Sony XBR75X940E vs Samsung QN75Q7F Review (X940E vs Q7F)

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If you are searching big screen premium TV with excellent picture quality and great HDR performance, Samsung QN75Q7F or Sony XBR75X940E might be a good options for you. Both of them are including high-end TV of each of their manufactures. Their price might not be cheap, but of course, but it is in accordance with the picture quality and performance which offered. In the market, XBR75X940E is sold hundreds dollar more expensive than QN75Q7F, but of course, their price could still change at any time. So, what features which offered by each and which one is a better choice? Let’s discus their performance side by side.

Short Review of Sony XBR75X940E (X940E)

Along with X930E, Sony XBR75X940E is the top model of Sony’ 2017 4K HDR LED TV XBR-X Series. The excepting of their backlighting technology, what features by XBR75X940E is similar to X930E. If X930E uses Slim Backlight Drive based on edge-lit LED backlight with local dimming, X940E uses direct led backlight with Full Array Local Dimming. But unfortunately, Sony doesn’t clearly reveal how many diming zones of the local dimming of XBR75X940E. But certainly, its local dimming is very effective to boost the contrast ratio and peak brightness so makes it is including LED TVs with stronger contrast ratio and brightness peak brightness.

Comes with HDR technology, for a while, Sony XBR75X940E already supports HDR 10 format only. But even so, with upcoming software update, this TV is also designed for supporting Dolby Vision and HLG (Hybrid Log Gamma). Meanwhile, for processing images, it is powered by 4K HDR Processor X1 Extreme where there are the number of Sony’s advanced technologies embedded for maximizing its HDR performance like Dual Data Base Processing, Object-Based HDR Remaster Technology, Super Bit Mapping 4K HDR, and others. For delivering strong contrast ratio with extremely bright peak brightness, the excepting of Full Array Local Dimming, Sony XBR75X940E series is also powered by the number of technologies like X-Tended Dynamic Range Pro 10X, Dynamic Contrast Enhancer, and others.  Additionally, combination of TriLuminos Display Technology and Precision Color Mapping makes it can properly show most of colors in DCI P3 color space required by HDR contents. Combination of excellent contrast ratio, good dark uniformity, extremely bright peak luminance and wide color gamut certainly makes the picture displayed on the big screen of XBR75X940E looks absolutely amazing, no matter the light condition of the room where it is used.

In addition to stunning picture quality and outstanding HDR performance, Sony XBR75X940E is also equipped great performance UHD Up-scaling engine called 4K X-reality Pro. Paired with X1 Extreme Engine, it is not only able to up-convert lower resolution to 4K quality fairly well, but it is also has an ability to improve the color and brightness range of SDR image so you can enjoy them with the quality close to 4K HDR. The other attractive point that offered by XBR75X940E is about its smart TV platform where with Android TVs, it provides tons of useful and interesting apps.

Like other TVs with VA panel, limited side viewing angle coverage becomes the major drawback of Sony XB75X940E. This means where you are watching TV from an angle, the picture quality doesn’t look as good as when you are watching from center and front. Additionally, XBR75X940E is also not an excellent TV when used for watching sport program or other fast moving images due it cannot remove the judder as good as the competitors. Additionally, its ability to remove judder when playing 24p movies is also not as good as the competitors. The other drawback of X940E is about its input lag at 1080p resolution, where it is too high for playing fast paced games.

>> Please click here to see the price of XBR75X940E on Amazon.com <<

Short Review of Samsung QN75Q7F (Q7F)

Samsung QN75Q7F (Q7F) is part of Samsung’s 2017 QLED TV lineup. Like other model of Samsung QLED TV, quantum dot panel is the mainstay technology of QN75Q7F. Combine to 4K Color Drive Elite engine behind it, this makes it has outstanding renditions of color, better than last year model KS8000 or LG OLED TV as the TV with the best rendition of colors in 2016. Along with other model of QLED TV, it is including TVs with the best renditions of colors in 2017.

