Samsung QN990F vs Hisense U7S Pro

The Samsung QN990F belongs to the bright televisions category, and this is immediately evident in tests. In measurements, it achieved around 1300 nits, which in practice allows for enjoying films as their creators intended. Bright scenes have the right intensity, lights shine, and the experience is truly cinematic. In standard test patterns, sequences number 1, 3, and 5 performed best – there, brightness maintained around 800-1000 nits, and the image looked very natural. In more challenging segments, it could drop to around 600 nits, but even so, the level remained sufficient for details to be clearly visible. However, it should be added that in highly contrasting shots, the halo effect returns – the same one we mentioned regarding black levels. Bright elements can leave a halo on dark backgrounds, and this stands out immediately. Since we are dealing with a QLED, the colour palette is expanded, and the colours appear striking. The problem is that with such a flagship model, we expected better numbers. 91% DCI-P3 coverage and about 67% BT.2020 are results that can be considered solid, but not outstanding. This gives a vibrant and appealing image, yet the competition in this and lower price tiers can showcase even more.

Let's start with the fact that the U7S Pro is an impressively bright television – in calibrated mode, our measuring equipment indicated a staggering 2200 nits of peak brightness! This is an absolutely remarkable result, considering that this model is positioned rather as a mid-range option.

However, as we know, peak brightness on test patterns is one thing, and actual film scenes are another. Unfortunately, in real video materials, the backlight power clearly drops. Although in the most demanding moments, the television can still exceed the 1000-nit barrier – which is still an excellent result, perfectly aligned with the mastering standards of most HDR films – the real challenge comes from the aggressively tuned local dimming algorithms. Because of this, small, bright details such as stars or the moon in the night sky are noticeably dimmed. The television tries at all costs to maintain deep blacks, which is of course understandable, but unfortunately, this comes at the expense of the dynamics and brilliance of the HDR effect itself.

One must commend the colour reproduction. The new U7S Pro is a QLED design that provides very wide coverage of the colour palette. Unlike last year's model (U7Q Pro), this year's variant is a "true" QLED, rather than a solution based on a PFS filter. As a result, the colour saturation has clearly increased, and coverage of the most demanding BT.2020 colour space has surpassed the 81% barrier.

We tested the QN990F in Filmmaker mode, which is the best available right out of the box. Right from the start, we noticed several significant errors. The biggest issue concerned white balance. Due to too little blue, and also improper ratios between red and blue, the image – especially in scenes with a lot of white – appeared too yellow, and at times even orange. On the Color Checker palette, these errors didn't look dramatic as they hovered around a value of 4, but in everyday viewing, especially with strong whites, they were most noticeable. We also observed issues with brightness management – the television struggled to maintain detail in the smallest parts of the image, mainly due to the way it controls the backlighting zones. Fortunately, Samsung offers a lot of room for adjustment when it comes to calibration settings. We know that with the right calibration, much more can be extracted from this screen.

We tested the U7S Pro model – as we always do – in the best factory-calibrated picture mode, namely Filmmaker Mode. We can evaluate the displayed colours in two ways. The most disappointing was the profile designed for viewing SDR content, that is, traditional television, YouTube, and other less demanding materials. The picture was clearly yellowed, which turned out to be a direct consequence of a poorly set white balance. As our graphs show, there is a significant deficiency of the blue component, which drastically affected the overall colour temperature. This is clearly visible on the ColorChecker charts as well as on the graphs of the colour palette itself, where most samples leaned towards yellow. Fortunately, the factory HDR mode fared much better – there, the colour errors were around a Delta E value of 3, which is already a really solid result.

After completing the calibration, we managed to bring the white balance back to order and eliminate the previous shortcomings in the shades of blue. As a result, the image no longer looked as if it had a slightly yellowish filter applied – the whites are purer, and the overall presentation is much more natural. We also managed, to some extent, to tame the brightness characteristics in HDR content. The television now handles detail retention in blacks significantly better and does not lose them to the same degree as before. However, when we look at the EOTF curve and the way the QN990F reproduces brightness in films, it is evident that it still tends to accentuate details in dark areas more strongly. This is a characteristic feature of Mini-LED technology and, more specifically, the way it is managed by the QN990F, which is practically impossible to completely eliminate. Despite this, after calibration, the image appears much more natural, mainly due to the correct exposure of white light. The final effect is definitely more pleasant to perceive and closer to what we expect from a flagship television.

We know, however, that the company Hisense is capable of much more – as previous generations have demonstrated – which is why we couldn't simply overlook the factory shortcomings of the U7S Pro model in everyday content. As is often the case, the television underwent professional calibration. The conclusions? This process brought about a colossal change. After manually adjusting the white balance and supplementing the deficiencies in the blue component, the annoying yellow tint disappeared as if by magic. White became naturally pure, and skin tones gained the appropriate, healthy hue. Importantly, calibration not only tamed the capricious SDR mode but also allowed us to extract the maximum potential from the panel, reducing average colour reproduction errors to levels nearly imperceptible to the human eye. The only thing we must criticise after the whole process is the very nature of the Mini-LED backlight and its specific interaction with the HDR signal. The aggressively tuned local dimming algorithms significantly interfere with the EOTF brightness curve. As a result, the backlight does not always work perfectly with the creator's intention – depending on the scene being viewed, the curve can noticeably deviate either above or below the reference, which at times disrupts the ideal dynamics of HDR imagery.

