Samsung Neo QLED QN85D / QNX1D vs Samsung The Frame LS03D

Samsung QN85D leaves us with mixed feelings regarding HDR quality. It can shine in synthetic brightness tests, achieving up to 1000 nits – which makes scenes like those from the film 'The Meg' or the beginning of 'Life of Pi', where the screen is entirely bright, look truly impressive. However, in practice, the device has its limitations – especially when smaller bright elements appear on the screen. In such moments, brightness noticeably drops, and the HDR effect loses its impact. At brightness levels around 200-300 nits, the magic of HDR simply fades away, failing to deliver spectacular effects. However, it's not the case that the television completely disappoints – a DCI-P3 colour gamut coverage of 95% is quite decent, although it does not stand out against the best competitors. Colours are well-reproduced, but it's clear that HDR could make a bigger impression if brightness were better controlled.

Samsung The Frame LS03D performs really well with brightness. Results of 700 nits make bright elements on the screen look striking and detailed, whether they illuminate the entire screen or appear as small points of light against a dark background. In more demanding scenes, like the fourth sequence from the film Sicario 2, the black levels are average, but we have already discussed this in the section on contrast. As for brightness – the television definitely excels here. An additional advantage is the quantum dot coating, which is QLED technology. Thanks to this, the colour palette coverage has been improved, although The Frame does not stand out in this regard compared to the competition.

Samsung QN85D TV has been tested in the best available mode – Filmmaker. Although one might expect that its name suggests a mode perfectly tailored for films, it unfortunately has several significant issues.

In terms of white balance for HD content, there is a clear dominance of red and blue, which causes the entire image to take on a pinkish hue – this is also confirmed by Colour Checker tests. This effect disrupts the naturalness of skin tones and many other elements, particularly noticeable in more challenging scenes. Initially, the white balance for 4K HDR content seems correct, but at the end of the graph, there is a significant spike in blue shades, which impacts the final image quality, making the colours appear unnatural.

The gamma brightness characteristics are also not ideal – although it generally stays close to the reference values, there is a slight drop below the 2.4 level, which can affect the perceived depth of shadows. The EOTF curve responsible for 4K content does not present itself any better. There is a noticeable boost relative to the reference curve, which leads to excessive brightening of the image in some areas, thereby losing the cinematic quality that the Filmmaker mode should provide. Although it might initially seem that the effect is cinematic, unfortunately, the number of errors in colour and brightness reproduction is too significant to call it flawless.

Samsung offers several picture modes on its televisions, but undoubtedly the Filmmaker Mode is the one that should provide the most natural representation of content. Unfortunately, as is often the case with mass production, the differences between units can be considerable, and our tested model was not free from a few issues.

In the case of SDR content, the white balance leaned heavily towards red, with a slight boost in blue. This effect was particularly noticeable in comparison images – for example, in a photograph of a boy whose face was unnaturally flushed. The gamma, or brightness characteristic, also did not perform perfectly – the image was slightly brightened, which detracted from its depth.

In 4K HDR content, the white balance was again dominated by red, this time in combination with green. Meanwhile, blue clearly lost intensity, which was easy to notice on the Color Checker palette, where colours began to "drift" in the wrong direction. The EOTF curve, responsible for brightness in HDR content, showed that the television has a tendency to excessively brighten the image, especially in the darkest elements of scenes.

Overall, while it did not look terrible, it definitely required adjustment. Fortunately, Samsung offers extensive calibration options, which provides the chance for a significant improvement in image quality. Therefore, we proceeded with professional calibration to extract the full potential from this television.

After professional calibration of the Filmmaker mode on the Samsung QN85D television, a significant improvement is noticeable, especially for HD/SDR content. The white balance has been completely stripped of serious errors, and the brightness characteristics for this type of content have been significantly adjusted, allowing for a more natural and realistic image. Television, YouTube movies, and other HD materials now look much better, with appropriately balanced colours and without the excessive hues that previously spoiled the viewing experience.

However, the biggest issues concern 4K HDR content. Despite the calibration, it's difficult to speak of a serious improvement in white balance – the differences are cosmetic rather than crucial. Brightness, which is governed by the EOTF curve, appears to be set in line with the reference level in synthetic tests at first glance, but has its limitations during actual usage in films. When we analyse the EOTF curve in real film scenes, it becomes apparent how the television struggles to maintain brightness consistency. The effect is that mixed scenes still have lifted darkest elements, leading to exaggerated contrasts, while completely dark scenes remain too dark, negatively affecting the visibility of details.

After professional calibration, the Filmmaker Mode shows its full potential. The white balance in HD content is exemplary – errors at the level of 0.5 indicate almost perfect colour reproduction accuracy. The image now looks natural, and the colours are precisely as they should be. In 4K HDR content, the effect is not quite as perfect, but it still maintains a really high level. The colours are vibrant, well-saturated, and the overall picture quality can be impressive.

So where does the problem arise, given our praise for colour reproduction? Unfortunately, the entire experience is marred by brightness characteristics. The gamma in HD content looks decent, but in 4K HDR it's not as good. The EOTF curve shows that the television excessively brightens certain parts of the image, which is a result of construction limitations. The lack of local dimming means that the television cannot accurately control the differences between the brightest and darkest areas of the screen. This is a barrier that simply cannot be overcome in this model.

Nonetheless, after calibration, Samsung The Frame LS03D offers excellent colour reproduction, particularly in HD content, and the overall appearance is considerably better than before the settings were corrected.

