It's done it with savvy advertising, tying its name and TVs to major sporting events, and by charging less for TVs that have spec sheets every bit as advanced as the brands people are familiar with.
When people browse online or look in-store, Hisense is no longer an unknown name to be glossed over, and on Black Friday a lot of people are browsing for TVs.
Read on to find out more about Hisense's new range and why the 55U8KQTUK is a Which? Great Value TV.
- genuinely good deals, checked by experts and updated every day throughout the Black Friday salesHisense TVs in 2023
It doesn't have as big a range as LG or Samsung, but it has the models you'd expect from entry-level TVs up to high-end ones. In the table you'll find an overview of all the models we've tested this year
undefinedWhat's notable about Hisense's lineup?
Its QLED TVs are at the entry-level end. Usually these are mid-range or even high-end in some cases, but Hisense has LCD TVs occupying those slots.
There's also the impressive consistency to its HDR formats. Dolby Vision and HDR10+ are both advanced formats that adjust contrast to suit each scene, which is something the basic formats (HDR10 and HLG) can't do. As with QLED, we generally only see the advanced formats in mid to high-end sets, but you'll get them with whatever Hisense you buy.
The high-end models get Dolby Vision IQ instead, which uses a light sensor to adjust contrast based on the ambient light in your room.
There are no OLEDs either and Hisense is one of the few brands not to have one. It's odd because it has chosen OLED displays for its high-end TVs in the past.
How do Hisense TVs compare with those of other brands?
Favourably, on paper. They mirror market leading brands in terms of spec and beat them on price.
Sometimes these features mask underlying issues though, and this year again we've found some Hisense TVs that aren't nearly good enough.
Drab pictures and shrill sound hold back several of its ranges and we wouldn't recommend them, but not all struggle.
Some of its 2023 lineup shows real quality. All those HDR formats are put to good use and certain models render 4K beautifully. We've watched our test scenes on many Hisense TVs, but we've never seen them look this rich, balanced and exciting.
It's a brand you'll always need to be careful with because its bad TVs are among the worst of any brand. But we're delighted to say that a Hisense TV in 2023 has finally struck the balance between quality and value.
See how the scores on Hisense TVs compare with the two big hitters and find out which brand has the most Best BuysHisense 55U8KQTUK Great Value TV
TVs in the U8 range should be Hisense's best. At this level it can come down to tuning rather than tech. TVs around the £1,000 mark will have got more attention from Hisense's picture and audio engineers to help them look and sound their best.
That extra time and expertise should help the TV make the most of the high-end mini-LED backlight and HDR formats to create a special TV - and it's paid off with the 55-inch 55U8KQTUK, which is Hisense's first Great Value TV.
Having smaller, and therefore more, bulbs in the backlight helps the 55U8KQTUK exhibit stunning 4K picture that's vivid and engaging, with punchy colours and wonderfully broad contrast, without feeling gaudy or unnatural.
Great Value it may be, but the size of the screen means it's still not cheap. There are plenty of good options at this size, too, so it's worth checking our to see if it ticks all your TV boxes.Accessibility issues
There's one glaring problem with all the Hisense TVs we tested - and that's accessibility.
Its TVs are in the dark ages when it comes to accessibility with a complete dearth of useful features for anyone who is blind or partially sighted.
No screen reader, screen magnification, colour inversion and a remote that's difficult to use with touch alone is about as far from acceptable as you can get.
It's a shame that in a year we can finally recommend a Hisense TV, we can't recommend it to everyone.
What about the rest of the Hisense range?
Hisense E7 range TVs
The E7 range is one of Hisense's most basic, although with four HDR formats and a QLED screen it's an entry-level range in price alone.
Other brands don't offer these features at this price level, which means Hisense is cutting corners elsewhere, or we're being stiffed by other brands.
Hisense A7 range TVs
It may have an A in the name rather than E, but the A7 and E7 ranges are remarkably similar. The QLED display, which has quantum dots designed to boost colour vibrancy and the four HDR formats should be a match made in heaven on a range of TVs at the cheaper end of the market.
The similarities between Hisense's low-end ranges means we're left with the same question though... how? There's far more to a TV than its specs. They don't tell us how they've been implemented and, most importantly, whether the processor and picture engine is accomplished enough to make the most of the features on the spec sheet.
Hisense U6 range TVs
In the mid-range, Hisense swaps QLED displays for LCD ones, but retains all those HDR formats. The backlight is more interesting than the screen here though.
It's mini LED, which means all the bulbs in it are far smaller than normal and more of them can be squeezed in. More bulbs means better contrast (in theory anyway) as the TV has more control over what portions of the screen are lit.
Hisense U7 range TVs
Sets in this range have the mini LED backlight from the U6 TVs and the screen has the added benefit of being 120Hz. That means the screen can refresh the image up 120Hz times a second.
It will help compatible content look smoother, and compatible content is restricted to video games mostly, but it can also help fast-moving action and sports look clearer. We're getting into high-end here, so our expectations increase, too. The fancy features should be backed up by beefy tech that should get more out of them.
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