Sharp FQ8 vs Dreame S100

Sharp FQ8 can achieve a maximum brightness exceeding 450 nits, which is a satisfactory result. Although it may seem that this value is not impressive, it still places it among the top televisions in this price range. In our opinion, this is also a value from which we will feel the richness of the image and the operation of any metadata, which cannot be said about darker devices. The television supports the advanced HDR format known as Dolby Vision. It is also equipped with DOLBY Vision IQ technology, which stands out for its ability to automatically adjust brightness and image colours based on the lighting conditions in the room. Unfortunately, it has been poorly implemented, resulting in significant inaccuracies such as artificial brightening of the image. Therefore, we do not recommend using this technology in this model. Additionally, the colour gamut coverage is around 94% thanks to the use of quantum dot technology, enabling vibrant and realistic colours. This set of features ensures that the image is not only intense but also full of details.

The Dreame S100 is a relatively bright television. In movie mode, the brightness we measured reached around 600 nits. This is a really good result, although not the highest when considering the competition at this price point. In fullscreen scenes, it is evident that the television can produce an image that impresses with its brightness. Unfortunately, when more complex scenes appeared on the screen, the local dimming algorithm in this model primarily focused on maintaining the deepest blacks. However, this came at the expense of HDR performance – and in a drastic manner. In such scenes, the brightness of bright elements dropped below 100 nits, which is a frankly tragic result, far from any HDR effect. One can improve this aspect, but not without a "however." It is simply necessary to change the local dimming setting in the television's menu, but then the blacks in such scenes simply become grey. It's a pity that Dreame couldn't better refine the local dimming algorithms, and the S100 is another example that the sheer number of local dimming zones does not always translate to a better image. As a consolation, it is worth adding that the Dreame S100 is advertised as a "QLED" type television, although in reality it uses a PFS LED filter. As a result, the colours are appropriately saturated, and the colour gamut coverage of DCI-P3 we measured exceeded 94%.

The colour reproduction test in Sharp FQ8 was conducted in film mode, which out of the box offers the best visual capabilities, providing viewers with a colour experience closest to reality. Nevertheless, it cannot be described as exceptional, as there are still some shortcomings that affect the overall picture quality. Colour reproduction in Sharp FQ8 for HD content demonstrates significant issues with white balance. On the graph, the red line clearly rises, indicating excessive dominance of the red colour. This is also confirmed by tests using colour samples, which show that many colours deviate towards red. For example, in a scene from a film featuring a child, the image is very warm and unnaturally red. Similar difficulties occur with 4K HDR content, where there is also noticeable excessive presence of the red colour. It is worth noting this, especially for those who value faithful colour reproduction.

Regarding contrast for SDR, at the beginning of the gamma graph there is a strange characteristic, suggesting issues with reproduction. Subsequently, the entire line is below the reference line, indicating that the television does not achieve appropriate brightness and contrast values in standard content. Meanwhile, the EOTF curve for 4K HDR shows significant discrepancies. Such fluctuations indicate difficulties in maintaining consistent brightness reproduction, leading to unpleasant visual effects when viewing HDR content.

We tested the Dreame S100 in 'movie' mode and we definitely recommend using this setting for watching all types of content. Interestingly, within the deeper settings of the television, we also find a dedicated 'Filmmaker' mode, which is now available from almost every manufacturer. However, in the case of the Dreame S100, we do not recommend using it – it blocks all settings related to the picture and does not allow for any configuration in the menu - even motion smoothing. So, how do the factory colours of the S100 fare? Not too badly, but also not the best. The television itself was quite heavily tinted with blue components, which is clearly visible in our white balance measurements. This made the picture artificially brightened, and the colours had a slight bluish tint. This is confirmed by the Color Checker palette, which showed how the colour samples tend to drift towards blue, generating quite significant colour errors. The picture in HDR mode looked definitely better, where the colour errors were not as prominent, although they still fell far from perfection. Here, the white balance was also shifted too much towards blue, causing considerable errors in colour reproduction.

After calibration, for SDR content, the white balance on Sharp FQ8 has been significantly improved, and all lines have come much closer to the reference line. Of course, they are not perfectly straight, but it's hard to expect better results from a television in this price range; they are really very good. Improving white balance means that colours are more natural and accurately reproduced, which positively impacts the overall visual experience. In terms of gamma, the strange jump at the beginning of the graph has not been eliminated, however, after this error, the entire line is much closer to the expected effect.

For HDR content, the white balance is somewhat worse compared to SDR content, but it is still significantly better than before calibration. It is worth noting that the improvement in white balance in HDR contributes to a more consistent and pleasant perception of colours, even though there may still be shortcomings. Regarding the EOTF graph and the associated contrast, our specialists noted that the lack of control over dynamic tone mapping settings hindered the achievement of significant improvement in this area. This leads to uneven brightness representation.

Despite the shortcomings resulting from the inability to adjust settings for dynamic tone mapping, Sharp FQ8 has gained a new perspective after proper calibrations. The improved white balance and better colour reproduction in SDR mode make the image more natural and pleasing to the eye. Although there are still areas for improvement, especially in HDR content, the television offers satisfying visual experiences, making it a noteworthy choice in its price range.

