Compare: TCL C9K vs Samsung The Frame 2026 (LS03H)

The TCL C9K is a television that on paper looks like a showcase of the manufacturer's prowess – thousands of Mini-LED zones, a WHVA panel, audio system by Bang & Olufsen, full HDR format support, gaming at 144 Hz, and even 288 Hz at lower resolutions. It’s clear that TCL wanted to pack in absolutely everything they had that was best. And indeed – in many respects, the C9K can impress. The brightness is immense, HDR can be stunning in larger scenes, motion fluidity and gamer capabilities are at a top level, and the sound – for a TV speaker – sounds really good. It’s equipment that can easily be regarded as the hub of home entertainment. But there's also another side to the coin. Brightness management simply falters despite the incredible technical specification – smaller details often get lost in shadows or are burned out. And although synthetic tests of contrast and brightness appear outstanding, in day-to-day watching of films and series the effect isn't as impressive.

To summarise briefly: the C9K is a television full of contrasts – literally and metaphorically. It can deliver experiences close to the top screens, but it’s still clear that TCL needs to work on software and optimisation. If someone is looking for a screen for gaming, sports or spectacular blockbusters – they will be thrilled. However, if they are counting on perfect reproduction of the director's vision and think they have managed to buy an absolutely top model at half the price of the competition, they will unfortunately be disappointed. It’s a pity, because the technological potential here is really immense – just a bit of common sense in its application was lacking.

Samsung The Frame 2026 is still a TV aimed at a fairly specific type of buyer. If your main priority is having a screen that looks good in your interior, hangs almost flush against the wall, and doesn’t simply turn into a large black rectangle when switched off, there are very few TVs on the market that execute this idea quite as well. The matte screen, interchangeable bezels, external One Connect box, and extensive Art Mode allow The Frame to genuinely become part of the room rather than just another TV sitting in the living room. And that’s exactly where we see its biggest appeal.

Importantly, though, that doesn’t mean design is all you’re getting. The Frame performs really well in bright rooms. Its matte coating is very effective at reducing reflections, brightness reaching around 650 nits is enough for comfortable daytime viewing, and the wide colour gamut means colourful content, animation, and brighter HDR scenes can look very impressive. On top of that, there’s 144Hz support at 4K and, for the first time, up to 240Hz at Full HD. VRR, ALLM, FreeSync, G-Sync, HGiG, low input lag, and an extensive Game Bar make The Frame a much more capable gaming TV than its “artistic” character might suggest.

The biggest compromises become apparent when you look at it as a TV primarily intended for home cinema. The Frame has no local dimming, so blacks become noticeably raised in dark scenes, and this is where the difference compared with good Mini LED and OLED TVs is most obvious. HDR therefore looks best with bright and colourful content, while evening movie sessions in a dark room are definitely not its strongest suit. There is also noticeable motion blur and only one full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 port on the One Connect box, which may be frustrating for some users, especially gamers.

The Frame 2026, then, isn’t a TV for someone looking for the absolute best picture quality in its price range. There are models that offer deeper blacks or a more impactful HDR experience. But if the TV is meant to become part of a well-designed living room, is often used during the day, displays artwork, and at the same time needs to perform well with a wide variety of content, The Frame still makes a lot of sense. Samsung has barely changed its formula here, but it’s easy to see why — the “picture on the wall” concept is still executed extremely well. Owners of the previous model have little reason to upgrade, but for new buyers looking for this particular combination of design and TV functionality, it remains one of the most interesting options on the market.

What immediately sets the C9K apart from the C8K model is the number of local dimming zones. In the 65-inch version, we counted… over 3000! I must admit – it’s a true show of force from TCL, who crammed literally everything they had on hand into this television. On paper, it makes a huge impression and indeed – in less demanding film scenes, the blacks look fantastic. The level is absolutely top-notch, and the separation of lights from dark parts of the image can be astonishing. The problem is that this impressive specification doesn’t always translate into practice. In our tests, we noticed situations where the C9K, despite having a greater number of zones, got caught in contrast traps and performed… worse than the C8K. For instance, it struggles to perfectly dim the true black bars in 21:9 films (those with black bars at the top and bottom). Sounds strange? Unfortunately, this is the result of a lack of optimisation – the hardware is “packed” with technology, but the algorithms don’t always keep pace with exploiting this potential.