The biggest praise for the QN990F should be given for its upscaling. The processor responsible for "lifting" classic television to 8K resolution does quite well. While watching material in 576p signal, we had no illusions that we would suddenly see a miracle in advertising style, where the image magically transforms into crystal-clear 8K. Nevertheless, the end result was surprisingly good; the image looked clean and sharp. It’s just a shame that the television, like most Samsung models, has an overscan issue, slightly cropping the edges of the screen from the left side.

When it comes to image processing, Samsung offers a feature called "noise reduction," which in theory should improve tonal transitions in older materials, where they are usually more visible. Unfortunately, we felt quite disappointed here. The feature performs poorly – it does not handle unwanted stripes and can introduce its own artifacts. On the plus side, the television does not remove film grain when using this feature, but in practice, that is a poor consolation since the noise reduction itself proves to be virtually useless.

The digital processing of lower quality signals is at a very high level here, thanks to the MediaTek Pentonic 800 processor used in the U7S Pro. The upscaling performance is equally impressive, meaning the television’s ability to enhance lower resolution signals to 4K. We did not notice any unnatural, sharp contours on the screen, and our test image featuring the model simply looked attractive.

QN990F can comfortably be called one of the fastest televisions in the world. In 4K mode, it is capable of displaying images at a frequency of up to 240 Hz, which until now has been more associated with gaming monitors than with televisions in the living room. However, in everyday viewing, what matters more is how it handles the 8K signal at 120 Hz – and here it performs very well too. Motion remains smooth, and the television manages without a hitch even with the most demanding content. Additionally, there is the motion smoother, i.e. "Picture Clarity". Thanks to it, one can adjust the image to their own preferences – leaving a slightly cinematic judder or switching to maximum fluidity, which works exceptionally well, for example, in sports broadcasts.

The Hisense U7S Pro uses a panel with a maximum refresh rate of 165 Hz in 4K, and in game mode, it can reach up to 330 Hz at Full HD resolution. However, it is important to remember that these highest figures do not significantly matter in everyday use, as most content is still limited to a maximum of 120 Hz (for example, when gaming on a console). Nevertheless, the television handles motion quite well and performs really decently for an LCD construction.

There is little to criticise about the fluidity itself. In the menu, we find a motion smoother called "Motion Enhancement", which hides two sliders: blur reduction and judder reduction. These allow for manual configuration of the smoother, which works well in both films and sports, effectively enhancing the raw television signal.

It must be said outright – the QN990F is one of those televisions that practically scream that they were designed with gamers in mind. Samsung has been developing its gaming solutions for years, but here we have a truly comprehensive set. Sure, it lacks Dolby Vision support in games, which is a downside that will always come up in discussions. However, aside from that, the list of features is impressively extensive. To begin with, we have the Game Bar – a handy menu that allows you to quickly check and change gaming-related settings. You can see, for example, the enabled VRR, frame rate, or aspect ratio settings. It’s like a little “dashboard,” making it unnecessary to dig deep into the menu to make adjustments. Speaking of VRR: yes, variable refresh rate is present here and works flawlessly. And there's ALLM, which automatically switches the television to game mode as soon as the console is powered on. These may seem like small details, but together they make using the QN990F simply comfortable and hassle-free.

However, the most impressive aspect is the number of ports. Four wireless HDMI 2.1 ports are already great news, as there is no need to choose whether to connect the console, the amplifier, or perhaps even a PC. There’s ample space for everything here. And if we add another micro HDMI (which we recommend connecting directly to the console), hidden in the casing, we practically have five inputs in full 2.1 standard. Let’s also add support for high refresh rates – 120 Hz at 8K and even 240 Hz at 4K – and we get a television that not only keeps up with the new consoles but also feels ready for consoles that are not yet available.

If you plan to connect a console or PC to the U7S Pro, you will be more than satisfied – this television is excellent equipment for a gamer. Hisense has not spared any expense and has included as many as 4 HDMI 2.1 ports with full bandwidth of 48 Gbps. You won’t need to juggle cables as each port will handle the full set of features. We have an automatic game mode (ALLM) and VRR, which operates in a wide range from 48 Hz to an impressive 330 Hz. Of course, that 330 Hz is currently a gimmick for owners of powerful PCs, as consoles will be limited to 120 Hz, but it’s good to have that buffer for the future. The Game Bar also works very well during gaming. It’s a handy menu bar for gamers, where you can quickly change the picture mode, enable a crosshair in the centre of the screen, and even change the display aspect ratio to ultra-wide without having to exit to the main television settings, which will be appreciated by fans of PC simulators. The only downside worth mentioning is the improper implementation of the HGiG format in games. The issue is that the television ignores instructions from the console regarding the image generated in HDR10 and continues to forcefully interfere with the image it produces, trying to "enhance" it in its own way. This makes proper HDR configuration in the console menu (where you set brightness on symbols/checkerboard) somewhat difficult.