Samsung OLED S95F 83-Inch TV Review: A Big, Bright, Beautiful Blade of Glass
Published: 27 May 2025
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I recently had the opportunity to check out Samsung's latest TV offering, which meant an afternoon of very hard work: watching a movie, chucking on a little footy, and seeing if there's some kind of televisual revolution in the works — remember when tech companies tried to convince us that curved TVs were the future? What an insane time that was.
Happily, upon entering the plush suite at Sydney's Kimpton Margot hotel, booked by Samsung for the occasion, I was greeted by the entirely flat and impressively thin 83-inch OLED S95F TV. Rather than trying to reinvent the wheel, it was clear that Samsung has designed this panel to elevate your in-home viewing experience via a range of upgrades that, while subtle individually, noticeably enhance the whole affair when combined.
Now, if you've bought a TV in the last couple of years, you probably won't feel compelled to upgrade at this stage — a good TV should last you at least five years these days, maybe even a full decade. Having said that, I love the 65-inch Samsung OLED I purchased just a few years ago, and yet there are some upgrades here that I wouldn't mind taking home if I happened to stumble across a spare AUD$9,999. With that, let's take a closer look and see if Samsung is still the TV brand to beat.
It's hard to tell from a photo, but the S95F is massive at 83 inches | Image: Rob Edwards / Man of Many
Why Trust Us?
Here at Man of Many, we use a wide variety of technology. We're not fans of any one brand, and we like to get our hands on the latest and greatest tech before we proclaim any product the next great thing. Over the past 10 years, we've built up extensive experience in reviewing tech as a publication.
The author of this article, Rob Edwards, is one of Man of Many's technology journalists and has followed the industry for over a decade. He's previously reviewed competitors' devices and spent a few hours with the Samsung S95F for the purposes of this feature. No money exchanged hands, and all opinions expressed are those of the author and haven't been seen by Samsung ahead of time. For more information on our independence, testing and review guidelines, you can read our full editorial policies here.
Even at this resolution, ol' Tom looks pretty good | Image: Rob Edwards / Man of Many
The Good: Image, Design, User Interface, and Glare-Free Viewing
Blockbuster-Ready
Settling in to put the S95F through its paces, I started scrolling through the catalogue of streaming services via Samsung's intuitive user interface. Coming across Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning—a timely refresher for the then-upcoming Final Reckoning sequel—I sat back to see if Samsung's panel could make the most of Tom Cruise's attempts to land himself in an early grave.
First, I should say that it was immediately apparent that the visual impact of the 83-inch behemoth was on another level, offering 30 per cent more brightness than that of Samsung's previous flagship model. Contrast, colour saturation, sharpness, and the rest of those pesky picture settings one can be forced to fiddle with for hours to get them just right, were also perfectly balanced. No adjustments were required on my behalf, as the picture offered a natural, yet rich and vibrant depiction of whatever image was on screen. Jumping into the settings to return things to the factory setup, I was pleasantly surprised to find whoever set the S95F up initially hadn't made any tweaks at all, so it should perform this well for anyone straight out of the box.
The picture was also beautifully crisp. Samsung's NQ4 AI Gen3 Processor does a commendable job managing picture quality at all times. While I'm sick of talking about AI, here it actually works, responding to whatever you throw up on the screen.
While most of the sources I used during my viewing were 4K, I tested out some lower-res content on YouTube and a few other places and found the TV's upscaling impressive. From my position on the couch, I could not tell the difference between a 4K source or one that was merely HD. Even sub-HD pictures performed surprisingly well.
Anyway, back to Cruise's shenanigans, the S95F deftly handled the frenetic action of the Mission: Impossible franchise's (for now) penultimate instalment. Whether the Hollywood icon's skin was flapping in the wind—having ridden a motorbike off the edge of a sheer mountaintop—or he was weaving through pedestrians on the streets of Rome in a battered BMW, the drama always looked clean and clear.
Come on, Wests! | Image: Rob Edwards / Man of Many
A Good Sport
While one would expect cutting-edge images from a contemporary Hollywood blockbuster, I also felt compelled to give some sport a try — in my experience, a considerably less reliable performer when it comes to in-home viewing.
Having previously had some nightmares with TV testing using this kind of content—on one occasion the upscaling achieved little more than making the players look like melted wax figures—I'm always apprehensive at what I might discover.
However, I'm happy to report that the NRL and NBA games I streamed from Kayo during my time with the S95F were comparable to the Hollywood blockbuster in terms of crispness. In fact, I was surprised to find that the NRL game (Wests Tigers vs Brisbane Broncos, for anyone who's wondering) was actually the better-looking of the two.
I have to confess to being less invested in this game. It looked great, though | Image: Rob Edwards / Man of Many
A Glaring Difference
To be honest, while the above results are impressive, anything less would be disqualifying for a TV with an almost five-figure asking price. Saying that, there was one feature that really struck me. In fact, it was the first thing I noticed when entering the Kimpton Margot suite.
I'm referring to how the S95F performed under the extremely well-lit conditions of the suite. Not only were the lights on at full brightness, but large windows running down the wall of the room where the TV was set up enabled bright sunlight to come streaming in. For many panels—included my beloved 65-inch model at home—this would present a massive issue when it comes to glare and reflections. But not for the S95F.
Thanks to Samsung's anti-glare technology, the TV looked as if it was occupying a dark room. While most TVs would have you struggling to see past your own reflection in the panel—rather than Tom Cruise's nip-tucked visage—the S95F's image was in no way obscured by either the room's artificial lighting or the rays of sunlight pouring through the adjacent window.
Not the most glamorous photo, but you get a sense for how thin this panel is | Image: Rob Edwards / Man of Many
Can TVs Get Any Thinner?
Finally, I should also call out the impressive build of the S95F. Despite its enormous 83-inch span, it measures just 12.6mm thick. That means that it essentially looks like a giant blade of glass, and until you stand right up beside it, you'd be mistaken for thinking you could cut yourself on it. This makes it perfect for wall mounting, although it looks elegant sitting on its stand as well.
For those unfamiliar, this thinness is made possible by Samsung's One Connect Box, which contains all the bulky innards that would normally add depth to your TV's construction and enables you to place it elsewhere in your viewing space, giving you welcome flexibility in terms of your layout.
For an authentic cinema experience, you're going to need a soundbar at the very least | Image: Rob Edwards / Man of Many
The Bad: Price and Audio Options
To describe any of the below as 'bad' is harsh, but this is Man of Many's review format and I'm sticking with it!
For a cutting-edge 83-inch OLED TV, an asking price of AUD$9,999 is perfectly reasonable, particularly when you consider it was AUD$11,499 a few short weeks ago. However, no matter how you justify it, it's still a big wad of cash and can in no way be described as a bargain.
This is exacerbated when you consider that the audio performance of a TV as thin as this is going to be passable at best. It's just the nature of skinny TVs. As such, to make the most of this impressive panel, you're going to want to fork out even more for an equally impressive soundbar. During testing, Samsung had the Q-Series HW-Q990F Soundbar installed and it did a bang-up job. That's another AUD$1,999 right there. Worth it, but something to consider.
However you slice it, it's a great TV | Image: Rob Edwards / Man of Many
Many of Many's Final Verdict on the Samsung OLED S95F 83-Inch TV
It should come as no surprise that the new flagship TV from one of the most formidable tech brands on the planet is an outstanding piece of kit. It looks spectacular while displaying a wide range of content, boasts an extremely refined design (how much further can these things go?), and feels like it was designed specifically for well-lit Australian homes.
It'll cost you, but once it's mounted on your wall it'll do a phenomenal job for years to come.
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