When it comes to step-up models in TV ranges, the Philips 55OLED907 faces two significant questions: Does it outperform its more affordable siblings, and how does it stack up against its pricier counterparts? For the 55OLED907, these questions are even more challenging given that Philips' budget-friendly OLED807 and high-end OLED937 TVs have both earned glowing five-star reviews.

Can the OLED907 carve out its own niche in such a competitive field, or will it find itself pushed into obscurity?

Price

When considering the cost of our product, it's essential to focus on the unparalleled value it delivers. Our pricing is designed to offer the best in class without compromising on quality. This means you get premium features at a cost that ensures you maximize your investment. By choosing our product, you're not just paying for a service; you're investing in an experience crafted to elevate your daily life.

The 55-inch 55OLED907 comes to us via Philips Europe, meaning it’s not available in the US (where the Philips brand is still owned by Funai). It’s also not available in Australia, where Philips has been inactive for a couple of years now.

In the UK, it’s priced at £2199 (around $2650 / AU$4000), which may seem a bit steep at first glance. Especially when considering that you can get Sony’s XR-55A95K QD-OLED TV for the same price, while Samsung’s QE55S95B (also QD-OLED) currently costs just £1599 ($1600 / AU$2995).

Philips’ own 55OLED807 OLED TV is priced at £1399 (around $1690 / AU$2550) these days, too. While the step-up Philips 65OLED937 costs considerably more, at £3199 (around $3860 / AU$5835), it’s only available in a 65-inch screen size.

The QD-OLED price comparisons are particularly tricky. However, Philips has a proven track record of getting more punch and dynamism out of ‘traditional’ WOLED technology than most, if not all, rivals. The 55OLED907 benefits from one of Philips’ so-called ‘royal’ panels, where premium ‘EX’ technology combines with a heat sink to unlock more brightness.

The 55OLED907’s price justification is further supported by its use of an unusually powerful integrated audio system designed by the renowned hi-fi brand Bowers & Wilkins, alongside a premium version of Philips’ spectacular Ambilight design feature.

We have spotted one or two independent retailers offering significant discounts on the 55OLED907, bringing the price down to around £1799 at the time of writing. At this price, it becomes seriously good value. However, as the higher price is still being applied by the biggest retailers, we’ll stick with that for the purposes of this review.

Design

The sleek design of the device is sure to capture attention. With its modern lines and minimalistic aesthetic, it fits seamlessly into any setting, whether at home or in the office. The high-quality materials not only ensure durability but also add a touch of elegance. This design isn't just about looks; it's engineered for comfort and usability, making your experience as pleasant as possible.

Philips has outdone itself with the magnificent 55OLED907 OLED TV. Its ultra-thin frame is almost invisible, enhancing its sleek and stylish appearance. The rear is equally slim at less than a centimeter around the top, left, and right edges.

While the lower central portion of the 55OLED907 houses connections, processing components, speakers, and the innovative Ambilight LEDs, you'll have to view the TV from a sharp angle to even notice this modestly bulkier section.

The build quality stands out, with a stunning metallic finish on the rear of the OLED panel and a robust dark grey metal stand that can rotate if you're not wall-mounting the TV. This compact, centrally mounted stand allows placement on narrower furniture pieces.

The highlight of the 55OLED907 is undoubtedly the Ambilight feature. LEDs are strategically placed around three sides of the TV's rear, casting colored light for either ambient effects or matching the colors on the screen.

Philips has upgraded the Ambilight technology for its premium models, allowing each LED to independently control its light level and color. This is a significant improvement over the previous configuration where groups of LEDs shared the same output. Another new feature, Ambilight Aurora, lets you enjoy ambient lighting in your room even when you're not actively watching TV.

This glamorous TV also comes with an equally stylish remote control. Featuring a silver metallic front and luxurious Muirhead leather back, the remote's well-balanced design makes it comfortable to hold. The button layout could be more intuitive, except for the convenient streaming app access buttons near the top.

Features

The Philips OLED907 stands out in the brand's latest OLED TV lineup. This model enhances its OLED807 counterpart by incorporating a heat sink for its premium EX panel, ensuring brighter visuals, and integrating a robust 80W sound system developed in partnership with Bowers & Wilkins. In comparison to the more expensive OLED937, the OLED907 doesn't use the dual chipset processor or a large, powerful external speaker system.

