Hisense A7NQ vs LG UA75006LA (VA)

We checked how the Hisense A7NQ performs with HDR, and there's no surprise here. The luminance chart showed a maximum brightness of 370 nits. The result? Exactly what one could expect – average. At around 350 nits, HDR doesn’t stand out much compared to SDR. Sure, there’s a subtle difference in more brightly lit scenes, but it’s not a show-stopping effect. In terms of wide colour gamut coverage, the result was 92% for DCI-P3 and 70.2% for BT.2020. These are decent values for a TV in this class, which uses a PFS coating – the same one that’s sometimes promoted as QLED. The colours look alright, but don’t expect something that competes with the best screens on the market. HDR on the Hisense A7NQ is more of an add-on than a "game changer". For those looking for solid image quality on a moderate budget – it’s definitely acceptable. However, if we expect full HDR capabilities, it’s worth looking at models from the higher price range.

LG UA7500 with a VA panel has brightness peaking around 350 nits, which, by today's standards, isn't very impressive. It's hard to talk about a true HDR experience here – most content looks more like classic SDR with a slight attempt to boost highlights. One advantage is that regardless of the test content, the effect remained relatively stable. However, we noticed that in very extreme scenes with a lot of fine details, the television can slightly dim the image in order to achieve better blacks, but this comes at the expense of the visibility of bright effects. On the downside, it should be noted that the UA7500 is not equipped with any additional technologies to expand the colours. It's neither a QLED panel nor PFS LED, which means the coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut is just 80%, making many HDR films look flat and failing to capture the full diversity of colours.

When testing the Hisense A7NQ in Filmmaker mode, we hoped for alignment with the manufacturer's intentions, but unfortunately, reality looks different. The main issue, as with most TVs, is the white balance. In the case of the A7NQ, we noticed a clear dominance of blue, which affected both lower-quality materials and 4K HDR content. The Color Checker test results confirm this, and the comparative images speak for themselves – the lead actress in "factory" mode looks cool and pale. It appears as though she has been stripped of life.

As for brightness characteristics, both gamma and the EOTF curve show that the image is overly bright. As a result, everything seems flat, lacking depth and contrast. This state of affairs certainly does not work in favour of the A7NQ and makes the image reception in factory mode leave much to be desired. If we expect natural colour reproduction and appropriate image depth, the A7NQ in Filmmaker mode is unlikely to impress us. It’s a TV that requires significant adjustment to bring out its potential.

The Filmmaker Mode on the LG UA7500 performs better than one might expect from such a budget TV, but let's not get carried away with the praise. The image is reasonably well put together and at first glance doesn't irritate, however, its weaknesses quickly start to emerge. This is most apparent in scenes with bright points – lamps in the background or reflections of light on the skin are clearly exaggerated. Faces of characters often look unnatural, as if they have been "burned out." Additionally, the default gamma setting brightens the smallest details and causes the image to lose subtlety in the darker areas. That said, for its price range, the UA7500 in factory mode offers a pretty decent starting point. However, it is clear that without additional adjustments, these issues cannot be avoided, which is why – similar to other TVs – we decided to check what could be achieved after calibration.

Hisense A7NQ offers several tools that allow you to improve image quality, so we decided to take matters into our own hands and do some "digging" in the settings. Thanks to professional tools and measurements, we managed to correct the white balance, eliminating excessive dominance of blue in both HD and 4K content. This is a significant step forward, as in the Color Checker test, the errors in colour reproduction in lower-quality content dropped to a much more acceptable level. Unfortunately, 4K content still falls short of perfection – colour distortions are significant here and stem from the limitations of the television.

As for the gamma, we managed to set it at the correct level, which significantly reduced the excessive brightening of the image. However, the issue with the brightness characteristics in 4K content remains unresolved – the EOTF curve still shows excessive brightness across the entire screen. It's possible that a proper implementation of dynamic tone mapping could make a difference here, but as we mentioned earlier, this feature in Hisense A7NQ works rather poorly, instead of helping. Nevertheless, the calibration significantly improved the overall image perception. The director's vision is now much better represented than in the factory settings, which more demanding viewers will definitely appreciate.

The biggest improvement we noticed was while calibrating the mode designed for daily SDR content. We managed to smooth out the white balance in an acceptable manner and tackle the issue of excessive brightening of small elements due to the gamma characteristic. As a result, the image gained the consistency and naturalness that was lacking in the factory settings. After such correction, we can confidently state that for everyday TV content, programs, or materials from YouTube, the LG UA7500 performs really well – especially after professional calibration. The situation looks a bit different for HDR content. Here, calibration helped to tame the white balance and slightly improved brightness management, but the limitations of the design are immediately apparent. The lack of additional filters to expand the colour palette means that the most vivid colors appear flat, and the image lacks the intensity we would expect from good HDR. So, in SDR, the UA7500 performs quite well, but in HDR – despite corrections – it remains far behind, and this is a characteristic that one must accept when choosing this television.

