The Frame Pro / LS03HW
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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.
The 2026 Samsung The Frame Pro is already the second iteration of this TV we've had the chance to test. Compared with the standard The Frame, Samsung has concentrated mainly on two things. The first is the wireless One Connect module, and the second is a Mini‑LED backlight, which places this model in Samsung's Neo QLED lineup. So we checked what Samsung changed in this year's version, whether anything was actually improved, and how The Frame Pro stacks up against the regular The Frame.
7.3
Overall rating
The Frame Pro 2026 makes the most sense when you want a TV that looks good in the living room and isn’t just another large black slab on the wall. And here Samsung still does something most manufacturers can’t match. Flush mounting, interchangeable bezels, Art Mode, a matte finish and the wireless One Connect mean that when The Frame Pro is hung correctly it can really look more like a piece of decor than AV equipment. In our view, it’s the best-executed TV of this kind on the market. Importantly, you don’t entirely pay for the looks with everyday performance. The Frame Pro is bright, the matte finish handles reflections very well, so it works really well in a brightly lit living room. Colors are vivid, motion is handled very well, and there are surprisingly many gamer-friendly features for a TV that’s primarily meant to “look better.” More questions arise when you consider the “Pro” badge and the fact it’s labelled as a Neo QLED screen. From that you might expect a large jump in picture quality over the regular The Frame, but in practice it isn’t that big. The TV uses Mini-LED backlighting and local dimming, but the zones are located at the edges of the screen. That’s a completely different approach than in more advanced Mini-LEDs, where the backlight works across the whole panel. That isn’t a major issue in bright, colorful scenes. It becomes more noticeable in the evening, especially in films with many dark scenes. Then you can see that black levels and backlight control are clearly weaker than in the best Mini-LED TVs. This is where it becomes most clear that “Pro” doesn’t mean top-tier picture quality in this case. An interesting alternative is the Samsung S99H. It has a strong design focus, but in terms of picture it really goes further. Of course it also costs significantly more, so it’s not a direct replacement but rather an option for someone who wants to combine both worlds with fewer compromises. So is it worth buying The Frame Pro 2026? We think yes, but only if you know what you’re paying for. The TV’s biggest strengths are its looks, Art Mode, very good performance in a bright living room, and the wireless One Connect. If that’s what you’re looking for, The Frame Pro is a very appealing option. If the main reason to pay extra is significantly better picture quality, we’re less convinced. It’s simply a better, more refined The Frame, not a full-fledged rival to the best Mini-LEDs.
On-wall picture styling: interchangeable frames
Well equipped: wall mount and Wiralles One Connect included
Art Store: the best artwork scans on the market
Matte screen finish: no reflections
High brightness 850–900 nits
Wide colour gamut (QLED)
Many gaming features: VRR, ALLM, refresh rate up to 240 Hz, Game Motion Plus
Smooth, sharp motion: relatively low motion blur for a VA panel
Tizen operating system, rich in modern features
Poor black levels for a "Neo QLED" screen (edge-lit)
Art Store requires a monthly subscription (you can work around this by uploading your own photos 😉)
Poor viewing angles (they could be better to improve the on-wall picture effect)
High input lag when using the Wireless One Connect wireless module
Movies and series in UHD quality
6.8
Classic TV, YouTube
6.5
Sports broadcasts (TV and apps)
6.9
Gaming on console
8.9
TV as a computer monitor
8.4
Watching in bright light
6.5
Utility functions
7.7
Apps
9.3
Sound quality
6.4
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HDMI inputs: 0 x HDMI 2.0, 5 x HDMI 2.1 (48Gbps) Other inputs: USB-C, Micro-HDMI Outputs: Toslink (Optical audio), eARC (HDMI), ARC (HDMI) Network Interfaces: Wi-Fi 2.4GHz, Wi-Fi 5GHz, Ethernet (LAN) 100Mbps
Build quality: Premium
Stand type: Legs
Bezel color: Graphite
Stand: Height adjustment
Flat design: Yes
Accessories: Stand, Wall bracket, One Connect Box