Meanwhile, for delivering strong contrast ratio and good black uniformity, Samsung QN75Q7F uses VA panel with Edge-lit LED Backlight. It also has local dimming technology called Precision Black Pro. Still about contrast enhancement, there are also UHD Dimming technology and Contrast Enhancer behind it, result in strong contrast and good black uniformity for an excellent dark room performance. Otherwise, for maximizing peak brightness, QN75Q7F is powered by Peak Illuminator Pro technology. Although as not bright as what reached by XBR75X940E, this is still able to make dark scene of images looks excellently on the screen of QN75Q7F. Comes with HDR technology, Samsung QN75Q7F is powered by Q 4K HDR Elite engine and also already supports HDR 10 format only. But unlike XBR75X940E where it is ready to support Dolby Vision and HLG with upcoming software update, it is only ready to support HLG (Hybrid Log Gamma). Nevertheless, with the support of great display specs, this certainly makes picture quality and HDR performance offered by QN75Q7F is also great. But unfortunately, since it uses VA Panel, this certainly makes its side viewing angle coverage is limited. This means, the picture quality will look degraded when you are watching TV from an angle.

Like XBR75X940E, Samsung QN75Q7F is also equipped with great performance UHD Up-scaling engine that allows you to enjoy any resolution videos with the quality close to 4K HDR. The other advantage, it has low pixel response time, result in smooth and clear picture quality with almost no motion blur when used for watching sports program or fast movies. QN75Q7F is also a great TYV when used for watching 24p movies due its ability to remove the judder from any source. Additionally, with low input lag at any source, this TV is very comfortable when used for playing any kind of games, even for fast games which require fast reflex. And for offering simple, responsive, and attractive smart TV experience, QN75Q7F comes with Tizen OS 2017 as its smart TV platform.

>> Please click here to see the price of QN75Q7F on Amazon.com <<

Samsung QN75Q7F vs Sony XBR75X940E Key Specs

Samsung QN75Q7F vs Sony XBR75X940E Performance

Picture Quality

Essentially, both of SonyXBR75X940E and Samsung QN75Q7F have excellent picture quality and great HDR performance. Nevertheless, compare between them, on each of the aspect of picture quality, each of them has advantages and disadvantages to each other. In term of contrast and black level, they actually have similar native contrast ratio, but since the performance of the local dimming of Sony XBR74X940E works better then Samsung QN75Q7F, with local dimming enabled, contrast ratio of XBR75X940E is far stronger than QN75Q7F. On QN75Q7F, when the local dimming is enabled, there is no significant improvement on the contrast ratio produced, even tend to similar to when local dimming is set to low (There is no option for disabling local dimming on Q7F). Meanwhile, on XBR75X940E, the local dimming is very effective to boost the contrast ratio, even more than doubled than its native contrast ratio. Combine to its excellent black uniformity, this makes dark scenes of images displayed on its screen looks excellently, particularly when set in dark environment. On the other hand, although not as great as XBR75X940E, contrast ratio and black uniformity of Samsung QN75Q7F is also good enough to make dark scene looks excellently on its screen. Additionally, its contrast ratio is strong enough to clearly show shadow detail of HDR 10 images like what intended. As we know, to display dark scene of HDR image like what intended, a TV must have 0.05 nits of black level or darker, while the native contrast ratio of both is strong enough to deliver black level far darker than what recommended by UHD Alliance.

On the other hand, both of Samsung QN75Q7F and Sony XBR75X940E also have great peak brightness where they are equally able to reach more than 1100 nits of peak brightness on 10 % window. Nevertheless, since the local dimming of XBR75X940E works more effectively than QN75Q7F, XBR75X940E can still deliver more than 1000 nits on 2 % and 25 % windows, while on these screen windows, peak brightness of QN75Q7F will significantly dim below 1000 nits. Meanwhile, on 50% and 100% windows, peak brightness of XBR75X940E might also dim to below 1000 nits, even about 550 nits on 100% window, but it is still far brighter than QN75Q7F. Additionally, when displaying real scene, XBR75X940E can deliver far brighter peak brightness than QN75Q7F, no matter they are inputted by SDR or HDR videos. The result, in a dark room or moderately lit-room with not too many ambient lights, bright scenes displayed on their screen equally looks excellently. But when set in bright room with a lot of ambient lights, performance of QN75Q7F is not as good as XBR75X940E due peak brightness of QN75Q7F is not able to fight the glare as well as XBR75X940E. Additionally, QN75Q7F is not also able to show highlight of HDR images as bright as XBR75X940E. Nevertheless, although not as good as XBR75X940E, performance of QN75Q7F in a bright room is already fairly good.

