- Matching (Score) |
- Our verdict |
- Competing TVs |
- TV appearance |
- Where to buy |
- Contrast and black detail |
- HDR effect quality |
- 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 |
- TV features |
- Apps |
- Playing files from USB |
- Sound |
- Panel details
Samsung R85H / R86H Review
R85H / R86H / Micro RGB
Available screen sizes:
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Panel type: LCD VA Refresh rate: 144Hz Brand: SAMSUNG Resolution: 3840x2160 System: Tizen Model year: 2026
This review is an English translation of the Polish original. Read the original on Wybierz.tv.
Samsung R85H is the cheapest model in this year's offering from the manufacturer to use Micro RGB backlighting. That's precisely why it's particularly interesting, because it shows how much of Samsung's new technology has been retained in a television positioned well below the flagship R95H. So we're not only looking at how the R85H performs on its own, but, more importantly, where the benefits of Micro RGB run out when the number of zones and backlighting capabilities are significantly more limited.
SAMSUNG R85H - Our verdict
7.7
Overall rating
The Samsung R85H is above all a very versatile TV that performs well in pretty much any use case. You can put it in a bright lounge, hook up a console, watch a movie or series in the evening, or use it for everyday broadcast TV, and each time you’ll get a solid picture. It may not make the same immediate impression as Samsung’s best OLEDs, but it’s hard to point to a single feature that would seriously limit its usefulness. That versatility is probably its biggest strength. Of course the thing that draws most attention with the R85H is the new "Micro RGB" backlight. From our tests we’d say it can indeed deliver an advantage over classic Mini-LED, although not always in the areas the manufacturer emphasises most. On measurement charts its colour reproduction is impressive, but in real, more complex scenes the TV doesn’t always exploit the full potential of the three‑colour backlight. Its benefits are easiest to spot on simpler parts of the image, where intense reds, greens and blues can look really striking. Viewing angles are also slightly better, since colours retain their saturation off‑axis longer than on typical LCD TVs. Micro RGB doesn’t, however, solve all the limitations of RGB technology. With very saturated elements you can sometimes notice slight colour bleeding into adjacent bright parts of the image, and the relatively small number of local dimming zones means the backlight can’t always act as precisely as its on‑paper capabilities might suggest. The R85H shows that RGB does have potential and could be the next step in LCD TV development, but using coloured LEDs alone doesn’t automatically produce a huge jump in image quality. We’d therefore treat the R85H mainly as a somewhat better and more interesting alternative to the QN80H, not as a TV you must buy at all costs just because it says Micro RGB. If the price gap between the models is sensible, we’d pick the R85H. We wouldn’t pay a large premium solely for the new backlight, because its everyday advantage isn’t always as big as the marketing materials might imply. All the same, the R85H is a successful all‑round TV, and that’s probably the best way to look at it.
Advantages
Good blacks and contrast: VA panel with local dimming
High HDR brightness: approx. 1000 nits
Very wide colour gamut and high colour volume
Matte anti-reflective coating
Panel 144 Hz / 240 Hz (DLG)
4x HDMI 2.1
Extensive gaming features (ALLM, VRR, low input lag, G-Sync)
Fast, feature-rich Tizen OS (7 years of support)
Good viewing angles (for a VA panel)
Adjustable stand width and height
Disadvantages
Limited number of local dimming zones
RGB backlighting can't always realise its full potential
Visible smearing on the VA panel
No Dolby Vision or DTS:X
Movies and series in UHD quality7.3
Classic TV, YouTube7.6
Sports broadcasts (TV and apps)7.2
Gaming on console8.9
TV as a computer monitor8.0
Watching in bright light7.3
Utility functions7.3
Apps9.3
Sound quality7.1
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SAMSUNG R85H - Competing TVs in this price range
SAMSUNG R85H - TV appearance
HDMI inputs: 0 x HDMI 2.0, 4 x HDMI 2.1 (48Gbps) Outputs: Toslink (Optical audio), eARC (HDMI), ARC (HDMI) Network Interfaces: Wi-Fi 2.4GHz, Wi-Fi 5GHz, Ethernet (LAN) 100Mbps
Build quality: Good
Stand type: Legs
Bezel color: Graphite
Stand: Height adjustment, Base adjustment
Flat design: Yes
Accessories: Stand
The R85H stylistically resembles Samsung’s well-known Neo QLED models, such as the QN80H. It doesn’t try to pass as a top-tier model — the casing is solid and tidy, but the plastic feet quickly give away that it’s not a flagship. The bezels are slim on three sides, with a noticeably thicker bottom edge, and the set isn’t particularly svelte. On the plus side, the flat back makes the R85H well suited for mounting close to the wall. If you’re placing it on furniture, it’s handy that you can adjust both the spacing of the feet and their height.
