If you're looking for a more budget-friendly option, the Samsung AU8000 would be the way to go as it's significantly less expensive. However, you'll sacrifice some picture quality and features compared to the Sony X90L, which offers better overall performance including enhanced color and brightness, making it a better choice for a sunny room or for more immersive movie and gaming experiences. The Sony also has a higher refresh rate, which can be important for watching fast-action sports and gaming. If these features are important to you and justify the higher cost, the Sony X90L would be a better choice. 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 AU8000 (LCD)
Good reflections
Advantages of the Sony X90L (LCD)
Very good for bright room
Good for dark room
Very good for gaming
Good for movies & TV
Good for sports
Excellent for news, talk, & other TV
Very good for cartoons & animation
Good for use as monitor
Best in class for upscaling
Best in class motion processing
Key differences
Picture Quality
6.6/10
7.8/10
6.71/10
CONTRAST
7.125/10
6.3/10
COLOR VOLUME SCORE
8.8/10
LED
PANEL TYPE
LED FALD
VA
PANEL SUB-TYPE
VA
The Sony X90L (LCD) has good picture quality, while the Samsung AU8000 (LCD) has only fair picture quality.
Movies & TV
5.9/10
7.6/10
6.71/10
CONTRAST
7.125/10
6.9/10
BLACK UNIFORMITY
6.0/10
7.5/10
UPSCALING
10.0/10
Yes
HDR10 SUPPORT
Yes
Yes
HDR10+ SUPPORT
No
No
DOLBY VISION SUPPORT
Yes
The Sony X90L (LCD) is good for movies & TV, while the Samsung AU8000 (LCD) is poor.
The Sony X90L excels at watching movies and cinematic TV due to its superior full-array local dimming feature, which enhances contrast and black uniformity, creating a more vivid picture with deeper blacks. In contrast, the Samsung AU8000 lacks local dimming and has poorer black uniformity, which leads to a less impressive performance in the same content, particularly in dark scenes where details can get lost.
Sports
6.5/10
7.2/10
6.0/10
MOTION PROCESSING
10.0/10
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
10.0/10
INPUT LAG SCORE
7.0/10
7.5/10
UPSCALING
10.0/10
7.1/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
9.4/10
Yes
HLG SUPPORT
Yes
The Sony X90L (LCD) is good for sports, while the Samsung AU8000 (LCD) is only fair.
The Sony X90L is better for watching sports because it has a very good response time, which minimizes motion blur during fast-moving scenes, while the Samsung AU8000 has a poor response time, which could result in more motion blur. Both TVs have similar viewing angles and handle reflections about the same, but superior motion processing on the Sony X90L makes it a better choice for sports enthusiasts.
Gaming
5.8/10
8.1/10
5.9/10
RESPONSE TIME SCORE
8.0/10
10.0/10
INPUT LAG SCORE
7.0/10
6.0/10
MOTION PROCESSING
10.0/10
0.0/100
GAMING LOCAL DIMMING
73.0/100
5.8/10
GAME HDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
8.6/10
The Sony X90L (LCD) is very good for gaming, while the Samsung AU8000 (LCD) is poor.
The Samsung AU8000 has poor response time, which can lead to motion blur in fast-paced games, but it does have low input lag, making it responsive to gaming inputs. In contrast, the Sony X90L offers very good response time, reducing blur for a clearer gaming experience, although its input lag is only good, potentially meaning slightly less responsive control than the Samsung.
Cartoons & Animation
6.9/10
8.6/10
6.1/10
COLOR GAMUT SCORE
7.7/10
6.3/10
COLOR VOLUME SCORE
8.8/10
7.1/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
9.4/10
7.2/10
COLORS OUT OF THE BOX SCORE
8.0/10
6.8/10
GRAY UNIFORMITY
6.6/10
The Sony X90L (LCD) is very good for cartoons & animation, while the Samsung AU8000 (LCD) is only fair.
The Samsung AU8000 displays cartoons with fair out-of-the-box colors and a fair color gamut, making it less vibrant and accurate compared to the Sony X90L, which is very good in both aspects and offers richer, more diverse colors crucial for animated content. Moreover, the AU8000's somewhat important features like color volume and gray uniformity are also fair, meaning it might not handle shades and gradients as well, whereas the X90L excels with very good color volume, contributing to its superior visual quality for animation.
News, Talk, & Other TV
6.7/10
9.0/10
7.1/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
9.4/10
7.5/10
UPSCALING
10.0/10
The Sony X90L (LCD) is excellent for news, talk, & other TV, while the Samsung AU8000 (LCD) is only fair.
The Sony X90L excels in upscaling and SDR brightness, which enhances the clarity and vibrancy of standard TV programs, whereas the Samsung AU8000 offers a fair experience in these areas with its acceptable upscaling but lower brightness. Additionally, the X90L's superior colors out of the box, color gamut, and local dimming contribute to a more vivid and contrasting image compared to the AU8000, making the Sony a better choice for an exceptional viewing experience.
Bright Room
6.3/10
8.6/10
5.5/10
VIEWING ANGLE
5.5/10
7.1/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
9.4/10
5.7/10
HDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
8.3/10
7.8/10
REFLECTIONS SCORE
5.9/10
The Sony X90L (LCD) is very good for bright room, while the Samsung AU8000 (LCD) is only fair.
The Sony X90L performs very well in a bright room primarily because it has excellent SDR brightness, which helps maintain picture quality even in well-lit environments, despite its poorer handling of reflections. On the other hand, the Samsung AU8000 offers only good SDR brightness and better reflections handling, which makes it fair for bright room viewing but not as capable as the Sony in maintaining picture visibility when faced with ambient lighting.
Cost
$1,498
$1,698
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
The Samsung AU8000 (LCD) has a price of $1,498 and the Sony X90L (LCD) costs $1,698.
"To put it directly: you’d never see a mid-range 4K TV hitting this black levels half a decade ago. AU8000 plays the part of a higher-end TV thanks to its sleek design. If you’re upgrading to a smart TV for the first time, the software is a great way to dip your toes in the streaming water."
Get a great deal on the Samsung AU8000 (LCD) or the Sony X90L (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 Sony
Sony stands as a highly experienced and widely trusted TV manufacturer, earning a reputation that surpasses all others. A Japanese company, Sony has been making TVs for far longs than it has been making Playstation game consoles. Sony's high-end TVs are often regarded as the ultimate choice for videophiles, representing the epitome of quality, albeit at a premium price point. Renowned for their advanced and precise motion handling, as well as their cutting-edge local dimming algorithms, Sony consistently delivers unparalleled performance in these areas. They include Google TV software with all their TV sets, which grants access to the largest selection of apps available and they also include Bravia Core which is a movie streaming platform specifically for Sony TVs that offers higher picture quality by using more bandwidth.
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.
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