Regardless of sitting one rung from the highest of Samsung’s 2019 4K TV vary, the QE65Q85R nonetheless offers groundbreaking distinction and viewing angles, in addition to a lot of HDR-friendly brightness and color
Execs
- Scintillating HDR image high quality
- Virtually cable-free design
- Highly effective and slick sensible TV system
Cons
- No Dolby Imaginative and prescient assist
- Occasional backlight blooming
- It is not low-cost
Key Specs
- Evaluate Worth: £2999
- 65-inch 4K TV
- Native 4K decision
- QLED color know-how
- Extensive viewing angle know-how
- HDR10, HLG, HDR10+ HDR assist
What’s the Samsung QE65Q85R?
The Samsung Q85R (QE65Q85R) is an announcement of confidence by the Korean model in its “QLED” (Quantum Dot LED) TV know-how. In any case, regardless of not being Samsung’s flagship 4K 65-inch TV for 2019 – that honour goes to the beforehand reviewed QE65Q90R – it nonetheless prices solely £300 lower than the brand new and extremely spectacular LG OLED65C9 TV on the time of writing.
So, Samsung clearly thinks the set can compete with LG’s newest OLED hit.
Positive sufficient, the QE65Q85R makes a terrific case for itself – particularly in case you’re in search of a TV to enter a usually brilliant lounge.
Associated: Samsung TV 2019 – each new QLED mannequin defined
Samsung QE65Q85R − Design
Regardless of being a direct-lit LED TV, the place the lights sit instantly behind the display screen quite than round its edges, the Samsung QE65Q85R is a significantly handsome TV.
The display screen’s body is strikingly trim, regardless of the the rear being barely deeper than most. A intelligent cantilevered stand makes the TV seem like it’s resting impossibly on only a single, skinny, forward-protruding horizontal steel bar.
Cable litter is disbursed with by an exterior connections field that delivers all photos, sound and even energy into the TV through a only one, skinny cable. This can be a nice contact for anybody pondering of hanging their TV on a wall.
As is Samsung’s Ambient mode. In a low energy mode, this performs photographs or screensaver movies once you’re not watching the TV, making for a much more engaging presence in your room than the same old gaping black gap.
Samsung has upped its Ambient mode sport this yr, too, with enjoyable new room lighting and animation screensaver choices. You may even add {a photograph} of your wall and have that play on the display screen for the final word in incognito TV design.
For the report, Samsung has taken a “360-degree design” strategy to the QE65Q85R. By which I imply that its rear panel is extra minimalistic and attractively completed than most. I, for one, don’t usually spend a lot time watching TV’s rears although. Should you do, I can solely recommend you search skilled assist.
Associated: Finest TVs
Samsung QE65Q85R – Options
As you’d anticipate of a TV costing the perfect a part of three grand, the Samsung QE65Q85R is bristling with options.
Notably key are its mixture of QLED and extensive viewing angle display screen applied sciences. The previous makes use of Quantum Dots encased in steel to supply exceptionally excessive ranges of brightness. These be part of with extensive color gamut assist to ship an enormous quantity of color – which is crucial for delivering a terrific HDR image expertise.
The extensive viewing angle system, in the meantime, makes use of a brand new focusing factor close to the backlight and a brand new diffusing system close to the display screen to cease LCD’s normal reductions in distinction and color saturation when viewing the display screen off-axis.
The Samsung QE65Q85R’s brightness hits simply over 1500 nits on a ten% white HDR window within the set’s default Normal image mode. Nevertheless, it could possibly solely maintain onto that depth for just a few seconds. That’s sufficient for many HDR photographs, however if you need a extra steady HDR expertise then the Film preset drops the sunshine output to round 1200 nits, however retains that just about indefinitely.
Whereas we’re measuring stuff, the QE65Q85R takes barely 15ms to render its photos in its Recreation preset mode – very useful in case you’re in a shotgun face-off with different on-line players.
The Samsung QE65Q85R’s sensible distant.
That’s removed from the tip of the QE65Q85R’s gaming charms, although. It additionally helps the Xbox One S/X’s computerized sport mode switching and variable refresh charges options. There’s even a setting that raises the brightness of darkish areas with out altering brilliant areas, that can assist you spot enemies hiding within the shadows.