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SAMSUNG R85H - Contrast and black detail
7.9/10
Local dimming function: Yes, number of zones: 150 (10 x 15)
Result
182,800:1
Result
46,750:1
Result
22,450:1
Result
10,900:1
Result
9,050:1
The Samsung R85H uses a Micro RGB backlight with zonal local dimming and can perform very well in terms of black levels. In the 55-inch sample we tested we counted around 150 dimming zones, so it’s not on the level of the most advanced Mini-LEDs, where that number can run into the thousands. Even so, the local dimming algorithm handles many scenes quite effectively. With larger, clearly separated objects on a dark background blacks are deep and contrast can be very impressive. The halo effect is also reasonably well controlled, so during typical viewing the R85H can really show the benefits of local dimming. The limitations of the relatively small number of zones become apparent with more demanding material, especially when there are lots of very small bright elements on screen. A good example is scenes with a starry sky. In those situations the TV can practically abandon local dimming, causing blacks to lift significantly and the image to lose a large part of its contrast. Interestingly, we noticed similar behaviour even when the number of bright points was much lower, so it seems to be more a matter of how the algorithm works than just the physical number of zones. Overall, though, the R85H’s blacks are good. It’s not at the level of the most expensive Mini-LEDs equipped with thousands of independently controlled zones, and the difference is evident in tough scenes. For most content, however, local dimming does its job and delivers noticeably better blacks.
Halo effect and black detail visibility:
SAMSUNG R85H - HDR effect quality
5.6/10
Supported formats: HDR10, HDR10+, HLG
Luminance measurements in HDR:
Result
860 nit
Result
214 nit
Result
758 nit
Result
235 nit
Result
912 nit
When it comes to brightness, the R85H performs quite well. In most of our test scenes the TV reaches around 800–900 nits, and with larger bright elements it can exceed 1000 nits. These aren't, of course, on the level of the most expensive Mini-LEDs, but they're more than enough for watching films and TV series in HDR and the effect can be quite noticeable. The problem reappears in more demanding scenes, where there's a small bright element on a very dark background. Here the TV can greatly reduce its brightness to avoid lighting up too much of the screen. In our measurements such small highlights fell as low as around 200–250 nits, so it's clear that a limited number of local dimming zones combined with the specific behaviour of the algorithm has consequences here. Fortunately, it doesn't affect viewing all the time. In typical, mixed HDR scenes the R85H looks good and can provide good image dynamics. It's just that with very small points of light you shouldn't expect as strong an effect as on TVs with a much larger number of zones or on OLEDs.
BT.2020 color gamut coverage and primary color luminance
| Data set | BT.2020 | P3 | R | G | B |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Synthetic patterns | 92.6% | 96.6% | 76% | 74% | 43% |
| Film measurements | 86.3% | 93.2% | 62% | 55% | 73% |
BT.2020 BT.2020 and P3 – average color gamut coverage (percent of the target gamut).
R, G, B – average primary color luminance relative to target (percent).