Don’t get us wrong – black is a strong point of the C9K and in many scenes, it simply looks fantastic. In synthetic measurements, the contrast performs exceptionally well, coming close to the level of the best televisions on the market. But in real cinematic use, these numbers don’t always correlate with a better experience than that of its cheaper cousin. And that’s perhaps the biggest disappointment – because the potential was enormous.

Samsung The Frame 2026 uses a VA panel but doesn't have local dimming. That means the TV can't dim selected parts of the screen. The backlight therefore works fairly evenly across the whole panel. The VA panel itself gives some advantage over IPS or ADS screens. Blacks are noticeably better, and the picture doesn't look as washed out when watching in the evening. That doesn't change the fact that, in terms of contrast, The Frame performs fairly averagely. You can see this most clearly in dark scenes. If a bright object appears on a black background, the TV can't dim the area around it. The black then takes on a more navy tone and the image loses depth. It's similar with films that have black bars. With the lights off it's quite easy to notice that the bars aren't truly black. In simpler, brighter scenes the issue is much less noticeable. So during regular TV, sport or daytime viewing, contrast is unlikely to be a major problem. It looks worse for evening viewing sessions, especially if you've previously been using an OLED or a good Mini-LED. The difference in black levels to The Frame's disadvantage is then very noticeable.

As we mentioned regarding black levels and contrast – the C9K can make a huge impression in synthetic tests. Our measurements showed that on a screen 10% filled with white, the television can achieve... 4000 nits of brightness! It sounds out of this world, but – and here's where the pattern unfortunately repeats – the numbers say one thing, and the practical experience says another. In real movie scenes, the situation looks different. In the best-case scenario, when light effects occupy a large part of the image and the local dimming algorithm doesn't have to ponder too much about what to do with thousands of zones, the effect is really quite good. At that point, the C9K can hit around 1500 nits, which delivers a pleasant, intense burst and can indeed leave a positive impression.

The problem arises with smaller elements – such as stars in the sky, the moon, or individual reflections. That's when the proverbial cat comes out of the bag: the algorithms are not yet refined, and brightness drops to as low as 400–500 nits. That's a huge difference from the potential 4000 nits we saw in lab tests. Why does this happen? Most likely, the television is trying to protect the black levels in this way and minimize the halo effect around bright objects. Unfortunately, this comes at the expense of detail – some details simply vanish, and the scene loses its nature.

The Frame 2026 is a genuinely bright TV. Its peak brightness reaches around 650 nits and, importantly, it maintains similar levels regardless of the type of scene being displayed. It doesn’t really matter whether we’re watching a very bright full-screen image or just a small highlight occupying part of the screen. The backlight remains powerful, allowing bright parts of the image to stand out clearly.

This gives The Frame a solid foundation for HDR. Bright highlights can look impactful, and the picture doesn’t appear flat or overly dim. Unfortunately, there is a compromise. Without local dimming, the TV cannot darken the black areas surrounding very bright objects.

This is clearly visible in scenes 2 and 4 of our test procedure. Bright elements look impressive, but at the same time, the blacks around them become noticeably raised. As a result, the image loses some of its depth, especially when watching in a dark room. This is why The Frame performs best with HDR in bright and moderately bright scenes, where its high brightness works to its advantage. In darker scenes, the situation is quite the opposite.

Colours

The Frame also performs well when it comes to colour reproduction. As a QLED TV, it can display a wide colour gamut and produce rich, saturated colours. DCI-P3 coverage reaches around 94%, while BT.2020 comes in at around 72%. These are good results, and you can see the difference in actual content.

