It’s always nice when we’re surprised by an Award winner, and that’s the situation we found ourselves in when judging this year’s TV category.
You see, when we reviewed the 65-inch LG C4 in April, we found it to be such a massive upgrade on its C3 predecessor – and such a potent combination of performance, features and price – that we fully expected it to be taking away an Award come November.
Sony, though, had other plans: the Bravia 8 arrived and proved to be a considerable upgrade on the preceding A80L (a superior TV to the C3) and, to our great surprise, an even better picture and sound performer than the C4.
Other TVs were considered too, of course – the Samsung S95D, Panasonic Z95A and Philips OLED809, to name just three – but it quite quickly became a duel between the Bravia 8 and the C4, with the former eventually emerging victorious.
LG need not be too disheartened, though, because while Sony has taken the prizes for the Best TV gongs at 55 inches and larger, the C4 has still won three Awards: Best 42-inch TV for the OLED42C4, Best 48-inch TV for the OLED48C4 and Best Gaming TV for the OLED42C4 again. If you’re looking for a premium performance at a smaller size or a stunning gaming display, you really can’t do better.
This year also sees the return of the Best 8K TV Award. Last year, we just didn’t see a model that really impressed us, but this year’s Samsung QN900D is a stone-cold stunner.
It doesn’t really matter that native 8K material worth watching still doesn’t exist, because the QN900D makes all of the 4K content you already watch look extra spectacular through a combination of exceptionally clever upscaling, stunning brightness and amazing contrast. We still broadly believe that most people will currently be better served by a 4K TV, but if you want to get ahead of the curve, the QN900D is a glorious option.
Rounding off the category is a brand-new Award: the Best Budget 85-inch TV. The massive TV trend is really gaining momentum at this point and the TCL 85C805K puts in such an impressively rounded (and cinematic!) performance at such an affordable price (it’s currently cheaper than a 55-inch Sony Bravia 8) that we just had to recognise it with an Award. This is a sub-category we expect to get even more competitive over the next couple of years, but TCL has really laid down a marker.
So that’s six What Hi-Fi? Best Buy Awards shared between five TVs – but which one will be crowned our 2024 TV Product of the Year? You will find out very soon, because our glitzy Awards event is this very evening, after which all will be revealed.
MORE:
See every What Hi-Fi? Awards 2024 winner here
Here are the best soundbars you can buy right now
And our long list of the best TVs you can buy
