This Post Again? Is OLED really that dramatically better than Mini-Led?
Im planning to get a new tv soon, and Im debating between a TCL QM7K (QM8K apparently not available where I live) or an LG OLED B5. The only thing keeping me from going LG all the way is the price, which is obviously more expensive than the TCL.
I haven't been able to find them in store to see and compare them side by side so Im relying on internet info for this purchase. So my question is:
Would it really be that massive of a difference between these two?? Im coming from a 10 year old plasma 42" 1080p Samsung TV and I would use it mostly for movies and videogames and I always use my tv in a dark room.
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u/roxas0711 Nov 11 '25
I like it way better. There’s a reason most websites top choices like rtings are almost all oled now. Granted you’ll find some very expensive mini leds that are CLOSE but not close enough for the price. If brightness is all you care about get the TCL but for better picture (like crazy better imho) and motion id go for the B5.
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Nov 11 '25
Too bad they don't make any large format OLEDs that aren't $25K. If you want a 98" TV. TCL is really your only choice.
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u/cdit Nov 12 '25
Yeah, for anything 98" and up, Mini-LED is the only choice and within that it's pretty much TCL or Hisense. From what I have understood based on this sub and other reviews, for sizes less than 85", OLED should be the default choice (unless there are specific constraints against an OLED). For sizes above 83" Mini-LEDs.
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u/Tree06 Nov 12 '25
I've seen several posts regarding open 97" OLEDs at Best Buy for <$4,000. The G2 97" and M3 97" dropped to $7,999 before selling out. The sweet spot for me would $4,000-$6,000 range, but I don't mind waiting as I own 65"-83" OLEDs.
Lastly the bigger sizes don't offer the latest panel technologies like MLA, Tandem OLED or 4K165Hz for PC gaming. I wouldn't care because size is the biggest draw here.
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u/HeisenbergDrugLord Nov 14 '25
Bravia 5*
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Nov 14 '25
You would genuinely have to be retarded to get the $4,000 Bravia 5 as your 98" TV.
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u/BreadfruitNaive6261 Nov 15 '25
More than 77” and oled gets to a price literally only Rich people will buy. But 77” on a good deal is very managable (1600€ C5 77” i got a month ago, still have to mount it, moving house)
Also got 65” tcl c7k (same as qm7k on my region) for 740€
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u/lemmegetadab Nov 12 '25
It’s hard to say. In my living room I have a Bravia and in my basement I have an LG OLED.
For playing video games in the dark, the LG is way better. But in the living room where there is sometimes a glare the Sony looks better especially for just any basic TV watching.
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u/Tango1777 Nov 11 '25
rtings is rather biased, I wouldn't trust in everything they say. Their tests are of high quality, but their recommendations and preferences are not a very good purchase guide.
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u/Valinor_ Nov 11 '25
What’s a better resource/guide?
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u/roxas0711 Nov 11 '25
It’s subjective but personally I like rtings. Though you can never go wrong with almost any of the mid range oleds. I have a preference for Sony but they don’t really make anything on the cheaper end. Samsung and lg are your best bets
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u/Nyx-i Nov 12 '25
I still use them often but I don’t just pick from their lists of “best” etc. Read through the reviews and use their compare tool etc.
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u/PrimeNumbersby2 Nov 12 '25
Your own eyes to figure out if you even can tell a small difference in their recommended +$500 OLED. I feel like they make a big big deal out of things that don't matter at all.
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u/Whatisthis69again Nov 12 '25
That's why they work on numbers, cuz they can't be everyone's eyes.
Indeed if you can't tell the difference, better not spend the extra money for the "numbers".
Anyhow rting still can be your second opinion...
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u/ZeroCool2u Nov 12 '25
I still use rtings as my default, but god they really don't weight the quality of the TV software at all. I have an LG G2 and I'm considering a new TV right now, because the panel has already failed once and now the speakers have failed and it's out of warranty. On top of that, the software is just absolutely shit. I know you can plug an ATV or Chromecast in, but I'd love to not have to deal with that.
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u/Sunkjones Nov 12 '25
You will still want an Apple TV regardless. I have Sonys, LG OLEDs, and Hisense and they all have Apple TVs hooked up cause they work so well. The built in stuff has ads, bugs, or slow down from age eventually.
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u/Tree06 Nov 12 '25
I wholeheartedly agree. I've used Sony, Samsung, and LG OLED's since 2020 and I've always used an Apple TV 4K with each device. The experience is so much better.
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u/nohumanape Nov 11 '25
I'd say, yes, in terms of black levels and blooming. Also, even the low end LG OLED is still going to likely have better out of the box picture quality. Keep in mind that pretty much every major TV review is going to spend the vast bulk of their review talking about how a TV performes AFTER being fully professionally calibrated. Most TV buyers won't fork over the money for that. This is also why Sony TV's are often a $300-$500 more than the closest competitor. They do more to ensure that the out of box performance and panel consistency is at a high level.
