Philips 901F 4K OLED TV
The first 4 K flat screen to combine O LED panel technology with Am bi light is a solid gold wow
Philips’ first OLED TV has been worth the wait, bringing not just astounding picture quality (and even great sound), but the magic of Ambilight, too.
Philips is the latest TV manufacturer to join the world of OLED. Its 55-inch 9000 series 901F (or 55POS901F/12 if you want to be formal) joins OLED offerings from Panasonic, Sony and LG at the highend of the 4K UHD panel market.
What sets this screen apart from those models is Ambilight, Philips mood-lighting technology. We’ve long been enthusiastic admirers of Ambilight, in all its various guises, but here partnered with OLED, it really has unique appeal. Design and features Build quality is gorgeous. The 901F boasts an ultra-thin chrome bezel and shiny feet; the rear panel is an elegant gloss grey with a hairline finish. Inputs hide behind a neat pop-off panel.
All four HDMI inputs support 4K HDCP 2.2 sources. You’ll need this for next-gen set-top boxes, UHD Blu-ray players or media streamers.
There’s also a trio of USBs (one suitable for timeshifting onto a USB hard drive), a digital optical audio output, headphone jack and Ethernet. The TV supports dual-band Wi-Fi.
Two remote controls are in the box. One is a standard IR unit, while the other a Bluetooth remote with built-in microphone and QWERTY keypad on the rear.
The Ambilight implementation is three-sided, casting a familiar halo around the set. You can set it to follow video, reflecting onscreen hues with great washes of colour, or have it follow music, colours pulsating in rhythm.
Alternatively, you can elect to have a static wall colour. There are five options: Red, Green, Blue, plus Cool or Warm White. The latter is an ISF calibrated bias light, which not only improves perceived contrast but also reduces eye fatigue.
The smart platform is stock Android. Apps available include Netflix, Amazon Video, YouTube, BBC iPlayer, Chili Cinema and Wuaki. A gallery offers plenty of other direct streaming services, many with a Euro flavour (nudge nudge, wink wink). Both Netflix and Amazon Video support 4K for compatible content, so you can show off that resolution with an external UHD player. Picture perfect O LED We’ve yet to meet an OLED screen we didn’t like, and this Philips is no exception. Indeed, image quality is sensationally good. Blacks are deep and velvety. On letterboxed movies, the bars top and bottom are absolute ebon. The 901F also does a
tremendous job resolving near black detail. When Christopher Walken’s King Louie first emerges from the shadows in The Jungle Book, he really does appear to be coming out of organic darkness, instead of just an empty black space on the screen.
Take care with the image presets though. Modes comprise Personal, Vivid, Natural, Standard, Movie, Photo, ISF Day & Night and Game. Natural and Standard sound similar but are rather different, particularly when it comes to skin tones (confusingly, you should choose Standard for the most natural), while the Movie mode masks fine detail. Play the opening text crawl for Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Blu-ray) and you’ll immediately see the difference. In Standard, there are clearly more stars in space. With Movie mode, a quarter of them appear to have been turned off. Don’t tell the Empire.
The set uses a 2016 OLED panel, which is reflected by its limited overall brightness, here peaking at 540 nits. But that doesn’t mean it lacks dynamics. The contrast range is considerable, and spectral highlights (fireworks, reflections, etc) really ping off the screen.
When watching HDR content, those picture presets are replaced by HDR variants. Once again, we found UHD films look considerably less sharp in HDR Movie mode than they are in HDR Standard. Texture is dulled, fine detail smooshed out. We’re not sure exactly what’s going on, but whatever it is, it isn’t to our liking. Stick with Standard for gorgeous images.
While there is no support for Dolby Vision, Philips says the TV is in line for an HLG (Hybrid Log-Gamma) HDR firmware update, when broadcast HDR becomes a thing.
Colour fidelity is excellent. The set claims to cover 99 per cent of the DCI-P3 colour spectrum. Greens and blues have a vibrancy that’s refreshing.
Motion handling is impressive; even without Philips own Perfect Natural Motion processing. To be honest, we found all strengths (Minimum, Medium, Maximum) added unwanted artefacts, so we generally preferred to turn the processor off.
Awesome audio performance
Audio is handled by a premium soundbar. This fully integrated solution features six forward facing drivers, and delivers excellent stereo articulation with a well-rounded mid-range. Power output is rated at 30W total, more than enough to give the Death Star’s planet destroyer authentic rumble.
Overall, we reckon Philips’ first OLED TV is well worth the wait. Beautifully designed, with immersive Ambilight, it offers head-turning picture quality with both regular HD and 4K HDR sources alike.
The lack of wider catch-up services shouldn’t really be an issue (you can always add them with a media streamer). To be honest, we’d have liked the option of a 65-inch model, but for now this 55-incher is all that’s available. Guess we’ll have to make do.