Right now is a fantastic time to buy yourself a new TV. With 2020's TVs having mostly arrived now, we're starting to see the prices drop as manufacturers compete for your attention, so we're seeing some of the best TV deals for the sets we're featuring here… and that's before we get to the Amazon Prime Day deals and Black Friday deals we know are coming soon!

4K resolution is now the expectation for TVs. The market has fully transitioned from HD (except in 32-inch TVs), and the best 8K TVs are already laying claiming the high end.

Helpfully, there’s there’s no shortage of 4K content to make the most of your eight million pixels. All the key streaming services, including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, YouTube, Apple TV and Rakuten offer a healthy selection. Sky, BT and Virgin Media also have 4K channels available on their respective pay TV platforms. There’s a wide library of 4K Blu-ray discs available too, and 4K is well-established in gaming with the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X taking that to the next level.

• See the best PS5 pre-order options

So whatever Ultra HD set you opt for, you’ll not be short of stuff to watch on it that takes full advantage of the resolution, and all the sets are fantastic at upscaling HD video to look great at 4K.

Of course, not all Ultra HD tellies are created equal. There’s a world of difference between competing sets and the different technologies used – check out our guide to OLED vs QLED to have these two TV types explained in plain English,

Of course, most of the very best sets here are quite expensive, but we also have top options from our Best TVs Under £1000 guide and our Best TVs under £500 guide. and that’s without unpicking the differences between LED, OLED and QLED screen technologies, the various flavours of HDR and the nascent attractions of 8K.

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Best TV 2020: which is the top TV?

Our overall top choice of TV currently is the phenomenal Samsung Q950TS, by a hair. This 8K QLED screen combines high vibrancy with class-leading HDR performance and sensational colour reproduction, plus its upscaling really does make 4K video look close to 8K – it genuinely makes 4K look better than it would normally, which is great at bigger screen sizes.

Thanks to an innovative full-array backlight, it not only delivers convincing shiny highlights, but also does a fine job managing deep black levels.

However, we'd actually say the best TV on the planet for movies alone right now is the Panasonic HZ2000 4K OLED TV, which mixes bright images than any other OLED TV can manage with rich, dimensional nuance in dark areas that the Samsung just can't match. Panasonic also tunes its panels in conjunction with Hollywood studios, and the result is peerless for giving films a truly cinematic look.

However, it's missing a few features that the Samsung Q950TS has, so we'd say the Samsung is just about our top pick due to being an all-around excellent performer.

Those sets are both very premium – if you're looking to come into more realistic price ranges, we'd suggest the Samsung Q90T/Q95T as the best LED TV pick, or the LG CX as the best OLED TV pick.

Head down to our full list to read more about these TVs, and see the prices for all sizes.

How to buy the best TV for you

Shortlisting your next television can be a complicated business, but a few simple rules of thumb will help.

As we move from HD to 4K and ultimately 8K, screen size becomes a key consideration. To see incremental differences in resolution, you’ll probably need to buy a bigger screen than you had previously, or move your seating closer. Long story short: think big, then buy bigger.

Counter intuitive it may well be, but ultra-large 8K screens are perfect for smaller rooms, if you want to really see every drop of detail. Everything you think you know about viewing distances is changing…

Then there’s viewing environment. If you tend to watch in high ambient lighting, or during daytime, an LED or QLED screen will typically serve you better. If you prefer to view with low or no lighting, an OLED will deliver greater subjective contrast and shadow detail.

Smart platforms are no longer a decisive reason to buy. All TVs are smart these days, and the choice of apps ubiquitous – focus on image quality, price and any other features you're keen on.

Best TVs on Amazon Prime Day and Black Friday

With Amazon Prime Day deals starting in October, and Black Friday deals at the end of November, some great opportunities for getting these TVs cheaper are coming up.

We don't expect to see the TVs on this list going for a wild Black Friday or Prime Day half-price deal, or anything like that, but there's a good chance that some of them will have a few hundred slashed off their normal price – particularly LG's OLED TVs and Samsung's QLED TVs, because they're so popular that money off these models will get people through the virtual doors of whichever website discounts them.

With access to physical stores more limited than any previous Black Friday, we might see more aggressive online discounts as competition heats up between retailers. We'll be highlighting the biggest TV bargains of all kinds in our round-up of the best cheap TV deals, but if you check back here, our price finding system will show you the current lowest prices for all the models we've recommended.

