The CES was very different this year. The floors of hotels in Las Vegas have been replaced by a fully virtual event and consecutive Zoom presentations. This can make it difficult to demonstrate the technology that powers the new OLED or 8K TVs. But for what we did see what will come out of CES this year, there’s a lot to be excited about.
Sony started CES 2021 by announcing new OLED, 4K and 8K TVs on its Bravia XR monitor family, all with their new Cognitive XR Processor. The great thing to know about this powerful new chip is the way it enhances audio and video in an attempt to create a more immersive overall experience. The main way the chip does this is by focusing on the natural focal point of an image and improving the quality of that object or person to make it more realistic. The chip should also improve the upscaling of formats such as 4K to 8K, reducing noise and blur. This should cheer up the ears of anyone interested in buying an 8K set this year, as there is still very little 8K content to talk about.
In addition to its sophisticated new chip, some of Sony TVs this year will have ambient light sensors to adjust the brightness of the screen to better match the light in a given viewing environment. It certainly looks like a cool feature, but we look forward to experiencing it in person and with a number of different entertainment settings, including Hue lighting. In addition, this year’s Sony TVs will be equipped with Google TV, an exciting update to Android TV. And all of your Bravia XR monitors will have HDMI 2.1 support for 4K 120fps, variable refresh rate, automatic low-latency mode and e-ARC – a huge leap from its negligible inclusion in last year’s TVs.
The Bravia XR TV line will include the X95J and X90J 4K LED TVs, the Master Series Z9J 8K LED TVs and the Master Series A90J and A80J OLEDs, as well as a slightly different 100-inch version of the X90J called X92. The price will be announced later on the line.
G / O Media can receive a commission
Samsung announced new MicroLED TVs in 99, 88 and 110 inch screen sizes – all of which will use your existing Samsung modular screen technology The wall, a very cool product, but not especially suitable for consumers who just want to unpack a TV in the normal way, instead of having to be installed by a professional. These new TVs will check this box.
In addition, Samsung is introducing more customization options for its The Frame screen, the company’s most popular TV for its ability to camouflage the decor of a room, looking more like a framed work of art than an imposing black mirror in the middle of the your space. Samsung’s Neo QLED TVs, in turn, use more and smaller LED lights to provide better, more controlled brightness, while minimizing flowering. Finally, Samsung is launching a new remote control for all 2021 QLED 4K and 8K TVs – and charges with solar energy. Samsung claims that this remote control can be charged with internal and external light, as well as through a USB-C port. This is exciting! But we would love to see this remote control in action before we get too alarmed. In the meantime, we are cautiously optimistic.
Let’s talk about TCL for a moment because this company really impressed me this year with the promise of huge screens at an affordable price and the introduction of 8K on its popular 6 series display (we are big fans of here at Gizmodo). At least three screens will be launched in 85-inch variations this year, including a 4K QLED with Roku, an 8K QLED TV and a 4-Series that will sell for $ 1,600. This is a theft! While the other two will definitely still be very expensive, TCL will likely hurt many TV makers in the space for 85-inch screens with similar specifications. Also an 8K 6-Series? I look forward to seeing this scaling up in action, but TCL has a lot of competition on that front. And to be clear: just because you I can buying an 8K TV does not necessarily mean you should.
Panasonic is taking a decidedly more modest approach – in terms of size, at least – to its OLED for 2021. The JZ2000 will be available in 55-inch and 65-inch sizes, which is definitely enough TV for most people, in my opinion . Panasonic says that this OLED will be brighter and present better sound on the unit, and the TV will support features like eARC, automatic low latency mode (ALLM) and variable refresh rate (VRR). This can make it a very attractive choice for players, but first we have to see how it works. Your My Home screen will also be updated – although this may be less important for people who have already cut the cable and use a streaming device.
And last but not least, LG, which is finally making miniLED. The OLED king will present both 4K and 8K miniLED monitors this year, as well as new C1 OLEDs from 48-inch screens and G1 OLEDs from 55-inch and higher screens. Like Panasonic, LG is also redesigning its native WebOS operating system. I’m a little questioning about this one. Nothing in LG’s previous operating system was necessarily bad, and this looks a lot like everything else. But we look forward to a hands-on demonstration with this new version of the operating system later this year.
We are live from our sofas covering CES 2021! Click on here to read our full coverage.