Samsung Q60B review: a cheap QLED TV with great brightness, but compromises

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Samsung Q60B: Two infinitesimal review

The Samsung Q60B QLED TV starts from a overmuch cheaper terms than Samsung's different QLED sets, but its spec expanse includes Quantum Dot colors, a broad astute system, and alleged Object Tracking Sound technology. 

The Samsung Q60B looks similar it should person what it takes to bargain a march implicit its likewise priced competition. It backs its on-paper entreaty up with a gorgeous super-slim design, crisp finish, and bully physique prime that assistance it look and consciousness overmuch much premium than you’d expect for its money.

And speech from being a spot unintuitive to navigate, the Samsung Q60B’s Tizen astute strategy impresses by delivering beauteous overmuch each streaming app known to humankind, and ensuring that there’s ever HDR and 4K streaming enactment from immoderate app that carries these features.

Picture prime starts well, with the Q60B producing much brightness and Quantum Dot-inspired colour punch than the immense bulk of inexpensive TV rivals. Its playback of autochthonal 4K sources is besides impressively crisp astir of the time, excessively – particularly invited connected the 55-inch size that we tested for this Samsung Q60B review. It doesn't miss retired compared to the best 4K TVs for Ultra HD content.

However, you don’t person to ticker for excessively agelong earlier you announcement that the pleasing brightness has a outgo successful the signifier of comparatively flat, grey acheronian scenes. Motion doesn’t look arsenic cleanable and earthy arsenic it usually does connected Samsung TVs either – adjacent accounting for its price, it's not up determination with the best TVs disposable today. Meanwhile, the Q60B’s audio strategy copes with day-to-day TV viewing rather nicely but comes up abbreviated of powerfulness with immoderate bully enactment movie soundtrack.

In the US, the aforesaid benignant of terms astatine 55 inches volition get you the TCL 6-Series Roku TV (2022), which provides mini-LED backlighting for its QLED panel, positive 120Hz enactment for amended question handling. We'd suggest that for astir people. In the UK, the contention is tougher, and the Samsung Q60B is inactive 1 of the best TVs nether £1000.

We tested the 55-inch Samsung 55Q60B for this review.

Samsung Q60B review: Price and merchandise date

• Released successful May 2022
• Starts from $549 / £499 for 43-inch exemplary (not disposable successful Australia)
• Costs $699 / £699 / AU$1,299 for the 55-inch exemplary we tested

The Q60B is the cheapest Samsung TV bid successful its Quantum Dot ‘QLED’ category, and it comes successful smaller sizes than astir of Samsung's different QLED TVs – astatine least, it does successful immoderate countries. It has a antithetic scope of sizes successful the US, the UK and Australia.

In the US, it comes successful 43-inch ($549), 50-inch ($649), 55-inch ($699), 60-inch ($799), 65-inch ($949), 70-inch ($999), 75-inch ($1,199) and 85-inch ($1,799) sizes.

In the UK, it comes successful 43-inch (£499), 50-inch (£599), 55-inch (£649), 65-inch (£1,099), 75-inch (£1,599) and 85-inch (£1,999) sizes.

In Australia, is starts with the 55-inch exemplary (AU$1,299), and you've besides got 65-inch (AU$1,499), 75-inch (AU$2,499) and 85-inch (AU$3,999) sizes.

Being Samsung’s cheapest QLED scope does mean that the Q60Bs’ surface specifications are constricted successful immoderate different ways, arsenic we’ll spot successful the adjacent section, and determination are models from the likes of Hisense and TCL that besides diagnostic Quantum Dots, but are capable to battalion successful immoderate much precocious representation tech elsewhere too.

The beingness of these rivals does not, though, marque the Samsung Q60B immoderate little of a imaginable hit, provided its show is up to Samsung’s accustomed mid-range LCD standards.

The step-up exemplary from the Q60B, the Q70B, provides you a somewhat much almighty representation processor – including much precocious question handling. Going up again to the Samsung Q80B gets you a much precocious backlight with amended contrast. If you tin unrecorded without Quantum Dots, the step-down Samsung BU8500 saves you a small much money, but features the aforesaid processing and astute TV tech.

Samsung Q60B review: Specs

Samsung Q60B review: Features

• QLED TV with borderline LED lighting
• Native 4K solution and HDR support
• Uses Samsung's Dual-LED backlight technology

The Samsung Q60B’s cardinal surface specifications marque for absorbing reading, acknowledgment to their antithetic premix of premium and basal features. On the basal front, the sheet uses comparatively inaccurate edge-based lighting alternatively than putting its LEDs straight down the screen, and doesn’t diagnostic immoderate section dimming (where antithetic parts of the backlight tin beryllium made to output antithetic levels of light, truthful darker areas tin look dimmer darker than airy areas). 

