Philips PML9009 / 9019 / 9059 vs TCL C7K / QM7K

Philips PML9009 does not really operate at the highest values in HDR content. Most effects with brightness at around 550 nits will not leave us thrilled with the lighting effects, although they are quite stable, which is a plus and will make a considerable difference compared to SDR content. It is worth noting that we can only achieve a good result in one scenario, namely in the film "Gemini", where the flashlight as the only light source can shine. Why in that scene specifically? The answer is quite simple. The scene itself does not contain a large amount of black, and the flashlight is not as large an object as the sun in the first and last scenes. Overall, the brightness measurement results in HDR content do not provide a basis for recommending this television for viewing productions that utilise a wide colour spectrum. Although it is worth noting that this model can cover it to a decent extent of 93% in the case of the DCI-P3 palette.

TCL C7K is one of the brightest MiniLED televisions in its price range. Under the best testing conditions, the screen managed to achieve over 1200 nits, resulting in impressive, at times almost blindingly bright scenes. And most importantly – this is not just a theory based on measurements. In practice, the brightest parts of films can shine with true cinematic grandeur. Fans of home HDR cinema should be truly satisfied.

The impression is excellent, especially in scenes with large areas of brightness – a white sky, explosions, sun reflections, or magical sunsets can surprise with an intensity of light that is rarely seen in this price range.

However, it gets a bit worse when more challenging scenarios appear on the screen, as described when discussing contrast – that is, images full of details, with small, bright elements on a dark background. In such cases, the C7K often decides to preserve black levels at the expense of brightness. An example? Scenes from the films Sicario 2 or Life of Pi, where small light sources (like a distant lantern) can become less visible, and details in the lights are simply dimmed or blend into the background.

For many viewers, this may be an acceptable compromise – as we achieve deep black levels and a pleasing plasticity of the image. Nevertheless, it is worth being aware that the visibility of small details in bright areas is not this model's strongest suit. It is simply a technological limitation that still exists – even with over 300 zones.

The best factory mode used during our tests was "Filmmaker". Here, we will look at both SDR and HDR content. The element that distinguishes them is primarily the EOTF curve in materials with a wide colour gamut and the gamma in those recorded "the old way". Starting with SDR films and series and the most basic thing we can observe, which is white balance, we see a significant dominance of red colour. This led to a yellow tint across the entire image, causing unnaturally looking faces and yellowed whites. This flaw is also evident on the "ColourChecker" palette, where all colours have shifted towards their warmer counterparts. Looking at a more significant graph, that of the gamma responsible for image contrast, we see considerable errors starting from the very beginning. From the left, the value we measured, marked by a connected ellipsis, clearly spiked upwards, causing complete merging of details in the darkest scenes. This state of affairs remained until 10% screen brightness, after which it dipped below the reference orange line, leading to a deterioration in contrast, which, as we know, the Philips PML9009 already lacks. In HDR materials, the white balance issues were very similar to those in SDR content. The discrepancy arises when checking the EOTF curve, which controls the rate of brightness increase and severely limited it, causing the image to appear unnaturally dark. As for the colours themselves, there were more reasons for concern here, as the television's too low luminance caused a huge discrepancy between the actual state and the correct one, which is perfectly visible on the error graph, often exceeding the scale.

A new feature in TCL televisions for 2025 is the long-awaited Filmmaker mode, which until now has been found in most competing brands. This is great news, as this mode is considered to be the truest to the original vision of the creators and is often recommended by enthusiasts of good picture quality. Unfortunately, as is often the case, the mere presence of this mode does not guarantee perfection. The Filmmaker mode in the TCL C7K is not without its flaws. There can be criticism of the incorrect white balance, particularly a slight dominance of blue, which resulted in cool, somewhat greyish skin tones. But that was not the biggest issue. The main complaint was the excessive brightness exposure, which is clearly visible on the gamma and EOTF graphs. The image was simply too bright, at times even blown out, which affected not only the texture of scenes but also the overall viewing experience. Some details were simply lost, and the entire image looked as if someone had slightly overcooked the brightness slider. As always, we decided to check what could be extracted from this after calibration. And that’s where it started to get really interesting…

