The Samsung QN900A 8k QLED is one of three 8k TVs released by Samsung in 2021, sitting at the very top of its Neo QLED lineup. Like other Neo QLEDs, it uses Mini LED backlighting that lets it reach very high levels of brightness. Unfortunately, it has just okay black uniformity and a very low native contrast ratio for a VA panel. While it's helped immensely by full-array local dimming, allowing the TV to produce deep blacks, the local dimming is only decent overall, with blooming around bright objects. On the bright side, glare shouldn't be an issue, and the reflection handling is excellent. It also has Samsung's 'Ultra Viewing Angle' layer, so it has reasonably wide viewing angles compared to most other VA TVs. Gamers should also be pleased with its gaming performance, as it has a great response time, very low input lag, and variable refresh rate (VRR) support. While it's a great TV overall, it's underwhelming for an 8k TV with a hefty price tag and doesn't have the performance to match its exorbitant price.
Our Verdict
The Samsung QN900A is a great TV for mixed usage. It gets very bright, so it's well-suited for rooms with a lot of light. It has a low native contrast ratio, though, and while local dimming allows it to deliver deep blacks, there's also blooming, so it may not be the best choice for watching movies in a dark room. That said, it's great for gaming, with a great response time, low input lag, VRR support, and HDMI 2.1. HDR looks good thanks to its high HDR brightness, and it displays a wide color gamut.
- Bright enough to overcome glare.
- Great response time for smooth motion.
- Reasonably wide viewing angles.
- Low native contrast ratio.
- Local dimming results in blooming.
The Samsung QN900A is good for watching movies. While it has a good contrast ratio, its native contrast is low for a VA panel, and it can only deliver deep blacks thanks to local dimming. However, the local dimming creates blooming and is especially noticeable with subtitles. On the upside, it upscales lower resolution content well and removes judder from any source.
- Upscales lower resolution content well.
- Automatically removes judder from any source.
- Low native contrast ratio.
- Local dimming results in blooming.
The Samsung QN900A is great for watching TV shows. It's great for watching in the daytime thanks to its high peak brightness and excellent reflection handling, so glare shouldn't be an issue. It also has reasonably wide viewing angles, so the image stays mostly accurate when viewed from the side. Finally, it has no issues upscaling lower resolution content like cable TV.
- Bright enough to overcome glare.
- Reasonably wide viewing angles.
- Upscales lower resolution content well.
- Low native contrast ratio.
- Local dimming results in blooming.
The Samsung QN900A is great for sports. It has a great response time that makes motion look smooth and clear, and it gets very bright, so glare shouldn't be an issue in bright rooms. If you like watching sports with friends or family, its viewing angles are reasonably wide, so the image stays fairly accurate from the side. It also has good gray uniformity, but you may still notice a bit of dirty screen effect, which can be distracting during sports.
- Bright enough to overcome glare.
- Great response time for smooth motion.
- Reasonably wide viewing angles.
- Low native contrast ratio.
- Local dimming results in blooming.
The Samsung QN900A is an impressive gaming TV. It has a great response time for smooth motion and a low input lag that makes gaming feel responsive. It supports FreeSync and G-SYNC to reduce screen tearing, and it has two HDMI 2.1 ports for gaming up to 4k @ 120Hz. Unfortunately, its local dimming is only decent, resulting in blooming around bright objects.
- Very low input lag.
- Great response time for smooth motion.
- VRR support.
- Low native contrast ratio.
- Local dimming results in blooming.
The Samsung QN900A is good for watching movies in HDR. Its HDR brightness is outstanding, so it can really bring out highlights. It also has a wide color gamut. However, its contrast ratio is somewhat limited, and even though the local dimming is decent, there's still blooming. Our unit also has some black uniformity issues, but this can vary between units.
- Bright enough to make highlights pop in HDR.
- Upscales lower resolution content well.
- Automatically removes judder from any source.
- Low native contrast ratio.
- Local dimming results in blooming.
- Most scenes are brighter than they should be.
The Samsung QN900A is great for gaming in HDR. It has very little input lag, even in HDR, and its response time is great, resulting in smooth motion. It gets bright enough to bring out highlights and make HDR content pop. However, the local dimming feature produces blooming around bright objects. Its native contrast ratio is also very low for a VA panel.
- Very low input lag.
- Great response time for smooth motion.
- VRR support.
- Bright enough to make highlights pop in HDR.