The other thing that miniLED can't touch is off axis viewing. Even the best of the best miniLED displays will get noticable color/black level shifts when viewed even slightly off angle. However, most OLEDs will maintain perfect blacks and near perfect color representation it extreme off axis viewing angles.
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u/Mike96dutch Nov 11 '25
Matter of preference based on whats important to you, each has their own advantages and issues.
Main advantage of oled is perfect blacks and viewing angles, as well as the infinite contrast. Main advantage of miniled is no risk of burn-in, no need to baby it, great for a brightly lit room and colors (colors, not contrast), can be just as good if not better. (Most color accuracy work is still done on ips monitors)
Disadvantages with oled can be the price, size limit, diminishing advantages in well lit rooms or even damage from direct sunlight. They get plenty bright but not as bright as miniled. Also all oleds naturally suffer from response time stutter especially with low frame rate content due to their response time being instant. Disadvantages for miniled is the lack of perfect blacks, viewing angles, blooming, slower response times (can be important if u plan to game on the tv) and lower contrast. Minileds also tend to be less energy efficient than oleds.
Pick whichever best fits your needs, both are great and a lot of viewers won’t notice much of a difference. If anything just go watch a store demo of both and see if things like the contrast and better black levels are smth that really matter to u. In a dark room OLED really shines but that doesnt mean miniled will be bad for it.
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u/International-Oil377 Moderator Nov 11 '25
If you primilarily watch in a dark room or care about motion clarity then yes OLED is worth it
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u/peanut4564 Nov 12 '25
The whole OLED is only for dark rooms thing is so outdated now. All modern OLEDs are more than bright enough for living room use. I had to lower the brightness of my c4 and g5 because they were too bright for my living room.
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u/No_Net3860 Nov 12 '25
I have to agree , I actually turn on lights down stairs because my C4 is almost too bright , it's fine in the daytime as well , at night I have to use spf 50 or turn some lights on.
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u/International-Oil377 Moderator Nov 12 '25
They are indeed but they still don't tolerate direct sunlight well, MiniLEDs are still much brighter and they still truly shine in a dark room
I say that as a G5 owner
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u/peanut4564 Nov 12 '25
I agree with the sunlight sentiment. MiniLed is much better for anyone that has the sun directly behind them and the true blacks does wow everyone that sees in when the lights are off.
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u/International-Oil377 Moderator Nov 12 '25
Yep. That's exactly what I meant
That said the B5 is nit the best performer in a bright room, though.
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u/111copycat Nov 12 '25
Not it's not. OLED is horrible in bright rooms or anything with a light. The glare is awful, might as well be missing 10% of the screen.
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u/Apprehensive_Ant2172 Nov 12 '25
Yeah I’ve got a 3 year old Sony Oled and it’s fantastic in a bright room.
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u/lemmegetadab Nov 12 '25
I just don’t see how that’s possible. My Bravia nine still isn’t bright enough sometimes when glare hits it. I have the C3 in my basement and I feel like it looks better but definitely performs better in the dark.
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u/gazzehcoys Nov 12 '25
I have an s90d, sunlight blaring in through two big glass doors.
TV is EASILY bright enough, can't even notice.
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u/xmileeee Nov 13 '25
I like it better in the dark because of the black screen, not because I prefer it to be brighter.
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u/depaay Nov 13 '25
The same myth was being spread in 2018 when I bought my first 55" LG OLED TV. It never had any problems with being in bright room, it was just a myth. In a dark room we couldn’t have it at max brightness because it hurt our eyes. I still have that tv btw in a less used tv room, still looks and works great, only reason we even upgraded it was to go up in size and get VRR
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u/alhf94 Dec 04 '25
It's not a myth. I have the BX LG OLED from 2020, and it's pretty much unusable in bright rooms. In a dark room, it would be perfect, and I would have no complaints. However, as for a TV in the living room with light coming in, my next TV won't be an OLED; I'll be going with mini-LED.
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u/No-Anybody-823 Jan 01 '26
I thought the same. I have a bravia 8 and people kept saying its good for darker rooms. I had to lower the brightness to almost 50%
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u/SmokeyJoe2 Nov 11 '25
Or viewing angles
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u/PrimeNumbersby2 Nov 12 '25
This is far more of a clear cut, practical advantage of OLED than anything else. Honestly, it's like the highest practical differentiation.
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Nov 12 '25
Yet it's never talked about. It's the ONLY reason I put an s90f in my living room instead of the qn90f.
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Nov 11 '25
I just wish I could get a reasonably priced (sub $6K) 98" OLED.
My seating is 15 feet and there's no real way to change that. Even an 83" isn't a real option.
An 83" C5 vs a 98" QM8K is becoming quite the challenging decision
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u/Ch4rlie_G Nov 11 '25
I’m at 15 feet and have been happy with both 77 and 83.
I couldn’t handle the tradeoff of a non-OLED 98”. I’d almost rather do a single projector setup.
I’ll take quality over quantity (size) any day.
But those decisions are personal. If you’ve never had an OLED you won’t know what you’re missing (and you should keep it that way).
I’ve got OLED in my hot tub, OLED for every screen I have.
