Philips 65OLED803, test and analysis with features and price

Philips is betting very hard on OLED technology. TP Vision's television subsidiary already has an extensive catalog of models with this technology. This year we have been able to test the Philips OLED 973 and the Philips OLED 903, two televisions of a high level but whose price is out of the reach of many users. However, neither is the entry-level range to the Philips OLED world. The truth is that the manufacturer has a third model somewhat cheaper. It's called Philips 65OLED803  and it comes to replace last year's magnificent Philips OLED 9002.

Actually, the Philips OLED 803 offers practically the same features as the 903 model. The difference between them is found in the loss of the sound bar. For the rest, we have a 4K OLED panel, the P5 Perfect Picture Engine image processor, the HDR Perfect technology and the Android TV operating system . All this in a minimalist design in which the Ambilight system stands out on three sides. I have had the opportunity to test the 65-inch model for a few days and I will tell you what I think.

PHILIPS 65OLED803 DATA SHEET

The panel has all the prominence

Television manufacturers are clear that the great protagonist must be the panel. And so they have been applying it for some years The Philips 65OLED803 is a really nice TV. It is placed on the furniture with small chrome legs located at the ends . These leave the screen very low, almost glued to the furniture on which we place it. This, which is very elegant, but has two drawbacks. The first that prevents us from placing a sound bar in front of the television. And the second we will need a piece of furniture as big as the television.

The panel is surrounded by a thin black frame one centimeter thick. In addition, we have a dark aluminum frame and back with a brushed finish . As is often the case with OLED TVs, the back is very thin to about half way. Then fatten up to hide the sound system, electronics and connectors.

We have the aforementioned connectors located on the far left, some in a lower position and others on the side. The Philips 65OLED803 has four 4K-capable HDMI inputs with HDCP 2.2 support. However, only two are complete and support HDR , which greatly limits the connectivity of the TV. Negative point for Philips, since if we have several devices they almost force us to use an AV receiver.

In addition to the four HDMI, we have two USB ports , one for components, an optical audio output, ethernet and the different tuners. Additionally, the TV comes with built- in dual-band 802.11ac WiFi .

To control the Philips 65OLED803 we have two remote controls . The first is what we could call normal. This has a keyboard on the back, very common in Philips televisions. We also have a more minimalist remote, with a very slim design. It has a small touch panel in the center, the basic buttons and voice control.

The Ambilight system included in the Philips 65OLED803 is three-sided . The LED strips are placed in the plastic part of the back and it has enough power. Still, for optimal performance there should be some space around the TV, as well as as “bare” wall as possible.

In addition, in this year's version, we will be able to use Philips Hue bulbs to extend the effects to the rest of the room . I have not been able to test this system personally because I do not have any of these bulbs, but Philips has recently released the Hue Play system for precisely this.

Picture quality

4K HDR image

The Philips 65OLED803 has a wide variety of picture modes, with ISF and Cinema modes being the most useful . With subtle adjustments in the different ISF modes we can achieve very interesting results. Of course, by default the TV is configured with an excessively artificial image. At least for my taste.

Once adjusted, the image quality offered by the Philips 65OLED803 is impressive . This year the manufacturer's OLED TVs are equipped with an improved version of the P5 Perfect Picture image processor. And the truth is that the image quality is somewhat higher than that of last year's model.

4K HDR image

4K HDR images look super sharp, with vibrant colors paired with perfect blacks and brilliant whites . And is that the Philips 65OLED803 reaches a maximum brightness higher than other OLED models on the market. By some measurements, the brightness is close to 800 nits, a fairly high value for OLED models.

Philips has chosen to support HDR10 + instead of Dolby Vision. I have not been able to test it because, at the moment, the streaming apps do not appear. The Philips 65OLED803 is also capable of playing content in HDR10 and HLG.

1080p image

A practically identical result we have when we reproduce content with 1080p resolution. The scaling that the processor does is really good , with a detailed image, pure whites and a lot of detail in the darkest images.

