Samsung Q6F (IPS) vs Hisense U7S Pro

Unfortunately, the Samsung Q6F is a very dark model. Its peak brightness in HDR does not exceed 250 nits, which is definitely too low to even speak of any "high dynamic range" effect, or HDR. In practice, it's better to stick to content in SDR format, which simply looks more predictable on this TV. Another problem is the global dimming technique – in scenes with a lot of black, the TV drastically dims the entire panel to artificially improve the black levels. This causes the image to become even darker, and brightness can drop below 100 nits. The only consolation is the QLED technology, but even here it's average. The applied quantum dot layer is not top-notch, as the coverage of the DCI-P3 color gamut does not exceed 90%. As a result, colors in HDR content may just seem under-saturated.

Let’s start by saying that the U7S Pro is an impressively bright television – in calibrated mode, our measuring equipment indicated a staggering 2200 nits of peak brightness! This is an impressive result, considering that this model is positioned as mid-range.

However, as we know, peak brightness on test patterns is one thing, and actual movie scenes are another. Unfortunately, in real video materials, the backlight power clearly drops. While in the most demanding moments the television can still exceed the 1000 nit barrier – which is still a great result, perfectly fitting the mastering standards of most HDR films – the truly challenging aspect turns out to be the aggressively tuned local dimming algorithms. Because of them, small, bright details, such as stars or the moon in the night sky, are noticeably dimmed. The television tries at all costs to maintain deep black levels, which is of course understandable, but unfortunately, this comes at the cost of dynamics and the brilliance of the HDR effect itself.

The color reproduction is worth praising. The new U7S Pro is a QLED construction that provides very wide color gamut coverage. Unlike last year's model (U7Q Pro), this year's variant is now a “true” QLED, rather than a solution based on a PFS filter. As a result, color saturation has noticeably increased, and coverage of the most demanding BT.2020 space has exceeded the 81% barrier.

We tested the television in Filmmaker mode, which showed us two completely different faces of this model. Looking at SDR content, we were honestly shocked at how good this TV looks straight out of the box. It was really hard to nitpick anything here. Despite a slight “haze” in the white balance or somewhat brightened details in the blacks (which directly results from the IPS panel's design), color errors hovered around the “2” level. This is surprisingly good, even outstanding, considering the price of this device.

On the other hand, what the Q6F displayed in terms of colors after switching to HDR mode was a very unpleasant surprise. The errors in color reproduction and palette were so huge that our charts literally ran out of scale. Of course, since Samsung even in such an inexpensive model offers very advanced calibration possibilities, we decided to approach the subject professionally and check what could be done about it during calibration.

We tested the U7S Pro model – as always – in the best factory-tuned picture mode, which is Filmmaker Mode. We can evaluate the displayed colors in two ways. The most disappointing was the profile intended for watching SDR content, such as traditional television, YouTube, and other less demanding materials. The picture was clearly too yellow, which turned out to be a direct consequence of a poorly set white balance. As our graphs show, there is a huge deficiency of the blue component here, which drastically affected the overall color temperature. This is clearly evident on the ColorChecker charts and the graphs of the color palette itself, where most samples veered toward yellow. Fortunately, the factory HDR mode performed significantly better – there, the color errors hovered around a Delta E value of 3, which is already a really solid result.

After our calibration, the colors in SDR mode looked even better – the result is quite surprising, as color errors at level "1" are something usually seen in devices costing several thousand dollars. In this regard, the Q6F is really a great screen for everyday television, less demanding series, or movies. Unfortunately, our interference in HDR mode did not bring about a noticeable improvement. The television, due to its poor black levels and low coverage of a wide color gamut, still has significant problems with proper color saturation, especially red. This is an example of a device where HDR mainly exists as a label on the box – for everyday use, we definitely recommend watching content in SDR format.