In terms of looks The Frame Pro still sticks closely to the idea that has defined the series from the start. It’s meant to be a TV that, when switched off, least resembles a conventional television. The casing is simple, flat and quite slim, and the front is dominated by a distinctive, even frame running around the screen. On an ordinary TV such a wide bezel might look a bit old-fashioned, but here it has a clear purpose – the screen is meant to resemble a picture hung on the wall as much as possible. And that is exactly the kind of installation The Frame Pro was designed for. Included is a special wall mount that lets you hang the TV very close to the wall. The rear of the case is virtually flat, so once mounted the whole thing looks tidy and far better conveys the idea behind the The Frame series than placing the TV on a cabinet. Despite that, Samsung still includes conventional feet. They’re small, plastic and set quite wide, so they do the job, but they’re hardly a particularly attractive part of the design. Frankly, for such a distinctive TV they could probably have been omitted. One of the most important features of The Frame Pro remains the ability to change its appearance. You can fit optional decorative bezels in different colours onto the standard frame. That way the TV can be matched much better to the room’s decor. Unfortunately they’re sold separately, which is a pity, because only with such a bezel does The Frame really start to deliver on its idea of “a picture instead of a TV”. The wireless One Connect module also plays a big role here. It’s where you connect most devices and cables, so you won’t find the usual set of multiple HDMI ports, an antenna input or Ethernet on the back of the screen itself. The module can be hidden in a cabinet or placed a few metres from the TV, with picture and sound transmitted wirelessly. For a TV whose main advantage is a clean wall mount, that makes a lot of sense. Interestingly, the panel hasn’t been completely stripped of ports. On the back you’ll still find, among other things, a Micro HDMI with eARC support and a USB Type-C. Overall, the Frame Pro is one of those TVs where looks really are a major part of the product, not just an add-on to picture quality. The wall mount, flat case, interchangeable frames and wireless One Connect best show what the The Frame series is all about.
Select size:
5.3/10
Local dimming function: Yes, number of zones: 24 (1 x 24)
Result
5,400:1
Result
3,250:1
Result
3,900:1
Result
3,750:1
Result
3,900:1
The Frame Pro formally belongs to the Neo QLED family, so it uses Mini-LED backlighting. Except this isn't the same kind of Mini-LED we know from most TVs in that series. Instead of a large number of zones placed behind the panel, it only has a single row of zones at the edge. In practice it's an edge-lit design that simply uses smaller LEDs. Unfortunately that's quite quickly visible in blacks. There's just not enough local dimming here for the TV to handle more demanding scenes well. In our measurements contrast most often fell in the range of 3,000–5,000:1, so it's hard to speak of the level you'd expect from more advanced Mini-LEDs. You see it most when single bright elements appear on a dark background. A larger part of the image lights up with them, which makes blacks look noticeably shallower, almost navy. The Sicario 2 scene illustrates this well. Because of that placement of the zones, the TV simply doesn't have the precision to show it any other way. The Frame Pro uses Mini-LED, but its black performance is much closer to simpler designs. It's a bit of a shame, because this is the element we complained about most last year.
Halo effect and black detail visibility:
6/10
Supported formats: HDR10, HDR10+, HLG
Luminance measurements in HDR:
Result
834 nit
Result
536 nit
Result
545 nit
Result
460 nit
Result
668 nit
You can't fault The Frame Pro for one thing: brightness. At peak we measured about 850-900 nits, so the TV has plenty of power to make many HDR scenes look really impressive. Bright, full-screen shots and more colourful frames perform best. In those scenes The Frame Pro can make a good impression — the image is bright, punchy and has the effect we expect from HDR. In our measurements some scenes reached over 800 nits, and even in tougher passages the TV maintained a fairly respectable brightness level.
The problem starts when HDR depends on small bright elements shown against a dark background. Single lamps, stars or reflections can be bright, but very often the black level across a larger part of the image also rises. As a result the bright point itself can look good, but the whole frame loses a lot of quality. That means The Frame Pro shows HDR best in scenes that are simply full-screen. If a film or series contains many such shots, the effect can be genuinely enjoyable. In darker material the limits of local dimming become much more noticeable.