DTT image

We will also get a good result when we see images of lower definition . The P5 processor manages to save standard definition images, such as DVDs or DTT. The image is smooth and clean, at least in most cases.

The room for improvement in this television comes from the movement treatment part . The processor does a good job, but it falls short of the level of Sony models.

Sound quality

It is true that the vast majority of users who consider buying this television will have in mind complementing it with a good sound system. However, it is also true that if the sound of the television is good we will not always have to be connecting the external equipment.

The Philips 65OLED803 is equipped with a fairly complete 2.1 sound system that it does not have a built-in sound bar. This is composed of 2 tweeters, 2 10W mid / high range speakers and a 30W subwoofer, achieving a total power of 50W RMS.

Rear speaker

The improvement over a standard system is more than remarkable. It offers clear and powerful sound , perfect for watching TV shows. Maybe it lacks some punch and dynamics to use it as the main system for watching movies, but for day to day it is more than enough.

Android TV is still a good option

The Philips 65OLED803 runs  Android TV 7.0 Nougat as the operating system . According to Philips, updating its TVs to Android 8 Oreo will arrive later this year and early next year.

The interface of the Android system that the TV carries is the same that we see in any other model. It is Google that marks the user interface as it should be and manufacturers cannot make changes. The only thing manufacturers can add are their own applications or suggestions, which in the case of Philips are not very useful.

To move the operating system the Philips 65OLED803 has a quad-core processor . As we have already noticed in other models, in some moments some power is missing . We notice it when we move a lot through the interface or when we open several applications at the same time. However, for normal use of the television, in which we are going to use a couple or three of applications, it works correctly.

In my opinion Philips has installed too many applications by default . Most of which are also not very useful. If you want to leave the system to your liking you will have to spend a few minutes.

Android TV is a somewhat more complete operating system than the LG and Samsung systems. However, it also offers us some applications that we do not have in its rivals. For example, from the Play Store we can install Kodi, VLC, various apps for IPTV, TuneIN or a multitude of games .

As for the most sought after, we have access to Netflix, Amazon Video, A3Player, RTVE, YouTube, Movistar + and Orange TV . However, the Mediaset and HBO applications are not available.

On Netflix and YouTube we can play in 4K and HDR . However, on Amazon Prime Video, I have not managed to play in 4K HDR. I am not sure if it was because of the Internet connection or because the application is not compatible.

On the other hand, the use of Android TV allows us to use the Google Assistant . And also the Chromecast system , with which we can easily send content to the TV from various applications. For example, we can play Facebook videos on TV.

Apps aside, the TV guide works fine . If we connect a hard drive we can pause and rewind the live broadcasts, as well as record the programs. The change of channels is slow as soon as you turn on the TV or exit an application.

The menus are quite complete, but also somewhat complicated for unaccustomed users. To deactivate some options we have to give more clicks than I would like. However, we have many configuration options available .

Conclusions and price

The Philips 65OLED803 is a great TV. It is capable of delivering very high image quality just by spending a few minutes adjusting it. The image processor does a good job with lower resolution images, so it's a good model for watching TV.

It has a response time somewhat higher than that of its rivals , but I have been able to play with the PS4 Pro without any problem. It may not be the ideal television for professional gamers, but for the vast majority of the public it is more than valid.

Your operating system can be a weakness or a strength, depending on how you look at it. I personally like it, although I admit that it needs a somewhat more powerful processor. However, with Android TV we have access to some apps that others do not have , such as Kodi.

Another negative point that I put is that it only has two full HDMIs . This means that, for example in my case that I have to connect several devices with HDR, I have to use an AV receiver. Otherwise, the Philips 65OLED803 is perfectly capable of competing at a high level with the OLED models from LG, Sony and Panasonic.

The Philips 65OLED803 is on sale with a price of 3,000 euros . If we opt for the 55-inch model, the price is 2,000 euros.