Indian Gadget Awards winners: Samsung scores big wins in the Best TV of 2021 category | 91mobiles.com

A slew of smart TVs vied for our attention in 2021, which can be accredited to the 4K boom that culminated into a number of affordable and high-end UHD TVs equipped with the latest HDR technologies. Of course, there were some TV sets from the premium as well as the mainstream segment that were a notch above the competition. Enter, the Indian Gadget Awards: Best TV of 2021 nominees, which commemorates the best TVs across all price brackets in 2021. We’ve hence decided to divide this award category into two, with the Mainstream award focusing on TVs under the Rs 40,000 mark and the Premium award having no such price limit.

For the uninitiated, the Indian Gadget Awards, features over 40 members of the Indian tech media community that also include almost 25 of the country’s most famous tech content creators. Being India’s biggest gadget awards event, it includes 30 award categories this year with over 200 nominees.

Best TV of 2021 — Mainstream

Affordable smart TVs had a big role to play in the year, tasked with keeping the family entertained and bringing the world of OTT at their fingertips. Including options priced under Rs 40,000, this segment now has big-screened contenders that defy their asking prices to offer top-notch features, high resolutions, pumped up sound and more. Meet the winner:

Winner: Samsung AUE70 Crystal

Runner-up: HiSense 43A6GE

Other contenders for the award included:

Redmi X50

Xiaomi shook things up in the mainstream TV market yet again by launching the Redmi TV X series. The X50 model, in particular, stood out owing to its attractive price and its 4K HDR capabilities. Better yet, the TV comes equipped with a set of 30W speakers placed on either side to relay impeccable sound, and there’s even Dolby Atmos support which can take a user’s movie-watching experience to the next level. This 50-inch TV also ships with MEMC support, but its main draw is its Dolby Vision compatibility that does wonders to the visual quality while viewing relevant content.

Realme Smart TV 4K

The 50-inch model of the Realme Smart TV 4K is a highly impressive device. Not only does it offer a stellar audio experience through its 24W quad-speaker system, but it also comes with a special Chroma Boost technology that’s aimed at rendering increased brightness, contrast, and colour. What’s more, this TV supports Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos. It’s got TÜV Rheinland certification as well, which eases the strain on your eyes by reducing blue light.

Samsung AUE70 Crystal 4K 43-inch

Samsung’s Crystal 4K UHD range has a solid 43-inch option that provides exceptional visual quality. The TV is backed by the company’s PurColor technology that allows the screen to showcase a wider range of colours for optimal picture performance, and an immersive viewing experience. This TV gets its name from the Crystal Processor 4K, which is aimed at smartly upscaling regular content to 4K resolution. What’s more, the unit grabs a nearly bezel-less design and supports multiple voice assistants. 

HiSense 43A6GE 43-inch 4K TV

The HiSense 43A6GE is a solid value for money proposition in the 4K TV space. For one, the TV’s high contrast panel with Dolby Vision support provides truly breathtaking image quality no matter what kind of content is being viewed on it. Furthermore, backed by the Android TV platform, the TV grabs a bezel-less design and offers an Ultra Dimming technology that’s aimed at delivering richer details. Precision Color and Noise Reduction technologies also make their way into this TV, as does support for built-in Chromecast.

Blaupunkt Cybersound 4K TV 43-inch

The 43-inch 4K TV category has another great option in the form of this Blaupunkt TV. Coming from a brand known for its sound products, the unit offers a 50W speaker that’s complemented by both Dolby Digital and DTS TruSurround technologies to create an immersive and fantastic surround sound experience. Moreover, it also grabs the Dolby MS12 audio system, which supports premium audio content including Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital, and dtx X. The Blaupunkt CyberSound 4K TV also comes with support for HDR10+ and MEMC technology.

Best TV of 2021 — Premium

Premium TVs offer it all — from large screens to awesome audio, and all the bells and whistles money can buy. And when one is ready to spend the big bucks, the aesthetics matter too. The jury is faced with the tough task of choosing one winner, from a list of extremely capable options. Here we go. 

Winner: Samsung The Frame

Runner-up:  LG C1 65-inch

Here are all the nominees:

LG C1 65-inch

LG has been churning out quality OLED TVs for years now and the C1 is the brand’s latest contender in the premium space. The device promises to take a user’s media consumption experience to the next level and the TV offers exceptionally high contrast, along with vivid and lifelike picture quality. What’s more, thanks to AI Picture Pro and AI Sound Pro technologies, the TV’s visuals and audio fidelity are further enhanced. That’s not all as the LG C1 65-inch also supports Dolby Vision IQ and Dolby Atmos, along with a bunch of gaming-centric features like Nvidia G-SYNC and AMD FreeSync technologies. Add to that the unit’s 120Hz refresh rate and the LG C1 makes a strong case for winning the award. 

Samsung The Frame

Powered by Quantum Dot technology, Samsung’s latest offering truly blends into your home with its wooden frame look. What’s more, you can swap out this frame anytime you want by purchasing another coloured option. The TV also comes with support for Art Mode that lets users showcase an incredible array of artworks on the set, thereby giving passersby the feeling of walking through a fine art gallery. The Frame TV also comes with intelligent features that include the ability to analyze the brightness in your room to tailor the brightness and contrast settings automatically. 

Sony BRAVIA XR A80J

No surprises here, Sony’s flagship A80J OLED TV makes it to our list too. Interestingly, despite featuring a stunning display, the set is headlined by its cutting-edge Cognitive Processor XR which uses AI to analyse and tailor the visuals and the sound on the screen to the best possible settings. What’s more, the TV touts support for not just Dolby Vision, but it also features a separate Netflix Calibrated Mode and an IMAX Enhanced mode. A host of distinct technologies have been embedded into this expensive TV set, making it well worth the price users pay for it.

Xiaomi QLED TV

Xiaomi forayed into the premium segment with its 75-inch QLED which makes use of Quantum Dot technology. The device offers a 4K resolution screen with 120Hz refresh rate. Coupled with the company’s Reality Flow motion smoothening technology, the TV’s panel offers a stunning visual experience. What’s more, the screen offers ample contrast too, which can be accredited to the unit’s 192 localised dimming zones that ensure deeper blacks and great contrast levels. The TV does in fact, support Dolby Vision along with a slew of other HDR formats. Lastly, this smart TV also ships with Dolby Audio, DTS-HD, and Dolby Atmos capabilities.

Sony BRAVIA XR Z9J

The Sony BRAVIA XR Z9J is as futuristic as TVs get and the unit is among the first 8K TVs in the market. The device comes with support for the brand’s Cognitive Processor XR, which brings features like XR Contrast to enable deep blacks and intense brightness, and XR Clarity, which seamlessly upscales content to 8K resolution. The company’s XR Motion technology also makes its way into the TV, offering next-level motion smoothening. The Z9J ships with Google TV built-in and grabs a Netflix Calibrated Mode as well as IMAX Enhanced and Dolby Vision support.