Hisense E7NQ PRO vs Xiaomi S Mini 2025

Based on the luminance chart, which indicates around 550 nits, it can be considered that Hisense E7NQ PRO theoretically has the potential to somewhat "enchant" us with its HDR image. While testing various scenes, we noticed that the TV continually tries to balance maintaining adequate brightness and preserving the deepest blacks. In favourable conditions – for instance, during a scene from "The Meg," where the screen is flooded with bright light – this brightness impresses. At such moments, we feel that HDR actually adds that "something" to the image. Unfortunately, when more challenging shots appear on the screen with small, bright elements against a dark background, the situation looks much worse. The brightness then drops to 200-300 nits, too little to distinguish HDR from regular SDR.

It's clear that the TV is trying, but hardware limitations – primarily the small number of local dimming zones – prevent it from fully spreading its wings. The result can therefore be quite uneven and just as average as in the contrast tests. However, it deserves credit for the impressive coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut at 97%. This allows the TV to showcase a wide range of colours, which, in the right scenes, can give us at least a taste of the true HDR effect. It’s a pity that the overall experience isn’t complemented by better brightness and contrast.

Since the Xiaomi S MiniLED boasts an impressive number of 308 dimming zones, it was time to see how it performs in HDR tests. Starting with luminance, or the ability to display bright scenes, the television achieved nearly 1000 nits of brightness – a result that can be considered outstanding in this class. However, do these numbers translate into real experiences in movie scenes? In the case of less demanding shots, like those from the film The Meg, the television indeed showed excellent results, reaching up to 900 nits. Such values are impressive and can truly convey the strength of HDR effects.

Unfortunately, similar to the contrast situation, there were issues. When smaller, brighter elements appear on the screen – as in challenging scenes from Sicario 2 – the aggressive operation of the dimming zones spoils the whole effect. Brightness during these moments drops to just 100 nits. This is definitely too little to capture the full magic of HDR. Instead of a dynamic and detailed image, the viewer gets a muted, almost flat impression, which diminishes the enjoyment of the viewing experience.

In summary, if we are looking for a television with high brightness for watching movies during the day, the Xiaomi S MiniLED will easily fulfill that task. However, its inability to precisely manage dimming zones means that watching movies in the evening, especially in demanding HDR scenes, can be more frustrating than satisfying.

When we took our copy of Hisense E7NQ PRO out of the box, we immediately started checking the available picture modes. Among them, the Filmmaker mode seemed the most promising, although it was not without flaws. With standard SDR content, we noticed a clear tendency for an excessive boost in red, which caused the image to appear unnaturally warm. This is particularly evident in the comparison photo included below. On the other hand, when we switched to HDR content, the situation went in the opposite direction. This time blue was dominant, and red was scarce, giving a cool effect, at times even a somewhat "store-like" impression — although not as drastic as in those modes that are actually intended for displaying in exhibitions. As a result, in our colour reproduction tests, these imbalances in colour balance led to significant errors.

Additionally, the TV had issues with rendering brightness characteristics. At lower resolutions, it clearly brightened the darkest elements of the image, and with HDR content, the brightness curve (eotf) did not want to align as it should. Initially, the TV excessively darkened the smallest details and then overly brightened larger areas. Fortunately, the E7NQ PRO provides us with plenty of calibration tools, so knowing the potential, we decided to take matters into our own hands and try to set it up to eliminate these issues.

Xiaomi, like many manufacturers, offers a wide range of picture modes. On the S MiniLED, we can find both IMAX Enhanced and Filmmaker. We conducted our tests in Filmmaker mode, which theoretically is supposed to reference the original image, but the reality turned out to be somewhat different.

Let's start with the test of SDR materials. Here, the television had quite a few problems, especially with white balance. The clearly visible dominance of red made the image appear too warm, and all colors gained a reddish tint. This was particularly noticeable in a comparative scene from the Star Wars movie. The brightness characteristics (gamma) also left much to be desired – instead of a smooth transition, we had a real "rollercoaster," with a visible excessive brightening of the screen.

