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Hisense U8/U8H TV Review

Tested using Methodology v1.11
Review updated Oct 26, 2023 at 10:15 am
Latest change: Writing modified Jun 11, 2024 at 03:57 pm
Hisense U8/U8H Picture
8.3
Mixed Usage
Value for price beaten by
: no price info
7.7
TV Shows
Value for price beaten by
: no price info
8.2
Sports
Value for price beaten by
: no price info
9.0
Video Games
Value for price beaten by
: no price info
8.3
HDR Movies
Value for price beaten by
: no price info
9.0
HDR Gaming
Value for price beaten by
: no price info
8.7
PC Monitor
Value for price beaten by
: no price info
This TV was replaced by the Hisense U8/U8K

The Hisense U8/U8H is a mid-range 4k TV released in 2022. It's the second-highest model in Hisense's 2022 ULED lineup, sitting above the Hisense U7H and below the Hisense U9H. It's available in three sizes, ranging from 55 to 75 inches, and all three sizes offer very similar performance. It replaces the Hisense U8G, and while it's very similar, Hisense has upped its specs a bit with a new Mini LED backlight with up to 528 dimming zones and a slightly updated design. It comes with the user-friendly Google TV 11 interface, an upgraded version of the Android TV interface found with the 2021 Hisense lineup. It has a great selection of gaming features, including HDMI 2.1 bandwidth on two of its HDMI ports and FreeSync variable refresh rate (VRR) support.

Our Verdict

8.3 Mixed Usage

The Hisense U8H is an excellent TV all-around. It's an excellent TV for watching movies in a dark room thanks to its high contrast ratio and great local dimming feature. HDR content looks incredible as it gets incredibly bright and has a wide color gamut, so the latest movies look incredibly realistic and lifelike. It's a great TV for watching shows or sports in a bright room, but because it has a narrow viewing angle, it's not a good choice for a wide seating arrangement as the image degrades when viewed off-center. Finally, it's an amazing TV for gaming thanks to its HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, VRR support, low input lag, and fast response times.

Pros
  • Fantastic contrast and black uniformity results in deep blacks in a dark room.
  • Exceptionally bright in both SDR and HDR.
  • Excellent reflection handling.
Cons
  • Image degrades when viewed from the side.
7.7 TV Shows

The Hisense U8H is a great TV for watching shows during the day. It has exceptional peak brightness and excellent reflection handling, so glare isn't an issue even in a very bright room. It has a great smart interface with a huge selection of streaming apps, so you're sure to find your favorite shows. It also upscales lower-resolution content well, which is great if you have TV shows on Blu-ray or DVD. Sadly, it has a narrow viewing angle, so it's not ideal if you have a wide seating arrangement or if you like to move around with the TV on, as the image degrades as you move off-center.

Pros
  • Exceptionally bright in both SDR and HDR.
  • Excellent reflection handling.
  • Low-resolution content is upscaled without any issues.
Cons
  • Image degrades when viewed from the side.
  • Poor low-quality content smoothing.
8.2 Sports

The Hisense U8H is a great TV for watching sports in a bright room. It has excellent reflection handling and exceptional peak brightness, so it can easily overcome glare in any viewing environment. It has great gray uniformity, with just a bit of dirty screen effect in the center, and it has a fast response time, so fast action is clear. On the other hand, it has a sub-par viewing angle, so it's not ideal for a wide seating arrangement, as the people watching it from the sides will see a faded, washed-out image.

Pros
  • Exceptionally bright in both SDR and HDR.
  • Excellent reflection handling.
  • Low-resolution content is upscaled without any issues.
Cons
  • Image degrades when viewed from the side.
9.0 Video Games

The Hisense U8H delivers an amazing gaming experience. It has superb low input lag and an excellent response time, delivering a very responsive gaming experience, although, unfortunately, the TV's response time causes red ghosting in some content. It also has a great selection of gaming features, including FreeSync variable refresh rate support. It has HDMI 2.1 bandwidth on two ports, meaning it can take full advantage of the Xbox Series S|X and the PS5.

Pros
  • Fantastic contrast and black uniformity results in deep blacks in a dark room.
  • Exceptionally bright in both SDR and HDR.
  • Superb low input lag.
  • Excellent motion handling and a fast response time.
  • Low-resolution content is upscaled without any issues.
  • Great selection of gaming features.
Cons
  • Red ghosting in some content.
8.3 HDR Movies

The Hisense U8H is a great TV for watching movies in HDR. Thanks to its fantastic contrast ratio, impressive local dimming feature, and incredible peak brightness in HDR, bright highlights look incredible. It tracks the PQ EOTF extremely well, ensuring that most content looks the way the content creator intended. It also has an excellent color gamut, so most HDR content looks vivid and lifelike. Unfortunately, due to its fast response time, there's some noticeable stutter in slow panning shots.

Pros
  • Fantastic contrast and black uniformity results in deep blacks in a dark room.
  • Exceptionally bright in both SDR and HDR.
  • Wide color gamut and amazing color volume.
Cons
  • Noticeable stutter in low frame rate content.
  • Poor low-quality content smoothing.
9.0 HDR Gaming

The Hisense U8H is an amazing TV for gaming in HDR. It delivers an amazing gaming experience thanks to its low input lag and excellent response time, although, unfortunately, the TV's response time causes red ghosting in some content. It has a great selection of gaming features, such as FreeSync VRR support and HDMI bandwidth on two ports. HDR content looks amazing thanks to its fantastic contrast ratio, impressive local dimming feature, and incredibly high peak brightness, so bright highlights look superb, delivering a more realistic picture in some games.

