ZDNET’s key takeaways
- The QN90F TV has excellent picture and sound.
- It’s great for streaming and entertainment, with useful display settings and features in tow.
- Not ideal for rhythm or precision platforming games due to response times.
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I recently got the chance to work in the ZDNET Louisville testing lab, where I tested the Samsung QN90F and saw how it performed in real-world tests rather than a carefully curated showroom experience. Compared to the S95F OLED, the Samsung QN90F has a picture that’s almost as vibrant and detailed, as well as slightly better object-tracking sound.
Also: The best Samsung TVs you can buy
For the price, it’s a better value unless you’re looking for features that only the S95F OLED has, such as the OneConnect box. I ran the Samsung QN90F through a battery of tests to see how well it handled everything from streaming to gaming. I also worked with our lab engineers to run Calman verification tests to see how accurately the QLED panel can recreate images in both RGB and black-and-white.
Unlike the S90F, which had a significant blue shift in its color tests, the QN90F favors warmer tones. This can make some scenes look a bit oversaturated, and this can be exacerbated by the integrated blue light filter that can be toggled on and off.
But I would personally rather have that than how lifeless they can look on screens that favor cooler colors. The warm color shift was most noticeable while screening black-and-white films like Casablanca, pushing everything toward a more pale sepia tone that somehow felt more appropriate than the blue-grey of the S95F.
Read more: I tested the Samsung S95F OLED for a week, and I’m ready to give up my living room TV
The contrast is also fairly comparable to the more expensive OLED model, giving you deep blacks and sharp details that help brighter colors pop. The QLED panel handles fine details well across all picture modes, though the AI-assisted option does make some images look slightly fuzzy, especially if there are characters moving quickly, or a lot of quick cut edits. But where the QN90F really stands out when compared to the S95F OLED is the audio.
Adam Breeden/ZDNET
I’m not sure if it’s due to how razor-thin the S95F is, but the audio never sounded as full or as 3D as it could have been. The QN90F is still a thin TV, but by having more room to actually create sound, you’ll get a slightly richer listening experience even without having to set up extra home audio equipment.
I compared both TVs by playing a few movie musicals, Persona rhythm games, and a host of music albums, and the QN90F always came out on top when it came to sound quality.
Also: Changing these 6 settings on my Samsung TV greatly improved the performance
When it comes to gaming, the Samsung QN90F has the same dedicated dashboard as other Samsung TVs, which allows you to adjust input latency, refresh rates, and dedicated gaming picture modes to suit your favorite genres. The input latency was fine for most shooters and action games I play, like Ghost of Tsushima and Judgement.
Adam Breeden/ZDNET
But when it comes to rhythm or platforming titles, it can get a bit frustrating, as even with the lowest possible latency option, there’s a delay that you can feel, if not always see. Not enough to cause frustration or any significant issues, but it is something to keep in mind if you’re doing something like an official speedrun.
My biggest complaint about the QN90F is that while it’s easier to put together than the S95F, the software setup process is tedious and time-consuming, with almost endless privacy policies, license agreements, and suggested app lists to pretend to read or outright ignore until you can get to the home screen and download what you actually need.
Also: How to clear your TV cache (and why it greatly enhances your viewing experience)
Another complaint I have is that there aren’t any sort of advanced picture settings for adjusting color temperature, sharpness, and contrast. You have four picture modes to choose from (standard, movie, filmmaker, and AI-assisted), but none of them allow you to fine-tune any settings for a truly custom picture that works with your space.
ZDNET’s buying advice
All in all, the Samsung QN90F is a solid buy if you’re looking for a high-quality TV with excellent picture and audio quality, but don’t necessarily want to spring for a more expensive OLED model.
With a warmer picture and fuller sound, you get a slightly more enjoyable experience when watching older black-and-white films, but some games and movies with lots of colors might look a bit oversaturated. (That’s something you can always modify in picture settings, of course.) It’s a great value for a QLED TV, especially if you can catch it on sale (as it often is).
