When comparing Samsung Q8C 75" (QN75Q8C) vs Sony X720E 49" (KD49X720E), the Slant community recommends Sony X720E 49" (KD49X720E) for most people. In the question“What are the best TVs?” Sony X720E 49" (KD49X720E) is ranked 13th while Samsung Q8C 75" (QN75Q8C) is ranked 18th. The most important reason people chose Sony X720E 49" (KD49X720E) is:
The Sony X720E makes an excellent computer monitor because it can smoothly display sharp and crisp images since the TV has full 4:4:4 color support, short input lag, and well-handled motion blur. The full 4:4:4 color support allows the X720E to process non-compressed, computer-generated video inputs. Therefore, the TV can display sharp and crisp images, without any detail loss. This is especially noticeable while working with text and other vector graphics. Additionally, the TV’s input lag of 19.7 ms ensures that it takes less than 20 ms for a TV to display an image change after you press a button. Such delay is almost unnoticeable to a human's eye.
Specs
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Pros
Pro No image retention problems
Unlike the OLED TVs, it does not suffer from any image retention so you can leave the TV on for long periods without having to worry about pixel damage.
Pro Ideal for console gaming
The TV is fully compatible with all the current generation gaming consoles, including the Xbox One X, PS4 Pro, and Wii U. The Q8C also supports HDR gaming, which will allow you to experience the full range of HDR effects in the latest console games, like Hitman, NBA 2K17, Final Fantasy XV, Deus Ex: Mankind Divided and World of Tanks.
Pro Good for watching sports
The Samsung Q8C is an excellent option for sports fans as the TV can display fast and dynamic content very clearly. The clear representation of dynamic content is achieved by the TV’s rapid pixel response time of 10.7 ms which almost eliminates the motion-blur effect. As the pixels can change their colors in nearly 1/100th of a second, fast-moving objects don't leave trails.
Additionally, the Samsung Q8C is especially good for watching outdoor sports, like football, rugby or golf, because the TV has high color uniformity which makes sports fields look more even and consistent.
Pro Has a large panel
The Samsung Q8C comes with a massive 75-inch LED panel. The panel has around 2400 square-inches of viewable area, which is a third more than what the 65-inch competitors offer.
Pro HDR-ready TV
The Samsung Q8C is more than capable of handling HDR content because of the TV’s wide color gamut, high HDR peak brightness, good native contrast ratio, and uniform blacks.
Pro Curved panel gives extra deep experience
The main feature of the Samsung Q8C is its curved panel which can give you an immersive feeling of being surrounded by the TV. However, if you are not a fan of curved TVs, there is a flat, equally priced version of the Samsung Q8C simply called the Samsung Q8.
Pro Eye-catching design
Tthe Samsung Q8C looks great because of its extra thin bezel and brushed metal finish on all exterior parts which make the TV look classy.
Pro Good reflection handling
It's an excellent choice for bright rooms with lots of windows because of the TV’s ability to handle reflections, which is achieved by the aid of the TV’s glossy screen finish and anti-reflective coating.
Pro Accessible inputs
Samsung Q8C comes with the One Connect box which moves all the hard-to-access rear inputs away from the TV. This way, you’ll always have full access to all inputs and outputs of the TV even if it’s mounted on a wall. Additionally, the One Connect box can be used as a USB charging hub.
Pro Stylish remote
The Samsung Q8C comes with an eye-catching remote. The remote is made from metal and has a shiny metal finish. Apart from being stylish, the remote offers some extended functionality, like a microphone and voice control.
Pro Nice-looking picture
Picture-wise, the Samsung Q8C has everything necessary to provide excellent quality.
The TV can reproduce eye-catching bright scenes; especially in HDR mode, where it can sustain up to 700 nits of brightness making its colors look genuinely crisp and vivid. In SDR mode, however, the sustained luminosity drops to 400 nits, which is still higher than what the competitors in the price range of the Q8C offer.
As for dark scenes, the Samsung Q8C has it all sorted as its panel has a relatively high native contrast ratio of 4761:1, combined with well-uniformed blacks; which allows for deep scenes with noticeable brightness shifts among multiple regions of the screen.
Pro Excellent gaming TV
The Samsung Q8C offers smooth and lag-free gaming experience because of its low input lag and well-managed motion blur.
The input lag of the Q8C is 23.6 ms, which means that it takes less than 1/40th of a second for a TV to react to the input from an external source like a click of a button. In terms of input lag, the Samsung Q8C is on par with its closest competitors, including the LG seven series OLED TVs.
The panel has a full pixel response time of 10.7 ms, ensuring that it takes less than 1/100th of a second for its pixels to change their color; thus, even fast-moving objects won’t leave trails on the screen. As a result, the TV has almost negligible motion blur.
Pro Makes an excellent computer monitor
The Sony X720E makes an excellent computer monitor because it can smoothly display sharp and crisp images since the TV has full 4:4:4 color support, short input lag, and well-handled motion blur.
The full 4:4:4 color support allows the X720E to process non-compressed, computer-generated video inputs. Therefore, the TV can display sharp and crisp images, without any detail loss. This is especially noticeable while working with text and other vector graphics.
