Samsung U8000F (VA) vs TCL C7K / QM7K 50"

While the U8000F with a VA panel can still be praised for decent blacks, there are no longer any reasons to be impressed regarding brightness – especially in HDR scenes. The television reaches a maximum of just under 250 nits, which is simply too little to talk about any impressive light effects. Bright elements come off as pale, and scenes that should shine look rather flat. An interesting situation was observed during the test of a scene from the movie Sicario 2 – the screen noticeably darkened, as if the television were trying to hide its limitations in displaying blacks. One might get the impression that the device artificially darkens the image to improve contrast, but in practice, the effect doesn't make much of a difference, other than that we see less on the screen. Additionally, there's the issue of colors – the U8000F does not support a wide color gamut, so don't expect vibrant, saturated shades known from better models. The HDR image here resembles slightly brightened SDR and… maybe that’s even a good thing. For this model, it's not worth setting expectations for cinematic experiences – it's better to treat HDR as a modest addition.

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 Samsung U8000F has been tested by us in the best picture mode available out of the box – namely, Filmmaker Mode. This profile is supposed to provide a neutral, cinematic image, free of unnecessary enhancements and artificial beautifications. In the case of SDR content – mainly in HD or SD resolution – the television performed surprisingly well right out of the box. The only noticeable imperfection was brightness management. The gamma chart showed some deviations – slight brightening or dimming of certain tones – but in practice, it did not significantly affect the viewing experience. For a television in this segment, it performs quite well.

However, the situation is considerably weaker in HDR mode. Although white balance was still acceptable, color errors were very pronounced. In the Color Checker test, almost every sample was outside the target point, and the image itself looked unnatural – colors were shifted, sometimes too cool, at other times simply dull and lifeless. The main problem lies in the hardware limitations – the U8000F does not support the wide color gamut of DCI-P3, so it is physically unable to reproduce the colors anticipated by the HDR standard. And unfortunately, this is evident in almost every more demanding scene.

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...

Right out of the box, the U8000F offered quite a decent picture in SDR for its price range. However, we managed to slightly enhance it – we reduced a subtle purple tint and improved the gamma characteristics, giving it a more natural curve. Despite these adjustments, the TV still tends to brighten the brightest details a bit too aggressively – the gamma graph shows a clear dip that cannot be fully corrected.

On the other hand, in HDR mode, it is noticeably weaker. It's hard to talk about any significant improvement here – despite attempts to tweak the settings, the picture still presents considerable color errors. A Delta E exceeding 7 means noticeable deviations that couldn't be effectively reduced. Unfortunately, this is a limitation of the design itself – the U8000F was simply not designed for serious HDR. In everyday SDR viewing, it performs quite well, but when it comes to HDR content... it's best not to have too high expectations.

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 how the Samsung U8000F handles lower quality materials, we must admit that Samsung has made progress compared to its predecessor from last year – the DU7192 model, which theoretically occupies the same position in the lineup. This year's model is equipped with a feature for improving the fluidity of tonal transitions, which has been implemented much better than last year. Yes, the TV still uses quite strong algorithms that can distort details or remove film grain, but despite that – it can be confidently said that it works effectively. However, not everything went perfectly. The U8000F has noticeable issues with slight image stuttering when watching very old content in very low resolution. If someone plans to play their old VHS tape, they should be prepared for the image to appear slightly "choppy."

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.

The Samsung U8000F is equipped with a 60 Hz panel, so right from the start, it's clear that we shouldn't expect miracles. This is simply standard in this class – sufficient for everyday viewing but without any frills. The TV offers one motion enhancement slider – a feature called "Motion Blur Reduction," which allows us to adjust the smoothness of the image in movies. Higher settings give a more "theatrical" and smoothed effect, while lower settings help maintain the original character of the film with a slight 24p effect. An interesting feature is "Clear Motion LED," which is a BFI mode – inserting black frames between image frames to improve motion sharpness. However, in practice, the screen flickers heavily when it's activated, and it should be treated more as an experiment than something that genuinely improves gaming comfort.

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.

[UPDATE] We have updated our 2025 Samsung TV reviews following the release of firmware version 1131, which officially restores the essential HGiG (HDR Gaming Interest Group) support.

Samsung U8000F offers a basic set of features for gamers, which nonetheless may be sufficient for less demanding users. It has an automatic game mode – when a game is launched on the console, the TV automatically switches to low latency mode, significantly improving response time. It also includes a VRR feature, or variable refresh rate, which operates in the range of 48 to 60 Hz. This means that both Xbox and PS5 will not produce a "tearing" effect on the screen – as long as we stay within this range.

And unfortunately, that's about it when it comes to advantages. Additions like Game Bar or higher refresh rates are reserved for higher models of Samsung from the 2025 line. In theory, the TV also supports the HGiG function, which should adjust the HDR image to the intentions of game developers. Unfortunately – even though this feature appears in brochures and marketing materials – its configuration on the Xbox console turned out to be... impossible in practice.

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.