Samsung reveals an 8K TV that’s 99% picture and practically bezel-free – CES 2020

With its 2020 Q950TS TV, Samsung is offering users 8K resolutions, support for YouTube’s 8K AV1 codec, AI upscaling and “99%” screen. This TV boasts what Samsung calls an “Infinity Design” which allows its TVs to be practically bezel-less, giving this 15mm thick display less than 2.5mm of bezel space, which on a screen this size is almost nothing. 

Samsung achieved this feat by eliminating the black matrix around the edges of its QLED display panels, and this design innovation doesn’t appear to come at a panel performance or visual cost. This screen still offers users a Full-Array Local-Dimming (FALD) LED backlight, HDR support using Samsung’s QLED technology and better viewing angles than Samsung’s 2019 range of TVs.    

On top of this, Samsung’s new FALD backlight uses a new “local power distribution” technique which is said to improve peak brightness levels while reducing backlight bloom, a major downside of Samsung’s QLED tech over OLED. 

At the time of writing, we would advise against buying an 8K TV, given today’s lack of 8K compliant devices and content. Even so, 8K is clearly where the market is heading, with new consoles like the PlayStation 5/Xbox Series X and events like the 2020 Japan Olympics supporting the standard. As it stands, 8K remains a technology for super-wealthy early adopters, though this may change in a few years.