Review: Hisense U7N TV

Everybody wants something for nothing—or at least as close to nothing as they can get. When most people ask me which TV to buy, they usually give me a budget of around $300 for a 55-inch, or maybe $500 for a 65-inch model. I get it, we all like to save money, but if you can stretch that budget a bit further, things really start to get good.

Hisense’s U7 series epitomizes the value of investing above the baseline. It can sell for around $1,000 for a 65-inch model, but its street price is regularly $800 or less. The new U7N steps up in some notable ways above the already great U7K, offering slightly higher brightness, better overall backlighting control to deliver deeper black levels, alongside quantum dot colors bursting with vibrancy. It’s also got excellent gaming features for its class and an improved Google TV interface for a solid all-around upgrade.

You’re still dealing with compromises, including throwing the dice on some quality-control issues like poor screen uniformity. If you’re more persnickety and less of a cutthroat bargain hunter, you’ll want to consider the shockingly bright Hisense U8N (8/10, WIRED Recommends) or even Sony’s posh Bravia 7 (7/10, WIRED Recommends) on sale. Otherwise, the U7N is a tempting bump above the basic for those ready for the true spectacle of 4K HDR.

Mostly Simple Setup

Putting the U7N together is surprisingly easy. I should know since I’ve gotten the pleasure of doing it twice; the first model I received was damaged in shipping.

Even first-timers will find the hardware assembly breezy. The panel is refreshing light (just over 42 pounds for the 65-inch model I reviewed), and the new pedestal-style stand, which uses two legs adjoined by a plastic plate, clicks together in seconds. It's also much more stylish than the prior U7K’s duck-skate legs. The only caveat is a pair of cable guides that protrude unappealingly at the back of each leg.

Otherwise, most film-forward modes should only need a few tweaks, such as turning off Clarity settings like Noise Reduction and Gradient. If you use the Standard Mode, you’ll likely want to turn off (or down) Motion Smoothing, and you may want to warm up the picture under Color Temperature. I do appreciate that, unlike a lot of TVs, Hisense lets you use your favorite default picture mode for gaming without sacrificing performance.

Loads of Good Stuff

There are plenty of reasons to applaud the U7N on the gaming front, starting with features like ALLM (auto low-latency mode) and VRR (variable refresh rate) at up to 4K @ 144Hz with supported PCs. Tapping the snazzy remote’s Menu key reveals a settings layout with a dedicated Game Bar at the far right for features like checking your refresh rate or adding crosshairs.

Photograph: Ryan Waniata

Like most models at this level, only two of the TV’s four HDMI inputs support HDMI 2.1 for the most advanced gaming features, but unlike last year’s U7K (and all of Sony’s premium TVs), the HDMI eARC port isn't one of them. That means you can connect two next-gen gaming devices without sacrificing the TV's dedicated input for a soundbar or receiver.

That’s key, since the U7N’s sound is as weak as I’d expect at this price. Dialog is clear, and the TV even supports Dolby Atmos natively, but sound is very localized and gets tinny at both the high and low registers. Frankly, that’s true of nearly every TV we test, and I always recommend consulting our best soundbars or best bookshelf speaker lists.

Other handy features include built-in Google Assistant voice search via the remote’s microphone key, Google Chromecast and Apple AirPlay streaming, Apple Homekit and Amazon Alexa (via a separate device), and support for all major HDR formats, including HDR10, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, and HLG.

Splashy Performance

The U7N’s powerful mini-LED backlighting and quantum dot colors combine for picture quality that’s generally above what you’d expect at this price. You’ll get excellent brightness for sizzling punch in your favorite HDR (high dynamic range) films and TV shows combined with deep black levels for immersive contrast. Colors are bold and vibrant, pushing 4K HDR nature content to flat-out spectacle, and revving up Blu-rays to near-premium heights.

Everything looks great on the Panasonic DP-UB9000, but I was still a bit shocked at how good my favorite Marvel 4K HDR Blu-rays looked on the U7N. The “Space Chase” scene in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol II absolutely sings, with searing explosions and flashing lights set against the inky depths of space. I almost felt like Baby Groot was going to hand me some of his weird space candy as Starlord and Rocket argued in the blazing reflections.

Photograph: Ryan Waniata

The TV has a tendency to crush black levels in the deepest HDR corridors, and yet I was impressed by how well it handled ultra-dark scenes like The Mandalorian’s “Mines of Mandalore” ep. The contrast of Bo-Katan’s gleaming yellow ray guns in the mines came to life, without fully blasting out my eyeballs. It helps that the screen blocks reflections pretty well. Shadow detail is even better in SDR (standard dynamic range) scenes like my HD Blu-ray of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The challenging Voldemort mountaintop scene looked great, even in moderate light, while the luminous shield that spreads across the castle burst to life.

The U7N isn’t half as bright as Hisense’s gob-smacking 65-inch U8N, which pushes peak highlights near 3,000 nits. Its dimming zones also aren’t as numerous or accomplished as its pricier sibling, revealing more haloing and blooming, especially from the off-axis where (like nearly all LED TVs), the TV loses picture quality quickly. Otherwise, you’ll really only notice blooming in the toughest moments, such as turning on the subtitles on a dark film in a dark room.

Unlike last year’s U7K, I was able to keep the Local Dimming on High for optimal contrast without any distracting scene shifts. The U7N also handles motion and overall picture processing better than last year. Turning the Motion Smoothing to Custom and pushing the Judder Reduction to +1 (with Blur Reduction off) did a good job taking most of the distracting stutters out of even tough panning shots.

Photograph: Ryan Waniata

The biggest struggle I encountered over several days was uniformity, sometimes called “the dirty screen effect.” Using my grayscale test disc, I found some standout aberrations, including a dim column along the left side that was mostly visible in darker grays or deep reds, though it’s generally mild. Other aberrations included mildly darkened corners (quite common in LED TVs) and some thin vertical columns, which were only really noticeable when I focused on panning skylines, especially in video games.

It’s the kind of thing you may not see unless you go looking for it (sorry if you bought this TV and are now). It was nearly imperceptible in most things I watched, including sports like soccer and tennis. Even for gaming, unless you’re focusing on the sky, you may miss it. I should add that other reviewers seemed to get better results, so it’s possible my review model is an exception. In other words, I may have lost the so-called “panel lottery,” and all TVs at this price will have some form of uniformity issues.

Those issues notwithstanding, the U7N is an impressive performer, combining with its other wiles for knockout value. You can do better with options like the fiery Hisense U8N, the balanced Roku Pro Series, or the premium Bravia 7. Otherwise, I'd expect only a few options like TCL’s QM7 (which I have yet to test) to provide this much performance might. The U7N may not be something for nothing, but even for bargain hawks, it could be worthy of stretching your budget.