The Hisense U8/U8N is a mid-range TV released in 2024 and replaces the popular Hisense U8/U8K. It's part of Hisense's ULED lineup, sitting above the Hisense U6N and Hisense U7N but below their flagship Hisense UX model. It has a new chipset and promises better brightness and contrast than its predecessor. The TV is packed with features like Dolby Vision, local dimming, HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, up to 4k @ 144Hz, and VRR support. It uses the Google TV interface, which is loaded with apps and has other smart features like voice control, and the TV has a built-in 50W 2.1.2 channel speaker system. We bought and tested the 65-inch model, and it's also available in five different sizes: 55-inch, 65-inch, 75-inch, 85-inch, and a massive 100-inch model. Since the 75-inch model uses a different panel type, we have a separate review for that size.
Our Verdict
The Hisense U8N is great for mixed usage. It looks great with the lights off, thanks to its excellent black levels and vibrant colors. Fortunately, it performs great with the lights on, too, due to its fantastic SDR brightness and because it retains its color vibrancy and deep blacks. However, it only does an okay job of reducing the intensity of direct reflections. Fortunately, HDR content is impactful due to the TV's incredible HDR brightness. It's also a great option for gaming due to its modern gaming features. The TV's viewing angle is pretty narrow, though, so it's best to sit as centered to the TV as possible.
Incredible HDR brightness for very impactful highlights.
Fantastic SDR brightness means it easily overcomes glare from indirect lighting.
Good upscaling and very good low-quality content smoothing.
Colors are vibrant, lifelike, and bright.
Very deep blacks with minimal blooming when local dimming is enabled.
- Image degrades when viewed from the sides.
Direct reflections are a bit distracting.
The Hisense U8N is great for a home theater. It has excellent black levels, so it delivers incredibly deep blacks with very little blooming around subtitles and highlights. You also get highly saturated colors that are mostly accurate in SDR. However, colors lack accuracy in HDR. The TV has incredible HDR brightness, so highlights really pop out. Unfortunately, HDR movies and TV shows are displayed brighter than intended by the filmmaker. If you're stuck watching low-bitrate content, the TV does a very good job removing artifacts. You also get good upscaling, so SD and HD content doesn't look too soft. It removes judder from most sources, and there's no micro judder at all. There's some minor stutter that's most noticeable during slow camera movements.
Incredible HDR brightness for very impactful highlights.
Good upscaling and very good low-quality content smoothing.
Colors are vibrant, lifelike, and bright.
Very deep blacks with minimal blooming when local dimming is enabled.
Removes judder from most sources.
No micro judder.
- Image degrades when viewed from the sides.
Sub-par HDR pre-calibration color accuracy.
HDR content is brighter than the filmmaker intends.
The Hisense U8N is great for a bright room. It's easily bright enough in SDR to overcome glare from indirect light sources, so this TV is usable in most bright rooms. However, it only has okay direct reflection handling, so if you have a lamp or window placed opposite the screen, you will see it reflected on the screen during darker scenes. Fortunately, the TV barely loses color saturation, and blacks stay very deep in a bright room, so you don't have to worry about a washed-out image when you turn on the lights.
Fantastic SDR brightness means it easily overcomes glare from indirect lighting.
Blacks stay deep and colors stay vibrant in a bright room.
Direct reflections are a bit distracting.
The Hisense U8N is great for watching sports. The fantastic SDR brightness means it easily overcomes glare in bright rooms, but you do want to avoid placing the TV directly opposite lamps or windows, since it doesn't do a good enough job reducing the intensity of direct light sources. Colors are well-saturated and accurate in SDR, so you get a vibrant image while watching the game. However, its viewing angle is narrow, so you need to be seated centered to the screen for the best image quality. The TV's gray uniformity is just okay, and you do notice some dirty screen effect during certain sports, but not everyone will be bothered by this. Fortunately, the TV's response time is good enough that you don't have to look at an overly blurry image, but there are some noticeable transition artifacts. You get solid image processing too, so low-bitrate and low-resolution feeds still look pretty good.
Fantastic SDR brightness means it easily overcomes glare from indirect lighting.
Good upscaling and very good low-quality content smoothing.
Colors are vibrant, lifelike, and bright.
- Image degrades when viewed from the sides.
Direct reflections are a bit distracting.
Some noticeable dirty screen effect towards the center of the screen.
Noticeable transition artifacts.
The Hisense U8N is great for gaming. It has great picture quality when gaming with the lights off, thanks to its excellent black levels, vibrant colors, and fantastic HDR brightness. It pairs very well with modern consoles and gaming PCs thanks to its HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, 4k @ 144Hz, and VRR. However, there's a minor response time issue with VRR enabled. It has decent pixel transitions, so there's some noticeable blur when action really ramps up in your favorite game, but it's not so bad that it's distracting. You also get a snappy gaming experience thanks to its low input lag, especially at higher refresh rates.
