Philips PUS7009 (IPS) vs Samsung OLED S95H (S99H) (QD-OLED)

In terms of HDR quality, PUS7009 (IPS) performs very poorly. A brightness level of 250 nits doesn't allow for enjoyment of HDR effects, and the image resembles more of a standard SDR. There’s no talk of dynamic effects or vivid bursts of light. The coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut is only 75%, which is definitely insufficient. The lack of full colour coverage means that the colours are not as vibrant as they should be, resulting in a flat and unimpressive image. There are no aspects to commend this model in the context of HDR.

When it comes to pure brightness, the S99H is an astronomically bright TV. Its peak brightness in film scenes can exceed 2,800 nits. Whatever the scene, you can expect powerful HDR effects that are almost blinding, which is exactly what we want from a top‑tier display. By nature, an OLED panel can't maintain that extreme brightness in very bright, full‑screen frames the way it can with small bright highlights, but the results are still excellent. In a bright scene from The Meg the sun still exceeded 2,200 nits. That means the S99H was able to hold a higher brightness than most Mini LED screens on the market. In terms of brightness the S99H is currently the best OLED TV we've tested.

Colour gamut coverage

The S99H also handles colours exceptionally well, thanks directly to the QD‑OLED panel used here. Whether the test used synthetic test patterns or measurements with film material in the background, the results remained very high. The S99H easily covers almost 100% of the DCI‑P3 gamut, and in the most demanding space, BT.2020 it reaches nearly 90%. That's absolute top‑tier performance. These results match what we saw in the new SQD‑Mini‑LED displays, and in real film scenes they even surpass RGB Mini LED displays.

The television was tested in movie mode, which – despite its name – does not provide correct image display. The white balance in both 4K HDR and HD/SDR content is characterised by drops in red, making the image cooler and the colours lose their natural warmth. The gamma brightness characteristics and EOTF curve confirm that the television has issues maintaining appropriate brightness – it boosts it significantly, resulting in an unnaturally washed-out image. This effect can be seen in the comparisons below, where everything looks as if it has a milky filter applied. Additionally, the limited coverage of a wide colour gamut also does not promote quality – colour checker attempts indicate significant colour variations, making it difficult to achieve faithful image reproduction.

Samsung offers a whole host of picture modes and features, but we traditionally recommend choosing FILMMAKER mode, especially if you want the most faithful rendering of the creators' intent. Out of the box the TV is tuned very well, though it has minor flaws. These are mainly a slight deviation in white balance in SDR content and a slightly low gamma. As a result, the picture in a dark room can be a little too bright compared with the reference value of 2.4, which is the standard for watching films with the lights off. These are, of course, small issues, because overall colour reproduction remains very good and the errors in ColorChecker measurements are not large. However, we know that for a screen of the S99H's calibre you can and should expect even more, so we subjected it to professional calibration.

After calibration, the picture has significantly improved, especially in terms of white balance, which is now more stable, and the shades have taken on a natural quality, eliminating the earlier impression of a rather cool picture. The calibration has brought noticeable benefits in terms of tonality – the shadows and midtones are now more realistic, and the whole seems more harmonious. Unfortunately, hardware limitations still affect the quality of the image. The brightness characteristic remains problematic, despite our efforts, and due to poor coverage of the DCI-P3 and BT.2020 colour gamut, delta E errors are still at a high level. Although calibration has improved some aspects, the television still does not allow for complete satisfaction.

After professional calibration, FILMMAKER mode looks practically perfect. Because Samsung offers a rich set of advanced calibration controls, we were able to tune the colours to an almost perfect level. Above all, we managed to even out the white balance and the gamma curve, which resulted in noticeably improved contrast and correct image modelling. In a profile prepared like this there really isn't a single thing to pick apart or call a fault. After calibration, the S99H can deliver an essentially reference-quality picture.

If we talk about tonal transitions in low-quality material, the feature called "Distortion Reduction" (set to "minimum") effectively improves the gradation, eliminating undesirable tonal transitions. However, this setting on Philips TVs is quite aggressive – while it doesn't blur grain or high-quality material, it may introduce unwanted effects and blur elements that should remain sharp with poorer signals.