Pros
  • Fantastic contrast and black uniformity results in deep blacks in a dark room.
  • Exceptionally bright in both SDR and HDR.
  • Superb low input lag.
  • Excellent motion handling and a fast response time.
  • Wide color gamut and amazing color volume.
  • Great selection of gaming features.
Cons
  • Red ghosting in some content.
8.7 PC Monitor

The Hisense U8H is a good TV for use as a PC monitor, but there are a few issues with it. It has very good uniformity, so there's very little dirty screen effect in areas of uniform color, like a website with a uniform background. It has low input lag and a fast response time, ensuring a smooth, responsive desktop experience. It also has a narrow viewing angle, so the sides of the screen appear washed out if you're sitting too close to the screen.

Pros
  • Exceptionally bright in both SDR and HDR.
  • Superb low input lag.
  • Excellent motion handling and a fast response time.
Cons
  • Image degrades when viewed from the side.
  • 8.3 Mixed Usage
  • 7.7 TV Shows
  • 8.2 Sports
  • 9.0 Video Games
  • 8.3 HDR Movies
  • 9.0 HDR Gaming
  • 8.7 PC Monitor
  1. Updated Jun 11, 2024: Unfortunately, this TV died as part of an in-depth investigation into edge-lit TVs. It has been removed from the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  2. Updated May 27, 2024: Mentioned the newly-reviewed Hisense U8/U8N in the HDR Brightness section of this review.
  3. Updated May 02, 2024: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  4. Updated Feb 13, 2024: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  5. Updated Dec 05, 2023: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  6. Updated Oct 26, 2023: We've updated the text in the review to reflect our latest test methodology updates.
  7. Updated Oct 12, 2023: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  8. Updated Sep 07, 2023: Added mention of the newly reviewed Hisense U8K in the Compared To Others section of this review.
  9. Updated Aug 09, 2023: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  10. Updated Jul 17, 2023: Added mention of the newly reviewed TCL QM8/QM850G QLED to this review's Compared to Other TVs box.
  11. Updated Jul 10, 2023: Converted to Test Bench 1.11. With this update, we've added a new Upscaling: Sharpness Processing test and revamped our Blooming test so the scores and picture better match the real world experience. With this change, it was necessary to remove the Black Crush test. Finally, we've updated our usage scores to better align our scores with user expectations.
  12. Updated Jun 07, 2023: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  13. Updated Apr 27, 2023: We took additional photos and PQ EOTF measurements with FreeSync enabled.
  14. Updated Apr 11, 2023: We checked the PQ EOTF tracking with both 'HDMI Input Optimization' settings. We also took some pictures in-game, as the 'Text Clarity Optimization' setting results in blown out highlights in HDR.
  15. Updated Apr 03, 2023: We uploaded the brightness measurements and uniformity photos after running the TV for four months in our Accelerated Longevity Test.
  16. Updated Mar 09, 2023: Converted to Test Bench 1.10. With this update we've revamped our Gradient testing, added a new test for Low Quality Content Smoothing, and expanded our Audio Passthrough testing.
  17. Updated Mar 01, 2023: With the latest firmware update M1103, G-SYNC Compatible mode is now working properly. Hisense has also added a new HDMI Input Optimization setting, which allows for proper 4k @ 120Hz 4:4:4 from a PC, so we've updated the list of supported resolutions. We've also updated our pre-calibration settings to match the new setting names used by Hisense.
  18. Updated Feb 06, 2023: We uploaded the brightness measurements and uniformity photos after running the TV for two months in our Accelerated Longevity Test.
  19. Updated Jan 11, 2023: Updated to Test Bench 1.9, modifying our Contrast testing and splitting our local dimming testing into multiple sections covering Blooming, Black Crush, and Lighting Zone Transitions. You can see our full changelog here.
  20. Updated Nov 24, 2022: We bought and tested the TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED, and added a few relevant comparisons to this review.
  21. Updated Nov 17, 2022: We uploaded the initial brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  22. Updated Oct 19, 2022: We bought and tested the Vizio M Series Quantum X 2022 and added a few relevant comparisons to this review. Check out our full comparison here.
  23. Updated Oct 17, 2022: We bought and tested the Hisense U7H, and added a few comparisons in this review. See our full comparison between these two TVs here.
  24. Updated Sep 23, 2022: Review published.
  25. Updated Sep 20, 2022: Early access published.
  26. Updated Sep 12, 2022: Our testers have started testing this product.
  27. Updated Aug 22, 2022: The product has arrived in our lab, and our testers will start evaluating it soon.

Differences Between Sizes And Variants

We tested the 65-inch Hisense U8H, and the results are also valid for the 55-inch and 75-inch models. In Canada, it's known as the Hisense U88H, and it performs the same. There are similarly named international models, including the U8HG, U8HSG, and the U8H in Australia, but these models use a completely different panel and smart platform, and these results aren't valid for those models.

 Size US Model Local Dimming Zones Panel Type
55" Hisense 55U8H 336 VA
65" Hisense 65U8H 504 VA
75" Hisense 75U8H 528 VA

The unit we tested was manufactured in May 2022, and you can see the label here.

