We test Samsung TVs every year, and these are the best models to buy in 2026
Business Insider has rolled out its 2026 Samsung TV buying guide, the latest installment of an annual testing regimen the outlet uses to parse the Korean manufacturer's sprawling hardware lineup.
The annual Samsung test cycle
Business Insider's framing emphasizes repeated, hands-on evaluation rather than the spec-sheet aggregation that dominates most retail coverage. The outlet states it tests Samsung TVs every year — a cadence calibrated to Samsung's own release rhythm, where flagship refreshes typically arrive in CES-fronted tranches and cascade into spring retail windows. For viewers building a 2026 shortlist, that methodology functions as a practical filter: recommendations distilled from time spent with the panels themselves, organized across the budget, mid-range, and flagship brackets that shape most buying decisions.
The timing carries weight. Television replacement cycles have stretched considerably since the cord-cutting era normalized, and Samsung's 2026 catalog enters a market where the hardware conversation increasingly overlaps with platform-level questions — which operating system ships on the panel, how aggressive the ad load is, and which streaming services are pre-installed at the point of sale.
Disney+ revisits the broadcast model
A parallel story broke the same week: Disney is weighing a free, ad-supported Disney+ tier, according to reporting carried by Diario AS, Investing.com India, and TechRadar. The framing across those outlets positions the potential offering as a direct counter to YouTube and Tubi, two free, ad-supported services that have steadily siphoned viewing share from subscription video-on-demand by collapsing the paywall entirely in exchange for ad inventory.
The strategic logic is structural. Disney's content library was engineered for a subscription funnel, but that model's growth math has flattened. A free tier, monetized through advertising rather than monthly dues, would shift the carriage logic closer to traditional broadcast economics: reach first, revenue-per-viewer second. TechRadar's summary line — "We're just getting TV again, huh" — captures the irony of a streaming-first service reverting to the ad-supported architecture its founders once dismissed as legacy.
What to track next
Two viewer-facing variables deserve close attention. On the hardware side, the Samsung shortlist Business Insider surfaces across budget, mid-range, and flagship brackets will steer where most buyers land during the next Prime Day and Black Friday windows. On the platform side, whether Disney formalizes a free Disney+ tier — and how aggressively it prices against YouTube's and Tubi's existing free footprints — will reshape the monthly subscription calculus that defines the average household's streaming bill.
The practical move for now is straightforward: consult the Business Insider guide before committing to any Samsung purchase, and hold off on restructuring a streaming bundle until Disney confirms its tiering plans and a launch window.