Best TVs 2020: the list

(Image credit: Samsung)

1. Samsung 75Q950TS Our T3 Awards 2020 winner for Best TV, elevating 4K video close to 8K's immense detail Specifications Screen size: 75 inches Other sizes available: 65, 85 inches HDR: HDR10, HDR10+, HLG Dimensions: 1655x1010x307mm Reasons to buy + Incredible contrast from local dimming + Huge brightness for the best HDR in the business + Remarkable thin and bezel-less design + Great smart platform Reasons to avoid - No Dolby Vision HDR support

• Read our full Samsung Q950TS review

The flagship TV in Samsung's 2020 range is our new pick for the best TV you can buy thanks to the way it takes 4K video and boosts it to really make use of its 8K resolution, even though 8K content is non-existent at this point. It feels like such a revelation, that it won our T3 Awards 2020 award for Best TV.

The AI-based upscaling does an incredible job of filling the 33 million pixels with images that still look natural and pristine – not like they've been processed. Given that this TV only comes in at bigger screen sizes, this could not be more welcome. It's the best way to watch 4K, put simply – and the job it does of upscaling regular ol' HD is highly commendable as well, with only a few tiny processing imperfections slipping in that aren't much different to what you see when upscaling on 4K TVs.

Even more luxurious is the HDR performance, thanks to a powerful direct full array backlight, producing massively bright images beyond almost anything we've seen before. But with 480 areas of local dimming for turning that backlight down when needed, it's also capable of colossal contrast, even in bright and dark areas right next to each other. This kind of thing used to be OLED's main strength, but this can go several times brighter than the best OLED TVs, and almost matches it for black level performance – it's just astounding.

It feels like a premium product too – it's stunningly thing and sleek, but more noticeable is that lack of bezels on three sides, so it looks like the image is just suspended in the air. To really complete that effect, all of its ports are housed in an external box, called the One Connect, which connects to the TV over a single cable, making it ideal for tidy living rooms.

Add to that an excellent smart platform that makes it easy to watch any streaming or catch-up services you want, and you have a more-than-complete package. You have the best TV money can buy right now… but it does cost a lot of money.

It comes in 65-inch, 75-inch and 85-inch sizes, which are all available in the UK, though only the 85-inch version is available in the US. The good news is that there's a variant of this TV called the Q900T, which ditches the One Connect box and puts the ports on the TV itself (making it thicker), but is otherwise exactly the same… except for being significantly cheaper.

• Read our full guide to Samsung's 2020 TV range

(Image credit: Panasonic)

2. Panasonic TX-55HZ2000 The best OLED TV money can buy Specifications Screen size: 55 inches Other sizes available: 65 inches HDR: HDR10, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, HLG Dimensions: 1228x712x58mm Reasons to buy + Incredible image quality + Universal HDR support + Good Atmos speakers Reasons to avoid - Lacking gaming features - No Disney+ Today's Best Deals £2,999 View at Sevenoaks

• Read our full Panasonic HZ2000 review

The unique Professional Edition Master OLED panel is the heart of this TV's success – while most OLED TVs are ultra thin and live with limited brightness compared to LED TVs (using their deep blacks to create stunning HDR), Panasonic has made its TV slightly thicker to accommodate lots of extra heat dispersion tech, so that it can overdrive the panel to be brighter than other OLED TVs, while still having all the advantages of the deep blacks.

When mixed with Panasonic's penchant for calibrating the TVs to be as close to Hollywood mastering screens as possible (meaning what you're seeing is just like what the directors saw when approving the look of films), the result is the most sumptuously cinematic TV available.

For bring every drop of nuance from 4K HDR sources (partly thanks to being the only TV in our top 5 to support all HDR formats), we simply love the HZ2000. It also deals with upscaling from HD to 4K with aplomb, and SDR images look bright and rich too – it handles movies and TV from any format excellent. For movie buffs, there's no TV we'd recommend more.

However, there are a few limitations to it – it doesn't support the latest and greatest gaming features for PS5 and Xbox Series X, there's no Disney+ currently, and the screen size choice is more limited than a lot of models here – that mean that we still (just) rate the Samsung Q950TS higher for being a more solid all-rounder. But if you love movies, you're not bothered about games and the sizes work for you, this is the TV to get.

