TCL C75B vs Hisense U7Q

During our brightness test, the TCL C75B "spat out" around 380 nits of brightness. We recorded similar results while watching most of the films we tested. These can be considered average – the TV performs decently in this segment, but around 400 nits is definitely too low to fully experience the magic of HDR effects. Of course, such results are better than those of budget models, which can achieve nearly half the brightness values. However, for HDR enthusiasts seeking stronger lighting effects and greater realism, the C75B may prove insufficient. On the plus side, it's worth mentioning the coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut at 95%. This is a very good result that easily suffices to enjoy a wide range of colours in content available on popular streaming platforms. Vivid and rich colours are definitely a strong point of this model.

Since the algorithms responsible for blacks are performing quite well, we expected a similarly good outcome when it comes to brightness and overall HDR quality. Unfortunately, we have to disappoint you a bit here.

The U7Q is quite a bright television – under the best conditions, it can reach around 800 nits, which indeed impresses in some scenes, especially in scenes like those from the movie The Meg. Bright segments can shine, and the HDR effect is noticeable. The problem arises when very small, bright elements appear on a dark background – for example, in Sicario 2 or in the second scene from Life of Pi. At such moments, the dimming algorithms operate too aggressively. Yes, the blacks look great at that point, but the brightest spots can almost completely disappear, causing the HDR effect to vanish and details to be barely visible. That’s just the charm of this technology in this price segment.

As a consolation, it is worth mentioning that the U7Q is marketed as a QLED (in practice, a PFS layer is used, which operates very similarly), and it can indeed display a wide colour gamut – a DCI-P3 coverage of around 94% is a very good result for this class.

TCL C75B offers various picture modes, but in our opinion, the best choice is the “Film” mode. Although its settings are quite decent, the TV struggles with certain colour reproduction issues. In tests, we noticed that the image had a noticeably pinkish hue compared to what could be considered correct. This effect was particularly evident in skin tones, which appeared unnaturally flushed. The main culprit of this phenomenon turned out to be the white balance, characterised by an excess of blue and red in both HD and 4K HDR materials.

An additional problem was the way brightness was reproduced. The gamma, which is responsible for the visibility of details in darker materials, was definitely boosted, causing details in the darkest parts of the screen to be invisible, disappearing into complete black (e.g., the bottom part of the screen in the comparison image - the area around the actress's ear). The situation was similar on the EOTF curve, which was below the correct value, suggesting that a similar issue may be encountered in 4K HDR content.

Thanks to our experience and the appropriate tools, we decided to take matters into our own hands and check how much could be extracted from this model after professional calibration. The details are described in the next section.

We tested the U7Q in the best possible picture mode, which is Filmmaker Mode. This mode is supposed to provide the most "cinematic" experience that aligns with the creators' intentions – straight out of the box. Unfortunately… even this professionally sounding name doesn’t guarantee a perfect image.

In our unit, the problem lay in the poorly set white balance. In both HD and 4K content, the image had too much blue and red, resulting in a slightly pinkish hue on the screen. It didn’t look terrible, but it was noticeable – especially in bright scenes and on white backgrounds. That alone could have been forgiven, but the biggest issue is managing brightness in HDR content. The EOTF curve from the measurements confirms what we saw earlier during scene tests: the television can overly dim the smallest bright elements, causing them to nearly disappear, or conversely – excessively brighten the brightest parts, which affects the naturalness of the image.

After calibration, TCL C75B has clearly improved when it comes to colour reproduction. Although the TV doesn't offer too many options for adjusting the white balance, we managed to improve its settings quite a bit. As a result, the image is no longer overly pink, and the colours now look much more natural and harmonious.

The gamma jump that was previously an issue hasn't completely disappeared, but we were able to significantly reduce it. This has made details in dark scenes more visible – both in HD and 4K HDR content.

Unfortunately, the lack of local dimming is still noticeable. The 'blooming black' effect remains, but that's a limitation of the display itself. Still, the colours post-calibration look significantly better, and the image is much more pleasant to watch.