Compared To Other TVs

The Hisense U8H delivers incredible performance for the price, significantly outperforming any other TV in its price range, like the TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED, making it by far the best mid-range TV on the market in 2022. It even competes well with more recent releases like the TCL QM8/QM850G QLED and even its own successor, the Hisense U8/U8K. It has limited processing capabilities compared to more expensive competitors, such as the Sony X90K/X90CK, resulting in worse gradient handling and slightly higher input lag. Sadly, it still has some bugs and issues, including red ghosting in some scenes.

See our recommendations for the best 65-inch TVs, the best 4k TVs, and the best TVs for bright rooms.

Hisense U7H [U7, U75H]
55" 65" 75" 85"

The Hisense U8/U8H is significantly better than the Hisense U7H. The U8H delivers much better picture quality, as it has a better local dimming feature with a Mini LED backlight. The U8H also delivers a better gaming experience, as it has a significantly faster panel with much less ghosting behind fast-moving objects. Finally, the U8H looks better in a bright room as it has much better reflection handling and gets much brighter in SDR, meaning it can handle more glare.

TCL Q7/Q750G QLED
55" 65" 75" 85"

The Hisense U8/U8H is better than the TCL Q7/Q750G QLED. The Hisense gets much brighter in both HDR and SDR and has much better reflection handling, so it can handle even the brightest of rooms. They have similar contrast and black uniformity. However, the Hisense has a better local dimming feature with less visible lighting zone transitions, so it looks better in dark scenes with fast motion. The Hisense is also the more colorful TV due to its wider color gamut and color volume, and its color accuracy is vastly better pre-calibration; you can set up the Hisense and go, while the TCL requires some work to look its best.

Hisense U8G
55" 65"

The Hisense U8/U8H is a bit better than its predecessor, the Hisense U8G. The U8H has a more effective local dimming feature, significantly increasing contrast with local dimming enabled. The U8H is also a lot brighter, and it displays HDR content much closer to the content creator's intent. Finally, the U8H has been updated to the latest Google TV interface, which is a bit faster and smoother than the older Android TV interface on the Hisense U8H.

Sony X90K/X90CK
55" 65" 75" 85"

The Hisense U8/U8H is much better than the Sony X90K/X90CK. The Hisense has much better reflection handling, and it gets significantly brighter, so it's a better choice for a bright viewing environment as it can better overcome glare. The Hisense delivers a more impactful HDR experience, as it gets significantly brighter in HDR and can display a wider color gamut.

TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED
55" 65" 75" 85"

The Hisense U8/U8H is better than the TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED. The Hisense has a better local dimming feature, as blacks aren't raised as much in dark scenes and there's significantly less blooming, as the local dimming feature on the Hisense dims closer to bright objects in dark scenes, whereas the TCL tends to spread the highlights out across many zones. The Hisense also has a faster response time, making it a better choice for gamers.

Samsung QN90B QLED
43" 50" 55" 65" 75" 85"

The Hisense U8/U8H and the Samsung QN90B QLED deliver very similar picture quality overall, but the Samsung is a bit better overall. The Hisense has better native contrast, and it displays content closer to what the content creator intended. On the other hand, the Samsung TV has much better processing overall, so upscaled content looks a bit better, and there's less banding in areas of similar color. Thanks to its wide-angle filter, the Samsung is a much better choice for a wide seating arrangement, as the image remains consistent when viewed from the sides.

Samsung QN90A QLED
43" 50" 55" 65" 75" 85" 98"

The Hisense U8/U8H and the Samsung QN90A QLED offer very similar picture quality overall, but the Samsung has better processing and a wider viewing angle, so it's slightly better overall. The Hisense has better native contrast, and it has better accuracy in HDR, as most content is displayed at the brightness level the content creator intended. On the other hand, the Samsung TV has much better processing overall, so upscaled content looks a bit better, and there's less banding in areas of similar color. Thanks to its wide-angle filter, the Samsung is a much better choice for a wide seating arrangement, as the image remains consistent when viewed from the sides.

Vizio M Series Quantum X 2022
50" 65" 75"

The Hisense U8/U8H is significantly better than the Vizio M Series Quantum X 2022. The Hisense delivers much better picture quality, with better reflection handling, better uniformity, and higher peak brightness. The Hisense also has much better dark room performance thanks to its Mini LED backlight, which delivers much higher contrast than the Vizio, with significantly less blooming around bright objects in dark scenes.

Hisense U8/U8K
55" 65" 75" 85" 100"

The Hisense U8/U8H and Hisense U8/U8K are nearly identical TVs, with the U8K being a marginal improvement over its predecessor. The U8K has slightly better contrast and gets slightly brighter, but it's hard to notice. The U8K has significantly improved low-quality content smoothing compared to the U8H; it's a good TV for streaming content. Its response time is slower than the U8H, but it doesn't have the U8H's noticeable red ghosting in some content. The U8H is the more accurate TV, but the U8K is still very accurate overall.

TCL QM8/QM850G QLED
65" 75" 85" 98"

The Hisense U8/U8H and the TCL QM8/QM850G QLED are very similar TVs with little to differentiate themselves from one another. The TCL gets brighter in SDR, but the Hisense is the much more accurate TV regarding color accuracy, and it respects the creator's intent much more than the TCL does. The TCL has better low-quality content smoothing, so low-bitrate streaming services look better on it. Still, the Hisense has better sharpness processing when upscaling low-resolution content, so cable, DVDs, and even classic video game consoles are a better match.