However, we know that the Hisense company can do much more – as previous generations have proven – which is why we simply couldn't leave the factory flaws of the U7S Pro model in everyday content. As always in such cases, we subjected the television to professional calibration. The conclusions? This process brought about a colossal change. After manually adjusting the white balance and compensating for the deficiencies in the blue component, the annoying yellow tint disappeared like magic. The white became naturally pure, and skin tones gained the proper, healthy hue. Importantly, the calibration not only tamed the capricious SDR mode but also allowed us to squeeze the maximum from the panel's potential, reducing the average color reproduction errors to values almost imperceptible to the human eye. The only thing we have to nitpick after the entire process is the very nature of the Mini-LED backlighting and its specific cooperation with the HDR signal. The aggressively tuned local dimming algorithms significantly interfere with the EOTF brightness curve. As a result, the backlighting does not always work perfectly with the creator's intent – depending on the scene being viewed, the curve can noticeably run either above or below the reference, which at times disrupts the perfect dynamics of HDR image.

The Q6F handles upscaling lower resolution content to native 4K very well. The scaling is surprisingly good here, even for such a budget TV from the QLED series. The only downside is when we watch very low-resolution material, like 576p (typical for old DVD players) – then the image may be slightly cropped. This is because the TV does not allow for the Overscan feature to be turned off, which is a common issue with Samsung devices.

The situation is completely different when it comes to digital processing, which is the attempt to smooth the image from unwanted artifacts. Here, the TV completely fails. Although we find a function in the menu called "Noise Reduction", it yields no visible results regardless of the slider setting. The only thing it seems to do is introduce unwanted errors into the image. Despite its presence in the system, we definitely do not recommend using it.

The digital processing of lower quality signals is at a very high level here, thanks to the MediaTek Pentonic 800 processor utilized in the U7S Pro. The upscaling itself, which is the TV's ability to enhance lower resolution signals to 4K, is also performing well. We did not notice any unnatural, sharp edges on the screen, and our test image with the model looked simply attractive.

The 60 Hz panel in the Samsung Q6F is the standard in this price range, which makes it a rather average model for dynamic sports or gaming. However, in the case of movies, the TV performs quite well thanks to the smoothing feature. The "Motion Smoothing" option allows you to adjust the fluidity of motion to your own preferences – from maintaining a cinematic feel to full fluidity.

The Hisense U7S Pro features a panel with a maximum refresh rate of 165 Hz in 4K, and in game mode, it can reach up to 330 Hz at Full HD resolution. However, it's important to note that these highest numbers have little significance in everyday use, as most content supports a maximum of 120 Hz (e.g., while gaming on a console). Nevertheless, the TV handles motion quite well and performs really decently for an LCD construction.

There's hardly anything to complain about regarding fluidity. In the menu, we find a motion smoothness enhancer called "Motion Enhancement," which hides two sliders: blur reduction and judder reduction. They allow for manual configuration of the smoothness enhancer, which works well for both movies and sports, effectively improving the raw television signal.

We won’t beat around the bush – the Q6F is not a television designed with gamers in mind. While it does have features like ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode) and VRR frame synchronization for consoles, the list of benefits pretty much ends there. Besides these basics, the TV offers nothing more that might satisfy those who spend a lot of time in front of a console. It’s a real shame that such a useful tool as Game Bar is missing here, which in Samsung’s higher models allows for quick control of game parameters. In terms of gaming, this is an absolutely basic model and is only suitable for "casual" gamers.

If you plan to connect a console or PC to the U7S Pro, you will be more than satisfied – this television is excellent equipment for gamers. Hisense didn't spare any expense and included 4 HDMI 2.1 ports with full bandwidth of 48 Gbps. You won't need to juggle cables, as each port will handle the full package of features. We have an automatic game mode (ALLM) and VRR, which works over a wide range from 48 Hz to a cosmic 330 Hz. Of course, those 330 Hz are currently just a gimmick for owners of powerful PCs, as consoles will still be limited to 120 Hz, but it's good to have that reserve for the future. The Game Bar also works very well during gaming. It's a handy menu bar for gamers, where you can quickly change the picture mode, turn on a crosshair in the center of the screen, and even change the aspect ratio to ultra-wide without going into the main settings of the television, which PC simulator fans will appreciate. The only downside worth noting is the incorrect implementation of the HGiG format in games. This means that the television ignores the instructions from the console regarding the image generated in HDR10 and constantly meddles with the image it produces, trying to "enhance" it in its own way. Because of this, the correct configuration of HDR in the console menu (where brightness is set on the logo/checkerboard) is somewhat complicated.