Can’t decide which smart TV to buy? Our guide to the best TVs in 2021 can help point you in the right direction.
Looking for the best TV to buy this year? Look no further than this guide, which has the latest and greatest smart TVs you should be considering for your next screen, from QLED and OLED TVs to new Mini LED contenders. (Looking for a cheap buy? Jump straight to our pick of cheap TVs below.) The best TVs are marvels to behold, and choosing the right one will be the difference between a fuzzy, off-color movie and the capabilities to make those 4K Blu-rays or Netflix movies truly shine. We’re not far into 2021 at this point, but the best TV winners from last year are still on sale and well worth the investment, packing in 4K resolution, colorful HDR, and the all-round feature set to make for truly impressive sets. They’re largely cheaper than they were at launch too, and could be good buys ahead of the higher RRPs of their 2021 successors. The best TVs these days should be good bets for next-gen gaming consoles like the PS5 and Xbox Series X too, with HDMI 2.1 support and VRR becoming the norm on higher-end sets. Our picks below represent the absolute pinnacle of what’s possible in smart TVs today – but we’ve also highlighted a number of smart TVs that provide incredible value for your money, too. Combined, you’ve got a list of the best TVs at any budget. That said, we’re always adding more screens to this list as the year progresses, so be sure to check back in a month or two to see the latest additions to this best TV hall of fame. Just want to watch a video instead? You can catch us discussing our best TV picks for 2021 below: If you only remember one TV from this list, make it the LG C1 OLED. As a follow up to our best TV of 2020, the LG CX OLED, we had high expectations for the C1 OLED were immense – and yet, it has managed to deliver on all of them. That’s because LG has made a number of small tweaks to last year’s model. It’s now using LG’s Alpha a9 Gen.4 processor for better upscaling and virtual surround sound audio, and with four separate HDMI 2.1 ports, it’s ready for the PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and whatever next-gen consoles can throw at it. Gamers will also appreciate the new Game Optimiser menu that gives you the option to quickly adjust brightness, contrast and VRR on the fly. The LG C1 isn’t flawless, as we did encounter issues around how the new Alpha a9 Gen.4 upscales faces, and how reflective the all-glass screen is in the daylight, but the issues are few and far between. There are, of course, higher resolution TVs out there right now like the LG Z1 OLED, which offers 8K resolution, and the new LG G1 Gallery Series that uses the coveted OLED evo panels that offer better brightness. However, we feel that the LG C1 OLED offers the best blend of price and performance and should be high up on your list for potential TVs to buy in 2021 and beyond. Read the full review: LG C1 OLED When it goes on sale in May, the Samsung QN900A Neo QLED 8K TV will usher in a new era of television technology. Samsung’s Mini LED-sporting QN900A Neo QLED 8K TV offers stunning picture quality, exceptional color and brightness, terrific sound and outstanding blacks – all in a package that’s unmatched in terms of design. For the uninitiated, Samsung’s ‘Quantum’ Mini LEDs are 1/40th the thickness of a regular LED, meaning thousands of smaller LEDs can be packed together in a much tighter fashion, allowing for far more accurate dimming zones and black levels that are practically indistinguishable from an OLED. As the LEDs are far smaller, they’re able to achieve far more precision and less blooming, so the act of seeing bright areas of the screen unnaturally bleed over into darker spots should be greatly reduced or not evident at all. And because it takes advantage of Samsung’s Multi-Intelligence AI upscaling, the QN900A is consistently able to produce images that looked better than their source. Not only does the Samsung QN900A Neo QLED 8K TV offer the latest HDMI 2.1 and eARC features, it’s also ideal for gamers who’ve recently invested in a next-gen console or beastly gaming PC thanks to support for 4K/120fps or 8K/60fps gameplay via HDMI 2.1, Game Motion Plus and AMD FreeSync Premium Pro. It’s the flagship 8K TV to beat in 2021. Read the full review: Samsung QN900A Neo QLED 8K TV By combining Sony’s premium OLED picture performance with a powerful and direct sound system, the Sony A8H OLED TV manages to be a stunningly compelling TV option for serious home cinema fans. It carries Sony’s top-line X1 Ultimate processor, Sony’s Pixel Contrast Booster (for more intense image highlights), and a new OLED version of the X-Motion Clarity feature Sony initially developed for its FALD LCD smart TVs. On the audio side, meanwhile, Sony’s customary Acoustic Surface Audio system (where the TV’s screen is actually ‘excited’ into producing sound) is joined by a two-subwoofer bass system, and an Acoustic Auto Calibration system that can optimize the TV’s sound to your room with just a couple of quick test pulses. The results are nothing short of gorgeous. While this set could be beaten by a Sony A80J successor, it’s currently the best TV to buy in the Sony range. Read the full review: Sony A8H OLED TV The Samsung Q80T builds on the successes of previous QLED models for a brilliant HDR TV definitely worth checking out. The most notable feature is the incredibly low input lag, making the Q80T a great smart TV for gamers who want responsive gameplay, but the QLED screen will also make general watching a pleasure all around. The Q80T is the cheapest new Samsung TV to come with a full-array backlight, meaning you’ll get consistent brightness, though not some of the premium qualities of higher-end sets – hence why it lands lower on this list than last year’s Q90 QLED. It also isn’t quite as stylish as the zero-bezel Q950TS, with a thick body compared to other QLEDs in last year’s range. However, you’ll still get Samsung’s latest Quantum 4K processor, vivid HDR colors, and advanced features through the Tizen OS.
