Xiaomi S Pro 2026 vs PHILIPS PUS9010 (IPS)

When it comes to HDR quality, the Xiaomi S Pro 2026 is undoubtedly a very bright television. On our synthetic measurement patterns, we were able to generate peak brightness of around 1400 nits. This result is not only very good but truly spectacular, considering the price of this model. However, as we always emphasise, for our editorial team, measurements and the experiences from the content viewed on a daily basis - from films and series - are more important. So let's analyse how the Xiaomi performs with film material. The result is, unfortunately, quite mixed. When very bright scenes appear on screen, the S Pro 2026 really shows its full potential and can achieve a real 800-1000 nits in bright elements. Moreover, even smaller objects can "burn" the eyes - in scenes from the film Sicario 2, small metal elements of the helicopter were truly vivid. The problem is that - and here the story comes full circle back to our contrast assessment - in such scenes we cannot count on absolutely cinematic black. In our opinion, this compromise is too great; high visibility of details in bright areas should not come at the cost of such a significant boost to black levels. And although the HDR effect itself can make a stunning impression here, it is essential to remember that when very challenging, mixed scenes appear on screen, we might feel a slight disappointment. Exactly the one we mentioned in the previous paragraph regarding issues with dimming in HDR mode. As a consolation, it is worth adding that the S Pro 2026 has been equipped with an additional PFS filter (similar in function to a QLED layer), which effectively broadens the colour gamut coverage. As a result, measurements showed DCI-P3 coverage reaching up to 94%. This gives us confidence that in most colourful scenes, the image will appear rich and appropriately saturated.

In the Philips PUS9010 version with an IPS panel, the HDR brightness unfortunately performs worse than in the previously tested 55-inch model with a VA panel. The difference reaches about 100 nits, which is quite noticeable given the relatively low values. While the VA version could exceed 500 nits, here the maximum brightness is around 400 nits. This level still allows for watching movies and series in HDR, especially on streaming platforms, but the effects are clearly muted. Bright elements do not have the same impact, and scenes requiring high luminance appear less impressive. On the positive side, the coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut is commendable. The IPS version offers around 91%, which is about 5% more than the variant with a VA panel. This translates to somewhat better colour saturation in HDR content, despite the lower brightness. Colours can appear more vibrant and cohesive, especially in colourful scenes.

Of course, all our measurements were carried out in "Film" mode, which is typically the best and most accurate choice we get straight out of the box. It needs to be said plainly: although it is the best mode, it is still very far from ideal. Firstly, the television has a clear tendency to impart a cool, bluish tint to the image – this is due to a poorly set white balance. Additionally, there is the issue of how the S Pro 2026 manages its brightness straight out of the box, which results in an overly vivid image. These two flaws contribute to truly significant colourimetric errors (Delta E). In HDR content, they were able to exceed our anticipated error scale of "10" by twofold (meaning values close to 20). As a reminder – the threshold for perceivable error by the human eye is a Delta E value of around 3. Results at the level of 20 indicate that the image significantly deviates from what the director intended.

We assessed the colour reproduction, as always, on the factory settings, focusing on the movie mode, which for Philips usually provides the best starting point. This is also a good moment to demonstrate how much the same TV model can vary depending on the type of panel used. Looking at the white balance, the overall tendency remains similar to the variant with the VA panel. Excessive red in the whites is still noticeable, but in the tested unit with an IPS panel, there are also deficits in the blue channel. As a result, the image has a slightly different colour character, which can be clearly seen in the comparative materials. This is a very good example illustrating why ready-made settings downloaded from the internet do not always work even within the same model.

However, returning to the assessment itself, this unit performs quite well, especially with SDR content. Colour tests show correct saturation and consistency, with no glaring errors that could interfere with everyday viewing. In HDR materials, slight deficits in reds can already be noticed, but these are not flaws that spoil the overall perception of the image. The biggest limitations do not come directly from the colours, but rather from the white and black levels. The use of an IPS panel and slightly lowered gamma results in the image being slightly boosted in brightness, and the poor black levels further affect the perceived contrast. This makes the overall picture look brighter, but at the same time it loses depth, especially during evening viewing.

So how does the S Pro 2026 perform after our calibration procedure? We have to admit that after calibration, the television becomes a really very pleasant device for watching everyday content. As you can see in the graphs, in HD (SDR) materials, both white balance and gamma values have been brought to nearly perfection. Most importantly, colourimetric errors have become practically unnoticeable to the human eye. In this scenario, the S Pro 2026 is simply an excellent television that, after professional calibration, can provide a lot of enjoyment from watching. However, it is worth clearly noting – our efforts have not helped much in 4K HDR mode. Despite the calibration, the television still interprets the image quite strongly "in its own way," which is clearly visible in the measurement of the EOTF curve (brightness tracking). It’s a bit of a shame, as it shows that the problem lies not in the panel itself, but in the software. Underdeveloped image management algorithms in HDR content can, unfortunately, rule out this television for many more discerning users.

After calibration, the picture was brought to a truly sensible level. The overall look is coherent and natural, and when it comes to colour reproduction, it is difficult to unequivocally state whether we are dealing with a VA or IPS panel. This is a good sign, showing that the television has a solid foundation for further adjustments. It is worth noting the larger colour gamut coverage in this variant, which can subtly enhance the perception of colourful scenes, particularly in HDR content. However, this advantage is largely balanced out by the boosted black levels resulting from the use of an IPS panel. The limited black depth affects the perceived contrast, especially when watching in a dark room. Consequently, despite the noticeable improvement after calibration, the final assessment remains the same as in the variant with the VA panel. Better colours are unable to fully compensate for the weaker black levels.