In a nice touch, it comes with a pretty good speaker system built-in, including real Atmos height channels. If you're spending this much on a set, odds are that you'll get a real sound system, but Panasonic has still done well.

This TV is available in the UK and Europe, and likely will be in Canada as well, but we don't expect a US release for it, sadly.

(Image credit: LG)

3. LG OLED65CX The best OLED TV for most people, and our T3 Awards 2020 winner for Best Gaming TV Specifications Screen size: 65 inches Other sizes available: 48, 55, 77 inches HDR: HDR10, HDR10+, HLG Dimensions: 1449x830x467mm Reasons to buy + Stunning image quality + Excellent gaming features + More affordable price Reasons to avoid - No HDR10+ - Not as bright as some screens here Today's Best Deals £2,299 View at Amazon

The LG CX is the blockbuster of LG's 2020 range: it's got the same image quality at TVs double its price, but delivers them at a price more people can afford, especially now that there's a new 48-inch size that's even less expensive, alongside the 55-inch, 65-inch and 77-inch models.

There's no big leap forward for OLED technology here – the developments in picture quality here are down to improvements in processing, making better-than-ever use of OLED's ability to bring out detail and subtlety in dark areas of the screen.

Brightness peaks at around 750 nits, which is normal for quality OLEDs, but because this handles the breadth of its contrast range better than almost any TV we've seen, it certainly feels brighter than that, and OLED's ability to but bright pixels right next to dark ones continues to look stunning.

The new image processing here also helps with making detail and skin tones more realistic, making the overall image a notable improvement – especially when you're watching something richly cinematic in a room with the right lighting (though the inclusion of Dolby Vision IQ means it will tweak what the screen shows to match the light levels in the rooms without harming contrast).

This is also the perfect TV for those looking at buying a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X – or to use with a PC – thanks to its excellent gaming features. We've measured incredibly low lag of just over 13ms in its gaming mode, which is almost as good as it gets – but the gaming mode keeps an impressive amount of image optimisation still going on, so it looks glorious.

On top of that, it supports Auto Low-Latency Mode, Variable Refresh Rates and 4K video at 120 frames per second – all major features in the next-gen consoles. It also includes Nvidia G-Sync support, for PC gaming with an Nvidia graphics card.

The gaming support here is so good, in combination with the TV's overall quality, that it won the award for Best Gaming TV at the T3 Awards 2020.

(Image credit: Samsung)

4. Samsung QE65Q95T/Q90T The best 4K LED TV of 2020, thanks to its QLED tech and smart backlight Specifications Screen size: 65 inches Other sizes available: 55, 75, 85 inches HDR: HDR10, HDR10+, HLG Dimensions: 1447x828x35mm Reasons to buy + Bright, colourful images + Excellent 4K detail + Impressive contrast Reasons to avoid - Does handle dark as well as OLED - No Dolby Vision Today's Best Deals £1,999 View at John Lewis

• Read our full Samsung Q95T/Q90T review

Why have we mentioned two models – the Q95T and the Q90T – here? Because they're essentially the same TV, but with a small practical difference. The Q95T has an external box to house all of its connections, which connects to the panel over a single tiny cable; the Q90T has its connections on the TV unit itself, and so is slightly thicker as a result. The Q90T is also notably cheaper in countries where both versions are sold, but note that in some places, you'll only be offered one of them anyway.

With that out of the way, we can talk about the think you really need to know about both the Q95T and the Q90T: the fantastic HDR images you get from the QLED panel. The key thing here is the brightness of over 2000 nits – double what you get from even the brightest OLED sets, and easily four times brighter than your average budget TV. This is thanks to a full array backlight, much like the 8K Samsung Q950TS above, and combined with the wide, rich colours of an OLED panel, it looks just incredible. It's so vibrant and lush, but still maintains realism for people's skin tones and grittier scenes.

Localised dimming means it can give you pretty good depth of contrast too – while it can't match the OLED screens for the nuance of detail in dark scenes, it is able to put bright and dark elements next to each other with a very limited about of backlight bleeding between then.

