Hisense E8Q vs PHILIPS PUS9010 (IPS)

Since the E8Q is a twin of the U7Q, it’s no surprise that the quality of the HDR effect is nearly identical. On paper, it looks promising – a peak brightness of 800 nits can impress in many scenes. Moments such as flashes of light in “The Meg” or shots of the sun in “Life of Pi” can indeed evoke a 'wow' effect. But the longer we watch, the more we notice the limitations. The problem arises when small, bright details need to be shown against a dark background. In such situations, the dimming algorithms try to preserve contrast but end up dimming what should shine the most. Instead of dazzling details, we get almost invisible points of light. This is typical for Mini-LEDs in this price segment and is not surprising – but it’s worth knowing that the HDR effect will not always be fully preserved. Fortunately, the colour performance offers reasons to be pleased. Coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut at around 94% is a very good result, and the applied layer of quantum dots (more precisely, PFS) does its job – the colours are saturated and vibrant, especially with 4K content.

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

Testing the Hisense E8Q in Filmmaker mode, we were hoping for a possibly neutral image close to the director's vision. Unfortunately – although it doesn't look bad on paper (the colour reproduction errors are not significant), in practice the image appears not entirely natural. The reason? An overly strong boost in blue colour and a lack of red in the white balance. The effect? Scenes look cool, and the white seems slightly bluish. Alongside the U7Q model, we also noticed a specific approach to brightness management here. The brightness mapping curve for HDR content (EOTF) shows that the television can significantly dim small, bright elements on the screen to maintain contrast – but sometimes it goes too far in this. On the other hand, larger, very bright areas can be excessively brightened, which disrupts tonal balance. This is a compromise that may not suit everyone – especially if you want an as faithful image as possible right out of the box.

We assessed the colour reproduction, as always, on the factory settings, focusing on the movie mode, which for Philips usually provides the best starting point. This is also a good moment to demonstrate how much the same TV model can vary depending on the type of panel used. Looking at the white balance, the overall tendency remains similar to the variant with the VA panel. Excessive red in the whites is still noticeable, but in the tested unit with an IPS panel, there are also deficits in the blue channel. As a result, the image has a slightly different colour character, which can be clearly seen in the comparative materials. This is a very good example illustrating 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 with SDR content. Colour tests show correct saturation and consistency, with no glaring errors that could interfere with everyday viewing. In HDR materials, slight deficits in reds can already be noticed, but these are not flaws that spoil the overall perception of the image. The biggest limitations do not come directly from the colours, but rather from the white and black levels. The use of an IPS panel and slightly lowered gamma results in the image being slightly boosted in brightness, and the poor black levels further affect the perceived contrast. This makes the overall picture look brighter, but at the same time it loses depth, especially during evening viewing.

The calibration of the Movie mode yielded really good results, especially when it comes to SDR content. We managed to balance the white levels, which made the image look more natural – it appeared almost reference-quality. The colours were well-saturated, and the overall perception of the content improved significantly. Unfortunately, when we switched to HDR materials, familiar issues from the U7Q model returned. The television still likes to "do its own thing," as evident from the analysis of the brightness characteristic EOTF – despite calibration, the E8Q still dimmed fine details in the shadows, while the bright areas of the screen could be excessively boosted. In practice, this means that in darker scenes, some of the smallest details could simply disappear. Although it must be acknowledged that the entire calibration process brought a lot of good, not everything can be circumvented – even with the use of professional tools. The E8Q can impress with its picture, but in HDR content, its design limitations become apparent, and it is worth keeping this in mind.

After calibration, the picture was brought to a truly sensible level. The overall look is coherent and natural, and when it comes to colour reproduction, it is difficult to unequivocally state whether we are dealing with a VA or IPS panel. This is a good sign, showing that the television has a solid foundation for further adjustments. It is worth noting the larger colour gamut coverage in this variant, which can subtly enhance the perception of colourful scenes, particularly in HDR content. However, this advantage is largely balanced out by the boosted black levels resulting from the use of an IPS panel. The limited black depth affects the perceived contrast, especially when watching in a dark room. Consequently, despite the noticeable improvement after calibration, the final assessment remains the same as in the variant with the VA panel. Better colours are unable to fully compensate for the weaker black levels.

