Hisense U7Q PRO vs Hisense U8Q

U7Q PRO is truly a bright television. In synthetic tests, it achieved over 1500 nits, which is an outstanding result for this price range. Such brightness – at least in theory – allows for HDR content to be displayed as intended by the creators, even in more demanding scenes with strong lighting. In practice, it is often very good, but not always perfect. In bright scenes with large areas – like the test chart with intense sunlight from the movie "Pan" – the U7Q PRO makes a huge impression. It can almost dazzle with its brightness, which is definitely an advantage in the context of HDR content. Unfortunately, it doesn't always manage to maintain this when many small bright details appear on a dark background. In such moments, the local dimming algorithms choose to dim some bright elements to maintain good black levels – and the side effect is that some details simply disappear from the frame. This is a classic compromise in mini-LED televisions – and the U7Q PRO is no exception. However, with such a large number of dimming zones, one could have hoped for a slightly more mature algorithm responsible for their control. Fortunately, the overall perception of HDR content is decidedly positive. The U7Q PRO is not only bright but also colourful, thanks to the PFS LED (QLED) coating, the coverage of the DCI-P3 colour palette is at 95%, while BT.2020 is around 73%.

When it comes to HDR, the Hisense U8Q shows its claws. On paper, that is, in synthetic measurement tests, the television can achieve nearly 4000 nits of peak brightness. This is a value that most models can only envy. In practice, this translates to very strong light effects in films – in some scenes, we managed to measure a real brightness of between 1500 and 2000 nits, which is a level typically reserved for the absolute top tier of televisions on the market.

Of course, it's not always perfect. In small, pinpoint elements, brightness can drop – a good example is scene number 4 from the film Sicario 2, where instead of thousands of nits, we get around 500. But it’s worth noting that the effect does not disappear completely – the light is still visible, and the image does not seem artificially dimmed. This is a typical issue with Mini LEDs, so it's difficult to consider this a major downside.

On the other hand, the colour reproduction is a huge plus. Thanks to additional coatings that enhance colour saturation, the U8Q nearly covers the entire DCI-P3 colour space (98%), and for the wider BT.2020 range, it achieved over 80%. This is an excellent result that makes HDR films look rich, vivid, and simply very cinematic.

We tested the U7Q PRO in the best possible picture mode offered by this model – Filmmaker Mode. And indeed, this mode performs the best in terms of colour reproduction. However, that doesn't mean it's perfect. In our test unit, both in SDR and HDR content, the image had a slightly cooler tone. The white balance was skewed towards blue, giving the overall impression of being a bit "colder". It may not be glaring, but it is definitely noticeable – especially on white backgrounds, which seemed slightly bluish rather than neutral. Additionally – as we mentioned earlier – the television has a tendency to slightly brighten and oversaturate the image, which is also confirmed by the gamma and EOTF graphs. All this together means that without calibration, the image can appear somewhat unnatural – too cool, with slightly exaggerated dynamics. Therefore, we decided to carry out our own calibration – and you can see its effects and graphs below.

We must admit that when the U8Q arrived at our editorial office, we were slightly surprised… and positively so. Usually, in televisions, the white balance immediately requires adjustment – it can be too warm or too cold, which immediately leads to strange colour mistakes. Meanwhile, here the situation looks really good straight out of the box. Of course, we are talking about our unit, so there is no guarantee that every model will be equally well calibrated, but in our case, the first impressions were very positive. The only more apparent issue concerned the way the television manages brightness. Looking at the EOTF graph, it is clear that the U8Q tends to brighten small elements on the screen. This, in turn, caused what we mentioned earlier – slight overexposure and the impression that the entire scene can be a bit too bright. However, this is not a flaw that undermines the picture, rather an effect characteristic of this model.

Thanks to the calibration, we managed to tame the white balance in SDR and HDR content. In the case of SDR materials, the effect is really very good – the image becomes neutral, cohesive, and simply pleasant to take in. Everything looks as it should.

HDR performs a bit worse. Although the white balance appears correct and the image overall gains in naturalness, unfortunately, the delta E errors remain noticeable. Why? Because Hisense does not give us full control over how the television manages brightness in HDR mode with the U7Q PRO model. This is where the limitation comes into play. When we look at the EOTF curve for HDR content, we can clearly see what we mentioned earlier – at the beginning of the graph, there is a distinct drop, meaning the television darkens the smallest areas more than it should. On the other hand – the brightest elements can sometimes be overly bright. As a result, some details get lost, others are too aggressive, and overall control over brightness does not always match what we are trying to achieve during calibration.

Does the image look better after calibration? Definitely yes, in terms of colour. But when it comes to managing brightness in HDR, we have to accept that the Hisense U7Q PRO will do it in its own way.