The Frame Pro deserves praise for its colour gamut coverage. The TV uses quantum dots, the solution known as QLED, so it can deliver really well-saturated colours. In our measurements coverage of the important DCI-P3 palette was around 94.5%, while the more demanding BT.2020 was about 72%.
Those are very solid results that in most scenes produce pleasant, saturated colours. Of course they are not as eye-catching as the values from the latest panels using RGB backlights, but The Frame Pro makes up for that in another way — colour stability. Regardless of the scene, colour saturation remains fairly consistent and there aren't situations where the TV loses colour badly in more demanding frames.
BT.2020 color gamut coverage and primary color luminance
| Data set | BT.2020 | P3 | R | G | B |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Synthetic patterns | 72.1% | 94.3% | 68% | 73% | 75% |
| Film measurements | 72.2% | 94.3% | 62% | 67% | 69% |
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)
When we assess The Frame Pro in terms of how it handles reproducing very bright detail, it's worth looking at it from two angles. With common streaming material, especially content mastered for around 1000 nits, the TV performs really well. You can see this in the fireworks — individual light sources are well separated and do not blend into one large bright blotch.
It gets much worse with truly demanding material. A good example is the sunset scene from the film "Pan", where the mastering brightness reaches nearly 3000 nits. In such passages The Frame Pro already struggles to show the brightest highlights correctly and you can see it begins to run out of headroom. You can partly improve this by switching the tone mapping from "Static" to "Active". The TV then handles very bright material better, but this comes at the expense of correct rendering of content mastered to 1000 nits, which we encounter far more often. For everyday use we therefore recommend leaving tone mapping in "Static" mode.
HDR luminance chart:
Tone mapping on The Frame Pro performs adequately, but its strengths are most apparent with HDR10+ content. Dynamic metadata lets the TV better adjust brightness for each scene, so the brightest areas retain more detail and the picture less often looks overexposed. It's also worth noting that HDR10+ is much more common today than a year or two ago, so its inclusion matters more. The lack of Dolby Vision is a drawback, but it's no longer as significant a shortcoming as it was a few years ago.
Static HDR10
Dynamic: HDR10+
5.5/10
In SDR material The Frame Pro in Filmmaker mode performs quite well, though it falls short of perfect. White balance is relatively even, but as brightness increases the blue component diminishes, so brighter parts of the image can have a slightly warmer tint. A bigger difference is visible in the gamma, i.e. the screen’s brightness handling. Across most of the range it runs below our reference point, which means the TV brightens the midtones a little. As a result, the image can appear a little brighter and less contrasty than it should. The colour errors themselves aren’t huge, but they’re noticeable enough that calibration can still make a significant improvement.
In HDR content the white balance looks similar, being fairly even across much of the range, with larger deviations appearing only at higher brightness. The EOTF curve, however, is more revealing. The Frame Pro holds up fairly well against the reference values in the brighter parts of the image, but clearly lifts the darkest parts. This is primarily due to the TV’s backlight design. This also affects the colours. With less saturated colours the errors are still moderate, but they become significantly larger as saturation increases. In Colour Checker measurements many samples already show high error values. So the out-of-the-box HDR can be considered decent, but it’s definitely not an image we’d call very accurate.
8.5/10
After calibration, the biggest improvements are seen mainly in SDR material. We managed to even out the white balance, but an even more important change was the gamma correction, which before calibration had the greatest effect on the picture's character. After the adjustments the gamma curve is now very close to the reference, so the image is not as bright in the mid-tones and simply looks more natural. Colour errors have also been noticeably reduced, so the effect of calibration in SDR is clearly visible.
In HDR the situation is a bit more complex. White balance was improved and in some ranges the TV tracks the reference much better, but at higher brightness levels deviations still appear. The same goes for colour reproduction; some errors can be corrected, but not all stem from the settings themselves. This reveals the limitations of the TV's design and the way its backlight and local dimming affect the HDR image. So with The Frame Pro, calibration makes the biggest difference to everyday content. Regular TV, YouTube and films and series in SDR (mainly those from cheaper streaming service tiers) can look noticeably better afterwards.