In the case of older materials with lower quality, a gentle smoothing of tonal transitions often comes in handy. The Hisense E8Q, like the U7Q, features an "Smoothing and Gradient Image" function, but unfortunately – its effectiveness leaves much to be desired. The "Low" mode is almost imperceptible in operation, and the higher settings do not improve transitions but simply blur the details. The good news is that the function does not compromise film grain, meaning it does not worsen the structure of the image. On the plus side, scaling is commendable. The television is able to sensibly upscale older content to a higher resolution – without artificially accentuating contours or excessive sharpening. Although it does not match the best models in this category, it performs quite well for its class.

In the Philips PUS9010, we find another iteration of the P5 Perfect Picture image processor, designed to improve the quality of inferior materials. One of the components of this system is the distortion reduction function, which is responsible for smoothing tonal transitions. It works effectively and indeed reduces the visible colour gradation. Unfortunately, it does so quite aggressively. In practice, it can dim details such as the texture of materials or film grain. This is a notable compromise, so we would not recommend it for movie screenings. However, it performs significantly better with more casual content like YouTube or regular television. The P5 processor also manages quite well with lower resolution materials. The image is soft, at times even too soft, but this can easily be corrected with the sharpness slider, adjusting the effect to personal preference. A positive aspect is also the lack of edge trimming in SD materials, which is still not standard in this class of televisions.

Similar to the U7Q, the E8Q model is a fast television designed for dynamic content. It supports a refresh rate of 144 Hz at 4K resolution, and if, for some reason, someone is still gaming in Full HD – it can even reach 240 Hz. This is a significant advantage, especially for PC users looking for maximum smoothness. In everyday use, the television performs very well. The "Ultra Motion Smoothness" mode offers two sliders that allow you to customise the picture to your preference – whether more cinematic with the film frame preserved or highly smoothed, almost "series-like". It's good that the manufacturer provides a choice here instead of imposing one style. On sports material, live broadcasts, or in games – movement looks clean and stable. Of course, it is not at the OLED level, but for this price range, the E8Q performs really well.

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

Hisense E8Q does not hide its gaming heritage. Even the specifications reveal that we are dealing with a television that will perform excellently as a gaming screen. Variable Refresh Rate (VRR)? It's there. Automatic switching to game mode (ALLM)? That's there too. Additionally, there is impressive refresh rate – 120 Hz in 4K or even 240 Hz in Full HD. Such a set is rare in this price segment. Everything works smoothly and without major surprises. The only missing element – similar to the U7Q – is support for HGiG. It’s a shame, as this feature facilitates adjusting the brightness curve to the capabilities of a specific television, improving visual compatibility with the intentions of HDR game creators. Without it, one has to manually fiddle with the settings, which does not always yield a satisfactory result.

The Philips PUS9010 is a truly solid machine for gaming. It has everything that matters: VRR, automatic game mode (ALLM), and support for HGiG. The latter is a great feature – it allows HDR in games to be set exactly as the developers envisioned. The television handles 120 Hz refresh rates effortlessly at every popular resolution (1080p, 1440p, and 4K). Whether you connect a PS5, Xbox, or a powerful PC, everything functions stably and simply as it should. Gamers will also appreciate the Game Bar. This quick, clear menu immediately shows whether the low latency mode is active. This is especially useful when frequently switching between different consoles. The whole experience is complemented by Ambilight. Evening sessions with this backlighting take the atmosphere to a whole new level – the image seems larger, and dynamic scenes leave an even better impression. Even if someone isn’t a fan of such “gadgets”, it’s hard to deny that it’s impressive.