Samsung Neo QLED QN85D / QNX1D vs Hisense E7Q / E79Q

Samsung QN85D leaves us with mixed feelings regarding HDR quality. It can shine in synthetic luminance tests, reaching even 1000 nits – which makes scenes like those from 'The Meg' or the start of 'Life of Pi', where the screen is all bright, look truly impressive. However, in practice, the device has its limitations – especially when smaller bright elements appear on the screen. In such moments, brightness noticeably drops, and the HDR effect loses its punch. At brightness levels around 200-300 nits, the magic of HDR simply fades away, not delivering spectacular effects. However, it’s not that the television completely disappoints – coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut at 95% is quite decent, although it doesn’t stand out against the best competitors. Colours are well-rendered, but it's clear that HDR could make a bigger impression if brightness could be better controlled.

Hisense E7Q / E79Q is a mid-brightness TV, with a peak luminance level of around 350-380 nits. This is the absolute minimum that allows viewing HDR content in a way that's close to the creators' intentions, though without a distinct "wow" effect. The results of synthetic tests on white test patterns were confirmed in practice – in movie scenes, the bright parts of the image are stable and fairly even, but it's hard to talk about a true "burst of light" here. In everyday use, such as when watching Netflix or YouTube, the HDR effect is acceptable and is more than sufficient for most users. However, it must be said clearly – this is not the level of top-end screens, and one shouldn't expect that at this price. Fortunately, the Hisense E7Q / E79Q has an advantage that allows it to score quite a few points: it's a QLED panel of the PFS LED type, using an additional phosphor layer that improves colour reproduction. The measured range of the DCI-P3 colour gamut is around 92%, which means that the colours in most scenes are vibrant, well-saturated, and pleasing to the eye, especially for this price bracket.

Samsung QN85D TV has been tested in the best available mode – Filmmaker. While one might expect its name suggests a mode perfectly suited for films, unfortunately, it has several significant issues.

When it comes to white balance for HD content, there is a noticeable dominance of red and blue, which makes the entire image take on pinkish hues – this is also confirmed by Colour Checker tests. This effect disturbs the naturalness of skin tones and many other elements, which is particularly evident in more demanding scenes. Initially, the white balance for 4K HDR content seems correct, but at the end of the graph, there is a significant spike in blue hues, affecting the final image quality and making the colours appear unnatural.

The gamma brightness characteristic is also not ideal – although it generally stays close to the reference value, there is a slight drop below 2.4, which can impact the perceived depth of shadows. The EOTF curve responsible for 4K content does not perform any better. There is a clear boost compared to the reference curve, leading to excessive brightness in some areas, thus losing the cinematic quality that the Filmmaker mode should provide. While it might initially seem that the effect is cinematic, unfortunately, the number of errors in colour and brightness reproduction is too significant to call it flawless.

In Filmmaker mode, the Hisense E7Q / E79Q television really managed to impress. After the first measurements, it turned out that the white balance was quite well tuned, with the only minor deviation being a slight tendency towards a purple hue, which we mentioned earlier. However, this did not significantly impact the overall character of the image – it remained cohesive and pleasant to view. A much bigger issue was the brightness characteristics (gamma) in SDR content and the EOTF curve in HDR films. The television clearly brightened the image, flattening contrast and taking away depth. Gamma values could drop from the reference 2.4 down to around 1.9, making the image look as though it was covered with a thin, milky layer. Fortunately, this is a problem that can be relatively easily corrected through calibration.

After professional calibration of the Filmmaker mode on the Samsung QN85D television, a significant improvement is noticeable, especially for HD/SDR content. The white balance has been completely free of major errors, and the brightness characteristics for this type of content have been significantly adjusted, allowing for a more natural and realistic image. Television, YouTube films, and other HD materials now look much better, with appropriately balanced colours and without the exaggerated hues that previously marred the experience.

However, the biggest issues arise with 4K HDR content. Despite the calibration, it's hard to speak of significant improvement in white balance here – the differences are cosmetic rather than essential. Brightness, governed by the EOTF curve, seems to be set according to the reference level in synthetic tests at first glance, but has its limitations during actual viewing in films. When analysing the EOTF curve in real film scenes, it becomes clear that the television struggles to maintain consistency in brightness. The effect is that mixed scenes still have their darkest elements boosted, leading to exaggerated contrasts, and completely dark scenes remain too dark, which negatively affects the visibility of details.

The biggest beneficiary of calibration in the case of the Hisense E7Q / E79Q was undoubtedly the SDR mode. It managed to achieve almost perfect image quality – most of the errors in the Color Checker test dropped below a value of 3, and often even 2, which is a remarkable result for this class of equipment. The biggest improvement came from aligning the brightness characteristic (gamma), which made the image no longer look blown out and regained natural depth. In HDR content, it was also possible to improve the colours and eliminate the purple tint that we mentioned earlier, but errors in the Color Checker measurements were still noticeable. This is due to the fact that – as is often the case with Hisense televisions – the screen manipulates brightness quite strongly, overexposing some colours. This was also indicated by the EOTF curve, which was slightly above the reference values, suggesting these minor issues with excessive brightening. Despite this flaw and the construction limitations that arise with HDR content, the Hisense E7Q / E79Q gained quite a bit after calibration. In everyday use, the television presents a coherent, natural, and pleasant-to-the-eye image, and the difference compared to the factory settings is indeed huge.

