The Samsung TU8072 is a good TV, however it lacks some of the key features found in more expensive models. With its high contrast ratio and black uniformity, it delivers excellent quality when viewed in a darkened environment. Unfortunately, it lacks local dimming functionality to provide deep blacks. The TU8072 handles glare well and has good peak brightness, however viewing becomes uncomfortable when there is direct light in the room.
The TV does not support the wide color gamut required for high-quality HDR reproduction and does not have a wide viewing angle. Most gamers will love the ultra-fast input latency and responsiveness, but the TU8072 does not use variable refresh rate technology.
Functional rating (on a 10-point scale)
| Overall viewing quality | 7.5 |
| Watching films | 6.7 |
| Watching TV programs | 7.5 |
| Watching sports | 7.4 |
| Use as a gaming monitor | 8.6 |
| Watching HDR Movies | 6.8 |
| Use for HDR video games | 7.7 |
| Use as a PC monitor | 8.3 |
Overall View Quality 7.5
The Samsung TU8072 is a good TV for a variety of uses. With a high contrast ratio and black uniformity, it is great for watching movies in a darkened room, but unfortunately lacks a wide color gamut for a good HDR display. Its small viewing angle is disappointing, not allowing you to fully enjoy the spectacle with a wide range of friends and family. Nonetheless, the TU8072 is a great choice for gamers due to its incredibly fast input latency and fast response time for crisp action games.
Movies 6.7
Samsung TU8072 is well suited for watching movies. It has an amazing contrast ratio and excellent black uniformity, which allows it to accurately display dark scenes even without the local dimming function. Unfortunately, the TV is unable to eliminate shake when playing low frequency content such as video applications, which may disappoint some consumers.
TV programs 7.5
TV programs also look good on the Samsung TU8072 screen. The TV copes well with glare, and is bright enough to provide comfortable viewing in medium to low light conditions. Unfortunately, the viewing angle of the TU8072 is small and the image is blurred when you deviate from the center position in front of the screen. The advantages of the TV include high-quality transmission of cable TV programs with HD and Full HD resolution without scaling artifacts.
Sports programs 7.4
Samsung TU8072 copes well with sports programs. Its fast response time ensures fast action scenes are displayed clearly, and black frame insertion reduces motion blur. Unfortunately, the TU8072 has a noticeably dirty screen effect that distracts from viewing, and the small viewing angle will not allow you to fully enjoy your favorite game with a large group of friends.
Video Games 8.6
Samsung TU8072 is perfect for playing video games. The ultra-low input latency and fast response will ensure you have an accurate response to the twists and turns of the game plot. In a darkened room, the excellent contrast ratio allows the TV to display deep blacks. It handles glare well, but if you are playing in a very bright room, the viewing quality may decrease. Unfortunately, the TU8072 does not support variable refresh rate technologies.
HDR 6.8 Movies
Watching HDR movies on the TU8072 screen? Why not! Stunning contrast ratios and high black uniformity ensure a pleasant movie experience on dark evenings. However, the TU8072 does not support a wide color gamut or the low brightness in HDR format, which limits the viewing experience in light conditions.
HDR 7.7 gaming
The ultra-fast input latency, fast response and the ability to reproduce 10-bit HDR make the TU8072 a good TV for gaming in this format. Unfortunately, it does not support a wide color gamut and has a low peak HDR brightness, which will prevent you from fully immersing yourself in the game. The TV also does not use variable refresh rate technologies.
Use as PC monitor 8.3
Samsung TU8072 can be perfectly used as a computer monitor. It features Chroma 4: 4: 4 technology for crisp text reproduction and ultra-fast input latency, responding instantly to your input. Plus, the TU8072 does not run the risk of screen burn-in or permanent image retention.
Market positioning
Samsung TU8072 TV is a budget model in the Korean company’s 2020 lineup. Its closest 2019 predecessor is the RU8000. The TU8072’s competitors are the Sony XH80 and LG SM8600 .
Design
Style 8.5
Samsung TU8072 has a great design and looks like a model from the premium Samsung QLED Q60T line . It is made in a simple and modern “frameless”, according to the manufacturer, style.
The TV legs slide directly into the cabinet, eliminating the need to screw them on. Clips are provided for attaching cables to them. The legs look the same as in Samsung RU7172 . They support the TV well, but when exposed to external influences, it sways.
