Philips PUS7009 (IPS) vs Hisense A6Q

In terms of HDR quality, PUS7009 (IPS) performs very poorly. A brightness level of 250 nits doesn't allow for enjoyment of HDR effects, and the image resembles more of a standard SDR. There’s no talk of dynamic effects or vivid bursts of light. The coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut is only 75%, which is definitely insufficient. The lack of full colour coverage means that the colours are not as vibrant as they should be, resulting in a flat and unimpressive image. There are no aspects to commend this model in the context of HDR.

Unfortunately, the Hisense A6Q is hard to recommend for watching HDR content. The main issue remains the low brightness and quite modest coverage of a wide colour gamut. A measured brightness of about 300 nits simply isn't enough for HDR materials to look impressive. In practice, the image often resembles standard SDR rather than true HDR with clear differences in brightness and dynamics. Additionally, colours in such content do not appear as they should. The TV does not utilise additional filters like QLED or PFS LED, and a DCI-P3 coverage of around 80% makes some colours look just too pale. As a result, some scenes in HDR materials lose intensity and spectacle, making it hard to talk about a proper HDR experience.

The television was tested in movie mode, which – despite its name – does not provide correct image display. The white balance in both 4K HDR and HD/SDR content is characterised by drops in red, making the image cooler and the colours lose their natural warmth. The gamma brightness characteristics and EOTF curve confirm that the television has issues maintaining appropriate brightness – it boosts it significantly, resulting in an unnaturally washed-out image. This effect can be seen in the comparisons below, where everything looks as if it has a milky filter applied. Additionally, the limited coverage of a wide colour gamut also does not promote quality – colour checker attempts indicate significant colour variations, making it difficult to achieve faithful image reproduction.

We conducted the tests in the best available mode, which is Filmmaker, however – as is often the case – this does not mean the image is perfect straight out of the box. In the case of Hisense A6Q, this mode clearly “swallowed” too much blue in everyday SDR content. In practice, this led to an image with yellowed whites, particularly noticeable on large, bright surfaces. This does not result from poor assumptions of the Filmmaker mode itself or from the vision of filmmakers, but from factory settings that require adjustment.
Additionally, looking at the saturation characteristics and gamma curve in SDR, as well as EOTF in HDR content, there is a slight tendency to brighten most scenes. As a result, the image often appears brighter than it should, losing a bit of its naturalness. For this reason, we decided to perform a professional calibration to restore the proper colour balance and a more accurate brightness characteristic.

After calibration, the picture has significantly improved, especially in terms of white balance, which is now more stable, and the shades have taken on a natural quality, eliminating the earlier impression of a rather cool picture. The calibration has brought noticeable benefits in terms of tonality – the shadows and midtones are now more realistic, and the whole seems more harmonious. Unfortunately, hardware limitations still affect the quality of the image. The brightness characteristic remains problematic, despite our efforts, and due to poor coverage of the DCI-P3 and BT.2020 colour gamut, delta E errors are still at a high level. Although calibration has improved some aspects, the television still does not allow for complete satisfaction.

Colours after calibration on the Hisense A6Q need to be evaluated in two ways, as everything depends on the type of content. In the case of SDR materials, the effect is really quite good. In daily programs, series, and movies, it’s hard to find any serious issues with colours. The yellow tint has been effectively removed, and the television has also stopped washing out the entire image. As a result, the ColorChecker test showed errors below a Delta 2 value, which are already outstanding results, allowing for a discussion of very high picture quality in standard content. Unfortunately, the situation looks much worse for HDR materials. Yes, the white balance has been corrected and the EOTF curve has been improved, but the limitations of the panel itself remain insurmountable. The lack of support for a wide colour gamut means that the television still generates quite significant colour errors. Parts of the colours simply cannot be displayed by the screen, making them look less saturated than they should. It’s a pity because even a simple PFS or QLED filter would have resulted in a significantly better end effect. The conclusion is therefore simple – for SDR content, the A6Q after calibration works really very well, while viewing HDR content on it should still be approached with caution.