When checking the fluidity of tonal transitions in low-resolution materials on the Samsung QN85D television, it’s worth noting the noise reduction feature, which significantly improves problematic tonal transitions. On the other hand, this feature also has its downsides – it removes film grain, which is an important element of many productions, giving them authenticity, and it can also soften the image. This may appeal to those who prefer a smoother picture; however, for lovers of the authentic look of films, using this feature should be considered carefully.

Regarding image scaling, the television performs very well. The model's figure is presented correctly, without noticeable distortions, and the branches in the background do not have excessive artificial sharpness, which is often a problem when scaling lower resolution materials. The high capabilities of the image processor are evident here, which can effectively process lower quality materials, ensuring good final quality.

In the case of Hisense E7Q / E79Q, upscaling and digital image processing are not the strongest points of this television. It is evident that the manufacturer has opted for simplicity rather than advanced image processing algorithms. The television does not offer any features that smooth tonal transitions or systems that enhance image clarity, which makes lower resolution materials look quite raw. Subtle compression edges can be seen on the screen, which better processors in other models can effectively hide.

During the testing of HD materials, we noticed that the E7Q tries to artificially boost detail, which sometimes works and other times has the opposite effect – the image becomes soft, slightly blurred, and at times even "watery." There is no aggressive sharpening that ruins naturalness, but there is also a lack of finesse in detail integration that better image processors provide.

Samsung QN85D TV is equipped with a 120 Hz refresh rate panel, which should satisfy both gamers and sports enthusiasts by offering a smooth and dynamic image. There are options to enhance fluidity, such as the blur and judder reduction feature, which allows precise motion fluidity adjustments on a 10-point scale. The blur reduction increases the sharpness of fast-moving objects, making action scenes more readable, while judder reduction smooths out motion, eliminating the “judder” effect. Ghosting is generally well controlled, though minor imperfections can be visible in more demanding scenes, especially when an object moves against a dark background. Additionally, the TV offers a BFI (Black Frame Insertion) feature at a 60 Hz refresh rate, which can significantly improve motion fluidity experience, although at the cost of image flicker, which might be bothersome for some users.

Hisense E7Q / E79Q is a television with a 60 Hz screen, so sports fans in 4K may feel a slight disappointment – you simply won’t see such smooth images here as in more expensive models with higher refresh rates. Fortunately, when it comes to movies, the situation is much better. Cinematic materials recorded at 24 frames per second can be displayed here using a motion smoothing feature, allowing the user to adjust the picture to their own preferences – more cinematic with visible frames or smoother, in a theatrical style.

The Samsung QN85D television is an excellent choice for gamers, offering a wide range of features that enhance the gaming experience and make it even more exciting. With a 120 Hz refresh rate panel, the image is incredibly smooth, which is crucial during dynamic scenes in action games. The television also boasts low input lag, allowing for nearly instant reactions to player commands, which translates into better control over characters and events on the screen.

In addition, the QN85D Samsung supports VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) and ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode) technologies, which optimise image smoothness and reduce delays by automatically adjusting the television to the needs of gamers. Moreover, the Xbox app allows for cloud gaming without the need for a console, which is a big plus for those who want to enjoy their favourite titles without additional hardware – a feature that sets Samsung televisions apart.

The Auto Motion Plus Game feature is another aspect worth highlighting. This motion smoothing technology creates the illusion of more frames per second – as a result, games at 30 fps appear smoother, resembling gameplay at 45 fps, while games at 60 Hz come closer to 90 Hz. Most importantly, this feature does not introduce significant lag, ensuring that gaming comfort is not compromised. This allows gamers to enjoy a smoother image without compromising responsiveness.

Hisense E7Q / E79Q is a really good TV for gamers, even though it doesn’t support 4K signal at 120 Hz. However, the manufacturer has included a set of features that until recently could only be found in more expensive models. There's ALLM, which is auto-switching to low latency mode, allowing the TV to activate game mode with very low input lag automatically. We also have VRR, working up to 60 Hz – while this may not look impressive on paper, in practice it is fully sufficient, as most console games don’t exceed this limit anyway. All these settings can be quickly found in the Game Bar panel, a convenient menu created specifically for gamers. From this level, you can change picture modes, turn on a frame counter, or even… an on-screen crosshair – in the Vidaa system amusingly called a “target point,” which is the result of a clumsy translation from the Chinese manufacturer.

Special praise should go to the ability to play in 1080p at 120 Hz, which significantly improves the fluidity and responsiveness of the image. This means that if someone wants to play a few titles at a higher refresh rate, they can simply lower the resolution and enjoy much smoother motion. Despite the lack of 4K@120Hz, the Hisense E7Q / E79Q really performs well as a gaming TV – especially for those who aren’t looking for perfection but a solid and fast screen for everyday gaming.