Samsung QN85C/QN85CD QLED
55" 65" 75" 85"

The Hisense U8/U8H is better than the Samsung QN85C/QN85CD QLED. The Hisense has much better contrast, helped by a better local dimming feature with less visible zone transitions and less blooming. The Hisense gets much brighter in both HDR, although the Samsung is just as bright in SDR. The Hisense is also more colorful, with a wider color gamut and better color volume. It also has better reflection handling than the Samsung, although the Samsung does have a much better viewing angle. Sadly, the Hisense has terrible image processing, and the Samsung is much better in that regard.

LG QNED85
55" 65" 75" 86"

The Hisense U8/U8H is significantly better than the LG QNED85. The U8H has much better contrast, with significantly less blooming around bright areas of dark scenes. The Hisense also gets significantly brighter in both SDR and HDR, and it has a better anti-reflective coating, so it can better overcome glare and bring out highlights in HDR better. The LG has a much wider viewing angle, but unless you're in a moderately-lit room with a wide seating arrangement, the Hisense is still much better.

Hisense U6/U6K
55" 65" 75"

The Hisense U8/U8H is much better than the Hisense U6/U6K, as they're in two very different tiers regarding overall quality. The U8H outmatches the U6K in every way, as it's much brighter, has much better contrast, has HDMI 2.1 bandwidth on two ports, is more colorful overall, and is even the most accurate TV of the two. Still, the Hisense U6K is a much cheaper TV. 

Sony X90J
50" 55" 65" 75"

The Hisense U8/U8H is much better than the Sony X90J. The Hisense looks much better in a bright room, as it has much better reflection handling, and it gets significantly brighter so it can better overcome glare. The Hisense also delivers a more impactful HDR experience, as it gets significantly brighter in HDR and can display a wider color gamut.

LG QNED80 2022
50" 55" 65" 75" 86"

The Hisense U8/U8H is significantly better than the LG QNED80. The Hisense delivers much better picture quality in dark rooms thanks to its higher contrast and better local dimming. It's also much better for HDR because it supports both Dolby Vision and HDR10+, which the LG doesn't support, and it gets much brighter for better highlights and more vivid colors.

Samsung CU8000
43" 50" 55" 65" 75" 85"

The Hisense U8/U8H is vastly superior to the Samsung CU8000. The Hisense has a great local dimming feature, giving it fantastic contrast and black uniformity, so it's in a different class from the Samsung CU8000. The Hisense is also much brighter, with a wider color gamut and superior reflection handling, so it also looks far superior in bright rooms. The Samsung has one advantage over the Hisense: it clears out macro-blocking from low-quality streaming sources better than the Hisense does, but that's just not enough to compensate for the Hisense's sheer advantage in image quality.

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Test Results

perceptual testing image
Design
Design
Style
Curved No

The TV has a premium design that looks great in any room. It has extremely thin bezels on three sides, and even the bottom bezel is incredibly thin, so it blends well into your surroundings. The feet are slim and don't take up much space.

Design
Accelerated Longevity Test
Uniformity Pictures

Update 06/11/2024: Unfortunately, during our investigation of the uniformity issues this TV developed, the panel broke and can't be fixed. It has been permanently removed from this test.

Design
Stand

The feet are wide-set and support the TV well. They're very thin, made of premium materials, with just a bit of wobble front to back. The feet can be adjusted in two distinct positions: a wide position and a narrow one.

Footprint of the 65-inch stand in the wide position: 44" x 14.76". In the narrow position, the 65-inch stand has a footprint of 31.3" x 14.76". In either position, the feet lift the TV about 3.4" above the table, so most soundbars fit in front without blocking the screen.

Design
Back
Wall Mount VESA 400x400

The back of the TV is made of plastic, with a textured horizontal pattern and vents along the top. There's also a built-in subwoofer on the back of the TV near the center. There are clips built-in to the feet to help with cable management. The inputs are on the left-hand side of the TV when facing the front, and they're easy to access even when the TV is wall-mounted.

Design
Borders
Borders 0.41" (1.0 cm)
Design
Thickness
Max Thickness 2.87" (7.3 cm)
7.5
Design
Build Quality

The Hisense U8H has good build quality. There's a bit of front and back wobble, but the feet support the TV well overall. It's mainly made of a mix of hard plastic and metal, and it looks and feels well-built overall. There's a bit of flex in the back panel, but it doesn't cause any issues.

Picture Quality
9.1
Picture Quality
Contrast
Contrast
160,880 : 1
Native Contrast
4,020 : 1

The TV has fantastic contrast. Blacks are deep in a dark room, and the local dimming feature is extremely effective at boosting bright highlights while maintaining low black levels in bright scenes. It's a noticeable improvement over the Hisense U8G, especially with local dimming enabled, which is nearly twice as effective at boosting contrast.

8.0
Picture Quality
Blooming

The TV has great blooming performance, as the small size of its dimming zones minimizes any blooming around bright objects or subtitles in darker scenes. However, there's still noticeable blooming with bright objects on a black, or near black, background.

8.0
Picture Quality
Lighting Zone Transitions
Local Dimming
Yes
Backlight
Full-Array
Dimming Zones Count Of Tested TV
504

Overall, the TV's processing keeps up very well with fast-moving objects, and lighting zone transitions aren't very noticeable, with minimal haloing.

