SONY BRAVIA 3 vs Hisense A6Q

Bravia 3 does not hide the fact that it belongs to the group of televisions that are rather modest in terms of brightness. Our measurements showed around 370 nits, which is a value teetering on the edge of where one can still speak of any HDR effect. For some, this is an acceptable level, while for others it is rather typical for SDR content, where spectacular highlights or vivid contrasts are not expected. The impression is that this is not a television for those focused on the highest image quality in demanding cinematic content. However, this does not mean that we cannot find any advantages here. Compared to its predecessor, the X75WL, Bravia 3 has gained an additional PFS filter, which works similarly to solutions known from QLED technology. Thanks to this, the DCI-P3 colour palette has been significantly widened and reaches over 91 percent, which in practice results in more saturated colours and a more pleasing image texture. As a result, even everyday content looks somewhat livelier, and films and series can surprise with vibrant visuals, despite limitations in brightness itself.

The Hisense A6Q is unfortunately difficult to recommend for watching HDR content. The main issues are low brightness and rather modest coverage of a wide colour gamut. The measured brightness of around 300 nits simply isn't sufficient for HDR materials to look impressive. In practice, the picture often resembles standard SDR instead of true HDR with clear differences in brightness and dynamics. Additionally, the colours in such materials do not appear as they should. The television does not utilise additional filters such as QLED or PFS LED, and the coverage of the DCI-P3 colour space at around 80% means that some colours look rather washed out. Consequently, some scenes in HDR materials lose intensity and spectacle, making it difficult to speak of a full HDR experience.

Sony Bravia 3 was primarily tested in film mode, which immediately proved to be the best choice among the factory settings. It is not a perfect picture, but compared to the eco mode that the television offers right out of the box, the difference is clear and positive. In film mode, one can notice a certain problem: the image appears too warm, which results from a lack of blue colour in the white balance. Despite this, in SDR content, the final effect can still be considered quite decent and satisfactory for everyday viewing. Much more serious errors occur in HDR materials. The Color Checker analysis showed considerable deviations, and poor brightness management, combined with limited colour gamut coverage, further exposes the shortcomings of the image in this mode. All of this makes HDR on the Bravia 3 appear unconvincing and can spoil the impression left by the quite decent SDR content setting. Fortunately, this is not an insurmountable situation. Various errors can be somewhat mitigated, and some can even be fully corrected through professional calibration. Therefore, we decided to check how the television would perform after such adjustments.

We conducted the tests in the best available mode, namely Filmmaker, however – as is often the case – this does not mean an ideal image straight out of the box. In the case of Hisense A6Q, this mode clearly "swallowed" too much blue in everyday SDR content. In practice, this led to an image with a yellowed white, particularly noticeable on large, bright surfaces. This is not due to poor assumptions of the Filmmaker mode itself or the vision of filmmakers, but rather the factory settings requiring adjustment.
Furthermore, looking at the saturation characteristics and the gamma curve in SDR, as well as EOTF in HDR content, there is a slight tendency to brighten most scenes. As a result, the image often appears brighter than it should, losing a bit of its naturalness. For this reason, we decided to perform a professional calibration to restore the proper colour balance and a more accurate brightness characteristic.

The calibration allowed us to extract significantly more from the Bravia 3 than we could have expected at the beginning. Firstly, it managed to compensate for the deficiency of blue, which had previously caused a noticeable warming of the image. After a slight adjustment to the white balance, most of the errors in the Color Checker measurements for SDR content virtually disappeared. The white tones became more natural, and the brightness management in gamma stabilised to an almost ideal level, not exceeding the threshold of human perception. Thus, it can be confidently stated that in SDR content, after a few adjustments to the settings, the Bravia 3 performs remarkably well. Significantly worse, although still definitely better than before calibration, are HDR contents. The white balance was brought into order, however, the limitations of the IPS panel are insurmountable. The lack of local dimming means that even the smallest elements can be overexposed, which immediately stands out. Colour-wise, the effect is also improved, though far from perfect – many errors still exceed the threshold of four or even five delta E units, meaning they remain visible to the human eye. It was already clear earlier that the Bravia 3 is not a television designed to impress with HDR quality. Nevertheless, it is gratifying that in SDR content, after calibration, the image can look truly excellent, and in this category, the television pleasantly surprised us.

