It’s becoming apparent that 4K is indeed going to be the focus of many broadcasters in the years to come, with the likes of Netflix and Amazon Prime Instant Video uploading more content on their sites with each passing month. But what if you want to enjoy this incredible visual spectacle without blowing your budget for your whole system on a high end TV?…
4K now available at a lower price
Hisense may just have the answer. Many of you are probably asking yourselves why you should be parting with over £1,000 to dip your toe into a market that has only really been around and accepted over the last few years. I mean, you are definitely not alone in thinking that technology changes incredibly quickly. However, I would certainly say that 4K is going to be around for a very long while and I can guess that there will be a whole lot more reasons to want to invest in a high end TV. Especially given how BBC iPlayer is set for some 4K material next year and that BT Vision have already got the rights to some exclusive sports content on its new box. On top of this, there is a new Blu-ray format being released that will be 4K capable.
Hisense has managed to come up with a very clever niche; a good looking, solid performing TV with the capability to make a 4K image look very solid and defined. We took advantage of acquiring a 40” model and popping it on display in our store. The results were quite staggering. Not only were we impressed with the great looking 4K content, but even the 720p picture coming from our Sky HD box look pretty good too. Now consider this…many of the well known manufacturers such as Samsung, LG, Panasonic and Sony invest loads of their time and money into incredibly complex and clever “upscaling” chips that will take a lower resolution and try to make it as good as it can be on an over 8 million pixel panel. This bumps up the cost of many sets. Upgraded backlighting systems, colour ranges (or gamuts) and the internal processors for your apps all add additional cost. Hisense hasn’t really worried itself with this too much. It has simply let the image take its course and frankly, whilst there are a few gripes to be had, the picture is very good. I think anyone who is really looking to test out what their latest 4K camera-phone looks like then this may be the answer to your troubles. In my opinion the 40” version produces a picture well beyond some of its more expensive competitors… and we can be a hard crowd to please.
Available in 40″, 50″ and 55″
Sound is something that leaves a little to be desired but then if you consider hooking up a soundbar or sound base onto this chap then you have a pretty well rounded unit. Throw in the fact that you have HDMI 2.0 and USB 3.0 support for the digital connections, then you’ve got a well presented layout that’s future proofed too.
I can expect that some of the people used to buying high end TV’s won’t really consider this an alternative to the likes of the curved Samsung SUHD range or most certainly the OLED range of 4K TVs, but then that’s not what this is trying to be. For those looking for more bang for their buck, have a look right here. This range comes in a variety of sizes, including 50” and 55”.
Pros: 4K picture at a budget price. Good HD picture. App availability coming soon.
Cons: Blacks are not as deep as other makes. Colour a little washed in vibrant scenes. Motion jitter can get a little annoying. Only 720p resolutions and better look half decent.
Author – Andrew, Weybridge store