9.5/10
The Frame Pro handles the smoothness of tonal transitions really well. In most content you don't see noticeable banding or ugly breaks between similar shades, and gradients look smooth and natural. Even in more demanding scenes with mist or dark transitions, issues are very rare. It's definitely one of this model's strengths.
7.5/10
Smooth transition function
Image without overscan on the SD signal
The Frame Pro uses the NQ4 AI Gen2 processor, so in terms of image processing it behaves very similarly to other recent Samsung TVs. Upscaling works really well, with lower-resolution material being sensibly sharpened and the picture remaining readable without over-emphasising edges. With regular TV broadcasts or lower-quality YouTube content this can deliver a noticeable improvement, although viewers watching even older sources, such as VHS tapes, may notice a slight cropping on the left side (overscan).
It’s a different story for heavily compressed footage and the reduction of noise and posterization artefacts. The "Noise Reduction" feature can improve poorer material, but it fairly quickly starts to interfere with the picture and removes fine detail and film grain. So it’s best used sparingly and mainly when the source genuinely needs it.
7.9/10
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: 70%
The Frame Pro is equipped with a 144 Hz panel and, when connected to a PC, also supports 240 Hz at Full HD. That's mainly a feature aimed at PC gamers, but the TV also handles the standard 120 Hz refresh rate used for watching sport or gaming on consoles very well. A major plus is the low smearing. For a VA panel, The Frame Pro performs really well in this regard. You don't see the strong, dark trails behind moving objects that are fairly common on TVs with this type of panel. That keeps fast sport and dynamic games clear in motion. There's also a motion smoothing feature with adjustable strength, so for films and sports broadcasts you can tailor the motion to your preferences. You can find our recommended settings in the photo.
Blur (native resolution, maximum refresh rate):
Blur (BFI function enabled):
Image flickers in this mode
Blur (1080p@240Hz):
There is also a feature called "Clear LED Motion", which is a stroboscopic BFI backlight. In theory it should further improve motion clarity, but in practice it causes very noticeable image flicker. For that reason we don't recommend using this feature.
9.6/10
For gamers, The Frame Pro has a lot to offer. The TV supports 4K at 120 Hz, VRR, ALLM and a correctly implemented HGiG. When connected to a PC you can also run 144 Hz at 4K, and even 240 Hz if you drop to Full HD. Samsung also bundles its usual set of gamer extras: an expanded Game Bar that lets you quickly view and change the key settings, and Game Motion Plus to improve smoothness for games running at 30 or 60 fps. There’s also the Gaming Hub and the ability to play in the cloud without needing to connect a console. The only real omission is Dolby Vision Gaming, which Samsung doesn’t support. Aside from that, The Frame Pro offers pretty much everything you’d expect from a well-equipped gaming TV today.
10/10
adasdsadddas
Input Lag Wirales One Connect (2-3 metry od TV)
SDR | HDR |
|---|---|
1080p60 Hz: 61 | 2160p60 Hz HDR: 71 |
1080p120 Hz: 39 | 2160p120 Hz HDR: 32 |
2160p60 Hz: 63 | |
2160p120 Hz: 32 |
| SDR | HDR | Dolby Vision |
|---|---|---|
| 1080p60: 13 ms | 2160p60: 13 ms | |
| 1080p120: 7 ms | 2160p120: 7 ms | |
| 2160p60: 13 ms | ||
| 2160p120: 7 ms |
8.4/10
Chroma 444 (max. resolution and refresh rate): Yes
Font clarity: Good
Readability of dark text and shapes: Good
Matrix subpixel arrangement: RGB
Max refresh rate: 144Hz
G-Sync: Yes
The Frame Pro performs well when connected to a computer. It supports full 4:4:4 chroma, 144 Hz at 4K and 240 Hz at Full HD. It also works with both NVIDIA's G-Sync and AMD FreeSync. However, it's not ideal for working with text. From a normal viewing distance everything looks fine, but up close you can see minor artefacts around fonts and slightly less crisp edges. That doesn't matter much for gaming or watching content, but you may notice it for office work.
