Philips The One (PUS8959 / PUS8919 / PUS8909 / PUS8949 vs TCL C7K / QM7K 50"

The luminance chart for Philips PUS8959 shows that the television can achieve around 550 nits of brightness, which can be considered a satisfactory level. This brightness allows the effects of HDR to be felt, particularly standing out in more demanding scenes. In the tested patterns, the television performed quite well, even in challenging sequences like those from "Sicario 2". Due to the lack of local dimming, the television does not dim small bright elements, and they shine with the full "power" of the television but at the cost of the silverish blacks we mentioned in the paragraph about blacks. It is also worth praising Philips PUS8959 for its good coverage of the DCI-P3 color palette, which amounts to around 94.5%. This makes the colors vivid and close to the creators' intentions, further enhancing the quality of HDR effects and the viewing experience of high dynamic range content.

TCL C7K is one of the brightest MiniLED televisions in its price range. Under the best test conditions, the screen was able to achieve over 1200 nits, resulting in impressive, and at times blindingly bright scenes. And most importantly – this is not just a theoretical measurement. In practice, the brightest parts of movies can shine with true cinematic grandeur. Home HDR cinema fans should be truly pleased.

The impression is especially great in scenes with large areas of brightness – white skies, explosions, sun reflections, or magical sunsets can surprise with the intensity of light that rarely appears in this price range.

However, things get a bit worse when more challenging scenarios appear on the screen, which have been described in terms of contrast – meaning images full of details, with small bright elements against a dark background. In such cases, the C7K often chooses to retain black at the expense of brightness. An example? Scenes from the movies Sicario 2 or Life of Pi, where small light sources (like a distant lantern) can be less visible, and details in the lights are simply dimmed or blend into the background.

For many viewers, this may be an acceptable compromise – as we achieve deep blacks and pleasant image texture. Nevertheless, it is worth being aware that the visibility of small details in bright areas is not the strongest suit of this model. It is simply a technological limitation that still exists – even with over 300 zones.

The Philips PUS8959 television was tested in the best, theoretically most precise picture mode – Filmmaker. Although the name suggests cinematic quality, it unfortunately falls far short of the ideal. The biggest issue in this mode is white balance, both in HD and 4K content. It is characterized by a significant dominance of the red color and dips in the green level, resulting in an unnatural color reproduction. For example, white elements of the image have a distinctly pinkish hue, and the green is less intense, causing the overall image to lose its naturalness and color balance. The ColorChecker test confirms these errors – it is clearly visible how the color samples "deviate" from the correct values, which can be best observed on the sample squares that should accurately reproduce colors. The lack of accuracy in this regard affects the realism and fidelity of the image, which is particularly undesirable in Filmmaker mode.

Regarding brightness characteristics, the gamma chart resembles a real roller coaster – with small elements displayed on the screen, the brightness is excessive, causing details to become overly highlighted. Meanwhile, at higher gamma values, the image loses contrast and becomes too dark, making the overall appearance look less dynamic. Similar issues can be noticed in the EOTF characteristics – the television is unable to correctly reproduce the brightness level, negatively affecting the overall image quality.

A new feature in TCL televisions for 2025 is the long-awaited Filmmaker mode, which until now could be found in most competitive brands. This is great news because this mode is considered the truest to the original vision of the creators and is often recommended by enthusiasts of good image quality. Unfortunately – as is often the case – the mere presence of this feature does not guarantee perfection. The Filmmaker mode in the TCL C7K is not free of flaws. One could point out the incorrect white balance, particularly the slight dominance of blue, which caused cool, somewhat grayish skin tones. But that was not the biggest problem. The main complaint was excessive brightness exposure, which is clearly visible on the gamma and EOTF graphs. The image was simply too bright, at times even blown out, which affected not only the plasticity of the scenes but also the overall viewing experience. Some details simply got lost, and the whole image looked as if someone had overdone it with the brightness slider. As always – we decided to see what could be squeezed out of it after calibration. And this is where things got really interesting...

After calibration, the Philips PUS8959 television shows a significant improvement in color reproduction, especially in HD content. The white balance is exceptionally even, and the Delta E error values are below 1, which can be considered an outstanding result. Additionally, the gamma, which is responsible for brightness in lower-quality materials, performs very well, maintaining a stable level at 2.4, leading to an appropriate balance between bright and dark areas of the image.

Regarding 4K HDR materials, a significant improvement is also noticeable. The white balance, although not as perfect as in HD content, no longer shows issues with excessive red exposure, making the image appear more natural and harmonious. Unfortunately, in the EOTF characteristics, it is difficult to speak of any significant improvement, due to the design limitations of the television that prevent significant enhancement in this aspect.

Nevertheless, the overall performance is much better after calibration, making the Philips PUS8959 one of those televisions where it is truly worth spending time on precise calibration to achieve satisfactory image quality.

