Philips, now under the umbrella of TP Vision, has launched its latest OLED TVs, the Philips OLED708 series. These models are up to 65 inches in size and come with features such as HDMI 2.1, Ambilight and Google TV. The Philips OLED 708 series has 4K UHD resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate. Image processing is controlled by the P5 Generation 7 processor with AI (artificial intelligence) and Ambient Intelligence version 2.
This version makes it easy to adjust brightness, gamma and color in real time to suit ambient lighting conditions. In addition, the built-in XYZ light sensor optimizes color temperature by matching it to the lighting in the room. OLED708 supports a wide range of HDR formats, including HLG, Dolby Vision, HDR10, HDR10+, HDR10+ Adaptive and Filmmaker Mode. In the Philips 65OLED708 / 12 4K HDR OLED review, we will discuss the main features of the new product.
Philips OLED708 review
Design
How much does the design of the Philips OLED708 TV differ from the previous OLED707 model ? Almost nothing. But every year the company puts a certain twist into the appearance of entry-level OLED TVs. Many have noticed that the cross-section of the stand’s legs is constantly changing. Without changing the chrome finish, in 2023 the profile of the legs is round. Plus, there is no subwoofer on the rear panel.
Otherwise, the TV adheres to traditions. The frames are thin and almost invisible relative to the image area. Ambilight is still three-sided and does not reflect from the surface of the furniture on which the TV is installed. Unlike the Philips OLED808, the lighting is not Next Gen, so the LEDs operate in groups of three rather than individually.
The Ambilight function is especially pleasant when listening to music. The lights change color to follow the sound and bring energy to the room during parties. With games, too, there is an increase in engagement: in GTA 5, the colors of the cinematic landscape are projected onto white walls, and in sports games such as NBA 2K22, the number of spectators in the arena seems to increase. If Ambilight is not to your taste, it can be easily turned off using a button on the remote control. The remote control has remained virtually unchanged since 2022.
Image quality
Whenever we talk about 4K Ultra HD OLED TV, we understand how much competition the panel faces. The likes of Sony, LG and most recently Samsung have dominated this area for years, but Philips wants to grab attention early with great options before you even look at the picture quality improvements. Of course, we are talking about HDR10+, wide color gamut with 97% DCI-P3 coverage and Dolby Vision.
While the quality of the panel itself is fundamentally the most important aspect when talking about modern OLED TVs, the picture enhancement features are also crucial. The Philips Ambilight 65OLED708 OLED TV stands out with all the features including Ultra Resolution, Perfect Natural Motion, AI PQ mode, ISF Color Management, Micro Dimming Perfect and even supports CalMAN, which allows you to perform color calibration for the most accurate display.
At the heart of the picture enhancement is the 7th generation Philips P5 AI Perfect Picture Engine, which also controls ambient lighting. The algorithm is responsible for darkening static image elements (logos), while keeping the rest of the image bright, clear and saturated to protect against burn-in. It also has another trick up its sleeve called Fast Motion Clarity, which works similarly to LG’s Black Frame Insertion (BFI) to help eliminate motion blur.
Improved Ambient Intelligence Version 2 allows real-time adjustment of brightness, gamma and color rendering depending on ambient lighting conditions. In addition, the built-in XYZ light sensor optimizes color temperature by assessing the light in the room. This ensures the most accurate white balance.
When using Dolby Vision, the clarity of the image is immediately noticeable, complemented by perfect blacks and overall detail. Viewing HDR content in a well-lit room reveals the need to reduce the overall effect of Dolby Vision, including reduction in sharpness, super resolution and noise reduction. If you’re displaying HDR10 content, we recommend selecting the HDR home theater preset but turning off the above settings along with color enhancement. Overall the picture is stunning and it’s very hard to fault what you can expect from an OLED at this price point.
Game Mode
Is the Philips OLED 708 TV good for gaming? Like many other OLED TVs on the market today, the OLED 708 is a great gaming TV that offers 4K resolution gaming at 120Hz with an automatically adjustable refresh rate. Of course, if you are an avid gamer, we only recommend playing on a gaming monitor (typically one with a response time of less than 1ms). And the image output delay of this model is more than 10 ms. Gaming options are supported by two HDMI 2.1 ports, VRR (Variable Refresh Rate), ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode), AMD FreeSync Premium, Nvidia G-Sync .
Smart TV
As we mentioned above, the Philips OLED708 TV runs Google TV operating system based on the Android TV 12 system. By and large, it is a very responsive and easy-to-use system with voice control. A bonus is that the system also works with other products in the Philips ecosystem, such as Hue smart home lighting systems, where the TV automatically detects these branded devices and connects to them seamlessly.
Google TV has fewer personalization options than Android TV, but in return you get extensive recommendations divided by genre rather than streaming service. Suggested genres are based on viewership tracking but only include content from YouTube, Prime Video, Apple TV and Disney+. There’s no Netflix yet, although we hope to add content from localized apps at some point. The company indicates that the smart features are implemented on the Pentonic 1000 platform with the MT9972 processor. This is a quad-core ARM Cortex-A73 2 GHz chip, complemented by 3 GB of RAM and a Mali G57 GPU.
With the transition to Google TV, Philips has finally adjusted the settings menu. They now partially fall under the Google TV structure. But the most important change is that the settings appear at the bottom of the screen. This gives a much better idea of what exactly this setting does to the image. The organization is also streamlined for ease of navigation. Smart settings such as automatic light sensor or optimization of color temperature and dark details can now be found more quickly.
Sound
The audio system of the OLED 708 series has undergone a downgrade in relation to 2022. The subwoofer has been removed from its technical equipment and is now a regular 2.0 system. The total power of the four speakers is 40 W. There is support for Dolby Atmos and DTS:X. Note that Philips includes a DTS Play-Fi option, and the TV can be used as the center speaker in a multi-room system. The lack of an adequate bass component in the sound leads to the idea of using a soundbar or other speaker system.
Connections
The list of ports remains the same. These are 4 HDMI connectors, 2 of which are full HDMI 2.1 (one with eARC ). Next are three USB ports (one is USB 3.0). There is a common interface slot CI+, an Ethernet-LAN RJ-45 port, a digital audio output (optical), a headphone output, a connector for service, and a jack for a satellite set-top box. Wireless capabilities include Wi-Fi 802.11ac (dual band 2×2) and Bluetooth 5.0.
Conclusion
Philips OLED708 or OLED 718 can be considered one of the best options for OLED TV 2023. It is very similar to OLED706, and the 707 will remain last year’s dark horse. The new series has no direct competitors in terms of price and quality. The only competitor is LG B3 , but depending on the country it is more expensive than the 708 model or costs the same, but is clearly weaker. On the other hand, the 708 can easily compete with the C3 .