Everybody wants something for nothing, or at least as close to nothing as they can get. When most people ask me what TV to buy, I usually get a quote of around $300 for a 55-inch or larger TV. maybe $500 for a 65-inch model. I get it, we all like to save money, but if you can stretch that budget a little further, things really start to look up.
Hisense’s U7 series exemplifies the value of investing above the ordinary. It can sell for around $1,000 for a 65-inch model, but its retail price is regularly $800 or less. The new U7N outperforms the already excellent U7K in a few notable ways, offering slightly higher brightness, better overall backlight control to deliver deeper black levels, along with vibrant quantum dot colors. It also has excellent gaming features for its class and an improved Google TV interface for a solid all-around upgrade.
You still have to deal with compromises, including risking some quality control issues like poor screen uniformity. If you’re more picky and don’t like bargain hunting, you’ll want to consider the incredibly bright Hisense U8N (8/10, WIRED Recommends) or even Sony’s sleek Bravia 7 (7/10, WIRED Recommends) on sale. Otherwise, the U7N is a tempting option above the entry-level one for those ready for the true spectacle of 4K HDR.
Mostly simple setup
Putting the U7N together is surprisingly easy. I should know because I’ve had the pleasure of doing it twice; the first model I received was damaged during shipping.
Even beginners will find hardware assembly a breeze. The panel is lightweight (just 42 pounds for the 65-inch model I reviewed), and the new pedestal stand, which uses two legs held together by a plastic plate, assembles in seconds without screws. It’s also much sleeker than the skate-style legs on the previous U7K. The only drawback is a pair of cable guides that stick out unattractively from the back of each leg.
Photography: Ryan Waniata
Hisense’s version of Google TV makes setting up the software extremely intuitive, especially if you have any Google services. The app-based system connected to my network right away, and thanks to my previous logins, it automatically set up voice assistant matching and used my saved Google passwords to log into some apps. I love using Google Photos as a screensaver, and it’s easy to change ambient mode later. The interface is fairly responsive, save for a tendency to mute the volume for a second or two when rewinding or fast-forwarding.
Optimizing picture quality is more onerous, though it’s not too difficult once you learn the Hisense’s quirks. As always, I recommend switching the picture mode to one of the cinema-based options for most content. In SDR, the Theater Night and Filmmaker modes are my favorites, while Theater Day provides more sparkle if you have a lot of ambient light. The U7N is one of the few TVs in its class bright enough to use Dolby Vision Dark regularly, which I used for all but the darkest content, even in moderate lighting. I left the local dimming and peak brightness settings on High in all modes, but you can adjust peak brightness later if it gets too hot.
The TV’s optical light sensor, which adjusts the screen’s brightness based on the lighting in the room, is confusing. Most TVs offer a global setting that can be disabled in the ambient or eco light settings, which I typically disable for better accuracy (and because I don’t like my TV dimming without warning). Hisense incorporates it into each picture mode fairly inconsistently. For example, the setting is off by default in HDR Filmmaker mode, but on in SDR Filmmaker mode. Dolby Vision Dark, designed as the most accurate Dolby Vision setting, also has the light sensor on by default. If you like to be in control of your TV’s dimming tendencies, you’ll want to make sure the sensor is disabled for each mode you use, and be sure to switch each mode from Current to All Sources.