Game Of Screens

It wasn't long ago that a buying a premium UHDTV demanded your first-born in exchange, or at least a sizeable portion of his or her college tuition.

- Thomas J. Norton

At $2,800 (and widely available for less), Samsung’s new QN65Q80R “QLED” TV isn’t exactly the lowest-priced entry in the growing category of affordable UHDTVs, but it’s certainly a welcome one. Samsung also sells 55- and 75-inch versions of the Q80R, the latter priced under $4,000.

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The 65-inch Q80R sits on two legs spaced 41 inches apart. If you plan on a table mount, make certain the table is wider than that with room to spare—I’d recommend at least 48 inches. Setup was simple, with the legs snapping into place with no need for screws. The thin bezel around the screen is nearly invisible, and while the set is moderately thick for a modern design (2.4 inches maximum), its gently arched back has an attractive, sculpted look.

The Q80R has no component or composite video inputs, so if you require those legacy formats for lower-resolution sources you’ll have to buy separate component- or composite-to-HDMI adapter (these aren’t expensive, but we can’t vouch for how well they work). Unlike Samsung sets that employ the company’s “One Connect” box, The Q80R’s inputs are located on its back panel. A One Connect box separates the inputs from the main chassis on the current flagship Q90R (also on Samsung’s 8K models) and offers at least a little reassurance of future hardware upgradability (though there’s no such thing as total future-proofing).