Hisense U7NQ vs TCL C6KS / C69KS / Q6CS

The Hisense U7NQ 65 television showed impressive capabilities on the luminance chart, surpassing the 1000 nit barrier and achieving very high brightness scores effortlessly in the first, third, and fifth test scenes. However, just like before, in the second and fourth test scenes, such as from the film Sicario 2, there are significant issues with maintaining brightness, and results around 200 nits are very disappointing. Despite the large number of dimming zones, the algorithm in the television that controls these zones is unable to respond adequately — in this case, it strongly dims small elements like the moon or the light from a helicopter. Bright light that should dazzle us is too dim to be considered an HDR effect. Nevertheless, the television deserves praise for its high coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut, at 96%, which allows it to accurately render most film scenes.

And what about HDR? Here the C6KS performs quite well and – as is becoming the theme of this review – just like in the C6K model. The maximum brightness generated by this television is around 600 nits. In bright scenes, this translates to a really solid, cinematic effect and generally, video materials look good here. However, it's important to keep in mind the specifics of the dimming algorithm in this model. When very small, bright points (e.g. stars) appear on a dark background, the television can quite significantly dim them. The goal is simple: to eliminate blooming and maintain the best possible black. It's a reasonable compromise. Most viewers will definitely appreciate deep, “true black” more than additional microscopic details, the display of which could cause the screen to appear greyed out. Such is the nature of local dimming technology in this price range, and one must be aware of this. It’s also worth noting that the TCL C69KS (C6KS) has an additional PFS coating, which is marketed under the QLED technology slogan. Thanks to this, the colours are saturated and vibrant – our measurements showed that the coverage of a wide colour gamut reaches as much as 92%.

The Chinese manufacturer offers various picture settings in its televisions, but the best mode in this model is undeniably the Filmmaker Mode. Despite its name, this mode has its issues: the white balance, although roughly correct, is characterised by a strong dominance of warm tones due to the prominence of red hues, both in 4K and HD material. The Colour Checker test confirms these errors — deviations in samples can be seen in improper shades. As for brightness characteristics, the gamma responsible for HD material shows values below 2.4, which leads to some screen brightness. Meanwhile, the EOTF curve shows the television's problems with displaying small light elements, as confirmed by the previously described paragraphs.

In contrast to the more expensive C6K model, in the tested C6KS we don't find an option in the menu labelled as Filmmaker Mode. Is this a reason to cry? Absolutely not. Our tests showed that in practice, in terms of colour reproduction, the lack of this specific label makes virtually no difference. The best available Film/Cinema mode here offers an almost identical picture profile to the aforementioned Filmmaker in the more expensive model. So we get a very similar image, just under a different name. Therefore, if you were wondering whether paying extra for the C6K would give you better colours – the answer is: no, in both cases the base is the same and requires slight adjustments.

Hisense TVs offer a range of image correction tools that allow you to adjust settings to your own preferences, which is why we decided to use these capabilities to bring the image quality closer to reference standards. In terms of white balance, we were able to eliminate the dominance of red, resulting in more neutral colours, which allowed for a more realistic image in both 4K and HD content. We noticed a similar improvement in brightness characteristics. The gamma, which previously led to excessive brightness on the screen, has been corrected, contributing to better detail reproduction in darker areas of the image while maintaining natural tonal balance.

However, the biggest challenge was calibrating the EOTF curve, which is responsible for brightness in 4K content. At first glance, the EOTF value looked almost perfect, but detailed tests revealed somewhat different results. When we looked closer — especially using the filter on the right side of the EOTF chart — we noticed how the TV manipulated 4K film content, often significantly boosting brightness. This effect was particularly noticeable in scenes from films like Pan and Billy Lynn, where the TV attempted to artificially increase the brightness of elements, impacting their naturalness. Despite these imperfections, the calibration yielded positive results, especially in terms of tonal improvement. For most users, the end result should be satisfying, particularly if they are looking to bring image quality closer to professional reference standards.