3.4/10
Brightness drop at an angle of 45 degrees: 72%
Viewing angles on The Frame Pro are average, if not poor. The TV uses a classic VA panel and at wider angles the picture loses quality quite quickly. Brightness drops first and foremost, but colour saturation also clearly falls, making the image look more washed out. That's a bit more of a shame on The Frame Pro than on a regular TV. It's a model that's often meant to hang on the wall and also serve as artwork, so better viewing angles would be really welcome here.
6.5/10
Panel finish: Matte
Reflection suppression: Very Good
Black levels during daytime: Average
During the day The Frame Pro performs quite well. SDR brightness stays at around 600 nits, so the picture remains readable even in a brighter room. The biggest advantage is the matte screen coating, which very effectively diffuses reflections and means lamps or windows aren't so visible on the screen. However, we noticed that on this year's model the coating affects the image itself a bit more. In stronger light the blacks become slightly lifted and colours lose some of their depth. It's still a very good choice for a bright living room, but in that respect the screen is not without compromises.
Panel brightness
Samsung The Frame Pro 2026 (LS03HW): 587 cd/m2
7.7/10
System: Tizen
System performance: Good
Tizen is, of course, behind the Smart TV features. The system runs smoothly and offers a very large selection of streaming apps. It also supports AirPlay, Miracast and voice search in Polish. In that respect The Frame Pro is not especially different from other new Samsungs – you simply get the manufacturer's feature-rich, well-working system.
Far more interesting is Art Mode, since it's one of the most important features of the whole Frame series. When turned off, the TV can display paintings, photos or graphics instead of a black screen and can genuinely do a good job of imitating a classic picture hanging on the wall. Samsung provides access to the Art Store, where the selection is really large and the materials themselves are prepared to very high quality. The problem is that full access requires a subscription, and in our view that's a significant drawback for a TV whose main selling point is this feature. Fortunately we're not limited to the Art Store. You can upload your own photos or artwork, so nothing stops you from finding a high-resolution piece yourself and displaying it on the screen. The automation of this mode is also handled very interestingly. The Frame Pro not only has an ambient light sensor to adapt the look of the displayed image to the room, but also a presence sensor. The TV can therefore detect that someone is in the room and automatically activate Art Mode.
As for classic TV features, The Frame Pro offers a rather basic set of conveniences. We have DVB-T/T2, DVB-S/S2 and DVB-C tuners, teletext, a sound-only mode and the ability to use Bluetooth headphones and the TV speakers at the same time. Missing, however, are USB programme recording, PiP and a more advanced remote, for example one with a numeric keypad. The remote works via radio, so you don't need to point it at the screen.
9.3/10
9.1/10
| Maximum photo resolution: | Supported photo formats: |
|---|---|
The Frame Pro handles playing files from a USB drive well. Most common video, audio and photo formats work correctly, so you probably won't need to connect a laptop just to play a movie or browse photos. What we miss most is support for HEIC, the format commonly used for photos taken with iPhones. Apple users will therefore have to convert those photos to a supported format beforehand or simply stream them to the TV via AirPlay. Other than that, the player works great.
6.4/10
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 sound on The Frame Pro is decent and hasn't changed much compared with last year's model. The TV handles dialogue particularly well, with voices clear and easy to hear. However, it lacks stronger bass, so films and music don't have much depth. If you care about better sound, it's worth considering a soundbar when buying The Frame Pro. Models from the S series suit it especially well. Their slim design complements the look of the TV. Finally, The Frame Pro supports Dolby Atmos, so with a compatible soundbar or AV receiver you can enjoy immersive audio. It does not support DTS, which is worth bearing in mind when playing films from your own library, for example Blu-ray discs.
Sound Quality Test:
89dBC (Max)
75dBC
Software version during testing: 1204
Panel uniformity and thermal imaging:
Backlight Type: Mini-LED QLED
Founder and originator of the "ChooseTV" portal
Journalist, reviewer, and columnist for the "ChooseTV" portal
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