Thanks to specialist tools, we managed to correct the colour quality in SDR content to almost perfection. In materials with lower dynamics, delta E errors dropped below 0.5, which can be considered an almost reference result. The picture on television, YouTube, or classic Full HD looks really good after calibration. Well then – but where was it not so easy to improve the image? Primarily it concerns HDR quality content. Although we managed to somewhat "tame" the white balance and eliminate pink tints in most scenes, unfortunately, we did not have full control over brightness management. We set the local dimming settings according to the best observations – SDR: Medium, HDR: High – but the U7Q still did everything a bit its own way. There were still cases of overly strong dimming or brightening of details that calibration simply could not eliminate. And although the overall reception of content is much better, one must reckon that the U7Q will always have something to say at the end with "but".

TCL C75B has a feature for smoothing tonal transitions, but unfortunately, we cannot praise it. Regardless of the selected level – low or high – tonal transitions in older materials remained visible, as if the feature wasn’t working at all. It’s hard to say anything positive about it, as in practice it seems completely useless.

Image scaling is better. The TV handles it quite decently, although on thinner elements, like branches in the background, you can see slight jaggedness. However, this is not something that significantly hinders everyday viewing.

Unfortunately, a bigger problem turned out to be overscan, or cropping of the image edges. In our tests, it happened that news ticker or other elements close to the edge of the screen were cut off. This is definitely something to pay attention to, especially if we use the TV for watching news programs or content with text on the screen.

There are situations where we would like to smooth out tonal transitions a bit, especially in older materials – those with limited source quality. The U7Q has been equipped with a feature called “Smooth and Gradient Image,” but unfortunately… it works very poorly. In the “Low” option, the effects are practically unnoticeable, and other settings smooth out the details but don’t improve tonal transitions. The only positive thing is that the feature doesn’t interfere with the film grain, so it doesn’t ruin the natural structure of the image.

Fortunately, content scaling performs quite well. The image is not overly sharpened, there is no artificial clarity – and while it’s known that this isn’t the level of high-end TVs, the U7Q has no problem displaying really old content in a completely acceptable manner.

TCL C75B definitely has something to offer gamers. The television is equipped with a panel that can display images with a refresh rate of 144 Hz in 4K, and even 240 Hz in Full HD. These are really impressive results, especially for a model from the budget range.

On top of that, there are features for improving smoothness and reducing motion blur in films. The "Motion" option allows for precise adjustment of the effect on a 10-point scale, providing significant personalisation possibilities – everyone can set the smoothness to their liking.

U7Q is a truly fast TV, much like its more powerful version “PRO”. At 4K resolution, it supports up to 144 Hz refresh rate, and if someone wants even more – in Full HD, you can achieve up to 240 Hz! This will mainly benefit PC gamers, but it’s worth appreciating – it’s a rare feature in this price segment. Right from the start, it’s clear that the U7Q has been designed with dynamic content in mind, such as games or sports. In films, we’re not left “out in the cold” either – the U7Q offers an “Ultra Motion Smoothness” feature, where with two sliders, you can adjust whether you want a smoother, theatrical picture, or something closer to cinematic style with a visible frame. It’s good that, like most manufacturers, we have a choice here and can customise it to our own preferences.

TCL C75B is undoubtedly a television designed with gamers in mind. It has almost everything needed for even the most demanding console users. With the implementation of full bandwidth HDMI 2.1, the TV supports features like ALLM (automatic low latency mode) and VRR (variable refresh rate) – operating within the full capabilities of the TV, up to 240 Hz in Full HD resolution.

Additionally, the television supports advanced HDR technologies, including Dolby Vision and HGiG, which allows for even better detailing in HDR-optimised games. C75B is also equipped with a very convenient interface for gamers in the form of Game Bar, where you can check all key parameters such as refresh rate, input lag, or picture settings – all just a click away.

In one sentence: C75B is a great choice for gamers, offering a wide range of features that fully enable enjoyment of the capabilities of modern consoles and games.

The Hisense U7Q is a TV designed with gamers in mind – and you can see that straight away with its gaming capabilities. It has practically everything you could wish for: Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) – check, Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM) – check, and high refresh rates of up to 240 Hz in Full HD, along with support for various resolutions, not just 4K. It’s truly an impressive set of features that makes the U7Q perform well with both fast-paced shooters on consoles and more demanding titles on PC. Of course – like most Hisense models – it lacks a proper implementation of the HGiG feature. It’s a shame because HGiG allows the console's brightness to be adjusted to the specific TV, which in practice makes it easier to display HDR games according to the creators' intentions. Without this, you just have to deal with some limitations in the final HDR image in games.