Great TVs really do come in small packages. I’ve been watching the 43-inch Samsung QN90C NeoQLED 4K TV for a few weeks and I can’t believe the picture quality this TV has. It can reach such deep, rich black tones and such bright colours that if I had to describe it in a few words I’d say it was a QLED that looks like an OLED. While I’ve never had a TV smaller than 55 inches before, I think 43 inches is the perfect size for a bedroom, office, or garage. It’s also available in larger sizes, and if this model is any indication, the picture quality would be absolutely stunning on a bigger screen.
Here’s a look at what I thought of the Samsung QN90C NeoQLED TV.
Features on Samsung QN90C NeoQLED TV
The Samsung QN90C NeoQLED is a very thin, very light TV that comes packaged with a stand. It weighs 9.4 kg (20.72 lbs). The stand resembles a computer monitor stand and you’ll need a screwdriver to attach it. The 43-inch model is the smallest size in the QN90C lineup, and you can also choose it in 50, 55, 65, 75, and 85 inch sizes.
- 43 inch 4K QLED TV with Mini LED backlight
- Neo Quantum HDR+ for vivid colour and exceptional brightness and Auto HDR Remastering for improved SDR content
- 4K Neural Quantum Processor is AI-powered to upscale your content
- Anti-Glare coating and Ultra Viewing Angle Technology
- Dolby Atmos and Object Tracking Sound+
- Samsung Gaming Hub lets you play your favourite games in one location without the need for a console
- 120Hz native refresh rate with up to 144Hz and 9.7 milliseconds input lag
- Real Depth Enhancer and Pantone Validated Colour
- Smart Hub organizes your streaming content and Smart Things connects you to your smart home devices
- 4 HDMI ports, 2 USB, and an Ethernet port
- Solar cell remote control stays charged for months
Testing out Samsung QN90C NeoQLED
It’s hard not to be impressed by the Samsung QN90C NeoQLED TV. When you tap the remote the TV slides open and you’re presented with a bright screen packed with a ton of streaming and live TV choices. There is a menu on the left that lists a few of your TV options including search, ambient, game, media, connected devices, and settings.
NeoSlim design
This TV is very thin and there is a very small frame around IT that lets you enjoy the full size of the screen. Samsung calls the design NeoSlim. It’s the type of TV you can mount on the wall and use as a photo frame when you’re not watching, and I would definitely opt for a wall mount over the included stand. A wall mount would look more elegant and be more functional, and I’m a little leery about the durability of the stand. While I like the minimalist design, I was a bit nervous about knocking the stand and having it fall over. The TV is so light it doesn’t seem like it weighs it down enough to hold it in place if you bump it.
The QN90C has an anti-reflective coating that’s very effective. If you’re watching with your curtains open and you have bright light shining through the windows, it’s minimized when you’re watching. Sometimes, when scrolling through the menus, I could see light from the window reflecting on the screen, but when I started watching a movie or a TV show, it disappeared or was dimmed enough that it didn’t interfere with watching.
This TV also comes with the new Samsung SolarCell remote control. It has a small solar strip on the back so it can recharge via sunlight and the design is part of Samsung’s sustainability plan. If you ever run out of battery power you can also plug it in via USB-C.
Picture quality on Samsung QN90C NeoQLED
I spent a few weeks binging Netflix and Disney+ on the Samsung QN90C. The best way to describe the picture quality is to say that, if someone put me in front of the TV and I didn’t know anything about it, I would have a hard time determining whether or not it’s an OLED. One of the reasons I say that is the high contrast. I know a NeoQLED can’t achieve true black the way an OLED can and Mini-LEDs aren’t capable of turning off and on individually like OLED, but this TV can produce blacks that are so deep and dark you might struggle to tell the difference. At night, in a dark room without any light shining in, the screen looks pitch black.
QLED TVs with Mini-LED backlight are great for rooms without a lot of natural light. My house is shaded by trees so I need the brightest TV possible in every room. The default brightness on this TV was more than enough for a room without natural light, and even when I turned on the lights and watched with the curtains open it was still very bright.
The QN90C has a 4K Neural Quantum Processor that’s AI-powered to upscale everything you watch, and it has Neo Quantum HDR+ to brighten images, Real Depth Enhancer to make images more realistic, and Pantone Validated Colour so colours look bright and natural no matter what you’re watching. Colour is very sharp and natural, and in some cases, I thought it was so vivid I wanted to dial the brightness down a bit.
