Philips OLED909 has an extra bright OLED panel – while OLED959 has new Ambilight Plus, and a tailored sound system from B&W.
23.01.24 – 19:15
Barcelona/Sound & Image: Philips TV was not to be seen during CES2024, but follows as usual with its own show in Europe soon after the Las Vegas fair. The scene is the same as the last time we visited Philips, namely Barcelona in Spain – which has become a favorite place, after “Ambilight TV” became one of the main sponsors of the football club FC Barcelona last year. Here, among other things, we got to know the new top models OLED+959, OLED+909, OLED809 as well as the new LCD screens The One and The Xtra!
From the presentation of Philips TV – TP Vision live 2024. (Photo: Audun Hage)
2024 Philips Ambilight TV
Spain and Barcelona are definitely a slightly brighter and warmer place to be than the Nordics, and there is also an extra focus on light during this year’s Philips TV launch. An important unit of measure here is “nits”, which indicates the brightness the screen is able to emit.
It is both about being able to create a bright and high-contrast image in a bright room (daytime, sunny surroundings) and at the same time reproduce the sparkling details from video content in HDR (High Dynamic Range) format with sufficient depth and intensity.
It is important to point out that OLED screens have come a long way since the first generations, where the brightness could be limited to 5-600 nits in a small area. With today’s models, 1000 nits or more is relatively easy to achieve, and the most advanced panels can now manage up to 3000 nits in a small screen area! Which is something Philips knows how to use to its advantage.
This year’s 2024 models Philips of course knows how to take advantage of the latest OLED panels from LG Display (MLA/Meta 2.0 and EX). In addition to OLED, they are also launching a new generation of Mini LED LCD models also known as The Xtra, which now go all the way up to 85 inches.
Still betting on Ambilight and sound from B&W
Philips is in a slightly unique position in today’s TV market: as a relatively small but independent TV manufacturer, they can largely pick and choose different panel technologies, and are also a little freer to choose who they want to work with. The model range for 2024 is also proof of this, where, for example, they are collaborating with B&W on the sound side for the 7th year in a row.
Today’s OLED models have been a breath of fresh air in the market with a potent combination of image, sound and of course Ambilight, which is the manufacturer’s own ambient light.
The latter has been challenged lately after Samsung, Signify and other competitors have started to offer similar solutions, but as Kostas Vousas, the head of Philips TV himself stated, the company has a long experience to draw on.
This year they celebrate 20 years with Ambilight and also choose to front them as just that – Ambilight TV. At the same time, they are introducing the new version Ambilight Plus, which will first be available in the flagship model OLED+959. It builds on the “NextGen” version that was launched a couple of years ago, with some improvements.
Philips OLED 959 and OLED 909. (Photo: Philips)
The new top model: Philips OLED+959
OLED959 is “a true flagship model” according to Philips. This model will be the new top model in the Philips range with top-spec image and sound. It uses the latest OLED panel from LG Display, which is said to be capable of 3000 nits of brightness. And Philips, with its robust image processing, is likely to take advantage of this increased capacity.
OLED959 uses the most powerful P5 AI ‘Dual Engine’ processor in combination with the META 2.0 OLED panel and the META Multi Booster algorithm.
The video processor that tames it all is the 8th generation P5 AI-OLED959, which has, among other things, an “Ambient Intelligence V3” light sensor that helps adapt the image to the surroundings. In our experience, this is important – and perhaps especially so on an extra bright TV like this, in order to utilize the potential of the panel and at the same time show HDR video material from its best side.
5.1.2 sound system from Bowers & Wilkins
OLED+959 wouldn’t be a proper top model if it didn’t get “the B&W treatment”. The speaker specialists at Bowers & Wilkins have designed the integrated 5.1.2 speaker system, which in this case extends to the front, below, on the sides and top of the screen. It is of course compatible with surround sound formats such as Dolby Atmos. The key word here is “downsizing”, which means putting in a potent sound system and at the same time maintaining a slim form factor. It seems that B&W has achieved this without saving too much on the gunpowder.
B&W has developed new bespoke 30 x 50mm drivers specifically for the new OLED+ models, and the OLED+959 uses a total of 18 drivers, including titanium tweeters. This allows the screen to maintain a slim silhouette, and reportedly “without compromising on performance,” according to Philips and B&W.
All speakers are acoustically isolated, mounted in their own rigid enclosures. At the back of the set there is a dedicated bass unit with a 75 mm subwoofer supported by two pairs of balanced 45 x 65 mm passive radiators. The amplifier has a total of 12 channels and 102W, where each channel has its own dedicated signal processing.
Those seeking even deeper bass also have the option of connecting an external subwoofer.
Unfortunately, we did not have the opportunity to hear the sound from the OLED+959 as it is still a prototype, but we did get an impressive demonstration of the OLED+909, which seems to have at least as strong and clear sound as the critically acclaimed OLED908 from last year.
One caveat: the Philips model only comes in a 65-inch screen size, and interested buyers will have to wait a bit, as it is scheduled to be released in the third quarter of 2024.
Philips OLED+909 and OLED809
Two models that arrive a little earlier in the year are the little brothers OLED+909 and OLED809. The former uses the same bright OLED panel as the 959, combined with four-sided Ambilight and a slightly simpler P5 AI video processor. This gorgeous successor to the OLED+908 also gets a 3.1 sound system from Bowers & Wilkins, and comes in several screen sizes – 55, 65 and 77 inches.
The OLED809 is the successor to the popular OLED808 from last year. This model uses a somewhat more conventional OLED EX panel (without MLA), but in return will get a more affordable price point, and more screen sizes.
The case is updated!
2024-01-23 18:15:11
#Light #camera #action #Philips #launches #models
