T3 - UK (2021-07)

JULY 2021 T3 75

Samsung QN900A

and howthat’s combined with
Samsung’s startlingly powerful new
imageprocessing.
e huge jump upin dimming
zones is thestarof the show, delivering
both much better contrast and less
backlight blooming in a genuinely
fearsome demonstration of why
Mini-LED technologylooksset to be
such a game changer for LCD TVs.
On the contrast front, black levels
can get so deep that the screen
completely disappears during a fade to
black ina darkened room, a trick
previously the exclusivedomain of the
best OLED TVs. At the same time,
though,the QN900A delivers bright
highlights witha realstep up in
intensityand brightness. Also
impressiveis how quickly and
smoothly the QN900A transitions
from darkto light shots, and back
again. ere’s no significant lag ineven
the most abrupt shifts.
It also improveson 2020’s 8K models
with its new AI upscaling.With a
pristine 4Ksource, such asa good4K
Blu-ray,the upscale is pretty much
flawless, clearly introducing extra pixel
densityand sharpness compared with
all the 4K TVs we ranside by side tests

with.Overall there’s a significant step

up from even the already impressive

upscaling of2020’s Samsung 8K TVs.

e prowess of the new Neo QLED

processing is even more striking with

HD sources. HD picturesdon’t look

fully4K (never mind 8K)but they do

look clean, natural and remarkably

free ofnoise.Colours retain their

tonalbalance and authenticity

through the upscaling process, too,

which again istrue even when

watching anSD source.

Whilethe QN900A is built to shine

• literally – withhigh dynamic range
  sources, it also steps down to SDRvery
  nicely. It tracks pretty effectively to
  standards in Movie mode, but more
  exciting for many owners, we suspect,
  is how wellthe latest Standard preset
  presents SDR with more aggression
  and brightness without the image
  losing balance or looking forced.

Good for games?

An increasinglyimportant aspect of

the QN900A’spicture performance for

today’sworld isgaming.And here,

again, the set is on mostly spectacular

ground. It has no trouble playing full

4K at 120Hz on any of its HDMI ports.

e extreme brightnessand colour

rangeplaysseriously nicely withthe

HDR graphics now being deployedby

the majorityof next-gen games. e

onlyissues with gaming are a slight

flickering in some game menus

(though seldom during actual game

play)when using VRR.

Whilethe picture performance is

sensational the sound quality doesn’t

quitematch. But, you can take the view

that it’ssurprising that any TV with

essentiallyno bezel anda slim rear

can produce decent sound, then the

QN900A holdsup verywell. But, ifyou

are prepared to spend on such a TV,

then consider getting one of Samsung’s

new soundbars from the Q70A model

upwards for the full sonic experience.

The QN900A can

play full 4K at

120Hz on any of its

HDMI ports

SAMSUNG Q900TS
The Q900TS features
many of the benefits
of the QN900A – 8K
resolution, dazzlingly
bright HDR images and
fantastic upscaling –
while costing less than
half the price.
£2,499, amazon.co.uk

SONY ZH8

Offering similarly

crisp pictures and

upscaling as the

Q900TS, the Sony

ZH8 also offers

Dolby Vision and

truly great sound.

VRR and ALLM are conspicuously absent, though.

£3,999, sony.com

THE ALTERNATIVES

WE’RE IMPRESSED Bright,

colourful HDR pictures;

stunning backlight control:four

HDMI 2.1 ports.

WE’D IMPROVE No Dolby

Vision or full Atmos support;

over-punchy picture presets.

THE LAST WORDIt’shard

to imagine how any other

TV in 2021 might take more

spectacular advantage of Mini-

LED technology than Samsung’s

dazzling 8 K flagship.

VERDICT

Find the best SamsungQN900A

deals at: bit.ly/t3qn900a