9.0
Picture Quality
Contrast And Dark Details In Game Mode

Switching to Game Mode doesn't result in any noticeable difference in dark scene performance, which is great.

9.2
Picture Quality
HDR Brightness
Hallway Lights (~1950 cd/m²)
922 cd/m²
Yellow Skyscraper (~700 cd/m²)
498 cd/m²
Landscape Pool (~300 cd/m²)
269 cd/m²
Peak 2% Window
1,264 cd/m²
Peak 10% Window
1,705 cd/m²
Peak 25% Window
1,876 cd/m²
Peak 50% Window
1,296 cd/m²
Peak 100% Window
800 cd/m²
Sustained 2% Window
1,222 cd/m²
Sustained 10% Window
1,630 cd/m²
Sustained 25% Window
1,833 cd/m²
Sustained 50% Window
1,288 cd/m²
Sustained 100% Window
797 cd/m²
Automatic Brightness Limiting (ABL)
0.040

The Hisense U8H is incredibly bright in HDR. Bright highlights stand out incredibly well, delivering an impactful HDR experience with both games and movies.

These measurements are after calibrating the HDR white point with the following settings:

  • HDR Picture Mode: HDR Theater
  • Backlight: Max
  • Local Dimming: High
  • Color Temperature: Warm1

Check out the 2024 Hisense U8/U8N for even better HDR brightness.

9.2
Picture Quality
HDR Brightness In Game Mode
Hallway Lights (~1950 cd/m²)
917 cd/m²
Yellow Skyscraper (~700 cd/m²)
490 cd/m²
Landscape Pool (~300 cd/m²)
297 cd/m²
Peak 2% Window
1,244 cd/m²
Peak 10% Window
1,685 cd/m²
Peak 25% Window
1,835 cd/m²
Peak 50% Window
1,267 cd/m²
Peak 100% Window
786 cd/m²
Sustained 2% Window
1,238 cd/m²
Sustained 10% Window
1,601 cd/m²
Sustained 25% Window
1,795 cd/m²
Sustained 50% Window
1,261 cd/m²
Sustained 100% Window
782 cd/m²
Automatic Brightness Limiting (ABL)
0.040

The TV's HDR brightness in Game Mode is fantastic. There's no noticeable difference in peak brightness from 'HDR Theater' mode. These measurements are after calibrating the HDR white point with the following settings:

  • HDR Picture Mode: HDR Game
  • Backlight: Max
  • Contrast: 90
  • Local Dimming: High
  • Color Temperature: Warm1

9.5
Picture Quality
PQ EOTF Tracking
600 Nit Tracking Delta
0.0032
1000 Nit Tracking Delta
0.0031
4000 Nit Tracking Delta
0.0031

The TV tracks the target PQ EOTF extremely well in the 'HDR Theater' Picture Mode with local dimming set to 'High'. There's a slow roll-off as the brightness approaches the TV's peak brightness, so fine details in bright scenes are preserved well. The EOTF in 'FILMMAKER' mode looks nearly the same as the 'HDR Theater' Picture Mode, but that mode locks you out of most settings. Setting Local Dimming to 'Low' results in a less accurate EOTF overall. When FreeSync is active, the TV hard clips when it reaches its peak brightness, as you can see here, leading to a loss of bright detail.

The HDMI Input Optimization setting has an impact on the PQ EOTF tracking. With it set to 'Text Clarity Optimization', there's more noticeable clipping in bright areas of the scene when gaming at 4k @ 120Hz, so the image looks a bit more washed out. The 'Picture Quality Optimization' setting more accurately tracks the PQ EOTF, and HDR games look much better. For the best results, you should only use the 'Text Clarity Optimization' setting when displaying text from a PC, not when gaming or watching media.

Text Clarity ModePQ EOTFIn-Game Photo 1In-Game Photo 2
Text ClarityPQ-EOTF
Picture ClarityPQ-EOTF

The brightness and EOTF tracking behave a bit differently depending on the FreeSync setting:

FreeSync SettingPQ EOTFIn-Game Photo 1In-Game Photo 2
OnPQ EOTF
OffN/A

9.0
Picture Quality
SDR Brightness
Real Scene Peak Brightness
780 cd/m²
Peak 2% Window
1,146 cd/m²
Peak 10% Window
1,460 cd/m²
Peak 25% Window
1,584 cd/m²
Peak 50% Window
1,176 cd/m²
Peak 100% Window
725 cd/m²
Sustained 2% Window
1,121 cd/m²
Sustained 10% Window
1,381 cd/m²
Sustained 25% Window
1,548 cd/m²
Sustained 50% Window
1,167 cd/m²
Sustained 100% Window
721 cd/m²
Automatic Brightness Limiting (ABL)
0.037

The Hisense U8H gets exceptionally bright in SDR. It's bright enough to overcome glare in any viewing environment, even outdoors in indirect sunlight. It can't get quite as bright with extremely bright scenes that cover close to the entire screen, but it's still bright enough to overcome glare.