The colours after calibration in the Hisense A6Q should be assessed in two ways, as everything depends on the type of content. In the case of SDR material, the effect is truly very good. In everyday programmes, series, and films, it is difficult to spot any serious problems with colours. The yellow tint has been effectively removed, and the television no longer brightens the entire image. As a result, the ColorChecker test showed errors below Delta 2 values, which are already outstanding results, allowing us to speak of very high image quality in standard content. Unfortunately, the situation looks significantly worse in the case of HDR material. Yes, the white balance has been corrected and the EOTF curve has been improved, but the limitations of the panel itself remain insurmountable. The lack of support for a wide colour gamut means the television still generates quite significant colour errors. Certain colours simply cannot be displayed by the screen, making them appear less saturated than they should be. It's a shame because even a simple PFS or QLED filter would significantly improve the final effect. The conclusion is therefore simple – the A6Q is really very well suited for SDR content after calibration, while watching HDR content on it should still be approached with caution.

Bravia 3 brings something more to the Sony TV family than just a shared name. It stands out primarily for its ability to enhance the quality of weaker materials thanks to the processor used. Of course, we won’t find the advanced XR chip known from more expensive models here, but even so, it must be admitted that the image in lower resolutions looked surprisingly good. The scaling worked effectively, and most parts of the screen were free from the typical excessive edge tearing found in budget constructions.

Attention should also be paid to the function that improves the smoothness of tonal transitions. In the high setting, it works really well, effectively masking gradation imperfections without significant detail loss. It does happen, however, that the algorithm overly smooths elements that should remain sharp – for example, faces – but overall, the effect is beneficial. The best results were achieved precisely at the highest setting, and this option could be recommended to those watching lower quality content.

Upscaling on the Hisense A6Q works quite decently for a television in this price range. Materials of lower resolution are correctly "upscaled" to a higher one, and the image remains clear without artificial edge enhancement or the typical "over-sharpening" found in cheap models. Unfortunately, the digital processing is significantly worse. In practice, it is difficult to speak of any advanced artifact smoothing or problematic tonal transition masking. In heavily compressed films – especially those from YouTube – the television practically struggles with reducing compression blocks and unwanted banding, making the imperfections in the material clearly visible. The A6Q scales the image well, but when it comes to digital processing, it leaves the user alone with the quality of the source.

The fluidity of motion has never been a strong point of televisions equipped with 60 Hz panels, and the Bravia 3 is no exception. Nevertheless, Sony has added something that may appeal to those more sensitive to the way images are displayed. We are talking about the proprietary motion smoother, Motion Flow, which offers users a considerable range of adjustment options. Thanks to it, one can make the image smoother, even theatrical, or stick to a more cinematic style with the characteristic judder that many simply associate with the filmic atmosphere. These functions work with content at lower frame rates, such as films and series recorded at 24 or 30 frames per second, which are the materials we encounter on a daily basis. It is here that the motion smoother proves to be one of the most important features in everyday use of the television, and this is where the Bravia 3 performs quite well.

The motion fluidity of the Hisense A6Q is… well — quite mediocre. It’s a television with a native refresh rate of 60 Hz in 4K, which means that the motion of objects on the screen doesn’t always look perfectly smooth. In dynamic scenes in movies or sports, it’s clear that this isn’t the strongest feature of this model. The situation improves significantly with 1080p content when connecting a console or computer, as the A6Q can operate even at 120 Hz then. This is a big plus, especially for gamers. Nevertheless, the clarity of motion still leaves much to be desired; blurring is noticeable, and the response time of the panel indicates that it is not one of this television’s strong points.

Bravia 3 is not equipment for e-sports enthusiasts or fans of night marathons with a controller in hand. The lack of 120 Hz refresh rate and HDMI 2.1 ports closes the topic before it even has a chance to develop. This is a television for casual gamers who will play FIFA or racing games after work, not for someone who measures every frame in a spreadsheet. Nevertheless, Sony has added a few nice extras to ensure it’s not too sparse. ALLM works as it should, automatically switching the television to game mode (low latency). There’s even a simple Game Bar, which is clear. However, the biggest novelty here is the PlayStation Portal app. Thanks to it, you can launch PS5 games wirelessly and view them immediately on the television screen. It sounds great, but just a few minutes is enough to feel significant lag. In our opinion, it’s more of a showcase of capabilities than something that can be used every day. If someone really wants to play, it’s better to connect the console via HDMI cable and forget about wireless issues.

For such an inexpensive television, the Hisense A6Q can truly surprise with what it offers to gamers. It operates in 4K only at 60 Hz, but when a game switches to performance mode and drops to 1080p, the panel can work even at 120 Hz. This is a significant advantage in this price range, as most titles on consoles don't achieve stable 4K at 120 frames per second anyway. In practice, we are realistically playing at 1080p, and here the A6Q provides very enjoyable gaming experiences. On top of that, there are several features usually found in more expensive models: ALLM, VRR, and Dolby Vision Gaming for Xbox Series X/S. Everything is gathered in one place, in a simple and convenient Game Bar, so there's no need to dig through the entire menu. For such an affordable piece of equipment, it's a really solid set for gamers — perhaps not for the most demanding, but certainly spot on for occasional gaming.