LG QNED87T6B vs Philips PUS7000

LG QNED87T6B delivers truly decent visual experiences when it comes to HDR. During our tests on test patterns, the television achieved brightness close to 500 nits, which is a satisfactory result and allows for good visibility of details in high dynamic range scenes. Support for basic HDR formats such as HDR10 and HLG ensures proper image quality. Unfortunately, the television does not support more advanced standards such as Dolby Vision or HDR10+, which are particularly important at this screen brightness. The lack of support for dynamic metadata means that in certain scenes, the television may struggle to fully reproduce details, especially in very bright areas – this is precisely when dynamic metadata could significantly improve image quality. Nevertheless, it is worth noting the excellent coverage of the wide DCI-P3 colour gamut, reaching as much as 96.4%. As a result, the colours displayed by the QNED87T6B model are more vivid and natural, enhancing the quality of 4K content viewed with a wide colour palette.

Unfortunately, the PUS7000 is not suitable for watching HDR content. This screen is simply too dark. A brightness level of 200 nits is insufficient to display this format correctly. Even if a HDR signal message appears on the screen, the image will resemble a standard SDR recording. Therefore, it’s better to stick with the latter format to avoid errors in displaying bright scenes, as you will read below. The situation is worsened by the fact that this is a classic LCD model without additional layers that improve colours, such as QLED or PFS. As a result, colours in HDR may seem washed out. Ultimately, this provides a worse effect than in the standard SDR format, which is simply better suited to the capabilities of this panel.

The colour accuracy in the LG QNED, even in Filmmaker Mode, which is the best factory setting, is not without its flaws. The main issue is white balance – we noticed that the level of blue on the graph tends to drop. This results in a shift in colours towards yellow, making the image have a warmer tone than it should. This deviation affects the naturalness of colour reproduction, especially in scenes with a white or neutral background. The Color Checker test confirmed that some colours are distorted and deviate from reality. Such distortion can make film scenes appear less realistic, and details are presented in incorrect colours, negatively impacting the overall image quality.

Regarding contrast, the gamma graph analysis showed significant drops, while the optimal value should be 2.4. This means that the television may display darker parts of the image brighter in some scenes, which reduces their depth and dynamics. Additionally, on the EOTF curve, which is responsible for brightness reproduction, an unnatural drop was noted at the beginning. This phenomenon can result in less accuracy in reproducing dark scenes, which in turn affects the overall image quality. The television may not convey full black depth, causing more demanding scenes to lose realism and detail. As a result, viewers may notice that details in the darker parts of the image become less distinct.

We tested the television in movie mode, which theoretically should provide the best and most natural colours. And indeed, this mode is quite correct; however, when we connected the calibration equipment, its biggest flaw became apparent. The PUS7000 has significant shortcomings in displaying reds. Poorly tuned white balance and too low saturation of this colour cause the image to appear too cool. As a result, one might get the impression that the displayed content lacks vibrant colours. The situation is worsened by the fact that both SDR and HDR content are excessively brightened. This is confirmed by the gamma curve and EOTF graphs, which show that the television displays the image brighter than it should. This causes scenes to lose their depth and can make them seem slightly washed out. Fortunately, in the Philips menu, we find plenty of features to improve these aspects, so we immediately proceeded to calibration to see what we could extract from this screen.

After calibration, the colours in SDR content look very good. The improved white balance translates to natural and harmonious shades in various scenes. Thanks to precise gamma tuning, details in shadows and bright areas of the image are accurately reproduced. The television performs excellently in everyday use, offering vibrant, well-balanced images and solid colour quality in HD. The biggest beneficiary here is also contrast. The gamma graph has been stripped of significant errors, giving the television a new dimension.

As for the white balance in 4K HDR, it has also been significantly improved. However, some errors still appear at the end of the graph. This may be due to the television's overly aggressive local dimming, which in some scenes affects the inaccurate reproduction of colours. It's difficult to talk about an improvement in brightness represented by the EOTF curve. The television, due to its construction limitations, has some drawbacks, and we can't overlook them. The Color Checker test confirms the issue with colour saturation – even though the television offers a wide colour palette, it fails to fully convey the director's intent.

Despite these shortcomings, the overall picture quality after calibration is significantly better than before. Adjustments in white balance and gamma tuning make the images more vivid and the colours closer to reality.