If we talk about tonal transitions in low-quality material, the feature called "Distortion Reduction" (set to "minimum") effectively improves the gradation, eliminating undesirable tonal transitions. However, this setting on Philips TVs is quite aggressive – while it doesn't blur grain or high-quality material, it may introduce unwanted effects and blur elements that should remain sharp with poorer signals.

In terms of image scaling, Philips PUS7009 performs reasonably well. A significant advantage is the absence of cropped edges, meaning no overscan, which allows for displaying the full frame without loss. The image is noticeably improved, making characters and backgrounds, such as the model or branches in the background, look fairly detailed and natural, even with lower quality signals. Although the scaling is not perfect, as it can remove desired details in the distance, the results are good enough to satisfy most users.

Upscaling on the Hisense A6Q works really well for a TV in this price range. Lower resolution materials are correctly “upscaled” to higher resolutions, and the image remains clear without any artificial edge sharpening or the typical "over-sharpening" found in cheap models. Unfortunately, the digital processing is significantly poorer. In practice, it’s hard to talk about any advanced artifact smoothing or masking of problematic tonal transitions. In heavily compressed films—especially those from YouTube—the TV struggles with reducing compression blocks and unwanted banding, making the material's imperfections clearly visible. The A6Q scales the image well, but when it comes to digital processing, it leaves the user alone with the source quality.

Philips PUS7009 does not have any motion smoothing features in films, which means we cannot choose whether the picture should be more choppy or more cinematic. These features could improve more dynamic scenes. As for motion blur, despite using a 60Hz IPS panel, the situation looks quite good. The response time between pixels is better than in versions with a VA panel, which keeps motion blur at an acceptable level and does not significantly affect the viewing comfort of dynamic scenes.

The fluidity of motion on the Hisense A6Q is... well, quite average. It's a TV with a native refresh rate of 60 Hz in 4K, which means the movement of objects on the screen doesn't always look perfectly smooth. In dynamic scenes in films or sports, it's evident that this is not the strongest point of this model. The situation looks much better with 1080p content when connecting a console or computer, as the A6Q can then operate at up to 120 Hz. That's a big plus, especially for gamers. However, the sharpness of motion still leaves a lot to be desired, with noticeable ghosting, and the response time of the panel shows that it isn't one of the TV's strong suits.

In terms of compatibility with consoles, Philips PUS7009 is suitable for casual gamers. Despite using HDMI 2.0, the TV offers access to features such as ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode), VRR (Variable Refresh Rate), and Game Bar. ALLM automatically switches the TV to low latency mode, allowing for faster responses while gaming, while VRR dynamically adjusts the refresh rate to reduce screen tearing. The Game Bar is a tool that provides quick access to game settings and real-time parameter monitoring - although we believe it looks the weakest compared to competing Game Bars.

Unfortunately, more demanding gamers may be disappointed. The Philips PUS7009 does not support advanced HDR formats in games or high refresh rates, due to the use of a 60 Hz panel. The lack of support for these features limits the TV's ability to deliver smooth and fully detailed experiences during fast-paced gameplay.

For such an inexpensive television, the Hisense A6Q really can surprise with what it offers gamers. It operates in 4K only at 60 Hz, but when the game switches to performance mode and drops to 1080p, the panel can work at even 120 Hz. In this price range, that's a big plus, as most titles on consoles don’t deliver a stable 4K at 120 frames. In practice, we are realistically gaming in 1080p, and here the A6Q provides a very enjoyable gaming experience. Additionally, it has a few features that are usually found in more expensive models: ALLM, VRR, and Dolby Vision Gaming for Xbox Series X/S. Everything is gathered in one place, in a simple and convenient Game Bar, so you don't need to dig through the entire menu. For such an affordable piece of equipment, it's really a solid setup for gamers — maybe not for the most demanding, but definitely spot on for occasional gaming.