Hisense A6N vs Blaupunkt UGC5500S

Unfortunately, the HDR effect quality on A6N is not impressive. A peak brightness of 250 nits doesn’t allow for spectacular highlights, and HDR looks rather muted, more like ordinary SDR. This will not satisfy more demanding users who want to enjoy high-quality movie content. Additionally, the color gamut coverage is not very impressive either: DCI-P3 at 82% is an average result that doesn’t let you fully enjoy vivid colors in HDR material.

Here, we won't beat around the bush either – if you're looking for a TV strictly for cinematic HDR experiences, you've come to the wrong address. The Blaupunkt UGC5500S unfortunately is not a machine designed for such challenges. This is primarily due to its very low brightness, which we measured during our tests. A result of around 250 nits on film screens speaks for itself. It's simply too little to even talk about any real HDR effect. To be honest, everything displayed here in this format can best be considered a slightly "boosted" SDR mode. We expected this because practically every device in this price range fails in this regard, but we feel obligated to warn you. Manufacturers love to boast about HDR compatibility stickers on the boxes, but in reality, this format simply doesn't exist here – it lacks the "fuel" of brightness.

The situation is made all the more difficult for Blaupunkt because we have a panel with a very basic DCI-P3 color gamut coverage of just around 80%. You won't find any advanced coatings that enhance these capabilities (like quantum dots), making scenes that are supposed to burst with richly saturated colors appear simply desaturated on this screen. Therefore, we have a concrete piece of advice for you: do not push the HDR mode on this model. If you have the option in the streaming app settings – just turn it off. Sticking with the classic SDR mode will ensure that the TV won't try to "enhance" something that it can't handle hardware-wise.

In the color reproduction category, the Hisense A6N in Filmmaker Mode leaves much to be desired. Although the mode's name suggests we should expect faithful movie color reproduction, the reality is different. The TV has significant picture quality problems. The white balance issue is particularly noticeable for both HD and 4K material, as it is heavily skewed by a dominance of blue. This results in artificial, cool tones, clearly visible in the comparison photo below. The ColorChecker test further confirms these errors, which are compounded by low color gamut coverage.

The gamma luminance curve shows a serious problem maintaining the 2.4 level, with the plot well below the reference value. That leads to excessive image brightening and washed-out blacks. The EOTF curve for 4K material also indicates brightness problems. At the low end there is a pronounced bump caused by the TV's excessive brightening, which negatively affects picture quality. This image behavior prevents fully enjoying movies and requires manual correction.

We also took a close look at how Blaupunkt handles colors in movie mode, and here the situation is, to put it briefly, twofold. We must clearly separate what we see in the standard SDR format from what happens when HDR is turned on, as these are two completely different worlds. Let’s start with the better side of the coin. If you plan to watch classic television, YouTube, or older movies on this TV, you can count on really well-tuned colors. In our test sample, the white balance in movie mode was exceptionally accurate, which honestly surprised us. Of course, to not make it too rosy, we noticed some flaws. Looking at the gamma charts, we observed that the processor struggles with properly dimming the image in its brightest parts. Additionally, there is quite strong, at times too aggressive, red saturation, which resulted in noticeable errors in reproducing certain shades. Nevertheless, in general terms, the image in SDR is simply solid and watchable without a grimace on your face. Unfortunately, the magic fades when we re-enter the world of HDR. Here, Blaupunkt behaves as if we suddenly switched it to store mode, and in its worst form. The excess blue in the white balance is so overwhelming that it literally clashes with the eyes, ruining any realism of the scene. Furthermore, the TV interprets brightness very loosely, which, when analyzing the EOTF curve, clearly showed that for most of the time the colors appear simply washed out and lacking depth. This is, by the way, perfectly visible in the color errors that become evident in this mode. Once again, we are left with the same conclusion: Blaupunkt in SDR mode looks significantly better and more natural than in HDR, which feels forced and not properly refined.

Hisense A6N offers in its settings options and tools to adjust many picture parameters, which we used. As for the white balance, we managed to remove the excess blue; this is clearly visible in the comparison photo below, where the boy in the image practically "comes to life". A large improvement can also be seen in the gamma brightness response, as the TV no longer has serious issues with overbrightening the entire picture. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for 4K content, where the EOTF curve could not be fully corrected due to this model's exceptionally low brightness. For HDR content we use dynamic tone mapping, which allows recovery of many details despite lifting the midtones. For this TV that brings more benefits than drawbacks. The errors that remain visible in the color gamut test and the ColorChecker for 4K content stem from the low color gamut coverage and are difficult to eliminate because of the TV's characteristics. Even so, the image tonality is much better, so we recommend calibrating the factory settings, which are far from ideal.

