The Samsung QN90A offers a premium experience with a much higher price, but excels in bright room performance, overall picture quality, and gaming. It features better reflection handling, motion processing, and higher brightness levels, which makes it ideal for well-lit rooms and varied content viewing, including sports and gaming.
The TCL S555 is much more budget-friendly with lower picture quality and less impressive performance in bright rooms. However, it offers a good dark room viewing experience and is adequate for casual TV shows, movies, and animation. It's less suitable for sports and gaming due to lower motion processing capabilities.
So if you value a high-quality picture and plan to use the TV in bright rooms or for gaming, the Samsung QN90A could be preferable, albeit at a higher cost. If you're looking for a more affordable option with decent performance for watching movies in a darker environment, the TCL S555 might satisfy your needs. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the Samsung QN90A (LCD)
Best in class for bright room
Very good for gaming
Very good for movies & TV
Good for sports
Very good for news, talk, & other TV
Very good for use as monitor
Very good for upscaling
Very good motion processing
Excellent reflections
Advantages of the TCL S555 (LCD)
The TCL S555 (LCD) has no clear advantages over the Samsung QN90A (LCD).
Key differences
Sports
7.0/10
6.3/10
8.0/10
MOTION PROCESSING
4.6/10
120Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
10.0/10
INPUT LAG SCORE
10.0/10
8.0/10
UPSCALING
5.4/10
9.4/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
8.5/10
Yes
HLG SUPPORT
Yes
The Samsung QN90A (LCD) is good for sports, while the TCL S555 (LCD) is only fair.
The Samsung QN90A offers superior motion processing and reflection handling, making it more suitable for sports watchers who value a clearer picture during fast action and in rooms with light interference. Conversely, the TCL S555, while cost-effective, falls short in these areas with lower motion processing capabilities and subpar reflection handling, which could lead to a less optimal sports viewing experience.
Gaming
8.3/10
6.7/10
8.3/10
RESPONSE TIME SCORE
7.0/10
10.0/10
INPUT LAG SCORE
10.0/10
8.0/10
MOTION PROCESSING
4.6/10
70.0/100
GAMING LOCAL DIMMING
80.0/100
9.3/10
GAME HDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
7.3/10
The Samsung QN90A (LCD) is very good for gaming, while the TCL S555 (LCD) is only fair.
The Samsung QN90A offers excellent response time and the best input lag, making it very suitable for gaming, whereas the TCL S555, while still providing good performance, is less responsive and has higher input lag, making it less ideal for fast-paced gaming.
News, Talk, & Other TV
8.9/10
7.0/10
9.4/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
8.5/10
8.0/10
UPSCALING
5.4/10
The Samsung QN90A (LCD) is very good for news, talk, & other TV, while the TCL S555 (LCD) is good.
The Samsung QN90A excels in upscaling lower resolution content and delivers impressive brightness in standard dynamic range (SDR), which is crucial for clear viewing in well-lit environments such as daylight news and talk shows. Meanwhile, the TCL S555 is a good option with respectable upscaling and brightness capabilities, providing adequate performance for similar content, and though it may not match the vibrancy and clarity of the Samsung, it comes at a more affordable price point.
Bright Room
9.7/10
7.3/10
6.5/10
VIEWING ANGLE
5.5/10
9.4/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
8.5/10
9.3/10
HDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
7.0/10
9.0/10
REFLECTIONS SCORE
5.9/10
The Samsung QN90A (LCD) is best in class for bright room, while the TCL S555 (LCD) is good.
The Samsung QN90A outshines the TCL S555 in bright room viewing due to its superior SDR and HDR brightness, coupled with excellent reflection handling, ensuring a clear picture even in well-lit conditions. Although the TCL S555 is deemed good for bright rooms, its lower brightness levels and poor reflection handling might reduce picture quality in sunny settings; however, it still maintains very good contrast, color volume, and color gamut which are important for overall picture quality.
Cost
$1,470
$600
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
The Samsung QN90A (LCD) has a price of $1,470 and the TCL S555 (LCD) costs $600.
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Samsung QN90A (LCD) to have very good picture quality, while the TCL S555 (LCD) has good picture quality.
Movies & TV
8.0/10
7.9/10
7.00/10
CONTRAST
9.07/10
7.0/10
BLACK UNIFORMITY
7.0/10
8.0/10
UPSCALING
5.4/10
Yes
HDR10 SUPPORT
Yes
Yes
HDR10+ SUPPORT
Yes
No
DOLBY VISION SUPPORT
Yes
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Samsung QN90A (LCD) to be very good for movies & TV, while the TCL S555 (LCD) is good.
The Samsung QN90A offers a higher local dimming performance and better viewing angles, which are key for an immersive movie and cinematic TV experience in various room conditions. On the other hand, the TCL S555, while showcasing excellent contrast and black uniformity for deeper blacks, falls short on local dimming and viewing angles, which may affect picture quality when viewed from an angle or in scenes demanding precise lighting control.
Cartoons & Animation
8.8/10
8.4/10
7.8/10
COLOR GAMUT SCORE
7.4/10
8.2/10
COLOR VOLUME SCORE
7.3/10
9.4/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
8.5/10
9.5/10
COLORS OUT OF THE BOX SCORE
8.6/10
6.4/10
GRAY UNIFORMITY
6.4/10
The Samsung QN90A (LCD) and TCL S555 (LCD) are both very good for cartoons & animation.
The Samsung QN90A and TCL S555 are both acknowledged for delivering vibrant colors right out of the box, essential for the vivid and varied palettes often found in cartoons and animation. While the QN90A offers an excellent color gamut and color volume, ensuring a wide range of colors with good depth, the TCL S555 also presents a good color gamut with somewhat lesser color volume, making it a competent, yet slightly less rich, alternative.
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How the Samsung QN90A (LCD) and the TCL S555 (LCD) compare to other TVs
"It looks great out of the box and the picture quality it is rock-solid for the price. (...) What really makes this a decent gaming TV, though, is the very low input lag. (...) But if you want to save a little money, the TCL S555 strikes a great balance between cost and performance – the kind of performance that’s impressive enough to deliver some wow to your eyes. (...)"
Get a great deal on the Samsung QN90A (LCD) or the TCL S555 (LCD)
About Samsung
Samsung, a South Korean electronics manufacturer, holds the title of being the largest global TV vendor in terms of units sold. They offer a diverse lineup of TV products that cater to various budget ranges. A notable achievement in recent years is the development of Quantum Dots, a technology that enhances color reproduction, resulting in richer and more vibrant hues. Samsung TVs are well-regarded for their high manufacturing quality and user-friendly software, making them an excellent choice for consumers seeking an intuitive viewing experience.
About TCL
TCL, the highly recognizable TV brand from China, has firmly established itself as the second-largest manufacturer in terms of sales volume. Renowned for striking an impressive balance between affordability, picture quality, and design, TCL TVs deliver a compelling overall package. While they have traditionally excelled in the low-end and midrange TV segments, TCL has recently made remarkable strides in the realm of high-end televisions, introducing impressive models that rival top competitors. Most TCL TVs use Roku software which is very user friendly and easy to use, but they have a few other models that use Google TV which has the largest app selection, but is not as user friendly as Roku.
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec TVs team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest TV information and makes it digestible for you.
By the numbers
385
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TVs stats compiled
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Proprietary TVs ratings developed
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About the TV team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
CEO and TVs Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
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Staff Expert & Software Engineer
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TVs Expert
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