The rear panel in the TU8072 is the same as in the Q60T , and has minimal differences from the RU7172 . It is made of plastic with a textured surface and the bezel around the screen is very thin – 0.9 cm – and invisible. In the deepest place, the thickness of the TU8072 case is 5.8 cm, which is slightly less than the same indicator of RU8000 . Accordingly, when wall-mounted, the TV does not stand out much.
Build quality 7.0
The build quality of the TV is good. The connections are firm and free of gaps. However, many may be disappointed by the fact that the case is completely made of plastic.
Image quality
Contrast 9.2
The TU8072 has an amazing contrast ratio, which is, in principle, typical of VA panels. This TV surpasses Samsung RU7172in this indicator and is on a par with Samsung Q60T .
Local dimming 0
Unfortunately, the TU8072 does not use local dimming, which can improve the depth of black tones.
SDR 7.1 Peak Luminance
The TU8072 demonstrates good peak brightness in SDR format, but it is lower than Samsung RU7172 . As in RU7172 , in TU8072 small bright parts in dark scenes are suppressed by the general (as opposed to local) screen dimming function, which cannot be disabled. Consequently, viewing in well-lit rooms can be uncomfortable.
This indicator was measured after calibration in the “Cinema” screen mode with a gamma of 2.2 and the maximum brightness setting.
If you are not very worried about image accuracy and want to achieve the greatest brightness, then activate the “Dynamic” mode, set the gamma to 2.2 with a setting of +3 and the “Contrast enhancement” function to the maximum value. With these parameters, we achieved a brightness of 301 nits.
Peak Luminance HDR 5.8
The peak brightness of the TU8072’s HDR format disappoints us. As noted in the previous point, small highlights are darkened and the TV is not capable of producing vivid colors and highlighting bright scene elements as they were intended in studios, especially in good lighting conditions.
We measured the peak brightness of the HDR format before calibration in Cinema mode at 0 gamma and with contrast and backlight at maximum levels.
If you want the brightest HDR format, go to Cinema mode and set Brightness, Contrast and Contrast Enhancement to their maximum values. With these settings, we got a figure of 344 nits, but the image quality is reduced as a result due to the fact that the black looks gray.
Gray uniformity 6.9
The gray uniformity in the TU8072 is not bad. The right and left edges of the screen are noticeably darker and there is a smudge in the center, which distracts from watching sports or panoramic shots. In dark scenes, the uniformity is higher.
Viewing angle 5.5
Like most TVs with VA panels, the TU8072 has a narrow viewing angle, although it is wider than the RU7172 . As a result, the image loses quality when viewed from the side. If this parameter is important for you, we recommend taking a closer look at the Sony XH80 model with an IPS panel.
Black uniformity 9.5
The black uniformity in the TU8072 is excellent. A small halo is observed around the central cross, but it is almost invisible. Although the TV does not have a local dimming function, it still provides an excellent viewing experience in a darkened room.
Glare 7.2
The TU8072 handles glare well, as does the Q60T . In moderate lighting conditions, small reflections are visible on the screen, which should not be a problem for most TV viewers. But as the light level rises, they can distract from your viewing.
Colors 6.8
Like the RU7172 , the TU8072 does not support a wide color gamut, which is disappointing. The EOTF curve deviates from the PQ luminance line, which means that most scenes on the screen appear darker than they should be, and the picture is even worse in game mode. If you are looking for an alternative with support for a wide color gamut, then we recommend that you pay attention to Samsung RU8000 .
You can increase the brightness of the HDR format by activating the Cinema mode, setting the gamma to +3, Contrast enhancement to a high value, and the brightness and contrast to their maximum values.
Left: Coverage DCI-P3 xy – 75.90%, DCI-P3 uv – 82.11% Right: Coverage REC 2020 xy – 54.54%, REC 2020 uv – 59.90%
Color volume 6.0
Without wide color gamut support, the TU8072 has a low color gamut, and as a result, many shades are lost.
Gradient 5.5
The TU8072 exhibits a faint gradient pattern. Fluctuations are noticeable in all colors, especially dark ones. The TV has a noise canceling function, but it does not correct the problem of rough transitions between tones.