Additionally, the TV’s input lag of 19.7 ms ensures that it takes less than 20 ms for a TV to display an image change after you press a button. Such delay is almost unnoticeable to a human's eye.
Pro Excellent for console gaming
The combination of handled motion blur and low input lag makes this 4K60 TV a great companion to the latest generation consoles, like the Xbox One X, PS4 Pro, and Wii U. Additionally, the TV’s full HDR support allows you to fully experience HDR-enhanced games such as World of Tanks, FIFA 18, etc.
Pro The stand does not take up too much space
The 43-inch model of Sony X720E does not take up too much space on a work desk as the TV comes with a compact, 9.4-inch by 21.9-inch stand.
Pro No problems with image retention
Unlike the majority of OLED panels, this LED TV does not suffer from image retention problems. You can leave the TV on for long periods without having to worry about pixel damage.
Pro Suitable for viewing up-front
The reasonably small panel size of 43-inch means you can still be comfortable looking at the screen up close. Therefore, you can conveniently use this TV as a computer monitor and sit as close as 2.2 feet away from it.
Pro Ads-free main interface
The main interface of the smart OS does not feature advertisements or sponsored content.
Pro Well-rounded inputs
Regarding connectivity, this TV is has everything you'd currently want. It has three HDCP 2.2 compliant HDMI 2.0 ports, digital and analog audio output ports, and an Ethernet port. Additionally, as the TV has a composite input interface, you can enjoy playing your retro consoles, such as Nintendo or Sega without having to go through the hassle of signal conversion. HDMI, USB, and analog coaxial ports are situated on the side of the TV so you won’t have any problem accessing them even if it’s mounted on a wall.
Pro Excellent for upscaling
This TV does a fantastic job when it comes to upscaling low-resolution content. In a nutshell, it can upscale 480p, 720p, and 1080p content to 4K resolution while preserving details and sharp edges. Great for those with a collection of old DVDs or Blu-ray disks.
Pro Excellent viewing angles
The IPS panel of the Sony X720E gives you an extra bit of flexibility when it comes to finding a good viewing spot as its maximum viewing angle is 41 degrees; a double of what the competitors with VA panels can offer.
Pro Great for bright rooms
The combination of reasonably high peak brightness and semi-gloss screen finish allows this TV to deal with reflections and glare efficiently. Its 340 nits of brightness are more than what its direct competitors, including The VIZIO M-series and Samsung MU6300 offer. Furthermore, as the X720E diffuses up to 97.6% of ambient light, it does not suffer from reflections.
Pro Excellent for watching sports
The Sony X720E has all the bits and pieces needed to deliver the excellent experience of watching sports and other fast-paced content. The TV has good control over its motion blur, excellent color uniformity, and wide viewing angle.
The X720E needs only 7.5 ms for its pixels to change their color; as a result, fast-moving objects don’t leave long trails on the screen, meaning that the motion blur effect is almost negligible.
Good color uniformity is another parameter that really makes a difference when watching sports. It allows the TV to display beautiful and uniform sports fields and pitches, without any unwanted artifacts. The maximum color deviation of this TV is below 2.5%, which means that the TV can sustain stable and uniform colors throughout its screen. The X720E has the best color uniformity in its range.
Cons
Con Not good for group watching
Unfortunately, the curved panel of the Samsung Q8C looks good only from a single spot, which is located at the center of a circle made by the curve. If you need a TV that is suitable for group watching, this might not be the right option for you.
Con Narrow viewing angle
The maximum viewing angle of this TV is 14 degrees, making it useless for group watching, as those who view the TV from the sides will see degraded colors and shadows.
Con Dark scenes look shallow
Due to the really low native contrast ratio of 907:1, dark scenes look washed out if the TV is placed in a dark environment.
Con Non-intuitive smart OS
Unlike other Sony TVs, the X720E has a custom, Linux based operating system which runs the Opera TV application store. The OS is unintuitive and confusing to use.
Con Built-in speakers don’t sound right
The X720E comes with an integrated 20W 2.0 stereo speaker system. While it can get pretty loud, peaking at the sound pressure level of 100 dB, the quality of sound is very weak, especially when it comes to bass. The speakers sound unclear and muddy.
Con Can’t unleash full potential of HDR content
Even though this TV does support HDR10 media, the low HDR peak brightness, poor native contrast, lack of local dimming, and lack of wide color gamut severely limit the quality of HDR playback. Even some lower tier TVs will produce higher quality HDR images.
Con Not suitable for competitive gaming
While this TV has noticeably smaller input lag than the overwhelming majority of TVs on the market, it still can not compete with rapid TN monitors when it comes to fast and competitive computer gaming.
Con Can’t fight judder in 60 Hz signal
The Sony X720E can't handle judder in 24p content sourced from the 60p/60i devices, like a cable or satellite box, or Apple TV. Such content contains so-called '2:3 judder' which means that the frame distribution among the timeline is inconsistent.
Con Lacks Dolby Vision support
When it comes to HDR content, the X720E cannot display Dolby Vision-compliant media as it is only limited to HDR10 content.
Con Requires an external power brick
Both the 43-inch and 49-inch models of the Sony X720E have large and bulky external power bricks. Bulky PSUs can be a hassle to deal with especially if you’re mounting your TV on a wall.
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