Scene from the movie “Pan” (about 2800 nits)
Scene from the movie “Billy Lynn” (about 1100 nits)
The numbers alone aren’t everything, so we also checked how the R85H handles normal film material. It looks best with content mastered to around 1000 nits. Tonal balance here is really good, the brightest details remain visible, and the picture has the right dynamics and can look very impressive. With more demanding material it’s also quite good, although the R85H starts to have a bit more work to get the brightness right. It can still retain a lot of detail in the brightest parts of the image, but in places it sometimes blends those details together. We saw that in Pan from 2015, where some sun rays aren’t as well separated. With active tone mapping turned on that can be tempting, because the TV then starts to adapt HDR more aggressively to its capabilities. For content mastered to 4000 nits that can deliver a more contrasty and simply more striking image. The problem is that with 1000-nit material that same mode already performs much worse and can seriously spoil the whole picture. That’s why for everyday use we still recommend static tone mapping.
HDR luminance chart:
R85H does not support Dolby Vision, but Samsung has for years backed HDR10+ and in the right material that can actually make a difference. In our test scene the difference is most visible in the brightest parts of the image. In standard HDR10 the snow and bright background sometimes start to merge, so some details simply vanish. Switching to HDR10+ the TV handles them better. The snow shows more detail and the whole image no longer looks as flat in the highlights. It’s not a difference you’ll see in every film or every scene, but here the dynamic format did show its advantage over standard HDR10, even though the TV is relatively bright.
Static HDR10
Dynamic: HDR10+
Factory color reproduction
5.4/10
In Filmmaker mode our R85H sample in SDR performed adequately, but a few issues immediately stood out in the measurements. In the white balance, as brightness increased more red was added while blue decreased. As a result, the brighter parts of the image had a slightly too-warm tint. Gamma only held the target value at the start. It then gradually fell, which left most of the image a little too bright. The combination of these two factors also affected the colours, with errors growing particularly in the brighter and more saturated samples. It did not look bad, but for Filmmaker mode we expected a bit more accuracy. Interestingly, our sample fared noticeably better in HDR. The white balance was much more even and the individual components stayed close to one another across most of the range. Only in the brightest parts did red start to be lacking, causing white to shift subtly. The EOTF curve looked very good, tracking the target luminance across almost the entire range. That does not mean HDR colours were perfect. The Colour Checker still shows some deviations, especially for some of the more saturated colours, but the errors are clearly smaller than in SDR.
Color reproduction after calibration
8.6/10
After calibration the R85H shows it has really substantial colour reproduction capabilities. SDR performed best: white balance could be brought almost perfectly into line, and gamma stays very close to the target value across most of the range. That also translated into very low errors in the ColorChecker, so there's really little to criticise here. HDR also shows a clear improvement, although some issues can't be corrected as well. At the highest brightness levels the character of the backlight itself becomes apparent and the individual components of the white balance begin to diverge. The same applies to the most saturated colours, which don't always land exactly where they should. Despite these limitations the overall picture is considerably more accurate than factory settings, and the biggest difference is definitely visible in SDR. However, there is one thing calibration can't fix. With heavily saturated elements the colour can slightly bleed onto adjacent bright areas of the image. It's easiest to notice on white, which can pick up a faint tint of a neighbouring hue. It doesn't occur in every scene, but when the material is demanding the effect can be visible. This is more a feature of the way the RGB backlight operates than an issue with picture settings.
SAMSUNG R85H - Smoothness of tonal transitions
8.9/10
Samsung R85H handles tonal transitions quite well, and during normal viewing this is not something that particularly draws attention. On bright gradients the transitions are mostly smooth, and only on closer inspection can you notice slight stepping between some brightness levels. These are not pronounced and generally don't noticeably affect the perceived image. It looks much the same in darker areas. Here you can sometimes pick up small steps between similar shades, but there is no severe banding or obvious breakup of gradients. Bright skies, mist and darker shadows are all rendered smoothly and without major issues.
