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For the most part, though, the UE50BU8000’s ‘journey’ from SDR to HDR is more illustrated by the issues HDR causes than the clear positive difference we’d have expected. Watch movies in striking picture detail, just as the directors intended. Samsung HDR TV technology uncovers all the finest details, even in the darkest and brightest scenes. Finally, discover what’s lurking in the shadows of a horror movie or witness the true beauty of a sun-lit scene.
The key here is a combination of performance and value. So, has Samsung achieved the perfect balance with the BU8000? Design The Samsung BU8500 is impressively slim, but this does limit what its speakers can do. (Image credit: Future) Samsung BU8500 review: Sound quality There’s no appearance on the BU85000 of the Game Bar interface found on more premium Samsung TVs either. It does, though, support ALLM switching, where the TV can switch automatically in and out of its low-latency game mode. That game mode delivers a fantastically fast response time of just 10ms, too, which is pretty much as low a figure as you’ll find in the TV world, and there’s also Samsung’s Game Hub to consider, which carries currently the TV world’s largest selection of streamed gaming services. It’s quite distinct through the mid-range and, again, quite decent levels of detail. Voices project forwards well, and they're actually quite nicely balanced – until they start to nudge into the upper frequency range. Once it reaches the higher frequencies, the BU8500 becomes quite hard and edgy, bringing sibilance and even a hint of coarseness to treble sounds. It’s a trait that’s only exacerbated by volume.I’ve grumbled about the sluggishness of Samsung’s refreshed interface for its 2022 TVs, but up until now, the issue has been an unresponsive smart remote. The UE65BU8000, on the other hand, is just slow all over. You also get two USB ports, twin terrestrial and satellite tuners, an optical digital output, a CI (Common Interface) slot, and a LAN port, along with built-in Wi-Fi. Information about the maximum horizontal viewing angle, within which the image on the screen is of acceptable quality. Information about the brightness of the screen. It is measured in candela per square metre (cd/m²).
Voice control is through Bixby, as has been standard for the last few seasons, but this time, the option to choose Alexa is also built into the system (Google Assistant has been promised as a later update). Press the microphone button on the remote and ask for content genres, a specific film or channel, a change of inputs or to open an app, on top of all the standard services such as weather, news and egg timers. Many countries receive market-specific variations of television, of course, due to differences in broadcast standards and so on – so at present there’s no confirmation of what the equivalent Samsung screen will be in other territories. What we can be certain of, though, is that both the United States and Australia will be getting a range of competitively priced, competitively specified Samsung 4K LED TVs that are more than a little reminiscent of the BU8500 series. Whether it’s boxset binging, movie night or game time, the Samsung UE55BU8000 rises to the occasion with its premium picture quality.Power supply and consumption Information about the power supply and consumption, energy efficiency class, etc. 110V Subscriptions required. Some apps may not be available at launch. 3rd party content providers may remove apps from the Smart TV platform or stop updating them at any time. Ultimately, we end up with a choice between a subtle and nuanced, but slightly dull, picture with the Contrast Enhancer set to Low or something with more HDR impact, but a little lighter on tonal detail, when going for the High setting. Either way, the picture is involving, exciting and way beyond anything else you’ll find at this price. This is a 4K LED screen, powered by Samsung’s ‘Crystal 4K’ processor and with support for HLG and HDR10+ standards of HDR (we’re used to Samsung refusing to offer support for Dolby Vision, but it never stops being galling). Subtitles and audio description information displayed on electronic programme guide programme banner
The smart hub is divided into sections accessible on the left-hand side. The main hub is an entertainment one, while the Gaming Hub, Universal Guide (basically, search function) and Settings are the other three sections (the BU8000 doesn’t support the Ambient mode that shows images when the TV is in its “sleep” mode). Subtitles and audio description information displayed on electronic programme guide more info panel Max light output HDR (high dynamic range) while displaying a live scene and white square taking up 10% of the screen (measured in Nits) Its motion handling abilities are rather decent when watching West Side Story in 4K HDR. The Custom setting is good with no noticeable artefacts and judder, while the stronger Auto setting gives the dance scene at the school a glossier, more artificial look (usually around the mouths of people as they talk), with a hint of stutter and judder if you look closely. In addition, the UE55NU8000’s panel is 120Hz, which means it has better motion handling than the 60Hz UE49NU8000. The TV can take advantage of the panel having double the frame rate of standard broadcasting to generate a smoother image. This is called frame interpolation, and it can be highly beneficial when it comes to sport.First the good stuff. When it comes to standard dynamic range (SDR), this TV is capable of delivering a very punchy image. Colours are suitably natural and, as a result, images look pleasingly realistic. There’s also plenty of brightness, and a solid contrast performance. The Game mode is bright enough to give a little zing to the tints and reflections of cars in Gran Turismo 7, and the image is colourful enough, but a little more vibrancy would not go amiss. The panel is illuminated from its edges, rather than having lights positioned directly behind it. This no doubt helped Samsung achieve the UE50BU8000’s AirSlim design, but edge lighting can struggle to control where the light goes as well as LED lighting systems that are placed directly behind the screen.
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