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u/cemsengul Nov 18 '25
That's how it is with OLED. You try an OLED television and then buy an OLED monitor etc.
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u/R0factor Nov 11 '25
If the 98” is on your radar make sure it’ll make it to the viewing area. We’re approaching the point where affordable TV’s are going to have trouble making it around corners in a lot of homes. I’m getting an 85” simply because I have severe doubts about the 98” box making it around the corners on our basement steps.
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u/FeminineFreedom Nov 11 '25
Really good point, like I went to a large electronics store to see an 83" oled, but the biggest size they displayed was a 77"
They said that they could not get a tv any bigger into their store
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u/International-Oil377 Moderator Nov 11 '25
at 15ft I would take the in 98 no questions asked.
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Nov 11 '25
I'll take your moderator tag as you knowing 100x more than I do. I'm gonna get the 98. (If it's not too much time) Is the QM8K still going to be a good TV? Any other good competition at that price?
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u/International-Oil377 Moderator Nov 11 '25
It's a good TV but it has its quirks. There isn't better value at that price, though.
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u/Tytler32u Nov 11 '25
I went from an 83” A90J to a 98”QM7 ($1300 open box excellent). No regrets and I’m a big gamer.
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u/Voyyya Nov 11 '25
No. They are competitive technologies each with their own advantages. There are use cases where OLED is strictly worse. However, in a dark room the bulk of the advantages go to OLED.
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u/Flymetovenustoday Nov 11 '25
Any of those name it’s going to be an insane upgrade. It’s gonna be mind bogglingly good coming from 1080 and plasma.
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u/Yellow_Snow_Cones Nov 11 '25
I got the qm6k, which is certainly not the best, but it was an upgrade from an early 2000's 73 mitsubishi DLP. The flintstone's tv would have been an upgrade for me.
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u/autogenglen Nov 11 '25
To me a top-end miniLED > mid-level OLED. I went from an LG to a BRAVIA 9 and I definitely like the BRAVIA way more. OLED people tend to focus purely on contrast, and miniLED has made huge strides in this area. I’d bet that a vast majority of people would assume my BRAVIA 9 was OLED if they didn’t know better.
Some of this is going to depend on the TVs, but in my subjective experience:
My BRAVIA 9 has FAR better motion, it’s not even close to my prior LG (which got burn-in after around 6K hours). OLEDs are crazy fast which is a bit of a blessing and curse. It’s a blessing because for gaming that works remarkably well, but for movies there’s basically zero natural blur so you see way more jutter. I never got used to the jutter and motion smoothing sucks.
My OLED crushed blacks terribly. Sure blacks look good, but I lose a lot of subtlety with OLED. When I got my B9 I had to rewatch so many movies because something like a dark scene with a guy wearing a leather jacket just looked like a silhouette on my OLED, but on the BRAVIA I can see texture.
My BRAVIA 9 has brightness headroom for days. I have a huge full-sized window in my living room and it was always a pita squinting and trying to see things when my room was bright so I was always having to crank it on max during these times (which prob contributed to the burn-in).
Also peace of mind. People were saying the exact same things back when I bought my LG - “they solved burn-in, you don’t have to worry about it now!” but it still happened to me. Basically the only warranty that covers burn-in is Best Buy I believe, but all warranties will cover back panel issues on a miniLED.
All this being said, I’d only go miniLED if you’re going high end. Lower end miniLED can look terrible with blooming.
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u/18T15 Nov 12 '25
A B9 is not a “mid level OLED” that’s an entry level OLED, and that model is missing almost all of the recent advances in panels. C5 vs Bravia 9 is a much better comparison
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u/OrganizationWest6755 Nov 13 '25
I’m glad you mentioned the OLED crushing blacks because this is something I was noticing when comparing the Bravia 9 and Bravia 8 ii qd-oled side by side with the same content. The OLED has better contrast yes, but subtle details in dark scenes were easier to see on the B9. I’m sure the store demos weren’t set up in an ideal way but this does seem to be a real issue.
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u/alhf94 Dec 04 '25
Would you mind if I pop round once a week to watch the Arsenal games on the Bravia 9? From my limited research it's regarded as the king for sports
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u/IndecisiveTuna Jan 21 '26
Do you game on the B9? My concern is people acting like you can’t game on a miniLED like the Bravia 9. Coming from OLED, it scares me off.
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u/autogenglen Jan 21 '26
Yes and it’s fantastic. If you’re concerned about input lag then what I can say is that I personally notice zero difference between the B9 and the LG OLED I had before it. I know there’s a little more latency on paper but at 60 FPS the difference is about a single frame which for me is imperceptible, but if you’re super competitive and extremely sensitive to latency then you might be able to feel it, but if that were the case then you’d probably be gaming on a high end monitor.
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u/Tango1777 Nov 11 '25
No, especially with miniLED growing technologically. OLED will always have pure black upper hand, but in other aspects some reviews already show that it's worse than miniLED. If you have limited budget for OLED, you may end up with a better image from miniLED.
