Samsung Neo QLED QN90D / QN92D vs LG QNED80A6A (VA)

During synthetic tests, Samsung QN92D displayed its incredible capabilities in terms of brightness. The graphs clearly indicate that the television can achieve an impressive 2000 nits, giving it a solid power base to compete with the best models on the market. Such a result places it at the forefront, especially in the context of displaying HDR content, where brightness plays a crucial role. However, what happens when we transfer the tests to real film scenes? Under favourable conditions, such as the first scene from the film Life of Pi or the last scene where the image is entirely flooded with light, Samsung QN92D can achieve nearly laboratory results, impressing with its brightness. The situation looks different, however, when small, bright objects appear on a dark background, as in the fourth scene from the film Sicario. In such cases, the television does not perform as well – brightness drops several times, and the maximum values under the best conditions are around 600 NITS. Similar to the case with contrast, these limitations arise from the use of an aggressive local dimming algorithm. This algorithm aims to reduce the 'halo' effect around bright objects on a dark background, but often at the expense of overall brightness. As a result, while the television excels in brightly lit scenes, its ability to display full brightness is limited when it comes to small, vivid elements.

Let's now talk about how this television shines. If you are expecting dazzling light effects, we need to temper your enthusiasm. The LG QNED80A is a moderately bright television. Our measurements in most movie scenes indicated values around 350-400 nits. This is not enough to speak of a full, cinematic HDR experience and the sense of that famous "high dynamism" offered by flagship products. However, brightness is not everything. Although the QNED80A is not a "light monster," it makes up for it in another crucial category: colours. This is where PFS technology comes into play, which LG marketers disguise under the name QNED/NanoCell. Thanks to this approach, the television offers a much wider colour palette than classic LCD designs. In our tests, coverage of the cinematic DCI-P3 palette reached a solid 93-94%. What does this mean for you? That even with lower brightness, when watching movies in HDR, colours will be vivid, deep, and appropriately saturated. The image is not washed out but rather juicy, which is a significant advantage in this price range.

The best mode that consistently reproduces colours on the Samsung QN92D is, as it has been for years, the Filmmaker mode. Although it generally offers decent colour quality, it is not without significant issues. Let’s start with the analysis of images in HD/SDR quality. The biggest challenge here is white balance – the graphs show considerable instability, with a pronounced red dominance, making the image too warm. This distortion causes shades to be unnaturally shifted towards warmer tones, which can negatively affect the perception of materials with natural colours. The contrast, based on the gamma graph, although not the worst, remains far from ideal, impacting the overall image quality, especially in darker scenes.

This problem persists with 4K materials, such as series or movies of higher quality. In this case, the white balance also proves faulty, with noticeable deficiencies in blue and red colour, leading to tonal shifts. Tests using the Colour Checker tool confirm these issues – all colours tend to shift towards yellow tones, further distorting the natural appearance of the image. Although the Filmmaker mode is one of the best available modes for watching cinematic content, it still requires improvements, especially concerning colour accuracy and white balance.

It might seem that since the QNED80A is one model, regardless of the version, it should offer the same picture. However, practice shows something completely different. Analyzing the variant with a VA panel in the best factory setting – that is, in Filmmaker Mode – we noticed a specific characteristic. This television, “out of the box,” serves us a picture with a clear dominance of red and a deficiency of blue. Overall, it is very warm, even hot. Many users may describe this as a picture that is “too cinematic,” leaning towards sepia. Additionally, there is the issue of the gamma curve – the television has a tendency to slightly artificially brighten scenes (gamma is too low), causing the picture to lose some depth. The good news is that these are not panel errors, but merely software issues. As always in our tests, we conducted professional calibration, which completely eliminated these shortcomings, restoring the natural white balance and correct saturation.

After calibration, the Filmmaker mode on the Samsung QN92D television shows significant improvement, particularly in terms of SDR content. The white balance has been greatly enhanced – the previous colour misalignment and dominance of red have been eliminated, resulting in a more natural colour reproduction. In terms of brightness, although the gamma chart did not require significant adjustments, it has been stabilised, which affects overall picture quality.

Regarding high-quality materials, the white balance has also improved in this case. However, it is important to note the contrast. The EOTF curve, which illustrates values in this area, initially seems correct. However, when we look at the details, the television struggles to maintain appropriate contrast in film materials. The EOTF curve reveals certain discrepancies, suggesting that despite advancements, there are still areas needing improvement in this aspect. The television still strives for excellence in contrast reproduction. One advantage of this television is colour saturation. Skin tones are rendered very well, and although some colours can be slightly oversaturated, the final effect looks truly appealing – the colours appear rich and vibrant.

Despite some shortcomings in contrast, after calibration, the Filmmaker mode on the Samsung QN92D offers excellent picture quality, with natural colour reproduction, making it a great choice for watching films.

Was it worth spending time on calibration? Definitely yes. We managed to tame the initial, too warm white balance and, most importantly, correct the gamma curve. The television stopped artificially brightening scenes, which gave the image depth. The greatest improvement is noticeable in SDR content, that is, while watching regular television, YouTube, or playing games without HDR. Here the QNED80A shows its class – colour reproduction errors (DeltaE) have dropped below a value of 2. In technical terms, this means that the errors are virtually unnoticeable to the human eye. The image in everyday use has simply become very attractive, natural, and correct. The difficulties begin with HDR content. Although we managed to improve the white balance, the EOTF curve graph (responsible for brightness at various levels) shows that the television still "interprets" the image in its own way. This stems from the nature of the edge-lit backlight with local dimming and the fact that LG gives the calibrator very little control over this parameter. In short: the television struggles to hide its hardware shortcomings, sometimes ignoring our commands. Nevertheless, the final image is significantly more accurate and pleasant to behold than with factory settings, even if it falls a bit short of studio perfection.

