Samsung Neo QLED QN90D / QN92D vs SHARP JP7765E

During synthetic tests, the Samsung QN92D demonstrated remarkable brightness capabilities, reaching an impressive 2000 nits—on par with top models in the market. This level of brightness puts it at the forefront for displaying HDR content, where high brightness is essential. But how does it fare in real movie scenes? Under favourable conditions, such as the light-drenched opening and closing scenes of Life of Pi, the QN92D nearly replicates its lab results, delivering striking brightness levels. However, performance changes in scenes featuring small, bright objects against dark backgrounds, such as the fourth scene in Sicario. Here, brightness levels drop significantly, with maximum values capping at around 600 nits.

As with contrast, these limitations are due to the aggressive local dimming algorithm, which aims to reduce the "halo" effect around bright objects in dark scenes but often sacrifices overall brightness. Consequently, while the TV excels in scenes with abundant light, it faces challenges maintaining brightness with smaller, bright elements on dark backgrounds.

So how does the brightness of the Sharp JP7 perform in the most demanding titles? Honestly: at first, we were quite surprised. The television is capable of achieving over 1000 nits of brightness, which is an outstanding and rarely seen result for a device costing just under 2000 zł (for 55 inches). Watching bright, full-screen scenes, one can get the impression that we are dealing with truly good equipment. However, unfortunately, we must return to the problem we mentioned earlier regarding local dimming management. When small, bright elements appear on a dark background on the screen (like in the test scenes from Life of Pi or Sicario 2), it is noticeable how poorly the JP7 handles the zones. The television dims them almost to the maximum, stifling the whole HDR effect, which at such moments resembles a flat SDR image (less than 200 nits). This instability makes the image on the JP7 unfortunately lose its appeal in demanding, contrast-heavy films.

As a consolation, it is worth noting that the panel has the potential for good color display. A PFS (phosphor) filter has been implemented here, allowing the coverage of the DCI-P3 palette to reach a solid 94%. The manufacturer calls its product a “QLED,” even though it is mainly based technologically on the aforementioned PFS filter. Considering the recent market battles among manufacturers about what can and cannot be called QLED, we leave the issue of the correctness of this naming to your judgment. However, it remains a fact that the potential for reproducing saturated colors in this panel is simply good.

The best mode for colour reproduction on the Samsung QN92D is Filmmaker mode. Although it generally offers good colour quality, it is not without significant issues. Starting with HD/SDR image quality, the main challenge is white balance. The graphs reveal considerable instability, with a dominant red tint that makes the image appear too warm. This imbalance causes shades to shift unnaturally towards warmer tones, potentially affecting the perception of natural colours. Additionally, while contrast, as indicated by the gamma chart, is not the worst, it still falls short of the ideal, impacting overall image quality, especially in darker scenes.

This issue continues with 4K content, such as high-quality series or films. Here too, white balance proves problematic, with noticeable deficiencies in both blue and red, leading to tonal shifts. Tests using the Colour Checker tool confirm these issues, showing a tendency for colours to skew toward yellow hues, further distorting the natural look of the image. While Filmmaker mode remains one of the best options for cinematic content, it could still benefit from improvements, particularly in colour accuracy and white balance.

When it comes to out-of-the-box colors, the Sharp JP7 was tested in Film mode, which traditionally offers the most consistent image compared to the yellowed “Eco” mode or the glaring blue of the “Dynamic” mode. Although this is the best choice among the available settings, the results are still far from ideal. The white balance clearly lacked red and blue components, causing many scenes to take on an unnatural, greenish tint. Another issue was the gamma – during fullscreen scenes, the television provides too much brightness, completely stripping away its cinematic character. All of this translated into color reproduction errors, particularly with shades of gray, which exceeded Delta E 10. Just to remind: errors above 2-3 are already noticeable to the human eye, so here we are dealing with a significant distortion of reality.