The Samsung QE65Q85R’s eye-catching brightness places further strain on its gentle management system. A problem it makes an attempt to satisfy through the use of a direct lighting system backed up by native dimming. This native dimming system can output completely different ranges of sunshine concurrently from 96 separate LED zones.
With Samsung’s flagship Q90R 4K TVs for 2019 carrying 480 zones, the QE65Q85R’s 96 appears like fairly a step down. The set does nonetheless get Samsung’s new devoted processor for driving the native dimming system, although. And we’ve seen earlier than the way it isn’t all the time the sheer variety of dimming zones that counts; it’s what you do with them.
Sensible options on the QE65Q85R come courtesy of Samsung’s Eden platform. That is neat and tidy, proscribing most content material hyperlinks to 2 decks of icons alongside the display screen’s backside edge. It runs shortly and easily, and may simply be customised to fit your app preferences.
There’s a complete set of apps to select from, particularly on the subject of catch-up TV and video streaming platforms. This now even contains (solely, for a restricted time) the Apple TV app, with its entry to iTunes motion pictures and TV exhibits. The brand new Apple TV+ streaming platform will even be obtainable when it launches later within the yr.
Associated: Apple TV+ – all the things you might want to know
The one absentee we miss is Freeview Play, with its useful instruments for enhancing your engagement with the UK’s key terrestrial TV catch-up providers. Nevertheless, Samsung has at the very least refined its personal TV Plus content material administration and advice system.
The video streaming apps all assist 4K and HDR photos the place obtainable – though you must observe right here Samsung’s ongoing refusal to assist the Dolby Imaginative and prescient premium HDR platform. Because of this with the QE65Q85R you get solely “primary HDR10 from most video streaming platforms that assist Dolby Imaginative and prescient.
Nevertheless, the QE65Q85R does assist the Dolby Imaginative and prescient-rivalling HDR10+ HDR system. Like Dolby Imaginative and prescient, this provides further scene by scene information to assist TVs ship a extra dynamic and punchy HDR image. And all Amazon Video HDR exhibits, together with these additionally obtainable in Dolby Imaginative and prescient, will play in HDR10+ via Samsung’s app.
A number of HDR10+ 4K Blu-rays are beginning to seem now, too, together with a handful of twentieth Century Fox and a few IMAX Enhanced titles. Though, exterior of Amazon Video, Dolby Imaginative and prescient stays at the moment by far the extra generally used dynamic HDR format.
Associated: What’s HDR10+?
Naturally, the Samsung QE65Q85R additionally helps each the business normal HDR10 format, in addition to the broadcast-focused HLG HDR format.
The QE65Q85R joins its flagship Q90R sibling in boasting Samsung’s new AI 4K processor. This brings the identical type of processing algorithms and supply recognition database system first launched – with remarkably good outcomes – in 8K type for Samsung’s Q900R/Q950R 8K TVs.
Turning lastly to the Samsung QE65Q85R’s connection field, its jacks embrace 4 HDMIs, three USBs, the RF tuner enter, and Wi-Fi and Bluetooth wi-fi assist.
The HDMIs be part of these of LG’s newest 9-series OLED TVs in supporting the most recent 2.1 specification. In some methods this isn’t a serious problem on a 4K TV proper now, but it surely might restrict the TV’s compatibility with very excessive body fee PC gaming content material.
For now, the primary problem with not utilizing full HDMI 2.1 performance is that the QE65Q85R doesn’t assist eARC. This permits TVs to go lossless object-based sound (Dolby Atmos/DTS:X) from exterior sources resembling 4K and HD Blu-ray gamers via the TV’s eARC HDMI port to exterior AV receivers or soundbars.
Samsung tells me it is going to doubtless be including eARC to the QE65Q85R sooner or later sooner or later. On the time of writing, there’s no date for when this may occur.
Associated: Hybrid Log-Gamma (HLG) – all the things you might want to learn about broadcast HDR
Samsung QE65Q85R – Setup
Most viewers will discover the Normal image preset to be the perfect start line. This delivers probably the most dynamic, punchy and sharp image with each HDR and SDR content material.
The Film mode is healthier than earlier Samsung variations, providing you with a milder, extra correct image (by way of brightness and color tones). It makes use of comparatively little of the TV’s spectacular cutting-edge applied sciences and brightness potential, although, so lacks the affect of Normal.
