Philips 65OLED986 in the test: A television can sound so good
Cheap televisions in particular tend to neglect the sound quality. This is least noticeable in the electronics market or in the online shop. The new Philips 65OLED986 is completely different: With its powerful soundbar below the screen, it shows that the manufacturer has not cut corners at all. The generosity continues with the base: the solid metal column is part of the standard scope of delivery, a wall bracket is also included. The COMPUTER BILD test reveals whether the effort is worth it.
The best TVs: 65 inches (165 cm)
Samsung
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Per
Superior image quality
Very well anti-reflective
LG Electronics
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Per
Superior image quality
Rich tone
against
Main menu a bit overloaded
Samsung
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Per
Very natural colors
Very clear movements
against
Expensive
No analogue connections
Samsung
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Per
Very brilliant image with high contrast
Perfectly natural colors
against
High surcharge for the borderless design
Rear wall snarls with loud bass
Samsung
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Per
Very natural color rendering
Bright and high-contrast image
against
No headphone output
No analog video connections
LG Electronics
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Per
Perfect high-contrast image
Very natural colors
against
No analog video input
Samsung
Details about the test
Per
Brilliant picture with great colors
Large viewing angle
Sony
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Per
Outstanding picture quality
Very good sound
against
Instructions on the screen unclear
panasonic
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Per
Outstanding image quality with perfect colors and enormous brilliance
Very good sound quality
LG Electronics
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Per
Great image quality with high contrast and natural colors
Extensive equipment
Complete list: Best TVs: 65 inches (165 cm)
Philips OLED986 in the test: image quality at the top level
Philips only offers its top model in one size with a screen diagonal of 164 centimeters. The model name already gives it away, an OLED screen is used. In this respect, the OLED986 is closely related to the Philips OLED936. Even the one that convinced in the COMPUTER BILD test with almost perfect image quality, it can hardly be better at the moment. Accordingly, the OLED986 hardly gave any reason for criticism in the test. With 700 candelas per square meter, it achieved sufficient maximum brightness to display the brilliance of HDR films. Colors are the great strength of OLED televisions anyway, and the Philips underlines this with perfect color fidelity.
The free-standing tweeter above the soundbar of the Philips 65OLED986 is typical for the manufacturer B&W.
Quadruple Ambilight for atmospheric light
The TV has more to offer to the eye than the OLED screen and chic design. Unsurprisingly, it comes up with Ambilight, among other things. This bathes the wall behind him in light that matches the color of the current TV picture. Philips has been offering TVs with Ambilight for 17 years. In the beginning, there were fluorescent tubes on the right and left of the backs of the televisions. Shortly thereafter, rows of LEDs followed, including a horizontal row in the upper area of the back wall, which were able to trace the TV picture on the front more precisely. The Philips 65OLED986 uses quadruple Ambilight with additional LEDs at the bottom. In the top row, three work together as a group, so the 65-inch model has 69 LEDs on the back.
Reception via satellite as well as cable and antenna is standard today, but not HDMI 2.1 for 4K up to 120 Hertz. If you want more bass pressure, connect a subwoofer. On the side there are two HDMI and three USB.
Fine sounds instead of surround spectacles
When it comes to sound, the OLED936 and OLED986 go their separate ways, even if the British hi-fi manufacturer B&W contributes the soundbars in both cases. But while the 936 is slim and equipped with additional surround sound speakers, it is about three times as high in the 986 – a real beast. In this way, larger woofers fit in for an effortless, voluminous sound. One each is arranged on the right and left, a third in the middle. This centers the sound localization in lateral seating positions. There are also three tweeters, the middle one is prominently positioned above the soundbar. He should be able to do his job particularly undisturbed, a typical design feature of B&W. The manufacturer does without additional surround sound speakers, the OLED986 only delivers virtual surround sound. The strengths here are clearly in the naturalness and sonority, where the OLED986 plays in a league of its own with its larger speakers. From news to reports to feature film dialogues – the language simply sounds more real. With music, the size of the illustration and the amount of detail are positive. The only requirement: the audience must not sit too close, it should be 3 meters. But they are optimal for 65-inchers anyway.
With its powerful B&W soundbar, the Philips 65OLED986 is ideal for listening to music.
Music selection via smartphone
The fine soundbar is great for listening to music. Unfortunately, there is no Bluetooth or AirPlay for this, but alternatively the Philips sound app (Android and iOS) for smartphones and tablets. This allows the phone to send stored music to Philips televisions, as well as music from streaming providers such as Amazon Prime Music, Deezer, Spotify and Tidal. Music stored on servers in the home network can also be called up. Without a smartphone, it works with the corresponding apps on the television, such as Spotify, YouTube and other offers. The selection is plentiful thanks to the Android operating system.
Thanks to Android 10, the Philips 65OLED986 offers a large selection of streaming apps – for films and for music.
A wide range of apps is also available for films and series. From Amazon Prime Video to Apple TV Plus and Disney Plus to Netflix, all the major providers are represented, except for Sky Ticket so far. Sports fans have fun with DAZN and Magenta Sport, for example, and the media libraries of the TV stations are available free of charge as usual. The Google Assistant helps with the search for the desired evening program via voice input. The microphone and activation button are located in the remote control. The TV itself has no microphones, but hands-free control works via a smart Alexa or Google speaker. The remote control looks good in photos, but the buttons, which can hardly be felt, are annoying in the hand – typos are unfortunately part of everyday life. There is hardly anything to complain about when it comes to the connection equipment. At most the missing analog AV inputs could be chalked up – gamers with an old Wii games console, for example, look into the tube. And with a 60 Hertz feed via HDMI, for example a PlayStation 4, the latencies were only average at just over 20 milliseconds. In return, gamers who have already got their hands on a new PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X can look forward to two HDMI inputs with up to 120 Hertz including variable frame rates.
Very brilliant image with natural colors and perfect contrast
Superior sound quality
Operation takes getting used to
Test conclusion Philips 65OLED986
The Philips 65OLED986 combines outstanding picture quality with exceptional sound talents: a voluminous soundbar from the British hi-fi manufacturer B&W is mounted under the OLED screen, which delivers a very finely resolved and voluminous sound. This has nothing to do with the usual TV sound. Only the not always catchy operation prevented the overall grade “very good” in the end. The chic stand is part of the scope of delivery, as is a stable metal profile for wall mounting. This means that the Philips is not as expensive as it seems at first glance. A similarly elegant design costs significantly more at Loewe and B&O.
