Two of the biggest TV launches of 2022 are the Samsung S95B and Sony A95K as they are the first TVs to use the latest generation QD-OLED panel. This next-generation technology promises to revolutionize today's best OLED TVs by delivering higher brightness, a wider color gamut and wider viewing angles.
He promises this, but will he keep? And will there be a significant difference between these two TVs using the new technology?
We'll have to wait for the final reviews to get the full picture, but TV test master Vincent Teoh got his hands on both models and posted his first tests comparing the two in a video on the HDTV Test YouTube channel (opens in a new tab ), which you can see just below.
We'll explain the more interesting takeaways and reviews later, but the main takeaway is this: the screens are clearly very similar, but Sony has done some interesting things with the design of the TV... just not with the results you'd expect. necessarily have to wait.
Analysis: Sony plays it safe
In Teoh's tests, the Sony A95K immediately impresses with its color reproduction, reaching almost 100% of the DCI-P3 gamut and around 90% of the Rec. 2020 gamut.
Where it gets interesting is when he tested the brightness of the HDR window. To explain: When testing a screen's maximum brightness, reviewers will use an HDR signal that creates a rectangle of white light, with the rest of the screen black. The smaller the window, the more light the TV can emit, since all the energy is concentrated only in this section. A 10% HDR window is 10% of the screen size (this is usually the brightest level), a 50% window is 50% of the screen, etc.
The Sony A95K now has a heat sink behind the screen, a technique the company uses in its A90J TV to allow it to achieve higher brightness levels. Generating light creates heat; too much heat is bad for OLED pixels; adding a way to absorb and release heat means it can generate more light.
This heatsink seems to make an immediate difference for the Sony A95K compared to the Samsung S95B in Teoh's tests - after generating a 10% HDR window, the Sony pixels were able to erase all image retention and return to black faster than Samsung. a.
The twist, though, is that despite the heat sink, the Sony TV is dimmer than the Samsung S95B based on Teoh's results so far.
In the 10% window, the Sony A95K hit around 1000 nits of brightness (after about eight hours of shooting; it was 900 nits out of the box), while the Samsung S95B clocked in at over 1000 nits without any shooting. weather. No way.
Teoh found that the S95B was brighter at almost all HDR window sizes, with the difference at a 10% window being the largest gap between the two, and the Samsung was still slightly brighter with a full HDR window, just below of 250 nits.
"Sony stays fairly conservative in handling the QD-OLED panel, with no more relaxation in the auto brightness limiter algorithm compared to the Samsung S95B," explains Teoh.
However, he notes that this brightness limitation is still lower than "any WRGB TV I've tested to date" - this includes the LG G2, which nearly matches the Sony A95K at 10% brightness in Teoh's tests, but falls below brightness. in any other window size. So while it's dimmer than the Samsung, it's still a cut above any OLED on the market.
Teoh speculates that Sony's relaxed approach to brightness despite using the heatsink could mean it can avoid implementing the aggressive anti-burn-in measures it uses on other OLED models to ensure long panel life.
So while the heatsink seemed to mean that Sony was looking to have the brightest, most spectacular OLED picture possible, it seems like it's there for more practical and reliable reasons. Not a bad thing, obviously, but definitely less flashy.
Different for games too
Teoh also tested input lag on both TVs, using a tool that sends a signal through HDMI and then records the number of milliseconds it takes for the TV to display it on screen.
It clocked the Sony A95K's input lag at 16ms at 60Hz at 4K resolution, and it dropped to 8ms at 120Hz at 1080p resolution.
Teoh had measured the Samsung S95B (and LG G2) at under 5ms for the 120Hz 1080p signal, so Samsung has a clear advantage there.
Teoh also tested a 144Hz signal with the A95K, which the TV didn't officially support, but the QD-OLED panel did. Surprisingly, the 144Hz signal seemed to work, but maybe not quite. We recommend watching the full video for more details on everything we've mentioned here.