Hisense E7Q / E79Q vs Dreame S100

Hisense E7Q / E79Q is a television with average brightness, whose peak luminance level is around 350-380 nits. This is an absolute minimum that allows for watching HDR content in a way that is close to the creators' intentions, although without a clear "wow" effect. The results of synthetic tests on white images have been confirmed in practice – in movie scenes, the bright parts of the image are stable and fairly uniform, but it is hard to speak of a true "lighting impact" here. In everyday use, for example, while watching Netflix or YouTube, the HDR effect is acceptable and is completely sufficient for most users. However, it must be stated clearly – this is not the level of top screens, and one should not expect that at this price point. Fortunately, the Hisense E7Q / E79Q has an advantage that allows it to gain quite a few points: it is a PFS LED QLED panel, utilizing an additional phosphor layer that improves color reproduction. The measured range of the DCI-P3 palette is around 92%, which means that the colors in most scenes are vibrant, well-saturated, and pleasing to the eye, especially for this price range.

The Dreame S100 is a relatively bright television. In movie mode, the brightness we measured reached about 600 nits. This is a really good result, although not the highest, considering the capabilities of the competition in this price range. In fullscreen scenes, it is evident that the television can generate an image that strikes with brightness. Unfortunately, when more complex scenes appeared on the screen, the local dimming algorithm in this model tried above all to maintain the deepest blacks. However, this came at the expense of HDR effect – and in a drastic way. In such scenes, the brightness of bright elements dropped below 100 nits, which is a truly tragic result, far from any HDR effect. This aspect can be improved, though not without any "buts." It is enough to change the local dimming setting in the television's menu, but then the blacks in such scenes simply turn gray. It’s a pity that Dreame could not refine the local dimming algorithms better, and the S100 is another example that the mere number of local dimming zones does not always translate into better image quality. As a consolation, it is worth adding that the Dreame S100 is advertised as a "QLED" television, although in reality it utilizes a PFS LED filter. As a result, the colors are appropriately saturated, and the color gamut coverage we measured exceeded 94% of the DCI-P3 palette.

In Filmmaker mode, the Hisense E7Q / E79Q television was able to really surprise positively. Even after the first measurements, it turned out that the white balance is quite well calibrated, and the only minor deviation was a slight tendency toward a purple hue, which we mentioned earlier. However, this did not significantly affect the overall character of the image – it remained coherent and pleasant to perceive. A much larger problem turned out to be the brightness characteristics (gamma) in SDR content and the EOTF curve in HDR films. The television clearly brightened the image, flattening the contrast and taking away its depth. Gamma values could drop from the reference 2.4 down to about 1.9, making the image appear as if it were covered with a thin, milky layer. Fortunately, this is a problem that can be relatively easily corrected through calibration.

We tested the Dreame S100 in "movie" mode and definitely recommend using this setting for watching all kinds of content. Interestingly, in the deeper settings of the TV, we also find a dedicated "Filmmaker" mode, which is available today from almost every manufacturer. However, in the case of the Dreame S100, we do not recommend using it – it blocks all image-related settings and does not allow any configuration in the menu - not even motion smoothing. So how do the factory colors perform on the S100? Not too bad, but also not great. The TV itself was quite heavily tinted with blue components, which is clearly visible in our white balance measurements. This caused the image to be artificially brightened, and the colors had a slight bluish tint. This is confirmed by the Color Checker palette, which showed how color samples leaned towards blue, generating quite significant color errors. The image in HDR mode looked definitely better, where color errors were not as prominently visible, though they still fell far from ideal. Here, the white balance was also too heavily skewed towards the blue color, which caused quite significant errors in color reproduction.

The biggest beneficiary of calibration for the Hisense E7Q / E79Q turned out to be the SDR mode without a doubt. It managed to achieve nearly perfect picture quality – most errors in the Color Checker test dropped below a value of 3, and often even below 2, which is a remarkable result for this class of equipment. The greatest improvement came from aligning the brightness characteristic (gamma), making the picture no longer look washed out and regaining its natural depth. In HDR content, colors were also improved, and the purple tint we mentioned earlier was eliminated, but errors in the Color Checker measurements were still noticeable. This is due to the fact that – as is often the case with Hisense televisions – the screen manipulates brightness quite strongly, oversaturating some colors. This was also indicated by the EOTF curve, which was slightly above the reference values, suggesting these minor problems with excessive brightening. Despite this flaw and the construction limitations that arise with HDR content, the Hisense E7Q / E79Q gained a lot after calibration. In everyday use, the television presents a cohesive, natural, and pleasant-to-the-eye picture, and the difference compared to factory settings is truly vast.

The Dreame S100 turned out to be a device very susceptible to professional calibration. In its menu, we found a whole array of advanced options that allowed us to effectively correct factory errors. Thanks to advanced white balance correction – both in SDR and HDR content – we completely eliminated excess blue components. The image immediately became much more natural and pleasant to view. After fully tuning the colors, errors in the Color Checker test dropped below Delta E values of 2-3. For the average viewer, this means that any color distortions have become nearly impossible to notice with the naked eye. This is a really nice surprise, as often new brands in the television market have significant problems with proper implementation and functioning of sliders in the calibration menu. Here, everything worked as it should. The only thing we need to criticize is the way the television manages its brightness in HDR. Due to the specific nature of the local dimming algorithms, we observed anomalies in the EOTF curve we measured. In the areas where high highlights should appear, there is a slight uplift of the curve above the reference line. In practice, this results in unnatural brightening of some of the brightest elements in movies or games. Despite this minor flaw, professional calibration brings a huge, very positive change to this model.

