The Samsung Q80B QLED is a mid-range 4k TV in Samsung's 2022 QLED lineup. Replacing the Samsung Q80/Q80A QLED, it sits below the Samsung QN85B QLED in the higher-end Neo QLED lineup and above the Samsung Q70/Q70B QLED. The Samsung Q80C QLED is the replacement model in their 2023 lineup. This TV comes with the user-friendly Tizen platform and has a few useful features, like the ability to choose between the Google Assistant, Alexa, and Bixby voice assistants, as well as support for Google Duo, allowing you to make video calls with a compatible webcam. On top of that, it has gaming features like variable refresh rate (VRR) support and HDMI 2.1 bandwidth on all four ports. It's available in a few different size variants, but some don't perform like the others, as the 50-inch model has fewer gaming features, and both the 50-inch and 85-inch models use different panels than the other sizes.
Our Verdict
The Samsung Q80B is good for most uses. It's great for watching shows in well-lit rooms as it has decent reflection handling and gets bright enough to fight glare. It also has a wide viewing angle so that everyone sees a consistent image from the sides. It's very good for gaming because it has HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, VRR support to reduce screen tearing, and a quick response time for good motion handling. It's also alright for watching SDR or HDR movies as it upscales lower-resolution content well, but it doesn't perform well in dark rooms as blacks look gray, and the local dimming feature causes blooming.
- Upscales lower-resolution content well.
- Excellent SDR peak brightness.
- Decent reflection handling.
- Image remains consistent from the sides.
- Low contrast ratio.
- Blooming around bright objects.
- Some uniformity issues.
The Samsung Q80B is very good for watching TV shows in a well-lit room. It has excellent SDR peak brightness, enough to fight glare in most bright environments, and it has decent reflection handling. It's also a good choice for watching shows in a wide seating area because it has a wide viewing angle, so the image looks consistent from the sides. It even upscales lower-resolution content well, which is important for watching cable TV. Lastly, the Tizen smart platform lets you stream your favorite shows, and it supports various voice assistants that make it easy to navigate the menu.
- Upscales lower-resolution content well.
- Excellent SDR peak brightness.
- Decent reflection handling.
- Image remains consistent from the sides.
- Some uniformity issues.
The Samsung Q80B is very good for watching sports. Fast-moving scenes look great, thanks to the quick response time. It also gets bright enough to fight glare in a well-lit room, and it has a wide viewing angle if you want to watch the game with a few friends, meaning everyone sees the same consistent image from the sides. Unfortunately, it has some uniformity issues with dirty screen effect in the center, which can be distracting with large areas of uniform colors, like a basketball court or football field.
- Upscales lower-resolution content well.
- Excellent SDR peak brightness.
- Image remains consistent from the sides.
- Quick response time.
- Some uniformity issues.
The Samsung Q80B is very good for gaming. It has advanced gaming features like HDMI 2.1 bandwidth and VRR support to deliver a nearly tear-free gaming experience. It also has low input lag for a responsive feel and a 120Hz panel with a quick response time for smooth motion handling. Sadly, it doesn't perform well if you want to game with it in the dark, as it has a low contrast ratio, and blacks look gray. On the plus side, it easily gets bright enough to fight glare if you want to use it in a well-lit room.
- Quick response time.
- HDMI 2.1 bandwidth with VRR support.
- Low input lag.
- Low contrast ratio.
- Blooming around bright objects.
- Mediocre local dimming.
The Samsung Q80B is alright for watching movies in dark rooms. The main downside is that it has a low contrast ratio that makes blacks look gray in dark rooms. Its full-array local dimming feature fails to improve the picture quality in dark scenes, which means there's blooming around bright objects. It upscales lower-resolution content well but loses details in compressed content, like from streaming services. If you want to watch HDR content, it supports HDR10+ but not the widely supported Dolby Vision, which is disappointing.
- Automatically removes 24p judder from any source.
- Displays wide color gamut.
- Good HDR brightness.
- Low contrast ratio.
- Blooming around bright objects.
- Mediocre local dimming.
- No Dolby Vision support.
The Samsung Q80B is very good for HDR gaming, mainly due to its gaming features. It has a 120Hz panel and HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, allowing you to take full advantage of gaming consoles and high-end graphics cards. It also has VRR support for a nearly tear-free gaming experience, low input lag, and a quick response time. Although it displays a wide color gamut and has good HDR peak brightness, its HDR performance still is just alright because blacks look gray in the dark, and there's blooming in dark scenes.
- Quick response time.
- HDMI 2.1 bandwidth with VRR support.
- Low input lag.
- Good HDR brightness.
- Low contrast ratio.
- Blooming around bright objects.
- Mediocre local dimming.