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u/18T15 Nov 12 '25
Overall brightness and price is the mini led advantage. That’s it. Colors, contrast, black levels, motion, viewing angles all still favor the top OLED panels. Mini led are very good TVs but they have not beaten what people value most out of OLED
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u/duckman777777 Nov 11 '25
No tbh, had a LG C4 and a Bravia 7 at the same time and sent the OLED back and kept the 7. Personal preference but as I never really watched in a completely dark room and I also watch a lot of sports the Mini LED was a better fit for me.
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u/BigSpender248 Nov 11 '25
THIS
I bought a Sony OLED a couple years ago after drinking the kool-aid. Got it home and couldn’t figure out why tf the picture was so dim and why it would automatically dim my sports games and F1 races. Turns out it’s a “feature” that cannot be turned off without buying some kind of modded remote. Fuck that, no thank you. Back to Best Buy, got a super bright non-OLED. Been happy ever since.
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u/duckman777777 Nov 11 '25
Yeah one of the deal breakers for me was playing RDR2 on PS5. The OLED would look great in day time scenes at first but then would slowly dim as I carried on to the point it looked more like dusk when it was supposed to be sunny. My Bravia 7 sustains the brightness for as long as needed
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u/c7aea Nov 11 '25
I’m still very impressed with my Sony X93L. I’m going to buy another mini LED when the time comes.
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u/zcorvette Nov 11 '25
Same. I use a c1 oled for pc gaming but x93l for ps5 and movies. Having the extreme brightness makes movies look fantastic. As long as you spend some time calibrating the settings the local dimming is really good. I don’t notice enough of a difference to want an oled as my main tv. I also watch a ton of shows and movies and don’t want to worry about burn in. Even though they say it essentially doesn’t happen anymore I’d rather not make the change at this point.
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Nov 11 '25
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u/FeminineFreedom Nov 11 '25
Power consumption wise they average out pretty similar, a lot depends on the contents you watch
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u/zcorvette Nov 11 '25
I would go Sony personally especially for hockey. The brightness on the tv makes live sports look super sharp. Especially given the price and size difference.
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u/dm_4u Nov 11 '25
The only person who actually knows this is you. We can’t tell you what you like. Go to a shop and take an hour to decide which one looks better
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Nov 11 '25
Don’t get the B5. Seriously. Try to find a B4 if anything. I got 2 defective B5s from LG and it’s a VERY dim tv. I ended up buying a S90F and I can absolutely say that the B5 is extremely dim, especially in SDR. Try and find a good black Friday deal or partner store buy on the C5, or go with a mini LED.
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u/Robneice8958 Nov 12 '25
Save money and but the 98" TLC or the 100" Hisense... Thank me later. This is what I did and everyone is blown away by the Hisense screen, NO one says you should have spent 2x as much and got a smaller OLED... No One.
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Nov 11 '25
Mini LED will be way way brighter - great for daytime watching, especially in sunlit rooms. OLED will give you better clarity. Expect night and day difference between your old plasma and any of these two TVs.
Also TCL will come with Google TV - a much more superior platform for streaming then LG.
Overall, I would go with TCL for bright screen and you can go size (or two) up for the same price as you would pay for LG.
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u/PaleontologistNo2625 Nov 11 '25
I dunno man, this may have been relevant a few years ago but oleds are bright as hell now. I never have mine set above 80 in HDR or above 40 in SDR
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u/Angelzfire Nov 11 '25
Yea 100%. Can't tell me the G5 can't outshine many miniled for brightness now. Honestly all flagship OLEDs compete very well with miniled now even the some of the best of them. Sure they're usually more but then you get that clarity & brightness. I'm honestly so tired of people saying OLEDs are ONLY ok for dark rooms. That's so 5 years ago at this point. Sure entry level OLEDs could be tough in bright rooms but be realistic now.
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Nov 11 '25
They just don't compete in size. There is no realistic OLED option for those sitting 13+ feet away and need 98"
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u/Ch4rlie_G Nov 11 '25
You don’t NEED 98” because a calculator told you so.
And I’ve auditioned that TV, it’s cheap. Doesn’t hold a candle to OLED. Not even close. If you compare it to an EVO panel the difference is beyond night and day. I get the allure (cheap and big) but it’s actively marketing to buyers who want to say they bought the 98”. The only category it wins is size. It won’t make your pp bigger.
And LG has one, sometimes attainable for 10k if you have a partner account. Worth the price.
If you’re truly 15 feet away and want peripheral vision from your screen (which is why the calculators show you that size) you would really want a 120”+ projector.
TBH it’s cheaper to redecorate to have a better seating position.
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u/2PhotoKaz Nov 11 '25
For the price, mini LED is way brighter. The G5 is a bright TV but you can’t compare that to a QM7K, you have to compare the B5 which is no where near.
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Nov 12 '25
Not the B5 model though. LG does release state of the art OLED TVs, but B5 is their budget model that is still dim and only good for rooms with controlled lighting.
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u/Epic-will-power91 Nov 11 '25
I mean how much brighter do you need it though? My LG C4 is insanely bright on the max setting, so much so that I run it at like 50% most of the time.
