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Updated January 10, 2024·
The Samsung CU8000 is a lower midrange priced TV and costs significantly less than the TCL QM8. The CU8000 has a basic picture quality, does not excel in dark rooms but is suitable for casual watching in bright rooms. It's also fine for watching news and animated content and the input lag is low which is good for gaming. It's a 60Hz LCD TV with 3 HDMI ports and does not support advanced HDR formats like HDR10+ or Dolby Vision. On the other hand, the TCL QM8 is in the upper midrange price bracket and costs more. It offers superior picture quality and is excellent for watching movies and gaming, with high contrast and bright HDR performance. It performs very well in both dark and bright room settings. The TCL QM8 is a 120Hz LCD TV with 4 HDMI ports and supports Dolby Vision and HDR10+. If budget allows and you are looking for a high-quality viewing experience for various content types, particularly movies and gaming, the QM8 is the better option. 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 CU8000 (LCD)
- Very good motion processing
Advantages of the TCL QM8 (LCD)
- Best in class for bright room
- Very good for dark room
- Very good for gaming
- Very good for movies & TV
- Very good for cartoons & animation
- Good for use as monitor
- Very good reflections
Key differences
Picture Quality
5.8
8.5
4.92/10
CONTRAST
8.00/10
6.9/10
COLOR VOLUME SCORE
9.2/10
LED
PANEL TYPE
miniLED FALD
VA
PANEL SUB-TYPE
VA
The TCL QM8 (LCD) has very good picture quality, while the Samsung CU8000 (LCD) has poor picture quality.
Movies & TV
5.3
8.3
4.92/10
CONTRAST
8.00/10
6.1/10
BLACK UNIFORMITY
8.5/10
6.0/10
UPSCALING
4.8/10
Yes
HDR10 SUPPORT
Yes
Yes
HDR10+ SUPPORT
Yes
No
DOLBY VISION SUPPORT
Yes
The TCL QM8 (LCD) is very good for movies & TV, while the Samsung CU8000 (LCD) is poor.
The TCL QM8 excels in movie and cinematic TV watching due to its superior contrast, effective local dimming, and outstanding black uniformity, all of which contribute to deeper blacks and richer overall picture quality. In contrast, the Samsung CU8000 struggles with a lower contrast ratio, lacks local dimming which can lead to less depth in dark scenes, and exhibits only fair black uniformity that can result in less consistent dark scenes.
Gaming
5.5
8.3
4.9/10
RESPONSE TIME SCORE
8.1/10
8.7/10
INPUT LAG SCORE
7.6/10
8.2/10
MOTION PROCESSING
4.6/10
0.0/100
GAMING LOCAL DIMMING
90.0/100
5.8/10
GAME HDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
9.3/10
The TCL QM8 (LCD) is very good for gaming, while the Samsung CU8000 (LCD) is poor.
Cartoons & Animation
5.9
8.9
7.3/10
COLOR GAMUT SCORE
8.1/10
6.9/10
COLOR VOLUME SCORE
9.2/10
6.7/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
10.0/10
6.2/10
COLORS OUT OF THE BOX SCORE
7.6/10
6.6/10
GRAY UNIFORMITY
7.5/10
The TCL QM8 (LCD) is very good for cartoons & animation, while the Samsung CU8000 (LCD) is poor.
The Samsung CU8000 provides colors out of the box and color gamut that are just fair, potentially leading to less vivid and accurate colors when watching cartoons and animations. In comparison, the TCL QM8 offers good colors right out of the box and a very good color gamut, ensuring more vibrant and true-to-life colors ideal for animated content.
News, Talk, & Other TV
5.7
6.8
6.7/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
10.0/10
6.0/10
UPSCALING
4.8/10
The TCL QM8 (LCD) is only fair for news, talk, & other TV, while the Samsung CU8000 (LCD) is poor.
The Samsung CU8000 has fair performance in upscaling and SDR brightness, which might not be ideal for watching news and other TV programs where image clarity and visibility in various lighting conditions are essential. On the other hand, the TCL QM8 has a fair contrast and good color accuracy out of the box, making it more suitable for these viewing scenarios, despite its limitations in upscaling compared to the Samsung model.