Philips PML9009, like most leading manufacturers, has been offering advanced tools for the calibration process for years. Thus, we find 2- and 20-point greyscale adjustment as well as an advanced CMS (Colour Management System). The differences resulting from calibration are evident, and even someone not paying attention to picture quality (although there probably aren't many such here) will notice a positive difference. Both SDR and HDR materials have undergone a significant transformation. The former, as well as the latter, have primarily rid themselves of the unpleasant yellow tint resulting from a red colour dominance in white balance. As for the SDR materials and gamma, although it is not 'lined up' perfectly and still loses dark details, the rest of it is on a more than decent level, and minor errors will not be noticeable. The colours themselves look infinitely better, and thanks to low deltaE errors, they are nearly reference-quality. On the other hand, the HDR materials, due to the low luminance of the unit, were not blended as we would have liked. Although the white balance has been largely normalised, here and there one can notice a slight blue tint. Fortunately, the EOTF curve turned out to be much more accessible and allowed for practically ideal geometry. Unfortunately, due to the screen's insufficient brightness, colour errors are still quite high.

After calibration, the TCL C7K showcased itself in a really good light, especially when it comes to SDR content. We managed to precisely tune the white balance, colour gamut, and brightness characteristics to the point that colour errors on the ColorChecker palette dropped below a value of 2. For the uninitiated – this is nearly a perfect result, which means that the image is very close to what the creators intended. Unfortunately, the situation was worse with 4K HDR content. Although we managed to gently stabilize the white balance and correct its previous errors, it was still evident that the television has certain "MiniLED traits," especially in brightness management. When we checked how the C7K handled the EOTF curve on actual film scenes, rather than just on synthetic test patterns, it turned out that the screen still tends to slightly brighten the entire image. This impacts the overall experience – blacks lose some depth, and the image becomes less contrasty than it should be. Despite these minor shortcomings in HDR content, the overall reception of materials – especially in SDR – is truly very good. After calibration, the C7K can display an image that can compete successfully with much more expensive models. Good colour tuning, natural skin tones, and pleasant brightness make movie sessions and everyday viewing of content more than satisfactory.

Judging by how PML9009 Philips handled tonal transitions, the image scaling test should perform equally well. This time we are examining the television's algorithms responsible for enhancing the quality of images that have been recorded in lower quality. Such images can be found in various television programmes or older films. In this regard, Philips PML9009 performs quite mediocrely and significantly blurs the image. This is particularly evident in fine branches or the model's hair.

We will take another look at the tonal transitions, which performed remarkably. Within the unit, we find several levels of smoothing. Even the lowest setting can effectively eliminate any non-fluid tonal transition and will work well with the vast majority of content. More importantly, none of the settings for this function softens the effect of film grain, which is extremely important in terms of alignment with the director's vision. However, we note that sometimes it may turn out that fine details will be blurred.

TCL C7K is equipped with a feature that, according to the manufacturer, is meant to smooth out unwanted colour transitions – a sort of rescue for less successful tonal shifts. It is called "Gradual Smoothing" and… well, it sounds ambitious, but in practice it works very poorly. Regardless of whether we set it to a low or high level, the difference is minimal. Worst of all, the feature can cut out elements from the picture that should be there. Fortunately, film grain remains untouched, so at least it doesn’t smooth everything indiscriminately, but still – it’s better to simply turn this option off.

When it comes to scaling lower resolution content, it is somewhat better. SD and HD materials look quite decent, although at times we had the impression that the image loses sharpness and becomes too soft – as if something took away its definition. Fortunately, with very low sources (e.g. 576p), there was no overscan effect, meaning the picture was not artificially cropped – everything fit on the screen as it should.