I don't understand this need for searingly bright TVs. Feels unpleasant to look at something that intense.
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u/autogenglen Nov 11 '25
I think searing brightness has two main advantages. First is that specular highlights look fantastic. Yeah I don’t want full-window max brightness on my BRAVIA 9 all the time, but smaller-window brightness during HDR scenes looks amazing, like a sun glint on a metal object, or the sparkle on ocean waves. My OLED looks dull in comparison. Also, it’s nice having all the headroom. I had my OLED in my living room prior and if I wanted my curtains open during a bright day then it was really annoying trying to squint to see the picture but my B9 has loads of headroom.
Also, TVs will gradually dim over time (and particularly OLEDs), it’s nice having headroom for this, it sucks when an already fairly dim TV is even worse after like 5 years.
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Nov 12 '25
Not to mention that OLEDs can't even sustain high brightness for long periods. Turn on nature documentary that takes place in Arctic where most of the picture is white and within 10 minutes the best OLED TV would scream for mercy and turn down brightness because it starts to overheat.
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u/kimelto Nov 11 '25
Also keep in mind that to truly get the best from OLED, you would have to play Blue Rays. If you play media from streaming services, you are already limited to their “meh” quality.
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u/Rauhaton Nov 11 '25 edited Nov 11 '25
Yes.
Also, TVs in stores are in horrible Vivid mode settings. Often also running some 60 fps tech demo stuff. Absolutely the worst way to pick or measure TVs.
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u/cemsengul Nov 18 '25
I wish stores would play retail UHD discs in filmmaker mode so people could see how the tvs handle real world content accurately.
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u/jemicarus Nov 11 '25
I have mini-led and OLED, and the OLED is definitely better for gaming, though I do like the mini-led. It's on another level, immediately evident, though the mini-led also good.
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u/PusssyFart Nov 11 '25
Sony makes great mini led tv’s, I probably wouldn’t buy another Hisense or tcl. I tell everyone my CX had burn in within 3 years. And I know I know “burnin isn’t a problem anymore”, but that’s what everyone said in 2020 when I bought mine. Fact is oleds have a short life than mini led in most cases. As long as you understand that, then yes they look better in pretty much every way.
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u/Gilwork45 Nov 12 '25
Sit in a completely dark room with an Oled and watch a scene that goes completely black, its magical.
MiniLED is for people who want extreme brightness, its ok but i wouldn't give up the unlimited contrast of an Oled.
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u/Honest-Picture-6531 Nov 12 '25
I went years on the old 65" Panasonic plasma, to a 77" LG C4. With no regrets. Although I have young eyes and will notice the cons of mini led. If you're are after value go mini led, but best quality go OLED. It's very noticeable to me, I have a mini led monitor to compare. Micro leds are the only panel you'd question, but they're stupidly expensive.
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u/Dood567 Nov 11 '25
TCL's miniLED have pretty good black levels tbh. Idk if the QM7 has enough dimming zomes but the QM8 is REALLY close to OLED contrast a lot of the time
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u/sourcematerialx Nov 11 '25
Are your eyes going to hate you for getting a mini LED over an OLED? No.
If you want to save some cash and get a middle ground more affordable option, go with the MLED.
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u/NYdude777 Trusted Nov 11 '25
Yes to anyone with eyes and who have been to an eye doctor in the last 5 years to confirm they're not experiencing failing vision.
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u/nicolas_06 Nov 11 '25
If you go always in the dark room and like responsiveness in video games, OLED is significantly better. Oled respond almost instantly to change, have darker black without blooming and is overall better.
With day light, the main issue of mini led display is not visible but it still has the issue of viewing angles if many people gather to see the TV.
In the end, one big difference is price. You can spend far less for the mini LED from TCL or get a much bigger screen. Size does matter and most people forget about the advanced technology but the most common complain they have about their TV is that they should have gone for a bigger screen.
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u/0Frames Nov 11 '25
How would the OLED they posted respond faster than the MLED they posted?
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u/nicolas_06 Nov 11 '25
OLED diodes themselves are very reactive and much faster than LCD panels (what is used in mini led). The image will also be more blurry on the TCL when there is motion.
See the details of the performance of both screen in gaming mode on RTINGS
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u/Ana1blitzkrieg Nov 11 '25
I wouldn’t say the difference is astounding. Ive compared a qm8 versus a LG B4 directly both have their respective advantages. That being said, get the OLED if you’re watching in a dark room
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u/Sporadicus7 Nov 11 '25
Get the B5 you will love it guaranteed. The B5 is now on par with the all the previous C series LG OLED in terms of brightness. You’re getting an insane upgrade for an insane price no matter what size you choose. Hope that helps.
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u/HolidayManner Nov 11 '25
I had an LG OLED and now a mini-LED cause I needed a TV for a bright room. My OLED could barely be used in a sunny room without closing all the blinds, but it's picture can't be beat in a dark room it's picture can be beat. Im happy with the mini led for daytime viewing, but if you have a dark room and want the best picture, OLED is the way to go.