In 4K materials, the situation looked much better. The white balance, while still not perfect, was much more balanced, with a slight dominance of red and blue, but without excessive influence on the overall perception. The EOTF curve (responsible for brightness in HDR) showed some brightening in the brightest parts of the image, which was noticeable, for example, in the test scene from the Pan movie that we described above. These brightening effects can disrupt image precision, but in 4K, the overall effect was much more acceptable than in SDR.

Although the Xiaomi S MiniLED can positively surprise in 4K materials, its factory settings in SDR require significant adjustments, especially in terms of white balance and brightness. It is definitely a television that would benefit from calibration.

Thanks to the tools available in E7NQ PRO, we managed to squeeze a quite decent image out of it, especially in the case of lower-quality content. After fine-tuning the white balance of the SDR materials, the colours look much more natural, and what we see on the screen seems closer to the vision the manufacturer intended to present. Additionally, we improved the brightness characteristic (Gamma), causing the TV to no longer have a tendency to over-brighten, and everything looks significantly better than before our intervention.

In HDR materials, we also managed to achieve some results, although it is not as rosy here. Indeed, the white balance has approached an acceptable level, but the problem lies elsewhere. It concerns the EOTF curve, which is how the TV manages the brightness and tonality of the image. At first glance, it might seem that the biggest issue pertains only to the mid-tones of the image, which are overly illuminated. However, after more detailed testing and enabling filters to display the EOTF curve, it is evident that the receiver tends to brighten the entire screen. This appears to be a limitation arising from the small number of local dimming zones and generally modest brightness management capabilities. Such hardware limitations are simply insurmountable. After our calibration, however, the image is noticeably better than at the start. One just needs to be aware that in terms of contrast and brightness management, this model has its limits, which even good calibration cannot fully overcome.

Xiaomi S MiniLED 2025 is a television that gains a whole new life after calibration. The results are truly remarkable and show how much potential this model has.

In SDR mode, the white balance is nearly perfectly aligned. The errors are minimal enough that in many cases they can be considered negligible. This is confirmed by the Colour Checker palette results, where the errors did not exceed 2 ΔE – a result that is indeed quite rare. Gamma also looks very good, although at the beginning of the graph, there are slight brightenings in the darkest elements. However, this is a minor exception that does not significantly affect the image perception.

In 4K HDR materials, calibration also brought visible improvements, especially in white balance. The image looks natural and consistent. However, the brightness characteristic remains a problem. EOTF analysis in film materials shows that the television tends to over-brighten or darken the smallest elements on the screen. This is a result of limitations in the dimming algorithms that we previously discussed concerning HDR and contrast testing. Unfortunately, this is a technical feature of this model that cannot be completely eliminated.

Despite this minor flaw, calibration allowed extracting the maximum capabilities from this television. The image now looks phenomenal, and its quality impresses with every type of material. Xiaomi S MiniLED 2025 demonstrates that with the right settings, it can compete with more expensive models.

Unfortunately, the "smooth and gradient image" feature in Hisense E7NQ PRO does not impress when it comes to smoothing tonal transitions in lower-quality materials. At the lowest setting, the change is hard to notice—it's more of a cosmetic improvement. Switching to "Medium" mode already provides a noticeable effect, but it still isn't anything special. In addition, the television starts to excessively interfere with other image elements, which can look unnatural.

Image scaling is also rather average. On the test screen, where a portrait of a model and text are displayed, slightly jagged edges can be seen, which makes the overall presentation less smooth and aesthetically pleasing than we would expect in this class of device. It's simply hard to speak of truly effective enhancement of lower resolution quality here.

When it comes to color transitions in lower quality materials like YouTube or television, the Xiaomi S MiniLED is equipped with the "Color Contour Removal" feature. In the "low" setting, it works quite well, but its effectiveness can be uneven. Sometimes it seems like the TV struggles with smoothing, which creates a certain dissonance. On the plus side, we did not notice any visible side effects, although given the instability of this feature, one might suspect that unexpected issues could arise in some situations.