Let’s check how the Samsung QN92D television performs with tonal transitions in very poor quality materials. The noise reduction feature demonstrates good effectiveness, improving the smoothness of tonal transitions even in challenging conditions. However, it should be noted that, as with other Samsung televisions, the effectiveness of this feature may lead to the removal of desirable elements, such as film grain, which can sometimes affect the authenticity of the image.

Regarding digital processing, the Samsung QN92D television also performs excellently. During testing, the image was presented very well, with the model shown in a natural and correct manner. Details such as branches in the background were reproduced with great precision, highlighting the television's ability to enhance the quality of low-resolution materials.

In this category, the QNED80A proves to be a true "dark horse." It is an excellent, affordable television for those who frequently watch lower-quality content – for example, traditional cable TV. The processor used here handles upscaling, that is, enhancing low resolution to native 4K, exceptionally well. The image after processing is natural, smooth, and, most importantly, not overly jagged or artificially sharpened. In the menu, we also find a dedicated option for smoothing tonal transitions in low-quality content. This feature works really effectively, eliminating annoying "banding" of colours under heavy video compression. However, we must remain vigilant. Remember that we are not dealing with a top-tier processor known from flagship OLED models. In more challenging scenes, the system may struggle and introduce minor artefacts or distortions. Nonetheless, it is definitely worth giving this feature a chance, as in most cases the quality improvement is visibly apparent.

The Samsung QN92D television is equipped with a 144 Hz panel; however, when watching content using the smoothness feature, the maximum refresh rate is 120 Hz. This means that both gamers and those who watch a lot of sports will be satisfied with the picture quality. It is also worth mentioning the available image enhancement options, such as the "blur and judder reduction" feature, which allows users to adjust the smoothness to individual preferences on a 10-point scale. Blur reduction is responsible for increasing the sharpness of quickly moving objects, while judder reduction smooths motion, eliminating the "stutter" effect. Thanks to these advanced settings, optimal visual experiences can be achieved, making the Samsung QN92D ideal for both dynamic scenes and intense gaming sessions.

In terms of motion blur, the television performs really well, and it is hard to find anything to criticise. The only comment we might have is a slight overshoot effect noticeable on dark backgrounds during our test with "Ufoludkiem". Nevertheless, with the advanced smoothness settings, the Samsung QN92D is perfect for both dynamic scenes and intense gaming sessions.

We move on to a matter that may be decisive for many. Unfortunately, here we must point out the biggest "Achilles' heel" of the QNED80A model. This television is equipped with a panel featuring a native refresh rate of 60Hz. There is no denying it – at this price, we expected more as we know that Chinese manufacturers can offer 120Hz screens for a similar price. Due to this parameter, dynamic scenes in sports or fast-paced games are not the strongest aspect of this display. Fortunately, LG has equipped the television with a proven motion smoothing system called TruMotion. It works quite effectively with film material (24 frames). We suggest playing around with the De-Judder slider – from our experience, setting it in the range of 2-4 provides the best compromise: the motion becomes smoother, yet still looks natural, without the artificial "television theatre" effect.

The Samsung QN92/QN90 television is an excellent choice for avid gamers, worthy of the highest recommendations. This model offers virtually all the features available on the market in terms of gaming, making gameplay even more exciting. One of its key features is the 120 Hz panel, which provides exceptional motion smoothness, vital during dynamic action games. The television also has low input lag, ensuring lightning-fast responses to player commands. Additionally, technologies such as VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) and ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode) adjust the refresh rate and automatically switch the television to game mode, enhancing the gaming experience even further. An additional advantage is the Xbox app, which allows playing favourite titles directly on the television, eliminating the need for a console. This is a typical feature of Samsung televisions, which makes them unique in the gaming world.

Auto Motion Plus Game is a feature that truly deserves praise for Samsung. It is a motion smoother that performs excellently in games, allowing for the perception of a higher frame rate – a 30 frames per second image looks like 45, and 60 Hz becomes close to 90 Hz. Importantly, this feature does not introduce significant lag (input lag does not exceed 25 ms), so it does not negatively affect gaming comfort, unlike many other motion smoothers available on the market. As a result, players can enjoy a significantly smoother image without compromising on responsiveness.

Now that we have established that the QNED80A is a television with a 60Hz panel, we must say it plainly: we will not be playing here at 120 frames per second at any resolution. Does this disqualify the equipment in the eyes of gamers? Not necessarily, especially those "casual" ones. LG has decided to sweeten this technical limitation by packing quite a few useful functions inside. We have support for VRR (variable refresh rate) in the range of 48-60Hz and automatic game mode ALLM, which instantly reduces input lag upon detection of a console. All of this is managed from a very convenient, purple Game Optimizer menu, which has already become LG's hallmark. A big plus goes to the manufacturer for consistency regarding HDR. Although the television does not support Dolby Vision in games on Xbox consoles, LG adds a well-implemented HGiG standard. Thanks to this, even on a moderately bright screen, playing in HDR is clear, and the details in shadows and highlights are accurately reproduced, rather than "cut off".