These measurements are after calibration with the following settings:

  • Picture Mode: Theater Night
  • Backlight: Max
  • Local Dimming: High
  • Color Temperature: Warm1

8.9
Picture Quality
Color Gamut
Wide Color Gamut
Yes
DCI P3 xy
98.56%
DCI P3 uv
97.89%
Rec 2020 xy
77.95%
Rec 2020 uv
82.07%

The TV has an excellent HDR color gamut. It can display almost all the DCI-P3 color space used by most Ultra HD Blu-ray movies. It also has very good coverage of the wider Rec. 2020 color space, which is gaining in popularity, especially in animated films and some nature documentaries.

8.9
Picture Quality
Color Volume
1,000 cd/m² DCI P3 Coverage ITP
90.2%
10,000 cd/m² Rec 2020 Coverage ITP
47.8%
White Luminance
1,236 cd/m²
Red Luminance
265 cd/m²
Green Luminance
915 cd/m²
Blue Luminance
91 cd/m²
Cyan Luminance
997 cd/m²
Magenta Luminance
348 cd/m²
Yellow Luminance
1,150 cd/m²

The Hisense U8H has amazing color volume in HDR. Thanks to its high peak brightness and fantastic contrast ratio, it can display colors well across all luminance levels. Colors are bright and vibrant, and it displays dark, saturated colors well.

8.6
Picture Quality
Pre Calibration
White Balance dE
2.22
Color dE
1.64
Gamma
2.20
Color Temperature
6,624 K
Picture Mode
Theater Night
Color Temp Setting
Warm 1
Gamma Setting
2.2

The TV has excellent accuracy out of the box. Gamma follows the 2.2 target for a moderately lit room nearly perfectly, and the white balance is great. Color accuracy is excellent, and except for pure blues and whites, there are no noticeable issues. The color temperature is also excellent, neither too warm nor too cold.

9.3
Picture Quality
Post Calibration
White Balance dE
0.85
Color dE
1.19
Gamma
2.20
Color Temperature
6,555 K
White Balance Calibration
20 point
Color Calibration
Yes

The Hisense U8H has incredible accuracy after calibration to the 6500K white point. It's a bit tricky to calibrate, as minor changes to one point would make another look worse, but because it already has fantastic pre-calibration accuracy, you don't need to calibrate it too much for an accurate image.

You can see our full calibration settings here.

8.0
Picture Quality
Gray Uniformity
50% Std. Dev.
2.385%
50% DSE
0.151%
5% Std. Dev.
1.099%
5% DSE
0.096%

The TV has great gray uniformity. There's a bit of vignetting in the corners but very little dirt screen effect in the center. Dark scenes look even better, with the only noticeable issues being slightly brighter corners when compared to the TV's center.

9.5
Picture Quality
Black Uniformity
Std. Dev.
0.254%
Native Std. Dev.
0.885%

The Hisense U8H has excellent black uniformity. With local dimming disabled, there's some noticeable backlight bleed, especially in the corners, and there are a few bright patches throughout the screen. With local dimming enabled, however, the uniformity is much better. There's a bit of blooming around bright elements of the scene, but it's very minor, thanks to the high native contrast ratio and full-array local dimming feature.

5.9
Picture Quality
Viewing Angle
Color Washout
25°
Color Shift
26°
Brightness Loss
37°
Black Level Raise
40°
Gamma Shift
18°

Sadly, the Hisense U8H has a sub-par viewing angle. The image fades and looks washed out as you move even slightly off-center. It makes it a poor choice for a wide seating arrangement, as anyone sitting off-center will see a degraded image. Unlike high-end TVs from other manufacturers, like the Sony X95J or the Samsung QN90B QLED, there's no wide-angle filter to improve the viewing angle.

8.9
Picture Quality
Reflections
Screen Finish
Semi-gloss
Total Reflections
2.1%
Indirect Reflections
0.2%
Calculated Direct Reflections
1.9%

The TV has excellent reflection handling. The semi-gloss coating significantly reduces the intensity of direct reflections and does a fantastic job with reflections from ambient lighting. Unlike many high-end TVs, there's no rainbow smear with bright lights.

6.8
Picture Quality
HDR Native Gradient
100% Black to 50% Gray
4.0
50% Gray to 100% White
8.0
100% Black to 50% Red
6.0
50% Red to 100% Red
10
100% Black to 50% Green
6.0
50% Green to 100% Green
6.0
100% Black to 50% Blue
8.0
50% Blue to 100% Blue
6.0

The TV has alright HDR gradient handling. There's very noticeable banding in dark grays and visible banding in the entire range of greens, as well as in dark reds and bright blues. Other color gradients look great.

4.8
Picture Quality
Low-Quality Content Smoothing
Smoothing
3.0
Detail Preservation
9.0

Unfortunately, this TV's processing with low-quality content is poor. It just doesn't smooth out macro-blocking and pixelization well.

7.5
Picture Quality
Upscaling: Sharpness Processing

The TV has good upscaling capabilities. Fine details in upscaling content are preserved well, with some, but not excessive, blurring.

Sharpness processing was calibrated for low-resolution or low-bitrate content, with no over-sharpening, with the following setting:

  • Sharpness: 10

Picture Quality
Pixels
Subpixel Layout
BGR
Type LED
Sub-Type
VA

Like most TVs on the market, the Hisense U8H TV uses a BGR (Blue-Green-Red) subpixel layout instead of the traditional Red-Green-Blue layout. For video content, it doesn't cause any issues, but if you're planning on using this TV as a PC monitor, this reduces text clarity a bit, although there are easy workarounds for it. You can read more about this here.