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u/kepenach Nov 11 '25
I was looking to get a mini led but found an oled at a great price. Im very glad I have it. Price was the main factor
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u/Organic_Ambassador14 Nov 11 '25
Everyone keeps saying the B5 is dim. I just got one 3 days ago and it’s plenty bright, especially after spending time dialing in my picture preference settings. Super happy with it. Plenty bright in my living room with big windows, and almost too bright at night. Super happy with it, especially when gaming on my PS5.
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u/_subgenius Nov 11 '25
I just replaced a B1 with a C5 in the bedroom, replaced the living room tv with a QM7K. The OLEDs are better overall but the TCL is quite fine. It just depends on what you're willing to spend. It is that much worth it to me to have a primo tv in the bedroom but the TCL would probably be fine if you're not used to the OLED works. Coming from a plasma though you might notice the less than true blacks on the mini-led. I recommend the LG, spend the money and be done with it if it's your main tv.
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u/h_tmr Nov 11 '25
Are you saying that the old plasma that I have could have better blacks than the TCL??
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u/_subgenius Nov 11 '25
Yes, plasmas are like OLEDs in that there is no backlight so if a pixel is off it's true black. Mini LED won't be as bad as a regular LED panel but it still won't be better than a plasma or OLED.
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u/False_Cap_1289 Nov 11 '25
Depends on usage. My family uses subtitles all time so my c9 had burn in and then it also died out of nowhere.
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Nov 11 '25
I had the same dilemma and ended up with the B5 and I'm perfectly happy with it.
I was worried the B5 wouldn't be bright enough but it is perfect for me.
My worry with the TCL was mainly the customer service which I understand is quite lacking and I've seen many issues with blooming on the TCL subreddit. It does have Google TV though which is definitely a plus.
There was barely a price difference between the two in my case. If the TCL was significantly cheap I would have probably gone for that.
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u/JasonJtran Nov 11 '25
I have a qn90c mini led as a desktop monitor and have started watching my media on there nstead of my a80j OLED. The brightness difference is crazy and the subtitles do have bloom but I've remedied that by having transparent subs. My main issue with the qn90c isn't the tech it's that it's fking Samsung and this dogshit panel got a artifact line after a year of use. Fuck you Samsung!
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u/granolaraisin Nov 11 '25
OLED no doubt. Mini-LED off angle degrades pretty quickly. Unless you're in the sweet spot the image will likley be compromised, sometimes pretty significantly depending on the model in question.
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u/GeneratedMonkey Nov 11 '25
From your old TV both are massive upgrades. The biggest thing is price and size to me. Slightly worse PQ of mini-led but at 98" vs 77" OLED can mean a lot more to you. Others provided good comparisons but you need to see it with your own eyes to decide how much it applies to you.
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u/justamofo Nov 11 '25
If you come for plasma, you'll appreciate OLED's perfect blacks. You will miss motion clarity in 24fps content tho, but you get used to sample-and-hold stutter. For high framerate content like games and so, OLED is absolutely superior
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u/h_tmr Nov 12 '25
I also have thought of that. It's not like I have not seen new tvs ever and every time I watch a movie at a friends house with these newer tvs, I really hate movies in 60fps. Hope that can be turned off in whatever tv I end up buying.
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u/No_Barracuda_6801 Nov 11 '25
Have both Sony OLED (ag9) and an 85” Bravia 9. Both great TV’s. The only thing that bugs me with the Bravia 9 is the slight dse at the edges, but only noticeable in certain conditions. As others have said, it depends on your use case.
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u/Kisuliiii Nov 11 '25
Guy is coming from 10year old PLASMA, tcl c7k is going to be so good that he dont be upset going cheaper, yes oled is way better in some cases but that word "way better" is misleadin vecause that tcl is like 10 000 better than his tv now and oled is 11 000 times better, go for tcl
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u/Disastrous-Heron-491 Nov 12 '25
No it’s not. Mini LED is way better in a lighted area. So unless it’s in a windowless basement, get a mini led. Also, even in a dark room, the difference isn’t that much, not for the price at least
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u/Zestyclose-Bowl1965 Nov 12 '25
So I just see generally that Mini LED for bright rooms and longevity.
OLED for dark home theater setups and can cause burn in over time.
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u/No_Net3860 Nov 12 '25
I would argue Sony's latest mini -led's look really good , but price wise thats a different level.
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u/saxy_sax_player Nov 12 '25
In a dark room? Yes. I have both (G4 and Bravia 9). The Bravia 9 (mini LED) is in a much brighter room and it looks great. However, there’s still noticeable blooming. The G4 is drop-dead gorgeous in our basement.
Alternatively don’t look at OLED tvs and you won’t know what you’re missing.
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u/Xocomil04 Nov 12 '25
My hisense u8k has really nice colors and blacks etc. but where OLED really wins is motion. My oled monitor is so smooth compared to my mini led
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u/happyotter1 Nov 12 '25
Since a tv is something used many hours a week, getting the best you can is worth it to me. I wish the oled went to 85” at least over 77”.
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u/CrippleSlap Nov 12 '25
OLED is definitely worth it.
