Philips PUS8079 vs Hisense S7NQ CanvasTV

The maximum brightness in content with a wide tonal range at a level of 202 nits is extremely low and, in practice, does not allow for watching films and series on streaming platforms in the highest quality. It is worth mentioning that in this case, the use of the HDR format equipped with dynamic metadata will not help either. Why won't it help? Because the only such format implemented in the television is HDR10+, which is extremely unpopular, and films recorded in this format are scarce. It is also worth noting that PUS8079 utilises WLED backlighting, which unfortunately is not the best solution, resulting in a coverage of the wide DCI-P3 colour gamut of only 80%. The result of this situation is significantly less intense colours in HDR content.

When it comes to the brightness of the television and how it handles bright elements while watching films, it is simply average – similar to the case with contrast. The average brightness level of the Hisense S7NQ is around 500 nits. This is a value that allows one to feel the beginnings of true HDR, but it is definitely too little to speak of remarkable effects. However, the television should be praised for its colour gamut coverage – films look very colourful and vibrant. Thanks to the use of PFS LED (QLED) coating, the device is capable of covering over 90% of the DCI-P3 colour palette and over 72% of the wider BT.2020 palette. For a television of this class – these are really very good results.

The best factory mode in terms of colour reproduction and fidelity to the director's vision was "Film". Admittedly, it was the best among the pre-defined modes, although it had significant discrepancies between what the film's author wanted to convey and what the tested television displayed. Both in SDR and HDR materials (though to a lesser extent in the latter), the white balance, which is the most fundamental element responsible for image purity, turned out to be somewhat of a repeat of the vivid mode, with the blue tint known from displays on shop shelves. Moving directly to SDR materials and what is responsible for contrast, namely gamma, we see that it is significantly reduced. This leads to cutting down on an already limited contrast range and brightening the entire image. In the EOTF curve, which is responsible for the increase in brightness pace in HDR materials, we observe a sharp drop below the reference line, which, given the limited light output of the television, had a significant impact on the perception of these contents, which were even darker. We will not separate the assessments of the colours themselves, as in both cases they achieved astronomical deltaE values, being simply completely different from what they should be.

Let's now check how the Hisense S7NQ CanvasTV performs in colour reproduction in the best factory mode, which is Filmmaker. Right from the start, it is clear that it is decidedly better than in dynamic or standard modes, but there are still a few things to nitpick. Regarding image quality from an HD signal, the colours are slightly inaccurate – there is a dominance of cooler shades of blue and a lack of red. This makes the image appear somewhat too cool.

A similar effect can also be observed with 4K content, but there it is much more noticeable. The excessive exposure of blue tones and the lack of red result in the image appearing distinctly cold. However, the biggest problem with this television is not the colours themselves but the way brightness is managed. The tested unit slightly boosted brightness compared to the reference value. While this results in better visibility of details, it comes at the cost of significantly brightened blacks – causing the entire image to seem more "flat".

A similar phenomenon was noticed in the 4K signal – the slightly elevated curve at the beginning of the EOTF chart shows that the television has a tendency to overexpose certain scenes. Fortunately, this effect can be improved with professional calibration, which we will discuss in the next point.

Fortunately, Philips implements advanced image correction tools in all its televisions. SDR materials benefited the most here, and the enormous deltaE errors were significantly corrected, both white balance and gamma underwent considerable reshaping. Although one cannot speak of a reference image here, it is definitely better, and films or series can be watched without causing headaches, and above all, eye strain. Naturally, HDR materials, due to the very low luminance of the television, could not be corrected to the same extent as those with a standard colour palette; however, the EOTF curve and white balance were roughly straightened out. Unfortunately, that was all we managed to squeeze out of our unit, although it should be noted that each unit is different and has completely different errors, smaller or larger.

The results we achieved after calibrating the Hisense S7NQ are really very good. Thanks to the calibration, we managed to eliminate the excessive exposure of blue tones and deficiencies in red with HD signal. A similar, albeit slightly weaker effect was also achieved with 4K HDR content. Managing brightness in HD material has also been improved – the television no longer has issues with brightening the image "across the board."

