The Hisense HS218 is a budget-friendly 2.1 soundbar. Out-of-the-box, it has a pretty neutral sound profile suitable for most types of audio content, though it can also sound a bit dark. While it comes with a dedicated subwoofer, it doesn't reproduce a very extended low-bass, so you don't feel the deep thump and rumble in bass-heavy music and action-filled movies. That said, there are some basic sound enhancement features available, like dialogue enhancement and EQ presets to customize its sound.
Our Verdict
The Hisense HS218 is adequate for mixed usage. Out-of-the-box, this soundbar has a pretty neutral, though slightly dark, sound profile that's still suitable for listening to most types of audio content. There are also some sound customization features to help you get a more neutral sound if you prefer. While it supports surround content, unfortunately, it doesn't provide a very immersive listening experience. It doesn't reproduce a very extended low-bass, disappointing for fans of bass-heavy music and action movies.
- EQ presets available.
- Bass and treble adjustments.
- Dialogue enhancement feature.
- No Atmos support.
- Downmixes surround content into stereo.
- Lacks low-bass.
The Hisense HS218 is satisfactory for dialogue-centric content like TV shows. Out-of-the-box, its balanced mid-range reproduces voices clearly and with detail. There's even a dialogue enhancement mode available to help make them more crisp. However, due to its 2.1 setup, it lacks a discrete center channel. As a result, voices aren't accurately localized to a pinpoint location within the sound image, resulting in less immersive listening experience.
- Bluetooth support.
- Dialogue enhancement feature.
- Phantom center channel.
- No auto-volume mode.
The Hisense HS218 is decent for music. Out-of-the-box, it has a pretty neutral sound profile that can reproduce vocals and lead instruments clearly, though they can also sound a bit dark. Fortunately, you can use its bass and treble adjustments as well as its EQ presets to customize its sound. That said, it still struggles to reproduce an extended low-bass, so you don't feel the deep rumble in bass-heavy genres like EDM.
- EQ presets available.
- Bass and treble adjustments.
- Lacks low-bass.
- Some compression at max volume.
The Hisense HS218 is mediocre for movies. Thanks to its balanced mid-range, this soundbar can reproduce dialogue clearly. While it supports surround content, it has to downmix it into stereo to play it, which doesn't sound as immersive. It doesn't support Dolby Atmos content. It also struggles to reproduce a thumpy, rumbling low-bass, which might disappoint fans of action-packed movies.
- EQ presets available.
- Bass and treble adjustments.
- No Atmos support.
- Downmixes surround content into stereo.
Changelog
- Updated Apr 06, 2023: Added cable lengths to In The Box.
- Updated Apr 05, 2023: Converted to Test Bench 1.1. With this update, we've added a Mounting test and added information aboutSubwoofer Output, Spotify Connect, and Microphone Mute.
- Updated Sep 29, 2021: Review published.
- Updated Sep 24, 2021: Early access published.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The Hisense HS218 soundbar comes in 'Black', and you can see the label for the model we tested here.
If you come across another version of this soundbar, let us know in the discussions, and we'll update our review.
Popular Soundbar Comparisons
The Hisense HS218 soundbar is a straightforward budget-friendly setup. It has some basic sound enhancement features like EQ presets and dialogue enhancement, but it lacks more premium features like room correction. Also, it doesn't support Dolby Atmos content.
See our recommendations for the best budget soundbars, the best soundbars under $200, and the best soundbars for dialogue.
The Hisense HS218 is a better 2.1 soundbar than the Sony HT-S200F. The Hisense is better-built, and unlike the Sony, it comes with a dedicated subwoofer. While it doesn't reproduce a more extended low-bass than some more premium models we've tested, it does have a more extended bass than the Sony. Also, it has better soundstage and surround performances.
