‘Samsung’s QD-oled TV recognizes test images from reviewers and adjusts the image’
According to Hdtvtest, Samsung’s S95B-QD OLED TV recognizes the use of certain test patterns. The TV adjusts the image accordingly, making it seem as if the TV is very well calibrated. When normal images are displayed, the TV will show a brighter and more saturated image.
The TV would automatically recognize test patterns consisting of a gray or color patch on a black background. These patterns are used by many reviewers to measure the gray and color saturation of televisions.
Tests carried out by Vincent Teoh of Hdtvtest show that with a block that takes up five, ten or twenty percent of the screen surface, the TV accurately displays the brightness and color saturation. Those block percentages are often used by reviewers, for example, to assess the accuracy of a TV.
However, if Teoh uses a different block of, for example, nine percent, it turns out that the screen displays images brighter than it should and displays colors oversaturated. This also happens within the Filmmaker Mode, while that mode should ensure that all images are displayed as accurately as possible.
In practice, this means that the S95B TV shows clear images in films and games, for example, with colors that seem to splash off the screen. As a result, the TV in shops, for example, would look better than competitor screens. At the same time, the calibration software shows reviewers that the TV is well calibrated, so that they write positively about this in their reviews.
Teoh acknowledges that it probably doesn’t matter much to many consumers, because they think the TV shows a brighter picture and displays ‘nicer’ colors than competitors. However, filmmakers spend a lot of time on the colors of a film, Teoh says. “And now we’ve got the S95B that butchers the artistic intent of those filmmakers by cranking up brightness and colors to impress consumers who don’t know any better. This allows certain parts of a scene to stand out more than the creator of a movie had intended.” intended, causing the viewer not to pay attention to the correct parts of a scene.” Teoh cites the example of a red car that now splashes more off the screen and can therefore divert viewers’ attention from what they should actually be looking at.
The YouTuber said he did not have enough time to research whether manual calibration could solve the inaccuracies of the screen before publication. “But my first impression is that the S95B screen can never be as accurate as the OLED TVs from LG, Sony and Panasonic.” It is not known whether Teoh Samsung has asked for a response.
The S95B is Samsung’s first QD OLED TV and will be delivered from May 6. The television comes in 55″ and 65″ formats and costs 2499 and 3399 euros respectively. Both models have a resolution of 3840×2160 pixels and a refresh rate of 120Hz. QD OLED TVs have sub-pixels with blue OLEDs, and green and red quantum dot filters.