Samsung 85 inch Neo QLED 8K Smart TV Australian review: Should you buy one?
Forget about getting one a plane, this 8K TV ‘takes you there’ with stunning visuals while watching big sporting contests are next level. REVIEW
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We didn’t need to be at the MCG to feel every moment of the Brisbane Lions thrashing the Sydney Swans in the AFL grand final.
I had mates at the games, who were right behind the goalposts, but I’m sure they didn’t get the view I did.
I was watching the match on a new 85 inch 8K television which brought every moment to my wife and I in such a real way that even she was screaming on the ‘sidelines’ as we watched the Lions roar.
With speakers at our side as well as a subwoofer and main soundbar in front of the TV, we could hear the crowd like we were in the game.
Samsung’s QN900D Neo QLED 8K Smart TV is not just for sports fans though.
It’s a TV that can you take your around the world.
Watch an 8K scenery video from YouTube and you will feel like you can walk on the green hills or soar above the turquoise oceans.
We visited our daughter in Amsterdam earlier this year, spending more than $16k on a three week bucket list trip which included travelling through Austria to Switzerland.
The scenery, especially during our detour to the Dolomites in Italy, was spectacular and of course the many moments with our daughter, priceless.
But after our return, and setting up this TV, you can see why people might in the future just travel the world via their big screen.
It’s a lot easier than getting on and off planes, especially as you get older.
After unboxing the Neo QLED and assembling the stand (note to Samsung you might want better Ikea like instructions according to my wife), the first thing you notice is how incredibly thin the TV is. It’s about the thickness of your finger.
The One Connect Box can be attached to the back of the television meaning you have just one cord, which can also be tucked away.
After turning on the television, Samsung’s interface gives prominence to its free Samsung TV channels.
But you can easily add favourites to the line-up of built in apps for things like YouTube, Netflix and other sport subscriptions like Fox Sports and Kayo.
Tuning in the digital stations was easy and quick to do. You can also favourite your stations through the menu.
Watching sport one thing you really need to do is to make sure you are watching a HD channel where the resolution is higher. Ordinary stations still can look pretty ordinary, especially on an 85 inch screen.
The TV offers what Samsung calls 8K AI upscaling.
The idea is that even if you are watching HD standard vision, the television will improve the quality to give you a better picture.
So is it perfect? Or like the displays you will see in the stores? In a word no.
Live television, when you look at it closely, is a mixture of vision outputs.
A camera following a fast moving player in AFL is not going to be as picture perfect as when commentators, sitting on a desk, go through beautiful onscreen graphics.
That said when the picture is good, the 8K TV is just superb.
Watching a movie you notice the incredible details, the deeper blacks, the facial expressions, and the nuances.
We put on Top Gun: Maverick and were blown away by the impact of the opening scenes, especially when listening to the sound on Samsung’s latest HW-Q990D Q-Series Soundbar.
It has an 11.1.4 channel setup with Wireless Dolby Atmos so when the planes roar by you really feel it via the hefty subwoofer.
The soundbar is super customisable so you can easily change where the sound is coming from and the type of sound based on what you are watching. There are sound modes for gaming, surround sound or adaptive.
It also has sound grouping for pulsating, room-filling sound or an option for personal listening where the sound comes through rear speakers next to you so you don’t disturb others in the house. That’s a great option for when everyone has gone to bed.
The TV itself also had a solid speaker system which is clear and loud enough to be used on its own or you can combine it with the Samsung soundbar.
The Neo QLED 8K is equipped with an advanced NQ8 AI Gen3 processor which features a Neural Processing Unit (NPU) offering twice the speed of its predecessor.
Samsung says 8K AI upscaling transforms TV shows and movies into higher resolution, improving on the original source material.
The TV also features AI Motion Enhancer Pro which promises to makes fast action smooth and clear.
One example given, is that it ‘learns’ to follow the ball better, producing sharper images.
Real Depth Enhancer Pro adds a more lifelike depth to the picture, pulling viewers into the scene.
Of course, it’s not as good as you see in the TV ads, but you certainly feel closer to the action, whether it be in a dramatic AFL grand final or one of your favourite movies.
The AI also extends to the sound experience with Active Voice Amplifier Pro extracting dialogue from background noise, ensuring you can hear dialogue more clearly.
Object Tracking Sound Pro syncs the sound with on-screen action, creating a more engaging experience.
The Neo QLED 8K is also the ultimate gaming viewer – and you can even play Xbox games without a console from within the TV.
We checked it out play some car racing games and it was as simple as subscribing to Xbox Game Pass, downloading the game and connecting a Xbox controller via bluetooth.
Samsung’s AI Auto Game Mode kicks in during gaming, optimising the visuals and audio while the AI Customisation Mode adjusts the picture for each scene based on the viewer’s preference.
The TV itself is controlled by a small remote which doesn’t have number buttons for channels (much to the annoyance of my mum who recently bought a new Samsung TV).
If you are accustomed to a larger remote, it may take a little get used to.
You can also use voice commands to turn the TV on, change channels, launch Netflix or YouTube. We tried it out and found it worked surprisingly well.
When first released the 85 inch QN900D Neo QLED 8K Smart TV had a RRP of almost $12,000 though in more recent weeks, I’ve seen it advertised for $9500.
The 65 inch version can be bought for about $5200 while the 75 inch is about $7200.
The HW-Q990D Q-Series Soundbar had an initial retail price of almost $2,000 though more recently it has been advertised for under $1500.
Combined, they produce a cinema experience which is as good as you can expect on the big screen, without the exorbitant costs of movie tickets these days.
So would I buy one?
If you think of your TV as a 10 year entertainment investment (and certainly cheaper than an European holiday), it stacks up.
Of course there are far cheaper alternatives out there but with TVs, it generally pays to fork out for the better brands particularly if you want fewer problems.
I helped my mum buy her new TV – a 55 inch $1400 4K TV from Samsung.
After visiting numerous stores, the sales person spruiking Samsung had me convinced that while there are cheaper alternatives, they had fewer issues with brands like Samsung, LG and Sony so the extra money upfront might be well spent.
Mum is more than happy with her new TV. But she ordered a bigger remote!
Originally published as Samsung 85 inch Neo QLED 8K Smart TV Australian review: Should you buy one?
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