The Samsung HW-A450 is a bit better for mixed usage than the Hisense HS218. The Samsung soundbar has a better soundstage performance, and it has more sound enhancement features, such as a graphic EQ. Some listeners may also prefer its more balanced sound profile out-of-the-box. That said, the better-built Hisense offers better center and surround performances.
The Sonos Beam is better than the Hisense HS218. The Sonos is a 3.0 setup that's better built and comes with built-in voice assistant support. It has better center and soundstage performances, too. Also, it comes with some more sound enhancement features, like room correction. However, the Hisense has a dedicated sub, which helps reproduce a slightly more extended low-bass.
The JBL Bar 9.1 is better than the Hisense HS218. The JBL is a 5.1.4 setup with discrete satellites. It's better built, and it supports Dolby Atmos content. Also, it offers better soundstage, center, and surround performances. It can reproduce a more extended low-bass. Also, it has some more sound enhancement features, like room correction.
The standalone Sonos Arc is better than the Hisense HS218. The Sonos is a 5.0.2 setup that's better built. Unlike the Hisense, it supports Atmos content and has built-in voice assistant capabilities. It also offers better soundstage, center, and surround performances. It even has some more sound enhancement features, like room correction.
Depending on your listening habits, you may prefer either the TCL Alto 8i or the Hisense HS218. The Hisense is better built and comes with a dedicated subwoofer. It also has a better surround performance. However, the TCL has a better soundstage. Unlike the Hisense, it supports Dolby Atmos content and has a Full HDMI In port.
The Hisense HS218 is better than the TCL Alto 6+. The Hisense is a better built 2.1 setup with a more extended low-bass to help you feel more rumble in your audio. It has a better surrounds performance, too. There are also more sound enhancement features available, like bass and treble adjustments.
Depending on your listening habits, you may prefer either the Vizio V Series V21x-J8 or the Hisense HS218. The Vizio has a better stereo soundstage, and it reproduces a more extended low-bass. That said, the Hisense is better built, with a better center channel performance. Some listeners may prefer its more neutral default sound profile over the Vizio's more bass-heavy sound profile.
The Samsung HW-A650 is better than the Hisense HS218. The Samsung is a 3.1 soundbar that's better-built and has better center and soundstage performances. It comes with more sound enhancement features, like a graphic EQ, too. Unlike the Hisense, it also supports DTS content.
The Samsung HW-A550 is better than the Hisense HS218. The Samsung has a better stereo soundstage, and it comes with more sound enhancement features like a graphic EQ and auto-volume mode. Unlike the Hisense, it has a Full HDMI In port. That said, the Hisense has better center and surround performances.
Test Results
The Hisense HS218 soundbar has a simple design. It's mostly plastic, and there's a metal grille on the front of the bar. There are also two rubber feet under the bar to hold it in place.
The sub is mostly melamine. On the side, there's a circular piece of fabric. The port is plastic.
The Hisense HS218 soundbar isn't very long, but it may not fit between the legs of some 55" TV stands. That said, it isn't very tall, so it shouldn't block your TV screen unless your TV sits flush on your table.
The subwoofer isn't very large. It's about the size of an average desktop computer.
The Hisense HS218 soundbar has a good build quality. The bar itself is mostly plastic, which feels solid and durable. The metal grille on the front helps to protect the drivers inside. Meanwhile, the sub is mostly melamine. The fabric covering is a bit loose, however, and it may collect dust over time.
- Manuals
- Remote with 2AA batteries
- 2x Power cables (4.9 ft / 1.5m)
- Mounting plates and screws
- HDMI cable (4.9 ft / 1.5m)
- Optical cable (4.9 ft / 1.5m)
The Hisense HS218 has a good stereo frequency response. Out-of-the-box, it has a pretty neutral, though slightly dull, sound profile. The treble range is a bit underemphasized, so vocals and lead instruments lack some brilliance and clarity. It also struggles to reproduce a very extended low-bass, so you may not feel the deep thump and rumble in bass-heavy music. That said, its balanced mid-range helps reproduce dialogue and lead instruments clearly. There are also some EQ presets to help you customize its sound.
