What’s the best TV in 2020?
Best TV 2020: Whether you’re looking for a cheap TV or the latest in TV technology, there’s something for everyone in this guide. We’ve reviewed the best TVs on the market to help you find the best TV for you.
Whatever you need, whether it’s a 4K TV, OLED or brand new 8K TV, this list will have you covered. Below is a shortlist of our favourite TVs and for more info, just scroll down to read a summary or click through to our full reviews.
- Best OLED TV: Panasonic HZ2000
- Best QLED TV: Samsung Q95T
- Best TV upscaling: LG CX OLED
- Best entry-level OLED: Sony A8
- Best Ambilight TV: Philips OLED805
- Best HDR TV: Panasonic HZ1500
- Best 65-inch OLED: Panasonic HZ1000
- Best gaming TV: Samsung Q80T
- Best 8K TV: Samsung Q950TS
- Best 8K HDR TV: Sony ZG9
- Best small OLED TV: LG OLED48CX
- Best affordable 8K TV: Samsung Q800T
- Best small budget TV: Samsung UE43RU7020
- Best value budget TV: Hisense Roku TV
Panasonic TX-55HZ2000
The ultimate home cinema TV
Pros:
- Universal HDR support with Dolby Vision IQ
- Filmmaker Mode with Intelligent Sensing
- Effective Dolby Atmos sound system
- Freeview Play
Cons:
- No HDMI support for 4K/120fps
- No Disney+ app
- Over specified for AV enthusiasts?
Panasonic’s flagship OLED doesn’t fail to disappoint. We called it the Ultimate Home Cinema TV in our review and for good reason.
Like the other OLEDs in the range it supports Dolby Vision (IQ), HDR10+ and the main HDR formats. It also has the upfiring Atmos speakers pioneered by the GZ2000, and delivers Filmmaker Mode with Intelligent Sensing, optimising the image to brightness of your room so you can see every detail.
And with its Professional Master Edition OLED screen, it delivers the brightest pictures an OLED is capable of. Near black detail is excellent, brightness adds more intensity to highlights and colour handling is accomplished. It is expensive though and not a set for gamers. But the HZ2000 nonetheless delivers on its promise of bringing Hollywood to the home.
- read our Panasonic TX-55HZ2000 review
LG CX OLED
Superb visuals
Pros:
- Excellent picture quality
- Great design
- Plenty of smarts, features and customisation
- Excellent upscaling
Cons:
- Still no UK catch-up apps
- Just a small leap over the C9
The CX brings LG’s mid-range OLED series down in price while also bringing in a number of refinements and new features, such as Dolby Vision IQ and Filmmaker Mode.
The CX also proves to be great with whatever content you feed, offering a rich and detailed 4K image. Sound quality is good and it’s a set made with the next-gen consoles in mind with its 4K/120fps support. There’s plenty of apps (Apple TV, Disney+) with smart features available through the slick webOS interface. The lack of several UK catch-up apps will annoy some, but a recent price drop has made the CX excellent value.
- read our LG OLED55CX review
Samsung QE55Q95T
Spectacularly bright HDR images
Pros:
- Terrifically bright and punchy HDR performance
- Class-leading gaming performance
- Stylish design
- Impressive upscaling
- Wide app support
Cons:
- No Dolby Vision HDR
- Requires creating a Samsung account to download additional apps
The Q95T is another excellent 55-inch QLED, and while it isn’t as heavily spec’d as the 2019 Q90R, performance across the board is fantastic.
Picture quality favours bright and punchy HDR colours, and it’s a great upscaler of sub-4K content delivering a consistently good image from any source you plug into it. It’s also ready for next-gen gaming with class-leading latency and a number of HDMI 2.1 features (including VRR and 4K/120Hz). The sound is respectable, but will go down better with an external system. The omission of Dolby Vision support is the one significant disappointment.
- read our Samsung QE55Q95T review
Sony KD-65A8
Sony’s best entry-level OLED yet
Pros:
- Beautifully refined, contrast rich pictures
- Elegant, minimalist design
- Big, warm and immersive sound
Cons:
- Bright scenes lose a little impact versus rivals in a bright environment
- Android TV isn’t the most user-friendly smart system
- No HDR10+ support
The KD-65A8 is the cheapest and finest entry-level OLED Sony has made. Its build quality is excellent – both minimalist and striking in a way that gives ample space for the TV’s images to hog the glory.