Colours look vivid without appearing washed out, particularly in bright and colourful scenes. Animations and other content with plenty of saturated colours can look really good on The Frame. With this type of material, the TV shows one of its stronger sides.

For colour tests, we once again reached for the Filmmaker mode – a new feature in TCL televisions for 2025. While the direction is a step in the right way, the execution leaves a lot to be desired. The white balance in SDR content turned out to be too warm – there was an excess of red. On the other hand, in HDR, it swung in the opposite direction: the image became excessively blue. The Colour Checker test revealed quite a few colour inaccuracies that were noticeable to the naked eye. An even bigger problem turned out to be what we mentioned above – brightness management. Regardless of whether we were watching SDR or HDR content, the image tended to wash out the entire scene, giving it an unnatural, almost grotesque character. Therefore, it’s hard to call this a "director's mode" – because no director has ever seen such an image.

For assessing the factory colour setup we chose the Filmmaker Mode. If you’re encountering it for the first time, it’s a mode designed to reproduce films and TV shows as faithfully as possible. The TV then turns off most additional image enhancers, and the colours and luminance response are intended to be as close as possible to what the creators intended. And it must be said that The Frame 2026 performs quite well in this respect straight out of the box. The biggest deviation is seen in the white balance. As brightness increases, blue starts to fall short and there’s a slight increase in green. As a result, the image shifts towards warmer tones. So white isn’t perfectly neutral, and in some scenes you can notice a subtly warmer cast.

The luminance response, both gamma and EOTF, looks pretty good. Through most of the range they stay fairly close to the target, although larger deviations are visible in the darkest parts of the image. In practice, some shadow details emerging from black may therefore be a bit more pronounced. However, it’s not an error that jumps out during normal viewing. Overall, Filmmaker Mode is a good starting point here. However, the factory picture is a bit too warm and not all hues land exactly where they should.

After calibration, we finally managed to tame the white balance – and it immediately translated into a more natural image. Colours finally started to look as they should, and the overall presentation was incomparably better than on the factory settings. In other words – it’s worth taking a moment to improve this, as the gain is really significant. The gamma responsible for brightness management also managed to be brought into order in SDR content, and the effect was more than satisfactory. Unfortunately, when we turned on HDR materials, the situation quickly became complicated. No matter how we set the local dimming, the television had a tendency to do what it liked with the image – either it overexposed everything or darkened the darkest parts too much. Just like we saw in the scene from the movie Billy Lynn. Colour-wise, the improvement after calibration makes a great impression, but brightness management in HDR remains the Achilles' heel of the C9K and presents a certain technological limitation.

After calibration we mainly managed to remove that warmer tint and better even out the white balance. We also smoothed the brightness response a bit, which made the picture more neutral and predictable. There are, however, things calibration won't fix. It's mainly the black performance, which comes from the backlight design and the lack of local dimming. In some scenes the blacks will therefore still be slightly lifted, and you just have to accept that. It's more a characteristic of this model than something you can fix with the settings. HDR is also somewhat limited. Samsung doesn't give full freedom to work across the widest colour gamut here, so not all colours can be reproduced perfectly. In normal viewing it will probably be hard to notice, but it's worth being aware of.

In terms of tonal transition fluidity, TCL C9K performs quite well. In more challenging movie scenes, there's no typical banding of colours that can break immersion even in more expensive TVs. There may be slight issues in the brightest areas – for example, in scenes from the movie Kingstone – but these are nuances. For the vast majority of viewers, especially with 4K content, colour gradation will appear smooth and practically unnoticeable.

Gradation in The Frame 2026 performs well, though not perfectly. In bright tonal transitions you can notice slight issues and occasional mild banding. These aren't faults that seriously affect normal viewing, but they can be picked up on our test patterns and in more demanding scenes. We'd rate the bright-tone gradation at roughly 7.5-8 out of 10.

