If you are looking for a new TV, then the market is ready to offer you a huge selection. What is important to you smart features, advanced screen settings, or compatibility with other devices you already have? Shopping trips can be overwhelming and confusing and overwhelming. In such a situation, we suggest that you narrow your search to just one brand.
We check dozens of TVs every year, ranging from premium models to the most affordable budget models, and we can confidently say that the difference between individual brands can be huge. A brand has a lot to say, such as what smart features might be available, what technology was used to create the panel, and how well the TV is in terms of durability.
Among the variety of manufacturers, three main players stand out today: LG, Samsung, and Sony. Considering that each TV model has its own unique set of advantages and disadvantages, which we always note in our reviews, let’s try to Lg Vs Samsung Vs Sony Tv compare these giants in this article.
Table of Contents
Samsung: Vibrant QLED Quality, Great Smart Features
Pros:
- Best-in-class QLED displays with quantum dot technology
- Excellent Smart TV platform
- High degree of integration with home network devices
- A full range of smart features, even in mid-range models
Cons:
- Voice assistant Bixby is inferior in quality to its competitors Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant
- Samsung uses proprietary HDR10 + technology instead of Dolby Vision
Our rating:
- Best Samsung TV: Samsung Q90 QLED
Samsung is the world’s largest TV manufacturer. Much of Samsung’s lead comes from its line of QLED models, which are improved versions of LCD panels with picture quality comparable to OLED and even better in some respects.
When someone says, “I would like to buy an OLED TV, but …”, we always advise the same thing: “Look at Samsung QLED TVs as a great alternative.” We installed the new Samsung Q90 QLED next to the LG OLED for comparison and could hardly find any significant differences that would indicate the shortcomings of one or another model. And this despite the fact that Samsung is significantly cheaper. Read Picture Settings LG OLED B8, C8, E8.
Quantum dot technology has enabled Samsung to dramatically improve the quality of traditional LED displays. As a result, Samsung’s QLED TVs are high in color and brightness, have a wide viewing angle and provide a vivid picture even in strong lighting conditions.
While the mid-range models do not have the same benefits of quantum dot technology in the QLED range, Samsung’s standard LCD TVs are also excellent quality with good brightness, color levels and decent HDR performance.
Samsung pays great attention to the aesthetics of its products, taking care of the design of not only the front, but also the back of the TV. And if the regular QLED line doesn’t appeal to you, you should check out the stylish Frame and Serif models, which are reminiscent of art objects. Less expensive models, such as the 165cm Samsung LED NU6900, are less flashy, but still have some charm.
However, there is one other parameter that makes Samsung TVs particularly special – smart features. The Smart TV platform, installed on a wide range of models, from premium to budget options, offers a wide range of applications and personal settings. The easy-to-navigate interface contains tremendous possibilities. Plus, you can only find some features on Samsung TVs.
First, it’s the Apple TV app, which you don’t need to have an Apple device to access. This is an exclusive offer from Samsung that gives you the opportunity to watch all your iTunes movies and TV shows on the big screen, and watch the original programs of the upcoming Apple TV channel without the need to purchase a separate set-top box.
Samsung also offers unmatched ease of home network integration, making its TVs compatible with the entire Samsung SmartThings ecosystem and a wide range of third-party devices. From our point of view, it is the best brand for smart home enthusiasts.
While acknowledging the high quality of Samsung TVs, we also note some of their shortcomings. And the biggest among them are akin to self-inflicted injuries. For example, Bixby is Samsung’s proprietary voice assistant. While not as accurate or fast as Google Assistant or Amazon Alexa, it leaves a pretty good impression when it works. But when it doesn’t work, you are frustratedly forced to repeat commands to your remote control over and over again, hoping that it will finally understand you.
Another problem is Samsung’s attempt to enter the HDR competitive war by promoting its own HDR10 + technology. This means that the South Korean giant’s TVs do not support Dolby Vision, which many consider to be the quality leader. As a result, HDR10 + content is limited to a very small selection of Blu-ray discs and streaming video from Amazon Prime, depriving a large army of TV viewers of the opportunity to enjoy exciting new visual technology.