In the case of Hisense E7Q / E79Q, upscaling and digital image processing are not the strongest features of this television. It is clear that the manufacturer opted for simplicity rather than advanced image processing algorithms. The television does not offer any functions for smoothing tonal transitions or systems for improving image clarity, which means that lower resolution materials simply look very raw. On the screen, subtle compression edges can be noticed, which better processors in other models can effectively hide.

During tests of HD materials, we noticed that the E7Q tries to artificially enhance detail, which sometimes works and sometimes has the opposite effect – the image becomes soft, slightly smeared, at times even "watery." There is no aggressive sharpening that ruins naturalness, but there is also no finesse in detailing that better image processors offer.

The scaling and digital processing in the Dreame S100 is handled by a technology that the manufacturer proudly calls Dreamind™ Pro AI. However, it is essential to clarify that this is not a proprietary processor but merely a marketing name for a chip from MediaTek – specifically, the model MT5889. Unfortunately, we are talking about quite an outdated unit, from the time when MediaTek lagged significantly behind the competition in terms of performance. This, unfortunately, has a direct impact on the image, as this chip is responsible for that as well. The upscaling in the S100 is rather mediocre, and the processor tends to strongly and artificially sharpen edges (fortunately, this can be somewhat tempered with the sharpness slider in the menu). In the options, we also find a "Contour Smoothing" function, which theoretically is supposed to improve tonal transitions. In practice, it brings almost no improvement – setting it to any level rarely eliminates visible color banding but can unnecessarily blur elements of the image that should remain sharp.

A separate problem is the phenomenon of overscan (clipping the edges of the frame), which is almost always visible here. Although there is an option to set the screen to display the full frame in low-resolution materials, it requires activating the aforementioned Filmmaker mode. And as you already know, this mode completely blocks any other adjustments in the image menu. In our test tables, we noted that the television offers the option to disable overscan, as technically such a feature exists in the system – however, in everyday use, with reasonable image settings, you will not be able to take advantage of it.

Hisense E7Q / E79Q is a television with a 60 Hz screen, so 4K sports fans may feel a slight disappointment – we simply won't see such smooth images here as in more expensive models with higher refresh rates. Fortunately, when it comes to movies, the situation is much better. Cinematic materials recorded at 24 frames per second can be displayed here using a motion smoothing feature, allowing the user to adjust the image to their preferences – more cinematic with a visible frame or smoother, in a theatrical style.

When it comes to motion fluidity, the Dreame S100 performs really well. It features a panel with a 144 Hz refresh rate, although in reality, the vast majority of users using it in a traditional way will still be limited to 120 Hz (because today's equipment, apart from PCs, only allows for such values). Thanks to the high refresh rate, the image in motion remains really sharp, largely due to the well-functioning MEMC fluidity enhancer. In the menu, we find predefined modes that allow the TV to efficiently add artificial frames, which effectively improves the fluidity of dynamic sports shots, but also helps get rid of image stuttering in film and series materials recorded at 24 frames.

Hisense E7Q / E79Q is truly a successful television for gamers, even though it doesn't support 4K signal at 120 Hz. However, the manufacturer has included a set of features that until recently could only be found in more expensive models. There is ALLM, or automatic switching to low-latency mode, which allows the television to activate game mode with very low input lag. We also have VRR, functioning up to 60 Hz – this may not seem impressive on paper, but in practice, it is fully sufficient, as most games on consoles do not exceed this limit. All these settings can be quickly found in the Game Bar panel, a convenient menu created specifically for gamers. From this level, you can change picture modes, turn on a frame rate counter, or even… a crosshair on the screen – in the Vidaa system humorously named "target point," which is a result of awkward translation by the Chinese manufacturer.

Particularly praiseworthy is the ability to play in 1080p at 120 Hz, which realistically improves the smoothness and responsiveness of the image. This way, if someone wants to play a few titles at a higher refresh rate, they can simply lower the resolution and enjoy significantly smoother motion. Despite the lack of 4K@120Hz, Hisense E7Q / E79Q really performs well as a television for gamers – especially those who are not looking for perfection, but a solid and fast screen for everyday gaming.

The Dreame S100 seems almost like the perfect screen for gamers. The TV is equipped with 2 HDMI 2.1 ports with a bandwidth of 40 Gbps, which means that features such as Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM) and Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) synchronization in the range of 48-144 Hz work seamlessly on consoles. It also has a well-designed game panel (Game Bar) that allows you to continuously check the most important parameters – from active picture modes to the number of frames rendered by the console, and even the ability to add a crosshair in the center of the screen. All of this looks great on paper, but the biggest issue with the S100 is the implementation of HDR mode in games. The TV does not have a properly implemented HGiG format. As a result, an unsuspecting user may incorrectly configure the console during the initial setup of the display. A wrong configuration can lead to a picture that is too dark or too bright (as a guideline: we suggest setting the brightness in the Xbox console menu to about 600 nits, and in the PS5 to 12 clicks). The Dolby Vision format is also problematic; it often just would not activate at all when using the XBOX – Dreame S100 line. And when it was managed to be activated, gaming was impossible due to a very high input lag that often exceeded 100ms. If the manufacturer can improve the HDR issue in games through an update, the S100 will be truly excellent equipment for gamers. For now, however, one must reckon with compromises.