On the premium side, the Quantum Dot colour strategy volition hopefully scope colour tones, and subtleties regular colour filter exertion cannot match. In fact, Samsung claims much than a cardinal shades and 100% sum of the cardinal DCI-P3 colour modular successful its Q60B marketing. 

While it doesn’t transportation section dimming, it does payment from a Dual-LED lighting system, that finds the LEDs ranged astir the surface producing alternating chill and lukewarm tones successful a bid to summation colour accuracy and richness. 

The Q60B’s on-paper strengths rise existent hopes of superior show with precocious dynamic scope contented – though the imaginable deficiency of airy power is thing we’ll person to support an oculus on. 

The HDR imaginable is bolstered, too, by enactment for the HDR10+ format arsenic good arsenic the much basal HDR10 and HLG formats. The HDR10+ format adds other scene-by-scene representation information to the video provender that compatible TVs tin usage to nutrient much dynamic and close images. In fact, the Q60B adjacent provides the Adaptive mentation of HDR10+, wherever the representation settings tin automatically compensate for ambient airy conditions.

As ever with Samsung TVs, though, the enactment for HDR10+ is not partnered with enactment for the Dolby Vision format, which besides carries other scene-by-scene representation information but is disposable connected a broader scope of sources than HDR10+, including Disney Plus and Netflix.

Another premium representation interaction is the Quantum Processor Lite 4K encephalon astatine the Q60B’s heart. This is not arsenic potent arsenic the processor recovered successful Samsung’s step-up models and doesn’t gully connected immoderate AI ‘neural network’ learning similar the processors wrong Samsung’s high-end TVs. But it inactive works crossed a scope of representation prime areas to present better-looking results - particularly regarding the upscaling of sub-4K sources.

The Quantum Processor extends its tendrils into the Q60B’s audio, offering the enactment to automatically set the TV’s audio illustration to suit antithetic types of content.

Although it’s lone equipped with a down-firing 2x10W talker system, the Q60B inactive delivers a ‘Lite’ mentation of Samsung’s Object Tracking Sound strategy whereby dependable effects look to beryllium coming from precisely the close spot connected the screen. Thanks to Samsung's Q-Symphony feature, you tin besides spouse the Q60B’s speakers with those of a caller Samsung soundbar and they'll harvester unneurotic for a bigger sound, alternatively of the soundbar simply replacing the built-in speakers.

On the back, you'll find 3 HDMI ports, which is often the lawsuit with cheaper TVs, but fixed that this is premium capable to beryllium a QLED model, we'd similar the future-proofing that 4 ports would springiness you.

• Features score: 4/5

Samsung Q60B review: Picture quality

• Bright and colorful for its money
• Good 4K and upscaled sharpness
• Some achromatic level shortcomings

As we’d somewhat feared, the tendency to present the colour and brightness benefits associated with Quantum Dots astatine the Q60B’s benignant of affordable terms level isn’t an unmitigated success… but determination are surely times erstwhile you’d beryllium forgiven for persuading yourself that it was.

Essentially the successes and failures of the Q60B’s representation prime beryllium connected whether you’re watching agleam oregon acheronian scenes. With the former, the acceptable instantly wins you implicit with its awesome brightness compared with galore of its likewise affordable rivals. It’s often said that you truly request astatine slightest 500 nits of brightness for thing approaching a ‘true’ HDR experience, and the Q60B is impressively agleam for a fund TV, capable to nutrient 573 nits of brightness connected a 10% achromatic HDR model successful its Standard representation mode during our tests.

The Q60B’s quality to present this surely contributes to a overmuch much melodramatic and breathtaking displacement erstwhile you power from SDR to HDR than you bash with astir inexpensive HDR TVs.

This brightness feeds handsomely into the Q60B’s Quantum Dot colors, giving them levels of strength and richness that again propulsion comfortably beyond the colour volumes typically associated with TVs astatine the aforesaid price. The brightness tin origin a spot of subtle shading to beryllium mislaid successful the astir highly agleam HDR areas. Still, for the astir portion – particularly successful the Standard preset – the impressively full-on colour saturations are combined with precise credible and immersive blends and tonal shifts. 

Again there’s a consciousness that you’re seeing overmuch much of an HDR image’s imaginable present than you would typically expect with specified an affordable TV.

The Q60B besides stands retired from galore rivals with its sharpness. Native 4K images typically look crisp and afloat of texture, portion the 4K upscaling of HD sources delivers exceptionally clean, crisp, and natural-looking results.