The Normal preset can deliver out noise in darkish scenes of compressed sub-4K video sources. It’s a fairly severe offender on this respect: as an illustration, with the latest Recreation Of Thrones broadcasts. With that type of materials your finest guess is to change to the Pure preset.
I’d additionally suggest not sticking with Samsung’s default Auto movement processing, because it tends to generate distracting processing artefacts. A fairly good compromise is selecting the Customized mode and setting each the judder and blur elements to 3 or 4.
You too can simply flip all of the movement processing off and nonetheless get a pleasant, crisp image. Nevertheless, in case you do, the display screen’s quick response time could cause a bit stutter with low body fee content material.
The Digital Clear View NR setting is value your consideration. I’d recommend turning it off for native 4K and good-quality HD (mainly Blu-ray) content material; setting it to Low for first rate HD streams; and setting it to Auto for closely compressed streams or broadcasts – particularly normal definition ones.
In a bright-room setting you may want to set the Distinction Enhancer choice to Excessive. For darkish rooms, it’s normally wonderful on Low. I wouldn’t suggest turning it off all collectively.
Lastly, utilizing the Samsung QE65Q85R’s default settings can result in a bit crushing out of refined element in darkish picture areas. You may enhance this by nudging up the brightness setting, however keep in mind that doing this could result in points (resembling barely raised black ranges) elsewhere.
Samsung QE65Q85R – Efficiency
For a lot of the time it’s exhausting to imagine that the Samsung QE65Q85R has practically 400 zones of dimming lower than Samsung’s Q90R vary. Which is fairly nice information contemplating that the 65Q85R is £800 cheaper than its Q90R counterpart.
Remarkably, when brilliant objects seem towards black backdrops you may see hardly a hint of the anticipated backlight blooming – regardless that the image can also be startlingly wealthy in distinction. The set delivers a few of the inkiest black tones I’ve seen on an LCD TV – a lot so, they’re virtually OLED like at instances – whereas additionally being one of many brightest TVs on the town, measuring greater than 1500 nits on a ten% white HDR window.
To be clear, the QE65Q85R isn’t as brilliant because the Q90R vary; these flagship fashions high out at round 2000 nits. Nevertheless, the QE65Q85R remains to be a lot brighter than most present TVs – and this actually counts in case you’re after an impactful HDR efficiency. Particularly once you’re speaking about an LCD TV with ok backlight controls to ship its wonderful black ranges and far of its most brightness inside a single shot.
Should you feed the 65Q895R HDR10+ content material then its distinction efficiency will get even higher. With HDR10+ 4K Blu-rays, resembling Alien and Dangerous Instances At The El Royale, scenes that include a combination of sunshine and darkish content material look noticeably extra dynamic than they do within the business normal HDR10 format. This helps some colors look extra intense and luminous, too.
In different phrases, the results of HDR10+ are much like these I’m accustomed to seeing with the rival Dolby Imaginative and prescient platform.
One different contributing issue to the QE65Q85R’s black stage and distinction prowess is its reflection-killing display screen filter. This does an impressive job of absorbing ambient gentle, making the TV an outstanding contrast-rich choice for brilliant residing rooms.
Nice black ranges typically result in nice colors, and so it’s with the Samsung QE65Q85R. The truth is, with the set’s Quantum Dot know-how and excessive brightness behind them, colors are spectacularly wealthy and punchy when taking part in HDR extensive color sources.
I ought to qualify this by saying that the QE65Q85R doesn’t reproduce fairly as a lot color quantity (the mix of color and brightness) as both the Q90R or, extra surprisingly, 2018’s Q9FN flagship 4K fashions. However I can’t think about anybody feeling letdown by the Q85R’s color efficiency until they’re doing head-to-head comparisons.
One other excellent factor concerning the QE65Q85R is the best way its appreciable color and distinction skills keep put even when considered from extensive angles. This simply isn’t purported to occur on LCD TVs; as an alternative, colors ought to fade and black ranges ought to begin to look gray. Seeing is believing, nonetheless – and I now imagine that LCD may be made to ship viewing angles much like these of OLED TVs.
Samsung isn’t the primary model to correctly sink its enamel into LCD’s long-running viewing angle issues. Sony did it, too, with its ZF9 fashions. Nevertheless, Sony’s viewing angle answer led to a reasonably drastic discount in black stage efficiency.
