Philips OLED770 vs TCL C69K / Q6C

The Philips OLED770 doesn't try to compete with the brightest OLEDs on the market, and it's actually hard to expect that, as it's the entry-level model in Philips' range for 2025. In our measurements, it reached a maximum of around 700 nits, which allows for enjoyment of HDR effects in scenes where light appears in spots – for instance, in the flash of headlights or a starry sky. In such moments, the picture can truly amaze. However, it's different when there are more bright elements on the screen. The TV, like many cheaper OLEDs, restricts luminance at that point, and the entire image noticeably dims. This was best seen in a scene from the movie The Meg, where the sun rises behind an oil platform – the brightness dropped to around 250 nits, which is almost three times less. The HDR effect remains pleasing to the eye, but it's worth being aware that this model performs best in scenes with less intense light. Fortunately, the OLED770 also has an ace up its sleeve – the coverage of the DCI-P3 colour palette is as high as 99%, so colours in movies and games are vibrant and very close to what the creator intended.

In terms of brightness, TCL C69K / Q6C is a moderate model. In optimal movie conditions, it shows its full potential, reaching a maximum of around 600 nits. In scenes with large, intense light sources, the HDR effect can be truly satisfying, giving a cinematic glow. However, it's important to keep in mind that when managing the backlight zones, there are situations where parts of the image are dimmed, and at times become barely visible. This suggests that there is still a lack of proper optimization of the algorithms, although considering the technical parameters in this price range, the overall construction still looks very good.

The first measurements already show that the factory settings of the Philips OLED770 have a lot to improve, even in Filmmaker mode. The white balance chart clearly indicates a lack of blue, giving the image a slightly yellowish tint. In practice, white is not snow-like, but leans towards warmer hues – which some may even find appealing, but from a precision standpoint, this is a deviation from the norm. The gamma, on the other hand, tends to be on the darker side – the average value is around 2.6 instead of the reference 2.4. In mid-tones, the image appears muted and more saturated, which can look too "cinematic" but detracts a bit from the naturalness. However, the most significant issues are visible in colour reproduction. The average error is relatively high, and some colours – particularly shades of grey – deviate significantly from what should be seen. In everyday viewing, this means that sometimes colours may look less natural than we would wish.

The Filmmaker Mode, which has been introduced in this year's TCL TVs (including the C69K / Q6C), is definitely the best choice "to start with". This is the mode we recommend for everyday movie and series viewing. Unfortunately, as is often the case, best does not mean perfect. In SDR materials, the image turned out to be too warm, with a strong red tint in the white balance. The opposite impression was had with HDR content – here the image became cooler than it should have been, due to an excess of blue. Additionally, there is the brightness characteristic, which at times resulted in overexposures. In practice, this translated to fairly noticeable errors in color tests, which is difficult to accept in a mode branded as "by the creators".

Philips OLED770 had shown signs from the start that it harboured significant potential, but it was hard to fully appreciate this in its factory settings. The image was often too warm, and some colours appeared as if they had lost their naturalness along the way. Calibration revealed that this television was very amenable to work – it responded to every adjustment and almost immediately unveiled another layer of its capabilities. The white balance was set in both SDR and HDR so that the yellowish haze disappeared and a neutral, clear white emerged. Gamma stabilised closer to perfection, which helped restore the naturalness of mid-tones, while shadows ceased to be artificially darkened, perhaps even with a slight brightening effect. The result was obvious... Movies are watched with greater ease; the image has cinematic depth without the feeling that something is overly darkened. However, the most interesting aspect was working on the colours. Factory errors were not dramatic, but slightly noticeable – skin tones could be too warm, and grey wasn’t always the shade we expected. After calibration, the error values dropped to around 2, and in many cases even below 1. This is a level that is definitely lower than the threshold of discernibility for the human eye. In other words, after correction, the colours finally “clicked” into place. Looking at the screen, we felt like the television had begun to speak with a full voice. Like an instrument that had finally been properly tuned.

Through white balance adjustment, we were able to significantly reduce the tendency of ChooseTV C69K / Q6C to distort colours, which resulted in a very good final outcome. After calibration, the problem of excessive warming of scenes in SDR and over-cooling of the image in HDR disappeared. However, it's worth analysing the brightness characteristics more closely. While in SDR content there are few complaints – the picture looks really good, especially in older films, TV programmes, or on YouTube – it performs much worse with HDR content. Analysis of the EOTF curve suggests that everything is fine, but in practice (EOTF in films), the limitations of the actual construction become evident. This model tends to excessively brighten small parts of the frame, while in other situations, it darkens the entire scene too much. The effect of calibration is therefore undeniable, and in terms of colourimetry, ChooseTV C69K / Q6C gains a lot. Unfortunately, certain limitations arising from local dimming management simply cannot be bypassed.

