The 5 Best 4k HDR TVs - Spring 2022 Reviews

The best 4k HDR TV with an OLED panel that we've tested is the Sony A90J OLED. It's a high-end TV with stunning picture quality, especially when watching movies in HDR. It's amazing for watching HDR content, and it's available in a few different sizes, so you can get the one that suits your setup the most, and they all perform like the 55 inch version we tested.

What makes OLEDs like this one stand out versus traditional LED-backlit TVs is that it doesn't have a backlight and instead can turn each pixel on and off individually. It means that it has a near-infinite contrast ratio and doesn't have any blooming around bright objects. HDR content looks vivid because it displays a wide range of colors, has excellent out-of-the-box accuracy, so you won't need to calibrate it, and has decent HDR peak brightness. While the HDR peak brightness isn't the highest, it's better than other OLEDs, and it's enough to make highlights pop.

While it's a versatile TV with great gaming features like HDMI 2.1 bandwidth and variable refresh rate (VRR) support, it's not the best TV for HDR gaming. It doesn't have the lowest input lag, and its VRR support has some limitations. Also, it supports Dolby Vision but not HDR10+, meaning some streaming content will be limited to the basic HDR10 format instead of HDR10+. Besides that, it's the best OLED TV we've tested for watching HDR movies.

If you want something cheaper or if you want a TV with better gaming performance, then look into the LG C1 OLED. You won't get the same remarkable picture quality as the Sony A90J OLED because it has lower peak brightness, worse gradient handling, and worse upscaling. However, it still delivers the same fantastic dark room performance thanks to its near-infinite contrast ratio and perfect black uniformity. It's also incredible for HDR gaming as gaming feels responsive with its low input lag, and it has FreeSync support to reduce screen tearing with AMD graphics cards. Sadly, its out-of-the-box accuracy is poor, so you might need to get it calibrated to enjoy it to the fullest.

If you want the best OLED for watching HDR movies, the Sony is a fantastic choice, but if you prefer something with better gaming performance that costs less, check out the LG.

The best HDR LED TV we've tested is the Hisense U9DG. It's an amazing TV for watching content in HDR as it supports both Dolby Vision and HDR10+, and it has exceptional picture quality that's better than most LED TVs. It makes highlights pop while delivering dark room performance that rivals OLED TVs. However, it's only available in a 75 inch size, which is disappointing if you don't have the space for such a large TV.

It's different from other LED TVs because it uses dual-panel technology with two LCD panels stacked on top of each other. It allows the TV to achieve deep blacks as it has the best contrast ratio we've seen on any LED TV with the local dimming feature enabled, rivaling even OLEDs. The black uniformity is also remarkable, as you won't see any blooming around bright objects. It displays a wide color gamut for HDR and gets bright with small highlights, enough to make them stand out, but it loses its brightness with large areas of bright colors.

Unfortunately, its gradient handling is only decent, and it has signs of banding in areas of similar color. Also, while it's amazing for watching HDR movies, it's a bit limited for HDR gaming because it has a slow response time, and its input lag is higher than most TVs. If that isn't an issue for you, it's one of the best HDR TVs we've tested.

If you care about peak brightness, then look into the Samsung QN90A QLED. It doesn't use the same dual-panel technology as the Hisense U9DG, so you won't get black levels that rival those on an OLED. However, the Samsung TV uses Mini LED backlighting that lets it get much brighter, so highlights stand out the way the creator intended, and colors look vivid. It also displays a wide color gamut thanks to its quantum dot technology, and it has excellent out-of-the-box accuracy. Although its native contrast is lower than most TVs, the full-array local dimming helps it improve the contrast. Unfortunately, it doesn't support Dolby Vision, which is disappointing if you stream your favorite HDR movies and shows.

If you're in the market for the best 4k HDR TV with an LED panel, the Hisense is unique and offers outstanding picture quality. However, if you want something that gets brighter or something available in smaller sizes, check out the Samsung TV.

If you're looking for something on a budget, then the Hisense U6G is the best HDR TV we've tested. It's great for watching HDR movies, and it delivers excellent picture quality that rivals some more expensive options. Its built-in smart interface is Android TV, which has a ton of apps available to download, making it easy to stream your favorite HDR movies, and it supports HDR10, HDR10+, and Dolby Vision formats.

Our unit has decent out-of-the-box accuracy and displays a wide color gamut with fantastic coverage of the DCI-P3 color space used in most HDR content. It has great gradient handling, but there's some banding with darker shades that you'll notice in scenes like sunsets. It displays deep blacks in dark rooms thanks to the VA panel's high native contrast ratio, and the full-array local dimming feature does a decent job at improving the contrast in dark scenes, and there's minimal blooming. Its HDR brightness is okay, but some highlights don't pop the way they should.

If you're looking for something for gaming, this one doesn't have any extra gaming features like HDMI 2.1 bandwidth or variable refresh rate support. Still, if you're a casual gamer, you'll enjoy the low input lag and quick response time for a responsive gaming experience. It also has a narrow viewing angle, so it's not a good choice if you have a wide seating arrangement. Regardless, it's the best HDR TV we've tested in the budget category.