Samsung Neo QLED QN95D vs Samsung QN900F

Samsung QN95D handles HDR exceptionally well, achieving a peak brightness of around 2000 nits. In the tested movie scenes, where the screen is fully lit, the television provides intense and realistic representation of HDR content, significantly enhancing the visual experience. Nevertheless, similar to contrast, the dimming algorithm may sometimes show limitations. Despite the considerable number of Mini LED zones, the television does not surprise the user with incredible brightness. For instance, in scenes from the film "Life of Pi," where a bright moon appears against a dark background, and in excerpts from "Sicario 2," where a strong light effect occurs on a dark background, the television displays very poor results. At such moments, the television attempts to reduce the halo effect by darkening the image to a level reminiscent of SDR quality. As a result, blacks appear deep and uniform, but this comes at the cost of losing some detail in bright areas. It is a compromise aimed at maintaining the best possible quality of black, although it simultaneously causes the image to lose a bit of its dynamism. Despite certain flaws in the operation of the local dimming algorithm, this television deserves praise for its wide coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut. This is made possible by the use of a quantum dot coating, also known as QLED technology, which allows for vibrant and rich colours.

QN900F is truly a bright television – it can generate nearly 2000 nits, a figure that remains unattainable for most models available on the market. But the mere ability to achieve such brightness is not everything – it also matters whether the television can make good use of it. And here, it is not always perfect. Our tests on cinematic test patterns showed that in scenes such as those from Life of Pi or The Meg, the QN900F can truly shine – literally and metaphorically. In such moments, its greatest advantage, which is brightness, makes a huge impression. However, in more demanding scenes, challenges arise – similar to when assessing contrast. When smaller, bright elements appear on screen, the television often struggles with the decision: should it highlight them at the expense of black levels, or perhaps maintain deep blacks while toning down brightness. The result is situations where, for example, in the film Sicario 2, brightness dropped to just 200 nits, making details barely visible. Dimming algorithms could definitely be better for a television of this class.

In the category of factory colour reproduction, the television Samsung QN95D was tested in Filmmaker mode, which offers the best settings from the manufacturer. Nevertheless, it is not entirely free from flaws. In the case of HD content, there is a noticeable colour deviation, particularly in white balance, where the red colour clearly dominates the graph. The situation improves with 4K HDR content; however, there are still significant drops in blue colour reproduction. These effects can be observed in a scene from the film "Star Wars," where the protagonist is depicted in overly warm tones.

As for contrast, we can observe an initial large jump on the gamma graph, indicating that the television effectively highlights the brighter parts of the image. However, at the end of the graph, we notice a distinct drop, which may mean that in darker tones, details can be lost. Such a shape of the gamma curve can affect the way users perceive dark scenes, where some details may become too blurred or too dark, causing the image to lose clarity. It is also worth noting the curve responsible for brightness (EOTF), which is quite correct, except for the initial drop.

Although Samsung QN95D boasts impressive parameters and advanced technologies to deserve the title of one of the best televisions on the market, it requires certain adjustments in colour reproduction and contrast to fully utilise its potential.

Testing the QN900F in Filmmaker mode, the characteristic features of the image were quickly noticeable, even though this mode is designed to reflect the director’s vision. The white balance was not perfect – the television displayed distinct deficiencies in the blue colour. This made the entire scene take on a warmer tone, as if someone had applied a subtle filter in shades of yellow and orange. In films where bright shots dominate – for example, scenes in the snow or in strong daylight – this gave the impression of slight warmth that did not always convey the director's intent. The second noticeable element was the management of brightness. The QN900F could sometimes brighten the image more than necessary. It looked as though the exposure had been slightly 'pulled up', causing the scene to lose its naturalness. Shadows were sometimes too shallow, and the contrast slightly weakened. These are not disqualifying errors, but for a television in this price range, it is evident that Filmmaker mode has not been perfected one hundred percent. This is particularly noticeable when we compare its image with what was seen after the screen calibration.

After calibration, the picture on the Samsung QN95D television achieves truly impressive results. The white balance is perfectly aligned, and error readings rarely exceed 2, which means that colours are displayed very accurately. Most samples from the Color Checker test fall within an acceptable error range, confirming that the television reproduces hues excellently. The contrast has also improved significantly, and the gamma curve is more stable, resulting in better visibility of details in both dark and bright scenes. However, it is worth noting the EOTF (Electro-Optical Transfer Function) curve, which shows some discrepancies in film tests. Although the television performs well in most scenes, details in the blacks can still be lost in more extreme cases – this is due to an aggressive dimming algorithm.

Nevertheless, these minor imperfections do not detract from the overall picture quality. After calibration, the Samsung QN95D impresses with its visual quality, offering an exceptional experience that will certainly satisfy anyone looking for a top-tier television.