The Dreame S100 has proven to be a device very amenable to professional calibration. In its menu, we found a plethora of advanced options that allowed us to effectively correct factory errors. Thanks to advanced white balance correction – both in SDR and HDR content – we completely eliminated the excess blue components. The image immediately became much more natural and pleasant to the eye. After fully tuning the colours, the errors in the Color Checker test dropped below Delta E values of 2-3. For the average viewer, this means that any colour distortions have become nearly impossible to perceive with the naked eye. This is truly a pleasant surprise, as new brands in the television market often encounter significant issues with the correct implementation and functioning of sliders in the calibration menu. Here, everything worked as it should. The only thing we must criticise is the way the television manages its brightness in HDR. Due to the specific nature of the local dimming algorithms, anomalies can be seen on the EOTF curve we measured. Where high highlights should appear, there is a slight boosting of the curve above the reference line. In practice, this causes an unnatural brightening of some of the brightest elements in films or games. Despite this minor flaw, professional calibration brings about a huge, very positive change in this model.

The "10-bit colour reproduction" feature in Sharp FQ8 performs reasonably well, as we can see in the image with bulbs that shows slight connections between grey shades. For the best results, it is recommended to set medium, which does not reveal issues with grain smoothing or blurring of essential image elements. Alternatively, the "low" setting also proves to be safer and delivers positive effects.

As for upscaling, the Sharp FQ8 television plays back video without overscan, allowing for full use of the screen. The branches shown in the image are noticeably jagged, while the edges of the trousers appear without clear jaggedness, positively affecting the overall image quality. Additionally, the television offers an AI Super Resolution feature, which artificially sharpens jagged elements, enhancing their clarity.

For scaling and digital processing in the Dreame S100, the technology that the manufacturer proudly calls Dreamind™ Pro AI is responsible. However, it must be clearly stated that this is not a proprietary processor, but merely a marketing name for a chip made by MediaTek – more precisely, the MT5889 model. Unfortunately, we are talking about a rather outdated unit, from a time when MediaTek lagged significantly behind the competition in terms of performance. This unfortunately has a direct impact on the image as that is what this chip also deals with. The upscaling in the S100 is quite mediocre, and the processor has a tendency to heavily and artificially sharpen edges (fortunately, this can be somewhat tempered with the sharpness slider in the menu). In the options, we also find the "Contour Smoothing" feature, which theoretically is supposed to improve tonal transitions. In practice, it offers almost no improvement – setting it to any level rarely eliminates visible banding of colours, but it can unnecessarily blur elements of the image that should remain sharp.

A separate issue is the phenomenon of overscan (cropping the edges of the frame), which is noticeable here practically all the time. Although there is an option to set the screen to display the full frame in low-resolution materials, this requires activating the previously mentioned Filmmaker mode. And as you know, this mode completely blocks the adjustment of any other sliders in the picture menu. In our test tables, we marked that the television offers an option to disable overscan, as technically such a function exists in the system – however, in everyday use, when maintaining sensible image settings, you will not be able to take advantage of it.

Sharp FQ8 is equipped with a 120 Hz panel, with the possibility of achieving 144 Hz on PC, which in theory should translate to smooth motion rendering. The television offers functions for improving the smoothness of films and reducing motion blur, which is important for more dynamic content. However, the lack of Black Frame Insertion (BFI) technology combined with an average response time of the panel does not yield positive results. The effect is slight blurring of moving objects, and this may be more noticeable when watching sports or during intense gaming.

When it comes to motion fluidity, the Dreame S100 performs really well. It features a panel with a refresh rate of 144 Hz, although in reality, the vast majority of people using it in a traditional way will still be limited to 120 Hz (as this is the maximum supported by today's equipment apart from PCs). Thanks to the high refresh rate, the image in motion remains really sharp, largely thanks to the well-functioning MEMC smoother. In the menu, we find predefined modes that allow the television to efficiently generate artificial frames, which effectively improves the fluidity of dynamic sports scenes, but also eliminates image stuttering in film and series materials recorded at 24 frames.

Sharp FQ8 offers several significant features dedicated to gamers that can enhance the gameplay experience. First and foremost, the television is equipped with HDMI 2.1, which comes with certain advantages. ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode) switches the television to a mode with minimal input lag when a gaming device is detected. VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) reduces screen stutter by adjusting the refresh rate to the number of frames generated by the console or computer, providing smoother experiences, especially in dynamic games. Additionally, the television supports G-Sync technology, which synchronises the image with the graphics card, eliminating stuttering and screen tearing. Despite these advantages, FQ8 also has some limitations. The lack of support for HGiG (HDR Gaming Interest Group) means that the television does not optimise dynamic range for HDR games. The Dolby Vision mode, although theoretically offering better image quality in games supporting this format, suffers from very high input lag.

The Dreame S100 seems almost like the perfect screen for a gamer. The television is equipped with 2 HDMI 2.1 ports with a bandwidth of 40 Gbps, which means that functions like automatic game mode (ALLM) and variable refresh rate (VRR) ranging from 48 to 144 Hz work seamlessly on consoles. It also features a well-designed gaming panel (Game Bar), allowing users to continuously monitor important parameters—from active picture modes to the number of frames rendered by the console, and even the option to add a crosshair in the middle of the screen. All of this looks great on paper; however, the biggest problem with the S100 is the implementation of HDR mode in games. The television does not have the HGiG format implemented correctly. As a result, an unsuspecting user may incorrectly configure the console when first using the screen. Poor configuration can lead to an image that is too dark or too washed out (as a guideline: we suggest setting the brightness in the Xbox console menu to around 600 nits, and in the PS5 to 12 clicks). The Dolby Vision format also proves problematic, as it often would not activate at all between the XBOX and Dreame S100. And when it was finally managed to be activated, playing was not possible due to a very high input lag often exceeding 100ms. If the manufacturer can improve the HDR issue in games via an update, the S100 will be truly excellent hardware for gamers. For now, however, compromises need to be accepted.