TCL P755 vs TCL C655 / C69B (55"-85")

TCL P755 provides average HDR effect quality. The maximum brightness of the television is slightly below 300 nits. Such brightness limits the intensity of bright areas in HDR content. In practice, this means that bright elements may not be sufficiently pronounced, which affects the overall impression of contrast. However, the television offers a wide coverage of the DCI P3 colour gamut, reaching around 93%. As a result, colours are vibrant and saturated, significantly improving colour reproduction quality in HDR content. Despite the limited brightness, the wide colour range allows for richer and more realistic shades.

Generally speaking, the quality of the HDR effect on the TCL C655 / C69B looks quite promising. The average value in the test charts is around 450 nits, which already allows one to feel the light effects and better image dynamics. However, as previously mentioned, this effect may be partially subdued by slight differences in bright and dark colours, resulting from the lack of local dimming technology. However, the coverage of the DCI-P3 colour palette at 94% deserves high praise, and this is made possible by the use of a quantum dot (QLED) matrix. As a result, colours are vivid and accurately represented when watching HDR content.

The colour reproduction in the P755 in "Movie" mode, although it is the best factory setting, leaves much to be desired. The biggest problem is the white balance, where the graph clearly shows a spike in red and a drop in green. This leads to a shift in colours towards red, making the colours on the screen less natural and potentially looking incorrect, especially in scenes with a white or neutral background. This is confirmed by the "Colour Checker" test, which reveals that the colours are indeed skewed towards red, affecting the realism of the image and reducing the perception of colour depth. In terms of contrast, the gamma chart analysis shows considerable fluctuations, particularly in dark areas of the image, where values drop below the optimal level of 2.4. This results in darker areas being displayed brighter than they should be. Additionally, the EOTF curve, responsible for brightness reproduction, is slightly above the reference curve. The graph shows a slight boost in brightness to around 50%, followed by only a minor decrease. This leads to excessive brightness enhancement in the mid-tones of the image and may result in loss of detail and distortion in brighter scenes.

The television TCL C655 / C69B offers a film mode that has been tested for colour reproduction quality. Although this mode is called film mode, it unfortunately has several errors that a director would surely not want to see when recording their work. Starting with image analysis, it is worth examining the white balance – both in HD and 4K HDR content, the white balance has significant errors. In both cases, the red colour dominates, causing the colours to be too warm, and the overall result takes on a pink or yellow tint. This can be seen in the image below from the film "Star Wars". The Colour Checker test confirms these errors – the colour samples veer into incorrect shades, affecting the overall colour fidelity. A less significant issue is the brightness characteristic. However, this is also not without its flaws. The gamma graph shows a strong peak at the beginning, causing the image to be excessively brightened, and the EOTF curve responsible for brightness in 4K HDR material also has substantial fluctuations – it is noticeable how the television tries to maintain the appropriate brightness, but it does not always succeed effectively.

After calibration, the colour reproduction on the television improves significantly when it comes to SDR content. The colour curves are now close to the ideal value, and the gamma is more stable. Although the drop at the beginning of the graph to value is still present, the overall accuracy of colour reproduction is much better. The "Colour Checker" test shows that most colour samples have errors below level 2, indicating improved colour fidelity. A few deviations are present, but generally, the colours are now more realistic and consistent with reality.

Calibration also brings improvement in HDR content. The white balance has been improved, resulting in a more natural colour reproduction. The EOTF curve, although now closer to the reference curve, still shows a slight boost in brightness at the beginning of the graph. This leads to minor distortions in very bright scenes, but the overall tonal quality and detail have been enhanced. Dynamic tone mapping works more effectively, improving image quality in bright areas and retaining more detail.

Although the device's picture does not achieve complete perfection, calibration brings significant improvement. After adjusting the settings, the television presents itself much better, offering a more realistic and accurate colour reproduction in SDR and HDR content. While some shortcomings can still be noticed, calibration effectively eliminates many previous issues, ensuring better image quality and more natural colours.

