Hisense U6NQ vs TCL P7K / P79K

Hisense U6NQ offers a stable HDR effect, which is a rarity in TVs with local dimming. On most streaming platforms, in films and series recorded in 4K, the television delivers consistent performance – in every tested scene, regardless of difficulty, the brightness is around 450 nits. This is a pleasant surprise, as in many models of this class, there are notable differences – some scenes are well-lit, while others are heavily dimmed by dimming algorithms. However, the Hisense U6NQ prioritises maintaining higher brightness, which comes at the expense of black levels, as mentioned in the contrast test paragraph.

The HDR effect on the U6NQ is satisfactory, offering a noticeable "burst" of light in bright moments, although it is worth noting the previously mentioned blooming, which may be visible in more challenging scenes. In terms of colours, the television also performs decently – the coverage of the DCI-P3 palette is 89%, and BT.2020 is 71%. Although these are not results that would impress more demanding users, for beginners in the world of high-quality materials, the U6NQ serves as a solid choice. Therefore, it presents an interesting proposition as an "entry-level" television for home cinema.

When turning to the assessment of HDR performance, we must be clear and without marketing embellishments: the P7K/P79K is not, and was never intended to be, a master in this field. The maximum peak brightness that this panel can generate hovers around a mere 300 nits. This represents a threshold, a kind of thin red line between what can be considered a barely satisfactory HDR signal and what is, in fact, not much different from standard dynamic range (SDR), unfortunately leaning towards the latter. Synthetic tests found brutal confirmation in reality – our measurements taken during movie screenings showed that luminance in key bright portions of the scenes rarely exceeded the ceiling of 200-250 nits. Thus, this is not a television that would allow content realised in a wide tonal range to spread its wings, and this must be openly admitted.

Unfortunately, the issue of colour reproduction is presented with equal restraint. Although the manufacturer positions this model within the "QLED" family, thanks to the use of a PFS LED filter, the results do not match the heightened expectations. The coverage of the wide DCI-P3 colour gamut reaches only 86%. In the context of the market, this is at best an average result, as most devices that employ additional layers to expand the colour spectrum easily achieve values at a minimum level of 90-92%.

Hisense U6NQ in Filmmaker mode offers really decent colour reproduction, although it's worth noting that differences between individual units can be noticeable. The model we tested was pleasantly surprising, especially with HD content in SDR quality. The white balance was correct here, and errors around 3–4 ΔE should be acceptable for the average viewer. The television performed slightly worse with colour reproduction in 4K HDR materials. The dominance of blue shades led to unnatural cool tones on the Colour Checker chart, giving the image a "store-bought" character. Combined with issues in brightness characteristics – gamma and EOTF curve caused some parts of the image to be too dark – the Filmmaker mode loses some of its credibility in this case. Although the factory settings of the tested unit deserve praise, especially in SDR, there were still minor shortcomings that would require correction to fully exploit the capabilities of the television.

Every accurate assessment of image quality must begin with selection of the most optimal factory mode. In the case of the tested model P7K/P79K, the choice was made without hesitation for the "Film" mode. It is this mode that presents an image closest to the intentions of the creators, avoiding both the exaggerated brightness of the dynamic mode and the excessive dimming known from eco settings. And it must be admitted that, for a device in this price range, the factory calibration is surprisingly decent, although it has not escaped a few missteps. The most noticeable flaw turned out to be the not completely correctly set white balance. A slight dominance of the blue component gives the image a subtly cool, cold character, thus deviating from the exemplary neutrality that the director wanted to show us. The television performs much better in reproducing the greyscale in the standard dynamic range – the gamma curve is nearly exemplary. The only minor reservation could be made regarding the darkest parts of the image, where a slight deviation from the norm causes a loss of some detail in the shadows. The most serious challenge for the TCL software, however, was interpreting the HDR signal, as illustrated by the course of the EOTF curve. The television follows its own, quite free path here – the darkest details are disproportionately brightened, after which there is a noticeable slowdown in the increase of brightness for midtones. Fortunately, most of these imperfections are software-related issues that can be eliminated. With this thought in mind, we began the process of professional calibration.

Although the factory settings of the Filmmaker mode on the Hisense U6NQ were quite good, we decided to carry out a calibration to fully assess the capabilities of this model. Only after such an adjustment can one see how the television performs under ideal conditions. In the case of SDR content, which was already at a high level, we managed to further improve the white balance. However, the most significant change came from correcting the brightness characteristics – the gamma was optimised and no longer causes excessive dimming of the image, which improves its naturalness.

For 4K HDR content, the calibration also produced positive effects. We eliminated the blue dominance issue, resulting in a more balanced and natural image. However, managing brightness in HDR materials remains a more complex matter. The EOTF curve, while having problems with dimming the image in the 10–30% brightness range in laboratory conditions, reveals other shortcomings in real scenes. The television tends to excessively brighten the smallest elements on the screen. As a result, this leads to visible halo effects around bright objects. This phenomenon, which we mentioned earlier in the context of contrast and HDR, arises from the technological limitations of the particular model and is often difficult to eliminate.

In short: although the Filmmaker mode with factory settings performed decently, calibration allowed us to extract an even better effect – minor adjustments resulted in a more balanced image, especially in HDR content. For users seeking the highest quality picture, calibration will be a beneficial step.

