LG UT8100 (IPS) vs Samsung U8000F (IPS)

Unfortunately, the LG UT8100 television does not meet expectations in the HDR effect category. With a peak brightness of only 300 nits on the luminance chart, it is well below the required value to fully enjoy the HDR effects. In practice, the image resembles SDR quality more than true HDR, which is particularly evident in demanding high-contrast scenes. The coverage of the DCI-P3 colour palette is only 82%, further limiting the ability to present vibrant and rich colours. Instead of impressive visual experiences, we receive a muted and lacklustre image. For those looking for a television to fully utilise HDR content, the LG UT8100 model proves to be quite disappointing.

Better does not mean good – and that is exactly how to summarise the capabilities of U8092F when it comes to displaying bright movie scenes in HDR mode. The brightness of the panel is just under 250 nits, which is definitely too little to enjoy any light effects. An interesting situation was observed during the measurement of the fourth scene from the film Sicario 2 – the television clearly dimmed the entire screen in an attempt to achieve better black levels (which remain weak anyway). One might even suggest that the device is using some form of 'global dimming', but unfortunately – the results are still very poor. To make matters worse, the television does not support a wide colour gamut – the coverage of the DCI-P3 space is around 80%, so one cannot expect truly vibrant colours. The HDR image here looks more like a slightly brightened SDR, and it is this form that we would suggest sticking to when it comes to this television.

The Filmmaker Mode in LG UT8100, although theoretically the best for watching films, has significant flaws. The biggest problem is the white balance – drops in blue colour cause a noticeable yellowing of the image, evident in both HD and 4K content. These errors are confirmed by the measurement results in the Colour Checker test, which indicate significant deviations in colour reproduction.

Regarding brightness characteristics, both HD and 4K content feature a substantial tonal boost. The gamma curve in both cases remains significantly below the reference value of 2.4, leading to excessive brightening of darker elements of the image. A similar issue is noticeable in the EOTF curve – for 4K content, the television struggles with properly managing brightness, which results in problems with screen brightness. This means that the factory settings of this model require significant adjustments to achieve better image quality.

The Samsung U8000F has been tested in the best possible picture mode built into the television, namely Filmmaker Mode. This mode should – at least in theory – offer a cinematic, reference picture without unnecessary enhancements. In the case of SDR content (mainly HD/SD), the television, out of the box, showed itself surprisingly well. Errors in white balance hovered around a value of 3, which is roughly on the edge of perceptibility. The only complaint could be about brightness management – the gamma graph showed a slight tendency to lighten or darken certain sections, but even so, the overall performance is quite good for this price segment.

Unfortunately, it looks much worse in HDR mode. Although the white balance was not terrible, the television had significant colour errors – particularly evident in the Color Checker graph, where almost every sample hit outside the target point. The picture in HDR simply looks unnatural, and the colours can be shifted, dull, or too cool. This largely stems from the fact that the U8000F does not support a wide colour gamut (DCI-P3). The television is physically unable to display correct colours in the HDR standard – and unfortunately, this is felt in every more demanding material.

After calibrating the Filmmaker Mode, the gamma has been aligned to practically ideal, reference values, which has significantly improved the overall tonal characteristics of HD content. 4K HDR content also looks better, although certain issues are still visible at the extreme ends of the graph, where the curve deviates from perfection. The EOTF curve performs worse, as the television has difficulty maintaining appropriate brightness values. As a result, the image in some scenes may be overly bright or slightly dimmed, which is due to the very design of the device. Nevertheless, the calibration has brought considerable improvement, especially for HD content, where tonal balance and colour reproduction are now at a much higher level.

Although the U8000F already offered a fairly well-balanced image in SDR straight out of the box, we were able to refine it a bit further. We managed to eliminate a slight purple tint and adjust the gamma to a more sensible level. However, the television still has a tendency to overexpose the smallest and brightest parts of the image – the gamma chart shows a characteristic 'dip' that is difficult to completely straighten out.

Unfortunately, the situation is worse in HDR. It's hard to speak of any significant improvement here – the television is simply not designed for HDR content. We tried to correct the image in the advanced settings, but despite our efforts, the colour errors remained substantial – a delta E above 7 indicates very noticeable deviations. It's a bit disappointing, but that's the nature of budget construction. In SDR, the U8000F performs reasonably well, whereas HDR is just not its league.

The fluidity of tonal transitions is also correct, although the effect depends on the settings. The update has improved the performance of the smooth gradation function, smoothing transitions better than before, but it has introduced minor issues with detail loss, e.g. on textures.

The image scaling on LG UT8100 performs very well. The image looks decent, without significant issues with edge aliasing. Details are preserved at a satisfactory level, which makes lower resolution materials look truly solid on this television. This allows users to enjoy watching older content without noticeable flaws in quality.

When it comes to how the Samsung U8000F handles lower quality materials, we must admit that Samsung has made progress compared to its predecessor from last year – namely the DU7192 model, which theoretically occupies the same spot in the range.

This year's model has been equipped with a feature that enhances the fluidity of tonal transitions, which has been implemented much better than last year. Yes, the television still uses fairly strong algorithms that can distort details or remove film grain, but despite that – it can be confidently said that it works effectively.

However, not everything has gone perfectly. The U8000F has noticeable issues with slight image stuttering when watching very old content in very low resolution. If someone plans to play their old VHS tape, they must reckon with the fact that the image may appear slightly "choppy".

LG UT8100, equipped with a 60 Hz panel, is particularly suited for those watching films. The television offers the TruMotion system with de-judder effect adjustment, allowing you to customise the smoothness of the image – from more choppy to exceptionally smooth, resembling a soap opera effect, depending on the user's preferences.

The Samsung U8000F is equipped with a 60 Hz panel, so it's clear from the outset that we shouldn't expect miracles. It's simply the standard in this class – sufficient for everyday viewing but without any fireworks.

The television offers a single motion smoothing slider – a function called “Motion Blur Reduction”, which allows us to adjust the smoothness of the image in films. Higher settings provide a more “theatrical” and smoothed effect, while lower settings maintain the original character of the film with a slight 24p effect. An interesting feature is “LED Clear Motion”, which is a BFI mode – that inserts black frames between frames of the image to improve motion clarity. However, in practice, the screen flickers quite a bit when this feature is activated, and it should be regarded more as an experiment than something that genuinely enhances the comfort of gaming.

LG UT8100 offers basic features for gamers, such as ALLM and Game Bar, which makes access to settings easier. The television also supports HGiG, which improves image quality in HDR games. Unfortunately, the lack of support for Dolby Vision and VRR limits the capabilities of the device, as does the 60 Hz panel, which excludes support for 120 Hz resolution. This model is more suitable for less demanding gaming applications.

The Samsung U8000F offers a basic set of features for gamers, which may still prove sufficient for less demanding users. It includes an automatic game mode – upon launching a game on the console, the television automatically switches to low latency mode, significantly improving response times. We also find a VRR feature, meaning variable refresh rate, which operates within a range of 48 to 60 Hz. This means that both Xbox and PS5 will not produce the effect of screen tearing – provided, of course, we stay within this range.

Unfortunately, that is about it when it comes to advantages. Add-ons like Game Bar or higher refresh rates are reserved for higher models of Samsung's 2025 line. In theory, the television also supports the HGiG function, which should adjust HDR images to the intentions of game developers. Unfortunately – despite this feature appearing in brochures and retail materials – its configuration on the Xbox console has proven to be... impossible in practice.