While about contrast, black uniformity, and peak brightness, Sony XBR75X940E is superior to QN75Q7F, in term of renditions of color, QN75Q7F is superior to XBR75X940E. Both of them might be already support wide color gamut, but for this case, QN75Q7F is able to cover almost all colors in DCI P3 color space. Colors of HDR videos which mastered in DCI P3 color space can be reproduced almost perfectly, result in life-like HDR picture on its screen. On the other hand, although not as wide as what offered by Samsung QN75Q7F, Sony XBR75X940E can still properly show most of colors in DCI P3 color space. Some certain colors like deep green might still be shown a bit unsaturated, but overall, color performance of XBR75X940E is also fairly well. Meanwhile, still about their color performance, both of them also equally already support 10 bit depth shades of color and are able to show color gradient smoothly and clearly. But for this case, Sony XBR75X940E offers better performance than Samsung QN75Q7F. On the screen of XBR75X940E, color gradient of images displayed looks very smooth without any color gradation, while on the screen of QN75Q7F, some little imperfections are still noticeable in the darker colors. Nevertheless, this should not be a major problem while displaying normal contents.

For anticipating the many low resolution contents which available in the market, both of Samsung QN75Q7F and Sony XBR75X940E are equally equipped with great performance UHD Up-scaling engine. No matter the resolution of the source, whether it is low resolution videos like DVDs movies with 480p resolution, movies from HD TV with 720p resolution, or Blu- ray movies with 1080p resolution, once they are up-converted, all of them will look clearly and sharply in 4K resolution with a lot of details are still preserved well. Even not only that, both of them also have ability to improve the brightness and color range of SDR images so you can enjoy them with the quality as possible as close to 4K HDR quality.

Since both of them use VA panel technology, both of them equally have an issue on their side viewing angle coverage. Started at 20 degrees off center and front, black will look tend to grey and color will shift, make the picture displayed doesn’t look as good as when watched from center and front. And the wider angle you are watching from, the picture will look worse. Nevertheless, since all TVs with VA panel also have the same problem, this certainly is not their own problem. Additionally, as long as you don’t often watch TV from an angle, this should be a serious problem for you.

Winner: XBR75X940 is winner on contrast and peak brightness while QN75Q7F is winner on color reproduction.

Motion Handling and 24p Movies

When playing fast moving images like sports program or fast movies, Samsung QN75Q7F offer far better performance. Although both of them equally have native 120 Hz refresh rate panel, but the pixel response time of QN75Q7F is far lower than XBR75X940E. The result, in certain scenes, there is only a short faint trail following fast moving object on the screen of QN75Q7F, while on the screen of XBR75X940E, a faint trail following fast moving objects is far longer. This certainly makes watching sport program or fast movies feel more comfortable on QN75Q7F than XBR75X940E. But even so, because a trail just looks faintly, this might not disturb your convenience when enjoying your favorite sports or fast movies. Meanwhile, when playing 24p movies, Samsung QN75Q7F also offer better performance than Sony X940E. When playing 24p from Blu Ray Player, both of them might be equally able to show smooth and clear picture quality with judder-free, but when playing 24p movies via 60i/60p signal, QN75Q7F offer better performance. In this case, QN75Q7F can show with free judder, while XBR75X940E cannot remove the judder completely. Luckily, most of people don’t sensitive to judder so this certainly is not a serious problem for XBR75X940E.

