Hisense - 55" Class U8 Series Mini-LED 4K QLED Google TV

I started using a Hisense television in our living room a couple years ago, and have been impressed with the design, functionality and quality ever since. It’s a great television that has performed perfectly for the past two years without any issues. When the new 55” U8N became available I knew it would be the perfect TV to replace my fifteen year old TV that I use in the bedroom. The new Hisense was shipped to me using a third-party delivery service who called to schedule a drop-off time that was convenient for me. They were nice, arrived on time, and helped me to carry the box into my garage. The TV comes packed in a standard heavy cardboard box with molded styrofoam inserts to keep it protected during shipping. The total package weight was only about 55lbs, so I was able to carry it into my house and up my stairs by myself. Unboxing the TV is easy and I was able to do it alone. Since I’m using the included stand I had to place the TV face down on a clean, soft and flat surface to attach the stand. I chose to use my bed, where I placed the large, foam enforced cardboard screen cover that came in the box, on my bed, and placed the TV onto that. I let the bottom couple of inches hang over the edge of the bed so that I could use the included screws to secure each base stand tightly. Once the stand was attached I set it up onto my dresser and proceeded to remove all of the cling-wrap from the edge, front and sides of the TV, which is always a satisfying process. Getting the TV setup is almost effortless with Google, my preferred setup method. While you can also utilize the remote for TV setup, given my existing Google account and devices like Google TV and Google Home, it was only logical for me to opt for Google for this task as well. Set up only took a few minutes, and once complete, the TV is ready to customize with your favorite apps, screensaver, different user accounts, content preferences and more! Once the TV is fully set up it’s ready to provide endless hours of content viewing. It’s always a good idea to familiarize yourself with the settings menu and tailor some of the available options, such as the apps you utilize, channels and inputs, accounts, services, as well as picture and sound settings, among others. This TV can do a lot without being overwhelming or confusing. Its menus and navigation are designed to be user-friendly and straightforward. Hisense did a great job making this TV a delight to use for anyone. I’m not going to go on for too long about all of the tech packed into this television, it’s all listed in the product features and it all works amazingly well to bring you a high-quality display at a great price and a well-built TV that’s sure to last for many years. From the Mini-LED display with 4k resolution and a gaming ready 144Hz refresh rate to the QLED quantum dot color, Dolby Vision Atmos and more, it’s obvious that this TV is built to compete with the top brands on the market. Watching 4k content on this display is an eye-popping and immersive experience! Just pull up some 4K HDR high frame rate videos on YouTube, lean back, and immerse yourself as if you're truly there. From the majestic landscapes of Scotland to the bustling streets of NYC, from expansive starscapes to the depths of the ocean, this TV will transport you like never before. And if you are a gamer, get ready for the 144Hz Game Mode Pro experience on a 55” screen, you’re gonna love it! Products like this television are what elevate the Hisense brand to that top tier, earning them recognition from major franchises like the NBA! Hisense's status as the official television of the NBA is an impressive testament to their excellence, clearly demonstrated by products like the U8N. Using the TV is an enjoyable experience, enhanced by the newly designed bluetooth remote, which is a vast improvement over the previous one that came with my 75” Hisense U8H a couple years ago. The new U8N remote is stylishly designed with a silver wood grain plastic on top and silver colored plastic on the backside. As soon as you pick up the remote, the buttons illuminate, providing excellent visibility even in low-light conditions. The remote has quick access buttons to some of your most used apps like YouTube, Prive Video, Netflix and more. There is also a Google assistant button that you can use for voice control and hands free control of the television. The remote has a nice flat back that allows you press buttons without needing to pick up the remote. One of your most frequently used buttons will be the Home button, which displays the Google TV “For You” tab, otherwise known as the home page. In my opinion, the Google TV operating system is the best television OS I’ve ever used. The more you use it, the better it gets. The home page is constantly updating with new content chosen for you by Google and based on content you’ve already started watching and/or have shown interest in watching, along with top trending content suggestions. The home page starts with a banner displaying new and trending shows and movies. Next is a list of top-picks, TV shows and movies that Google thinks you would like from your currently installed apps and/or free apps. Just below the Top-Picks is the Apps section where you can choose from apps you have downloaded or modify your list. Further down on the home page you will find a Continue Watching section, where you can pick up where you left off watching from any app you have installed. It’s a super handy feature and I use it all the time. As you navigate towards the bottom of the home page you’ll find many more viewing recommendations based on the services you use and have installed, along with other new and trending content and genre based suggestions. The next page is the Live tab where you can choose from 125 channels via Google TV, a free live tv service, or choose from an aggregate list of hundreds of other live channels available from free apps that you can install or are already installed. I think this is a great option for anyone who enjoys flipping through the channels and is looking for a free alternative to cable. After the Live tab, the Apps tab is where you go to customize the apps you have installed on the TV and choose from hundreds of apps to install, using the Google search or the preselected categories to help you find something. You can choose from entertainment, music, tools, news, education, health & fitness apps and more. The final page is the Library tab where you can see a list of content that you’ve purchased from any content providers that you have installed on the television. I don’t use this section too often, but it does have a watchlist section where I can add anything that I discover from TV, mobile or web, which is pretty cool and something I’ll have to start using. Overall, the U8N is a very well built television with all the specs I’ll ever need. It gets super bright at peak 1500 nits and the Mini-LED pro creates a brighter image with greater contrast than traditional LED screens. Gaming on this TV is a treat with the 144Hz Game Mode Pro, AMD FreeSync and the Game Bar that lets you easily customize the gaming settings for a better experience. The built in 50w max, 5-speaker, 2.1.2 multi-channel surround sound, sounds really good. It actually sounds much better than some of the smaller soundbars on the market, eliminating the need to buy one. I’m once again impressed with the Hisense brand and I’m really happy that I got this TV. I highly recommend it to anyone in the market for a new, dependable television with impressive specs and an affordable price.