Image scaling and smoothness of tonal transitions
7.5/10
Smooth transition function
Image without overscan on the SD signal
In the R85H, image processing is handled by the Micro RGB AI Processor. The name is new, but when it comes to upscaling lower-quality sources, the TV's behaviour is very similar to what Samsung has shown before. And that's not a bad thing, because Samsung has handled this aspect quite well for years. Lower-resolution material is displayed cleanly, edges don't become overly soft, and the TV doesn't try to artificially extract detail at all costs. The result is simply balanced, and for regular TV or older recordings the R85H performs as you'd expect from Samsung at this level. There's still a small downside: overscan, which can't be completely switched off at the lowest resolutions. Another matter is the extra processing applied to low-quality sources. The R85H can smooth posterization and tidy up heavily compressed footage, but it's worth emphasising that it does so relatively aggressively. At stronger noise reduction settings it starts removing not only compression artefacts but also fine detail and the natural film grain. So it's best to use it only when the source actually needs it.
SAMSUNG R85H - Blur and motion smoothness
7.4/10
Maximum refresh rate of the panel: 144Hz
Film motion smoothing option: Yes
Blur reduction option: Yes
BFI function 60Hz: Yes, 60Hz (image flickers)
BFI function 120Hz: No
Brightness drop with BFI: 73%
R85H has a 144 Hz panel, so motion handling is really good here. You should remember that the extra hertz above 120 will mainly be used when connected to a computer, so in this category we don't treat them as any particular advantage. For films and TV, what's more important is that the panel is fast enough to provide access to an advanced motion smoothing feature, "Motion Clarity", which lets us set motion from more film-like to very smooth. The panel's response time is a bit worse. Since it's a VA panel, fast-moving objects can leave a slight trail. On a bright background this isn't very noticeable, but the darker the scene, the more noticeable the smearing becomes. This is a typical characteristic of this type of panel and it's easiest to spot in dark scenes.
Blur (native resolution, maximum refresh rate):
Blur (1080p@240Hz):
A welcome addition is the ability to boost the refresh rate up to 240 Hz when you switch the resolution to Full HD. That looks great on paper and can be especially useful for PC gamers, but you shouldn't expect 240 Hz alone to solve motion clarity issues. The limiting factor of the R85H's panel is still its response time, and even at such a high refresh rate fast-moving objects show quite noticeable motion blur.
SAMSUNG R85H - Console compatibility and gaming features
9.6/10
- ALLM:
Yes
- VRR:
Yes
- VRR range:
48 - 240Hz
- Dolby Vision Game Mode:
No
- Correct implementation of HGIG:
Yes
- 1080p@120Hz:
Yes
- 1440p@120Hz:
Yes
- 4K@120Hz:
Yes
- Game bar:
Yes
Samsung has been steadily expanding its gamer features for several years, and the R85H really doesn't lack anything important. The TV supports 4K at 120 Hz, VRR and ALLM, so it can easily make full use of the PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X. HGiG also works properly, so when HDR is set correctly on the console, games maintain their intended brightness and you don't unnecessarily lose detail in the brightest parts of the image. The only bigger omission is Dolby Vision Gaming, which Samsung doesn't support on any of its TVs.
The Game Bar is also very useful, a handy menu you can bring up without leaving the game. You can quickly check the frame rate, VRR status or change the key picture settings. Samsung also includes a few less obvious features, like the ability to change the aspect ratio or Game Motion Plus, which can further smooth games running at 30 or 60 fps. Of course this comes at the cost of higher input lag (around 55 ms), but for slower-paced titles it may be an interesting option for some.