Interestingly, gradation looks much better in the dark parts of the image. Here the transitions are very smooth and it's hard to find clear signs of posterization. That's the opposite of many LCD TVs, where the near-black areas usually cause more problems. In photos of dark scenes you can, however, spot some image irregularities. They don't come from the gradation itself but from panel uniformity and the backlight. Unfortunately, in that respect our sample of The Frame wasn't perfect, so in very dark shots you could see brighter and darker patches from the backlight.

Digital image processing on the TCL C9K is rather average. The smooth tone transition feature seems to be present, but activating it practically changes nothing – colour bands are still visible, and it can unintentionally highlight elements we’d rather keep hidden, such as object textures. Fortunately, it doesn’t remove film grain, but that’s poor consolation given that the effects are still meagre. It’s therefore hard to recommend using this option.

On the other hand, image scaling presents itself much better. Lower quality materials look quite decent – characters and backgrounds are rendered clearly, although of course, with sources like 576p, the laws of physics cannot be fooled. Occasionally, there’s characteristic edge distortion of objects, but that’s the fault of the source itself, not the algorithm. A plus for not having issues with overscan – the image isn't artificially cropped or enlarged.

As with many of Samsung’s newer TVs, this one also uses the NQ4 AI processor, albeit the older, second-generation version. I must admit it handles digital image processing quite well. Lower-resolution material is sharpened effectively, and when upscaled to 4K it still looks natural. The TV can also tidy up weaker sources a bit, such as older recordings or lower-quality broadcasts. That doesn’t, of course, mean it will suddenly turn poor footage into true 4K, but at close viewing distances the difference compared with simpler models with weaker processors is easy to spot. Edges are clearer and fine details aren’t lost as much to signal compression.

Samsung also provides a few extra picture-enhancing features, but as usual it’s best to use them sparingly. At stronger settings, noise reduction can very effectively reduce posterisation, but it also noticeably interferes with the image. The picture then starts to look quite artificial, for example by heavily smoothing faces. So these features make most sense with really poor sources when all the noise is very distracting.

Similar to the C8K, the C9K is also a really fast TV – both figuratively and literally. It features a 4K panel with a refresh rate of 144 Hz, and at lower resolutions, the panel can even ramp up to 288 Hz. Such speed translates into practice – while watching sports or playing games, the image looks very smooth and clear. Additionally, in movies, we get an extra motion smoother called Motion Clarity, which allows you to adjust the smoothness to your own preferences – from cinematic "judder" to almost theatrical smoothness.

Samsung again used a panel here with a maximum refresh rate of 144 Hz. Refresh rates up to 120 Hz mainly offer greater flexibility with high-motion content. The TV can use additional motion smoothing systems that can improve smoothness in sports and other fast-paced content. However, a high refresh rate alone does not solve everything. The Frame still uses a VA panel, which has a fairly slow response time, resulting in quite pronounced motion blur. With fast-moving objects, especially against dark backgrounds, the trails are easy to notice. There's also a slight double-imaging of edges, which can be visible even after turning off additional motion enhancement systems. We already saw similar behaviour in last year's The Frame 2025, and it's a shame Samsung hasn't fixed this. The 144 Hz itself provides a good foundation, but the panel's response time still limits this TV.

From a gaming perspective, the TCL C9K is a complete tool. It features two (out of four) full bandwidth 48 Gbps HDMI 2.1 ports, so all the key technologies work: VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) and ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode). Additionally, the manufacturer has included a really intuitive Game Bar that allows you to quickly check the most important parameters and adjust settings without fumbling through menus. Also, TCL's policy is a plus – the TV isn’t afraid of any HDR formats, even in game mode. Whether it's HGiG or Dolby Vision for the Xbox Series S/X console – everything works as it should, giving the player plenty of freedom.

When it comes to gaming features, The Frame is practically on par with Samsung’s flagship TVs. Once a console is connected, the TV automatically switches to Game Mode thanks to ALLM, so there’s no need to change the settings manually every time. There’s also VRR, which matches the screen’s refresh rate to the frame rate generated by the console or PC. When the frame rate drops, this helps prevent the characteristic screen tearing that can otherwise occur.