Winner: QN75Q7F

Inputs/Outputs

Samsung One Connect Box

Talking about their inputs/outputs, Sony XBR75X940E has more complete inputs/outputs than Samsung QN75Q7F. Both of them are equally equipped with 4 HDMI ports which support HDCP 2.2 and 3 USB ports as their major connectivity. Additionally, they are also equipped with 1 RF In, 1 Ethernet, and 1 Digital Audio out (Optical). The advantages of XBR75X940E, there are 2 Composite In (AV In), 1 Component In, 1 IR In, and 1 Analog Audio Out (Mini Jack) behind it, while QN75Q7F is not equipped with these inputs/outputs. The difference between them, all of the inputs/outputs of XBR75X940E are located on the side or rear panel while for QN75Q7F, most of their inputs/outputs are located on separated box called “One Connect Box”. The advantage, if there is new firmware update of these inputs, you just need to replace this box without changing the TV. Meanwhile, talking about their input lag, both of them have similar low input lag at 4K resolution under “Game mode”, that is about 24 ms. This certainly is low enough for playing any kind of 4K games responsively without laggy on both. However, at 1080p resolution, the input lag of QN75Q7F is far lower than XBR75X940E. With about 20 ms of input lag, this certainly makes QN75Q7F is very comfortable when used for playing any kind of 1080p games, even for fast paced games. On the other hand, with about 40 ms of input lag, XBR75X940E is only comfortable when used for playing casual games, while for fast paced games, it is still too high.

Winner: QN75Q7F

Smart TV

Both of them equally feature attractive and responsive smart TV platform. Samsung QN75Q7F comes with Tizen OS 2017 while Sony XBR75X940E comes with Google Android Nougat. In term of attractiveness and responsiveness, both of them equally have attractive user layout and fast and responsive performance. But in term of navigation, Tizen OS is far simple than Android TV. On the Home screen of Tizen OS, there is a ribbon across the bottom of the screen contains quick access to most popular and favorite apps. This allows you to access them without leaving the home screen. Meanwhile, on Google Android TV, although most people might have been familiar with Android OS on their Android Smart phone, but navigation is still a bit confusing, especially for a newbie. Meanwhile, both of them equally provide tons of interesting and useful apps. There are VoD Service like Amazon Videos, YouTube, Netflix, and many more, Web browser, Cloud Games, Screen Mirroring Apps, Live TV, and many more. Additionally there is also Apps store on both where there are tons of downloadable apps available. Tizen OS comes with Samsung Apps Store while Android TV comes with Google Play Store. Talking about apps provide, Google Android TV might offer more complete and diverse apps because it is supported by tons of developers, however, apps provided by Samsung Apps Store is more focused on the apps what people want.

As their controller, Samsung QN75Q7F is equipped with “Samsung Smart Controller while Sony XBR75X940E is equipped with “Sony Voice Remote. Samsung remote is simple with minimalistic buttons, while Sony remote is larger and have a lot of array of buttons. On the other hand, both of them are equally equipped with built-in microphone for voice command or voice search. Additionally, both of them can be also functioned as universal remote for controlling other devices connected on your TV via HDMI ports. Nevertheless, for controlling other devices, Sony remote need other devices named “IR Blaster” which is included in its buying package.

Winner: QN75Q7F

>> Please click here to check the latest price of XBR75X940E on Amazon <<

>> Please click here to check the latest price of QN75Q7F on Amazon <<

Summary

Conclusion

As we have discussion a lot above, essentially, both of Samsung QN75Q7F and Sony XBR75X940E have good picture quality and great HDR performance. XBR75X940E is including TVs with the brightest peak luminance while Samsung QN75Q7F is including TVs with the best renditions of color. But even so, since XBR75X940E have far stronger contrast ratio when local dimming is enable and also has brighter peak brightness, this certainly makes the picture displayed on its screen looks consistently amazing when used in a room with any light condition. On the other hand, since it can cover almost perfectly colors in DCI P3 color space, QN75Q7F offer better rendition of colors, particularly when it is displaying HDR contents. But even so, overall, picture quality of XBR75X940E is better than Qn75Q7F. Additionally, both of them equally also have the same drawback that is limited viewing angle that means when you are watching TV from an angle, the picture doesn’t look as good as when you are watching from center and in front of the screen. Meanwhile, about other features like motion handling, 24p playback, motion handling, and smart TV, overall, Samsung QN75Q7F have a better performance than Sony XBR75X940E.

So, which is a better choice between them? As we have mentioned, in the marketplace, Sony XBR75X940E is sold about hundreds dollar more expensive than Samsung QN75Q7F. Now, the decision comes back to your according to your needs and preferences, XBR75X940E with better contrast ratio and brighter peak brightness or QN75Q7F with better renditions of color and better performance on some features like we have discussion a lot above.

>> Please click here to buy Samsung QN75Q7F on Amazon <<

>> Please click here to buy Sony XBR75X940E on Amazon <<