Samsung QN990F vs Samsung The Frame Pro

The Samsung QN990F belongs to the bright televisions category, and this is immediately evident in tests. In measurements, it achieved around 1300 nits, which in practice allows for enjoying films as their creators intended. Bright scenes have the right intensity, lights shine, and the experience is truly cinematic. In standard test patterns, sequences number 1, 3, and 5 performed best – there, brightness maintained around 800-1000 nits, and the image looked very natural. In more challenging segments, it could drop to around 600 nits, but even so, the level remained sufficient for details to be clearly visible. However, it should be added that in highly contrasting shots, the halo effect returns – the same one we mentioned regarding black levels. Bright elements can leave a halo on dark backgrounds, and this stands out immediately. Since we are dealing with a QLED, the colour palette is expanded, and the colours appear striking. The problem is that with such a flagship model, we expected better numbers. 91% DCI-P3 coverage and about 67% BT.2020 are results that can be considered solid, but not outstanding. This gives a vibrant and appealing image, yet the competition in this and lower price tiers can showcase even more.

Samsung The Frame Pro is one of the relatively bright televisions. In synthetic tests, we managed to achieve values around 900 nits, which is quite a respectable result for a lifestyle model. In full-screen scenes, such as the board from the film The Meg or the initial sequence in Life of Pi, brightness maintained a level of 700–800 nits. These values allow you to fully enjoy the HDR effects and convey their cinematic magic. However, the situation becomes complicated when smaller, point light sources appear on the screen. The edge lighting used here, equipped with the ability to locally dim entire strips, does not manage these well. Sometimes, small elements are overly dimmed, which weakens the effect, or conversely – they are significantly brightened, but at the cost of losing the depth of black in that part of the image. This can be compared to light beams reminiscent of a laser beam spreading in dense fog – the effect is noticeable and bright, yet at the same time, it is quite unnatural and distracting. Fortunately, the colour aspect performs better. Thanks to the use of a quantum dot filter (QLED), colours are saturated, and the reproduction of the DCI-P3 palette exceeds 92%. Generally, films or series watched in HDR on The Frame Pro showcase a rich colour palette, even if contrast and the functioning of the dimming algorithms can sometimes distract us.

We tested the QN990F in Filmmaker mode, which is the best available right out of the box. Right from the start, we noticed several significant errors. The biggest issue concerned white balance. Due to too little blue, and also improper ratios between red and blue, the image – especially in scenes with a lot of white – appeared too yellow, and at times even orange. On the Color Checker palette, these errors didn't look dramatic as they hovered around a value of 4, but in everyday viewing, especially with strong whites, they were most noticeable. We also observed issues with brightness management – the television struggled to maintain detail in the smallest parts of the image, mainly due to the way it controls the backlighting zones. Fortunately, Samsung offers a lot of room for adjustment when it comes to calibration settings. We know that with the right calibration, much more can be extracted from this screen.

We achieved the best results, of course, in Filmmaker mode, which immediately showed that Samsung had put effort into the factory settings. In SDR content – the type most commonly viewed – The Frame Pro performed really well. The white balance and gamma were almost perfectly matched, giving the image a natural and cohesive appearance. Admittedly, there were some noticeable errors, particularly in skin tones and reds, which could be overly saturated, giving everything a slightly "warmed-up" character, but this didn’t significantly detract from the viewing experience in everyday use. For HDR content, the situation was similar regarding the white balance. This was at a good level; however, the biggest issue turned out to be brightness management. The EOTF curve was set in such a way that in many scenes, the image appeared blown out, with the brightest areas losing detail and turning into uniform patches of light. This severely undermined realism and caused the colours to appear overly sharpened. Fortunately, Samsung provides the option for manual adjustment of the curve in their televisions, so we opted for calibration, and its results can be seen below.

After completing the calibration, we managed to bring the white balance back to order and eliminate the previous shortcomings in the shades of blue. As a result, the image no longer looked as if it had a slightly yellowish filter applied – the whites are purer, and the overall presentation is much more natural. We also managed, to some extent, to tame the brightness characteristics in HDR content. The television now handles detail retention in blacks significantly better and does not lose them to the same degree as before. However, when we look at the EOTF curve and the way the QN990F reproduces brightness in films, it is evident that it still tends to accentuate details in dark areas more strongly. This is a characteristic feature of Mini-LED technology and, more specifically, the way it is managed by the QN990F, which is practically impossible to completely eliminate. Despite this, after calibration, the image appears much more natural, mainly due to the correct exposure of white light. The final effect is definitely more pleasant to perceive and closer to what we expect from a flagship television.

After calibration, the SDR mode looks absolutely perfect. We managed to eliminate the overly strong red saturation, which previously gave the image a somewhat excessively warm character. Colours have become more balanced, which resulted in a natural and pleasant reception of everyday content – from television to films and series from streaming or materials on YouTube. In HDR mode, the most work was required on the EOTF curve, which factory settings caused excessive brightening of the entire image. Calibration allowed us to largely "tame" this problem – the image stopped being overexposed, and details in bright areas became more visible. Of course, the limitations are set by the design of the television itself, as edge lighting reveals its constraints, and the smallest elements of light can still be overblown or blend into the background. However, this is a matter of technology, not just calibration. After the correction, The Frame Pro is significantly more enjoyable to watch, and it is certainly worth considering if you want to maximise the television's capabilities.