The Frame naturally supports 4K at 120Hz, allowing you to take advantage of higher frame rates on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. HGiG also works correctly. Once HDR has been properly calibrated on the console, the TV doesn’t try to additionally brighten the image on its own, so bright highlights in games are displayed as they should be.

Samsung also includes its Game Bar. This quick-access menu can be opened without leaving the game and lets you check things like VRR operation or the current frame rate, while also giving you quick access to the most important gaming settings. PC users get even more flexibility, as the Full HD mode mentioned earlier allows the refresh rate to be increased all the way up to 240Hz.

There is really only one feature missing, and by now it’s something we’ve come to expect from Samsung TVs: Dolby Vision Gaming. Xbox owners will notice this the most, as Xbox consoles can actually use Dolby Vision in supported games.

There is one more limitation worth mentioning that applies specifically to this model. The One Connect box has only one HDMI 2.1 port, so this is the only input you can use for a console or PC if you want to play at 4K 120Hz. Fortunately, Samsung hasn’t combined this port with eARC. This means you can connect a soundbar separately to HDMI 3 and still keep the full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 port available for your console.

In terms of input lag, the TCL C9K performs exceptionally well. With 120 Hz content, the lag is only 7 ms, placing it among the very top televisions available on the market. Naturally, with 60 Hz materials, the input lag increases to around 15–16 ms, but in practice, this has little impact on the final responsiveness of the screen to our actions on the controller.

Those who worried that the additional One Connect module might cause greater delay between our action on the controller and what happens on screen can rest easy. The input lag we measured is as low as in other Samsung TVs.

At a 60 Hz signal it's about 15 ms, and when switching to 120 Hz it drops to around 8 ms. Those are very good results, so the delay is hard to notice in practice, even in fast-paced games. The One Connect module itself doesn't introduce any noticeable issue.

When it comes to office work, the TCL C9K does not disappoint – thanks to support for chroma 4:4:4, text readability is at a good level, so typing or working with documents shouldn’t be a problem. While there are some minor issues with dimming horizontal lines, in everyday use it’s hard to call this a real flaw. However, the biggest potential of the C9K reveals itself in PC gaming. Here, the television showcases its full capabilities – it can switch to lower resolutions, such as Full HD, and display images at up to 288 Hz. Additionally, it supports both G-Sync and FreeSync, so synchronisation with the graphics card works excellently. It’s hard to have any significant complaints about this setup – it’s truly a top-tier screen for gaming on a computer.

In this category you could jokingly say the new The Frame gives with one hand and takes with the other. If we look purely at PC gaming, it performs really well. It offers 144 Hz at 4K or even 240 Hz in Full HD, plus support for G-Sync and FreeSync and very low input lag. The Frame can easily serve as a large gaming monitor and there’s little to complain about. On the other hand, we got the impression that font readability in the new model has slightly worsened. When you look at text up close you can notice extra fringing along the bottom edges of letters caused by the behaviour of individual subpixels. This gives a slight impression of softened text. Of course this is mainly an issue for people who would actually want to use The Frame as a desktop monitor, for example for working with text. At a typical viewing distance the problem is practically impossible to notice. And let’s be honest, it’s hard to imagine anyone putting a 55- or 65-inch The Frame on their desk.

A new feature in TCL televisions for 2025 is the WHVA panel, which is designed to provide better viewing angles than standard VA panels. And indeed – progress is noticeable. When viewing the screen from the side, the image is clearer and the colours do not degrade as quickly as in previous models. However, this does not mean that we are encountering the level of top coatings or solutions found in IPS panels, and certainly not OLEDs. The image remains readable, but the brightness noticeably drops. This is definitely a step forward compared to earlier TCL models, but not a full revolution yet.

Viewing angles are not a strong point of this model. Compared with LCD TVs with IPS panels, and even more so with OLEDs, the picture degrades fairly quickly when viewed at an angle.

