Trying to pick a new 65-inch TV in 2025 feels like a full-time job. You walk into a store, or more likely, you open a dozen tabs on your computer, and you’re just hit with a wall of acronyms. OLED, QLED, Mini-LED, HDR10+, Dolby Vision… it’s a lot. And every single TV claims to be the best thing since sliced bread. It can be a real headache.
So, the point here is to just cut through some of that noise. We’re going to look at what are probably the best 65-inch smart TVs you can get your hands on this year. We’ll talk about what makes them good, who they’re for, and why you might pick one over the other. No super technical jargon, just what you need to know.
What Actually Makes a Good 65-Inch TV in 2025?
Before we name names, it’s good to know what we’re looking for. The technology has gotten pretty stable, but there are still a few big things that separate a “meh” TV from a great one. The main battle is still about the screen itself.
Then there’s the whole “smart” part of the TV. That’s the software you use to find Netflix or YouTube. A slow, clunky system can make even the prettiest screen feel annoying to use every single day. So that’s important too.
And for a lot of people, gaming is a big deal now. How a TV handles your PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X is a huge selling point. We need to check if it has the right connections and features for that.
OLED vs. QLED… The Big Fight Continues
OLED TVs are awesome because each little light dot (pixel) makes its own light. This means when a part of the picture is black, the dots just turn off. Completely off. This gives you perfect black levels, which makes everything else look amazing, especially in a dark room. The downside is they aren’t normally as bright as other TVs.
QLED TVs, on the other hand, use a backlight, usually made of tiny “Mini-LEDs” now. They shine light through a filter of “quantum dots” to make the colors. Because of that powerful backlight, these TVs can get blindingly bright. This makes them fantastic for watching TV during the day in a sunny room.
Don’t Forget the Brains: The Smart OS
Google TV: This is used by Sony and TCL. It’s pretty good at recommending stuff for you to watch and has all the apps you could ever want.
LG’s webOS: Known for its little pointer remote, which you either love or hate. It’s quick and easy to get around.
Samsung’s Tizen: Similar to the others, very fast and has a ton of apps. Its menu can feel a little cluttered sometimes though.
For the Gamers Out There
If you’re a gamer, you want to look for a few things. You need HDMI 2.1 ports, which let you get 4K resolution at 120 frames per second (that’s super smooth). You also want something called VRR (Variable Refresh Rate), which stops the screen from tearing and looking stuttery. Low input lag is also a must, so there’s no delay between you pressing a button and seeing it happen.
The Absolute Top Pick: The TV for Movie Lovers
So, if you want the best possible picture for watching movies and you mostly watch in a dimmer room, the LG G5 OLED is probably the one. It is the television that continues LG’s reputation for amazing picture quality. It’s considered to be the top dog for a reason.
The contrast is just out of this world. When you watch a space movie, the stars are tiny bright pinpricks in a truly black void, not a hazy dark gray. The colors are incredibly accurate too, so everything looks the way the director wanted it to.
It also has this super thin design that’s made to be mounted on the wall. It sits completely flush, so it looks like a piece of art. The sound is decent for a thin TV, but if you’re buying this, you should probably get a soundbar anyway.
The Bright Room Brawler: Samsung’s Best Bet
But what if your living room is flooded with sunlight? That’s where OLED can sometimes struggle. And that’s where the Samsung S95E QD-OLED comes in. This TV is a bit of a hybrid. It uses an OLED panel but adds Quantum Dots to it.
The result is a TV that has the perfect blacks of an OLED but with the wild brightness and vibrant colors of a QLED. It’s a very good combination. It can handle glare much better than the LG, making it a more versatile choice for different kinds of rooms.
The smart system, Tizen, is really fast. You can jump between apps in a flash. For gamers, it has all the bells and whistles, with multiple HDMI 2.1 ports and super low input lag. Some people don’t love its menu layout but you get used to it.
The Gamer’s Dream Screen
If your main use for a 65-inch screen is to play video games, you should really look at the Sony Bravia X95N. Sony knows what they’re doing here, especially since they also make the PlayStation 5. It’s a Mini-LED TV, so it gets very bright.
What makes it special for gaming is how good its processing is. The TV’s brain figures out how to make motion look really smooth without making it look fake. The input lag is crazy low, and it has special features that work directly with the PS5, like automatically adjusting your HDR settings.
The picture is also just fantastic for movies and shows. Sony’s color science is generally considered to be one of the most natural-looking. It’s a great all-around TV that just happens to be a monster for gaming.
Best Bang for Your Buck: The Smart Budget Choice
Okay, those TVs are all pretty expensive. What if you want a great 65-inch TV without selling a kidney? That’s where a brand like TCL comes in. The TCL 7-Series QLED is typically the sweet spot for most people.
It gives you a lot of the same technology, like Mini-LED backlighting and Quantum Dots, for hundreds of dollars less. It gets bright, the colors are good, and it has the Google TV smart platform built right in. Which is a very good system.
So where’s the catch? Usually, the processing isn’t quite as good as a Sony, and the motion might not be quite as clean. For the huge price difference, a lot of people will not notice or care about those small differences. It is an amazing amount of television for the money.
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Frequently Asked Questions
1. Is 8K resolution worth it for a 65-inch TV in 2025?
Honestly, no. Not really. At 65 inches, it’s very difficult for the human eye to even see the difference between 4K and 8K. Plus, there’s still almost no 8K content to watch. 4K is the way to go.
2. How much should I expect to spend on a good 65-inch TV?
For a top-end OLED or high-tier QLED, you’re looking at anywhere from $2,000 to $3,000. For a really solid value model like the TCL, you can often find them in the $1,000 to $1,500 range. Prices change all the time, of course.
3. So is OLED really better than QLED?
It’s not about “better,” it’s about “better for you.” If you watch in a dark room and want perfect contrast for movies, OLED wins. If you watch in a bright room and need the TV to fight off glare, a high-end QLED or QD-OLED is probably your best choice.
4. What’s the most important feature for gaming?
Having at least two HDMI 2.1 ports is huge. This lets you have the full 4K 120Hz experience. After that, look for VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) and ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode). They make gaming feel much smoother.
5. How long will a new 2025 smart TV last?
The TV panel itself should last for many years, easily 7-10 years or more under normal use. The “smart” part might feel slow after 4-5 years, but you can always just plug in a cheap Google Chromecast or Apple TV stick to make it feel brand new again.
Key Takeaways
For the Movie Buff: The LG G5 OLED is king for dark-room viewing, with perfect blacks and amazing contrast.
For the Bright Room: The Samsung S95E QD-OLED is a fantastic choice that combines OLED’s blacks with QLED’s intense brightness.
For the Serious Gamer: The Sony Bravia X95N is built for gaming with super-smooth motion and great PS5 integration.
For the Smart Shopper: The TCL 7-Series QLED offers most of the high-end features at a much more wallet-friendly price.
Don’t worry about 8K: 4K is more than enough for a 65-inch screen and will be for years to come.