With the QE65Q85R, whereas there’s a slight discount within the core panel’s distinction versus 2018 fashions, black ranges nonetheless look phenomenal – no matter whether or not you’re viewing the display screen from an angle or straight on.
Associated: What’s HDR?
The Samsung QE65Q85R additionally delivers 4K photographs with wonderful sharpness. The way in which the extensive angle viewing know-how works probably reduces decision versus earlier Samsung 4K generations, but it surely’s exhausting to see this from any type of smart viewing distance. The image nonetheless appears to be like crisp, clear, and instantly superior to HD.
The sharpness holds up properly throughout motion scenes, too, in case you’ve adopted my earlier arrange recommendation, and is backed up distinctive color copy refinement.
The QE65Q85R’s new upscaling system is great. Face to face comparisons with a 2018 Q9FN clearly reveal extra detailed and clear photos when taking part in sub-4K sources. The variations turn out to be extra pronounced in that the Q85R favours the decrease high quality your supply will get. Even with fairly pristine HD Blu-rays, although, the Q85R’s image nonetheless appears to be like nearer to native 4K.
For a lot of the time the QE65Q85R’s photos observe remarkably intently to these of the Q90R. The truth is, it truly barely beats the Q90R at retaining brightness in very small areas of brilliant content material.
You may perceive, then, why some markets appear to be focusing extra advertising and marketing on the Q85Rs than the Q90Rs, given the value distinction. Nevertheless, there are three key causes to choose a Q90R over a Q85R if cash isn’t any object to you.
First, the costlier set sounds a lot better. The Q85R’s much less highly effective speaker setup struggles with deep bass, which causes crackle and drop-outs. It additionally struggles to ship the identical type of audio dynamics and soundstage scale because the Q90R.
To be truthful, the Samsung QE65Q85R sounds wonderful with common, comparatively undemanding drama or daytime TV audio, but it surely’s solely truthful to middling with heavy-duty film mixes.
The QE65Q85R additionally falls in need of the Q90Rs on the subject of dealing with darkish scenes containing a variety of refined, low-level shadow element. This (thankfully comparatively uncommon) type of content material can expose the relative lack of dimming zones within the Q85R, inflicting mild blooming of the kind the TV usually does such a terrific job of avoiding.
In addition to inflicting noticeable backlight inconsistencies, this uncommon blooming problem with darkish however detailed content material can look usually greyer and flatter than it does on the Q90R – once more, due to the QE65Q85R’s far fewer dimming zones.
Lastly, whereas the QE65Q85R truly holds onto the brightness of very small gentle parts in comparatively HDR footage barely higher than the Q90R, usually brilliant HDR scenes do have noticeably extra punch on the Q90Rs.
There are a trio of basic efficiency points the QE65Q85R shares with the Q90R vary, too. First, whereas extensive angle viewing is excellent in most methods, the backlight blooming impact round brilliant objects remains to be much more seen throughout off-axis viewing than it’s whereas viewing the TV head on.
Second, the QE65Q85R joins the Q90Rs in tending to focus on compression noise in darkish scenes of closely compressed sources, as famous within the Setup part.
Samsung’s new Quantum processor
Lastly, and satirically, the additional efficiency you get from HDR10+ content material makes me rue Samsung’s lack of Dolby Imaginative and prescient assist. Particularly given how a lot Dolby Imaginative and prescient-encoded content material there’s on the market.
Why purchase a Samsung QE65Q85R?
The QE65Q85R is one other stellar Samsung LCD TV. Its distinction is a revelation, wanting virtually OLED-like at instances. It additionally challenges OLED TVs on viewing angles extra efficiently than another LCD TV, bar Samsung’s personal Q90Rs. And it combines these benefits with the type of brightness and color quantity solely LCD TVs can ship.
Its class-leading gentle filter makes it a uniquely efficient performer in brilliant rooms, too. Plus, it’s £800 cheaper than the equal Samsung Q90R mannequin, regardless of sharing a lot of that step-up mannequin’s efficiency strengths.
Its photos aren’t fairly as refined and dynamic because the Q90Rs, although, and its sound is weaker. It feels a contact costly at £2999, too. At any fee, that worth places it fairly near the £3299 worth of LG’s wonderful new 65-inch OLED65C9.
Verdict
The QE65Q85R brings you a lot of the superb image efficiency of Samsung’s 2019 flagship TV vary – however at a considerably cheaper worth.
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