The AI-based upscaling is massively impressive too, so both HD and 4K sources look magnificent. And it's well-suited to gaming, thanks to low input lag and a load of future-proofed features for next-gen consoles.

It's a premium-priced 4K screen, there's no doubt, but you can see where your investment has gone – it's bold and beautiful.

(Image credit: Sony)

5. Sony KD-65A8/XBR-65A8H Incredible processing and great built-in sound make this well-priced OLED a winner Specifications Screen size: 65 inches Other sizes available: 55 inches HDR: HDR10, Dolby Vision, HLG HDMI: 4 USB: 3 Dimensions: 1448x836x5.2mm Reasons to buy + Best-in-business processing + Beautiful, natural images + Really good built-in audio Reasons to avoid - No support for HDR10+ - Not the brightest - No next-gen gaming features Today's Best Deals £2,499 View at John Lewis

• Read our full Sony A8/A8H review

The Sony A8 (UK)/A8H (US) is the more affordable of Sony's 2020 OLED TVs, and its price puts it in direct competition with LG's CX, and makes a massively strong case for itself as an alternative.

Sony is the leader when it comes to image processing, and the deft touch this TV provides to make sure that motion looks totally natural, or to upconvert non-HDR video to something close to real HDR so it pops more on the screen, makes everything you view on it better.

That's all rolled in with the overall picture quality, which is an AV enthusiast's dream: the way it handles subtle shades, areas of hard contrast and overall colour is just about impossible to fault.

The one arguable issue with its picture is that it's not as bright as LG's OLED TVs, and is much less bright than the Panasonic OLED, and even more so than the Samsung TVs above. It's also a little reflective, so doesn't stand up well to bright sunlit rooms, but if your use is mostly in controlled lighting, that won't be a problem at all.

Also impressive is the built-in sound system, which uses the screen panel itself as a speaker, which means unlike most thin TVs, sound is directed right towards you – this makes elements like dialogue immediately clearer and richer. It's no substitute for surround sound, but it whereas with LG's CX we'd recommend a soundbar right away, this is kind of like having one built in already.

For smart TV functions, you've got Android TV, which is fairly comprehensive for app support, though isn't the slickest option on the planet.

Those planning to get the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X may want to consider another set, though: it doesn't support 4K at 120fps or Auto Low Latency Mode, which are features of the new consoles.

If you don't care about next-gen consoles and want simply incredible movie images with sound you don't have to immediately pay to upgrade, this is an ideal TV.

(Image credit: Sony)

6. Sony KD-65XH9505/XBR-65X950H A stunning 4K LED TV, with intense HDR images and excellent motion handling Specifications Screen size: 65 inches Other sizes available: 49, 55, 75, 85-inch HDR: HDR10, Dolby Vision, HLG HDMI: 4 USB: 3 Dimensions: 1448x906x70mm Reasons to buy + Acoustic Multi-Audio sound system + Bold colours and bright HDR + Excellent image processing Reasons to avoid - No HDR10+ support Today's Best Deals £1,499 View at John Lewis

Also known as the Sony 65X950H in the US, this TV is Sony's flagship 4K LCD TV for 2020, but it doesn't cost flagship money – it cost much less than the LG CX or Samsung Q95T, for example.

It still delivers high-class image quality, though: with brightness peaking at over 1,000 nits, you get bountiful HDR from it, and Sony's image processing is second to none. Colours are supremely rich without coming across as fake, and skin tones in particular have a class-leading realism to them, while still being vibrant.

It also handles motion better than just about anything else, giving fast scenes in movies an authentic look but without any judder – at the same, it clears up and adds detail, which is especially great in sport. It's also a highly talented upscaler, so HD video and streams look at close to 4K as possible.

It's not a great choice for gaming thanks to lack of support for 4K at 120fps and a few other missing features (surprisingly, given that Sony's own PS5 will support them), but if you want a TV bright enough to give you a full-on HDR experience even in a strongly lit room, this is really good choice.