The biggest praise for the QN990F should be given for its upscaling. The processor responsible for "lifting" classic television to 8K resolution does quite well. While watching material in 576p signal, we had no illusions that we would suddenly see a miracle in advertising style, where the image magically transforms into crystal-clear 8K. Nevertheless, the end result was surprisingly good; the image looked clean and sharp. It’s just a shame that the television, like most Samsung models, has an overscan issue, slightly cropping the edges of the screen from the left side.

When it comes to image processing, Samsung offers a feature called "noise reduction," which in theory should improve tonal transitions in older materials, where they are usually more visible. Unfortunately, we felt quite disappointed here. The feature performs poorly – it does not handle unwanted stripes and can introduce its own artifacts. On the plus side, the television does not remove film grain when using this feature, but in practice, that is a poor consolation since the noise reduction itself proves to be virtually useless.

Although the fluidity of tonal transitions in 4K HDR materials on The Frame Pro is not a problem at all, naturally, with a weaker signal - television, HD materials, or older Full HD films - imperfections may arise. Therefore, it is crucial how the television copes with these limitations thanks to its image processor. The noise reduction function works really effectively here. At the medium setting, it eliminates unwanted bands or artefacts, smoothing the image in a noticeable yet not excessive way. However, it's worth noting that Samsung tends to be aggressive in its approach - even at the lowest level of this function, it can "consume" film grain. So it's advisable to use it judiciously and adjust the settings to the material being viewed.

The upscaling itself is at a high level. The Frame Pro can effectively enhance older materials to a native 4K resolution while maintaining good sharpness and readability. Films and series in lower quality simply look better here. However, it should be mentioned that there is a minor drawback - typical for many Samsung televisions. With very old sources of poor quality, you may notice clipping of the image edges on the left side of the screen. It's not a problem that will ruin the viewing experience, but it's worth knowing that it might occur.

QN990F can comfortably be called one of the fastest televisions in the world. In 4K mode, it is capable of displaying images at a frequency of up to 240 Hz, which until now has been more associated with gaming monitors than with televisions in the living room. However, in everyday viewing, what matters more is how it handles the 8K signal at 120 Hz – and here it performs very well too. Motion remains smooth, and the television manages without a hitch even with the most demanding content. Additionally, there is the motion smoother, i.e. "Picture Clarity". Thanks to it, one can adjust the image to their own preferences – leaving a slightly cinematic judder or switching to maximum fluidity, which works exceptionally well, for example, in sports broadcasts.

The smoothness of motion in The Frame Pro is not only due to the matrix, which operates with a refresh rate of up to 144 Hz, but also the image processor and the smoothing system. It is thanks to this that we can adjust the way films or sports broadcasts are displayed to our own preferences. There are sliders for reducing blurring and reducing judder – the first function improves the sharpness of fast movements, while the second helps to soften the effect of a "jumping" image during camera pans. So, everyone can choose between a cinematic motion character and a smoother, more "television" style.

It must be said outright – the QN990F is one of those televisions that practically scream that they were designed with gamers in mind. Samsung has been developing its gaming solutions for years, but here we have a truly comprehensive set. Sure, it lacks Dolby Vision support in games, which is a downside that will always come up in discussions. However, aside from that, the list of features is impressively extensive. To begin with, we have the Game Bar – a handy menu that allows you to quickly check and change gaming-related settings. You can see, for example, the enabled VRR, frame rate, or aspect ratio settings. It’s like a little “dashboard,” making it unnecessary to dig deep into the menu to make adjustments. Speaking of VRR: yes, variable refresh rate is present here and works flawlessly. And there's ALLM, which automatically switches the television to game mode as soon as the console is powered on. These may seem like small details, but together they make using the QN990F simply comfortable and hassle-free.

However, the most impressive aspect is the number of ports. Four wireless HDMI 2.1 ports are already great news, as there is no need to choose whether to connect the console, the amplifier, or perhaps even a PC. There’s ample space for everything here. And if we add another micro HDMI (which we recommend connecting directly to the console), hidden in the casing, we practically have five inputs in full 2.1 standard. Let’s also add support for high refresh rates – 120 Hz at 8K and even 240 Hz at 4K – and we get a television that not only keeps up with the new consoles but also feels ready for consoles that are not yet available.

Samsung The Frame Pro does not pretend to be just a “living room” television; here, gamers will also find something for themselves. The manufacturer has ensured a full range of gaming features: we have support for variable refresh rate (VRR), automatic low latency mode (ALLM), refresh rates up to 144 Hz, and compatibility with both G-Sync and FreeSync Premium Pro. Additionally, there is the well-known Game Bar panel, which is a quick menu where key parameters can be checked on the fly—from refresh rates to enabled image processing modes. Are there any downsides? Indeed, The Frame Pro does not support Dolby Vision in game mode, but this is hard to consider a serious issue—most gamers use HDR10 anyway... which means HGIG mode. Exactly. The biggest surprise turned out to be the latest software update. Samsung… completely removed this option from The Frame PRO. In practice, this means that the television independently interprets HDR tone mapping in games, and the user has no way to enable settings developed for consoles. This is a step backwards that may disappoint more knowledgeable gamers hoping for full compliance with HGiG guidelines. We can only hope that this issue will be resolved quickly.

An interesting feature of The Frame Pro is also the unusual arrangement of HDMI 2.1 ports. There are as many as five available—four are located in the One Connect box, and the fifth, in micro HDMI version, is directly on the television. This is quite an unusual solution, but rather practical. Samsung clearly suggests that this is the port to which you should connect your console or computer. Why? Because it minimises potential delays associated with communication through the wireless One Connect, and in the case of gaming, every millisecond matters. We have written separately about input lag, but it can already be revealed here that by connecting equipment directly to the television, we achieve the absolute maximum in response speed.