After calibration, the TCL C7K showed itself in a really good light, especially when it comes to SDR content. We managed to fine-tune the white balance, color gamut, and brightness characteristics so precisely that color errors on the ColorChecker palette dropped below a value of 2. For the uninitiated – this is an almost perfect result, meaning that the image is very close to what the creators intended. Unfortunately, it was less impressive with 4K HDR content. Although we managed to slightly calm the white balance and correct its earlier errors, it is still evident that the TV has certain "MiniLED traits," especially in managing brightness. When we checked how the C7K performed with the EOTF curve on real movie scenes rather than just synthetic test patterns, it turned out that the screen still has a tendency to slightly brighten the entire image. This affects the overall experience – the black loses some depth, and the image becomes less contrasty than it should be. Despite these minor shortcomings in HDR content, the overall reception of materials – especially in SDR – is really very good. After calibration, the C7K can display an image that can successfully compete with much more expensive models. Good color tuning, natural skin tones, and pleasant brightness make movie sessions and everyday content viewing more than satisfactory.

When it comes to smoothing tonal transitions, the "Distortion Reduction" function at the minimal setting performs quite well, effectively smoothing tonal transitions without excessive influence on other elements of the image. In tests, I did not notice that the reduction negatively affected the image structure, such as film grain or object details – everything remains in place, which is a big plus for users who appreciate the natural look of film materials.

On the other hand, regarding digital processing, the image looks quite good, although it is characterized by very softened contours, giving it an almost "misty" quality. This effect can evoke mixed feelings – some users may enjoy the fluidity and delicacy of this type of presentation, while others may find it too gentle, losing detail. It is a matter of individual preferences, but it must be admitted that the Philips PUS8959 provides quite subtle yet effective tools for improving tonal transitions without excessive interference in the natural character of the image.

The TCL C7K features a function that, according to the manufacturer, is supposed to smooth out unwanted color transitions – something like a rescue for less successful tonal shifts. It's called "Gradual Smoothing" and... well, it sounds ambitious, but in practice, it works very poorly. Regardless of whether we set it to low or high, the difference is minimal. What's worse – the function can remove elements from the image that should remain. Fortunately, film grain remains untouched, so at least it doesn't smooth everything indiscriminately, but still – it's better to just turn this option off.

As for scaling lower-resolution content, it's already better. SD and HD materials look quite decent, though sometimes we had the impression that the image loses sharpness and becomes too soft – as if something took away its clarity. Fortunately, at very low sources (e.g., 576p), there was no overscan effect, meaning the image was not artificially cropped – everything fit on the screen as it should.

Philips TV PUS8959 is equipped with a 120 Hz panel, which should satisfy more demanding users, especially those who love watching dynamic sports broadcasts or playing games. Such a high refresh rate allows for a significantly smoother image, being a key aspect during dynamic scenes and fast actions.

For those who prefer watching movies, the TV offers an additional motion smoother that allows adjusting the frame rate of the film according to personal preferences. The Philips PUS8959 has a 10-step adjustment for the functions called "Smoothness" and "Motion Blur Reduction." The "Smoothness" function is responsible for increasing the number of frames through interpolation, making motion on the screen smoother, resembling the effect of so-called "soap opera." Meanwhile, "Motion Blur Reduction" focuses on minimizing blurring and improving motion sharpness, which is particularly noticeable in dynamic sequences, such as action scenes or fast sports shots.

TCL C7K handles motion smoothness really very well. The matrix used in it offers a refresh rate of 144 Hz, which already suggests that this TV is something more than just an ordinary "60 Hz" panel. Moreover – if we connect the C7K to a computer and set the resolution to Full HD. But we will write more about this in the paragraph about gamers and PC cooperation. Returning to everyday use – both sports and movies look very good here. Thanks to the fast panel and well-functioning motion smoother, the C7K is perfect for watching matches, but also for movie screenings. In the menu, we will find two sliders – blur reduction and flicker reduction – which allow us to adjust the motion smoothness effect to our own preferences. At lower settings, we get a more cinematic effect, with slight frame motion. At higher settings – the image becomes more theatrical, smooth to the point of exaggeration. Everyone can set it to their liking.

Philips PUS8959 is a television that will certainly satisfy gaming enthusiasts. It supports most modern technologies useful during gameplay, such as HGiG, allowing for better HDR effect reproduction in games. As a result, the image is closer to what the game developers intended to achieve.

The television also supports 120 Hz image display, ensuring smoothness and dynamism, which is particularly important during action games and sports broadcasts. The Game Bar feature provides quick access to game settings, making it easier to adjust the image according to user preferences without interrupting gameplay.

Unfortunately, the Dolby Vision mode does not offer low input lag, which may be noticeable during dynamic scenes. Nevertheless, thanks to the HGiG feature and high refresh rate, the Philips PUS8959 remains an attractive choice for gamers, offering good image quality and appropriate smoothness during gameplay.

TCL C7K is a TV that looks like the dream equipment for gamers on paper – and most importantly, it also performs well in practice. First, the good news: we have two HDMI 2.1 ports with full bandwidth, so we can easily connect both a console and a computer, taking full advantage of their capabilities. The panel itself supports 144 Hz refresh rate, which provides a significant advantage in dynamic games. Additionally, it comes with a full package of gaming features: VRR (Variable Refresh Rate), ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode), and Dolby Vision support in games. There is also an HGiG mode, which allows for HDR effects that align with the creators' intentions. GameBar, which is an information bar for gamers. It operates quickly, looks clear (like a Nintendo console👌), and shows what’s most important: the current frame count, VRR status, and even HDR parameters.