While these strengths adhd up to agleam scenes – particularly HDR agleam scenes – that look eye-catching and dynamic, though, the Q60B’s inability to execute truly immoderate level of localized airy power makes it overmuch little satisfying with acheronian scenes. Parts of acheronian scenes that should look achromatic alternatively invariably look a alternatively washed-out gray, leaving them feeling level and unconvincing compared with agleam moments successful the aforesaid TV amusement oregon film. 

This means that arsenic good arsenic feeling unsatisfying successful themselves, the flat-looking acheronian scenes lend to a consciousness of inconsistency that tin beryllium rather distracting erstwhile you’re trying to immerse yourself successful a film.

Some of the TV’s settings tin origin acheronian scenes to flicker a bit, too, arsenic the surface reacts to tiny changes successful mean brightness levels, portion colors successful acheronian representation areas thin to look little punchy and convincing acknowledgment to the infusion of grey washing implicit them. It’s noticeable, too, that acheronian scenes tin uncover patches of cloudiness successful the Q60B’s panel. 

Since we wouldn’t typically subordinate specified clouding with Samsung mid-range oregon adjacent fund LCD TVs, we can’t assistance but wonderment if the propulsion for an ‘air-slim’ plan is astatine slightest partially to blame.

Another astonishing representation gremlin finds question looking a spot uncomfortable connected the Q60B. While the question presets connected adjacent Samsung’s flagship TVs are typically beauteous unhelpful, astatine slightest it’s imaginable with those to get natural, clean-looking question without excessively overmuch trouble. With the Q60B, though, depending connected which question processing mounting you use, you’re either near with rather glaring judder, distracting stuttering/frame dropping, oregon excessively galore unwanted processing ‘glitches’.

• Picture prime score: 3.5/5

Samsung Q60B review: Sound quality

• OTS Lite processing for positional audio
• Adaptive Sound capabilities
• Q-Symphony enactment with Samsung soundbars

As good arsenic perchance not helping the Q60B’s representation prime successful immoderate areas, its Air Slim plan apt besides contributes to its underwhelming audio performance. There conscionable doesn’t look to beryllium capable carnal abstraction to make either the measurement levels oregon dynamic scope – particularly wherever little frequencies are acrophobic – to supply a truly convincing accompaniment to thing much rambunctious than a daytime chat show. 

You tin adjacent intelligibly perceive the TV physically springiness up the audio shade during large movie scenes that emergence to a superior crescendo, with its soundstage abruptly becoming quieter alternatively than continuing to grow with the sound. 

While the Q60B’s dependable lacks immoderate remotely cinematic qualities, though, it does astatine slightest recognize its limits, managing to debar falling prey to crackles, buzzes, hums and driblet outs for astir of the time. This is really preferable to a TV that tries to spell beyond its capabilities and conscionable makes a messiness of things.

The Object Tracking Sound Lite processing, finally, does a amazingly credible occupation of placing circumstantial effects successful the close spot connected surface considering however fewer speakers it has astatine its disposal. This astatine slightest compensates a spot for the speakers’ deficiency of earthy powerfulness and impact.

• Sound prime score: 3/5

Samsung Q60B review: Design

• Exceptionally slim profile
• Solar-powered distant control
• Multi-position feet

Take a speedy locomotion astir the Q60B, and you’ll conflict to judge its price. It’s incredibly thin, for starters – the arrogant recipient of an Air Slim plan that makes practically each different non-OLED TV look a chunky monkey by comparison. 

The framework astir the surface is beauteous trim, too, portion the 2 supporting feet (if you’re not wall-hanging the set) are truthful slim erstwhile viewed consecutive connected that you tin hardly spot them. All of this means that the Q60B does a precise awesome occupation of letting you absorption connected the pictures it’s producing alternatively than the hardware that’s producing them.

You tin set the width of the feet to suit antithetic sizes of enactment furnishings or, perhaps, to springiness you the abstraction to tuck a tiny soundbar betwixt them. 

The Q60B ships with 2 distant controls. One is simply a standard, button-heavy matter that looks a spot overwhelming but is really beauteous casual to larn your mode astir erstwhile you’ve utilized it for a fewer minutes. The different is simply a stripped-back astute distant featuring a overmuch leaner, much button-light plan and, champion of all, a star compartment connected its rear that means you tin usage it arsenic overmuch arsenic you similar without ever having to interest astir replacing its batteries.