The new WHVA matrix coating has its strengths and weaknesses. On one hand, it handles smaller reflections quite well, but on the other hand, with stronger light sources, it shows that the suppression of reflections isn't at the highest level. Fortunately, the coating doesn't ruin what's most important: the blacks and colour saturation. This is definitely a plus, as in many competing models, compromises in this area are much more painful. Additionally, it has very high brightness – in SDR content, the C9K can achieve an average of 650 nits in SDR materials. This performance is more than sufficient for watching TV or films in challenging lighting conditions, even on a sunny day.

The Frame is, by design, a TV that will often be used in a bright living room, and its matte finish suits that very well. The screen effectively diffuses reflections, so a window or a lit lamp doesn't turn into a clear mirror. In that respect it's really good and it's one of this model's stronger points. The matte finish does have a downside. Strong light falling directly on the screen scatters over a larger area and slightly raises the black level. During the day blacks therefore don't look as "deep" as at night, especially when the room is very bright. But we think that's a fair compromise. Working in The Frame's favour is its high brightness. The TV has enough brightness so the image doesn't wash out and remains clearly visible during the day. Overall, it's a good TV for a bright living room, especially if reflections bother you more.

Classic TV Features

In terms of basic TV functions, the TCL C9K does not disappoint – it has everything that most users expect. The EPG guide operates smoothly, teletext is available, and pairing Bluetooth headphones, a mouse or a keyboard goes off without a hitch. However, it should be noted that in the Google TV system – just like in other TCL models – there is a lack of more advanced options such as programme recording or picture-in-picture (PiP) mode. Some people may find this unsatisfactory, especially if they have used such features with competitors. It's also worth mentioning that we only have one USB port – it's enough to connect a hard drive with movies or a USB stick, but if someone plans to use multiple storage devices, they may find this lacking.

Smart Features

While in terms of classic solutions the TCL C9K does not stand out, in the field of smart functions it showcases its full potential. The Google TV system is currently the most popular platform and it’s clear why – the app library is enormous. Netflix, YouTube, Disney+, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video – all are readily available. Only those very attached to more closed ecosystems, like Apple Music, will feel the absence. A significant advantage is the built-in voice assistant – it works quickly, understands natural commands, and allows for convenient control of the TV: from switching channels to opening apps, as well as searching for content or checking the weather. It’s in this area that the TCL C9K shows that a smart TV is more than just a “TV with internet” – it’s a tool that genuinely simplifies everyday use of the device.

Operating System: Tizen

Samsung The Frame 2026 runs on the familiar Tizen operating system, so when it comes to Smart TV features, you get pretty much everything you would expect from a modern TV. There is a wide selection of streaming apps, AirPlay, SmartThings, and the ability to cast content from a smartphone. The system itself is fast and responsive, while the menu layout is very similar to what you’ll find on other Samsung TVs.

When it comes to traditional TV features, things are a little more basic. The Frame doesn’t really stand out in this area, focusing primarily on its online features and lifestyle-oriented functionality.

Art Mode

The key feature, of course, remains Art Mode. It allows The Frame to display artwork or your own photos when you’re not watching TV, effectively turning the screen into part of your interior. The matte screen coating plays an important role here, as it helps the displayed artwork look less like an image shown on a glowing TV screen.

Another interesting addition is the motion sensor, something you won’t normally find on other TVs. It’s worth pointing out that this is not the same thing as the ambient light sensor. The latter adjusts the screen brightness to match the conditions in the room, while the motion sensor detects whether someone is nearby. If the room is empty, the TV can automatically turn Art Mode off and then switch it back on when you return. This means the screen doesn’t have to stay on all the time.

Another feature that works particularly well with this model is One Connect. In our opinion, it makes a lot of sense on a TV like The Frame, which is designed to sit as close to the wall as possible. All the main cables are connected to a separate box, while only a single cable runs to the screen itself. It’s simply a very convenient solution.