Philips PML9009 is equipped with a panel that has a native refresh rate of 120 Hz. This is the essential minimum for watching all kinds of sports and is recommended for comfortable gaming in favourite titles on consoles or PCs. The manufacturer has prepared an effective system for improving the sharpness of moving images for those who do not like the characteristic stuttering of footage recorded at 24 fps or require a high level of motion fluidity, for example, when watching football matches. In the dedicated tab, we find the "Fluidity" slider, which helps eliminate stuttering, and "Motion Blur Reduction," which aids in increasing the sharpness of dynamic elements. This function works very well and granularly, meaning each setting has a real impact on the perception of motion. With such a set, every user will find their sweet spot. In the picture, we present our choice, which is a slight fluidity enhancement without the soap opera effect.

A matter directly related to motion is the pixel response time of the panel itself. The best in this regard are, of course, OLED panels, followed by IPS and ADS-based units, and finally, VA. Despite the overall good quality of the systems responsible for smoothing the image, the use of a VA panel carries consequences in the form of a black halo behind fast-moving objects. While this will not occur frequently in the tested television, it will be visible here and there.

The TCL C7K handles motion fluidity really very well. The matrix used in it offers a refresh rate of 144 Hz, which in itself suggests that this television is more than just a regular "60 Hz" panel. Furthermore – if we connect the C7K to a computer and set the resolution to Full HD. But we'll write more about this in the paragraph about gamers and PC collaboration. Returning to everyday use – both sports and films look very good here. Thanks to the fast panel and well-functioning motion smoothing, the C7K is great for watching matches, but also for movie screenings. In the menu, we find two sliders – motion blur reduction and flicker reduction – which allow us to adjust the fluidity effect to our own preferences. At lower settings, we get a more cinematic effect, with slight stuttering motion. At higher settings – the picture becomes more theatrical, fluid to the point of excess. Everyone has their own preferences – anyone can set it to their liking.

Philips PML9009, equipped with HDMI 2.1 ports at full bandwidth, supports all features dedicated to gamers. The most basic ones, such as VRR and ALLM, are a given, but G-Sync, FreeSync, and gaming in HDR Dolby Vision with low input lag are not. These features activate without any issues and during the tests conducted, they did not present any problems. Such preparation of the television is certainly a strong point and one can say that it is a unit dedicated to gamers. For more advanced users, we also mention that the PML9009 is equipped with an HGIG mode, which will be particularly felt by gamers, as there are still relatively few games supporting Dolby Vision. This mode primarily allows for the adjustment of HDR effects to the capabilities of the television on a special board, in order to avoid dimming or burning out the image.

The television additionally features a special menu - GameBar. This allows for editing the unit's settings "on the fly", without the need to exit the game. We will also find features such as enabling a crosshair or adjusting black levels for better visibility of opponents in shadows.

In a brief summary of this paragraph, the Philips PML9009 is a unit that will certainly capture the attention of gamers. Thanks to its versatility, it will allow playing any title in the highest quality without compromises. Especially since features such as VRR, ALLM, G-Sync, FreeSync, or gameplay in HDR Dolby Vision will enhance the immersion in the favourite title.

The TCL C7K is a television that on paper appears to be the dream equipment for gamers – and most importantly, it holds up in practice too. To start with good news: there are two full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 ports, so we can easily connect both a console and a computer, taking advantage of all their capabilities. The panel itself supports a refresh rate of 144 Hz, which gives a significant advantage in dynamic games. There is also a complete set of gaming features: VRR (variable refresh rate), ALLM (automatic low-latency mode), and support for Dolby Vision in games. There is also the HGiG mode, which allows for HDR effects consistent with the creators' intentions. GameBar, an information bar for gamers. It works quickly, looks clear (like a Nintendo console👌), and shows what matters most: the current frame rate, VRR status, and even HDR parameters.