With calibration, this soundbar has a good stereo frequency response. With its bass set to '-3' and its treble set to '4', it has a very neutral, balanced sound profile that's suitable for listening to lots of different types of audio content. Vocals and lead instruments are reproduced clearly and with detail. That said, the low-bass isn't very extended, so you don't feel the deep thump and rumble in your content.
The Hisense HS218 has a fair stereo soundstage. The soundstage is perceived to be about as wide as the bar itself, but it doesn't have any tricks to make it seem wider than that. Its focus is just decent. Sound objects like voices seem like they're coming from a general region but not from a specific pinpoint location.
The Hisense HS218 has decent stereo dynamics. It gets pretty loud, which is nice. However, there's a lot of compression when you push it to max volume, so audio reproduction isn't as clear at max volume. As a result, it may not be ideal for cranking up the volume to fill large rooms and crowded parties.
The Hisense HS218 has an impressive stereo THD performance. At a normal listening volume, it falls within good limits, resulting in clean and pure audio reproduction. There's a slight jump in THD when you push the bar to max volume, but this may not be too noticeable with real-life content.
The Hisense HS218 has a fair center channel performance. Since it's a 2.1 setup, it lacks a discrete center channel. Instead, it uses its left and right channels to simulate a phantom center. Unfortunately, this doesn't sound as clear and real as a discrete center, and voices may not seem like they're coming from a pinpoint location in the sound image.
The Hisense HS218 has a poor surrounds performance. Due to its 2.1 setup, it lacks discrete surround channels. Instead, it downmixes surround content into stereo to play it. Unfortunately, this doesn't sound as immersive as a discrete setup, and surround objects aren't very accurately localized within the sound image. Audio also seems like it's coming from in front of you rather than from speakers placed all around.
The Hisense HS218 soundbar has a bad selection of sound enhancement features. This straightforward setup comes with bass and treble adjustments as well as a few EQ presets to help you customize its sound, including 'News', 'Music', and 'Movie'. There's also a virtual surround feature that you can turn on and off using the remote. We noticed that this feature tried to 'push' the sound further to widen the sound, but unfortunately, this sounds a bit fake and forced. This setup lacks some more premium sound enhancement features like room correction, so it may sound a bit different depending on the space you're listening in.
The Hisense HS218 soundbar has some physical inputs. You can connect it to your TV via optical or HDMI ARC. However, it lacks a Full HDMI In port, so you can't use it as a hub between different devices like your PC and TV. Also, while there's a Coaxial port, we don't consider this an RCA In port. Instead, it's a supplemental digital audio port.
The Hisense HS218 soundbar has mediocre audio format support via ARC. It supports the most common surround sound format, Dolby Digital, which is handy. While the website reports that it supports Dolby Atmos, DTS:X, and DTS-HD MA, this is impossible since the bar doesn't have eARC support. The manual also confirms that it doesn't support these formats.
The Hisense HS218 soundbar supports Dolby Digital via Optical, which is nice for listeners who watch lots of surround sound content on streaming platforms and Blu-ray discs.
The Hisense HS218 soundbar has an incredible latency performance. Via ARC and Optical, it has low latency, so the audio you hear is in sync with the video you see. As a result, it's suitable for watching videos and movies over these connections. Keep in mind that some apps and TVs compensate for latency differently, so your real-world experience may vary.
The Hisense HS218 soundbar only supports Bluetooth connectivity. You can use a Bluetooth connection to wirelessly stream audio content from your phone or tablet to the bar. However, you aren't able to connect your devices using other wireless formats like Wi-Fi.
There's a small display located near the center of the bar, behind the metal grille. It lets you know when you adjust a setting and displays the audio format you're playing.
There are some physical controls located on the side of the bar. You can use them to power the bar on/off, adjust the volume, and change the input. However, you need to use the remote to access the rest of its features.
