As prefaced by the massive billboard outside the convention center in Berlin, Samsung has fulfilled its promise by bringing an 8K QLED TV to IFA. It’s called the Q900 – or Q900FN in the US – and it will be available starting in October of this year.
For US customers the Q900 will take the form of an 85-inch screen, but the UK and the rest of Europe will see 65-, 75- and 82-inch variations in addition to the 85-inch monster.
All of the Q900 TVs will be powered by Samsung’s new 8K Quantum Processor and feature Full Array Elite Local Dimming – similar to what we saw in the Samsung Q9FN earlier this year – with a comparable number of dimming zones.
To create 8K images out of non-8K content, Samsung will use artificial intelligence to create algorithms that recognize patterns, shapes and objects and accurately fill in the details. To do this, Samsung will employ a massive image database that will constantly update itself as it learns to recognize new objects. The database will beam its knowledge to individual Q900 TVs on a regular basis, ensuring each TV has the latest and greatest in upscaling tech.
Samsung made it clear that all content would go through the upscaling process, however, it’s particularly interesting information for gamers with 4K consoles like the Xbox One X and PS4 Pro – systems that are capable of native and upscaled 4K reproduction.
Higher HDR for your Ultra-er UHD TV
Samsung didn’t release every spec from the upcoming screen but gave us one tantalizing piece of information regarding the screen’s peak luminance – which, according to representatives, is somewhere in the 4,000 nits range.
That, in addition to HDR10+ support, will make the Q900 one of the best HDR TVs on the market, even if the screen can’t quite hit the same black levels as LG’s recently unveiled 8K OLED TV.
Like the rest of Samsung’s QLED TV line-up the Q900 will feature Bixby and SmartThings integration, as well as Ambient Mode and Samsung’s signature One Connect invisible cable that carries power and video signal from the One Connect Box to the TV itself.
Samsung has yet to announce a price for the TV, but says that will be announced closer to the TV’s retail launch in October of this year.
- IFA 2018 is Europe's biggest tech show. The TechRadar team is in Berlin to bring you all the breaking news and hands-on first impressions of new phones, watches and other tech as they're announced.
