PHILIPS PUS9010 (IPS) vs Hisense U7S / U77SE

In the Philips PUS9010 version with an IPS panel, the HDR brightness sadly performs worse than in the previously tested 55-inch variant with a VA panel. The difference reaches about 100 nits, which is noticeably significant given the relatively low values. While the VA version could exceed 500 nits, here the maximum brightness reaches around 400 nits. This level still allows for watching movies and series in HDR, especially on streaming platforms, but the effects are clearly more subdued. Bright elements don't have the same impact, and scenes requiring high luminance are less impressive. On the plus side, the coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut is commendable. The IPS version offers about 91%, which is roughly 5% more than the variant with a VA panel. This translates into slightly better colour saturation in HDR content, despite the lower brightness. Colours can appear more vivid and cohesive, especially in colourful scenes.

The Hisense U7S has considerable HDR potential, but it can’t make full use of it in every scene. On a test pattern it reaches about 1100 nits, so the backlight is genuinely strong. In our brighter film scenes we measured around 640 to 745 nits. That’s still enough for the sun or bright highlights to have a distinct bloom and to show an advantage over SDR material. When the TV needs to light a larger portion of the image, it handles it quite well.

The problem appears with small lights on a dark background. Each of the 192 zones covers an area considerably larger than a tiny point on the screen. If the TV were to drive such a zone strongly, it would brighten the surrounding area along with the light. Hisense tries to avoid that and dims the whole zone. Blacks look better as a result, but a small bright object that should draw the eye also loses intensity. That’s why in two tougher scenes we recorded only 297 and 154 nits. The difference is large: in one shot HDR can impress, and in the next small highlights are noticeably muted. The U7S therefore prioritises keeping deep blacks, even at the expense of bright details. With this number of zones it’s an understandable compromise, but it’s worth remembering that the peak 1100 nits tells us about the backlight’s capability, not how brightly the TV will show every element of a film.

Colours

Hisense markets the U7S as ULED, but that’s a marketing name; the wider colour gamut here is achieved by a PFS phosphor backlight. In our measurements the TV covered about 91% of the DCI-P3 space and 71% of BT.2020. Those are good results, though a little short of the best screens on the market. The biggest shortfall is in green — the TV doesn’t even reach the DCI-P3 boundary there, so the most intense green hues will be less saturated than they should be. Most colours in HDR films and series still look suitably vivid, however. A positive is the repeatability of the results: gamut coverage on test patterns and in film scenes is practically identical.

We evaluated colour reproduction, as always, on factory settings, focusing on the movie mode, which in the case of Philips usually offers the best starting point. This is also a good moment to show how much the same model of TV can vary depending on the panel used. Looking at the white balance, the overall tendency remains similar to the version with the VA panel. There is still excessive red in the whites, however, in the tested unit with the IPS panel, there are also losses in the blue channel. As a result, the picture has a slightly different colour character, which is well illustrated in the comparative materials. This is a very good example showing why ready-made settings downloaded from the internet do not always work even within the same model.

However, returning to the assessment itself, this unit performs quite well, especially in SDR content. Colour tests show correct saturation and colour consistency, without glaring errors that could hinder everyday viewing. In HDR materials, it is possible to notice slight losses in reds, but these are not flaws that completely spoil the image perception. The biggest limitations do not stem directly from the colours, but rather from the whites and blacks. The use of an IPS panel and slightly lowered gamma means that the image is slightly boosted in brightness, and weak blacks further affect perceived contrast. This makes everything look brighter, but at the same time, it lacks depth, especially during evening viewing.

Factory colours on the Hisense U7S are decent, but there are a few things to fix. In SDR the white balance favours red, so the image looks too warm, in places with a slightly pink tint. You can see this on faces and bright, neutral surfaces. Gamma also runs below the target, so the TV brightens the image, especially in darker areas. That makes it easier to see shadow detail, but the scene loses some of its depth.

In HDR the white balance is a bit more even, but not completely neutral, with midtones lacking blue and the brightest parts lacking red. A bigger problem is the way brightness is reproduced. The EOTF curve shows that a large portion of the midtones is boosted, making the image appear brighter than the source material intends. Color Checker measurements also fare worse than in SDR: many errors are around 3 to 4, and individual ones reach as high as 8. Colours can therefore look attractive, but they're not always faithful to what we should be seeing. There’s room for improvement and we’ll see how much can be corrected with calibration.

After calibration, the picture has been brought to a really reasonable level. The whole thing looks cohesive and natural, and when it comes to colour reproduction, it's hard to definitively say whether we're dealing with a VA or IPS panel. This is a good sign, showing that the television has a solid foundation for further adjustments. The larger colour gamut in this variant is a plus, as it can subtly enhance the depiction of colourful scenes, especially in HDR content. However, this advantage is largely offset by the boosted blacks resulting from the use of an IPS panel. The limited depth of black affects perceived contrast, particularly when watching in a dark room. As a result, despite noticeable improvement post-calibration, the final rating remains the same as that of the variant with a VA panel. Better colours are not able to fully compensate for the weaker blacks.

Calibrating the Hisense U7S did the most for SDR content. We managed to even out the white balance, so the earlier warm tint is gone and whites and greys look neutral. Gamma now sits very close to the reference, so the TV no longer brightens the image unnecessarily and darker scenes have regained depth. Color Checker measurements confirm the improvement: most errors are below 2. For watching regular TV and SDR films, this delivers a really well calibrated picture. Calibration in HDR wasn’t as smooth. The TV lacks an effective way to correct the EOTF curve, so Hisense still interprets the film’s brightness a bit on its own. It brightens parts of the image and, depending on the scene and local dimming, can tone down the brightest elements. That couldn’t be eliminated by calibration. This also shows up in the Color Checker results, where many errors remain around 3–4 and some exceed 7. In SDR the result is therefore very good, but in HDR we have to accept that the TV adds its own interpretation of brightness to the image.

