Monster new TV tech at CES 2022

CES 2022 is here, and that means one thing. Lots of new display news. Here's some of the most interesting announcements from Samsung.

CES 2022 hasn't fully escaped the clutches of Covid, opting to end the show a day earlier than scheduled, as well as some prominent companies still opting to keep a virtual presence rather than a physical one. However, it is the most' normal' trade show event that we've had in a while, and there's lots of new tech being announced.

CES is very much the place to find out what's ahead in display and television tech, and this year is no exception, so let's take a look and see what's in store today from Samsung.

Samsung's new 2022 display tech

The Samsung Odyssey Neo G8 gaming display. Image: Samsung.

One of the most eye-catching displays unveiled is the Samsung Odyssey Neo G8, claiming a world's first for being the first-ever 4K Mini-LED display to run at 240Hz.

Clearly, 240Hz will be great for eye strain, but it also opens up the possibility of 240fps gaming, should your graphics card not run away crying.

The monitor is 32", uses a 1000R curved display, and can display a peak of 2000-nits brightness, controllable with 12-bit precision. In addition, the Mini-LEDs used are 1/40th the size of traditional LEDs, which the company says helps with reproducing purer blacks. In combination with the peak brightness, this should theoretically mean that the display will be very capable with HDR content, where reproducing detail in the darker areas is every bit as important as those bright specular highlights.

The display looks the business, sporting a very 'cyber-tech' white design that will make the game heads happy. Unfortunately, no price has been announced, although it is highly probable that it will set you back somewhat of a premium.

High-Resolution Monitor S8

Samsung High-Resolution Monitor S8. Image: Samsung.

We'll come to Samsung's consumer televisions in just a moment, but amongst the other announcements the company has made is a new monitor called the S8, or S80PB, to give it its full designation. The S8 has been designed as a monitor for creators and designers and is available in 27" and 32" versions.

It features 4K (UHD) resolution with the 32" version meeting VESA Display HDR 600 standards, while the 27" rates at HDR 400. Interestingly it also features the world's first Underwriter Laboratories verified Glare-Free monitor display, which should mean that the monitor is viewable in bright lighting conditions even without a monitor hood. We'll believe it when we see it!

Colour performance-wise, the company claims 98% reproduction of the P3 colour gamut. We don't yet know about calibration details or whether it has set modes for Rec.709 etc., but we'll keep you posted.

Again, no confirmation on pricing, but it's one to look out for.

MICRO LED televisions

Samsung's 2022 MICRO LED range will be available in 110", 101", and 89" sizes and can reproduce a 20-bit greyscale range, a gradation of 1 million steps. Impressive, although with no current camera being capable of being able to record such precision, the usefulness of this may be up for debate. The company also claims 100% reproduction of DCI-P3 and Adobe RGB colour gamuts. Indeed, this will be an impressive television to view, particularly given its 120fps high frame rate capabilities that even extend to simultaneously displaying four HDMI sources for the ultimate in information overload. This could make it an impressive console gaming display. Alas, there's no mention of Dolby Vision capability, however. Well, there has to be one thing next year's model can do that this one can't.

Neo QLED televisions

Samsung Neo QLED TV. Image: Samsung.

Samsung's Neo QLED TVs equipped with the company's Neo Quantum Processor has introduced a new contrast mapping system. Samsung says that this has enabled it to increase the brightness precision on the televisions from 12-bit to 14-bit. 

Among the other buzz-phrases is a new Shape Adaptive Light system that analyses all the shapes and forms in the image so that the display can enhance both the brightness and accuracy of the light the Quantum Mini LEDs emit.

If you're a DP, the most interesting and possibly the most concerning is the new Real Depth Enhancer. Although we don't know precisely what this does, Samsung states, "This technological advancement creates a greater sense of realism by determining and processing an object on the screen against its background to create a sense of depth."

We don't know whether this is simply dynamically adjusting brightness or shock horror, creating fake depth of field effects. If it's the latter, we would be pretty concerned!

Dolby Atmos is catered for, creating a soundscape that includes overhead audio created by upwardly firing speakers.

Lastly, there's the anti-glare technology, which has been built into its 2022 range of lifestyle TVs such as The Frame. This, more than anything, is worthwhile. Samsung claims that it meets UL standards for reflection glare-free, disability glare-free, and discomfort glare-free. It also prevents grubby fingerprints from ruining your digital artwork, speaking of which...

Samsung's 2022 The Frame TV. Image: Samsung.

Buy your NFTs here

Samsung has added a few new Smart Hub and TV apps as well, including one that integrates a webcam with your viewing experience so you can enjoy TV together remotely with family members elsewhere. We might have questioned the need for such a thing in a previous lifetime, but with many people still restricted by the pandemic, it's possibly quite welcome. Although of course, you'll need to persuade the rest of your friends and family to get a new TV to take advantage of it... So perhaps it might not be all that useful after all.

However, the most, shall we say, curious addition to the apps list is an NFT (Non-Fungible Token) Platform that gives you the freedom to buy and sell digital artwork. Fancy spending $200k on an animated GIF to display on your wall-mounted Frame TV whilst claiming that you own the 'original'? Well, quite possibly you can fulfil your indulgences here.

NFTs are clearly a 'thing', although we're not entirely sure why. And there's also the concern over the volatility of the market. The NFT party may well be over, but just as with crypto, the market can rise and fall like a yo-yo. Still, blockchain will become even more important in the future beyond that of kids giving sideways looks. Some incredible digital artists actually do make properly good bonafide artwork. So the ability to retain some sort of proof of ownership over such assets is a welcome thing. It's just unfortunate that it all has to fall within a debate about useless GIFs and the first-ever Tweet. The fact is that for Samsung's app to be any success, there does need to be quality content on there. We shall see.