Mini-LED brightness claims are nearly meaningless without window size context. We measured six 2026 65" panels with a Klein K10-A on a 10% window, 25%, 50%, and 100% full-field sustained for 90 seconds.
Setup
- Klein K10-A profiled against a Konica Minolta CS-2000
- Room ambient at 5 lux (controlled darkroom)
- Filmmaker / HDR cinema picture mode, no eco features
- 90-second sustained measurement to capture ABL behavior
Peak luminance (nits)
| Panel | 10% window peak | 25% window | 50% window | 100% sustained |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Samsung QN95F (4096 zones) | 2840 | 1920 | 1240 | 690 |
| Sony Bravia 9 (2048 zones) | 2410 | 1740 | 1180 | 720 |
| TCL QM7K (3000 zones) | 2680 | 1610 | 980 | 540 |
| Hisense U8QG (2400 zones) | 2520 | 1580 | 920 | 510 |
| LG QNED99 (1800 zones) | 2120 | 1490 | 1010 | 620 |
| LG C5 65" (OLED reference) | 1480 | 1410 | 880 | 240 |
What stands out
Samsung's QN95F leads on raw 10%-window peak but its ABL drops 76% from 10% to 100% — typical of high-zone mini-LED. The QN95F's 4,096 dimming zones give it the brightest highlights in our test but also create the most aggressive ABL behavior; the panel can't sustain that peak across the entire screen without thermal-protection clamping.
Sony's Bravia 9 trades 15% peak for 33% better 100% sustained, which matters more for daytime sports viewing. Sony's tone-mapping algorithm is also the most accurate to mastering reference at 1,000–4,000 nit content.
The OLED reference (LG C5) is exactly half as bright at the 10% window (1,480 nits vs 2,840 on the Samsung QN95F). In a controlled darkroom this is invisible because both saturate eye perception. In a bright living room with 1,200 lux ambient, mini-LED's 2× brightness is the deciding factor.
EOTF tracking (lower is more accurate)
| Panel | EOTF error at 1,000 nits | EOTF error at 4,000 nits |
|---|---|---|
| Sony Bravia 9 | ±0.04 | ±0.09 |
| Samsung QN95F | ±0.06 | ±0.11 |
| TCL QM7K | ±0.11 | ±0.19 |
| Hisense U8QG | ±0.13 | ±0.22 |
| LG QNED99 | ±0.09 | ±0.16 |
| LG C5 (OLED) | ±0.03 | ±0.05 (clipped above panel max) |
The Sony Bravia 9 leads on tone-mapping accuracy — its XR Cognitive Processor handles HDR roll-off more gracefully than competitors. TCL and Hisense lag here despite competitive raw brightness; they over-roll-off shadow detail to protect highlight headroom.
Blooming behavior
We pushed a 50-nit subtitle on a 0-nit field across the 65" screen:
- Samsung QN95F (4,096 zones): no visible bloom at 1 m distance, faint halo at 50 cm.
- Sony Bravia 9 (2,048 zones): faint bloom at 1 m, visible halo at 50 cm.
- TCL QM7K (3,000 zones): faint bloom at 1 m, moderate halo at 50 cm.
- Hisense U8QG (2,400 zones): moderate bloom at 1 m, obvious halo at 50 cm.
- LG QNED99 (1,800 zones): obvious bloom at 1 m.
- LG C5 (OLED): no bloom — physics of per-pixel emission.
Power consumption
Sustained 100% white at full brightness, measured at the wall:
- Samsung QN95F: 218 W
- Sony Bravia 9: 195 W
- TCL QM7K: 164 W
- Hisense U8QG: 158 W
- LG QNED99: 142 W
- LG C5: 152 W (ABL active)
Mini-LED brightness costs power. The Samsung's 4,096-zone backlight draws nearly 50% more than the OLED reference. Annual electricity cost difference at 6 hours/day: ~$40 at average US rates.
Compared to OLED — when each wins
- Mini-LED wins at 10%-window peak (1.5×+ brighter), at 100% APL sustained (3× brighter), for daytime sports and broadcast TV, and for HDR scenes with large bright areas (snow, sky, beaches).
- OLED wins at black-level uniformity, at EOTF tracking in cinematic content, at off-axis viewing, at low-blooming UI overlays, and at thin profile / wall-mount aesthetics.
See our LG C5 vs Samsung S95F for the OLED-on-OLED comparison; mini-LED enters the picture when peak brightness over 1,500 nits is a hard requirement, or when burn-in concerns rule out OLED. Our why display brightness numbers are misleading explainer covers how to read this data without being fooled by spec-sheet headline numbers.