Thanks to the white balance adjustment, the C69KS's tendency to distort colours has been effectively limited, leading to a very good final effect. After calibration, we will no longer see excessive warmth in SDR scenes or overly cool tones in HDR. However, it is worth noting the brightness characteristic. In SDR content, there are hardly any objections – the image looks very good, especially in older films, TV shows, or YouTube materials. Evaluating the television's performance in HDR is much more difficult. Analysis of the EOTF curve suggests correct behaviour, but its practical variant shows certain limitations. The C69KS can overly brighten the smallest elements of the frame, while at other times it can dim the entire scene. Calibration has therefore brought clear benefits in terms of colour, but certain limitations resulting from local dimming and the way it is controlled by the C69KS cannot be avoided, which we also observed in the C6K test.

When it comes to smoothing tonal transitions, despite the presence of the "Smooth and Gradient Image" feature in the test sequence, we did not notice that the feature added anything — we recommend turning it off. As for upscaling, the television handled our model quite well, and the branches in the background are not overly jagged — the image appears quite plasticky. However, it has been slightly cropped by the so-called overscan.

The C69KS handles upscaling quite well. The tested 576p content looks surprisingly decent – a considerable amount of detail is preserved, and the algorithm adds a subtle ‘rounding’ effect to sharp edges, making the image appear more cohesive. However, it doesn't perform as well when it comes to smoothing tonal transitions. The television practically cannot improve them, leaving the image in a rather raw state. With older materials, this can be simply exhausting, as the lack of additional processing highlights all imperfections.

Hisense U7NQ has a refresh rate of 144 Hz, which definitely enhances motion smoothness. For movie enthusiasts, there are two features available: judder reduction and motion blur reduction. The judder reduction function minimises the effect of so-called judder, that is, unpleasant image jumps, particularly noticeable at lower frame rates. Meanwhile, motion blur reduction helps to sharpen fast-moving objects, which is useful when watching dynamic action scenes.

When it comes to trailing, the television has a decent response time, which means excessive trailing is not visible, except in specific situations, such as the test with the alien on a dark background. In such cases, slight artifacts may appear, but overall the television handles dynamic images well, providing satisfying motion quality.

C69KS offers a simplified motion enhancement panel in movies, allowing users to adjust the intensity of the effect using a slider. This makes it easy to tailor the smoothness to personal preferences. It also deserves credit for the ability to utilise higher refresh rates – even though the panel operates natively in 4K at 60 Hz, by lowering the resolution to 1440p, modes of 120 and 144 Hz can be enabled, on both consoles and PC. This sounds like great news, however, in practice, the image at these settings trails exceptionally badly. The effect is so pronounced that the overall experience simply appears mediocre and loses its appeal in everyday use.

Hisense U7NQ offers everything a gamer might need for comfortable gameplay. The TV supports a refresh rate of 144 Hz, providing an extremely smooth image, especially in dynamic action games. The VRR (variable refresh rate) feature ensures the image adapts to varying frames per second, eliminating stuttering and tearing. Additionally, there is an ALLM (automatic low latency mode) function that automatically switches the TV into game mode, minimising input lag.

The TV also supports Dolby Vision, which is particularly important for gamers who value high contrast and rich colours in games that support this format. The Hisense U7NQ also features a Game Bar, allowing quick access to key settings during gameplay, as well as support for G-Sync technology, further reducing image tearing.

Unfortunately, despite its wide range of features, it lacks support for the most popular HDR format in gaming — HGiG. This may be disappointing for gamers who expect optimal detail reproduction in HDR scenes. Nevertheless, the remaining features make the Hisense U7NQ a solid choice for any console gaming enthusiast.

If we overlook the smudging and lack of native 4K at 120 Hz, the C69KS is impressive in how well it performs for gaming. You get everything you would expect from a gaming TV: Variable Refresh Rate (VRR), Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM), Dolby Vision Gaming mode, and a consistently functioning HGiG. The TV can also operate at 120 or even 144 Hz at lower resolutions, making gameplay on console or PC smoother. Additionally, there's a clear Game Bar that allows you to quickly check key settings while gaming. As a result — despite a few limitations — the C69KS can be a genuinely successful screen for gamers.