Earlier this week we told you about LG’s new OLED TV lineup, which is set to offer some of the most affordable price points we’ve seen on these wildly popular displays. Skip forward to today and Samsung is ready to spill its TV plans for 2018. To no surprise, QLED is once again a buzzword for the Asia-based company that is still looking to shore up its market share in this category.
A focus on ultra-thin bezels and slim designs are complemented by the inclusion of Samsung’s in-house Bixby voice assistant. All told, there are four new models making an appearance in 2018 with varying prices and features. And yes, curved displays are still a thing, at least as far as Samsung is concerned.
Samsung’s 2018 QLED lineup is based around four models – the Q9, Q8, Q7, and Q6 – which vary in both price and features. While we know that a wide range of MSRPs are planned here, Samsung isn’t just yet giving away its pricing scale for this year.
However, we did spot an Amazon listing on the high-end Q9 model, which is being shown with a price of $3,800. That puts itself right in-line with LG’s offerings for 2018. With its release date rapidly approaching in a few weeks, we should have more details on pricing in short order.
Starting with the Q9 and Q8 displays, which both feature local dimming with full array support. Samsung added FALD, which helps to enhance local dimming and should deliver deeper blacks overall, which of course is a cornerstone of Samsung arch rival LG’s OLED TVs. The new QLED lineup also supports HDR10+, which is the latest standard making its way to displays this year.
One of the more interesting features, albeit somewhat silly, is Samsung’s new ‘ambient mode’. Users can capture a photo of the TV’s environment and the software will process an image on the display which matches the area around it. So if you’ve got your TV mounted on a brick wall, Samsung will let you match that pattern on the display.
Of course, Samsung is bringing its inventory of smart home gear to the mix as well. These new QLED panels will act as a hub for SmartThings with the ability to interact with sensors, lights, thermostats and more. Samsung’s own Bixby voice assistant is also integrated into the mix for accessing important information and news.
Each variety of QLED TVs will be available in 75, 65 and 55-inch models, with the Q6 adding 82 and 29-inch versions to the mix. Samsung is expected to release its lineup into the wild in late March.
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