SAMSUNG R85H - Input lag
9.6/10
Input lag on the R85H is low, though not record‑breaking. At 120 Hz it's around 12–13 ms, and at 60 Hz about 17–18 ms. In practice it doesn't make much difference. Controls are responsive and you don't notice any delay during normal gaming.
| SDR | HDR | Dolby Vision |
|---|---|---|
| 1080p60: 18 ms | 2160p60: 17 ms | |
| 1080p120: 13 ms | 2160p120: 12 ms | |
| 2160p60: 18 ms | ||
| 2160p120: 13 ms |
SAMSUNG R85H - Compatibility with PC
8/10
Chroma 444 (max. resolution and refresh rate): Yes
Font clarity: Average
Readability of dark text and shapes: Poor
Input lag in PC mode (4K, max. refresh rate): 13ms
Matrix subpixel arrangement: BGR
Max refresh rate: 144Hz
G-Sync: Yes
The R85H has plenty to offer when hooked up to a PC as well. In 4K it can run at the full 144 Hz, and if you prioritise getting the highest possible frame rate, dropping down to Full HD lets the TV push the refresh rate up to 240 Hz. It also supports G-Sync and FreeSync and has low input lag, so for gaming the R85H can comfortably serve as a large monitor for players. Text legibility, however, is a bit weaker. The TV correctly supports 4:4:4 chroma, so in theory you have everything needed for sharp font rendering. In practice, though, some fonts show small coloured artefacts, especially with dark text and high-contrast edges. It's not a problem that prevents normal use, but if you plan to sit close to the screen and use the R85H mainly as a monitor for text, it's worth keeping in mind. It's definitely better suited to PC gaming.
SAMSUNG R85H - Viewing angles
4.8/10
Brightness drop at an angle of 45 degrees: 80%
The viewing angles on the R85H are fairly acceptable, and that's really about the best thing you can say about them. It's still a VA panel, and those types of panels aren't the best choice when you often watch the TV from a wide angle. As you move to the side the image loses contrast, and the blacks start to get greyer. The R85H does, however, have an advantage over classic VA TVs. Thanks to its three-colour RGB backlight, colours viewed at an angle don't lose saturation as quickly and the washed-out effect is a bit less noticeable. If you often watch TV in a larger group and some people sit well off to the side, though, you'll find screens on the market that handle this much better.
SAMSUNG R85H - Daytime performance
7.3/10
Panel finish: Satin
Reflection suppression: Good
Black levels during daytime: Good
In a bright room the R85H performs quite well, although a lot depends on the local dimming setting. For daytime viewing we recommend setting it to High, because the TV noticeably increases its brightness then. On large bright areas it reaches around 600 nits, and on smaller sections it can approach even 1000 nits, so the picture stays readable even with stronger light in the living room. The satin coating handles reflections decently and in most cases does not turn the screen into a mirror, though strong light sources will still of course be visible.
However, keep in mind that the High setting means the local dimming algorithm works more aggressively. So for evening viewing we recommend switching it to Low. The TV does not shine as brightly then, but it preserves detail in the brightest parts of the image better, which after dark we think is far more important than maximum brightness.
Local dimming | 5% | 10% | 20% | 30% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 70% | 80% | 90% | 100% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Low | 445 | 485 | 517 | 532 | 537 | 542 | 551 | 556 | 556 | 573 | 556 |
Panel brightness
Samsung R85H / R86H: 726 cd/m2
SAMSUNG R85H - TV features
7.3/10
System: Tizen
System performance: Very good
- HDMI inputs: 0 x HDMI 2.0, 4 x HDMI 2.1 48Gbps
- Outputs: Toslink (Optical audio), eARC (HDMI), ARC (HDMI)
- Network Interfaces: Wi-Fi 2.4GHz, Wi-Fi 5GHz, Ethernet (LAN) 100Mbps
- TV reception: DVB-T, DVB-T2, DVB-S, DVB-S2, DVB-C
Classic features:
- Recording to USB (terrestrial TV): No
- Recording programming: No
- Picture in Picture (PiP): No
- RF remote control (no need to aim): RF
- Backlit remote control: No
- Teletext: Yes
- Audio only mode: Yes
- Bluetooth headphones support: Yes
- Simultaneous Bluetooth headphones & TV audio: Yes
Smart features:
- AirPlay: Yes
- Screen mirroring (Windows Miracast): Yes
- Voice search: Yes
- Voice search in native language: Yes
- Ability to connect a keyboard and mouse: Yes
TV features
If the R85H is also going to be used for watching traditional TV, Samsung pretty much offers everything you can expect from a modern set. Channel handling is convenient, the program guide is clear, and switching between channels isn't overly slow. You also get the usual set of tuners and CI+ module support. It's a shame, though, that Samsung has for some time been scaling back some of the more traditional features that used to be a hallmark of their feature-rich TVs. It's clear that streaming and the whole Smart TV ecosystem have become far more important to the manufacturer. You won't find, for example, the ability to record TV channels to USB storage or to split the screen via PiP.