(Image credit: Philips)

7. Philips 65OLED984 A quality OLED TV that packs in a premium Bowers & Wilkins speaker system too Specifications Screen size: 65 inches Other sizes available: None HDR: HDR10, Dolby Vision, HDR10+, HLG HDMI: 4 USB: 3 Dimensions: 1448x1338x142mm Reasons to buy + Universal HDR support + Bold, bright OLED screen + Bowers & Wilkins speaker system + Four-sided Ambilight Reasons to avoid - Speakers aren't Dolby Atmos - Large, imposing design Today's Best Deals £3,499 Preorder at Laptops Direct

Part high-end OLED, part high-end loudspeaker, Philips OLED+984 screen is an inspired co-production between Philips and hi-fi specialist Bowers & Wilkins.

Physically a beast, it stands 1.33m tall, so you’ll need to clear a space in your fancy loft apartment to accommodate it.

This audio system, wrapped in acoustically transparent Kvadrat cloth, is a three-channel design with left, centre, right drivers. Tweeters are mounted strategically at either edge of the cabinet, to produce a wide stereophonic soundstage. The centre channel warrants that classic Bowers decoupled tweeter-on-top treatment, familiar from its high-end loudspeakers.

The set’s panel performance is in line with Philips other current 4K OLED offerings, which for the most part means superb definition, excellent contrast and vibrant hues, courtesy of a third-gen, dual-chip iteration of Philips P5 image processor. The icing on the cake is Ambilight mood lighting, which we're big fans of.

HDR support is comprehensive, with HDR, HLG, HDR10+ and Dolby Vision all catered for. Peak brightness and colour saturation are extremely inviting. No one does televisual eye candy quite like Philips – some will prefer a more naturalist approach, but we're more than happy with it.

If Dolby Atmos isn’t a prerequisite, and you have the space to accommodate this techy tower, then the 984 is quite the audiovisual setup.

(Image credit: Sony)

8. Sony KD-85ZG9 This 8K TV is a giant-screened marvel of detail and HDR Specifications Screen size: 85 inches Other sizes available: 98 inches HDR: HDR10, Dolby Vision, HLG HDMI: 4 USB: 2 Dimensions: 1913x1141x120mm Reasons to buy + Superlative 8K performance + Impressive upscaling from 4K to 8K Reasons to avoid - Frighteningly expensive - Will it even fit in the door? Today's Best Deals Low Stock £7,999 View at John Lewis

If you’re going to buy 8K, it clearly pays to supersize, and there’s currently no better 8K HDR experience to be had than from Sony’s epic 85-inch ZG9. It combines unmatched image clarity and HDR vibrancy with a brilliantly efficient sound system.

Also available as an improbable 98-incher (a snip at £84,999), the ZG9 achieves its astounding HDR brightness courtesy of a highly effective Full Array Backlight Master Drive, which uses a backdrop of precisely calibrated LED lights, allied to 8K X-tended Dynamic Range PRO picture processing. Contrast and HDR punch are sensationally good.

The screen accommodates this hefty backlight with a so-called blade architecture design. The panel sits atop a wider frame, which also provides a place to hide four forward-facing speakers.

This Acoustic Multi-Audio sound system is inspired by (but unrelated to) Sony’s OLED Acoustic Surface Audio technology, and we like how it sounds. The quad speaker arrangement is particularly effective when it comes to steering dialogue and effects around the (big) screen.

Like other Sony high-end displays, the set employs the Android TV smart OS, the interface of which looks comically huge on this massive display. It also has integrated Google Assistant.

Handling the 8K heavy lifting is the latest iteration of Sony’s X1 Ultimate image engine, which feels like it's finally being let off the leash here.

HDR support covers standard HDR10, HLG and Dolby Vision. However, there’s no compatibility with HDR10+, the dynamic metadata rival to Dolby Vision.

While there’s zero 8K content around so far (though there may be as soon as this summer) test footage from Sony has left us hungry to see more. The good news is that 4K upscaling also looks jaw-droppingly fine. Sony’s 8K X-Reality Pro upscaling, which uses a new, dedicated 8K image reference database, is clearly doing a stonking job.

This Master Series monster hints at the future of TV. You don’t need it, but you’ll probably still want it.

(Image credit: LG)

9. LG 65OLEDB9 The best-value big-screen OLED available Specifications Screen size: 65 inches Other sizes available: 55 inches HDR: HDR10, Dolby Vision, HLG HDMI: x4 USB: x3 Dimensions: 1449x830x47mm Reasons to buy + More OLED inches for your buck + Glorious picture quality + Strong webOS smart platform Reasons to avoid - Unimpressive sound - Image not quite as strong as C9 Today's Best Deals £1,799 View at PRC Direct

• Read our full LG B9 review

Shhh, don't let the secret out, but there's really very little difference in the panel or picture processing technology between this and the LG C9 above (or indeed, the much more expensive G9 or W9 models).

