The 65-inch and 75-inch versions of Samsung’s headline-grabbing 8K TV, the Samsung Q900R, are now up for pre-order in the UK – but you might want to take a seat (and a few deep breaths) before looking at the prices.
The Samsung Q900R, which was first unveiled at IFA 2018, will start shipping to buyers on October 16, 2018.
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The 65-inch model will set you back £4999, while the 75-inch version costs an eye-watering £6999. Those with deep pockets can pre-order them here.
The goliath 85-inch model is also listed on Samsung’s UK website, but at present it doesn’t have a price. In the US, however, it’s available for $14,999.99 (~£11,600).
We spent some time with the Q900R range in Berlin at the end of August, and we can confirm the it is indeed stunning.
It has a native 8K resolution − that’s 7680 x 4320 pixels – which is about 16 times the Full HD standard, and a peak brightness of 4000 nits. High dynamic range formats supported include HDR10, HDR10+ and HLG (Hybrid Log-Gamma), and it also features a HDMI 2.1 port that supports 8K image input at 30fps. That’s an impressive list of compatibility, with Dolby Vision the only noticeable absentee.
Related: What is HDR?
The big question mark hanging over it concerns the lack of 8K content.
It’s a pretty big problem, and Samsung has invested heavily in processing because of it. The Q900R has a new chip, the Quantum Processor 8K, and it’s main role is handling ‘AI Upscaling’ of lower-resolution footage to fit the screen’s 8K resolution.
Read more: Best 4K TV
In demonstrations, we found that the Q900R had no problems upscaling 4K footage, but even 4K content is quite scarce right now.
However, it also did a good job of upscaling 1080p and 720p footage too, though naturally the results didn’t look quite as impressive.
Are you tempted by the Samsung Q900R, or are you happy with 4K for now? Share your thoughts with us on Twitter @TrustedReviews.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
