Samsung's 2022 QLED TV lineup uses Shape Adaptive Light Control for near pixel-perfect contrast

Samsung MicroLED TV
Samsung's MicroLED TV has the best backlight control of them all, but it's probably not in our price range... (Image credit: Samsung)

CES 2022 hasn’t officially begun quite yet, but that hasn’t stopped Samsung from announcing a pack of new MicroLED, mini-LED and QLED TV models.

At the highest end of the range is the new MicroLED TV model that Samsung says uses 25 million micrometer-sized LEDs to perfectly control the screen’s backlight. It’s a continuation of The Wall that Samsung announced a few years ago at CES, and will be available later this year in 110, 101 and 89 inches for more money than most of us can afford.

Stepping down to a more reasonable level, Samsung is also debuting a number of new mini-LED TVs as part of its Neo QLED TV lineup. The big changes for this year are a new feature called Shape Adaptive Light Control that allows the TVs to have better control over blooming and an upgrade to a 14-bit backlight for more luminance points. 

Inside the TVs will be using Samsung’s Neo Quantum Processor that has an Object Depth Enhancer feature that will better separate objects from the foreground and background and the updated New Home Screen UI that has a number of changes including… er, an NFT store for some reason. 

In addition to its bound-to-be-successful NFT store, the New Home Screen UI also has a section for cloud game-streaming services (GeForce Now, Stadia and Utomik) – a potential precursor to Samsung’s cloud gaming service that was announced at Samsung Developer Conference 2021 – and a continue watching section that will help you get back to what you were watching when you turned the TV off.

Speaking of gaming, Samsung says its latest crop of flagship screens will be able to support 4K/144Hz for next-gen GPUs like the Nvidia GeForce 30-Series cards that came out last year. Samsung won’t help you get your hands on one, unfortunately, but its TVs will support the higher framerate for folks lucky enough to get their hands on one.

Samsung The Frame 2022

The Frame (2022) is perfect for the times you want to get out and play polo, but simply can't be bothered. (Image credit: Samsung)

Want something more sophisticated? The Frame 2022 has you covered 

While the MicroLED and mini-LED TVs will soak up the majority of the news cycle during CES, it’s worth noting that Samsung’s most sophisticated screen is also getting a facelift for 2022, too.

To wit, the next version of The Frame TV will offer a new matte display with anti-glare, anti-reflection and anti-fingerprint properties that will counter bad lighting and errant children who want to touch the TV when your back is turned.

Like previous years, the Frame will be available in sizes from 32 to 85 inches with final pricing and release date details to be announced later this year.

That being said, we wouldn't be surprised if this is all Samsung is going to announce this week so make sure to check back with us Tuesday after Samsung's opening press conference.

Nick Pino

Nick Pino is Managing Editor, TV and AV for TechRadar's sister site, Tom's Guide. Previously, he was the Senior Editor of Home Entertainment at TechRadar, covering TVs, headphones, speakers, video games, VR and streaming devices. He's also written for GamesRadar+, Official Xbox Magazine, PC Gamer and other outlets over the last decade, and he has a degree in computer science he's not using if anyone wants it.