Smart TV features
The well-known Tizen handles this area. The system runs smoothly and gives access to practically all popular VOD apps, so you'll find Netflix, Disney+, Max, Prime Video, YouTube and other local services without much trouble. The interface itself is fairly extensive and takes a little getting used to at first, but navigating it becomes very comfortable. Samsung also develops features that go beyond just watching movies and series. SmartThings lets you connect the R85H to smart home devices and control them directly from the screen. There's AirPlay, screen mirroring from a smartphone, and Multi View if you want to display two different sources side by side. So it's hard to fault the system's capabilities.
Sound connection options
HDMI audio:
Other audio outputs:
- Toslink: Yes
Wireless audio:
- Bluetooth: Yes
- Samsung Q-Symphony (Speaker extension): Yes
Supported audio formats (external HDMI eARC audio):
- Dolby Digital Plus 7.1: Yes
- Dolby True HD 7.1: Yes
- Dolby Atmos in Dolby Digital Plus (JOC): Yes
- Dolby Atmos in Dolby True HD: Yes
- DTS:X in DTS-HD MA: No
- DTS-HD Master Audio: No
Senior accessibility
- Numeric keyboard on TV: No
- Font size adjustment: Yes
- Audio description: Yes
SAMSUNG R85H - Apps
9.3/10
SAMSUNG R85H - Playing files from USB
9.1/10
| Maximum photo resolution: | Supported photo formats: |
|---|---|
| 4 Mpix | JPEG |
| 6 Mpix | HEIC |
| 8 Mpix | PNG |
| 10 Mpix | GIF |
| 12 Mpix | WebP |
| 16 Mpix | TIFF |
| 20 Mpix | BMP |
| 24 Mpix | SVG |
| 28 Mpix | |
| 32 Mpix |
The built-in media player handles most popular video, audio and image formats. The menu runs smoothly and thumbnails load without delay even in folders with hundreds of files. For photos you can open high-resolution JPEG, PNG or BMP files without any problems, though the list of supported formats has gaps. The biggest drawback is the lack of support for HEIC (iPhone photos) and for more niche formats such as WebP, GIF or TIFF. For a traditional holiday photo slideshow, however, the player is more than enough.
SAMSUNG R85H - Sound
7.1/10
89dB
Maximum volume
Supported codecs (TV speakers)
Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
Dolby True HD 7.1
Dolby Atmos in Dolby Digital Plus (JOC)
Dolby Atmos in Dolby True HD
DTS:X in DTS-HD MA
DTS-HD Master Audio
The audio section in the R85H is a carbon copy of the QN80H’s. It features the same 2.0 stereo setup delivering 30 W, which easily handles dialogue clarity in news programmes and TV series, although for movie blockbusters it’s definitely worth buying a soundbar. Onboard there’s support for Dolby Atmos, Q-Symphony (for pairing with Samsung soundbars) and an "AI Football" mode. The latter lets you use sliders to boost or almost completely remove the commentator’s voice relative to the stadium crowd, and although the algorithm sometimes falters, for fans it can be a great addition.
Sound Quality Test:
Acoustic Measurements
89dBC (Max)
75dBC
SAMSUNG R85H - Panel details
Software version during testing: 1204
Panel uniformity and thermal imaging:
Backlight Type: Mini-LED RGB
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