In HDR mode, the situation is reversed but not any better. Here, the blue color dominates the white balance, giving the image an unnatural, almost “store-like” sharpness reminiscent of aggressive demo modes. Furthermore, the measurements of the EOTF curve emphasize the store-like nature of the image. The graph clearly shows that the television generates an image significantly brighter than the standards predict, resulting in an artificially boosted and unrealistic final effect. The Sharp JP7 is evidently trying to appear stronger than it actually is, but it does so at the expense of fidelity to the content.

After calibration, the Filmmaker mode on the Samsung QN92D shows significant improvement, particularly with SDR content. The white balance has been greatly enhanced — previous colour shifts and red dominance have been corrected, resulting in more natural colour reproduction. Although the gamma curve didn’t require major adjustments, its stabilisation has positively impacted overall picture quality.

In high-quality materials, the white balance has also improved. However, contrast remains an area to watch. The EOTF curve initially appears accurate, but closer inspection reveals that the television struggles to maintain consistent contrast in film content, indicating further room for improvement. Despite these areas, one advantage is the TV’s colour saturation. Skin tones are rendered well, and while some colours may be slightly oversaturated, the overall effect is rich and vibrant.

Despite minor contrast limitations, the calibrated Filmmaker mode on the Samsung QN92D delivers excellent picture quality, with natural colours, making it a strong choice for movie watching.

We subjected the JP7 to our standard calibration procedure and truly... the television gained a new life thanks to it, especially in SDR content (YouTube, classic television, series, or older movies). Because we managed to accurately set the white balance and stabilize the gamma, color errors dropped to a value of below 3. This is a level at which the human eye has trouble detecting discrepancies. In this scenario, the Sharp JP7 delivers an image with really great color accuracy, which is a significant advantage in this price range. However, the content in HDR turned out to be much more problematic. Here, despite our efforts and adjustments to the settings, the television simply did not want to cooperate. In the JP7 menu, we cannot find any option that would allow for real control over brightness management (EOTF). Although a significant portion of color errors was reduced, the image still remained unnaturally oversaturated. It's a pity because the potential of the mini-LED backlit panel is large, but the software presents a clear barrier.

The conclusion is simple: when watching less demanding content (SDR) on the JP7, you can expect an image that is more than satisfactory, but in HDR, you have to come to terms with a certain degree of "artificiality" that cannot be overcome even with professional equipment.

Let's examine how the Samsung QN92D television manages tonal transitions in low-quality materials. The noise reduction function is highly effective, enhancing the fluidity of tonal transitions even under challenging conditions. However, it’s worth noting that, as with other Samsung televisions, this feature can occasionally remove desirable elements, such as film grain, which may affect image authenticity. 

In terms of digital processing, the Samsung QN92D also performs impressively. During testing, the image appeared natural and well-balanced, with details like background branches precisely reproduced, underscoring the television’s ability to enhance the quality of low-resolution materials.

When it comes to lower quality materials and how the Sharp JP7 handles them, the situation is ambiguous. Let's start with the upscaling – here we have no major objections. The process of scaling the image to a higher resolution is correct; the image remains readable and clear, without the overscan effect or cropped edges. Of course, this is not at the level of top models and at times one can notice slight jaggedness on the contours, but in this price range, the effect is fully acceptable.

However, the digital image processing itself is significantly worse, as aside from the scaling, it virtually does not exist. In the JP7 menu, we won't find any option that would effectively smooth out unwanted tonal transitions or reduce noise in the image. As a result, the signal reaches the matrix in a very raw form, which, with heavily compressed materials (e.g., from YouTube), leads to visible posterization. Either this is a flaw in the software or a very strange design decision, as in earlier Sharp models, this feature was available and, more importantly, worked with noticeable effect. Here we are left at the mercy of what the source provides, without any digital support from the image processor.