It’s also worth mentioning that Samsung includes a dedicated wall mount in the box. That might sound obvious, but it really isn’t. With the flagship S99H, for example, which also puts a strong emphasis on flush wall mounting and blending into the interior, the appropriate wall mount has to be purchased separately. With The Frame, it’s included, so you can save yourself a bit of extra money right from the start.

*The Art Mode photo was taken on The Frame Pro 2026. It looks identical on the standard The Frame — we have to admit that we simply forgot to take a photo of it during testing. 😉

The C9K had no trouble handling most of the materials we threw onto the USB drive – from MKV formatted films, through older AVI files, to audio tracks in DTS and FLAC. The only issue remains the lack of support for HEIC photos from Apple devices, but this is a problem for practically all manufacturers. However, the most important thing is that if someone is missing support for some exotic format, they can always reach for an alternative player available in the Google Play store. And this is where the advantage of the Google TV system shines through – the ease with which you can expand the television’s capabilities with additional applications.

When it comes to playing files from USB, The Frame performs adequately. The TV handles the main video, photo and audio formats with no trouble, so in everyday use there shouldn't be many surprises. However, we again ran into problems with the HEIC format, which is common on Apple devices. Photos saved in that format couldn't be opened correctly, which can be annoying if you often transfer photos directly from an iPhone. Apart from that, the media player operated without any major issues.

The sound in the TCL C9K is handled by the same setup as in the C8K model – prepared in collaboration with Bang & Olufsen. It features a 4.2.2 configuration with a total power of 90 W, consisting of eight speakers arranged to create a fuller sense of space. And I must admit – the effect is impressive. The dialogues are clear, the highs and mids sound pure, and the bass does not falter, even during louder screenings. Of course, this won't replace a dedicated soundbar or home theatre system, but for built-in speakers – there’s really something to listen to.

*During maximum volume tests, we noticed unusual behaviour from the audio system. With the slider set to 100%, the television reaches around 76–78 dB, but it’s clear that it tries to generate more power, after which the sound level is immediately corrected back to the mentioned value. On the other hand, when we lower the volume to, say, 70%, it initially decreases as expected, but after a moment, it slowly rises back up to that same level of 76 dB. This effect gives the impression of an aggressive limiter at work, which regardless of the slider position always brings the volume back to a single level. We checked this behaviour multiple times, and in each case, the result was the same – no additional functions for 'intelligent' volume adjustment or AI were active during these tests.

Despite using a 40W 2.0.2 speaker system, which on paper is slightly better than what you’ll find in many standard TVs, the sound quality is fairly average. Our biggest issue is that it simply sounds flat. As with most very slim TVs, there isn’t much bass or depth.

Fortunately, the midrange and treble are reproduced well enough. Dialogue is clear, and at normal listening volumes there are no major distortions. For watching the news or regular TV, the built-in speakers are perfectly adequate. With movies, music, or games, however, you’ll quickly start to miss a fuller and more powerful sound.

For that reason, we would definitely recommend pairing The Frame with a soundbar or external speakers. Samsung also offers an increasing number of audio products designed specifically with lifestyle TVs in mind, including the slim S800 series, as well as Music Frame and Music Studio speakers, which visually complement The Frame particularly well.

TCL C9K vs Samsung The Frame 2026 (LS03H)

Advantages

Disadvantages

Our verdict

TV appearance

Where to buy

Contrast and black detail

HDR effect quality

Colours

Factory color reproduction

Color reproduction after calibration

Smoothness of tonal transitions

Image scaling and smoothness of tonal transitions

Blur and motion smoothness

Console compatibility and gaming features

Input lag

Compatibility with PC

Viewing angles

Daytime performance

Panel details

TV features

Classic features:

Smart features:

Sound connection options

Supported audio formats (external HDMI eARC audio):

Senior accessibility

Classic TV Features

Smart Features

Operating System: Tizen

Art Mode

Apps

Playing files from USB

Sound

Sound Quality Test

Acoustic Measurements