The Hisense 55A7500F is one of the most affordable Ultra HD televisions from the Chinese manufacturer in 2020, at the price of a few concessions such as the absence of a microphone on the remote control. Let’s see if the picture quality in this smart TV is there.
Overview of the UHD TV
The Hisense 55A7500F TV features a 55-inch (≈140 cm) 10-bit (8-bit + FRC) VA 10-bit panel displaying Ultra HD definition (3840 x 2160 px). On this entry-level Ultra HD model, the refresh rate is unsurprisingly limited to 50 Hz. It features a simple DVB-T2/C/S2 tuner (DTT, cable and satellite), a 2 x 10 W audio system, a quad-core MStar MSD6886 processor and the home operating system VIDAA U4.0 with a few popular applications including YouTube, Netflix, Amazon Prime, and even Molotov pending the arrival of MyCanal in the coming weeks.
In its 55-inch version, this TV is sold for about $600. It is also available in 43-inch (109 cm), 50-inch (127 cm) and 65-inch (165 cm) versions at approximately $450, $ 500 and $800 respectively.
Image quality
The Hisense 55A7500F carries a VA slab. This technology provides good contrast, and therefore deeper blacks at the expense of narrower viewing angles than IPS or Oled tiles. On this TV, we measured a 70% loss of brightness at 45° on the sides. The color variation at the sides can therefore be seen to a large extent.
Night Cenima mode
In Night Cinema mode, the Hisense 55A7500F television offers fairly accurate colors, even if they cannot be considered perfectly faithful to those sent by the source. We have measured an average delta E of 3.2, greater than 3 – the threshold above which the human eye is able to perceive the drift of a color. Overall, this is still very good.
Gamma
The default BT.1884 gamma follows the profile of the reference curve with just a small dud on the very light gray, very slightly overexposed. The average gamma measured at 2.29 remains very good and the grayscale rendering is globally very good.
Color temperature
The color temperature is fairly stable across the spectrum, but is slightly too high. Indeed, the average measured at 7070 K is higher than the 6500 K reference of the video standard, but this has very little impact on the final image.
Contrast ratio
Scaling engine
The scaling engine used by Hisense is very basic. It smoothes the original source, resulting in a slight loss of sharpness in the image. On this point, the Chinese manufacturer lags behind the best players in the market, including Sony, Philips and Panasonic. The TV does include a motion compensation engine, but it has no impact on the picture. The moving image suffers from a rather present blur, whatever the chosen mode.
HDR
The Hisense 55A7500F TV is compatible with HDR10, HLG and more interesting with Dolby Vision. This dynamic metadata standard is particularly interesting on this type of entry-level TV set with limited processing performance.
With a maximum HDR signal at 10,000 cd/m², the Display Tone Mapping used by Hisense follows fairly well the reference curve before smoothing the signal from 55% luminance to limit clipping. Unfortunately, the peak brightness measured at 360 cd/m² is higher than what is usually found in this price range (about 300 cd/m²), but it is still limited enough in absolute terms to be able to benefit from a decent HDR image. Fortunately, Dolby Vision compatibility allows you to enjoy compatible HDR content a little better, but the visual impact is still limited.
HDR Night mode
The HDR Night mode offers the best colorimetric rendering. We measured the average delta E at 4.3. If the colors can not be considered perfect, they are in the good average, especially for HDR on a TV in this price range.
The Hisense 55A7500F has only 60% coverage of the Rec.2020. This is low, but common to most entry-level and mid-range LCD TVs on the market. The cinema is currently satisfied with the DCI-P3 color space, and the Hisense TV only has 74% of this space. This is not enough to make the most of the color space. This television is very far from the 90 to 95% of the P3 displayed by Oled televisions and the best LCD televisions.
Display Delay
If this television has a very good display delay of 15 ms, which translates into less than one picture delay from the source and an imperceptible lag between the action at the joystick and its repercussion on the screen, it suffers from a very high remanence time, measured at 20 ms, which materializes as a trail behind moving objects. In comparison, the best LCD TVs have an afterglow time of only 11 ms, such as the Sony KD-55XH9096 or the Samsung QE65Q800T, while Oled TVs are untouchable with an afterglow time of less than 1 ms.
Game mode
Hisense has the good idea to let the user activate the Game mode on any image preset. It is therefore possible to reduce the input lag while maintaining the color fidelity of the Night Cinema mode. So it’s a perfect match on this particular criterion.
Clouding
The use of a Direct Led backlighting system limits the risks of clouding, but this defect can still occur if the light distribution filter is damaged during transport. While we did not find any clouding problem on the model we tested, we noted a significant drop in brightness in the corners. We also saw a slight banding on the homogeneous light grey backgrounds.