The C9's screen is generally measured as a little brighter at its peak than the B9, so if you want the best picture, it still has a slight edge, but the gap between them really isn't big at all. That's party down to the fact that the B9 has all the same electronics powering it, including the same strong upscaling and motion handling, plus 120Hz support, and variable refresh rates, and all the connections you could want.

There's no drop in HDR support either, so you get the dynamic images of Dolby Vision support, plus the webOS operating system has plenty of apps that support this, including Netflix and Apple TV. Other UK catch-up services are present, as is Freeview Play and Amazon Prime Video, though the HDR10+ support of the latter can't be used, because the TV itself doesn't support it.

However, the sound has definitely been skimped on in this TV, to save money. But that's fine – you don't have to spend much at all on one of the best soundbars to compensate.

The 55-inch version of this TV has occasionally dipped to just over the £1,000 mark, which is superb value for a future-proof set. But we've picked the 65-inch version because it's the best-value big OLED we've seen so far – it's often available for £1,699, which just about edges out other budget OLEDs at the time of writing.

(Image credit: Sony)

10. Sony KD-55XH9005/XBR-55X90H The best TV for balancing budget and HDR spectacle Specifications Screen size: 55 inches Other sizes available: 65, 75, 85 inches HDR: HDR10, Dolby Vision, HLG HDMI: 4 USB: 2 Dimensions: 1231x710x70mm Reasons to buy + Detailed and dynamic pictures + Excellent upscaling and motion + Good sound quality Reasons to avoid - No HDR10+ - HDMI 2.1 not supported yet Today's Best Deals £999 View at Laptops Direct

• Read our full Sony XH90/X900H review

This is Sony's mid-range wonder TV for 2020, and finely balances image quality with budget. Known as the XH90 in the UK and X900H in the US, the full-array LED backlight here provides bright and powerful HDR that's also carefully balanced to deliver realistic and precise colours.

As usual with Sony TVs, the image processing is a big draw here on its own – the way it takes lower-res video and makes it sparkle on the 4K display is second to none, and it also handles motion with a deft touch, helping to avoid judder, but still keeping things looking clear and natural.

When combined with the really impressive HDR performance, you've got a TV that feels premium, but falls comfortably into the mid-range price bracket – this is going to be hugely popular in 2020, and deservedly so.

That's especially true because this is Sony's lead TV for the PS5, carrying 'Ready for PlayStation 5' branding, because (somewhat inexplicably) it's the only TV in Sony's line-up that's due to get support for every major PS5 (and Xbox Series X) new TV tech, including ALLM, VRR and 4K at 120fps. However, it doesn't currently support these features – they're due in an update, so we obviously have to wait until they're out to actually recommend it for the next-gen consoles…

(Image credit: Philips)

11. Philips OLED754 The T3 Awards 2020 winner for Best TV Under £1,000 Specifications Screen size: 55 inches Other sizes available: 65 inches HDR: HDR10, Dolby Vision, HLG, HDR10+ HDMI: 4 USB: 2 Dimensions: 1300x820x60mm Reasons to buy + OLED quality for less + Gorgeous contrast and colour + Full HDR support Reasons to avoid - Older processing - Not the smartest software Today's Best Deals £989 View at Currys PC World 82 Amazon customer reviews ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

This TV tops our list of the best TVs under £1,000, and was the winner of the T3 Awards 2020 gong in the same category, for very simple reasons: it offers a full-quality OLED experience, but for less than the competition.

In fact, with support for both HDR10+ and Dolby Vision advanced HDR formats, it's actually better-specced in this sense than many more expensive TVs. It does use slightly older processing than Philips' latest TVs, and the smart platform is not as comprehensive as the flagship models (but still have all the major streaming services), but these don't diminish the experience at all.

Philips' signature vivid colours are here, and OLED's ability to deliver stunning contrast on an ultra-detailed screen is preserved. The image is rich, clear and inviting, and is made even more immersive with the inclusion of Philips' Ambilight tech.

