Samsung U8000F Series UN70U8000FFXZC 70"

Huge screen, tiny price, but it skimps everywhere you'll actually notice. Buy it if you just want something big for the living room, otherwise run toward a better picture.

The 120Hz panel is the nice surprise here. Motion is smooth for gaming and sports, and you won't get that at this size from many budget sets. But the Direct LED backlight is pretty dim, and HDR content looks washed out, more like a suggestion of HDR than the real thing. We measured brightness and color volume in our database, and it lands in the bottom third for picture quality. It's not unwatchable, but dark scenes definitely suffer, and the speakers sound like they're playing from a tin can.

The competitive set has shifted, and it makes this Samsung look even more outmatched. The top five now includes the Sony BRAVIA XR XR77A95L, Samsung's own Neo QLED QN75QN990FFXZA, the Hisense U8 Series 100U8QG, the TCL QM8K Series 75QM8K, and the LG OLED evo C5. Against any of those, the U8000F gets embarrassed on brightness, contrast, and HDR. The TCL QM8K in 75 inches is the one we'd point most people toward if you want size and a picture that actually delivers. The LG C5 OLED is smaller but in a completely different class for picture quality. If you must have 70 inches and a rock bottom price, this Samsung still exists, but the gap between it and the best TVs has only gotten wider.

At $700, you're getting a lot of diagonal inches for your dollar, and that's the main appeal. It's worth it if your expectations are set to 'big living room TV for casual streaming and cable.' But if you're thinking this is a cinema experience, you'll be disappointed. Spend $100 more on a soundbar immediately, and you'll still come out ahead compared to smaller, better TVs.

A 70-inch Samsung for $700 sounds like you're getting away with something, and honestly, you kind of are. This TV is huge, the smart features are solid, and for casual streaming it'll do the job. But Samsung cut some serious corners to hit this price. The picture quality and HDR are mediocre at best, the built-in audio is laughably bad, and connectivity is about as sparse as it gets. If you just want a big screen to watch the news and Netflix in a bright room, it's fine. If you care even a little about picture quality, you'll notice where they skimped.

If you're looking for deep blacks, real HDR pop, or even decent built-in audio, this isn't it. The top five right now includes the Sony BRAVIA XR XR77A95L, Samsung Neo QLED QN75QN990FFXZA, Hisense U8 Series 100U8QG, TCL QM8K Series 75QM8K, and LG OLED evo C5. Any of those will give you a picture that actually looks good. You'll sacrifice some screen size with a few of them, but the upgrade in quality is worth it.

The Samsung U8000F is the TV you buy when size is your only priority and you just need something that works. It gets the job done for everyday viewing, but the current top five is stacked with TVs that beat it in every way that matters. Wait for a sale on a TCL QM8K or Hisense U8 and your eyes will thank you.