perceptible. The HDR10+ certification means that content from Amazon looks even better. Enthusiasts will tinker with the many “Expert” settings, but casual watchers will likely be impressed with it out of the box.
Samsung offers a great deal more too. The company now has a massive 10-year anti burn-in guarantee. This means you’re protected from ghost images that can appear from channel logos and such like. It’s an issue that has been reported on some OLED TVs and this guarantee might tip you away from them.
There’s also the “One Clear Cable” which provides both power and signal settings through one, almost-invisible Teflon-wrapped fibre optic cord. It’s extremely impressive and will especially suit wall mounting. And if you ever wanted a TV to be wall mounted, it’s this. The Ambient Mode feature is stunning: by uploading a picture of your mounting wall, Samsung overlays various effects which contrive to make your TV look translucent. Effects include shimmering water ripples plus a high-concept quicksilver clock. It runs in low-power mode so it won’t destroy your power bills. Other features include a fancy smart remote and a full array of catch-up apps on its proprietary Tizen operating system. Sound is decent and comes courtesy of 60W speakers (on the 65-inch model).
Behind Samsung’s top-end Q9F TVs (65-, 75-inch) are its Q8F (55-, 65-inch) which has the same image but not the same connectivity or design. The cheaper Q7F (55-, 65- and 75-inch) has the Q9F’s design flourishes but inferior side-lighting while the Q6F (55-, 65-, 75-inch) strips away the best backlighting and design features.
With the 65-inch Q9F now available at under $5,000, Samsung’s QLED has finally become an enticing buy for any TV enthusiast.
THERE’S ALSO THE “ONE CLEAR CABLE” WHICH PROVIDES BOTH POWER AND SIGNAL SETTINGS THROUGH ONE, ALMOST-INVISIBLE TEFLON-WRAPPED FIBRE OPTIC CORD. IT’S EXTREMELY IMPRESSIVE AND WILL ESPECIALLY SUIT WALL MOUNTING.