Temporary afterimage 7.6
Unlike most VA panels, temporary afterimage manifested itself on the TU8072 in a high contrast static test.
Screen Burn Risk 10
There is no such risk for the VA panel used, as we have verified from our own experience.
Response time 8.2
The TU8072 demonstrates an excellent response time, which is an improvement over the RU7172 .
Screen Flicker 8.7
The TU8072 uses PWM to dim the backlight. It creates flicker at a very high frequency of 600 Hz, which is invisible to most users. However, in Game Mode, setting Motion Plus to Auto will switch the frequency to 120Hz.
As with the Q60T , this TV saw a strange effect of waves traveling from the bottom of the screen to the top when displaying a completely monochrome pattern at a backlight frequency of 600 Hz.
Black Frame Insertion 8.7
The TU8072 offers a black frame insertion function to reduce motion blur. It is enabled by activating the Clear LED Image setting. Unfortunately, it always works at 60 Hz, which leads to image duplication, as we observed in RU7172 . This function also darkens the image noticeably.
Frame interpolation
The TU8072 has the function of frame interpolation of video material at a lower rate, up to 60 frames per second. To activate it, you need to turn on the “Image clarity setting” and set Judder reduction to 10. It automatically switches the backlight to 120 Hz, which can cause duplicate frames, although this problem appears less here than in the Q60T. In most programs, we did not notice visible artifacts.
Image Twitch Effect 8.0
When watching videos at low frequency, we hardly noticed this effect on the TU8072’s screen.
Jitter effect in 24fps video 0
The TU8072 does not have the function to remove the jitter in low-frequency video
Variable refresh rate 0
Like RU7172 , TU8072 has 60Hz refresh rate and does not support variable refresh rate technologies.
Input Delay 9.7
The TU8072 has ultra-low input latency at any resolution in gaming mode. Latency increases when frame interpolation is on and 4K / 60Hz 10-bit HDR is played back, but overall the TV is responsive to your actions.
The latency can be very short for 4K / 60Hz 4: 4: 4 signal if the source is a PC. The TV, as a rule, automatically recognizes the connection of the computer and goes into this mode itself.
The TU8072 has a feature that automatically switches to ALLM game mode when starting a game from a compatible game console. To activate it, select Auto for Game Mode and enable Anynet + (HDMI-CEC).
Sound quality
Frequency Response 7.0
The frequency response of the TU8072 is not bad and surpasses that of the RU7172 . Low frequencies sound bold, but not deep enough. The TV has a good volume, but is unlikely to be able to overcome a noisy environment. There is no automatic sound calibration function for room conditions.
Distortion of incoming sound 6.4
The total harmonic distortion is quite large, noticeable already at medium volume and increasing as the volume rises.
Smart features
Interface 7.5
Like the Q60T , the TU8072 has a user-friendly Tizen platform interface that looks even more elegant compared to the 2019 version, and now has an additional dark mode.
Like other Samsung TVs, there is a problem with the picture going beyond the edges of the screen, which is solved by changing the picture setting to “16: 9” or “fit to screen”.
Advertising presence 0
The Tizen homepage as well as the app catalog contains ads and viewing recommendations that cannot be turned off.
Applications and Features 8.5
The Samsung catalog offers a large selection of applications that work mostly without comment. The built-in media player is capable of playing most common audio and video formats from USB sources.
Control panel 8.5
The TU8072 uses the same control panel as the RU8000 . It has quick access buttons for Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Samsung Plus TV. In addition, it can be used as a universal remote control for other connected devices, even if it does not support the CEC standard. The built-in microphone allows voice control to receive weather information, change signal sources, or launch applications.
Hull control
At the bottom of the panel, in the center, there is a button that allows you to turn on / off the TV, change channels, change signal sources and adjust the volume.
Comparison with other TVs
Left top : the Samsung Q60T QLED ; bottom left : Samsung RU8000 ; in the center : Samsung TU8072; top right : Hisense H9F; bottom right : LG SM8600 .
Conclusion
Samsung TU8072 is somewhat inferior in performance to other budget TVs based on a VA panel. This model offers excellent picture quality in a darkened room, but lacks the features found in competitive peers, such as wide color gamut, local dimming. Although the designation of the TU8072 TV looks like a replacement for the RU8000 model , its characteristics are closer to the RU7172 .