The Samsung Q9F is the brand's highest-end QLED LCD TV and offers excellent performance for mixed usage. In dark rooms, the high native contrast ratio and great local dimming result in deep dark scenes, and in bright rooms, the excellent anti-reflective coating and high peak brightness help to overcome glare. Unfortunately, when watching sports, some dirty screen effect is noticeable due to nonuniform areas of the screen and the image loses accuracy when viewed at an angle.
Note that this is a different TV to the 2017 QLED Q9F. The 2018 Q9FN is also called the Q9F or Q9.
Our Verdict
Excellent TV for a range of different usages. The Samsung Q9F is a great fit for both bright and dark rooms. It can get bright to overcome glare and has excellent reflection handling. The TV can produce deep and detailed dark scenes due to the high native contrast ratio and great local dimming. Also, it has low input lag for gaming and PC use, but unfortunately, the narrow viewing angle means the image degrades when viewed at an angle.
- Very bright in both SDR and HDR
- Very low input lag, even with interpolation
- Great motion handling
- Image loses accuracy when viewed at an angle
Excellent TV for movie lover in a dark room. It has a high native contrast ratio combined with great local dimming results in deep dark scenes. The black uniformity is also excellent and movies from most sources are displayed without any judder or cadence issues.
Great TV for watching TV shows in a bright room. It can get bright to overcome glare, and reflection handling is excellent even for a very bright room. The smart platform works well for casual TV watching, along with voice control to search for content from popular platforms. Unfortunately, the narrow viewing angle means the best picture is reserved for those directly in-front of the TV.
Great TV for watching sports. Motion handling is great due to the excellent response time, so only a short trail can be seen behind fast-moving objects. The Samsung Q9F can get bright to overcome glare, and reflection handling is excellent even for bright sunny rooms. Unfortunately, the viewing angle is narrow so the image loses accuracy when viewed at an angle.
Excellent TV for gamers. The TV feels very responsive due to low input lag, even with motion interpolation ('Game Motion Plus') for added smoothness. Motion handling is also great, as the TV can flicker the backlight to clear up fast motion and only a short trail can be seen behind fast-moving content.
Excellent performance for HDR movies. The picture quality is great due to high native contrast ratio and great local dimming. Black uniformity is also excellent for dark scenes. The TV can produce a very wide color gamut and excellent HDR peak brightness for bright and vivid highlights.
HDR gaming performance is excellent. Motion handling is great, and the TV feels very responsive due to low input lag and fast response time. Even when interpolating content through the 'Game Motion Plus' option for a smoother image, the input lag is very low which is excellent. Picture quality is great, and HDR content can really stand out due to the high peak brightness and ability to produce vivid highlights.
Great TV for monitor use. The Samsung Q9 supports chroma 4:4:4 for clear text across all backgrounds. Also, the TV feels responsive due to great motion handling and low input lag. Unfortunately, the sides of the screen look a bit non-uniform due to the narrow viewing angles.
Changelog
- Updated May 21, 2020: Converted to Test Bench 1.5.
- Updated Feb 21, 2020: Converted to Test Bench 1.4.
- Updated Feb 28, 2019: Converted to Test Bench 1.3.
- Updated Jun 11, 2018: 1440p @ 120 Hz input lag has decreased as of firmware 1103. The review has been updated.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the 65" (QN65Q9FNA) version FA02. For the most part, we expect our review to be valid for the 75" version (QN75Q9FNA).
If someone comes across a different type of panel or if their Samsung Q9FN doesn't correspond to our review, let us know and we will update the review.
| Size | Model | Model Short | US | Canada | UK |
| 55" | QN55Q9FN | QN55Q9 | N/A | N/A | QE55Q9FNATXXU |
| 65" | QN65Q9FN | QN65Q9 | QN65Q9FNAFXZA | QN65Q9FNAFXZC | QE65Q9FNATXXU |
| 75" | QN75Q9FN | QN75Q9 | QN75Q9FNAFXZA | QN75Q9FNAFXZC | QE75Q9FNATXXU |
Popular TV Comparisons
The Samsung Q9FN is a versatile TV that is excellent for a wide range of usages. It has some great features, but comes at a very high price. See some of our comparisons below for how it compares to other TVs on the market. See also our recommendations for the best smart TVs and the LED TVs.
The Samsung Q9FN/Q9/Q9F QLED 2018 is better than the Samsung Q7FN/Q7/Q7F QLED 2018. The Samsung Q9FN has much better local dimming performance and a higher contrast ratio and black uniformity that improve picture quality. This becomes more apparent when you watch movies in a dark room. The Samsung Q7FN has better gray uniformity, which is great if you watch sports.
The Samsung Q9FN/Q9/Q9F QLED 2018 is much better than the Samsung Q6FN/Q6/Q6F QLED 2018. The Samsung Q9FN has more uniform blacks and full array local dimming that deliver a better dark room performance. The Q9FN has better reflection handling and can get brighter both in SDR and in HDR, delivering a better HDR movie watching experience. The Samsung Q6FN has a lower input lag, which is good if you play video games.
The Samsung Q9FN/Q9/Q9F QLED 2018 is somewhat better than the Samsung Q70R. The Q9FN can handle reflections better and can get brighter, so it's more suitable for a bright room with many light sources. The Samsung Q9FN has a better local dimming feature that enhances its dark room performance. The Q70R can display judder-free movies from any source and has a lower input lag, which is excellent for playing video games.
The Samsung Q80R is marginally better than the Samsung Q9FN/Q9/Q9F QLED 2018. The Samsung Q80R encompasses the 'Ultra Viewing Angle' technology that improves viewing angles at the expense of lower contrast ratio. The contrast ratio on the Q9FN is better, but the overall dark room performance between the two TVs is almost on par. The Q80R has marginally better gray uniformity, which is essential when watching sports, and a somewhat lower input lag, which is great for serious gamers. The Samsung Q9FN handles reflections marginally better thanks to the lack of viewing angle layer.
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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