TCL C655 / C69B (55"-85") vs LG QNED91T6A

Overall, the quality of HDR performance in TCL C655 / C69B looks quite promising. The average value in test patterns is around 450 nits, which already allows one to feel the effects of lighting and better image dynamics. However, as mentioned earlier, this effect may be partially suppressed by slight differences in bright and dark colors, resulting from the lack of local dimming technology. However, the DCI-P3 color gamut coverage of 94% deserves high praise, and this is made possible by the use of a quantum dot (QLED) panel. As a result, colors are vibrant and well-reproduced when watching HDR content.

As befits a MiniLED television, QNED91T LG easily exceeds the magic barrier of 1000 nits on the luminance chart. In scenes where light played a key role, the effect was truly decent. For example, 1000 nits in the first scene of "Life of Pi" is really an impressive value, and the 600 nits achieved in scenes three and five allowed us to feel the true magic of HDR. However, problems arise with very small light elements on the screen, such as the moon, lanterns, or lamps. A value of around 100 nits - to put it bluntly - is disappointing, as these elements are so dark that they are barely visible. It is worth praising the television for covering the DCI-P3 colour gamut at 96% and BT.2020 at 75%. LG QNED91T leaves us with mixed feelings, mainly due to very aggressive dimming algorithms, which, while effectively eliminating the halo effect, do impact the brightness of smaller elements.

The TCL C655 / C69B television offers a movie mode that has been tested for color reproduction quality. Although this mode is called movie mode, unfortunately, it has quite a few errors that a director would certainly not want to see while recording their work. Starting with image analysis, it's worth looking at the white balance - both in HD and 4K HDR content, the white balance has significant errors. In both cases, the red color dominates, making the colors too warm, and overall it has a pink or yellow tint. This can be seen in the picture below from the movie "Star Wars." The Colour Checker test confirms these errors - the color samples stray into inappropriate shades, affecting the overall color fidelity. A minor issue is the brightness characteristic. However, it is also not free of flaws. The gamma chart shows a strong spike at the beginning, causing the image to be overly bright, and the EOTF curve responsible for brightness in 4K HDR material shows significant fluctuations as well – it is visible how the television tries to maintain proper brightness, but it does not always succeed effectively.

We conduct all our tests in the best picture mode on each TV. In this case, as usual, it is the Filmmaker mode. The name of the mode suggests perfect colour reproduction; however, there were noticeable deviations from the correct image. Our unit, in terms of white balance, showed a significant drop in shades of blue - both in SDR and 4K HDR material - which caused a clear yellowing of the image, noticeable in comparison scenes from the film with Tom Cruise. As we described earlier, QNED91T has some tendencies to brighten the screen. This is confirmed by the gamma, which is significantly lower than the reference value of 2.4. On the other hand, the EOTF curve, responsible for brightness in 4K content, showed some issues with the TV dimming the image in the darkest areas, which we could observe in the paragraph describing HDR effect quality. Although the Filmmaker mode is quite a decent "out of the box" mode, it still requires some adjustments.

After calibrating the movie mode of the TCL C655 / C69B television, the white balance has been equalized, and the colors look as they should – which is confirmed by only slight deviations in the Colour Checker test. The gamma is really accurate, which means the television should not have issues with brightness in low-resolution materials. Unfortunately, a similar EOTF characteristic is still visible, which is a natural phenomenon in televisions that do not have local dimming – they simply struggle to “shine” more brightly in a given part of the screen. Despite this structural limitation that cannot be overcome, we recommend adjustments in the settings, as the overall color representation looks really very good.

LG offers advanced calibration tools in its televisions such as 65QNED91T6A, which we took advantage of. When it comes to white balance, we were able to significantly correct it in SDR content. The picture mode in 4K HDR quality posed greater challenges, which, although still not perfect, looks better than before calibration. The errors on the Color Checker palette and the colour palette are much smaller than in factory settings. Regarding brightness characteristics, gamma for HD content is practically ideal, with a slight exception at the end of the graph. However, the biggest issues the television had were with brightness in 4K HDR content. Analyzing the EOTF characteristics in films, we noticed that the television manipulates brightness quite significantly, which we observed in earlier tests. Brightness is considerably boosted compared to the graph in the static test, and the television brightens certain scenes to the extent that some smaller elements lose detail. Unfortunately, this is caused by an average local dimming algorithm in this model. Nevertheless, calibration yields decent results, especially in terms of precise colour reproduction.