However, there are things that cannot be bypassed. The characteristic of the EOTF curve has practically not changed, and the lack of local dimming means that the smallest elements on the screen will always be slightly overexposed. One simply has to come to terms with this when choosing a television with a similar type of backlighting. Despite this, the final effect is very good and should fully satisfy the vast majority of users.

We will return once more to the issue of tonal transitions but in the context of the overall improvement of image quality. As we can observe in the photograph on the left side, the enhancement function for gradation works brilliantly. Moreover, it offers several settings, and each of them, even the lowest one, provides beneficial effects, and what’s more, it does not soften the effect of film grain. We will reiterate that this function is the greatest advantage of the tested television.

Next, we will take a look at image scaling. Here, the tested television performed worse. We can primarily notice severely jagged fine details and a characteristic white halo around the figures. One must not forget about the considerable artificial sharpening of the image.

Equally important is how the television handles tonal transitions on a poor signal – for example, in older films, television, or on YouTube. Unfortunately, despite the presence of the "Smooth and Gradient Picture" feature, which was supposedly meant to improve this aspect, its performance is truly poor. It's barely noticeable that it has any real impact on the visibility of colour transitions.

The image scaling is also lacking. Yes, it can be observed that the television tries to "enhance" the quality, but the end result is far from ideal. The image often appears slightly jagged, which is particularly noticeable in the example of tree branches in the background. Additionally, the Hisense S7NQ has a clear tendency to crop the image at lower resolutions, causing subtitles in news items or finer details in the image to be missed.

This paragraph, unlike the others, will be extremely short. The reason for this state of affairs is the lack of implementation of even the most basic motion smoothing function, which was to be expected, considering the price of the device. We also note that we are dealing with a VA panel, which in itself will not have the best sharpness under the sun. This type of panel is primarily associated with high contrast, which goes hand in hand with quite slow response times, as we can clearly read from the matrix analysis results. As you can see, from the photos taken in quick motion, the image is typically blurred for this type of panel. Although it will not be the ideal option, it can conditionally be used for watching sports, keeping in mind the less than optimal sharpness in motion. It is worth mentioning that movies will be characterised by judder, as the television does not have any, even the simplest, motion smoother.

When it comes to motion fluidity, the television performs remarkably well. Although the S7NQ was designed primarily for displaying static elements – such as images – the manufacturer has implemented a 144 Hz refresh rate matrix. As a result, sports and games look really good on it.

For materials that are not recorded at a high frame rate, the manufacturer has provided two features that allow you to adjust the picture to your own preferences. "Motion blur reduction" and "judder reduction" operate on a 10-point scale, allowing you to choose between a more cinematic image – with characteristic frame jumps – and a smooth effect reminiscent of a "soap opera". How to set this up? That’s a personal matter – we leave the decision to you.

Philips PUS8079 offers only the most basic support for gaming in the form of ALLM, VRR, and a Game Bar. The most important information is that thanks to the implementation of the feature responsible for dynamic frequency changing, the picture is actually quite smooth for this price range and does not suffer from tearing.

A slightly greater nod towards gamers is the introduction of the Game Bar, allowing for real-time editing of settings. This means we won't have to exit the game to make any changes to the picture. Importantly, it has not been stripped of options known from higher models. Thus, we will find features such as shadow enhancement for better visibility in dark areas and a colour filter for players with visual impairments.

Although the S7NQ is a "picture" type television, it can indeed be used for gaming. Really. Here you can find almost everything (except for the HGiG mode) that a modern gaming television needs. The 144 Hz panel and two full-fledged HDMI 2.1 ports allow for the hassle-free connection of two consoles, such as the PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X/S.

The television supports Automatic Low Latency Mode (ALLM) and Variable Refresh Rate (VRR), with no stuttering or issues. It also handles displaying high frame rates at lower resolutions without any trouble. Hisense deserves praise for a very attractive Game Bar – it displays all available picture options, and additionally, we have the ability to enlarge the minimap or turn on the crosshair (because sometimes someone might actually want to "aim" 😉).

The only missing element – as we mentioned earlier – is the lack of a proper implementation of the HGiG mode. It is specifically responsible for automatically adjusting the picture in games as the creators intended. It's a shame, because that’s the only thing preventing the Hisense S7NQ from being a full-fledged gaming "beast".