Let's start with the issue we raised in the previous paragraph: can the television actually fix the problem of dreadful tonal transitions in dark scenes? Theoretically, yes – in the menu, we find a feature with the promising name "Colour Contour Removal." Well, "theoretically." Unfortunately, in practice, this setting – regardless of which of the three power levels is chosen – yielded absolutely no real results. So we are dealing with a feature that, in practice, only exists in the menu. Moving on to the quality of upscaling (scaling the image from a lower resolution to 4K), unfortunately, we have more bad news for you. The S Pro 2026 performs very poorly at this task. Interestingly, the phenomenon of "overscan" (slight cropping of the image) is not a major issue here. The fact is that the television simply displays a very raw, unprocessed image. Its attempt to upscale the signal to a higher resolution looks simply lacklustre and lacks any form of "intelligent" improvement. There is no denying it – the entire digital image processing is the real Achilles' heel of this model.

In the Philips PUS9010, we find another iteration of the P5 Perfect Picture image processor, designed to improve the quality of inferior materials. One of the components of this system is the distortion reduction function, which is responsible for smoothing tonal transitions. It works effectively and indeed reduces the visible colour gradation. Unfortunately, it does so quite aggressively. In practice, it can dim details such as the texture of materials or film grain. This is a notable compromise, so we would not recommend it for movie screenings. However, it performs significantly better with more casual content like YouTube or regular television. The P5 processor also manages quite well with lower resolution materials. The image is soft, at times even too soft, but this can easily be corrected with the sharpness slider, adjusting the effect to personal preference. A positive aspect is also the lack of edge trimming in SD materials, which is still not standard in this class of televisions.

On paper, the S Pro 2026 specification looks impressive. The television is equipped with a native 144 Hz panel, with the ability to display images at up to 288 Hz in a dedicated gaming mode. These are amazing results, but what interested us most, in the context of everyday use, was how the television handles motion blur and how the image looks at 120 Hz. After all, this is the frequency used by consoles like the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S, and it is desired by sports fans. Generally, the panel "holds up". The matrix is sufficiently fast to meet these challenges, and objects displayed at native 120Hz fluidity are shown correctly. As for the software, the television is equipped with motion smoothing technology; however, with a key caveat – it works only for input signals up to 60 Hz. This means it is primarily suitable for traditional television, films, and series. Thanks to this, we can adjust the fluidity of the image to our own preferences – from a very smooth, "theatrical" approach to setting the slider to "zero" and maintaining a fully cinematic character.

Philips PUS9010 has a 4K panel with a refresh rate of 144 Hz, which will be appreciated primarily by sports fans and gamers. This is especially evident in dynamic scenes where the motion is sharp, and annoying blur is almost non-existent. When it comes to movies (standard 24 fps), Philips gives us a proven set of settings known from higher series. Two sliders are used to control motion. “Smoothness” allows you to adjust the image to your own taste: at low settings, we maintain a cinematic character, while moving the slider to the right gives us a perfectly smooth, albeit somewhat “theatrical” effect. On the other hand, “Motion Blur Reduction” is a function designed for sports – it ensures that fast-moving objects do not lose detail and remain clear.

For gamers, the Xiaomi S Pro 2026 is almost an ideal proposition on paper. It is equipped with two HDMI 2.1 ports, which allow us to unlock (although these options are somewhat hidden in the menu) the full package of features: ALLM, VRR and, crucially, the ability to work in 4K at 144 Hz. This last feature should particularly please the owners of powerful PCs. The television also has something resembling a gamer panel – and although it's hard to call it a fully-fledged "Gamebar", it serves its purpose by displaying key information. It’s just a shame that in its default form, it obscures a relatively large portion of the screen.

The biggest issue we have with this model, however, concerns how the S Pro 2026 handles games in HDR mode. To put it bluntly: it doesn’t handle it well at all. Due to the television having a poorly implemented HGiG feature (the HDR tone mapping standard for games), it is very easy to "overexpose" the image during initial HDR calibration on the console. If someone is unaware of this software flaw and follows the on-screen instructions, they will simply set the image incorrectly, resulting in burnt-out details in the bright areas. Another major problem is the Dolby Vision mode for games. While it does work, it generates such a high input lag that it becomes noticeable in dynamic titles. (You can check all our lag measurements in the paragraph below). In summary: Generally speaking, this is a really very good screen for gamers, but with one small caveat. We would rather avoid using HDR mode on it – unless we decide to manually set the brightness bar on the console "by eye", completely ignoring the instructions from the console’s pictogram.

The Philips PUS9010 is a truly solid machine for gaming. It has everything that matters: VRR, automatic game mode (ALLM), and support for HGiG. The latter is a great feature – it allows HDR in games to be set exactly as the developers envisioned. The television handles 120 Hz refresh rates effortlessly at every popular resolution (1080p, 1440p, and 4K). Whether you connect a PS5, Xbox, or a powerful PC, everything functions stably and simply as it should. Gamers will also appreciate the Game Bar. This quick, clear menu immediately shows whether the low latency mode is active. This is especially useful when frequently switching between different consoles. The whole experience is complemented by Ambilight. Evening sessions with this backlighting take the atmosphere to a whole new level – the image seems larger, and dynamic scenes leave an even better impression. Even if someone isn’t a fan of such “gadgets”, it’s hard to deny that it’s impressive.