No matter what I watched on this TV, it looked better than on my own TV. Whether I was watching old YouTube videos I uploaded of my kids, black and white TV shows, or my favourite Marvel movies on Disney+, everything had sharp detail and cinematic colour. I watched a few IMAX-enhanced videos on Disney+ and Netflix and they looked spectacular too. The picture quality on this TV is so fantastic I didn’t even think about the fact that it was only 43 inches.
Samsung Gaming Hub and Neo Quantum HDR+
I’ve talked about the Samsung Gaming Hub in other reviews but I’m even more impressed with it now that I’ve linked it up to my Xbox Game Pass account. All you need is a controller and a good Internet connection and you can stream all of your Xbox games without plugging in your console. There are other platforms you can stream too including Amazon Luna, GeForce Now, and Utomik. The Gaming Hub also has videos so you can watch Twitch broadcasts and other gaming content.
This TV is amazing for gaming, and Neo Quantum HDR+ adds detail and brightness to dark games. My go-to game for testing out a new TV is always Red Dead Redemption, and I thought the TV really brought a natural quality to the game. Dark scenes and shadows are more detailed than I’ve seen on other TVs. The TV also has 120Hz native refresh rate with the option to enhance it to 144Hz in game mode and a minimal 9.7 milliseconds lag. With a console plugged in it’s fast enough to keep up with the most intense action games and you don’t experience blur or delay between controller and game.
If you’re going to connect your controller to the TV and stream games, my suggestion is to plug in the TV via Ethernet and maintain a close position to the TV. It takes a lot of bandwidth to load and stream the games, and while we have a very fast 5G network we use to connect our TVs we had a much smoother experience after we plugged in. I also tried to use an older Xbox controller that didn’t maintain a strong Bluetooth connection so there was a lot of lag between the controller and the TV. Any lag we experienced disappeared as soon as I added my PS5 controller.
Sound quality on Samsung NeoQLED
There are two different sound modes on the Samsung QN90C—Standard and Amplify. I thought the sound was great considering the size of the screen and how thin it is. When watching movies I kept the volume at 30 and in Amplify mode. Dialogue was very clear, and it felt like it was coming from a center speaker. This TV uses Object Tracking Sound technology to optimize sound and send it to your TV’s speakers in a way that makes it feel as though it’s moving with the action. It’s not as precise as a set of home theatre speakers or a sound bar, but it gives the TV great quality. It’s a good feature when you’re using the TV in your bedroom and you don’t want to add a sound bar or speakers.
The sound quality was loud enough to send my cats running when I put on a cat video. Nothing gets them in front of a TV faster than the sound of birds, and as you can see in the photos, my buddy Apollo made himself comfortable while he watched a few hours of squirrel videos.
Should you choose the Samsung QN90C NeoQLED?
If you’re looking for a second TV in a smaller size, the 43-inch Samsung QN90C NeoQLED is hard to beat. After using it for a few weeks it would be an easy choice for my bedroom. I’ve been firm in my decision to upgrade to an OLED for my next living room TV, but now I’m wondering if I have to. In my opinion, the QN90C gives you an OLED-quality picture that’s brighter and more vivid than most OLEDs, but it can still reach those deep black tones you really want for movies and gaming.
Samsung Gaming Hub is such a great addition to Samsung’s Smart Hub, and it’s nice that I can pick up a controller and game without plugging in a console. For streaming TV and movies, you can access all of your favourite apps on a smart screen that’s easy to navigate. I also love how Samsung SmartThings is integrated with this TV. I was pretty surprised when I was watching and my TV popped up a notification that my range had finished preheating. All of the smart devices you add to SmartThings can be accessed on your TV.
I am always impressed by Samsung TVs, and they just keep getting better and better. You can find the Samsung QN90C NeoQLED 4K TV in 43 inches as well larger sizes at Best Buy right now.
I learned that it has Anti-Glare coating to reduce reflections.
My tv is on about an hour each day. Not that much
This tv would be great for me, I watch about 3 hours a day of Netflix,Prime and Youtube content.
Hope I get lucky for the contest 🙂
Given that I watch up to 4 hours of Netflix/Disney/Amazon binges, this sounds nice.
What.got my interest was the anti-reflective coating; I didn’t know this was a thing.
Wow, a solar-powered remote control- what a greaf idea. You learn something new every day!
We watch somewhere between 4–8 hours of (streaming) TV a week.
I learned about mini-LED technology. I watch around 4 hours of TV a day.
I learned about the anti-glare feature. I watch TV around 2-6 hours a day.
I learned about mini-LED technology which improves black light levels!. We watch around 2 hours a day!
I have been a TV addict since I was young and watch 8-10 hours of TV many days, especially during the winter months. I learned that this TV has a solar cell remote control.