When checking the smoothness of tonal transitions in low-resolution materials on the Samsung QN85D television, it is worth noting the noise reduction feature, which significantly improves problematic tonal transitions. On the other hand, this feature also has its downsides – it removes film grain, which is an important element of many productions, giving them authenticity, and it can also soften the image. This may appeal to those who prefer a more smoothed image; however, for lovers of the authentic look of films, using this feature should be considered carefully.

As for image scaling, the television performs very well. The model's figure is presented correctly, without noticeable distortions, and the branches in the background do not have excessive artificial sharpness, which is often a problem when scaling lower resolution materials. You can see the high capabilities of the image processor, which can effectively process lower quality materials, ensuring good final quality.

It’s time to check how Samsung The Frame LS03D performs with older, lower-quality materials. We already know that the fluidity of tonal transitions is at a very high level here, so we were curious to see how the television would handle smoothing them out.

The noise reduction feature in the "Standard" setting does its job well – tonal transitions are noticeably smoothed out, and at the same time, the image does not lose too much detail. However, it is worth noting that this effect also smooths out film grain, so its use will be a matter of individual preference.

When it comes to image scaling, the television also performed really well. The test chart turned out solid – the model was reproduced correctly, with clear details. The branches in the background, though slightly frayed in places, generally appear natural and do not stand out as imperfections.

Samsung QN85D TV is equipped with a 120 Hz refresh rate panel, which should satisfy both gamers and sports fans by providing a smooth and dynamic picture. There are options to enhance fluidity, such as the motion blur and judder reduction feature, which allows for precise adjustment of motion smoothness on a 10-point scale. Motion blur reduction increases the sharpness of fast-moving objects, making action scenes clearer, while judder reduction smooths movement, eliminating the "stuttering" effect. Smearing is generally well controlled, although there are occasional minor shortcomings that may be visible in more demanding scenes, particularly when an object moves against a dark background. Additionally, the TV offers a BFI (Black Frame Insertion) feature at 60 Hz, which can significantly improve the experience of motion fluidity, although at the cost of image flicker, which may be bothersome to some users.

Firstly, it is worth noting that the model we tested in the size of 55 inches, like the 65, 75 and 85-inch versions, is equipped with a 120 Hz panel. Unfortunately, the 43 and 50-inch variants of this series only offer 60 Hz panels, which is worth keeping in mind when making a purchase. As for improving motion fluidity, the television offers a feature called “Picture Clarity”. This is a classic motion smoother that gives users the ability to adjust it using two sliders:

Motion blur reduction – this controls the sharpening of the image in dynamic scenes. The higher the value, the less blur during quick camera movements or moving objects. However, overly aggressive settings may cause the image to become unnatural, appearing like a “soap opera”.

Judder reduction – this slider influences the smoothness of frame playback, particularly in materials with a lower frame rate, such as films (24 fps). Higher settings can smooth motion but may also lead to excessive “plasticity” of the image.

Both sliders operate on a scale from 0 to 10, allowing for precise adjustment of the effect to one’s own preferences. It is worth experimenting with the settings to find the perfect balance between fluidity and a natural appearance of the image. We recommend setting them as shown in the picture.

The Samsung QN85D television is an excellent choice for gamers, offering a wide range of features that enhance the gaming experience and make it even more exciting. With a refresh rate of 120 Hz, the image is incredibly smooth, which is crucial during dynamic scenes in action games. The television also features low input lag, ensuring that reactions to the player's commands are nearly instantaneous, translating to better control over the character and events on the screen.

In addition, the QN85D Samsung supports VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) and ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode) technologies, which optimise image fluidity and reduce delays by automatically adjusting the television to meet the needs of gamers. Furthermore, the Xbox app allows access to cloud gaming without the need for a console, which is a significant advantage for those who want to enjoy their favourite titles without additional hardware – a solution that sets Samsung televisions apart.

The Auto Motion Plus Game feature is another element worth highlighting. This motion smoother creates the impression of a higher frame rate – as a result, games running at 30 fps appear smoother, resembling gameplay at 45 fps, while games at 60 Hz come close to 90 Hz. Most importantly, this feature does not introduce significant lag, ensuring that the gaming experience remains undisturbed. This allows players to enjoy a smoother image without compromising on responsiveness.

The Frame LS03D in the 2024 version has been equipped with four HDMI ports, but only one of them supports the 2.1 standard with a bandwidth of 40 Gb/s. This is important information if we plan to connect more than one device that requires a 4K@120 Hz signal – for example, two consoles or a console and a gaming PC.

In terms of features for gamers, The Frame truly has a lot to boast about. Here we find ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode), VRR (Variable Refresh Rate), and HGiG. It is worth highlighting that HGiG has been very well implemented here, which is particularly important as the television does not support Dolby Vision in games (which is only available on Xbox consoles). In this case, HGiG turns out to be a better standard for gaming.

Samsung has also not forgotten about features that enhance gaming comfort. Game Bar is an advanced panel for gamers that allows for quick adjustment of screen settings without the need to dig through the television's menu. We can even change the aspect ratio from 16:9 to a panoramic 21:9, which may be a significant advantage for some gamers.

However, Samsung's biggest ace up its sleeve is the Game Motion Plus feature. This is a special smoothness enhancer dedicated to games that adds additional frames of animation without significantly affecting input lag. The effect is truly noticeable – the image appears much smoother, which fans of dynamic titles will particularly appreciate.

In summary – Samsung The Frame LS03D is a television that offers a solid set of features for gamers. While the limitation to one HDMI 2.1 port may be a downside, the rest of the solutions makes gaming on this television a truly enjoyable experience.