Image scaling also performs average. There is slight aliasing, especially on thin elements like branches, and subtitles can appear a bit jagged. While it may not be very bothersome, a more discerning eye will certainly catch these shortcomings. Overall, most users should be satisfied with the scaling and smoothing quality, but the TV may not satisfy those who expect perfection in every frame.

Thanks to its 144 Hz panel, the E7NQ PRO performs excellently with almost every type of content. Whether we are watching fast-paced matches, dynamic games, or action movies, the fluidity of motion leaves a good impression. For movies, the manufacturer has equipped the TV with two key tools: "motion blur reduction" and "judder reduction." Each of these functions can be adjusted on a scale from 1 to 10.

At lower values, the processing is subtle, barely noticeable, and gently smooths motion without ruining the cinematic character of the image. The higher we move up the scale, the more clearly the TV intervenes in the presented material, smoothing motion more forcefully, thus minimizing any stutter or micro-cuts. On the other hand, the highest settings may resemble the so-called "soap opera effect," which makes the image look overly smooth, losing some of its cinematic atmosphere. However, with such a scale, we can find the golden mean, adjusting the fluidity of motion to our own preferences.

Xiaomi S MiniLED 2025 is equipped with a display that refreshes at 4K@120Hz (1080p@240Hz), providing sufficient smoothness for both watching dynamic sports broadcasts and playing the latest games. This level of refresh rate makes the image look smooth, even in the most intense scenes. Additionally, the TV offers a "Motion Smoothing" feature that allows users to adjust the way images are displayed in movies. We can choose a more frame-like effect, typical of cinematic experiences, or a smoother one reminiscent of the so-called "theatrical effect." This way, every user can tailor the settings to their preferences and enjoy smooth images in their favorite content.

If you enjoy switching on your console and immersing yourself in games for hours, the E7NQ PRO is sure to make a strong impression. With its 144Hz refresh rate, gameplay feels impressively smooth, while support for HDMI 2.1 and VRR prevents screen tearing, even during the most action-packed moments. Additionally, ALLM automatically applies the lowest latency as soon as you switch to your console, so there’s no need to tweak the settings manually.

A major plus is the ability to play games in Dolby Vision, enhancing colours and contrast for a more vibrant experience. Hisense has also included a user-friendly game bar, allowing you to monitor key performance stats and adjust settings without leaving the game. The only real drawback is the absence of HGIG support. While not essential, some gamers may miss it if they’re looking for the most accurate representation of a game’s intended visuals. That said, in practice, the E7NQ PRO delivers an excellent gaming experience that’s smooth, responsive, and enjoyable.

Xiaomi S MiniLED 2025 is a television that has a lot to offer gamers. With two HDMI ports with 48 Gbps bandwidth, we can easily connect modern consoles or PCs, utilizing their full potential. Additionally, the ALLM feature automatically switches the television to low latency mode – something we will appreciate during dynamic games without annoying lags. No matter what we connect, it works smoothly, and the television handles various resolutions well. There is also GameBar, which may not look as impressive as the "bars" from the competition, but makes up for it with practicality. It's a simple settings panel that allows us to quickly change the most important options or check statistics – an ideal solution when time is of the essence.

However, we have to admit that operating the television itself – or rather finding the gaming features – was quite a challenge for us. We approached the Xiaomi S MiniLED 2025 test several times to find all the necessary options. The hidden menu allowed us to discover the "GameBoost" feature, which enables switching the television to 240 Hz mode, activating VRR at 120Hz, and turning on the image in HGIG mode.

In summary, the Xiaomi S MiniLED 2025 is a television that definitely deserves praise in the gaming hardware category. Its rich set of features – 240 Hz mode, VRR, HGIG, and "GameBoost" – provides exceptional gaming experiences. Unfortunately, the intuitiveness of the menu itself leaves much to be desired and may pose a certain challenge for the average user.