Samsung UE50AU9000

Good TV meets excellent gaming monitor

Televison ₹74,900

KEY FEATURES

Tizen-based smart system

4K HDR panel

120Hz and VRR gaming support

We at What Hi Fi, it seems, just love a good mid-range LCD TV. For whereas the US and Australia get only a single series of Samsung’s sub-QLED ‘Crystal’ range, in India we get no fewer than three Crystal ranges: AU7100, AU8000, and the premium AU9000 series represented here by the 50in UE50AU9000.

As you would hope, the AU9000 has the design prowess and extra features required to start justifying its supposed cream of the Crystal 4K crop status. Whether or not you think its prowess extends to the performance, though, probably depends on what you most use your TV for. At ₹75k, the UE50AU9000 sits at the upper end of what might reasonably be called a ‘budget’ TV. You can, after all, get Samsung’s own entry-level Crystal LED model, the 43in UE43AU7100, for a mere ₹52,999, while Hisense even does a 50in Roku TV, the R50A7200GTUK, also cheaper.

As we’ll see, though, Samsung’s UE50AU9000 does potentially have what it takes to tempt punters into a bigger spend than they might ideally have been contemplating. In fact, if all of its elements come together as we hope they will, it might actually end up looking like a bargain.

Skinny for an LCD

The UE50AU9000’s so-called AirSlim design is so skinny you could be forgiven for thinking it must be using an OLED panel rather than an LCD one. Inevitably, given its price, this is not actually the case, but it’s certainly fair to say that it’s a remarkable looking thing by sub-₹75k LCD TV standards.

Its lack of heft marries up nicely with a super-narrow bezel, while the whole remarkably slight affair slots and locks (no screws required!) onto a pair of tastefully understated feet. The bodywork is more solidly built than many rivals, and it’s so slim from every angle you barely notice its physical form at all once it’s switched on and you are immersed in its pictures.

Tucked inside the AU9000’s box are two remote controls. Both are easy to get to grips with, but once initial installation is done we suspect most people will gravitate towards the impressively sleek and ergonomic little ‘smart’ handset.

Fully featured for gaming