LG: gorgeous OLED screens with a lot of smart features
Pros:
- Excellent quality for OLED and NanoCell TVs
- The best smart platform in our opinion
- Many models have built-in voice assistants from Google and Amazon
- Premium models provide advanced networking solutions
Cons:
- The limited brightness of OLED screens can reduce the viewing experience in a highly lit room
- Brightness and HDR quality in NanoCell LCD screens are not always high
Our rating:
- Best LG TV: LG C9 OLED
LG’s current OLED lineup includes what we believe to be our best 2019 model, the LG C9 OLED, and embodies a radical new take on how a modern TV should look and function. And the new W-Series Wallpaper TV (recently numbered LG W9 OLED) and Signature Series R Rollable TV (expected in 2020) are true innovations in design and technology.
OLED models are undeniable for their outstanding color balance and backlight accuracy that surpasses any LCD screen. Controlling the emission of each pixel is a highlight of OLED technology, allowing the display to reflect true blacks and highlight highlights in HDR frames without blowing out other areas of the image.
LG demonstrates the same high competitiveness in its follow-up to OLED in the mid-range NanoCell line. NanoCell technology aims to maximize image quality by controlling the color of each of the 8 million pixels on the screen. This nano-level filtering allows for deeper blacks and wider viewing angles, providing excellent quality for a standard LCD TV.
LG is also the only manufacturer so far to equip its models with HDMI 2.1 ports. The higher bandwidth of version 2.1 enables high frame rate content to be viewed on TV, VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) for enhanced video game playback and eARC (Enhanced Audio Return Channel) for lossless audio output.
The LG C9 OLED TV has all four HDMI ports in the new 2.1 version, which is also present in all 2019 OLED models (W9, E9, C9) and NanoCell 4K 9500 and 9000.
LG has gone to great lengths to improve the TV’s smart features by updating its webOS platform (voted Best TV Platform of 2018) and providing access to two built-in voice assistants, Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa. WebOS in the same version as in OLED TVs is installed on models of the middle category, produced using LCD technology.
LG TVs are a good choice for those who are particularly demanding on picture quality. LG models with technical features such as a built-in calibration template generator are quite worthy of work in Hollywood studios. And custom expert display modes, created with help from Technicolor and the Imaging Science Foundation (ISF), give you a wide range of screen tweaks. want to know Are 8k TVs Good?
Sony: some of the best (and most expensive) TVs on the market
Pros:
- high quality video processing, which creates a clear image and performs high-quality conversion of material in low format
- high quality acoustics
- the presence of a smart Android TV platform, giving access to a huge collection of applications
- built-in Chromecast and Google Assistant features
- special calibration mode for content from Netflix
Cons:
- prices are higher than competitors
- inconvenient control panel in old models
- complex settings
Our rating:
- Best Sony TV: Sony Master Series A9F OLED
Last but not least in our lineup is Sony. Once the undisputed leader in the audio and video market, Sony is still a highly respected TV manufacturer. And it’s no coincidence that the Sony AF9 OLED TV is, in our opinion, the most beautiful TV on the market. Even mid-range models with a standard LCD screen, such as the Sony XG95, deliver rich, natural colors thanks to quality video processing, 10-bit color support and HDR format.
The AF9 is one of many Sony TVs that boast flawless pictures, great sound and impressive overall quality. Cutting-edge Acoustic Surface Audio + technology, using an OLED glass panel as the sound source, creates an immersive atmosphere, leaving TVs with conventional speakers far behind. And Sony LCD models such as the XG95 create surround sound with a range of multi-directional speakers.
Sony TVs use the smart Android TV platform, which has made significant progress over the past year. The updated version has a fast response, a clear interface and a rich set of applications and services from the Google Play Store. The new platform is equipped with a full-featured virtual assistant Google Assistant and Chromecast functionality for easily streaming content from mobile devices to the TV. We tested Android TV on the Sony A9F and Sony XG95, and we were happy with the results in both cases.
However, some persistent issues spoil the overall excellent Sony TV experience. The settings menu is labyrinthine in complexity, and an additional disappointment is that some features are disabled by default. Try connecting a 4K game console to your TV and you’ll have to go three or four levels through the menu before you figure out how to enable 10-bit color support. Unfortunately, we note that Sony regularly hides some basic settings in the depths of the menus that need to be changed manually.
And finally, as good as Sony TVs are, they are just as expensive as competing products. This is especially true for the OLED line, whose price is significantly higher than analogs from LG. Sony’s technology is great, but how many people would like to overpay for the same quality and functionality that competitors offer?