Of course, we wouldn’t be ourselves if we didn’t make adjustments to the white balance. After calibration, we managed to equalise the SDR signal to practically perfection – older films, YouTube content, and classic television looked almost ideal on the U8Q. This is truly an exceptional level that shows this model can do a lot if given a bit of help. Unfortunately, the situation is different with HDR content. The colours themselves don’t pose many problems, but the U8Q’s biggest issue remains the EOTF brightness characteristics. In practice, the television tends to “over-expose” beyond how the image should look in its original form. It’s that slight "bleeding" that we noticed earlier in comparisons with the best screens on the market. It’s a bit of a shame that this characteristic can’t be fully tamed – if we could maintain equally good control over brightness in HDR as in SDR, we would be dealing with an absolutely reference-quality image.

If someone happens to come across older materials where the colour banding issue occurs – Hisense has a solution for that. In the U7Q PRO, we find a function called "Smooth and Gradient Image". Set to the "Medium" level, it works really well – removing most issues with gradation while not smoothing out the entire image, like blurring in Photoshop. 😉 Film grain remains, details do not disappear – this is exactly how it should work. Well done on the implementation!

As for upscaling weaker materials, it is simply good. It is not at the level of the most expensive televisions with advanced upscaling, but older content looks good. There is minor aliasing at very low resolutions, but this is completely normal and hard to avoid. On the plus side – even with the oldest materials, there is no overscan effect, the image is neither cropped nor artificially stretched.

Hisense U8Q handles lower quality materials quite well. The television can smooth out tonal transitions thanks to the "Smooth and Gradient Picture" feature – it works best when set to Medium. At this setting, it nicely dims unwanted bands and unevenness in the picture, but importantly, it does not remove the film grain or fine details.

The upscaling itself is also at a good level. Images from lower resolutions appear smooth and soft, sometimes even overly so – we get a plastic effect that may not appeal to everyone. Fortunately, this can be easily corrected with the sharpness slider, allowing the picture to be adjusted to personal preferences.

“Speed” – this word came up most often during our tests of the U7Q PRO. The television is equipped with a 165 Hz panel, which is impressive in itself – especially since we are talking about a model in the mid-range price category. Of course, PC gamers will benefit the most from its full capabilities, but even with everyday viewing, it's clear that this is a fast and efficient panel. Like most modern televisions, the U7Q PRO can also enhance the fluidity of films that were originally recorded at 24 frames. In the menu, we find a slider that allows us to adjust the effect to our own preferences – from a more cinematic look, with subtle motion, to stronger smoothing with the characteristic “telenovela effect.”

Hisense U8Q features a panel that can refresh the image up to 165 Hz in 4K resolution. In practice, this will primarily be utilised by PC gamers, but as the saying goes – it’s better to have it than not 😊. For films and series, we have a built-in smoothness enhancer called Ultra Motion Smoothness. In the settings, it can be easily adjusted to suit personal preferences – whether we want a more “cinematic” frame rate or a smooth, theatrical spectacle.

The Hisense U7Q PRO is a television that seems almost designed with gamers in mind. It has practically everything one could expect from a gaming display: variable refresh rate (VRR), automatic low latency mode (ALLM), and as many as four HDMI 2.1b ports with full bandwidth of 48 Gb/s. Additionally, there is a clear and quite functional Game Bar, as well as a well-implemented Dolby Vision GAMING mode that works seamlessly with Xbox Series S and X consoles.

Sounds like perfection? Well, almost. Unfortunately, Hisense has still not implemented the HGiG feature, which means the system limitation of tone mapping on the television side. This means that when configuring HDR brightness on the console, we do it "by eye" or search for settings in online guides, as the display does not show the actual range of its brightness. It’s a pity – because HGiG indeed makes it easier to match the console to the television and helps avoid overexposure or overly dark scenes in HDR games.

Fortunately, the other features work very well. Input lag is low, responsiveness is excellent, and the handling of other functions is impeccable. And while not everything worked perfectly, the U7Q PRO can still be recommended to gamers without hesitation.

In terms of features, the Hisense U8Q has practically everything one could expect from a modern gaming television. Thanks to the new processor, the manufacturer managed to implement as many as three HDMI 2.1 ports, so there is no problem connecting several consoles or a computer. On top of that, it includes all the key technologies – Game Bar with parameter preview, variable refresh rate (VRR), automatic low latency mode (ALLM)… in a word, a complete set.

But as is often the case with Hisense, it fell a bit short of perfection. The biggest drawback remains the lack of support for the HGiG format, which allows the brightness of the television to be adjusted to the console and maximises HDR in games. It’s a shame, because if this element were included, we would have a device practically made for gamers. As it stands, the U8Q remains “only” a very good choice 😉