After calibrating the television's film mode TCL C655 / C69B , the white balance has been adjusted, and the colours are presented as they should be – confirmed only by slight deviations in the Colour Checker test. The gamma is really quite accurate, which means the television should not have issues with brightness in low-resolution materials. Unfortunately, a similar EOTF characteristic is still visible, which is a natural phenomenon in televisions that do not have local dimming – they simply struggle to "shine" more in a given area of the screen. Despite this inherent limitation that cannot be bypassed, we recommend adjustment in the settings, as the overall colour presentation looks really very good.

The "Gradual Smoothing" function works quite well, effectively eliminating visible boundaries between different shades of the same colour. Thanks to it, tonal transitions are smoother. Unfortunately, this function is not available in HDR mode, which may affect the quality of tonal gradations in higher dynamic range materials.

When it comes to image scaling, the television does not perform at its best. There are noticeable edge cuts, particularly evident on the figure of the model and the branches of trees. The blurring of details in these areas affects the overall sharpness of the image. This may be noticeable when watching content in a lower resolution. Moreover, SD quality images are displayed with slight cropping at the top as well as the bottom.

The television TCL C655 / C69B handles tonal transitions fairly well in low-quality materials. The "Gradual Smoothing" feature at a low setting effectively smooths out tonal transitions; however, it simultaneously blurs significant details, such as the texture of objects. On the plus side, it does not negatively impact the film grain, allowing the natural appearance of the image to be preserved. As for digital processing, the television adds artificial sharpness, which may appeal to some users who prefer a sharpened image. However, for those who prefer a softer look, this could be a disadvantage. A notable downside is that the image has been quite significantly cropped due to what is known as overscan, which reduces the field of view and trims the edges of the image.

The television offers decent, although not perfect, results in terms of motion fluidity. For films, the television features a “Flicker Reduction” function that allows for motion fluidity adjustment on a scale from 1 to 10. With this option, we can customise the appearance of the image to a cinematic or more theatrical preference (with a slower or faster pace).

The television C655 / C69B is equipped with a 4K@60 Hz panel, which means it works best for watching films and less dynamic content. It also features a "Flicker Reduction" function that allows for the adjustment of image smoothness – the user can choose whether they prefer smoother motion or a more cinematic, frame-by-frame effect. The television can also adapt to lower resolutions, such as Full HD and 2K at 120 Hz, which will surely please gamers by offering a smoother image at the cost of resolution. It is worth noting that this feature is available in sizes from 55"+. Additionally, the largest variant, 98", is equipped with a 144Hz panel with full motion smoothing.

The device offers a range of features useful for gamers, such as ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode), VRR (Variable Refresh Rate), Dolby Vision for gamers, and Game Bar. ALLM automatically switches the television to low latency mode, significantly improving response to commands from the controller and minimising input lag. VRR synchronises the screen refresh rate with the number of frames generated by the console, eliminating screen tearing and providing smoother gameplay. Dolby Vision for gamers enhances picture quality, offering better colour and contrast reproduction in games that support this format. The Game Bar feature allows quick access to game settings and monitoring of key parameters such as reaction time.

However, the television has certain limitations. The 60 Hz panel prevents the display of higher refresh rate signals at various resolutions, which may affect the smoothness of the image in dynamic games. Additionally, the lack of support for G-Sync technology for PC may impact gameplay quality on a computer. It is also worth noting that the HGiG mode, which aims to improve picture quality in HDR games, does not function correctly in this model, negatively affecting the visual experience in HDR-supported games.

The TCL C655 / C69B television offers nearly the perfect set of features for gamers, supporting all the most important technologies. It has an ALLM feature that automatically switches the TV to low latency mode, significantly improving responsiveness and minimising signal lag, which is especially important during dynamic gameplay. The VRR feature allows the screen refresh rate to synchronise with the frame rate generated by the console, eliminating screen tearing and providing smoother gameplay.

The television also supports Dolby Vision in game mode, which ensures better colour and contrast rendering in games that support this format, and the Game Bar provides quick access to settings related to gameplay, such as response time, latency level, and other parameters. Unfortunately, the C655 / C69B does not support 4K resolution at 120 Hz (the exception here is the 98" variant), which may be disappointing for more demanding gamers who expect the highest fluidity of image in high-resolution games. However, if we can forgo 4K, the television offers support for Full HD and 2K at 120 Hz, providing a smoother image and is a great alternative for those who prefer a higher refresh rate at the expense of resolution.