And its pictures are things of beauty: refined, balanced, natural, intense, precise, pretty much noise-free, while also benefiting from some of the finest colour, upscaling and motion processing around. And don’t discount the sound either, with Sony’s Acoustic Surface Audio technology pushing audio into the room for a big, immersive performance.
- read our Sony KD-65A8 review
Philips 55OLED805
Improvements courtesy of AI
Pros:
- Multi-HDR support with HDR10+, Dolby Vision and HLG
- Freeview Play
- Ambilight
- Play-Fi compatibility
Cons:
- No support for 4K/120fps
- No Dolby Vision IQ
The OLED805 is Philips first OLED of 2020 and it doesn’t disappoint. Philips has made a few changes under the hood and brought in some new features.
One major feature being the new P5 chip that comes with AI technology, which adapts picture quality according to type of content, and it works well. 4K exhibits an almost three-dimensional look, while HDR is impressively done, while near-black levels are breathtakingly fine. It lacks HDMI 2.1 features, particularly for gaming but for its impressive picture quality the OLED805 a sure-fire winner.
- read our Philips 55OLED805 review
Panasonic TX-55HZ1500
Superb images from any source
Pros:
- Detailed, stable, entirely natural and believable images
- Bigger, better-realised sound than most TVs
- Every HDR base covered
- Decent ergonomics
- Good upscaling
Cons:
- Expensive for a 55in TV
- One or two missing apps
- Sound can be bettered by a half-decent soundbar
The Panasonic HZ1500 is another impressive OLED from the Japanese brand. While the changes from the previous year’s GZ1500 aren’t substantial, it’s enough to wave off the price increase.
The HZ1500 likes nothing more than gobbling up 4K HDR content, with support for both Dolby Vision and HDR10+. New for 2020 is Dolby Vision IQ, which optimises Dolby Vision content to take into account changes in a room’s ambient light. Also new is the upfiring speaker drivers to give Atmos sound a bigger and taller soundfield. It’s a TV that delivers a remarkably accomplished image from whatever source.
- read our Panasonic TX-55HZ1500 review
Panasonic TX-65HZ1000
A superb 65-inch OLED
Pros:
- Fantastic picture quality
- Multi-HDR support
- Good sound quality
- Simple interface
- Good build quality
Cons:
- Expensive
- Not tuned for gamers
The HZ1000 is Panasonic’s third-tier OLED for 2020, but its still an incredibly strong performer.
It drops the upward-firing Atmos speakers of the HZ1500 and HZ2000, and doesn’t go as bright in terms of HDR, but this 65-inch model still makes a highly compelling argument for a big-screen telly. Picture quality is nothing short of fabulous, there’s multi-HDR support including Dolby Vision IQ and sound quality is good. If you are a gamer this TV makes few concessions, it is pricey and there’s no Apple TV app or Disney+. Still, for a big screen experience this OLED is fabulous.
- read our Panasonic HZ1000 review
Samsung QE65Q80T
A great set for gaming
Pros:
- Corking picture quality from any standard of content
- Excellent for gamers
- Class-leading user interface
Cons:
- Expensive
- Sound is nothing special
- No Dolby Vision
The Q80T offers an ambitious feature set, with full-array local dimming, Samsung’s Object Tracking Sound and super-fast gaming performance.
It’s a dab hand at upscaling SD/HD content, and its brightness means HDR content is brought to life in a gorgeous and punchy manner. No Dolby Vision support will annoy home cinema enthusiasts, but gamers will be pleased with the 8.7ms latency and 4K/120Hz support with the PS5 and Xbox Series X in mind.
- read our Samsung Q80T review
Samsung QE75Q950TS
Sensational picture and sound
Pros:
- Spectacular picture quality with a wide range of resolutions
- Beautiful, cutting edge design
- Innovative and effective object tracking sound system
Cons:
- One or two very rare backlight glitches
- It will be too expensive for most households
- No Dolby Vision support
The Q950TS is a third-gen 8K TV and easily its best. Picture quality is superb even without any native 8K content available as the 8K Quantum Processor works its socks off to upscale sub-8K content. Black levels are impressive, blooming is pretty much removed from equation, and the TV’s scorching brightness means HDR content fizzes off the screen while also remaining nuanced and natural.
