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Samsung has announced that its 2023 flagship 77-inch S95C OLED TV is now available for pre-order in the US, with shipping to begin later this month. The TV costs $4,499.99 (about £3,750), and customers who pre-order through Samsung.com (opens in new tab) or participating retailers receive free in-home installation — normally an additional $250.
Samsung first released OLED TVs with the company’s QD OLED display technology in 2022, but only in 65 and 55-inch screen sizes. Despite last year’s limited size range, the new Samsung TVs with QD-OLED, a technology that combines a self-emissive OLED panel with a Quantum Dot layer, made a deep impression on us, with the 65-inch S95B OLED earning a 5-star rating and a spot on our list of the best 4K TVs.
The new 77 inches version was originally announced at CES 2023, where we stated it will be the best TV we’ve seen at CES (in the ‘TV you’re likely to buy this year’ category). Like last year, Samsung will launch 65- and 55-inch versions this spring, though pricing for those models has not yet been announced.
A key advantage of QD-OLED is improved brightness over regular OLED models. Last year’s S95B was the brightest OLED TV TechRadar had tested to date, and the new S95C TVs will boost light output to a peak of 2,000 nits – a level of brightness usually only achieved by top mini LED backlit QLED TVs like Samsung’s own QN95B.
A new Quantum HDR OLED Plus feature that uses AI deep learning to fine-tune brightness per pixel is responsible for the brightness boost on the new TVs. Other image quality improvements in the S95C range come via a Quantum Neural Processor that upscales images to 4K using AI-based algorithms. That processing is done scene by scene, while the set adds dynamic HDR10 + tone mapping at the same time.
The new Samsung TVs for 2023 also include enhancements to the company’s Smart Hub, which combines the set’s streaming, ambient and gaming options, along with Samsung TV Plus, a portal to 250 free ad-supported and on-demand channels. Samsung Gaming Hub offers console-free playback of selections from Xbox, NVIDIA GeForce NOW, Amazon Luna, Utomik and more. For the S95C, the company claims a response time of 0.1 milliseconds with a 4K source and a refresh rate of up to 144 Hz for low input lag gaming.
Analysis: Larger QD OLED is a welcome addition – but at what price?
The QD-OLED display technology that Samsung has developed for its OLED TVs is an impressive feat of engineering, and one that has taken the state of the OLED art to the next level through improved brightness and off-axis color saturation. Samsung’s QD-OLED models look really good from every angle, making them an easy front runner in the best OLED TV race.
In addition to the picture quality improvements for 2023, Samsung’s new S95C series of OLED TVs will have a built-in 4.2.2 channel speaker system for Dolby Atmos. And while we’ve yet to hear movie soundtracks through an S95C series set, that feature could presumably allow the TV to be used without a soundbar. Still, it also supports the Q-Symphony feature that Samsung models in our list of best Dolby Atmos soundbars to work with the TV’s built-in speakers for a better audio experience.
With the release of the new 77-inch S95C series OLED, Samsung is kicking off the 2023 TV season with a bang. But are American viewers willing to shell out more than $4,500 for the privilege? That’s a decent amount of cash expected to be spent at a time when the economic winds are causing people to spend less overall.
But suppose you were looking for a new TV. For $2,500 you can now pick up a 77-inch LG C2 OLED, TechRadar’s best TV for 2022, or a 77-inch LG G2 OLED for around $3,500. If image brightness was an issue, the G2 uses an OLED Evo panel with Brightness Booster Max technology, a feature that allows it to achieve much better-than-average light output for an OLED TV, although it can’t hit the same specs that Samsung has. cited for its new S95C models.
Like the S95C TVs, the LG G2 also features an ultra-thin gallery design that uses an external box for all input connections.
With the arrival of the new, and apparently even brighter, LG G3 models and presumably a new 77-inch QD-OLED model from Sony, there will be plenty of big-screen OLED competition this year. If you’re in the market for a premium set, it’s going to be a disgrace to TV wealth.