Motion
8.7
Motion
Response Time
80% Response Time
4.0 ms
100% Response Time
7.6 ms

The TV has an excellent response time. There's some blur around fast-moving objects, but it's mainly due to persistence blur. Games look great, and it's easy to make out fine details in fast action when watching sports. Unfortunately, like the Hisense U8G, there's noticeable red ghosting in some content.

9.9
Motion
Flicker-Free
Flicker-Free
No
PWM Dimming Frequency
960 Hz

Unfortunately, like most TVs on the market, it uses pulse width modulation (PWM) to dim the backlight. Thankfully, it flickers at a very high rate at any backlight level, and it's not noticeable unless you're very sensitive to flicker.

Motion
Black Frame Insertion (BFI)
Optional BFI
Yes
Min Flicker For 60 fps
60 Hz
60Hz For 60 fps
Yes
120Hz For 120 fps
Yes
Min Flicker for 60 fps in Game Mode
60 Hz

The TV has an optional backlight strobing feature, commonly known as black frame insertion, to reduce persistence blur and improve the appearance of motion. It can flicker at both 60Hz with 60fps content or at 120Hz with 120fps content, ensuring that you don't see any duplications in motion.

Motion
Motion Interpolation
Motion Interpolation (30 fps)
Yes
Motion Interpolation (60 fps)
Yes

The TV has an optional motion interpolation feature. With motion interpolation at its highest settings, there's noticeable artifacting in any fast motion, with visible halos in some scenes.

6.2
Motion
Stutter
Frame Hold Time @ 24 fps
34.1 ms
Frame Hold Time @ 60 fps
9.1 ms

Due to the TV's relatively fast response time, there's noticeable stutter when watching 24p content, like movies, as each frame is held longer on screen. It's especially noticeable in slow panning shots.

10
Motion
24p Judder
Judder-Free 24p
Yes
Judder-Free 24p via 60p
Yes
Judder-Free 24p via 60i
Yes
Judder-Free 24p via Native Apps
Yes

The TV automatically removes judder from any source, ensuring a smooth movie-watching experience.

9.4
Motion
Variable Refresh Rate
Native Refresh Rate
120 Hz
Variable Refresh Rate
Yes
HDMI Forum VRR
Yes
FreeSync
Yes
G-SYNC Compatible
Yes
4k VRR Maximum
120 Hz
4k VRR Minimum
< 20 Hz
1080p VRR Maximum
120 Hz
1080p VRR Minimum
< 20 Hz
1440p VRR Maximum
120 Hz
1440p VRR Minimum
< 20 Hz
VRR + Local Dimming Yes

The TV supports variable refresh rate (VRR), and it's compatible with all sources that support it.

Inputs
9.3
Inputs
Input Lag
1080p @ 60Hz
15.6 ms
1080p @ 60Hz Outside Game Mode
120.9 ms
1080p @ 120Hz
7.2 ms
1080p @ 144Hz
N/A
1440p @ 60Hz
21.6 ms
1440p @ 120Hz
7.2 ms
1440p @ 144Hz
N/A
4k @ 60Hz
15.6 ms
4k @ 60Hz + 10-Bit HDR
15.4 ms
4k @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
15.6 ms
4k @ 60Hz Outside Game Mode
120.9 ms
4k @ 60Hz With Interpolation
114.5 ms
4k @ 120Hz
7.5 ms
4k @ 144Hz
N/A
8k @ 60Hz
N/A

The Hisense U8H has superbly low input lag, resulting in a responsive gaming or desktop experience. It's a bit higher than the best TVs on the market, like the LG C2 OLED, but it's not a significant difference.

9.6
Inputs
Supported Resolutions
Resolution 4k
480p @ 59.94Hz (Widescreen)
Yes
720p @ 59.94Hz
Yes
1080p @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
Yes
1080p @ 120Hz
Yes
1080p @ 144Hz
No
1440p @ 60Hz
Yes (forced resolution required)
1440p @ 120Hz
Yes
1440p @ 144Hz
No
4k @ 60Hz
Yes
4k @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
Yes
4k @ 120Hz
Yes
4k @ 120Hz @ 4:4:4
Yes
4k @ 144Hz
No
8k @ 30Hz or 24Hz
No
8k @ 60Hz
No

Most common resolutions are supported, and it displays chroma 4:4:4 properly, which is essential for clear text from a PC. 4k @ 120Hz is also displayed properly, even with chroma 4:4:4, as long as you set the HDMI Input Optimization setting to 'Text Clarity Optimization'.

Inputs
PS5 Compatibility
Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM)
Yes
4k @ 120Hz
Yes
1440p @ 120Hz
Yes
1080p @ 120Hz
Yes
HDR
Yes
VRR
Yes

The TV can take full advantage of the PS5. It's compatible with all supported features of the PS5, including variable refresh rate support and 1440p support.

Inputs
Xbox Series X|S Compatibility
Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM)
Yes
4k @ 120Hz
Yes
1440p @ 120Hz
Yes
1080p @ 120Hz
Yes
HDR
Yes
VRR
Yes

The Hisense U8H can take full advantage of the Xbox Series S|X. It's compatible with all supported features of the Xbox, including variable refresh rate support and 1440p support. The manufacturer advertises it to support 4k @ 120Hz Dolby Vision gaming, but it's limited to 4k @ 60Hz on the Xbox. If you start playing a game that supports Dolby Vision and have the refresh rate set to 120Hz, it'll fall back to HDR10 instead.