We probably watch 10 hours a week of TV… I learned about the 120Hz native refresh rate with up to 144Hz and 9.7 milliseconds input lag
The anti-glare feature. We typically get 6 – 8 hours of tv watching per day.
From Shelly’s review, I learned that this TV has “Anti-Glare coating and Ultra Viewing Angle Technology” which is awesome for times when there is too much sunlight shining through the windows. We watch about 2 hours of TV per day in my household.
Lots of hours gets watched on our TV because it is running most of the time. I learned about the sound quality on this TV.
We watch about an hour a day. It’s great that it has 4 HDMI ports, 2 USB, and an Ethernet port
I learned in this review that there is two mode for the sound, either Standard and Amplify.
I watch about 2h of tv per day.
We watch about 5 hours of tv a day and I learned about QN90C has a 4K Neural Quantum Processor that’s AI-powered to upscale everything you watch, and it has Neo Quantum HDR+ to brighten images, Real Depth Enhancer to make images more realistic, and Pantone Validated Colour.
I learned that the neoQLED Samsung line uses quantum dots overlaid on mini-LEDS to achieve a brighter, more colourful picture. Cool!
In our home, we watch over 8 hours of TV per day or 56h of TV per week.
I learned that this TV has a solar cell remote control! I’d say we watch around 5 hours of TV a day.
I learned that it has Anti-Glare coating to reduce reflections. Approx. 3 hours a day.
I learned about the object tracking sound. We are big movie watchers in this house, so 2 or so hours a day.
We average 7-10 hrs a week watching tv. I learned the tv has anti-reflective coating which is great when too much daylight is shining through the tv.
We get about 8-10 hrs or so a week, but with Anti-Glare coating and Ultra Viewing Angle Technology I’m thinking this could change..
I would say we watch 3-4 hours of TV a day since we love unwinding at the end of the day by watching sports and re-runs of Friends. I learned that Samsung has SolarCell technology for the remote control.
During weekday my TV is on about 2-3 hours per day. I love this TV slim and light weight, beautiful design
We probably watch TV 3- 4 hours a day not to mention the time using it to play games. I learned about the Neo Quantum HDR+ Auto HDR Remastering which would really improve the picture quality and viewing experience when we watch TV
This is REALLy great!!!!!!!! I LearneD that this television has a rechargeable remote control with a solarcell ALSO
We watch an average of about 20 hours Per week here
Hello. What a great contest and a good review! We watch about 3 hours of TV a day… and one of the surprising things that I learned about this TV was that “4K Neural Quantum Processor is AI-powered”.
I usually watch around 4 hours and learned that the Smart Gaming Hub lets you can pick up a controller and game without plugging in a console.
Watch 4 hours a day. I learned that the QN90C has a 4K Neural Quantum Processor that’s AI-powered to upscale everything you watch.
I watch about 4-5 hours daily. The anti-reflective coating sounds like a great idea as light can pour in from my living room window.
We watch about 10-12 hours of TV, usually on in background unless we’re outside doing sports. I learned that this TV has anti-reflective coating which is effective when you’re watching with curtains open / my window is right beside.
One thing that I learned from this review is that this tv comes with a solar cell remote control stays charged for months! We probably watch about 1 to 5 hours of TV a day depending on which day it is.
I think I watch watch about 4-5 hours daily.Solar cell remote control sounds great!
Super review!
We watch about 4 hours of TV a day and I didn’t know that there are two different sound modes on the Samsung QN90C—Standard and Amplify.
I learned about the neoslim design and light weight of the tc from this review. The amount of TV I watch varies a lot, depending on whether I’m binging anything, and I mostly watch it on my laptop. This TV might change that, though . I’d guesstimate 20 hours a week.
the TV is very thin and weighs 20.72 pounds.
I have the tv on all the time
The TV is basically always on in the background, so I have no idea how many hours it’s actually watched.
I learned that the remote can be charged via the solar strip on it.
I learned that the QN90C has an anti-reflective coating that helps reduce glare from natural lighting which is very convenient! Between all members of my household (4 adults) I’d say we average about 20 + hours of TV watching per week.
We are retired so are able to watch more TV than we used to and we are “night owls” so stay up late into the morning hours catching up on our PVR recordings and probably watch on average 6-8 hours a day. As I read your review I learned the Samsung QN90C NeoQLED has an anti-reflective coating that helps reduce glare from natural lighting which I think would be useful.
Reading your review I learned that QLED TVs with Mini-LED backlight which is great for my living room with a patio door (natural light). Retired and we watch anywhere from 2 to 12 hours per day if we’re home.