In one of our earlier blogs (The Best of CES2013) we spoke a lot about Samsung and how they are one of the most innovative manufacturers around. At CES2013 they unveiled bendy phones, curved screen TVs and fridges with iPad style display panels. That was impressive enough.
They also began showcasing their new range of 4K Ultra HD TVs which they said would be ready for pre-order at the end of March. Samsung are calling these TVs their S9 range and they had the UN85S9 model on display.
So being in the end of March, we checked the Samsung site and it wasn’t on there yet. These dates are probably for Korean and US customers only. They’ve indicated that the TV will be available in the UK mid 2013. But we’ll keep checking.
Although there is very limited information on their site, what we do know is that the entry level model of the S9 range, the UN85S9, will set you back a stonking $40,000. That’s around £26,250 based on current exchange rates.
That is a lot of money for a TV. So what do you get for that rather large investment?
Firstly, a huge 85 inch screen that delivers a picture in UHD 4x the resolution of current full HD TVs.
But the biggest wow factor comes from the actual design on the TV. The screen is mounted in a frame a bit like a painters easel or one of those rotating white boards your teachers used to have. The picture above explains it better. Samsung say that this frame design allows the screen to be tilted and gives the impression that the screen actual “floats”.
At CES2013 there was a mixed reception for the design – however, we think that it really works. But obviously you can make up your own mind.
One of the reasons we love this design is that the speakers are housed in the frame itself and this allows the beast to deliver a whopping 120 watts of sound to give you the full cinema experience.
Obviously its packed with the very latest tech – a quad core processor, Smart View (stream content from your mobile to the TV) and an up scaling engine that will up convert HD and full HD to UHD quality giving the best and most vivid picture quality on the market. They’re doing this because UHD transmissions are extremely limited at the moment. (Ed: Just a note here, you’ll also see TVs with 4K screen resolutions. Well 4K and UHD are the same thing).
Samsung have also improved the their Smart Hub technology so that you can now control or manage all your other Samsung gear from your sofa – what that means is you can track and control your washing machine, cooker, air conditioning and so on right from your sofa.
So in summary this is one hell of a TV, 85 inches of fantastic picture quality, 120 watts of sound delivered from a stunning and unique design. However, do you need an UHD TV right now?
Probably not as there are very few broadcasts supporting UHD (hence the up scaling engine) and the Blu Ray people are still working on UHD. But UHD will come – it’s just a matter of time.
In the mean time however, we’d suggest taking a look at the current Samsung full HD TVs – like their UE55ES8 which has a 55 inch screen is 3D and at a little over £2,000 is a 13th of the price of the S9. And it has a lovely stand too.