LG is known for their OLED televisions, which offer perfect blacks and exceptional contrast. However, they aren’t the only ones offering high quality TVs.
Hisense is one of the most exciting brands on the market. Their U8H series is a standout for its mini-LED backlighting and quantum dot filter that enhances color. It also has a wide range of gaming features.
1. Sony A90J
If you’re looking for a new TV that’s not just aesthetically stunning but also has impressive smart functionality, the Sony A90J is a great choice. Its combination of a new high brightness OLED panel and Sony’s Bravia XR processing system delivers some of the best pictures we’ve seen on a TV to date.
The Sony A90J’s 4K OLED panel produces incredibly deep blacks and rich colours. It’s also good for gaming thanks to its XR Motion Clarity technology and Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) support, which means smooth graphics without tearing or frame stuttering.
It’s also a good fit for the PS5 console, which can output 4K images at up to 120Hz and has a dedicated Game Mode that offers Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM) to minimise lag when playing games. Additionally, this model supports enhanced Audio Return Channel (eARC) and Auto HDR Tone Mapping, which means you’ll get accurate detail and colour reproduction out of the box.
A lot of this impressive picture quality comes down to the A90J’s new OLED panel, which uses a new brightness engine that unlocks more of the potential of its full HDR capabilities. The extra brightness enables a wider colour spectrum than has previously been possible with OLED, so that all of the colours in any given scene are beautifully saturated and balanced.
That’s not all though; the A90J also has a host of other cool features, including acoustic multi-audio and an innovative frame tweeter that can project sound to either side of the screen based on how close you are to the set. The Frame Tweeter can also sense your seating position and adjust the sound based on that.
As a bonus, the A90J is compatible with Apple Airplay 2 and HomeKit – two Apple streaming services that let you use your TV as part of a smart home setup. There’s also an eARC port that can pass through Dolby Atmos and DTS Digital Surround sound signals, so you should be able to enjoy immersive surround sounds from your favourite movies and TV shows.
As with most smart TVs these days, the A90J is built on a brand-new platform, this time Google TV. This takes over from Sony’s previous Android TV platform and improves upon it in a number of ways. For instance, Google TV is easier to use and has a more responsive and intuitive interface. It also lets you customise what’s displayed on the TV and suggests content based on your viewing history rather than just recommendations from popular or paid content sources.
2. LG G1
The LG G1 Gallery Series is an excellent TV that’s slim and light enough to hang on the wall without looking too bulky. It’s also a great choice for anyone who likes to have top picture quality and a wide range of features.
The 65G1’s high-brightness screen delivers an impressive level of brightness, and it also uses a new layer to improve green and blue colors. That enables the G1 to deliver a better, more vibrant image than most other OLEDs. It’s especially good for use in dark rooms, where it can display a near-infinite contrast ratio and perfect black uniformity.
It also displays a wide color gamut and has a good HDR peak brightness, which makes highlights pop in HDR content. It has excellent reflection handling, too, which means you’ll get sharp contrast and great viewing angles in well-lit areas.
For gamers, the G1 has a Game Optimizer menu that allows them to fine tune picture settings to suit their preferred genre. It can also switch on Dolby Atmos and Dolby Vision HDR sound, which will increase audio depth in a number of movies.
Gamers should love the HDMI 2.1 inputs, which support 4k 120fps gameplay from Xbox One and PlayStation 5 consoles. They’re also able to use all the usual v2.1 features, including eARC for audio to a set-top box or sound system. The G1 is also compatible with all the latest VRR and FreeSync tech, so it’s a solid choice for gaming enthusiasts.
It’s a little heavy for an OLED TV, though, and requires a bit of work to get it hooked up. It does come with a custom wall mount that lets it sit flush against the wall, but you’ll need two people to set it up.
The smart platform is a major upgrade, too. It features a new home screen that’s oriented towards trending content and suggestions from apps and live TV based on your viewing habits. It’s a nice move but it could still benefit from some customization options.