The Q950TS also boasts Samsung’s innovative OTS+ system, which has speakers in the top, sides and bottom of the screen. In many ways it brilliantly conveys the size of the sound and accurately positioning effects on-screen. While the Q950TS is not cheap, it’s one of the best LCD TVs we’ve tested.
- read our Samsung QE75Q950TS review
Sony KD-85ZG9
A stunning next-generation TV
Pros:
- Sensational 8K HDR picture quality
- Very good, immersive upscaling
- Excellent video processing and backlight management
Cons:
- Super-expensive
- Occasional limited backlight blooming issues
- Voices can get lost in action movie audio mixes
Sony has been rather quiet compared to LG and Samsung with regards to 8K TVs. But its entrance into the market proves Sony is just as capable.
The ZG9 rewards its owners with stunningly bright, clear and detailed images. Its colour management is excellent, as is the upscaling of sub-8K source material. With its huge number of local dimming zones, it can deliver some of the most impressively dynamic and dramatic HDR pictures. The first 8K TV from Sony is a genuinely thrilling effort.
- read our Sony KD-85ZG9 review
LG OLED48CX
The first small screen OLED
Pros:
- Beautiful picture quality
- Strong sound quality
- Class-leading gaming features
Cons:
- Costs more than 55-inch version
- Care needs to be taken to avoid screen burn
- Missing most of the UK catch up apps
The LG CX is the first 48-inch OLED to hit market, bringing the display technology down to sizes that can more easily fit living rooms. Despite its smaller size, its performance is just as good as the ‘full-size’ 55-inch model.
It combines fantastic picture quality and good sound with the most comprehensive gaming-friendly connectivity around, making it an excellent choice for the PS5 and Xbox Series X. There is no compromise in terms of features, though it is still missing most of the UK catch-up apps. At the time of review, the 48-inch model costs more than the 55-inch version, which arguably makes it less good value.
- read our LG 48 CX review
Samsung QE65Q800T
Brings 8K closer to wider adoption
Pros:
- Bright, sharp 8K pictures with impressive black levels
- Powerful, impressively detailed audio
- Good value for an 8K TV
Cons:
- Heavy dimming of stand-out bright objects
- No Dolby Vision support
- Game mode reduces backlight controls
The argument made against 8K is that not needed and too expensive. The Samsung Q800T makes a convincing case against both points.
While native 8K content is still lacking, there’s an argument to be made that the Q800T makes 4K look even better than it would on a 4K TV. It furthers Samsung’s progress with black levels, displaying some of the best we’ve seen on an LCD TV, and it goes bright enough to make HDR look spectacular. The OTS+ sound system delivers plenty of power and detail to accompany those images, too.
There are still issues to iron out, but this is one of the cheapest 8K TVs on the market, bringing the tech closer to mainstream acceptance.
- read our Samsung QE65Q800T review
Hisense R50B7120UK
A super budget TV
Pros:
- Satisfying 4K and HD picture
- Decent sound
- Speedy Game Mode
- Lots of apps/channels
Cons:
- Limited HDR performance
- SD performance not great
- Limited viewing angles
Roku’s first stab at the UK market is a resounding success. Bringing their affordable sensibility over from the US, the Hisense Roku TV features plenty of streaming options, as well as satisfying 4K picture quality for its £379 price. Its upscaling performance is good with HD, though less so with SD content. Despite cheap TVs reputation for disappointing sound, the Hisense Roku is a qualified success with its big and clear performance.
For those who want a simple plug-and-go TV that supports the major streaming apps, this is a strong effort and one of the best budget TVs available.
- read our Hisense Roku TV B7120 review
How we test TVs
Every TV that passes through our doors gets put through a series of tests and naked eye checks to gauge its overall picture quality and optimal settings. Key things we look out for are screen uniformity, black level, maximum brightness and colour vibrancy/accuracy. We also check input lag to make sure gamers won’t lose their edge when playing online.
A variety of test footage is used to cover every type of scene, so we can assess a 4K TV’s strengths and weaknesses, as well as how it performs against the competition.
Sound quality isn’t forgotten, either – we give the built-in speakers a thorough listen to determine whether you’ll need to invest in a soundbar or speaker system to beef things up.
If you’re interested in checking out TVs at different price models, models and brands. Look through our main best ofs below models for everything from cheap 4K HDR TVs to expensive 8K models and everything in-between.
