Samsung's Neo QLED TVs use mini LED backlighting technology to deliver much more granular, localised light control than you get with regular LED TVs. The tech transformed the picture quality of Samsung's 2021 Neo QLED range, but Samsung claims its 2022 models will take things to a whole new level.

There will be six 2022 Neo QLED series, taking in 4K and 8K resolutions and offering screen sizes ranging from as little as 43-inches to as big as 85-inches.

The 8K series will comprise the flagship QN900B models, the step-down QN800B models, and finally the QN700B models for people who want to get the combination of Samsung's 8K and Mini LED technology as affordably as possible.

The QN900Bs and QN800Bs will be sold in 65, 75 and 85-inch screen sizes (all prices still TBC), while the QN700Bs will be available in 55, 65 and 75-inch sizes.

On the 4K front, the flagship QN95B will be joined by the step-down QN90B and QN85B series, containing 14 screens between them. The QN95Bs will come in 55, 65, 75 and 85-inch sizes; the QN90Bs will be available in 43, 50, 55, 65, 75 and 85-inch sizes, while the QN85Bs will ship in 55, 65, 75 and 85-inch sizes.

ONE CONNECT

The main differences between each series will be based on the number of dimming zones they support, design variations, variances in audio power and speaker configurations, and whether or not they use external One Connect boxes.

The premium models that ship with One Connect boxes will each get four HDMI ports capable of handling the latest 4K/120Hz and variable refresh rate high-end gaming features. In contrast, the models which carry built-in connections look likely to provide just two HDMI ports with full gaming support.

The new Neo QLED models will share several promising new features, too. All models above 55 inches in size, for starters, will benefit from 14-bit HDR playback to reduce/remove colour banding noise and enhance detailing in bright and dark scenes alike. In addition, a new Gaming Hub is promised for the summer, making it easier for gamers to see what performance they're getting from their consoles or PCs and adjust gaming-related settings.

As with 2021's Samsung Neo QLED TVs, the new models will benefit from the brand's Object Tracking Sound technology (OTS). This tech uses a combination of speaker arrays and clever processing to make sounds appear to emanate from the precise part of the screen where they're supposed to be coming from - dialogue from an actor's mouth, for instance. In addition, OTS will be joined by built-in Dolby Atmos soundtrack decoding for the first time.

EDEN DESIGN CHANGE

Furthermore, changes are afoot for Samsung's Tizen-based Eden smart platform for 2022's Neo QLED TVs including a full-screen home page (rather than the previous approach of relying on rows of icons superimposed over the bottom of the picture) in a bid to provide users with more 'content discovery' options. We are interested in seeing how this works for ourselves as experience suggests that full-screen smart systems can feel overwhelming and make it harder rather than easier to home in on stuff you want to watch. Obviously, though, we'll reserve judgment until the first sets arrive.

Pricing is yet to be confirmed, but early rumours suggest it will be broadly in line with the prices of Samsung's 2021 Neo QLED range. If so, to provide some sort of context ahead of Samsung releasing official pricing, this would find the 65QN95B 4K flagship costing around £2,999, while the 75QN900B will likely launch in the £7,999 range.

Samsung will be allowing European buyers to pre-register their interest in the new Neo QLED models on local Samsung websites from tomorrow through to March 15th, with pre-orders open between March 16th and April 5th.

Visit Samsung for more information