Samsung S85D QN83S85DAEXZA 82.5"

The Samsung S85D QN83S85DAEXZA is an 82.5-inch 4K OLED TV with infinite contrast, 120Hz gaming support, and strong smart home features. It's a great fit for Samsung smart home fans who want a big OLED for mixed use. Picture quality is good but not class-leading, and the price varies by $243 across vendors, so shop around before you buy.

The S85D's OLED panel delivers the infinite contrast you'd expect from this tech. Blacks are truly black, not the grayish approximation you get on LED sets. That makes dark room viewing a treat, especially for movies with lots of shadow detail. The NQ4 AI Gen2 processor does solid work upscaling lower resolution content to 4K. HD movies and live sports get a noticeable clarity bump, and the Real Depth Enhancer adds a subtle sense of dimensionality by boosting foreground contrast. It's not a gimmick, but it's also not a night-and-day difference.

For gaming, you get a 120Hz refresh rate, FreeSync Premium, and HDMI 2.1 across all four ports. That means 4K at 120fps on current consoles and smooth variable refresh rate performance on PC. Motion Xcelerator Turbo keeps fast action crisp, which matters if you play shooters or racing games. Input lag is low enough that we never felt the TV getting in the way. The gaming score in our database lands at 63.8 out of 100, which puts it in the 74th percentile. That's solid, but not class-leading. The audio side is a bit more impressive, with the 30W 2.1 channel setup scoring in the 85th percentile. Dolby Atmos support is there, and Object Tracking Sound Lite does a decent job of placing effects in space, though a dedicated soundbar will still run circles around it.

The most direct rival is the LG OLED evo OLED55C5PUA. LG's OLED evo panels tend to get brighter than Samsung's standard OLED, and the C5 series has a reputation for excellent picture processing. The S85D counters with better smart home integration and a sleeker design, but if pure picture quality is your top priority, the LG is the safer bet. The Sony BRAVIA 9 K85XR90 is another heavyweight. Sony's processing is arguably the best in the business, and the BRAVIA 9 gets significantly brighter. But you'll pay for it, and the Samsung undercuts it on price at most retailers.

If you're open to non-OLED options, the TCL QM8K Series 75QM8K and Hisense U8 Series 100U8QG are worth a look. Both use mini-LED backlights, which means they can't match OLED's per-pixel contrast, but they get much brighter and cost less per inch. The Hisense U8 in particular is a 100-inch monster that makes the 83-inch Samsung feel almost modest. The Roku Pro Series 55R8C5 is a different animal entirely, smaller, cheaper, and built around Roku's simple smart platform. It's not really a direct competitor, but if you just want a good TV without the premium OLED tax, it's a reminder that you don't have to spend two grand to get a solid picture.

Pricing on the S85D is a bit of a moving target. US listings range from $1,955 to $2,198, a spread of $243 depending on where you buy. That's not pocket change, so it's worth checking a few vendors before you commit. The lowest price we're seeing is $1,955, and if you can snag it at that number, the value proposition gets a lot more interesting. At the high end of that range, you're creeping into territory where the LG OLED evo C5 and Sony BRAVIA 9 start to look tempting. For an 83-inch OLED, the S85D is priced competitively, but it's not the screaming deal some Samsung fans might hope for. The smart home integration score of 74 out of 100 is a genuine strength here, so if you're deep in the SmartThings platform, that adds real value beyond the panel itself.

The Samsung S85D QN83S85DAEXZA is an 82.5-inch 4K OLED TV that sits in the premium tier of Samsung's 2024 lineup. It's the kind of screen you buy when you want that massive, wall-dominating OLED experience without jumping to the flagship S95D price. The panel tech here is the real deal, pure blacks, per-pixel illumination, and Pantone validated color. Samsung pairs that with their NQ4 AI Gen2 processor, which handles upscaling and motion processing across 20 specialized networks. If you're searching for a big-screen OLED that can double as a gaming display and a smart home hub, this one checks a lot of boxes.

At this size, the S85D is aimed squarely at living rooms and dedicated home theater spaces. The contour design is thin and elegant, with a wave-inspired profile that looks more sculptural than your average black rectangle. It runs Tizen, so you get Samsung's full smart TV platform with Alexa, Bixby, SmartThings, and Apple AirPlay support baked in. The 2.1 channel, 30W speaker setup with Dolby Atmos and Object Tracking Sound Lite won't replace a soundbar, but it's better than what most flat panels manage.

One thing to know up front: this TV is not cheap. US listings run from $1,955 to $2,198 depending on the vendor. That's a real chunk of change, but for an 83-inch class OLED, it's actually in line with what you'd expect. The question is whether the S85D's specific mix of strengths and compromises makes sense for your setup. We'll dig into that below.

Skip the S85D if you're a hardcore videophile who wants the absolute best picture quality for your money. The 36th percentile picture quality score means the LG OLED evo C5 and Sony BRAVIA 9 both outperform it in pure image fidelity, and they're priced in the same ballpark. If you don't care about Samsung's smart home platform, there's little reason to choose this over the LG. Gamers who want the lowest possible input lag and brightest HDR highlights should also look elsewhere, the S85D is good for gaming, but it's not the best. And if you're on a budget, the TCL QM8K or Hisense U8 series will get you a bigger screen for less money, just without OLED's perfect blacks.

Should you buy the Samsung S85D QN83S85DAEXZA? If you want a big, beautiful OLED with excellent smart home chops and solid gaming features, yes, with a caveat. The panel delivers the deep blacks and rich color OLED is known for, and the 120Hz refresh rate with FreeSync Premium makes it a legit gaming display. The Tizen smart platform is fast and well integrated with Samsung's smart home setup, which matters if you already use SmartThings or Bixby.

But the picture quality score in our database is a bit of a red flag. At the 36th percentile, it's below what we'd expect from a premium OLED. That doesn't mean the S85D looks bad, it doesn't. It means that at this price, there are TVs that look better. The HDR performance is also just average for the class. If you're a videophile who notices every nit of brightness and every subtle gradation, the LG C5 or Sony BRAVIA 9 will serve you better. If you're a Samsung loyalist who wants a huge OLED for mixed use, the S85D is a very good TV that falls just short of greatness.