After professional calibration, it’s evident that the PUS7000 responds well to image adjustments. In this price range, that’s not a given. The effects are best evaluated in two scenarios, depending on the content we plan to watch. SDR performs the best. After our adjustments, the image looks really good. Most colour errors have dropped below level 3, which is the threshold at which discrepancies usually become visible to the naked eye. Movies, series, sports, and regular television present naturally, without unpleasant deviations. If someone mainly watches classic channels or streams in HD quality, the difference after calibration will be noticeable straight away. However, it must be said clearly that the PUS7000 is still not a television suited for proper HDR, and calibration doesn't change much in this regard. The reason lies in the hardware: colours remain too unsaturated. The television lacks solutions that widen the colour gamut, such as PFS filters or a quantum dot layer, so the panel simply cannot display the intense colours required by HDR. This is most evident in reds, which still look washed out. This limitation cannot be circumvented through menu settings, as it stems from the design of the backlighting and the panel itself.

When it comes to lower quality materials, the gradation looks really good. The feature called "Smooth Gradation" effectively smooths out the most problematic parts of the image, while not negatively affecting the film grain. For the best effect, it’s worth setting it to a low level. This solution significantly improves the quality of the displayed content, making the viewing of lower resolution materials more enjoyable and smoother.

In terms of digital processing, the image is displayed without cropping, known as overscan. Although slight fraying of the branches can be noticed against the model's background, everything looks very good. Users should be satisfied with the image quality when watching low-quality materials like standard television. The TV handles this task exceptionally well, providing a satisfying visual experience, even with lower quality content.

The PUS7000 handles digital image processing quite well. The distortion reduction feature deserves praise, as it effectively smooths unwanted tonal transitions even at a low setting. However, it has its downside: with too aggressive operation, it can introduce undesirable artifacts on the screen. It would be a good idea to experiment with this setting to find the golden mean between a smooth image and the clarity of details.

The upscaling, or enhancing the quality of lower materials to 4K, is decent. The image after processing is very "soft," which is typical of almost all Philips TVs. The edges are plastic and smooth, making the image look cohesive. If someone finds it too soft, it can always be adjusted with the sharpness slider in the menu for a more pronounced effect.

The television provides decent smoothness when watching movies, thanks to the “Tru Motion” feature, which allows adjustment of motion smoothing from 0 to 10. De-Judder regulates motion smoothness, while De-Blur adjusts motion sharpness. Users have the option to choose between a traditional cinematic effect with subtle juddering motion (lower settings) and a smoother, theatrical image. Although the latter deviates slightly from the cinematic standard, it may be appealing to many viewers.

As for gamers and sports fans, the LG QNED87 television with a 120Hz panel will surely not disappoint. And with the use of an IPS panel, the response time is typically better than that of VA panels available at a similar price. This ensures smoother gameplay and dynamic experiences when watching sports events.

In this regard, we actually have no good news. It might seem that the biggest downside is the lack of a 120 Hz panel, but in this price range, that's actually the norm, and it's hard to expect more. However, the worst part is that the television has no motion smoothing features. There are no supporting systems in place for either movies or sports. We have to come to terms with the fact that the image on the PUS7000 is processed "raw." This means that during dynamic scenes or fast camera movements, motion can appear choppy or unclear. We have no option to enable any smoothers that could alleviate this effect.

LG QNED offers a range of features that make it an excellent choice for gamers looking for a high-performance television. The TV is equipped with four HDMI 2.1 ports, allowing connection to the latest consoles like PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, utilising full functionality including Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) and Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM). Thanks to the Game Bar feature, gamers can quickly and easily manage all game settings without needing to navigate complex menus. Parameters such as VRR, ALLM, Multi View, and frame rate monitoring can be adjusted. The TV also supports G-Sync and FreeSync technologies, which is particularly important for owners of Nvidia and AMD graphics cards. G-Sync and FreeSync synchronise the TV's refresh rate with the graphics card. The 120Hz panel guarantees incredible motion smoothness and image clarity. Combined with the Black Frame Insertion (BFI) feature, which is available at 60Hz and 120Hz, gamers can enjoy an even sharper and smoother picture. LG QNED87 is a television that meets the expectations of even the most demanding gamers, offering modern technologies and features that significantly enhance comfort and satisfaction during gaming.

Even though the PUS7000 isn’t marketed as a gaming TV, it doesn't perform as poorly in this category as one might expect. True, it doesn't support 120 Hz refresh rates, which is understandable at this price point, but the manufacturer has included several important features that significantly improve the console gaming experience. The most important of these are VRR and ALLM technologies. VRR is responsible for synchronising the screen with the number of frames generated by the console. This means the image doesn't "tear" and remains consistent even during sudden drops in frame rates while playing. On the other hand, ALLM is a solution that automatically switches the TV to a mode with the lowest latency immediately after detecting a signal from the console. All these parameters are easily accessible thanks to the Game Bar feature. This is a special control panel for gamers that can be brought up on the screen at any time. It allows for a quick view of current settings and connection status without interrupting gameplay, which is a very convenient solution.