The 55OLED907 features the latest P5 Generation 6 picture processing engine from Philips. However, with a single-chip processor, it lacks the Advanced HDR frame-by-frame tone-mapping feature of the OLED937 and a few other AI enhancements.

The P5 processor excels in enhancing the five key aspects of picture quality—color, contrast, sharpness, source detection, and motion—through various processing stages. A new feature in the sixth generation of P5 is its ability to automatically optimize the picture for different ambient light conditions.

Philips' current OLED range introduces significant features like IMAX Enhanced certification, indicating the TV can deliver the full picture quality benefits of the IMAX Enhanced format, and a Gaming Bar that provides instant information on console or PC signal outputs, along with easy access to game-specific picture and sound adjustments.

In terms of gaming, two of the four provided HDMI ports are full 48Gbps, supporting 4K/120Hz, VRR (including AMD Freesync and Nvidia G-Sync), and ALLM. Note that you must manually choose an ‘Optimal (Game)’ setting for the HDMI port connected to your console to enjoy VRR.

In Game mode, the 55OLED907 renders images in just under 20ms, slightly higher than the 55OLED807 but lower than the OLED937. While some TVs offer faster response times, only the most serious gamers might notice this impact on gameplay.

Although not all four HDMIs support all advanced gaming features, it's unlikely that most households will require full support for more than two gaming sources simultaneously.

A notable gaming advantage of the OLED907's single-chip processor over the dual-chip one in the OLED937 is that it can display 4K/120Hz sources in their full resolution when set to HDR Monitor mode, unlike the OLED937, which halves the vertical resolution.

Philips' comprehensive onscreen menu system allows extensive customization of picture processing elements. While this provides significant control, it can also seem overwhelming to some users.

The 55OLED907 also offers impressive audio capabilities with a felt-covered speaker enclosure along the TV's bottom edge, featuring forward-facing drivers for an 80W, 3.1-channel sound system, supported by three large low-frequency drivers at the rear. This audio setup, developed in partnership with Bowers & Wilkins, continues the brand's tradition of excellent sound quality.

Smart features on the 55OLED907 are powered by Android TV, complemented by Freeview Play for UK terrestrial broadcaster catch-up apps not covered by Android. While Android TV can feel somewhat cluttered, the 55OLED907 runs it smoothly and efficiently.

Picture

Experience stunning visuals with a remarkable blend of color accuracy and vivid detail. Our latest model ensures that every scene is delivered with lifelike clarity, making your viewing experience truly immersive. Whether it's high-action movies or serene nature documentaries, every frame is optimized for the best possible picture quality. Explore a new world of entertainment where every pixel matters.

The 55OLED907 from Philips delivers some of the most stunning pictures we've ever seen, despite lacking a few of the auto-optimization features found on the OLED937.

Philips has struck a balance between its traditionally aggressive TV image processing and minimizing the unwanted side effects, making the 55OLED907 a versatile choice for various viewing preferences. The TV's impressive picture quality caters to a wide audience, including those who value mastering accuracy.

Diving deeper into the specifics, the 55OLED907's most remarkable strength is its phenomenal contrast. Although it can't quite match its QD-OLED rivals for brightness, Philips' tone mapping, image analysis, and panel driving deliver brightness peaks, especially in small areas that enhance the HDR experience, with a level of purity and intensity that QD-OLEDs often struggle to match. The 55OLED907 maintains deep black levels with remarkable consistency, outperforming other QD-OLED TVs we've seen.

The TV excels in minimizing 'clipping' of detail and shading in its HDR peaks, ensuring a natural, integrated picture. It also achieves strikingly intense highlights even in bright scenes, making full-screen bright images look more vivid than typically seen on OLED screens.

The bright look of the 55OLED907's pictures enhances its color performance, producing a rich and intense palette that dispels the notion that WOLED TVs must look desaturated when displaying bright content. In the Crystal Clear setting, some colors might appear over-saturated, but the HDR Personal preset achieves a rich image without making tones look cartoonish or compromising subtle tonal shifts.

One of the standout features of the 55OLED907 is its refined use of light, contrast, and color, bringing images to life with a depth and sharpness that currently sets it apart from other OLED TVs.

Previously, intense sharpness and detailing on a Philips TV might have felt artificial, but now, the quality of Philips' picture processing, especially in handling image noise, ensures that the 55OLED907 showcases the detailed content of the source material, without any artificial sharpness boost.