Bright Room
5.9
9.9
5.2/10
VIEWING ANGLE
5.3/10
6.7/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
10.0/10
5.5/10
HDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
9.3/10
5.9/10
REFLECTIONS SCORE
8.9/10
The TCL QM8 (LCD) is best in class for bright room, while the Samsung CU8000 (LCD) is poor.
The Samsung CU8000 struggles with visibility in a bright room due to its lower SDR and HDR brightness and poorer handling of reflections, whereas the TCL QM8 excels in bright environments with significantly higher HDR and SDR brightness and superior reflection handling. Additionally, while color volume and color gamut contribute to image quality and are better on the TCL QM8, the key factors for bright room viewing remain brightness and reflection handling.
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Key similarities
Sports
6.4
6.5
8.2/10
MOTION PROCESSING
4.6/10
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
8.7/10
INPUT LAG SCORE
7.6/10
6.0/10
UPSCALING
4.8/10
6.7/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
10.0/10
Yes
HLG SUPPORT
Yes
The TCL QM8 (LCD) and Samsung CU8000 (LCD) are both only fair for sports.
The Samsung CU8000 has a fair reflections handling and poor response time which can cause motion blur during fast sports scenes, while its fair motion processing helps somewhat with maintaining clarity of movement. On the other hand, the TCL QM8 offers better reflections handling and very good response time for clearer sports action, but its motion processing is inferior, potentially leading to less smooth motion during games.
Cost
$1,298
$1,304
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
$1,800
$2,000
The Samsung CU8000 (LCD) has a price of $1,298 and the TCL QM8 (LCD) costs $1,304.
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How the Samsung CU8000 (LCD) and the TCL QM8 (LCD) compare to other TVs
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Samsung CU8000 (LCD) | TCL QM8 (LCD) |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$1,298 | $1,304 | ||
Brand | |||
Brand | Samsung | TCL | |
Release Date | |||
Release Date | March 6, 2023 | May 3, 2023 | |
Full name | |||
Full name | UN85CU8000 | 85QM850G | |
Screen Size | |||
Screen Size | 85" | 85" | |
Screen Resolution | |||
Screen Resolution | 4K | 4K | |
TV FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Operating System | |||
Operating System | Tizen | Google TV | |
Sound Quality Score | |||
Sound Quality Score | 7/10 | 7/10 | |
NextGen Ready | |||
NextGen Ready | No | No | |
HDMI Ports | |||
HDMI Ports | 3 | 4 | |
Coax Ports | |||
Coax Ports | 1 | 1 | |
DISPLAY QUALITY SCORES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Picture Quality Score | |||
Picture Quality Score | 5.8/10 | 8.6/10 | |
Bright Room Score | |||
Bright Room Score | 6/10 | 9.9/10 | |
Gaming Score | |||
Gaming Score | 5.5/10 | 8.4/10 | |
Movies & TV Score | |||
Movies & TV Score | 5.3/10 | 8.3/10 | |
Sports Score | |||
Sports Score | 6.4/10 | 6.6/10 | |
PHYSICAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Dimensions w/o Stand (H x W x D) | |||
Dimensions w/o Stand (H x W x D) | 42.8" x 74.8" x 1.1" | 43" x 74.6" x 2.1" | |
Dimensions with Stand (H x W) | |||
Dimensions with Stand (H x W) | 44.5" x 74.8" | 45.6" x 74.6" | |
Weight without Stand | |||
Weight without Stand | Unknown | 105.6 lbs | |
VESA Mount | |||
VESA Mount | 600 x 400 | 600 x 600 | |
DISPLAY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Color Depth | |||
Color Depth | 10 bit | 10 bit | |
Black Frame Insertion | |||
Black Frame Insertion | Yes | Yes | |
Auto Low Latency Mode | |||
Auto Low Latency Mode | Yes | Yes | |
Contrast | |||
Contrast | 4.9/10 | 8/10 | |
Local Dimming | |||
Local Dimming | 2.5/10 | 8/10 | |
SOUND | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Speaker Setup | |||
Speaker Setup | 2.0 | 2.1 | |
Speaker Power | |||
Speaker Power | 20 W | 40 W | |
Dolby Atmos | |||
Dolby Atmos | Yes | Yes | |
DTS:X | |||
DTS:X | No | Yes, Bypass only | |
Get a great deal on the Samsung CU8000 (LCD) or the TCL QM8 (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.
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