After calibration, we managed to eliminate errors in white balance and adjust them to a level that can be considered acceptable. It is not perfect, but it is definitely better than the factory settings. Most colour errors now lie within the deltaE 2–3 range, so in practice, they should not be noticeable during everyday viewing. However, the most significant improvement is evident in how the television manages brightness in SDR content. Shadows and details are no longer flattened, which gives the image depth and naturalness. As for 4K HDR material – colours themselves are no longer an issue, but some imperfections of Mini-LED technology can still be observed. The QN900F tends to dim the smallest bright elements too much, causing them to sometimes disappear from view. However, it should be noted that this is a much better solution than boosting the entire screen, which would spoil the contrast. This is more of a characteristic of this technology than a typical flaw, but it is worth keeping in mind. The effects of calibration are truly very good.

The Samsung QN95D television handles tonal transitions even in lower quality materials, thanks to the noise reduction feature employed, which functions like a gentle gradation. This feature is extremely effective, smoothing out the image and eliminating unwanted noise while significantly improving the quality of the displayed material. However, as is often the case, too much effectiveness can lead to unintended side effects. In some materials, this feature may also blur elements that should remain sharp, such as film grain.

Despite this, the television performs well in the context of image scaling, eliminating larger jagged edges. In a scene where branches are visible, they are not excessively artificially sharpened, allowing for a natural appearance, and the model does not have an artificial outline. Overall, this means that even in more challenging conditions, the film material presents itself satisfactorily on the Samsung QN95D. The only downside when watching HD/SD content (such as regular terrestrial television) is the fact that we have a slightly cropped image – this is caused by the so-called overscan, which cannot be turned off.

If we want to eliminate jarring tonal transitions that can be irritating, for example, while watching YouTube, we can use a feature called noise reduction. It works really effectively – it removes issues with colour blending when we set it to Standard level. However, as with most Samsung televisions, this does involve some compromises. Although we did not notice this feature significantly affecting the structure of objects in the image, it unfortunately reacts quite aggressively to film grain. Most people will likely appreciate this effect – the noise is simply removed – but if someone is looking for an image as close as possible to reference settings, we definitely recommend turning this option off.

When it comes to scaling, or dealing with very low-quality content, the QN900F performs really well. On the test card with the model, the image appeared clear, with only slight aliasing that shouldn't bother most viewers. However, it is worth mentioning one issue – the television sometimes has problems with so-called overscan, which can cause older content to be slightly cropped. This might manifest, for example, in subtitles disappearing from the bottom of the screen.

The panel in Samsung QN95 performs very well in terms of motion blur and smoothness of movement. With a refresh rate of 120 Hz and features for reducing blur and judder, the picture settings can be customised to personal preferences, whether for watching films or for dynamic sports broadcasts. The user has the option to adjust the smoothness of the image on a 10-point scale – from a more frame-like appearance reminiscent of traditional film to a smooth, almost theatrical effect, which works particularly well for sports transmissions.

There really is nothing to complain about here – the QN900F looks very good in terms of motion. With a 165 Hz panel in 4K, it can confidently be said that this television is suitable for both watching sports and gaming. The motion enhancer plays a key role here. It works brilliantly – not only during sports broadcasts, where it can eliminate blurring and image shaking, but also in games, where the animation becomes clearer and smoother. And of course, if someone likes to experiment with films – they also have that option. At lower settings, a slight graininess and cinematic character can be seen, while at higher settings, it takes on a soap opera effect. In other words, everyone can adjust the picture to their preferences, and the television has the power to handle it.

Samsung QN95D offers quite a few features that gamers will appreciate. First and foremost, the television supports variable refresh rate (VRR), which allows for smoother gameplay, eliminating issues with tearing, especially during dynamic scenes. We also find the auto low latency mode (ALLM) feature, which automatically switches the television to low latency mode when it detects a connected console or computer, ensuring more responsive controls.

Furthermore, the QN95D Samsung has a game mode that reduces input lag to a very low level, which is crucial in games where reflexes play an important role. With a high refresh rate of 120 Hz, the picture is exceptionally smooth, significantly enhancing the experience of fast-paced action games and sports productions. The television also supports G-Sync and FreeSync technologies, which further enhance gameplay smoothness and improve user comfort. An interesting addition is the 'Game Bar' – a special menu that provides quick access to all game-related settings, allowing easy adjustments of picture and parameters to suit user preferences without the need to interrupt gameplay.

Although the Samsung QN95D does not support Dolby Vision – which is quite obvious for Samsung televisions – it does offer the HGiG feature, which ensures appropriate picture quality in HDR games, in line with the creators' vision.

It really is nice here. The QN900F offers a full set of features that we would expect from a top-end gaming television – we have VRR, ALLM, Game Bar, and also cloud gaming applications. However, the biggest standout is the proprietary motion smoother, which also works in games and – importantly – does not introduce noticeable lag. This is something we won't find with its other competitors.

Unfortunately, there is also something concerning. This year, Samsung has evidently messed something up with its televisions. During the testing of the QN900F before its update, it had the HGIG feature, which allowed for perfect adjustment of HDR settings for the console. However, according to our procedures, we always update the equipment to the latest version – in order to give the manufacturer a chance to fix any shortcomings. And here… it turned out the opposite.

After the update, the HGIG feature disappeared from the menu, making the correct configuration of the console for HDR practically impossible. It was supposed to be complete – 165Hz, four HDMI 2.1 ports, a full gaming package… but unfortunately, it turned out to be a small blunder. What a shame.