Technology
The Olympic Games gave TV makers a chance to flex their design muscles.
The Olympic Games gave TV makers a chance to flex their design muscles.
Watching on as Lisa Carrington won gold in the 200m women’s kayak final at the Tokyo Olympics, I had the best vantage point possible without actually being there. That’s because I was sitting in front of one of the most advanced TVs money can currently buy, Samsung’s new Neo QLED 8K TV. It was 65 inches across, a minimalist slab of glass and metal trim with a solar-powered remote control so slim it kept disappearing down the back of my couch.
The TV makers, Samsung, Sony, LG and Panasonic included, all heavily pushed their 2021 line-up of TVs in the run-up to the Olympics, keen to showcase what the latest generation of technology can deliver. As with the top Olympic athletes we had the privilege of seeing in action, fine margins increasingly separate them.
Samsung’s high-end TV screens depart fundamentally from the rest of the pack as they use quantum-dot light-emitting diodes (QLED) as opposed to the rival organic light-emitting diode (OLED) system its rivals favour. Cinema purists tout OLED’s ability to produce “blacker blacks” – better contrast between the lightest and darkest parts of the image on the screen.
But it is now very hard to tell the difference, particularly this year with Samsung improving its ability to dim areas of the screen more precisely to achieve the same effect. Samsung’s displays are usually brighter, which helps for normal TV viewing conditions where lamps or sunlight cast their aura on the screen.
Although Samsung’s Neo features 8K upscaling and high dynamic range to give you the best picture possible, the experience still depends on the quality of the video you are feeding in. For that I turned to Apple TV and the nature documentary Awaken, which is transcendental in its beauty. It left some of my guests close to tears. The Neo did it justice. The other noticeable aspect of Samsung’s new flagship TV is the improved audio, which emanates from speakers discreetly embedded in the rear of the TV. A system called Object Tracking Sound Pro activates the speakers depending on what is happening on the screen, giving you a more dynamic aural effect.
This TV is a luxury few can afford, but many of the design improvements also feature in the cheaper 2021 4K models, priced from $2900.
The Frame TV is capable of displaying artwork when the TV is off, complete with a picture-frame trim.
Doing away with the “black mirror on the wall” has been one of Samsung’s missions, most notably with the Frame TV. It turns into a low-energy screen capable of displaying artwork when the TV is off, complete with a picture-frame trim to improve the effect.
Other formats, such as the Serif, the Sero and a waterproof outdoor TV called the Terrace, see Samsung experimenting more than any other TV maker with what a thin display can be. But cinephiles who don’t watch much TV may want to bypass the physical screen and opt for The Premiere, Samsung’s new shortthrow home-theatre projector.
Rather than requiring mounting on the ceiling, or to be positioned at a significant distance from the wall, it can sit just 30cm from where you plan to project its image, which is generated with a system of three lasers rather than bulbs.
The model I was test-driving can produce an image up to 130 inches, larger than any TV on the market, and it was remarkably bright and clear in a dark room. The Premiere isn’t much bigger than a game console or video player and with built-in TV tuner, internet connectivity, a smart TV hub offering access to streaming apps and Amazon Alexa voice controls, it can act as a TV replacement, with incredible appeal for watching movies and sports.
The Premiere’s speakers are less impressive. You’d be best pairing it with one of Samsung’s new Dolby Atmos-capable soundbars, with rear speakers for that true surround-sound effect (priced from $449). l
Neo QLED 8K TV, from $9000;
The Premiere, from $8000.