The calibration process turned out to be spot on, particularly in the context of standard dynamic range (SDR) content. We successfully mitigated the television's tendency to emphasize cool tones, restoring the whiteness to its natural neutrality. Moreover, precise adjustments allowed us to correct a slight error in the gamma curve, ensuring that the darkest parts of the image regained their proper depth, without any trace of unnatural brightness. The effects are measurable and impressive – in the ColorChecker test, the overwhelming majority of colour reproduction errors fell below the perceptual threshold, achieving a deltaE value of under 2. This is a result that pricier models would not be ashamed of. Unfortunately, when it comes to HDR content, we encounter a barrier in the form of the inherent limitations of the panel itself. And although we managed to bring the colours into line, the software's characteristics mean that the television still adapts brightness in its own way, as evidenced by the persistent, non-standard EOTF curve. In summary, calibration adds immense value, but one must be aware that it cannot overcome certain physical barriers. The slightly elevated black level, due to the lack of local dimming, along with limited peak brightness, means that HDR content may not always be able to showcase its full potential. This is simply not the primary task of this display; its true strength, especially after professional tuning, lies in the viewing of SDR material.

With high-quality materials, such as 4K, tonal transitions on U6NQ look really good – the colours blend nicely, and the image is coherent. Unfortunately, when we move to content in lower resolutions, the television does not offer any additional features that could improve this aspect. An example is the test with the light bulb, where it is clearly visible that the television has a problem with rendering subtle tonal transitions.

However, digital processing performs quite well. The image looks pliable, is pleasantly soft, and free from excessive banding. Moreover, thanks to the sharpness settings, it can be adjusted according to personal preferences – whether towards a softer or sharper image. Overall, although scaling lower quality materials could be better, the television handles image processing effectively.

After a series of harsh evaluations, fortunately, the time comes for praise, and this is due to the TCL AiPQ image processor for its work in the field of digital processing and content scaling. It should be noted right away that we are not talking about the level known from flagship designs; however, in the price segment represented by the P7K/P79K, the results achieved are more than solid. The feature for smoothing tonal transitions performs particularly well, effectively eliminating posterisation, which are the characteristic bands often visible in highly compressed materials, for example, from the ChooseTV service. The algorithm adeptly removes unwanted gradients, which ultimately looks really good. The television also handles upscaling competently, which is the task of elevating low-resolution materials to 4K standard. The resulting image, although it may initially seem a bit too sharp, fortunately, is not a problem. The software allows for free adjustment of this parameter using a sharpness slider, making it easy to customise the final appearance to personal preferences.

Hisense U6NQ offers native 60 Hz refresh rate at 4K resolution, but the manufacturer has added a feature that allows the refresh rate to be increased to 120 Hz, at the cost of reducing the resolution to Full HD. This solution, which we have seen before in TCL televisions, such as the C655 or C655 PRO. This gives the user the choice – higher motion fluidity or full resolution. This is a sensible approach, especially considering that many games on next-generation consoles do not achieve full performance in 4K at 120 Hz.

As for movies, the television is equipped with a motion smoothing feature that allows you to adjust the motion characteristics to your own preferences. This allows for a more cinematic effect or increased fluidity in dynamic scenes. Overall, Hisense U6NQ offers reasonable solutions in terms of motion fluidity that should satisfy both gamers and movie enthusiasts.

The issue of fluidity and sharpness of the image in motion is inextricably linked to a fundamental parameter of the matrix, and in the case of the TCL P7K/P79K, we are dealing with a panel with a native refresh rate of 60 Hz. This specification defines its capabilities from the outset and makes it difficult to unequivocally recommend it to enthusiasts of dynamic sports broadcasts. During fast camera movements, the image loses sharpness, and the panel also shows a slight tendency to smearing, which may be noticeable to more sensitive viewers. Fortunately, not everything in this aspect has been left to chance. The manufacturer has implemented a simple motion smoothing system, which is primarily used in film material recorded at 24 or 30 frames per second. Thanks to a dedicated slider, users can decide for themselves the final character of the motion – from maintaining a fully cinematic, slightly juddery image to achieving a very smooth, almost theatrical effect. It is a simple but effective tool that allows users to tailor the viewing experience to their own preferences.

Hisense U6NQ offers the option to choose between 4K at 60 Hz and Full HD with a refresh rate of 120 Hz. This solution may appeal to gamers who want to decide what is more important to them – higher resolution or smoothness. The television supports features such as ALLM and VRR, which help in achieving smoother gameplay. A nice addition is the GameBar – an easy-to-use panel that allows you to quickly change picture settings and check statistics. There is also a Dolby Vision Game mode, which operates with low input lag, which is a big plus for console enthusiasts. Unfortunately, it lacks HGiG, which could further enhance HDR quality in games. Nevertheless, the Hisense U6NQ performs quite well as a gaming television, especially for those who play occasionally and do not require the highest refresh rates in 4K. It is a solid choice for less demanding users.

Although on paper the native 4K@60Hz panel might suggest that the TCL P7K/P79K is not a television tailored for gamers, the reality is surprisingly different. On the contrary, the manufacturer has ensured a rich package of features that make it a very friendly companion for next-generation consoles. Onboard, we find key technologies such as ALLM, which provides automatic switching to low latency mode, and VRR, or variable refresh rate, which eliminates screen tearing. The list is complemented by support for Dolby Vision Gaming and a simple yet functional Game Bar. However, the real and extremely pleasant surprise is something else. It turns out that the television easily supports a high refresh rate signal of 120 Hz but at lower resolutions – 1080p and 1440p. This is fantastic news for console owners, who know well how rarely games run in native 4K at a full 120 frames per second. The ability to choose between higher resolution and doubled smoothness is therefore an extremely sensible compromise.

In summary, although the P7K/P79K may not be the target screen for the most passionate tournament players, for the casual or occasional console user, it offers a package of options that is hard to find among many competitors at this price.