After all, final yr’s U8N was equally potent, inside the visible margin of error for most folk. It’s no small feat to push the brightness even additional, however I might’ve most popular Hisense focus as an alternative on among the U8’s hang-ups, like poor off-axis viewing, a typical problem with LED TVs, or its penchant for oversaturating reds.
That additional purple tint was significantly noticeable in HD exhibits like Breaking Dangerous (sure, I’m rewatching for a 3rd time) with the Warm1 colour temperature, whereas Warm2 appeared too cool. In a single scene from Season 2, Jesse’s nuckles look positively painted purple as he performs with a beetle. In one other, a sure somebody is searching for a funeral costume, pulling out a “blue” one that appears unequivocally violet on the U8QG—however correct blue (with some purple tint) on my LG C1 OLED.
The TV’s tendency to flatten shadow particulars is much less of a problem, because of its principally strong reflection dealing with and the flexibility to pep up darkish areas with Peak Brightness or settings like Darkish Element. Scenes just like the darkish depths of Mandalor from The Mandalorian or the torturous hilltop shot from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows proved simple to zip up even in difficult environments.
{Photograph}: Ryan Waniata
The U8 additionally appears to have stepped up its image processing this yr. Picture readability could be onerous to quantify, however the TV does a superb job rendering sharp 4K photos and upscaling HD video, whereas principally minimizing moiré, the type of glittering impact on advantageous patterns that may be an issue with budget-forward TVs. You’ll discover strong movement response, particularly with a contact of movement smoothing, and first rate display uniformity, too. My evaluation mannequin revealed solely minor blotches in difficult take a look at patterns and transferring skylines.
Maybe the U8QG’s greatest brag is that there simply aren’t a variety of TVs that carry out this effectively in its value tier, in a number of sizes (although efficiency between sizes will fluctuate). TCL’s rival QM8, presently in our testing rooms, often prices extra, and costs go up from there for something near this stage of brightness from premium manufacturers, like Sony’s unimaginable Bravia 9 (9/10, WIRED Recommends). That might make the U8QG the default TV for brightness lovers on a finances, particularly as soon as the U8N is gone.
As traditional, all of it relies upon if you purchase. Till just lately, a 65-inch U8QG price $1,500, on par with the QM8K and bougier OLED fashions from final yr just like the LG C4 (9/10, WIRED Recommends). The C4 isn’t any nuclear titan, but it surely offers a lot better accuracy, readability, off-axis efficiency, and many others. At $1,000 or much less, the U8QG is loads friendlier, and effectively value contemplating for these after eye-blasting brightness.