In terms of pure picture quality for the money, nothing beats this set – it's a cinematic marvel. It's also available as a 65-inch model, but the 55-inch version is the sweet spot for price.

(Image credit: Panasonic)

12. Panasonic TX-58HX800 A great 4K OLED TV for cinematic performance Specifications Screen size: 58 inches Other sizes available: 40, 50, 65 inches HDR: HDR10, Dolby Vision, HLG, HDR10+ HDMI: 3 USB: 2 Dimensions: 1297x759x65mm Reasons to buy + Great size screen for the cash + Detailed and sharp 4K images + Full HDR support Reasons to avoid - Not especially bright Today's Best Deals £799 View at Sevenoaks

This is one of Panasonic's more budget-focused TVs, but you'd be hard-pressed to convince anyone who sees it of that. Not only does it offer colourful, precise visuals from 4K sources, it has every HDR base covered, so it's always eking the most out of every shot.

Of course, being a less expensive LED TV, you won't hit the spectacular bright highs on offer from the likes of the Samsung Q90R that tops our list, but what you see is still rich and exciting.

Processing is strong for motion control, which makes this an especially good buy for sports fans, and it also upscales fair well, though there are other options at a similar price range that are better for that – our list of the best TVs under £1000 goes into more detail.

58 inches isn't a very common size at the moment, but expect to see it become more common in the future – it's only a little physically larger than 55 inches, but feels like a nice extra size upgrade. And here, it gives you a superb amount of real estate for the money.

(Image credit: Samsung)

13. Samsung UE43RU7020 The best TV you can get for under £500 Specifications Screen size: 43 inches Other sizes available: 50, 55, 65, 70, 75 inches HDR: HDR10, HLG, HDR10+ HDMI: x3 USB: x2 Dimensions: 970x560x60mm Reasons to buy + Strong upscaling + Good colour and contrast for the price + Great software Reasons to avoid - Not great sound Today's Best Deals £329 View at Samsung UK

Though this is as affordable as Samsung TVs get, you won't feel like it's been neglected in any way – the plastic build feels perfectly premium, there's support for HDR10+ advanced HDR, and the software is essentially the same as that on higher-end models, including wide support for streaming and catch-up services, including Netflix, Apple TV (with AirPlay 2), Amazon Prime Video, and loads more.

And, crucially, the image quality also surpasses what you'd expect for the price – everything looks sharp and detailed, and it even does a damn good job of upscaling from HD, so if you tend to rely on watching non-4K stuff (which is most of it still, after all), you really won't feel like you got a budget TV here.

As an added bonus, it has a tiny 10ms response time, which means it's a great choice for gaming.

T3's TV buying tips

So you've read your rundown of the best TVs to buy and you've hopefully settled on a choice. But perhaps you have a few more questions? Our in-depth guide to buying a TV should have all the answers you need, or you can peruse the truncated version below…

Should I upgrade my HD TV to a 4K TV?

Yes, definitely (although, to be fair, if you buy a new TV that’s what you’re going to get whether you like it or not).

The resolution of 4K/Ultra HD is four times higher than Full HD, at 3840x2160. It means a far more detailed picture, with content requiring a lot more bandwidth and storage space. 4K TVs tend to be good at upscaling HD video to Ultra HD, and native 4K content is now widely available from a variety of sources.

Our advice? Replace your HD screen with a larger 4K UHD model to really enjoy the resolution benefit. Similarly, buy a larger 8K TV than your 4K screen, if you’re stepping up again.

What types of TV display can I choose from?

OLED TV

The lighting on OLED (organic light emitting diode) TVs is achieved by passing an electric current through an emissive, electroluminescent film. This technique produces beautiful colour and high contrast and also enables screens to be extremely thin and flexible. LG Display is the only supplier of 4K OLED screens to mainstream TV manufacturers, meaning they all use the same panels, but picture processors and implementation all vary, so you can still expect differences between brands.

Quantum Dot/QLED

Samsung is the leading exponent of QLED, a variant of LED LCD display technology that uses a highly efficient Quantum Dot filter that increases brightness and colour volume. QLED screens with a full array backlight offer the best performance when it comes to HDR peak brightness and LCD black level control.