Great TV picture for the money, especially if you have it in a bright room. But, you may want to have a better media streamer, this one’s built in OS is a bit laggy to navigate through. Picture quality is a step up from a Sony X900H I own that is 3 years old, however even that older TV’s operating system based on google TV is faster than this google based OS TV. It TV OS isn’t super slow, but it is slow enough that coming from anything Sony and LG have made in the last 3 years will feel slower. I also own a 3 year old LG C1 whose operating system feels faster to me. I suspect Hisense is using a slower processor built into the TV to cut down on costs. I also have an Nvidia Shield, and that runs great on this TV. For me, this will be the way I will do all my media streaming, as it is just significantly faster than the built in Hisense apps running on Google TV. I wish the built in hardware ran faster. I suspect the built in OS runs slower because of the million ads you get while on the Google TV OS, which unfortunately is a lot. Now, on actually running native Amazon Prime 4K on the built in Hisense Google TV OS, it does look great when showing 4K HDR content. It gets really bright, much brighter than a LG C1 OLED TV I have, and compared to my Sony X900H, a LED based TV (though not mini-LED of this Hisense) it has much better local dimming, as this TV has a lot more dimming zones inside, and each LED light is smaller, hence the name “mini-LED”. So what I get here on this U8N is far less backlight blooming when there is a lot of contrast on the screen. This TV does look fantastic when it comes to how bright it can get for sure, butI still think it is behind in overall black levels available in OLED TVs which are literally INK BLACK. However OLED TVs are not a great option if you watch tv in bright rooms, as they do not get bright enough. This TV is perfect for bright rooms, and you will not have to worry about burn in like you do on OLED based displays. Another great step up from other TVs in my home are the built-in speakers on this year’s 55UN8. There is more bass on this TV than either of my other more expensive TVs. It won’t replace a decent soundbar, but it does sound better than built-in speakers from TVs I have in the home that are from 3 years ago. This TV also comes with what I think is a great remote. It is the perfect size and looks great. Overall, for the money, this is a great TV for most people that want a really good picture, and especially that want that in a bright sunlit room! Just keep in mind you may want to opt for a better media streamer like an AppleTV or a Nvidia Shield.

Words cant describe how impressive this TV is. I was looking to replace a TV I had in my bedroom. My living room and basement have OLEDs but was looking to go in a different direction as my bedroom TV was an android TV and was hoping to replace it with another android TV, I just didn't find a need to have a OLED in my bedroom. I cant believe how different android TV is, I didn't realize how the software on my previous one was capped and that there was an entire different interface/experience. What a joy to use now. Everything Is significantly fluid and fast. I am not sure what chip they have powering this thing but it has handled going back and forth through multiple apps without a single hiccup. Hands free with google voice works great too, overall the software and customization is top notch. Now onto the visuals. Wow. Just wow. As I stated, I have two OLEDS and this U8 competes with them quite well and honestly, feel like it even one ups them in certain situations. The screen is absolutely beautiful, the colors pop, the details are incredible. If you utilize a lot of streaming apps with 4k HDR 10 Dolby vision content, this TV showcases whatever your watching at an absolutely peak visual. I watched some documentary on Disney+ and animals and scenery were breathtaking. Started streaming Amazon Primes new Fallout series and its beautiful. Hisense provides so many options that best suits your visual desires and needs through settings. Not only does this TV excel visually, but the sound is phenomenal. These have to be the best built in speakers I've had on a TV and even offer a nice little bass to it. The remote is quite sharp too. I really like how the buttons on the remote light up when you pick it up. The remote, as well as the TV, has a microphone on it to utilize google assistant. I cant speak on gaming, but the TV has everything you want for gaming purposes for next gen consoles. I haven't played video games in awhile but hoping to move my series x from the basement to bedroom to get a little action in soon. I have no doubt that gaming will be superb. Everything was incredibly easy to set up, assembling the TV and adding all my accounts across all streaming platforms, I can't believe how quick I had everything up and running and ready to go. One of the most seamless TV set ups I've ever experienced. If you're in the market for a new TV and don't want to break the bank, Hisense packs everything you need here and you will not be disappointed. I don't think you can get a better TV for the price. This is a powerful TV in every measure. Screen, sound, software, customization. I am extremely blown away.