The Samsung QN92D TV features a 144 Hz panel, however, when using the motion smoother, the maximum refresh rate adjusts to 120 Hz. This setup ensures excellent picture quality for both gamers and sports enthusiasts. Additionally, the TV offers a range of image enhancement options, such as the "blur and judder reduction" feature, which lets users fine-tune smoothness on a 10-point scale. Blur reduction sharpens fast-moving objects, while judder reduction smooths out motion, eliminating the "stutter" effect. With these advanced settings, the Samsung QN92D provides optimal visual experiences for dynamic scenes and intense gameplay alike.

The TV performs impressively in terms of motion blur, with minimal issues. The only minor drawback is a slight overshoot effect noticeable on dark backgrounds in our "Ufoludkiem" test. Nonetheless, with its advanced smoothness settings, the Samsung QN92D delivers outstanding performance for both fast-paced scenes and immersive gaming sessions.

The motion fluidity on the Sharp JP7 is very mediocre, and the reason is simple: the television uses a 60Hz panel. This immediately makes it difficult to recommend for watching sports or serious gaming, where higher refresh rates are already the standard. The only real plus is the presence of a motion smoother, which we can control in movies using a slider called De-judder. Lower settings produce a more raw, "cinematic" (frame-based) image, while higher settings add artificial fluidity. We suggest setting it somewhere in the middle of the scale, that is, in the 3-5 range – this is the best compromise to avoid the soap opera effect while getting rid of the tiring image stutter. Interestingly, in the menu, we also find a slider for "motion blur reduction," which usually suggests the presence of a 120Hz panel. However, in the case of the JP7, it does not contribute anything to the image and serves more as a placeholder – it is meant to look good in the settings, but technically it should not function on this panel.

The Samsung QN92/QN90 TV is an outstanding choice for avid gamers and is highly recommended. This model provides virtually every gaming feature currently available, enhancing the excitement of gameplay. A standout feature is the 120 Hz panel, delivering impressive motion smoothness, which is especially beneficial during action-packed games. The TV also boasts low input lag, ensuring quick responses to player commands. Additionally, VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) and ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode) optimise refresh rates and automatically activate gaming mode, further elevating the gaming experience. An additional bonus is the Xbox app, enabling users to play directly on the TV without needing a console—an exclusive feature in Samsung TVs, adding to their appeal in the gaming world.

Samsung’s Auto Motion Plus Game feature deserves particular praise. This motion smoother is highly effective in gaming, making lower frame rates appear smoother—30 frames per second can look like 45, and 60 Hz can resemble 90 Hz. Crucially, it achieves this without introducing noticeable input lag (keeping it below 25 ms), so gameplay remains highly responsive, unlike many other motion-smoothing options on the market. As a result, players can enjoy a smoother visual experience without sacrificing responsiveness.

As we mentioned earlier, the 60Hz panel is not a feature that will attract gamers to the Sharp JP7. Perhaps for the casual gamer, whose console generates most titles at 60 frames per second, there might be something interesting? When it comes to specific additions, we find:

• ALLM Mode: Automatically switches the TV to low latency game mode (input lag).

• Game Menu: Which is hard to call a full-fledged “Game Bar,” as its functionality is minimal. Besides enabling ALLM, there is only a smoothness enhancer dedicated to games, which we recommend against because it introduces very noticeable artifacts and spoils the responsiveness.

• Dolby Vision Gaming: For Microsoft's consoles.

Unfortunately, the list of shortcomings is much longer and more painful than the positives. The biggest disappointment is the lack of support for 120Hz, even when lowering the resolution to Full HD. The presence of 120Hz would allow for performance modes to be activated in many games on PS5 or Xbox Series X. Another absence is VRR, which means that during frame drops, we are susceptible to image tearing. The lack of proper implementation of the HGiG standard is also very problematic. This results in the fact that during HDR calibration in the console menu, it is very easy to “overshoot” the brightness settings. As a result, instead of clear details in highlights, we end up with an unnaturally over-brightened image with cut-off details. The Sharp JP7 is a proposal only for very casual gamers.