LED TV: Direct LED

Sometimes called FALD (Full Array Local Dimming), these displays are backlit by an array of LEDs (light emitting diodes) directly behind the screen. This enables localised dimming – meaning immediately adjacent areas of brightness and darkness can be displayed more effectively – and greatly improves contrast.

LED TV: Edge LED

With these Edge LED TVs, the LEDs of the backlight are mounted along the edges of the panel. This arrangement enables radically slender displays, but can't achieve the same picture quality as directly lit LED sets. However, Edge LED displays do come in far cheaper which is why the more budget LED TVs out there use this technology.

What should I look for when I'm buying a TV?

Here are some of the things we look for when we review a TV screen, so you should, too...

Contrast: Bright whites shouldn't have any signs of green, pink or blue in them, while blacks should look solid and not washed out, grey, green or blue.

Colours: Look at how bright and solid they are; how noiseless their edges are; how 'dotty' richly saturated areas are and how natural skin looks, especially in dim scenes.

Fine detail: How much texture does the screen give? Does a tree look like a green lump, or can you see the individual leaves?

Edges: Check for ghosting, bright halos and jaggedness, especially around curves.

Motion: Check moving objects and quick camera pans for smearing or blurring, trailing, jerkiness and fizzing dotty noise.

Image artefacts: Look for blockiness, colour bands, grain, smearing, dot crawl: anything that looks like it's added by the TV’s picture processing engine.

What about TV sound?

To provide the best audio to complement the pictures, your TV should be hooked up to a separate audio system, be it soundbar or home cinema separates, but this isn't always an option. So, here's what we listen for when testing a TV's speakers:

Bass: Deep, rounded rumbles that don't cause the set to rattle or speakers to distort cramp or overwhelm the rest of the sound; but that expand when needed.

Vocals: Voices should sound open, rich and clear, not boxed in, nasal or thin.

Trebles: Treble effects should sound clean, rounded and smooth in loud scenes and shouldn't dominate the soundstage.

Soundstage width/depth: A good TV should throw the sound away from the TV, to the sides, forward and back, to give an extra dimension to what's on screen, without losing any coherence.

How many HDMI sockets do you need?

For a living room TV you should be looking for a minimum of three HDMI inputs, but ideally four if you want to attach a set-top box as well as games consoles, Blu-ray player and media streamer.

Best TV 2020: why now is a good time to buy

We tend to say this all the time, but now really is a great time to invest in a new TV!

2160p 4K resolution opens the door to more detail without any obvious onscreen pixel structure, while wide colour gamut panels and high brightness panels make for vibrant, colour rich images, even when viewing regular HD TV channels.

The quality of HD upscaling has also never been better, as the power of image processors grows exponentially. All the main TV brands are now fast tracking image processing which utilise advanced AI with Deep Learning and Machine Learning, for better picture clarity.

With high dynamic range (HDR), images enjoy a greater sense of realism. HDR is basically a technology that enables TVs to show a broader range of colours and brightness, closer to what the eye is capable of seeing. Bright highlights, such as reflections and fireworks, glint and glow more realistically. HDR also allows for greater subtle shadow detail, adding extra depth.

There is a caveat though. Cheaper LED screens may claim HDR support, but they often lack the inherent brightness to actually do much with it. At the high end, the dynamics will always be more pronounced.

HDR comes in a variety of flavours. Static HDR, aka HDR10, is the standard. It’s used on UHD Blu-ray and by streaming services. Dolby Vision and HDR10+ are dynamic HDR variants, able to optimise HDR characteristics on a scene-by-scene basis, thanks to the use of dynamic metadata.

Dolby Vision is the more widely used of the two. It’s favoured by Netflix, Disney+, Apple TV/iTunes and UHD Blu-ray. HDR10+ appears on some discs, but is more commonly used by Amazon Prime. Most manufactures support one or the other; a few (Panasonic, Philips) favour both.

HLG is a live broadcast HDR standard, still largely undergoing trials – support is widespread.

Audio is often a key differentiator between models. Flagship 4K TVs tend to have enhanced sound systems, often with support for Dolby Atmos, the immersive 3D sound format. Not only is Dolby Atmos good for your ears, having it in a TV can represent a big saving on additional external audio systems.

OK, now that we’ve set the scene, let’s reveal T3's best TV buys of 2020.