In the Philips PUS9010, we find another iteration of the P5 Perfect Picture image processor, which aims to improve the quality of lower-grade materials. One of the components of this system is a distortion reduction function that smooths tonal transitions. It works effectively and actually reduces visible banding. Unfortunately, it does so quite aggressively. In practice, it can mute details such as material textures or film grain. This is a clear compromise, so we wouldn't particularly recommend it for movie sessions. For more casual content, like YouTube or regular television, it performs much better. The P5 processor also handles lower resolution materials quite well. The image is soft, at times even too soft, but it can easily be corrected using the sharpness slider, adjusting the effect to personal preferences. A positive aspect is also the absence of edge cropping in SD materials, which is still not standard in this class of televisions.

The processing of lower-quality material in the Hisense U7S is fairly average. The Pentonic 700 chipset used here doesn't cope particularly well with the effects of heavy compression. There's a "Smooth and Gradient Picture" function in the menu, but its performance leaves a lot to be desired. At the low setting it's hard to see any improvement in tonal transitions, though at least the picture doesn't suffer. Medium and high settings still don't remove visible banding between tones and begin to blur details; in our clips parts of characters' faces even vanished. Interestingly, film grain remains untouched at every level. If you do use this function, stick to the low setting. Its current performance needs refinement, but that's mainly down to the processor used here.

Upscaling to 4K performs much better. Lower-resolution content gains clarity, edges are well reproduced and fine details look sharp. That doesn't mean the TV can recover details that weren't in the recording, but it makes good use of what's provided by the source. Another plus is the lack of edge cropping, even with an SD signal.

Philips PUS9010 has a 4K panel with a refresh rate of 144 Hz, which will be appreciated mainly by sports fans and gamers. This is especially noticeable in dynamic scenes where the motion is sharp, and annoying blur is almost non-existent. When it comes to movies (standard 24 fps), Philips offers us a proven set of settings known from its higher series. Two sliders are used to control motion. “Smoothness” allows you to adjust the picture to your liking: at low settings, it maintains a cinematic character, while moving the slider to the right gives us a perfectly smooth, albeit slightly “theatrical” effect. Meanwhile, “Motion Blur Reduction” is a feature designed for sports – it ensures that fast-moving objects do not lose detail and remain clear.

Motion handling on the Hisense U7S is decent thanks to its 144 Hz refresh rate. For films there's also a motion smoothing option with adjustable judder and blur reduction. You can keep a more cinematic feel to motion or increase smoothness if choppy camera pans bother you. High refresh is also useful for sport and gaming, but unfortunately it doesn't solve the panel's biggest problem.

The issue is pixel response time. Fast-moving objects leave long, distinct trails, as our UFO test shows. It's worst on dark backgrounds, where the trail is particularly pronounced. So motion can be smooth, but the moving object loses sharpness, and that difference on the U7S is fairly easy to spot.

Philips PUS9010 is a solid machine for gaming. It has everything that’s important: VRR, automatic game mode (ALLM), and support for HGiG. The latter is fantastic – it allows you to set HDR in games exactly the way the developers envisioned. The TV handles 120 Hz refresh rates effortlessly at every popular resolution (1080p, 1440p, and 4K). It doesn’t matter if you connect a PS5, Xbox, or a powerful PC – everything runs smoothly and just as it should. Gamers will also appreciate the Game Bar. It’s a quick, clear menu where you can immediately see if the low latency mode is active. This is especially useful when frequently switching between different consoles. The whole experience is enhanced by Ambilight. Evening sessions with this backlighting create a whole different level of atmosphere; the image seems larger, and dynamic scenes are even more impressive. Even if someone isn’t a fan of such “gimmicks,” it’s hard to deny that it makes an impression.

The Hisense U7S has plenty to offer gamers. You get two HDMI 2.1 ports and support for 120 Hz in Full HD, 1440p and 4K, so modern consoles’ capabilities are well utilised. When connected to a PC you can use 144 Hz at 4K or switch the resolution to Full HD and run 240 Hz. So there’s a lot of choice, although it’s worth remembering the motion smearing mentioned earlier, which the high refresh rate doesn’t eliminate. VRR and ALLM are present as well. VRR helps keep the picture tear-free when a game’s frame rate changes. ALLM automatically switches the TV into game mode, so you don’t have to go into the menu each time. VRR works from 48 to 240 Hz, with the highest refresh rate available in Full HD. Xbox users can also play in Dolby Vision at 120 Hz. Importantly, that format does not cause significant input lag here. The Game Bar also looks great. It’s clear and attractive, and lets you quickly check what signal the TV is receiving. Handy gaming settings are close to hand too, including shadow brightening. If it’s hard to spot an opponent in a dark game, you can improve visibility without digging through the whole menu.

Our biggest complaint is HGiG. Hisense keeps doing its own tone mapping, which makes setting up HDR on the console confusing. You adjust the checkerboard pattern, and the TV continually alters its appearance. As a result, the point at which the pattern disappears does not correctly indicate the display’s brightness limit, and it’s easy to set the value too high. For this model it’s better to set the target HDR brightness on the console to around 900 to 1000 nits, rather than rely on the configurator.