The Hisense A7NQ impresses with its smooth tonal transitions in 4K content, but unfortunately, we won't find any features here that improve this aspect in older, lower-quality materials. In such cases, colour transitions become more noticeable, which can slightly detract from the overall picture quality, especially in scenes with a lot of gradients.

When it comes to upscaling, the television performs surprisingly well. The image is clearly improved, though it comes with certain compromises. It can be seen that the TV adds a touch of artificial sharpness, and background elements, like branches, tend to exhibit slight "jaggies." However, these are details that will mainly catch the eye of those who pay attention to such nuances.

LG UA7500 with a VA panel has shown itself in this category in a really good light. Image scaling from Full HD or even SD materials was surprisingly smooth. The picture looked smooth, edges were not overly jagged, and the television maintained a good amount of detail, ensuring that even older films did not lose their character. It particularly excelled with faces – there were no artificial contours or "mask" effects, which often occur in cheaper models. The way the television handled tonal transitions in lower quality materials is also noteworthy. Thanks to digital processing, colours did not bleed into one another, and gradients looked natural and smooth. There was no question of intrusive smoothing of the image or loss of cinematic grain. This makes the UA7500 great for everyday content – from free-to-air television, to sports matches, all the way to YouTube, where we often watch materials in various resolutions.

The Hisense A7NQ is equipped with a 60 Hz panel, which means that dynamic scenes – for example in sports or gaming – come across as rather average here. This is standard in this class of equipment, but it's worth noting that watching more intense, fast-moving content can leave a lot to be desired. However, when it comes to movies, the TV offers a motion smoothing feature that works on a 10-point scale. The "judder reduction" option allows you to adjust the smoothness of the image to your own preferences. At the lowest setting, you get a natural film frame rate, which will appeal to cinema purists. Conversely, the maximum setting provides a very smooth, theatrical image, which may be appreciated by those who prefer a more "smeared" motion.

LG UA7500 is a TV with a 60 Hz panel, so it’s hard to expect any raving reviews in this category. It’s more of a screen meant for everyday content or an evening movie session rather than for following dynamic sporting events or playing action games. It's evident that the manufacturer targeted this model precisely at this group of consumers – and in that regard, it performs adequately. We get the TruMotion function, which is a motion smoother. It’s simple, has only one slider, but it can make a noticeable difference. In the lower range, the image looks more raw and cinematic, while at higher values, the motion becomes smoother and more pleasant to the eye.

Hisense A7NQ is a piece of gear that may pleasantly surprise gamers, although it's not without its flaws. The fact that it has a 60 Hz panel immediately suggests that the TV is not designed for the most demanding gaming scenarios. The motion blur we mentioned earlier can also be a drawback, especially in fast-paced games.

However, there are a few things worth praising. The TV supports ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode) and VRR (Variable Refresh Rate), which is not always standard in this price range. The biggest surprise, however, is that the A7NQ can display visuals at 120 Hz – albeit only in Full HD resolution, but it's still a significant nod to gamers. This provides the option to choose between smoothness and resolution, which is not obvious in TVs at this price.

A nice addition is the Game Bar, which is clear and practical – all the essential features are at hand without having to dig through the settings. However, it lacks support for HGiG, which could be a disappointment for gamers seeking perfect HDR in games.

LG UA7500 is a TV that can be comfortably recommended to "Sunday" gamers. While it doesn't feature a 120 Hz panel or HDMI 2.1 ports, meaning it can't fully utilise the potential of modern consoles, the manufacturer has included a few extras that can enhance the gaming experience. The Game Bar deserves a special mention – a very nicely designed panel where you can quickly view and change the most important settings. From this interface, we have access to features like ALLM (Automatic Low Latency Mode) and frame synchronization, also known as VRR. The range of VRR is limited – working from 48 to 60 Hz – but the mere presence of this feature in such an affordable TV is impressive.

Additionally, it supports HGiG, which is a mode for HDR calibration for gaming. It sounds good, but from our testing experience, we know that for the UA7500, this option isn't very practical. The TV doesn't handle HDR very well, so ironically, we achieved better results with this mode turned off. This is another indication that the UA7500 is more of a screen for casual gamers who value simplicity and convenience, rather than for those seeking a full experience with the latest consoles.