Sony's New Dolby Atmos System Highlights the Critical Flaw in Modern Big-Screen TVs
Business Insider's hands-on with Sony's new Dolby Atmos system — engineered specifically for big-screen TVs — is the clearest sign yet that built-in speakers have fallen behind the displays they're bolted to.
The system impressed with immersive sound in testing, and it lands at an awkward moment for budget TV buyers: What Hi-Fi? just praised the Samsung S85H OLED's punchy, bright picture, then immediately told readers its 2.0-channel audio lacks bass and that a soundbar is basically mandatory. That's not a suggestion. That's a buyer's warning.
The gap Sony is selling into
According to Business Insider, Sony built the system around the real acoustics problems big TVs create — wider chassis, thinner panels, drivers firing backward or downward into furniture. The verdict was simple: immersive sound. No model number, price, or driver count surfaced in the available coverage, so I won't fabricate them. But any Atmos package marketed as "for big-screen TVs" in 2026 is, by definition, an admission that the TV's own speakers failed the job. That admission is the news.
The Samsung S85H (QE55S85H) — one of the better entry-level OLEDs What Hi-Fi? has tested this year — ships with a 2.0-channel setup. Two channels. No sub, no dedicated center. Spend flagship OLED money on the panel and skip audio, and you're feeding a thousand-dollar picture through thirty-dollar speakers. What Hi-Fi? explicitly recommended a soundbar. Treat that as a required accessory, not an optional upgrade.
The Amazon counterpunch
Mshale ran a full review of Amazon's Fire TV Soundbar Plus 5.1 — a wireless surround system with Dolby Atmos shipping in 2026. The pitch is direct: Atmos, wireless rears, tight Fire TV ecosystem integration, no separate AVR required. For cord-cutters already living inside Amazon's interface, the appeal is fewer cables and one less remote. Against Sony's premium Atmos play, this is the budget answer — same format, simpler stack, and zero ecosystem lock-in beyond the platform you already use.
The buy-or-skip math
- Buying a big OLED or mini-LED right now? Audio is not "maybe later." The S85H review is the receipt: thin panel, thin sound.
- Want Atmos tuned specifically to your TV's chassis? Sony's new system is the premium path.
- Want Atmos without an installer, a receiver stack, or extra remotes? Amazon's Fire TV Soundbar Plus 5.1 is the practical path.
- Skip both only if you're routing through a full home theater AVR. Otherwise you're wasting the screen you just paid for.
Buy a soundbar before you unbox the TV. That's the whole lesson of this cycle — Sony's new Atmos system and Samsung's entry-level OLED are two halves of the same buyer trap.