• Design score: 4/5

Samsung Q60B review: Smart features & menus

• Proprietary Samsung Tizen system
• Extensive app collection

As ever with Samsung TVs, the Q60B’s astute interface and features are provided by a home-grown strategy built astir Samsung’s Tizen OS. This has traditionally served Samsung precise good – though the redesign ushered successful for Samsung’s existent scope is simply a uncommon misstep.

The contented is that by moving to a afloat surface location leafage successful spot of the erstwhile overmuch much compact mates of ‘shelves’ overlying the picture, Samsung has made things consciousness much overwhelming. Plus it hasn’t made peculiarly large usage of each the abstraction disposable to it, making it consciousness harder alternatively than easier to rapidly get to contented you’re really apt to privation to watch.

Some aspects of the caller paper navigation strategy aren’t helpful/logical either, particularly erstwhile it comes to accessing the representation and dependable acceptable up menus.

On the upside, Samsung’s TV Plus work of afloat streamed TV channels is present beauteous expansive and includes much absorbing contented than it utilized to. Plus the main Tizen level continues to cater for a immense enactment up of apps, including each the streaming services astir radical volition privation (with the objection of Google Play). 

Where a streaming app is supported, moreover, you tin stake that it volition beryllium capable to play 4K and HDR video if a work carries these cardinal AV features. The lone drawback is that the Q60B’s deficiency of Dolby Vision enactment means it volition lone play basal HDR10 from services that enactment Dolby Vision.

The 2 issues we person are that it doesn't enactment ATSC 3.0 for 4K broadcasts successful the US (though fewer fund TVs do), and successful the UK it doesn't enactment the Freeview Play umbrella app for the UK’s main terrestrial TV drawback up apps. However, Samsung does transportation each the idiosyncratic apps for these channels.

The Q60B provides extended enactment for dependable power via aggregate dependable designation platforms, giving you a useful mode to dodge immoderate of the issues with the onscreen menus.

• Smart features and menus score: 3.5/5

Samsung Q60B review: Gaming

• Handy Gaming Hub for checking features
• No 4K 120Hz support
• Ultra-fast 9.4ms effect time 

An affordable, unusually bright, colorful TV similar the Samsung Q60B has fantabulous imaginable arsenic a gaming display. Potential which it delivers connected successful immoderate areas, but falls a small abbreviated successful others.

Of monolithic entreaty to the gaming satellite is its 9.4ms of input lag (the clip betwixt erstwhile a console sends an representation to it, and erstwhile it appears on-screen) with 60Hz contented erstwhile utilizing its Game preset. This is 1 of the lowest numbers we’ve ever measured connected a TV.

Also precise invited is simply a dedicated Gaming Hub successful the TV’s menus that pulls unneurotic a big of streaming apps, games and services, specified arsenic Xbox Game Pass, Twitch and Nvidia Geforce Now. It’s casual to link controllers to the TV, too, to play via unreality services.

The screen’s operation of brightness, affluent colors, and awesome sharpness are well-suited to crippled graphics too. This sharpness with 4K sources besides makes it a shame that nary of the TV’s 3 HDMI inputs tin enactment 4K astatine 120Hz feeds oregon adaptable refresh rates. The lone gaming diagnostic they tin grip is automatic debased latency mode switching. 

To beryllium fair, 4K 120Hz and VRR enactment are presently precise uncommon astatine the Q60B’s terms point. But if TCL tin bash it, past you’d similar to deliberation Samsung could too. 

• Gaming score: 3.5/5

Samsung Q60B review: Value

• Recent reductions marque it precise competitive
• Well featured for its money
• Cheaper models often don’t person Quantum Dots

The information that it precocious received further terms cuts instantly establishes today’s Q60B arsenic a imaginable bargain. It builds connected this impressively, though, by including a Quantum Dot strategy astatine a terms wherever specified colour exertion is not ever found.

Its astute strategy is highly affluent successful contented for specified an affordable TV too, portion its bright, colorful and responsive pictures assistance it basal retired from the usually overmuch duller competition.

Its uninspiring dependable quality, deficiency of cutting borderline gaming graphics enactment and constricted backlight control, though, mean that it can’t wholly flight its fund nature.

The Samsung Q60B isn’t accordant capable with its show oregon features to warrant an unqualified recommendation. If you’re aft an affordable TV that volition present much brightness and richer colour successful a country that tends to beryllium rather light, though, past it is simply a bully enactment for its money. Its intense, crisp visuals and accelerated effect clip mightiness marque it a bully gaming monitor, too.

Its deficiency of opposition and alternatively basal dependable harm its imaginable arsenic a superior location cinema TV, however, and it’s a shame that it doesn’t enactment the latest cutting-edge gaming graphics features.

• Value score: 4/5

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