The problem of the previously mentioned colour connections can largely be mitigated thanks to the "distortion reduction" function, which is an algorithm for smoothing tonal transitions in Philips. It works best at a low level – effectively eliminating unwanted colour bands while not introducing strange artifacts or losing image detail. This is one of those features that is truly worth keeping on.

The issue of upscaling is somewhat less impressive. Images from lower resolution can be too soft, while in some parts the characteristic "jaggies" appear. The impression is that the algorithm is trying to reconcile two contradictory directions – smoothing and sharpening – and ultimately fails to find the golden mean. As a consolation, it's worth noting that the television does not have problems with overscan, meaning it does not cut off the edges of the image, which can sometimes happen in other competing models.

In terms of image scaling, TCL C69K / Q6C performs quite well. Lower quality content is presented acceptably, and due to the lack of overscan issues, the image is displayed in full without any cropping. However, don’t expect miracles – materials of very low quality won’t gain a second life here, as the image processor has its limitations.

On thin lines and details, there is noticeable jaggedness, which reveals the lack of more advanced image enhancement algorithms. It's also a shame that the C69K / Q6C lacks a feature for smoothing tonal transitions. As a result, in older films or video materials, color banding can be visible and may become distracting during extended viewing.

The issue of the panel in the Philips OLED770 is not entirely straightforward. The manufacturer claims a 120 Hz panel, but our measurements showed that the screen can accept a 4K signal even at 144 Hz. This sounds like great news – because who wouldn't want an additional mode for PC gamers at this price? However, the reality turned out to be more complex. With 120 Hz content, the television behaves like most OLEDs – the image is absolutely clear, with no trace of blurring or smearing, ideal for both dynamic games and sports broadcasts. The problem only arises at 144 Hz. Unlike models with official support for this frequency, here we see the phenomenon of so-called frame skipping. This means that the television is unable to display all the frames – some of them are skipped, causing motion to lose smoothness and double outlines to appear on the screen. The effect resembles the operation of the BFI function, which Philips does not offer in this model anyway.

The use of a 144 Hz panel in TCL C69K / Q6C is a significant advantage in this price range. This represents an important step forward compared to its predecessor (C655 PRO), which only offered 60 Hz at 4K. The difference is particularly noticeable when watching sports or gaming – the ball, players, and dynamic action in games are displayed more clearly and without losing detail. An interesting feature is also the panel's ability to operate at 240 Hz (which the manufacturer does not officially mention) – we will revisit this topic in relation to the PC gaming mode. TCL has also added a feature for movie fans: “Motion Clarity.” This allows users to adjust the picture to their own preferences using two simple sliders. We can either leave the visible film frame or opt for a very smooth one, "

If someone is looking for a TV for gaming, the Philips OLED770 is a candidate that's hard to overlook. The mere fact that this is an OLED gives it a great starting point – perfect blacks and infinite contrast make evening sessions in atmospheric games look like they've been taken straight out of a cinema. Added to that is the Ambilight system, which uses LEDs on the back of the TV to extend the image onto the wall behind the screen. The effect is such that even just playing FIFA can look like a small spectacle, and in horror games, the atmosphere becomes really thick. On the technical side, it's also quite decent. The Philips OLED770 supports variable refresh rate (VRR) up to 120 Hz, has an automatic mode for gamers (ALLM), and for those using an Xbox Series X, Dolby Vision support in games is also available. You just need to know that in this mode, the input lag is slightly higher than standard, although still at an acceptable level. As a bonus, we also get the 'Game Bar', which is a special tool strip for gamers. It's not the most conveniently designed solution, but it allows for a quick view of key parameters without exiting the game. Overall, this gives a picture of a TV that has all the most important gaming features on one hand, and on the other can add something unique – Ambilight. And it's this mix of technology and visual effect that makes the OLED770 one of the better screens for gaming in a home environment.

TCL C69K / Q6C is a television that can confidently be called equipment designed for gamers. Here we have 4K at 144 Hz, VRR support, automatic game mode (ALLM), and Dolby Vision Gaming. Additionally, there's a practical Game Bar, which is a panel with the most important settings within easy reach – handy when we want to change something quickly during gameplay (e.g., aspect ratio: Yes, it can be done!). The wide range of VRR, reaching up to 240 Hz, is noteworthy. However, this option is mainly for PC gamers looking to go below native 4K resolution. In this case, the television can spread its wings and show additional smoothness, particularly in fast e-sport titles. For consoles, we stick to the standard limit of 120 Hz, but even so, the possibilities are truly extensive. The only minor criticism is slight ghosting that can sometimes be seen in dynamic scenes. Other than that, C69K / Q6C offers everything gamers expect from a television.