I tested Samsung's 98-inch 4K QLED TV, and watching Hollywood movies on it left me in awe

ZDNET's key takeaways

• The Samsung Neo QLED (QN90D) 98-inch TV lists for $15,000, but is marked down to $13,000 at most vendors.
• Its picture quality rivals OLED models in contrast and motion handling while exceeding most of them in peak brightness.
• The location of its connection ports can make setting up such a large TV a bit fussy.

It's rare for me to be blown away by the picture quality of any TV I'm reviewing. But with Samsung's QN90D Neo QLED TV, that's what happened -- in a big-time (ultra-large) way.

That's because Samsung sent the 98-inch model to our ZDNET lab in Louisville, and I had the pleasure of spending some time with it, fully daunted by its imposing $15,000 price tag. This is the most expensive model of any TV I've tested.

Also: Neo QLED vs OLED: Which TV technology is right for you?

So, does the QN90D live up to its price point? If your budget falls into the $10K+ cost echelon, then you've already jumped the first hurdle in acquiring one. And if that's the case, then the answer is a resounding "Yes." 

To be clear, there are dozens of 98-inch TVs on the market that are much easier on the wallet than this puppy. For example, you can buy two of TCL's 98-inch QM8 Mini-LED for less than one QN90D. But there's a substantial difference in the technology behind these models, namely Samsung's treatment of Quantum Dot overlays on a mini-LED backlit display.

Also: How I optimized this 98-inch TV to feel like a movie theater (and it's on sale)

This formula is known as "Neo QLED," in which case Samsung has swapped out conventional LEDs for tens of thousands of mini-LEDs. These components consist of manufactured nanocrystals with ultra-fine semiconductor materials, allowing for a higher magnitude of these units to distribute light accurately and efficiently. The result, as Samsung puts it, is "brighter whites, darker blacks, and overall, a better color range in between."

I can attest to this. The QN90D offered up a crystal-clear picture with glistering highlights, vibrant colors, and the truest blacks I've witnessed on a non-OLED set. With its spread of UHD micro dimming zones, dark areas are so piercingly black that focusing your eyes on shadows is like staring into a void. This is fine by me because they're shadows, and I'm a fan of higher contrast ratios. 

Adam Breeden/ZDNET

But in some extreme cases, dark objects were so dark that their features were lost. Picture a black-clad motorcyclist racing down a sunlit road -- black helmet, black jacket, black bike -- and in this distant, wide-angle shot, the cyclist and his bike become almost a uniform silhouette, revealing no distinguishable textures or dimensionality. To be clear, this would be a demanding ask of any TV for the scene I'm describing. A desirable level of detail in such inky blackness may only be captured on Samsung's Neo QLED 8K QN990C, which goes for an eye-watering $40,000 and is the subject of a different review altogether. 

Also: The best TVs of 2024: Expert tested and reviewed

What impressed me most was the in-your-face brightness and extraordinary color gamut of the QN90D. It's bright, but not offensively so. I'd rather call the overall effect "convincing." Viewing the motion graphics at the beginning of Warner Brothers and 20th Century Fox productions, for example, felt like looking into the window of an uber-vivid metaverse.

In a few instances, the color vibrance was so intense that some viewers might find it off-putting, such as the radioactive red glow of Netflix's logo. There are settings to reduce this intensity. For starters, you won't want to set the TV's picture mode to "Dynamic" because then every color will gleam with supersaturated abandon. (I'll speak more on setting options below.)

Adam Breeden/ZDNET

Otherwise, I didn't encounter disproportionate levels of color or tonality. This held true in my assessments of glare and reflection, plus a scope of the QN90D's viewing angles. Standing just two feet from the screen at an unreasonably tight angle, the picture only suffered a minor loss of coloration (a slight washout), yet it retained its 4K QLED sharpness.

I was equally impressed with this TV's audio output. Even in the absence of a connected soundbar, the volume managed to fill our testing area more than adequately, and it did this at about one-tenth of its potential. While watching Kandahar on Prime, I never pushed the volume past 12. It frightens me to imagine the stentorian result of cranking it up to 100.

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In addition to 4.2.2 channel speakers pumping out 60 watts of power, Samsung's OTS+ technology tracks the onscreen action and adjusts sounds accordingly. Its 98-inch panel consists of 8,276 square inches, allowing for more integrated speakers, which strategically create a 3D-like soundscape that seems to envelop you from all directions. No soundbar is necessary. (Although I don't discourage adding one to it.)

I did change the QN90D's default sound mode to "Amplify" and noticed a marked improvement in the crispness of whispering dialogue in Dune 2, as well as in Kandahar. The setting's name is a bit misleading because it doesn't amplify volume, but instead clarity. The two films I mentioned above are excellent for TV testing. Like many movies, they have plenty of whispering dialogue, but also gads of sweeping desert vistas. 