The TCL C655 / C69B television handles tonal transitions in low-quality materials pretty well. The "Gradual Smoothing" feature at a low setting effectively smooths tonal transitions, but at the same time, it blurs important details, such as the texture of objects. On the positive side, it does not negatively affect film grain, allowing for a natural look of the image. As for digital processing, the television adds artificial sharpness, which may appeal to some users who prefer a sharpened image. However, for those who prefer a softer look, this may be a disadvantage. A downside is also that the image has been quite heavily cropped by so-called overscan, which reduces the field of view and cuts off the edges of the image.

When it comes to tonal transitions in lower quality materials, the TV offers the already-known feature from LG TVs - "Smooth Gradation." We can control it at three levels: low, medium, and high. We recommend using the medium option, as it effectively removes tonal transitions without causing noticeable issues with removing the structure of objects or other artefacts.

As for image scaling (upscaling), LG's Alpha processor handles this well. The image appears very plastic, with slight jaggedness in some elements, which does not significantly affect the quality. It looks really okay, and the overall effect is very satisfactory.

The C655 / C69B TV is equipped with a 4K@60 Hz panel, which means it performs best when watching movies and less dynamic content. It also has a "Flicker Reduction" feature that allows for adjusting the fluidity of the image – users can choose whether they prefer smoother motion or a more cinematic, frame-by-frame effect. The TV can also adapt to lower resolutions, such as Full HD and 2K at 120 Hz, which will definitely please gamers by offering a smoother image at the cost of resolution. It is worth noting that this feature is available in sizes from 55"+. Additionally, the largest variant, 98", is equipped with a 144Hz panel with full motion smoothing.

The television has a refresh rate of 120 Hz, which should satisfy most users in terms of motion smoothness. Additionally, QNED91T is equipped with the TruMotion feature, which allows for smoother image display in movies. As part of this feature, we can adjust the "De-Judder" and "De-Blur" sliders. The "De-Judder" slider is responsible for reducing jitter in movies, which is particularly useful when playing content with a lower frame rate, while "De-Blur" helps reduce blurriness in fast scenes, which is essential for sports or dynamic shots.

The television TCL C655 / C69B offers an almost perfect set of features for gamers, supporting all the most important technologies. It has an ALLM feature that automatically switches the television to low latency mode, significantly improving responsiveness and minimizing signal delays, which is particularly important during dynamic gameplay. The VRR feature allows for synchronizing the screen refresh rate with the number of frames generated by the console, eliminating the tearing effect and ensuring smoother gameplay.

The television also supports Dolby Vision in game mode, providing better color reproduction and contrast in games that support this format, and the Game Bar enables quick access to gameplay-related settings such as response time, delay level, and other parameters. Unfortunately, C655 / C69B does not support 4K resolution at 120 Hz (with the exception of the 98" variant), which may be disappointing for more demanding gamers who expect the highest fluidity in high-resolution games. However, if we are willing to forgo 4K, the television offers support for Full HD and 2K at 120 Hz, providing a smoother image and being a great alternative for those who prefer a higher refresh rate at the expense of resolution.

The LG 65QNED91T6A television is equipped with HDMI 2.1 ports with a full bandwidth of 48 Gb/s, providing full support for all standards needed for gaming on modern consoles. We can count on support for variable refresh rate (VRR) and auto low latency mode (ALLM). This ensures smooth gameplay without delays.

With support for all popular HDR standards in games, such as HGiG and Dolby Vision, we can fully harness the potential of the PS5 and XBOX One consoles. The television also easily handles lower resolutions than 4K, so even older consoles look good on it. The Game Bar makes it easy to access gaming-related settings, allowing us to quickly and intuitively adjust picture parameters and features for gamers. Additionally, the QNED91T offers NVIDIA GeForce Now functionality, enabling us to game in the cloud without needing a console. However, it should be noted that this solution is quite expensive and somewhat falls short compared to Xbox Game Pass, which is available only on Samsung TVs.

QNED91T LG is a great choice for less experienced and more advanced gamers looking for a versatile television for gaming.