It may sound like a joke – pulling out professional measurement equipment for a television costing around a thousand zlotys / 250 dollars – but we wouldn't be ourselves if we didn't check it out. The question is: does such cheap equipment give us any room for calibration? To your surprise, the answer is yes, and absolutely so. In the Blaupunkt UGC5500S menu, we found surprisingly many options that allowed us to really work on the picture. These are not just empty sliders; they are concrete tools that enabled us to make use of our measurement sensors and software. In SDR mode, the effects were noticeable to the naked eye. We successfully eliminated the issue we mentioned earlier – that excessive, almost artificial saturation of reds. We also fixed the problem of incorrect dimming of the brightest parts of the image. After calibration, the standard format picture became much more balanced and simply correct. As for HDR, the situation was again more complicated. Although we managed to "tame" that aggressive blue tint in the white balance, it was evident that we were fighting a bit in vain. Even after changing the settings, the television still tried to intervene in the image in its own way, as if the electronics knew better than we did how the scene should look. Additionally, there's a hardware barrier that no slider can overcome – colors in HDR still remain unsaturated. This simply results from the quality of the panel itself; it physically cannot produce the most vibrant colors. To summarize this point: if any of you ask whether it’s possible to calibrate a television for "a thousand," we respond with full conviction: it is possible.

Let's see how A6N handles low-quality material. When it comes to smoothing tonal transitions, the lack of a function to reduce posterization or smooth tonal transitions in low-quality sources, such as broadcast TV or DVD, may be noticeable to more demanding viewers. As for digital processing, the model was rendered correctly and the branches were free of the typical jagged edges. The image has a pronounced sense of plasticity and is soft, which may appeal to those who prefer that kind of picture style.

If you expect that the processor in this model will magically "fix" the poor quality signal from cable TV or old films from YouTube, we must disappoint you. The capabilities of this television end with absolutely basic upscaling, which is simply stretching the image to a higher resolution. It does this correctly in that the image is not blurry, but there is no talk of any intelligent sharpening or adding details. Worse still, Blaupunkt is completely devoid of any functions that reduce unwanted tonal transitions. If the material being viewed has so-called banding (ugly "steps" instead of a smooth transition of colors, e.g., in the sky), this television will display them in all their glory. Additionally, the television tends to slightly crop the edges of the image. Instead of displaying 100% of what the source sends, Blaupunkt slightly enlarges the frame, causing us to lose details located at the very edges of the screen. In summary: in the category of digital "enhancement" of the image, Blaupunkt simply performs poorly. We receive a raw, unprocessed signal with all its flaws.

The 60 Hz panel in Hisense A6N will likely please people who enjoy watching movies, because the TV offers an "ultra motion smoothing" feature that lets you adjust the image's motion, making it choppier or smoother and more cinematic. As for motion blur, it is rather average. You can see quite noticeable blur, especially on dark backgrounds, which is a common trait in this class of TVs.

When it comes to motion fluidity, Blaupunkt has nothing to defend itself with. A 60 Hz panel at this price is standard, so none of us expected a perfectly sharp image during fast action scenes or while watching a game. However, the biggest drawback of this model is that you won't find any digital smoothers in the menu. The manufacturer did not give us any room to maneuver – there's no way to smooth anything out or adjust the image to our preferences. The image is always "raw" and we receive it exactly as the source transmits it. For fans of cinematic "motion jump," this might be fine, but everyone else just has to get used to the absence of any motion support.

Hisense A6N is a TV that will likely appeal to casual gamers, mainly because of its 60 Hz panel, which may not satisfy more demanding players. Still, it offers several features that can make gaming more enjoyable. The TV supports functions such as ALLM (automatic low-latency mode), VRR (variable refresh rate) and Dolby Vision, which let you enjoy better picture quality and smoother motion in games that support those technologies. Moreover, the low input lag means in-game reactions are fast, which is crucial, especially in fast-paced titles. Thanks to these features, although the TV isn’t the ideal choice for demanding gamers, it provides solid support for those who value comfortable gaming without complicated settings. It’s an ideal solution for people who want to enjoy gaming without high hardware demands while still having access to modern technologies that enhance gameplay quality.

When it comes to gaming on the Blaupunkt, we didn’t expect miracles and indeed – the list of features is not very long. However, there are two interesting points worth mentioning, as they may be significant for some of you at this price. The first advantage is that the TV quite efficiently detects the connected console. Thanks to the ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode) feature, the device automatically knows when you start gaming and switches to low latency mode. This is convenient because you don’t have to fiddle with the settings every time to prevent input lag from ruining the fun. The second point is a real curiosity that surprised us. Even though it’s a 60 Hz panel, the Blaupunkt can display images at 120 Hz at Full HD resolution. Sure, we lose 4K details then, but for those playing more dynamic, online shooters where fluidity is more important than resolution, it’s a really nice and unexpected addition in such an inexpensive piece of equipment. Besides these two points, however, you won’t find anything else here. There are no advanced systems for improving fluidity for gamers or extensive gaming menu bars. It’s a simple screen for occasional gaming.