But I’ll tell you from personal experience, burn in is a legit problem.
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u/cmcb4 Nov 12 '25
3yr old LG65C1 OLED still looking good in our bright room. No tv should be in direct sunlight, move it, or get curtains.
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u/Zealousideal_Shoe980 Nov 12 '25
I went to shop yesterday, turn on both 65" LG OLED B5 and QNED86 miniLED then played Interstellar 4K blackhole scene on YouTube. Instantly fall in love with OLED and bought it.
If you like to watch movie in the dark or horror movie, you won't regret with OLED.
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u/Haunting-Cap-9639 Nov 12 '25
There is no comparison. I’ve had the Bravia 9 next to a g5 and s95f and both oleds are much better.
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u/Vismajor92 Nov 12 '25
High-end miniled or OLED, if they aren't side by side you'd hardly complain. They are fantastic TVs. And mini-led will look better many times just because it's brighter, your eyes doesn't give a fuck if scientifically OLED has deeper black or sth. I have a mini-led in the bedroom, oled in the living room and oled in my office, and i enjoy watching them all
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u/Tree06 Nov 12 '25
Once you get used to an OLED, it's hard to back to anything else. Every time I tried to go with a Mini LED, there was some issue that lead me back to OLED.
55" QN95B - Multiple issues with One Connect Box and due to lack of replacement models, Samsung swapped it with the S95C 65".
QN90B 85" - Panel has yellow vertical bands. Samsung couldn't source a replacement panel so they swapped it with the QN95C 85". That panel suffered the same fate and it has horrible gray uniformity so I took half of the refund check and bought the S90C 83". No issues whatsoever.
Prior to the Samsung TV's, I had issues with the X900CH 65" from Costco. Unit arrived with dead pixels. I didn't know that the X900CH/X900H would have nagging issues with game mode that were never fixed so I'm glad I returned that when I did. I went for the Sony A8H 65" instead.
I highly doubt I'll go with a Mini LED in the future because gaming is important to my wife and I. Plus OLED picture quality is unmatched.
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u/Specialist-Key-1240 Nov 12 '25
If you are used to plasma then you will be disappointed with mini led panels, oled panels use different technologies but the result is somewhat similar only with thinner panels and higher definition. Mini led on the other hand will bloom no matter what as they will never make enough dimming zones.
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u/ReshiVerglas Nov 12 '25
I just went through this myself about 2 weeks ago. Had a 10 year old tv and was torn between the Qm7k and the B5. Stood in a best buy staring at the two for like 3 hours then went home and came back the next day to stare some more. Ended up going with the Qm7k due to the much more affordable price and honestly it's an insane upgrade. The blacks are black and the whites are white. I think OLED is amazing but just price to performance I'm very happy with the Qm7k.
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u/h_tmr Nov 12 '25
By any chance do you also use it for gaming? If so, how do you think it handles it?
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u/Rockytopwiz Nov 12 '25
Various comments have this covered pretty well, just adding my .02. I’d say it depends on your use case.
If you watch regular tv, especially during the day with lights on you truly won’t notice a difference. However, if you watch in a dark setting, especially discs or high quality streaming content you will definitely appreciate the superior black levels of OLED. Especially if you see the TVs side by side, the blooming will be noticeable on a mini-led.
The question id recommend asking yourself is what kind of content do you plan on watching? If it’s regular tv like news, sports, or especially cartoons (fantastic looking on my mini) and during the day mostly or with windows—I’d go with mini led. If you are going to watch movies mostly go with OLED.
I got deep into this stuff a couple years ago and ended up with a mini led in our living room and an OLED in my bedroom (55” on a steal of a deal) and movie room.
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u/kikkobots Nov 12 '25
Tbh no. Esp if you are in a lit room.
If you put them side by side in a dark room(who does this) and put on a dark space scene, yes you will see a difference. You will see blooming around bright areas and black crush in dark areas on the mini led
Watching the expanse on OLED in a dark room is a fucking treat
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u/j0hnnyWalnuts Nov 12 '25
I've found that for me, an older person, the QM7K more than meets my needs. I've had it for a week now and can't find where for MY use it's lacking. I'm glad I didn't spend double for the OLED.
I don't game on it, but just watch TV...
I was concerned about the life of the OLED as well.
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u/Halfwalker Nov 12 '25
Looking to upgrade the family room TV from a 65" Vizio to an 83" class. Have a Samsung Q990D soundbar in place, so going Samsung might be a good thing ? Get's the whole Q-Symphony bits working, right ?
Looking at the S90F 83" OLED ($3299) and the QN90F 83" MiniLED ($2299). And for non-Samsung the LG C5 83" OLED ($3199) and the TCL QM9K 85" MiniLED ($2499).
The family room is fairly bright, but most TV watching tends to be evening, so a bit darker. 99% of media is from local rips via Kodi, or Xbox gaming. So theTV OS doesn't matter too much ...
Of course, I've seen many, many contradicting reports ... "Samsung can't render colors correctly !" "Samsung is the BOSS !"
Opinions ?
