Hisense 55N6
GREAT IMAGE QUALITY FOR SUCH A BUDGET PRICE.
AS ONE OF the the most affordable sets in the roundup, we weren’t expecting this set to be quite as advanced as the much more expensive models. It’s a 55-inch unit, and uses LCD display technology. As such, it obviously doesn’t have the same ability to pump out pure blacks such as OLED. The contrast ratio of 2,907:1 is impressive by LCD standards, but well below that offered by other display technologies.
The interface was incredibly easy to use and, like most TVs these days, includes a dedicated Netflix button on the remote. Advanced colour controls were surprisingly present, but didn’t seem to make much of a difference when calibrating the screen. The official specs claim that this TV is HDR compliant, but there’s no sign of a Dolby Vision or 4K Ultra Premium logo to be seen.
As our results show, for the price, this set pumps out an excellent image, covering a healthy range of the colour gamut. If you’re looking for a budget set that covers all of the basics with strong image quality, it’s quite the steal.
HISENSE IN 2017
Hisense may have originally been seen as a relatively budget brand when it first hit Aussie shores a few years ago, but in recent years, that image has changed dramatically. This year, their sets will range in price from $1,699 for the 50-inch Series 7, all the way up to $10,999 for the 85-inch Series 9. A licensing deal with the Red Bull racing team has helped boost the brand’s visibility significantly, and shows their intent on becoming a major player in the world of TVs.
Their new Series 7 TVs will be the first round of ULED 4K TVs to hit stores this year. ULED may sound like OLED, but it’s very different — according to Hisense, it’s a collection of 17 different patents that focus on four key technologies while still being based on LCD technology, and Hisense is the main company using this display technology. The first is an Ultra Wide Color Gamut, necessary for full HDR compliance, which calls for 90% of the colours of the DCI-P3 spec be covered; ULED covers 99.98%. ULED also uses local dimming of the backscreen, breaking it down into several zones that are each independently lit, to establish better blacks in key parts of the scene. All ULED TVs are 4K resolution, and also have their own proprietary motion interpolation technology called UltraSmooth Motion.
The Series 8 and 9 televisions will feature ‘HDR Supreme’, promising brightness of up to 1,000 nits. However, it’s at the top end that we’ll see the company making use of Quantum Dot technology, debuting in the Series 9.
We’ll spend more time discussing this technology in the Samsung section, as it’s their flagship feature for the year.
HISENSE SERIES 6 55N6
$1,599 hisense.com.au
CRITICAL SPECS
3,840 x 2,160; 4 x HDMI (2 x 1.4, 2 x 2.0); S/PDIF out; Wi-Fi and Ethernet
HISENSE MAY HAVE ORIGINALLY BEEN SEEN AS A RELATIVELY BUDGET BRAND WHEN IT FIRST HIT AUSSIE SHORES A FEW YEARS AGO, BUT IN RECENT YEARS, THAT IMAGE HAS CHANGED DRAMATICALLY.