It's been a banner year for high-performance TVs. OLEDs are better than ever and, between RGB LED and Super Quantum Dot (SQD) TVs, brands are breaking ground with all-new souped-up display technologies.
Take, for instance, the Samsung S95H. After extensive testing, we awarded the S95H a rare, five-star rating on account of its stunning performance and its extensive list of features. The S95H is not only one of the best TVs of the year, it's one of the best TVs I've ever seen, period.
But there's a twist. Broadly speaking, there aren't too many people I'd point in the S95H's direction. Despite its prowess, this near-perfect TV is a tougher sell than another competitive OLED: the LG C6.
Don't get me wrong, the S95H is great...
To understand why I recommend the C6, let's dive deeper into the Samsung S95H's performance: Most of its success comes down to contrast.
As an OLED, the S95H trades a traditional backlight for millions of self-illuminating pixels. The benefits here are immense, as the S95H can whip up perfect black levels with zero light bloom.
OLED TVs have always been dimmer than backlit LCD sets, but the gap is shrinking. At over 2,700 nits, the S95H is one of the brightest OLEDs we've ever measured, and this combination of perfect black levels and searing highlight brightness creates eye-popping depth and a truly realistic-looking presentation.
The added horsepower is primarily the result of the S95H's quantum dot-enhanced OLED display. These nanocrystals are also responsible for the S95H's incredible color — it covers an impressive 89.6% of the BT.2020 color gamut.
It all adds up to a TV whose picture is as close to perfection as I've seen. But I'm still recommending the LG C6 over the S95H for most shoppers, and I suspect I'll continue doing so throughout the year.
...but the C6 is (probably) the better buy
LG's mid-range marvel isn't nearly as bright as Samsung's best OLED TV, nor is it strapped with quantum dots for brighter, purer color. But the C6 is a gorgeous sight to behold nonetheless, and it all comes down to LG's fantastic OLED engineering.
Its peak brightness of around 1,300 nits is plenty punchy when paired with the perfect black levels of an OLED-driven picture. Yes, the S95H's blistering highlights play a huge role in its eye-catching presentation, but even the most jaded of viewers are liable to be floored by the C6's excellent HDR performance.
The S95H is obviously the more impressive-looking OLED, but the C6 is an order of magnitude cheaper than Samsung's top-shelf set.
The C6 covers about 76% of the BT.2020, and while that isn't as impressive as the S95H, you're not likely to notice the difference outside of a direct, side-by-side comparison. More importantly, according to our testing, the C6 is terrifically accurate right out of the box.
The main reason I'll spend the rest of the year recommending the C6 over the S95H, however, has nothing to do with performance. The S95H is obviously the more impressive-looking OLED, but the C6 is an order of magnitude cheaper than Samsung's top-shelf set.
The 65-inch C6 just received its first major discount of about $700, which brings its price down to $1,999.
The 65-inch C6 just received its first major discount of about $700, which brings its price down to $1,999. That's not a budget-friendly sticker price, to be clear, but it's much friendlier than buying the 65-inch Samsung S95H for $3,299.
Ask yourself this: The S95H offers better performance than the C6, but is that added performance worth an extra $1,300? For dedicated home theater enthusiasts, the answer might be yes, but the average viewer looking for high-end performance will be more than happy with the C6.
Follow Tom's Guide on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our up-to-date news, analysis, and reviews in your feeds.
More from Tom's Guide