- Low native contrast ratio.
- Local dimming results in blooming.
The Samsung QN900A is excellent for use as a PC monitor. It has a great response time and a very low input lag, resulting in a responsive desktop experience. It can also display proper chroma 4:4:4, which is important for text clarity. Finally, it has reasonably wide viewing angles for a VA panel, so the screen shouldn't look too washed out at the edges when sitting up close.
- Very low input lag.
- Great response time for smooth motion.
- Displays proper chroma 4:4:4.
- Reasonably wide viewing angles.
- Low native contrast ratio.
- Local dimming results in blooming.
Changelog
- Updated Sep 26, 2025: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
- Updated Jul 08, 2025: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
- Updated Apr 17, 2025: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
- Updated Feb 11, 2025: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the 65 inch Samsung QN900A (QN65QN900A), which is also available in 75 inch (QN75QN900A) and 85 inch (QN85QN900A) sizes. For the most part, we expect our results to be valid for those models as well. We expect the QN900A in Europe to perform similarly, but we don't know for sure because Samsung's lineup is a bit different in Europe. Note that the 75 and 85 inch models advertise 'Quantum HDR 64x' while the 65 inch is 'Quantum HDR 48x'. We don't know if that means the larger sizes get brighter, so if you have them, let us know how they peform.
| Size | US | Canada | UK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 65" | QN65QN900AFXZA | QN65QN900AFXZC | QE65QN900ATXXU |
| 75" | QN75QN900AFXZA | QN75QN900AFXZC | QE75QN900ATXXU |
| 85" | QN85QN900AFXZA | QN85QN900AFXZC | QE85QN900ATXXU |
If you come across a different panel type or your QN900A doesn't correspond to our review, let us know and we'll update it. Note that some tests, like gray uniformity, can vary between units.
Our unit was manufactured in February 2021, and you can see the label here.
Popular TV Comparisons
The Samsung QN900A is a great TV, but for the price you're paying, you'd expect it to have better native contrast and local dimming, especially considering its use of Mini LED technology. That and the fact that 8k still isn't really worth it means there are many 4k TVs out there that offer better value for less.
For more options, check out our recommendations for the best TVs, the best 4k gaming TVs, and the best OLED TVs.
The Samsung QN900A 8K sits above the Samsung QN800A 8k QLED in Samsung's lineup. They're similar, but there are a few key differences. The QN900A has a slimmer construction with thinner bezels. It also has a better local dimming feature, but the QN800A gets a bit brighter overall in SDR and HDR and has a slightly faster response time.
The Samsung QN900A 8K is a bit better than the LG QNED99 8k. They use different panel types, so the Samsung has a higher contrast, but the LG has wider viewing angles instead. They each have Mini LED backlighting that's supposed to provide better control over the dimming zones, and they're both decent. The Samsung gets brighter, and it has more gaming features like VRR support. On the other hand, the LG doesn't show any upscaling issues that the Samsung does with 4k and 8k content, so it displays a perfect 8k image.
The Samsung QN90A and the Samsung QN900A 8K are high-end TVs in Samsung's Neo QLED series, which use Mini LED backlighting. While the QN900A is an 8k TV with a price tag to match, the 4k QN90A performs better overall. The QN90A has a higher native contrast ratio and a better local dimming feature. It also gets even brighter in both SDR and HDR.
The Sony A90J OLED is better than the Samsung QN900A 8K. While it can't display an 8k signal like the Samsung, there isn't much 8k content yet. Plus, the Sony is an OLED, so it has a near-infinite contrast ratio that can display perfect blacks with no blooming. The Samsung uses a VA panel but has low native contrast. While it's improved heavily by local dimming, the local dimming feature produces noticeable blooming. The biggest advantage of the Samsung is that it gets significantly brighter, so it's a little better suited to very bright rooms.
We buy and test dozens of TVs yearly, taking an objective, data-driven approach to deliver results you can trust. Our testing process is complex, with hundreds of individual tests that take over a week to complete. Most of our tests use specially designed test patterns that mimic real content, but we also use the same sources you have at home to ensure our results match the real-world experience. We use two main tools for our testing: a Colorimetry Research CR-100 colorimeter and a CR-250 spectroradiometer.
Test Results
Older Test Bench: This product has been tested using an older TV test methodology, before a major update. Some of the test results below aren't directly comparable with other TVs. Learn more
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