New Products

Many of us stuck at home have been watching lots of TV lately (too much!), but some may also be wondering about buying a new TV. Spring is when the new sets show up, and while you might not be able to wander into a Best Buy or other store to browse them at present, you’re probably itching to check out the reviews. To that end, here are the models Sound & Vision currently has in the review pipeline, along with the sets we anticipate testing as they arrive in the months to come.

LG OLED65GXPUA Gallery Design OLED TV ($3,499)
LG’s GX Gallery series OLED TVs are the company’s slimmest, most wall-hugging models yet, so much so that they ship without a TV stand. A unique recessed bracket design permits flush-mounting directly against a wall so the 0.78-inch deep display can better blend with its surroundings. With all electronics and Wi-Fi integrated within the chassis, power is the only cable you ultimately need to worry about, and the GX Gallery series also has built-in Google Assistant and Alexa voice assistants and far-field mics for remote control-free operation.

On the picture quality front, GX Gallery models support Dolby Vision HDR, along with Dolby Vision IQ, which can automatically compensate for ambient room lighting and the brightness balance of HDR content. HDMI inputs support the latest version 2.1 features including 4K@120Hz frame rate, VRR, ALLM, and eARC, and there’s also a built-in ATSC 3.0 Next Gen TV tuner. While we don’t expect reviewer Thomas J. Norton to put the 65GXPUA through its gaming paces, LG claims a 1ms response time for virtually latency-free video gameplay, along with an HGiG (HDR Gaming Interest Group) Profile for HDR Gaming. He will, however, be checking out its UHD Alliance Filmmaker Mode, which was developed to ensure that the displayed images match the creator’s intention. We’ll see about that!

Hisense H8G Quantum ULED Android TV ($700)
If a wall-hugging $3,500 TV isn’t on your radar, you might instead be interested to see what the new H8G Quantum ULED Android TV from Hisense delivers for the money. This 4K LCD model is feature-packed for its $700 price, with quantum dots for extended color, Dolby Vision HDR, and a full-array LED backlight with 90 local-dimming zones and a specified 700 nits peak brightness. Hisense uses Android TV for the set’s smart interface, and it also comes with built-in Google Assistant and a voice-enabled remote control.

Sony XBR-65A8H OLED TV ($3,100)
Sony’s new A8H series OLED models for 2020 feature the same X1 Ultimate picture processor that helped nudge the company’s XBR-65A9G OLED into our 2019 TV Top Pick of the Year slot, but adds Apple AirPlay 2/HomeKit to the feature mix plus a stand with a variable height adjustment to accommodate a soundbar and prevent it from blocking the screen. Like last year’s model, it features Acoustic Surface Audio, a design that uses actuators attached to the back of the OLED screen that vibrate it to produce sound. The Android TV interface for the A8H series is the latest version 9.0 (Pie), though the HomeKit feature will also allow iOS adherents to use their iPhone/iPad to control the TV.

Other TVs that we expect to review in the coming months include an 8K-resolution model from Samsung’s Q900R series. These sets feature an enhanced Quantum 8K processor that provides pixel-by-pixel upscaling to, well, everything since there’s basically no 8K content available yet, along with an Ultra Viewing angle feature that improves off-center viewing. We’ll also be looking to review a new TCL 6-Series model. In 2019 we tested that company’s 8-Series 75-inch LCD TV and were very impressed with the local dimming performance delivered by its mini-LED backlight. For 2019, mini-LED backlights migrate down to the company’s budget 6-series, which could make these sets a serious Top Value contender.

Anything else on the horizon? Vizio, as usual, will roll out many LCD TVs at various price tiers, and we’ll be looking to test both a mid-range set along with one from its high-end P-Series Quantum X series, which scales up to an 85-inch screen size for 2020. We’ll also be on the lookout for Vizio’s first OLED model that it showed in prototype form at CES in January and is scheduled to ship in 2020.

Related:

Best TVs of CES 2020

LG Starts Rolling Out 2020 TVs, OLED Leads the Way

Samsung Launches 2020 QLED Line of 4K and 8K TVs

Vizio Woos Showgoers With its First-Ever OLED TVs