Inputs
Inputs Specifications
HDR10
Yes
HDR10+
Yes
Dolby Vision
Yes
HLG
Yes
HDMI 2.0 Full Bandwidth
Yes (HDMI 1,2,3,4)
HDMI 2.1 Class Bandwidth
Yes (HDMI 3,4)
CEC Yes
HDCP 2.2 Yes (HDMI 1,2,3,4)
ATSC Tuner
3.0 (NEXTGEN TV)
USB 3.0
Yes (1)
Variable Analog Audio Out Yes
Wi-Fi Support Yes (2.4 GHz, 5 GHz)

Two of the HDMI inputs support HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, with a maximum bandwidth of 48Gbps. Unfortunately, one of them is also the eARC port, so if you're planning on using an eARC device, you can only connect one other HDMI 2.1 device on the TV.

The U8H has an ATSC 3.0 tuner, allowing you to stream 4k channels over the air with an antenna. There are some reported issues with audio sync, and it appears to be downmixing Dolby 5.1 signals to PCM 2.0.

Inputs
Input Photos
Inputs
Total Inputs
HDMI 4
USB 2
Digital Optical Audio Out 1
Analog Audio Out 3.5mm 1
Analog Audio Out RCA 0
Component In 0
Composite In 1 (adapter required, not incl.)
Tuner (Cable/Ant) 1
Ethernet 1
DisplayPort 0
IR In 0

Unfortunately, there's no direct connection for composite sources. Instead, it requires an external breakout adapter, which is no longer included in the box.

Inputs
Audio Passthrough
ARC/eARC Port
eARC
eARC: Dolby Atmos Over Dolby Digital Plus
Yes
eARC: Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
Yes
eARC: LPCM 7.1 Over Dolby MAT
Yes
eARC: Dolby TrueHD 7.1
Yes
eARC: DTS:X Over DTS-HD MA
Yes
eARC: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1
Yes
eARC: LPCM Channels (Bitstream)
2.0
ARC: Dolby Digital 5.1
Yes
ARC: DTS 5.1
Yes
Optical: Dolby Digital 5.1
Yes
Optical: DTS 5.1
Yes

The TV supports eARC and can pass advanced DTS and Dolby formats from a connected source to your soundbar or sound system without reducing audio quality.

Sound Quality
6.8
Sound Quality
Frequency Response
Low-Frequency Extension
84.76 Hz
Std. Dev. @ 70
2.86 dB
Std. Dev. @ 80
3.23 dB
Std. Dev. @ Max
6.37 dB
Max
88.1 dB SPL
Dynamic Range Compression
5.18 dB

The Hisense 65U8H has an okay frequency response. Thanks to its built-in subwoofer, it produces more noticeable low bass than the Hisense U8G, but it's still not as good as an external subwoofer with a receiver system or soundbar. It's a bit boomy in the high-bass, and high treble sounds are a bit under-emphasized, but otherwise, it has a well-balanced sound profile and gets decently loud.

7.5
Sound Quality
Distortion
Weighted THD @ 80
0.249
Weighted THD @ Max
0.743
IMD @ 80
0.69%
IMD @ Max
1.59%

This TV has good distortion performance. There's some audible total harmonic distortion, but mainly at high volume levels; it's not noticeable at moderate volume.

Smart Features
8.0
Smart Features
Interface
Smart OS Google TV
Version 11
Ease of Use
Average
Smoothness
Very Smooth
Time Taken to Select YouTube
2 s
Time Taken to Change Backlight
3 s
Advanced Options
Many

The TV comes with Google TV 11, an updated version of the Android TV platform used by 2021 Hisense TV models. It's redesigned with a few extra accessibility features, but other than that, it's the same user-friendly platform.

0
Smart Features
Ad-Free
Ads
Yes
Opt-out
No
Suggested Content in Home
Yes
Opt-out of Suggested Content
Yes

Like most modern TVs, there are ads and suggested content throughout the interface. You can opt out of suggested content, but this just changes the type of ads you'll see, not the quantity.

9.0
Smart Features
Apps and Features
App Selection
Great
App Smoothness
Average
Cast Capable
Yes
USB Drive Playback
Yes
USB Drive HDR Playback
Yes
HDR in Netflix
Yes
HDR in YouTube
Yes

The Google Play Store has a ton of apps you can download. The interface is very smooth and pleasant to use.

8.0
Smart Features
Remote
Size
Medium
Voice Control
Many Features
CEC Menu Control
Yes
Other Smart Features
No
Remote App Hisense RemoteNOW

The Hisense U8H comes with a slightly redesigned remote compared to the remote that came with 2021 Hisense TVs. Like most modern remotes, it lacks a Numpad, and there are quick-access buttons to popular streaming services. The mic built into the remote and on the TV gives you access to Google Assistant and Alexa, so you can ask it to search for content, open apps, and switch inputs.

Smart Features
TV Controls

There's a button underneath the center of the TV to turn the TV on/off and switch inputs. There's another button to turn off the mic built into the TV if you're concerned about privacy, and you can also use it for the Find My Remote feature.

Smart Features
In The Box

  • Remote
  • 2x AAA batteries
  • Power cable
  • Quick setup guide

Smart Features
Misc
Power Consumption 73 W
Power Consumption (Max) 275 W
Firmware V0000.01.00M.M0809