Expert review of the Philips The Xtra 9008

The Philips The Xtra 9008 has a colorful and bright 4K Mini-LED screen. The Mini-LED technology provides images with a strong contrast, because small LED lights in the screen light up and dim individually. That way, the colors really stand out on the screen. Thanks to the 10-bit color depth, the screen displays more than 1 million colors. This makes nature documentaries with colorful images even more vibrant and immersive. The Ambilight lights on the back of the TV make sure your entire room turns the color of the screen when you watch a movie.

The advantage of Mini-LED is that the lights dim individually, instead of in larger zones. Thanks to the more precise controls of the backlight, Mini-LED televisions have a strong contrast. Dark parts of the image are very dark and bright parts very bright. As a result, you get a stronger contrast with many different colors. This way, the color gamut of HDR images stands out with Mini-LED TVs. In addition, Mini-LED TVs don't have as much blooming. This means that you see less of a glow around bright objects, such as a bright moon against a dark sky.

When I'm not right in front of the TV, I notice that the images on the screen are still sharp. The color tones do become a bit flatter. This means the viewing angle quality is good, but not excellent. If you don't want any quality loss when you're not right in front of the TV, choose an OLED TV.

The sound of this television is produced by 2 speakers with a 40W power. They produce a decent sound for regular use, such as watching the news. This TV also has Dolby Atmos technology, so you can enjoy your favorite series with spatial audio. Thanks to this smart technology, it feels like you're in the middle of the action. When I watch a movie or concert, I notice I miss some depth and power. That's because the TV doesn't have a subwoofer. If you care a lot about the sound quality, I recommend to buy a separate soundbar with a subwoofer.

The television includes a sturdy remote and has the basic Philips smart platform. The stylish remote is comfortable to hold, thanks to its elongated shape. Via the useful smart button, you can easily navigate through the smart TV platform. The remote also has buttons for Netflix and YouTube, so you can go there directly. You can control Alexa with the built-in microphone, which allows you to switch between channels via a voice command.