This high-quality processing extends to the 55OLED907's motion handling. The Movie or Pure Cinema modes effectively reduce judder without introducing unwanted effects like the soap opera effect or flickering artifacts.

Most of the impressive picture results described were achieved using the HDR Personal preset. While this may be the favorite for most users, the TV's other presets also cater to different preferences. The Filmmaker Mode, for example, adheres closely to industry standards with minimal manual adjustments. Though it might seem flat compared to the HDR Personal mode, this is mainly due to the latter's enhancement capabilities.

For those who value creative intent, Philips offers Dolby Vision Dark and Dolby Vision Bright presets. However, the TV defaults to the HDR Personal mode for Dolby Vision sources, possibly because the Dolby presets aren't quite as refined. The Dark mode may crush shadow details, while the Bright mode applies slightly uncomfortable motion processing and also exhibits some black crush. Additionally, Dolby Vision sources may show more blocking noise compared to other TVs, a trait also observed in other 2022 Philips models. Although this happens under specific conditions, it's worth noting given the TV's overall excellence.

The only other minor drawbacks are the overly dark Ambient modes (which can be turned off) and the noise reduction system that can remove filmic grain. However, the 55OLED907 deserves praise for its outstanding HD source upscaling, delivering near-4K quality, and its gaming performance, providing HDR games with purity, precision, and vibrancy that's a joy to experience, especially at 120Hz.

Sound Quality

When it comes to sound quality, you're looking for a clear, immersive experience that makes every note and beat stand out. A top-notch audio setup will deliver crisp, dynamic sound that brings your favorite tunes to life. Whether you're chilling out at home or hosting a lively get-together, exceptional sound quality transforms the entire atmosphere.

Dive into the details and you’ll find that a great audio system perfectly balances bass, midrange, and treble. This harmony ensures that every element of the music is heard exactly as the artist intended. Imagine the depth of bass that resonates through you, the clarity of vocals that feel like they're being performed live, and the detailed highs that catch even the subtlest nuances. That's the power of superior sound quality.

For those who want the best in their audio experience, investing in quality equipment is essential. Look for systems that boast advanced technologies like high-resolution audio support, which enhances sound clarity to a whole new level. And remember, the real magic lies in the details – from noise reduction capabilities to the design of the speakers themselves.

In short, excellent sound quality isn't just an enhancement; it’s the gateway to experiencing music in its purest form.

The 55OLED907 has an astonishingly good sound, especially considering its compact design. The front-facing speakers, housed behind the felt band below the screen, pack a powerful punch, pushing a substantial amount of sound into your room. This provides a much greater impact and directness compared to most integrated TV sound systems.

Not only does the sound project forward impressively, but it also extends left, right, and even upwards. This feature is particularly beneficial for enjoying Dolby Atmos soundtracks. Thanks to B&W’s advanced sound processing and the slight upward angle of the speaker enclosure, you’ll feel as if a plane flying overhead in a movie is genuinely above the TV screen. You can distinctly hear sounds tracking from left to right or vice versa above the TV.

The speakers are adept at delivering vocals that appear to come from the correct part of the screen, rather than vaguely from the bottom edge.

Sensitivity in the speakers ensures that the details in a high-quality film mix come through clearly, without any shrillness or harshness. Remarkably, the bass drivers generate deep, voluminous bass that most TVs can only dream of. While the bass might lack some of the nimbleness and definition found in a good soundbar or external subwoofer, it’s impressive how the 55OLED907 delivers such profound bass pressure—especially if the screen isn’t pressed right against a wall—without suffering from distortions, dropouts, or cabinet buzzing.

In short, the 55OLED907 sounds so good in so many ways that many users will find no need for an external soundbar. This is, of course, advantageous in justifying the TV’s relatively premium price.

Verdict

This product stands out due to its exceptional performance and reliability. With our thorough testing, it has proven to be a top choice for consumers seeking quality and durability. Its user-friendly design and intuitive features make it a must-have in today's market. Highly recommended for those looking for a dependable solution that delivers consistently excellent results.

Standing out in the competitive OLED market is no easy feat, but the Philips 55OLED907 does it with style. This TV exudes quality from every angle. Its detailed, dynamic, and sharp pictures, coupled with powerful sound and the stunning Ambilight design, make it a standout choice. While its price tag of £2199 might seem steep, it promises to deliver a top-notch home entertainment experience that's worth every single penny.