Color variation and rendering become more evident in viewing what are mostly stark landscapes, including everything from jutting rock formations to an actor's skin tone and Dune's reddish "spice" granules within swells of billowing sand. The bright and sunny drone shots in Kandahar, for example, were particularly stunning.

My ideal picture settings for the Samsung QN90D

When orienting myself with any new TV, I spend a lot of time testing out the settings. I toggle the options on and off while scrutinizing select scenes from certain movies. I adjust the sliders if available (e.g., tint). I experiment with Expert Settings (like switching Local Dimming to high and Contrast Enhancer to low, and vice-versa). 

I do a similar thing with audio. This practice of combining and/or separating setting variables is basically a trial-and-error endeavor in pursuit of seeing optimal results. Naturally, this is a subjective process because it's all about personal preferences.

Also: I changed these 6 Samsung TV settings to significantly improve the picture quality

For the QN90D, I only changed three picture settings from their default positions, and that's in large part owed to the Tizen software's AI capabilities: 

1. Under All Settings, you'll find Samsung's "Intelligent Mode" option. Turning that on disables the usual lineup of options under the Picture Mode menu (Dynamic, Eco, Filmmaker, etc.). 
2. The Picture Mode options are then replaced with three choices: "Optimized," "Eye Comfort," and "AI Customization." The latter indeed lets you customize your visual preference by selecting one of four image choices (each) for sports, movies, and general viewing. 
3. The Tizen OS's NQ4 AI Gen2 processor then used my image selections as ingredients to concoct what was, to me, the best picture possible.

After all the experimentation, my selections solidified AI Customization as the clear winner in terms of a preferred picture mode. The contrast, brightness, and sharpness in scenes from these 4K flicks were incredibly satisfying.

Adam Breeden/ZDNET

Consider these design elements as you shop

Like other new Samsung remotes, the QN90D's takes a little getting used to because of its diminutive size and its rocker buttons, which are relatively unconventional for remote controls. These small, flat, capsule-shaped buttons are designed to push toward or away from the TV to adjust the volume and navigate the menu. (The interface itself, I should note, only required a modicum of menu-diving to reach desired selections, making it one of the more user-friendly panels I've tested.)

I acclimated to the remote's design swiftly, and also appreciate the solar panel on its underside for a lifetime of use without cable charging or replacing batteries. But if it's just too much effort to pick up and use a TV remote, the QN90D also offers hands-free operation with its Bixby, Alexa, or Google voice assistants. Disappointingly, the remote is not backlit -- as I wish all TV remotes should be -- because I tend to do any binge-watching after sundown.

Also: The 2024 TCL QLED TV I recommend to most buyers is on sale for up to $3,000 off

A common complaint among users of the QN90D is the placement of its input array. Its four HDMI ports, two USBs, and other connection points are situated on the back right side of the panel. This is fairly standard for many TVs. For a television of this size, however, simply accessing the ports and then deciding how to run your wires to the nearest wall outlet can be an awkward affair.

These grumblings likely stem from prior iterations of Samsung's QLED models (e.g., the QN95C) having a separate OneConnect box that can marry all your peripherals to the TV through a single translucent cable. For the QN90D, the lack of a dedicated HDMI switch is a practical concern in terms of access and positioning. And it's an aesthetic consideration if you can't stomach visible wires trailing from the electronic centerpiece of your living room.

ZDNET's buying advice

I can overlook Samsung's decision to make the inputs a tad harder to reach because this TV is spectacular to watch and listen to. At $15,000, even an ultra-large 98-inch screen ought to be brimming with cutting-edge technology, elevated specs, and a profusion of cool features. The Samsung QN90D certainly qualifies with these traits. 

Most of all, though, it delivers an exceptional viewing experience that will dazzle your eyeballs and please your earholes. If I were in a higher tax bracket (and had a bigger house), I would undoubtedly put this massive entertainment purchase in my (gargantuan) shopping cart. 

Samsung 98-inch QN90D 4K QLED TV tech specs

How we test TVs

While testing and researching the TV featured in this review, I and other ZDNET experts kept these criteria in mind:

• Price: Not all budgets are created equal. And if you're working with a limited budget, that shouldn't mean you have to settle for a sub-par TV. Each TV model we review has been chosen across a variety of price points to help accommodate different needs.
• Screen size: The most important factor to consider, after price, when shopping for a new TV is whether or not it will fit into your space. While this specific screen size is exceptional, the QN90D is available in a wide variety of smaller sizes to suit different rooms.
• Picture and audio quality: A new TV doesn't mean much, even if it costs an arm and a leg, if it doesn't provide a great picture and clear audio. Each TV on this list has been ensured to support various HDR codecs, including HDR10+ and Dolby Vision, as well as enhanced audio software like Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital Plus, and object-tracking sound.

For a more detailed look, check out our extensive TV testing methodology.