The G1’s main selling point is its OLED panel, which can deliver outstanding picture performance for a wide variety of viewing situations. It’s particularly good for use in dark rooms because it has a near-infinite contrast and perfect black uniformity, as well as great reflection handling. It’s also great for using in a well-lit room because it’s good for watching sports or movies. It also has a wide viewing angle, which is great for big groups of people.
3. Philips 807
The Philips 807 is a great mid-range OLED TV that’s a joy to look at. It’s also one of the best-sounding TVs in its price range, thanks to the fact that it sports a 70W audio system that supports Dolby Atmos object-based audio.
As you’d expect from a Philips TV, the OLED807 comes with a huge range of features and capabilities. It’s an HDR-ready smart TV that also supports the latest gaming features including variable refresh rates (VRR), auto low latency mode (ALLM) switching, and 4K/120Hz feeds on two of its HDMIs. It even supports Dolby Vision up to 60Hz.
A big part of the 807’s image quality comes from its proprietary P5 perfect picture engine – which is based around five key pillars, as Philips calls them: colour, sharpness, contrast, motion and source recognition/optimisation. The P5 engine applies multiple processing tools to each of these pillars, then optimises them through the use of deep learning AI technology to deliver the very best picture quality possible for whatever’s on your screen.
Another major feature of the OLED807 is its Ambilight technology, which uses rear-mounted LEDs to cast coloured light onto the wall behind. The coloured lighting is able to track both the tone and location of colours in the picture you’re watching, resulting in a very immersive experience.
The Philips OLED807 also supports a whole host of HDR formats, with strong black levels and good shadow and mid-tone details. It’s also very accurate with its wide-colour gamut, and it does a brilliant job of matching film content.
We’d definitely recommend the OLED807 for those who like to watch HDR films, particularly those with a lot of saturated colour and motion – it really does make for an excellent picture that doesn’t feel overblown or overpowered. It’s also a very good choice for those who prefer the more realistic look of HDR content, as it offers excellent levels of detail in black and shadow areas and good lifelike skin tones.
As well as delivering superb picture quality, the Philips OLED807 is very well designed too, with a slim design and high-quality metallic finish. Its screen sits on a centrally mounted t-bar stand that looks impressively premium for a TV this size and this price.
4. Samsung QN95B
The Samsung QN95B is an amazing flagship 4K model in the company’s 2022 Neo QLED range. It’s an all-rounder that offers stunning industrial design, a clever object tracking sound system and extensive gaming capabilities.
It’s also a great value option for those looking to invest in a top-of-the-line TV that will last for a long time. Its AI-inspired picture processor is another major step up from previous models, and it supports a wider DCI-P3 color space, allowing most HDR content to look incredible.
As well as the impressive pixel response, the QN95B has class-leading local dimming that ensures dark scenes are rich and inky, while bright areas remain suitably punchy without blooming. It also has an updated version of the Neo QLED’s AI processor, enabling it to more accurately identify and analyse different types of content in real-time.
In addition, it has an improved backlight control system that reduces the glare that usually accompanies bright scenes. It’s also a great choice for watching in a light room, as it has excellent contrast and reflection handling.
The QN95B is a good choice for gaming too, with a quick response time that results in short blur trails behind fast moving objects. It also supports low frame rate compensation (LFC), which automatically engages at low refresh rates to keep stuttering low.
This helps to create a nearly tear-free gaming experience, and it’s also good for watching sports and other high-resolution video content. It has an incredibly high maximum refresh rate, too, which means that it’s able to cope with the fast-paced action of modern games and movies.
One of the most striking aspects of the QN95B is its remarkably slim profile. Its ‘Infinity’ screen is no thicker than a sliver of silvery metal, which helps it to hide in plain sight when not in use.
It also has a redesigned Tizen-powered smart system, which fills the screen rather than displaying a bar along the bottom. There are still some niggles, but the QN95B is a really impressive premium model. It has a fantastic AI-inspired picture processor, a comprehensive smart system and an impressive range of gaming features.