The Samsung Q80B is excellent for use as a PC monitor. The excellent SDR peak brightness and decent reflection handling make it a great choice for a well-lit room, as visibility won't be a problem. It also has a wide viewing angle, meaning the image remains consistent at the edges even if you sit up close. Text looks sharp thanks to its RGB subpixel layout and proper chroma 4:4:4 support. However, it has some uniformity issues that can be distracting with large areas of uniform color, like when you have a webpage open.
- Excellent SDR peak brightness.
- Decent reflection handling.
- Image remains consistent from the sides.
- Quick response time.
- Some uniformity issues.
Changelog
- Updated Sep 05, 2023: Updated text for clarity throughout to match the results after various Test Bench updates.
- Updated Jul 10, 2023: Converted to Test Bench 1.11. With this update, we've added a new Upscaling: Sharpness Processing test and revamped our Blooming test so the scores and picture better match the real world experience. With this change, it was necessary to remove the Black Crush test. Finally, we've updated our usage scores to better align our scores with user expectations.
- Updated Jun 14, 2023: We've added a mention of the newly-reviewed Samsung Q80C QLED in the Contrast section of this review.
- Updated Apr 21, 2023: Converted to Test Bench 1.10. With this update we've revamped our Gradient testing, added a new test for Low Quality Content Smoothing, and expanded our Audio Passthrough testing.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the 65-inch Samsung Q80B, and the results are valid for the 55 and 75-inch models. The 50-inch version has a lower refresh rate and doesn't support HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, and both the 50 and 85-inch models have different panel types, so those sizes perform differently. The last four letters of the model code (in this case, FXZA) vary between regions and even retailers, and it's known as the Samsung Q80BD at Costco and Sam's Club. As Samsung's European lineup is different, these results are only valid for the North American Q80B and not the European version.
| Size | US Model | Panel Type | Refresh Rate | VRR | HDMI 2.1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50" | Samsung QN50Q80BAFXZA | VA | 60Hz | No | No |
| 55" | Samsung QN55Q80BAFXZA | ADS | 120Hz | Yes | Yes |
| 65" | Samsung QN65Q80BAFXZA | ADS | 120Hz | Yes | Yes |
| 75" | Samsung QN75Q80BAFXZA | ADS | 120Hz | Yes | Yes |
| 85" | Samsung QN85Q80BAFXZA | VA | 120Hz | Yes | Yes |
Our unit was manufactured in March 2022, and you can see the label here.
Popular TV Comparisons
The Samsung Q80B is a good overall TV that performs well in bright rooms thanks to its excellent peak brightness. It's a good choice if you need the wide viewing angle for a wide seating arrangement or want to use it as a PC monitor. It also has great gaming features like HDMI 2.1 bandwidth and VRR support. However, it lacks dark room performance as blacks look gray, and there's blooming around bright objects. The Samsung QN85B QLED is a better TV that costs just a little bit more, and even its successor, the Samsung Q80C QLED, improves in a few areas, like the contrast. If those TVs don't interest you, you can get other more budget-friendly TVs with better value, like the Hisense U6/U6H.
See our recommendations for the best TVs for sports, the best TVs for bright rooms, and the best TVs to use as a PC monitor.
The Samsung Q80A and the Samsung Q80B are very similar overall, but there are a few differences. The Q80A gets brighter in HDR to deliver a more impactful HDR experience, but the Q80B performs better in dark rooms because there's less blooming around bright objects, although its local dimming feature is still mediocre. However, the local dimming in Game Mode is better on the Q80B than the Q80A. Also, the Q80B has HDMI 2.1 bandwidth on all four of its HDMI ports, as opposed to just one on the Q80A, meaning you can connect multiple HDMI 2.1 devices.
The Samsung Q80C and Samsung Q80B are extremely similar TVs, with the Q80C slightly improving over its predecessor. The Q80C has improved contrast, helped by having double the local dimming zones over the Q80B. While both TVs have similar peak brightness in both SDR and HDR, the Q80C's HDR brightness is much higher when in Game Mode, so it's the better choice for fans of HDR gaming. Sadly, its color profile is inaccurate without calibration, with the Q80B not requiring nearly as much work to look good as its successor.
The Sony X90J is better overall than the Samsung Q80B mainly due to their panels' different strengths and weaknesses. The X90J is a better choice for dark rooms because it has a much higher contrast, the local dimming is better, and there's less blooming around bright objects. On the other hand, the Q80B is better for wide seating areas because it has a wider viewing angle. Although they have many of the same gaming features, like HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, the Q80B is still a better choice for gaming because it has FreeSync support and lower input lag.
The Samsung QN85B is better overall than the Samsung Q80B because it uses Mini LED backlighting, which the Q80A doesn't have. This means that the QN85B has a much better local dimming feature for improved dark room performance, and it gets brighter overall. It also has much better reflection handling, making the QN85B a better choice for well-lit rooms. However, the Q80B has better motion handling as there's less motion blur behind fast-moving objects.
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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