Product: Samsung 8K QLED Q950TS 75” Panel
Type: 8K QLED TV
Price: Between $10,000 and $8000
Availability: Out Now
Link: Official Link

It’s an interesting thing firing up a game and seeing it on a panel that elevates it even more than it already stands. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, our Game of the Year for 2020 running on the Samsung 950TS, in 8K and at 75” is a sight to behold. Cyberpunk 2077 might be the panel’s poster child but somewhere in there that got lost, but it doesn’t mean a new talent couldn’t emerge to showcase this new visual stage.

To be clear, the game isn’t running at 8K, but the TV is working overtime to make sure you think, and see, it is.

Welcome to the world of QLED 8K innovation and presentation.

From the panel’s goal of being as close to frameless and all-screen as possible (or “Infinity Screen”, as it’s buzzed), to its ease of setup (especially if you’re a Samsung regular), this 8K display is something a little bit special. There’s plenty of talk in a versus world around 4K and 8K in a ‘Scorpion v. Sub Zero’ sense while ‘future-proofing’ against cost, but Samsung’s 8K QLED series helps the case in the form of the latter because it makes 4K look better than 4K. An interesting statement, but hear us out.

Get Over Here!

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What’s simplest and earliest to point out is the ease of view -- these displays are designed to make it all work. My review space, as pictured, is long and open. My old review space would have made this a review unit for someone else to try and use, but alongside the Xbox Series X and PS5, I’ve managed to fill a veritable void with glorious windows into upscaled UHD worlds, amplified by my positioning of my LIFX Beam setup. However, as posh as that all sounds, even on a smaller panel with no bells and whistles… this 8K thing sings.

Related: MSI GeForce RTX 3080 Suprim X 10G Review

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There’s a deliberate lean in its design that will challenge your safety protocols around panels not only of this technical ilk, but of their price as well. But it serves a purpose. Much like many a curved monitor or panel, there’s a viewing plane designed around the tech and the person. Initially, I propped the screen up with a cardboard box, not realising it was meant to be on a lean. Removing said box and sinking into the couch for some Valhalla action quickly helped me understand why this was designed this way. In simple terms: it’s scope -- I mean, we don’t put our phones up to our faces square (unless we need glasses), so it makes ergonomic and viewing sense.

This also became clear (heh) a few days after the change. The angle became natural given my space and range to the panel. However, let it be known the TV is mountable and so positional for viewing, by you, but in our instance and as part of this review, we stand by its gravity-defying lean -- both physically and design-wise.

Under the Hood

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Even if you’re not set up for any sort of surround or audio outlay beyond the screen, the inbuilt TV speaker system is still top-notch. While we had a Q800T 3.1 Soundbar to review the unit alongside (standalone review incoming), we tested it on its own merits and felt confident anyone’s older generation non-technophile type (read: parents/grandparents) could easily live with the default output. And it’s all a matter of plug and play in this world.

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"What’s important to remember here is you’re buying the panel. Everything else is pretty much digitally upgradeable, but the future-proof stuff comes in the form of the display...”

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Like panels of the past, the 8K QLED Q950TS 75” display comes equipped with a “One Connect” box. For the uninitiated, this is basically your Xbox to run your TV. It features four HDMI inputs, an ethernet port and USB ports. From your telly, there’s a single cord that makes this work and given its size, it’s versatile in movement; meaning the giant, heavy 75” panel you just made your home display, remains that way.

There’s a single 2.1 HDMI input for 8K and upscaling that both warrants pause and no concern; pause being why not have all ports 2.1, the no concern is there’s a very good chance down the track new One Connects will rectify this in triplicate (heh). What’s important to remember here is you’re buying the panel. Everything else is pretty much digitally upgradeable, but the future-proof stuff comes in the form of the display.

Here are the panel’s official specs for the hardcore out there:

• Quantum Dot Technology
  
• 8K Resolution
  
• OS: Samsung Tizen
  
• VRR and ALLM support
  
• HDMI: Four Ports (one 2.1)
  
• HDR Formats: HDR10, HDR10+, HLG
  
• USB: Three
  
• Optical: One

Our review-replaced panel was a Samsung 4K 65” QLED Q9 that beyond served its purpose for gaming and TV, but this future-proof example in the 8K review panel makes a strong case to upgrade. For one, while at 8K the 2.1 port is 60hz, any 4K input in that port is 120hz, which makes gaming from either our Xbox Series X or PS5 just glorious. AI upscaling helps here, and with some backend tweaks, the visual version of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla we’ve played on the screen for over 200 hours now, never ceases to amaze. (And to just set a reminder: Series X and PS5 are 8K-capable, so that “future-proofing” tag aligns with current-gen high-end consoles.)

Gotta Wear Shades

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"The size helps (natch), but the AI upscaling feature is one of the most underrated here, and it’s reason enough to future-proof when you consider it upscales the present...”

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Price aside, especially in our economic climate, the biggest detractor to upgrading to such an epic TV is “but there’s no content”. And it’s unfortunately, mostly, true. There is content you can watch on YouTube, and our review unit came with media examples of just what the TV is capable of. You’ve probably seen these in visits to JB or Bing Lee or the Harveys out there, and currently it’s all just animals and aerial footage of amazing landscapes, but that’s a good hook. We’re not far off everything being shot in 8K for people to be able to watch, and gawk in awe at that next-generational leap in visual ability, but here’s a case for the buy-in now option.

I’m a sports fanatic, and as such have Foxtel and subs to all the streaming options where sport is king. On this TV, an oval pops, loudly, even streaming from 1080p or UHD options. It sounds silly, maybe, but watching the cricket in such definition is engrossing -- not something many people say about cricket who aren’t crazy. But footy and basketball and even golf -- they’re all just better on this panel. The size helps (natch), but the AI upscaling feature is one of the most underrated here, and it’s reason enough to future-proof when you consider it upscales the present.

In short (and long), as an investment for what's to come and while we might still be forced to spend more time at home, why not watch the best version of all your favourites, or play the best visual output of your favourites, or those upcoming? It's not a tough question to answer, and one we implore you ask yourself. You won't regret the investment, for both the now and the future.