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In a recent review of Samsung’s gargantuan 115-Inch MR95F TV, I discussed how it might mark a significant shift for the Korean tech giant. Its introduction of Micro RGB technology could unshackle Samsung from the production limitations of OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diode) TVs, making it possible to deliver OLED-comparable picture quality (particularly in bright conditions) on a larger scale.
However, Samsung is not the kind of brand to place all its eggs in one basket. As such, it has since launched a refresh of its OLED offering, led by its flagship S95H panel. Considerably smaller than its Micro RGB counterpart (it’s available in 55, 65, 77, and 83 inches) and more affordable (prices start at AUD$3,999 rather than AUD$42,995), the refresh shows that OLED technology will not be vanishing anytime soon. This can only be a good thing, as its picture quality and black performance remain unimpeachable.
Spending an evening with the 65-inch incarnation of the S95H (RRP AUD$5,299), I explored its strengths, weaknesses, and the quirks that sit somewhere in between. Is this Samsung’s next must-have panel? Or should you hold off and wait until the next generation? Let’s find out.
Pros
- Excellent picture quality
- Perfect blacks
- Significantly brighter than its predecessor
- Anti-reflective coating
- Genuinely useful AI, including AI Football Mode
- Art Store access
Cons
- The FloatLayer design won’t be for everyone
- AI Football Mode has restricted use cases
A Bold New Design
When I walked into the room where Samsung had set up the S95H for my review session, I was puzzled. I wondered, why has Samsung created a wall mount that conspicuously frames the TV like that?
It wasn’t long before I realised what a silly question that was. It wasn’t a wall mount or anything of the sort. The metallic edging was part of the TV. Samsung calls it the FloatLayer design, and it gives the panel a sculptural air that frees the glass to be razor-thin while keeping all the tech in the metal sheet behind it. I think this will be the Marmite of this generation of TV design, but I also believe your response will depend on how you use your TV. If you mount the S95H on your wall, it’ll look great. However, it will be decidedly less appealing if you just place it on a stand.
Similarly, I think the larger you go, the more grand the FloatLayer will look. At 83 inches, the design will lean into that imposing sculptural effect, whereas at 55 inches, I imagine it will just look, well, kind of odd.
Picture Quality
A key element that certainly shouldn’t be divisive, however, is the S95H’s picture quality. This is a significant upgrade over last year’s model (itself no slouch), with the key improvement being its increased brightness, which exceeds all OLED competitors while maintaining the incredible blacks for which OLED is so renowned.
The resulting contrast is pretty astounding. I saw this perhaps best demonstrated by cueing up The Empire Strikes Back, which cuts back and forth between the deep blacks of space and the white snowscape of the planet Hoth in the opening act. When tackling these sequences, the S95H did not miss a beat. In fact, I’m confident in saying I’ve never seen that movie look better. Given it’s a film I’ve probably watched in whole or in part at least a couple of dozen times, I fully intend for that to be as complimentary as it sounds.
The panel also delivers an impressively vivid and rich colour palette. While I should note that it’s not as broad as that offered by the aforementioned MR95F (that panel’s massive colour spectrum is one of its signature features, after all), I challenge you to notice any shortcomings in the OLED technology’s colour offering while you’re basking in its glory.
All of this is enhanced by Samsung’s ongoing advances when it comes to deploying an anti-reflective coating on its TVs. I have a very bright living room, and while I love my current TV, it’s borderline unwatchable unless I close the blinds (which I’d rather not do) until about midday. If I had the S95H instead, that would no longer be a problem. Its anti-reflective coating dissipates light, meaning you can watch TV without being distracted by your own grim visage.
In short, the S95H delivers simply outstanding picture quality, and it’ll enhance just about anything you care to watch.
Smart Features and AI
In an attempt to further bolster your viewing experience, Samsung has embedded a suite of smart features in the S95H. Some of these fall under the Vision AI banner, and many are genuinely impressive.
First, the S95H’s AI functionality will detect what’s on your screen and adapt to ensure you get the best picture and sound possible. This can upscale old shows (it helped to bring old seasons of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia closer to the fidelity of the newer ones), or it can perform some pretty impressive audio tricks.
One of these is called AI Football Mode. This adjusts the audio of live sports, enabling you to separately adjust the volume of commentary and background noise. It means you can completely remove the commentary if you so choose, and do the same with the stadium atmosphere. Currently, you can only use the feature with live sports on free-to-air TV or the Samsung TV Plus app, which is a shame. But I imagine it will become more widely available over time. When you can use it, it’s an impressive addition.
Further, the S95H has Samsung’s Vision AI built into its operating system. This enables you to ask it questions about what you’re watching, find related content, and use a number of other AI search features. This proved quite handy and polished during my review session. That said, I imagine it could also empower the most annoying person you know to become even more so the next time you watch something together.
Art Store
Finally, the S95H is the first OLED panel to give you access to Samsung’s Art Store. Such access wasn’t possible with previous OLED panels, as they’re prone to burn-in. So, having one static image on your screen for an extended period was a big no-no.
Samsung has now overcome this hurdle. The ability to access over 5,000 artworks sourced from galleries worldwide via the Art Store is a welcome evolution for the brand’s flagship OLED. If your TV is in the centre of your living space, as they so often are, chances are that unless you’ve previously had one of Samsung’s Frame panels or the Hisense Canvas TV, it’s just a big black rectangle much of the time.
Like the Frame has done for many years now, the idea is for this panel to more closely resemble a framed picture than an illuminated TV. It achieves this by reducing brightness to complement the room’s ambient light. This, paired with the TV’s matte finish, proved impressively effective, and it’s a feature I’ll look for when I next need to upgrade my own TV.
Final Verdict
The S95H is a powerhouse panel from Samsung that combines the very best picture technology with some surprisingly useful AI-powered smarts. The biggest questions it poses for those looking for a new TV will be whether they consider the FloatLayer design a stylish or strange development, and whether a more affordable (but still very good) option from the new Micro RGB panels entering the market offers more bang for your buck.
Either way, the truth is that Samsung’s flagship OLED has always been a panel for those who refuse to compromise and expect the best possible picture quality. If that sounds like you, Samsung’s S95H is the one you want.
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