In terms of image scaling, Philips PUS7009 performs reasonably well. A significant advantage is the absence of cropped edges, meaning no overscan, which allows for displaying the full frame without loss. The image is noticeably improved, making characters and backgrounds, such as the model or branches in the background, look fairly detailed and natural, even with lower quality signals. Although the scaling is not perfect, as it can remove desired details in the distance, the results are good enough to satisfy most users.

Upscaling and digital image processing are handled by Samsung's proprietary NQ4 Gen3 processor. It copes very well with scaling lower-resolution content to 4K. The picture is clear without looking artificial or overly sharp. The only fairly specific drawback appears with very old material recorded at 480p or lower. In such cases the TV can slightly crop the edges of the image.

The processor also does a decent job with artefacts visible in low-bitrate material, for example in heavily compressed YouTube videos. The noise reduction function effectively smooths the picture and reduces posterisation, but it works quite aggressively. It can remove not only unwanted artefacts but also some fine detail, and even natural film grain. We, wanting to preserve maximum fidelity to the source material, chose not to use it. However, if someone values a clean, as-smooth-as-possible image more than keeping every detail, it may prove useful.

Philips PUS7009 does not have any motion smoothing features in films, which means we cannot choose whether the picture should be more choppy or more cinematic. These features could improve more dynamic scenes. As for motion blur, despite using a 60Hz IPS panel, the situation looks quite good. The response time between pixels is better than in versions with a VA panel, which keeps motion blur at an acceptable level and does not significantly affect the viewing comfort of dynamic scenes.

Another major advantage of organic panels is very good motion handling. Thanks to the pixels' near-instant response time, the Samsung S99H shows virtually no smearing. Fast-moving objects don't produce visible halos or trailing artefacts, so the TV performs very well for both sport and gaming. One quirk of OLED screens compared with LCD is the way they render low-frame-rate material. With very slow camera movement the picture can appear noticeably more juddery. This can be quite effectively mitigated using frame interpolation. Samsung lets you adjust judder reduction and motion blur reduction separately, so it's easy to find a compromise between a smoother picture and preserving the cinematic feel of the content.

In terms of compatibility with consoles, Philips PUS7009 is suitable for casual gamers. Despite using HDMI 2.0, the TV offers access to features such as ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode), VRR (Variable Refresh Rate), and Game Bar. ALLM automatically switches the TV to low latency mode, allowing for faster responses while gaming, while VRR dynamically adjusts the refresh rate to reduce screen tearing. The Game Bar is a tool that provides quick access to game settings and real-time parameter monitoring - although we believe it looks the weakest compared to competing Game Bars.

Unfortunately, more demanding gamers may be disappointed. The Philips PUS7009 does not support advanced HDR formats in games or high refresh rates, due to the use of a 60 Hz panel. The lack of support for these features limits the TV's ability to deliver smooth and fully detailed experiences during fast-paced gameplay.

Samsung S99H is also a top TV for gamers. It offers almost every possible and useful feature... well, perhaps except the obvious lack of Dolby Vision for the Xbox console. It’s equipped with four full-fledged HDMI 2.1 ports with the full 48 Gbps bandwidth. That makes it easy to use frame-rate synchronization VRR or automatic low-latency mode (ALLM). This year Samsung also has no issues with proper HGiG support, so HDR setup on a console is quick and free of unnecessary complications. Samsung is also known for interesting extras in its TVs. In the Game Bar menu you’ll find options to add an on-screen crosshair, enlarge the minimap, or change the aspect ratio of the displayed image (PC).

Particularly noteworthy is Samsung’s feature: Game Motion Plus. It’s Samsung’s proprietary motion-smoothing system that uses interpolation to boost smoothness in games. Input lag then rises to around 40 to 50 ms (depending on the strength of the setting), which, compared with the competition, is an excellent result. The system makes gameplay noticeably smoother. So if someone has their eye on a demanding game (e.g. GTA 6 😉) that runs on a console at only 30 fps, the S99H can display it much more smoothly than competing models.