Samsung QN90B Neo QLED TV evaluation

When somebody talks about TVs, OLED screens are virtually all the time talked about as the most effective for gaming. Due to its image high quality and pricing, you may usually hear that the LG C1 TV is the gold commonplace for gaming TVs. The Samsung QN90B Neo QLED is likely to be the primary non-OLED TV to offer LG its first true problem, providing a 4K 120Hz Sensible TV that appears virtually constructed for console and PC gaming because of its Mini LED backlighting and quantum dot filter tech. Which is fancy TV communicate for, “it is brilliant and colourful.”

The evaluation pattern I used to be despatched was the 55-inch Class QN90B Samsung Neo QLED 4K Sensible TV (opens in new tab). There are fashions as small as 43-inches, however it could possibly additionally come as massive as an intimidating 98 inches (opens in new tab) for a whopping $15K, prompting a spit take and me mouthing to myself, “that is an excessive amount of TV.”

I feel it is protected to say that the 55-inches is the candy spot for a TV like this, particularly for my cramped little workplace, although at 43-inch, you might virtually make a case for a desktop display screen. This model retails for $1900, which I am going to admit is a bit expensive for non-OLED TV, although it has been on and off sale for $1500 over the past week or so, making it a far more interesting proposition, particularly with the upcoming vacation offers season. 

The Samsung QN90B gives nice connectivity with all 4 of its HDMI ports appropriate with 4K/120Hz indicators. That may be a dream for avid gamers with consoles and a high-end GPU. I had an Xbox Sequence X, PlayStation 5, Nvidia Defend, and a gaming PC plugged into the TV throughout testing, which coated all my streaming and gaming bases. 

Toss in all of the cloud gaming apps already on the TV, and there might be no scarcity of video video games to play. Audiophiles might be joyful to notice that there’s an optical port when you’re trying to hook up a soundbar or residence theater sound system, too. 

The menus for the TV can really feel a bit daunting at first as a result of it throws fairly a bit at you, with the media hub being affected by all types of streaming and paid-for film choices. Samsung has its gaming hub on a separate channel on the house display screen, which is a bit more organized than the media channel, and, due to this fact a bit simpler to navigate. 

I wrote at size about how a lot I actually just like the embedded Xbox Cloud Gaming (opens in new tab), and the way it’s a incredible addition to Samsung’s present line of Sensible TVs. It is one thing that should present up on different sensible TVs ASAP.  Together with the Xbox App, you’ve got obtained Nvidia GeForce Now, Google Stadia, and Utomik all obtainable by way of the Samsung gaming hub. You simply want a Bluetooth controller and a subscription to these companies, and you have got a TV that may stream video games in 4K (relying on the app and your web connection) with no set-top field, sport console, or PC. 

I performed a couple of matches in Fortnite utilizing Geforce Now with an RTX 3080 membership (opens in new tab). I used to be impressed with the general latency as I bashed Batman over the pinnacle with Darth Vader’s lightsaber as Tremendous Saiyan Goku in largely 4K. Nonetheless, I did have moments the place I obtained slammed with extreme artifacting every time my web connection obtained hinky.  

When it comes to the picture, the QN90B gives a peak brightness of over 3,000 nits in HDR, which suggests as a front room TV you do not have to fret a lot about brilliant glares ruining your afternoon soccer sport. Surprisingly, I seen little or no blooming, which usually tends to occur on brighter non–OLED TVs when watching films. That is your Mini-LED backlighting coming to the fore proper there. 

For non-OLED TV, Samsung does present an image high quality that’s high in school and will simply dangle with LG’s C Sequence OLED TVs, that are among the many greatest TVs for gaming (opens in new tab). OLEDs will all the time be the way in which to go when you’re in search of superior shade and contras, however rattling, does this come shut. 

In non-streaming video games, I did discover an oversaturation of shade, particularly blues. It was evident in gamers’ and followers’ clothes in MLB The Present 22 and Midnight Struggle Specific. Nonetheless, personally I all the time favor extra shade for gaming over shade being washed out, even when you might argue it is technically extra correct. It is not a deal breaker for me, however stick to OLED for shade accuracy when you’re a little bit of a snob on that entrance, or when you plan to make use of this as a big format show for video and photograph modifying. 

The QN90B’s distinction and native dimming options are actually spectacular. I have been streaming The Sandman on Netflix, which options a variety of darkish, gloomy, dreamlike scenes that make the most of how the TV handles its blacks. It does this by dimming or brightening areas of the show relying on what’s occurring on the display screen, enhancing distinction. 

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As a lot as I just like the TV for watching films and sports activities, it shines when enjoying video games, particularly by way of PC. After its latest replace (opens in new tab), I plugged in my check system with an RTX 3090 (opens in new tab) and fired up Cyberpunk 2077 to see how Night time Metropolis seems in 4K at 120Hz. The colours popped as I used to be zipping round at night time with all of the dystopian pinks and purples taking up the display screen, making full use of its HDR10 and HDR10 Plus assist. 

If you plug in a console, the TV routinely units the image to ‘Sport Mode’ together with a pop-up displaying all of the important info like body charges, HDR settings, and many others. It is a fast option to inform you what is going on performance-wise with out digging too deep into menus. 

Paradoxically, the one time I felt the TV did not look its greatest was once I performed in ‘Sport Mode.’ It appears it did not jibe nicely with the native dimming or HDR, so generally cutscenes in video games like Saints Row or Resident Evil Village felt too brilliant, and blacks too gray. As soon as I modified it from Sport mode to actually anything, the distinction was virtually night time and day. 

Plugging in your PC requires an additional step, nevertheless. Because the TV did not acknowledge my machine as a sport supply however as a media supply, it did not routinely modify the settings when plugged in. It is a drag, however you’re in for rock-solid PC gaming after you have every little thing set. I performed by way of the whole lot of Immortality (opens in new tab) with my PC plugged into the TV and parsing by way of the faux-archival footage appeared completely superb. 

As a PC monitor, I can simply see somebody mounting this factor proper above their desk as a 3rd assist display screen for watching media or enjoying video games, since setting it as a PC monitor was comparatively pain-free. Although when you do plan on utilizing this as a PC monitor, I like to recommend sitting again a bit and perhaps turning on among the TV’s eye consolation settings so you are not blasting your eyes with blindingly brilliant Twitter threads by way of the night time.  

In all, the Samsung QN90B QLED is a wonderful TV for absolutely anything. With a strong and easy-to-use interface, this feature-rich sensible TV gives nice response time and enter lag for console and PC gaming. And, when you actually should, its brilliant shade show makes for some nice TV watching, too.