We measured the average white homogeneity deviation across the entire slab at 14%; an average figure for a 55-inch LCD TV. Remember that below 20%, the eye does not perceive any difference in uniformity.
Ergonomics
The Hisense 55A7500F has a fairly classic design, but well finished. The plastics made of imitation aluminum make an illusion. The base of the slab, also made of imitation aluminum, brings a little bit of premium.
The stand of the TV
This TV adopts a rather cumbersome center stand that occupies a good part of the TV cabinet and does not facilitate the installation of a sound bar. Fortunately, its depth is limited.
Cable management system
At the back of each side of the foot, there is a fairly basic but very effective cable management system. We’d like to see this type of small detail more often on TVs in this price range
The TV screen edges
The screen edges are thin enough for a 55-inch TV. The frame fits pretty well, especially for an entry-level model. We didn’t notice any assembly defects.
The Slab
The slab of this Hisense TV does not really filter reflections. It does a little better than other entry-level TVs like the Samsung RU7105, but it can’t compete with the best on the market like the Oled models or the high-end Qled TVs.
Depth of the TV
Without its stands, the Hisense 55A7500F has a depth of 7.8 cm. However, the space requirement on the TV cabinet is related to the stand, which is only 25 cm deep. This TV is therefore relatively comfortable on our reference cabinet, which measures 160 x 40 cm.
The back of the TV
The back of the TV is very simple. You’ll find the power connector on the left, the connectors on the right, and the 200 x 300 mm VESA mounting holes in the center.
The connectivity
Grouped at the back of the TV, the connectivity consists of four HDMI 2.0b inputs, two USB ports, an Ethernet port, an optical digital audio output, a DVB-T/cable antenna socket and a satellite antenna socket. The TV also features Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac and Bluetooth. However, it does not have a headset output.
Vidaa interface
Hisense’s Vidaa interface in version 4.0 is becoming more modern. It offers the basic functionalities of a connected TV, including popular applications such as Netflix, YouTube, DailyMotion, Rakuten TV, but also – and this has been new for a few weeks now – Molotov and soon MyCanal. The interface is globally fluid, which is a good surprise for a TV in this price range. Hisense is still a step behind Android TV, Tizen and webOS, which now offer a more convincing experience, especially in terms of the number of applications and voice search, but the gap is getting smaller and smaller.
The first start of the TV
The first start of the TV is done in about 24 seconds, a faster time than Android TVs that start in about 40 seconds, but far from Tizen or webOS that start in less than 10 seconds. Switching off is instantaneous, while resuming is done in less than 5 seconds; an excellent time, especially since the TV consumes less than one watt in standby.
Remote control
The remote control is lightweight, fits comfortably in your hand and the rubber buttons fall naturally under your thumb. The click after each press is audible. The remote control gives access to all the settings and even offers multimedia keys. Dedicated keys also provide direct access to Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Prime Video, Rakuten TV and the media player. The keys are not backlit, and especially the remote control does not have a microphone, which makes it difficult to use the capabilities of this connected TV properly.
Audio
The audio system consists of two 10W speakers. Unpretentious, it offers very average performance. It lacks bass, but more annoyingly, the middle of the spectrum lacks clarity, which can be problematic for watching TV and distinguishing voices correctly. As always, movie lovers will turn to a sound bar or home theater kit.
Consumption
We measured the consumption at 65 W on our test pattern with a white set at around 150 cd/m². The relative consumption is only 77.9 W/m², which is lower than the average of the tested TVs (about 100 W/m²). This TV does not do better than the Sony Bravia KD-55XG8505 – the most energy efficient of our comparison – with 56 W/m² or even the Hisense 55U7QF with 70 W/m². On this point, this Hisense TV is still very good at consuming relatively little energy. Moreover, the standby consumption is always less than 1 W.
Advantages
- Dolby Vision compatibility.
- Reduced display delay.
- Good image quality in SDR and HDR.
- Good finishes for an entry-level model.
Disadvantages
- Audio system.
- Limited brightness peak.
- Remote control without microphone.
- Reduced vision angles.
CONCLUSION
The Hisense 55A7500F is a good Ultra HD TV that offers a well calibrated picture by default, a slightly higher peak brightness than models in the same price range and even benefits from Dolby Vision compatibility. You still have to make a few concessions, especially in terms of responsiveness, sound or the absence of a microphone on the remote control. Finally, its most serious competitor is the Hisense 55U7QF (or its clone the 55U72QF) which benefits from a higher peak brightness and a microphone for almost the same price thanks to repeated promotions.