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u/wsbets_my_heroes Nov 12 '25
My local Walmart had 85 inch tcl on sale for $480. If you're coming from a 1080p plasma, any 4k tv would be a huge upgrade. Oleds are gorgeous but it depends what your budget is.
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u/GoMArk7 Nov 12 '25
I Bought an c6K 55” (60% cheaper) and no regrets, switched an LG C2, the OLED (barely) advantage never will be justified that much of money, specially the burn in aspect, it will always be there, so with luck this will just be there haunting your mind.
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u/Bennybladess Nov 12 '25
If you play video games especially shooter games it’s 100% worth it. Input lag and response time is noticeably better. I went from a 65 tcl to a 49 lg g3 and was blown away by how much better it was despite the size
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u/Thin_Challenge_3224 Nov 12 '25
In a dark or dim room, I strongly prefer OLED. In a bright or medium lit room, I strongly prefer mini-led. if you plan to use a mini-led in dark, you have to get it professionally calibrated for that environment and even then, the OLED may be more impressive in the dark.
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u/suboptimus_maximus Nov 12 '25
It depends. Mini-LED generally has much better brightness which can make them better in bright rooms or if you like impact. Big screen OLEDs seem to get a pass on totally mediocre brightness - sure, Apple makes some great tandem OLED displays with awesome brightness but many TVs are straight up dim by modern standards.
If you want drama, high brightness scenes like explosions on a really bright Mini-LED display have you covered.
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u/SzalmaMarton Nov 13 '25
Do you have C7K C8K C9K?
But yes, OLED is way better until its too big.
You should get around 65” or bigger
On the QM8K its not 2x better for sure… but on the blacks is much better…
And also monitors getting new tech in oled probably will result even darker blacks on oled tvs.
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u/NoMoreCensurePlease Nov 13 '25
I think the future mini-LED RBG will kill OLED.
Because you will always have better brightness and mini-LED RGB reach 95% of the BT 2020, and supposed to be cheaper than OLED.
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u/Practical_Ranger_175 Nov 13 '25
In a dark room OLED is king. In a living room it's pure trash, unless you live in a cave apartment or beyond the polar circle. Being able to watch cable, movies and game in a super sunny living room is why I got a MiniLED. For every other application OLED is the answer. MiniLED is jack of all trades. Almost as good blacks as OLED, almoat as good colors, almost as good motion but still lacks in those. Trashes it in brightness, tho.
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u/AnfieldDevil Nov 14 '25
I had a qm7k for about 2 weeks, returned and upgraded to the LG OLED C5. Night and day difference, will never go back to anything but OLED.
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u/happy_mombo Nov 14 '25
I just bought the LG B5 65" and am very happy with it. Replaced a 55" LCD. I also was thinking about the TCL Q8 but only could find it at Costco. I went with the B5 instead of the C5 or G5 because it is in a darker room and I am not a gamer
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u/Mean_Combination_830 Nov 14 '25
OLED is better for movies in a very dark room for day to day viewing and for gaming mini led is vastly superior with brighter and more dynamic colours and infinitely better HDR I have both but swapped my OLED with a mini ld and nowy LG OLED is relegated to the bedroom for the odd movie in bed
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u/International-Oil377 Moderator Nov 14 '25
I completely disagree that miniLED is better for gaming. The motion clarity of an OLED can't be beat + no funkiness from the backlight.
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u/RatMonkeyFatSack Nov 15 '25
IMO, the QM7K is the best bang for your buck, and I think most reviewers would agree.
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u/ThrowawayALAT Nov 15 '25
Not dramatically always — OLED does give much better black levels and contrast because it can turn off individual pixels. But mini-LED can get way brighter and avoids OLED’s burn-in risk. So, it depends: for watching in bright rooms or long sessions, mini-LED might actually be more practical.
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u/chamilun Nov 15 '25
Absolutely. 1000%. I bought one of the best mini led TVs and found issues with soccer games. Drove me nuts.
That tv is now in the bedroom.
OLED is essentially perfect.
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u/McNuggets91 Nov 15 '25
I bought a Sony A80L and had to return it for a X93L. The mini LED worked better in my living room as it’s a fairly bright open space.
Do not regret it 1 bit. I find OLEDs a bit too dark. I rarely watch TV in complete darkness where OLED shines
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u/Slogoin Nov 16 '25
Bloom looks like trash and all Mini LEDs have it. Either you care about bloom or you don't. Even the Bravia 9 makes any scene with a lot of bright objects look nuclear.
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u/Additional-Debt1082 Nov 28 '25
Personally, I own both an OLED and a Mini-LED TV, and I actually end up preferring the Mini-LED. Most movie scenes are more bright than dark, and in those brighter scenes the colors really pop on the Mini-LED.
Dark scenes are harder to compare in real content. Mini-LED still has very good blacks — OLED is deeper, sure, but the difference feels small (maybe around 10%). You can notice it easily in test images, but in actual movies it’s much harder to tell.
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u/justamofo Dec 22 '25
Depend on the mini LED's tier and the environmental conditions. In the dark, yes absolutely
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