Incredible HDR brightness for very impactful highlights.
HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, up to 4k @ 144Hz, and VRR support.
Colors are vibrant, lifelike, and bright.
Very deep blacks with minimal blooming when local dimming is enabled.
Minor VRR issues around 100Hz and VRR doesn't work at 240Hz.
The Hisense U8N has outstanding brightness overall. Its SDR brightness is fantastic, and the TV easily overcomes glare in the brightest rooms. It also delivers incredible HDR brightness that makes highlights really pop out, even in rare content mastered at 4000 nits.
Incredible HDR brightness for very impactful highlights.
Fantastic SDR brightness means it easily overcomes glare from indirect lighting.
The Hisense U8N has excellent black levels. Blacks are incredibly deep and very uniform with local dimming enabled. The TV's local dimming feature also does a very good job at keeping blooming to a minimum.
Very deep blacks with minimal blooming when local dimming is enabled.
The Hisense U8N has very good colors overall. It has excellent HDR color volume, and it displays dark and bright colors very well in HDR content. Its SDR color volume is great too, so you can enjoy vibrant colors in both formats. The TV has very good SDR accuracy before calibration. However, its HDR pre-calibration is subpar, so colors don't look the way they should, and the TV requires a proper calibration if you want accurate colors in HDR content.
Colors are vibrant, lifelike, and bright.
Very good SDR pre-calibration color accuracy.
Sub-par HDR pre-calibration color accuracy.
The Hisense U8N has decent motion handling when watching content. It removes judder from nearly all sources, and there's no micro judder at all, ensuring a smooth and even frame pacing. It has a good response time, which results in noticeable stutter in slow panning shots, but its motion interpolation feature does a great job of reducing stutter. Unfortunately, transitions aren't perfect, though, and there are noticeable artifacts around fast-moving objects.
Removes judder from most sources.
Great motion interpolation feature.
No micro judder.
Noticeable transition artifacts.
The Hisense U8N has very good responsiveness in PC/Game Mode. It has good enough input lag at 60Hz that you don't feel a delay, but it's very low at higher refresh rates, so gaming at 120Hz and 144Hz feels very responsive. It has decently fast pixel transitions, but you do see some blur behind fast motion. The TV supports VRR for a nearly tear-free gaming experience. However, there's a minor issue when frame rates hover around 100 fps.
HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, up to 4k @ 144Hz, and VRR support.
Minor VRR issues around 100Hz and VRR doesn't work at 240Hz.
Note: We're in the process of improving our tests related to image processing, but this score should give you a general idea of how a TV performs overall with its image processing capabilities.
The Hisense U8N has decent image processing overall. It does a very good job cleaning up artifacts in low-bitrate content and a good job upscaling low-resolution content, so it's a good option when the quality of your content isn't ideal. There's some banding in bright blue color gradients, but all other gradients have almost no banding at all, which is great. Unfortunately, the TV has poor PQ EOTF tracking, and HDR content is displayed brighter than intended.
Good upscaling and very good low-quality content smoothing.
Very little banding in color gradients.
HDR content is brighter than the filmmaker intends.
Performance Usages
Changelog
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Updated Mar 16, 2026:
We added text to our new Cinematic Motion Handling performance usage and our new Transition Artifacts and Stutter Reduction Via Interpolation test sections after converting the review to TV 2.2.
- Updated Mar 10, 2026: This review has been updated to TV 2.2. We've added new sections for Transition Artifacts and Stutter Reduction Via Interpolation, and updated the way we test Stutter. Additionally, we removed the 'Broken' disclaimer from our Motion Handling usage.
- Updated Feb 05, 2026: We added text to the new Micro-Judder section and refreshed the text in the updated Judder and Response Time Stutter sections after converting the review to TV 2.1.
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Updated May 23, 2025:
We mentioned the newly reviewed Hisense U8QG in the HDR Pre-Calibration Color Accuracy section.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the 65-inch Hisense U8N, but the results are also valid for the 85-inch and 100-inch models. The 75-inch model uses an ADS Pro panel, so it performs a bit differently than the other sizes, with worse contrast but a better viewing angle. The 55-inch model is advertised as having a peak brightness of 1800 nits, so it's not nearly as bright, and it has much fewer dimming zones. The 55-inch model also uses HDMI 3 as its eARC port, so you do lose a high-bandwidth port on that size if you plug in a soundbar. Our results aren't valid for either the 55-inch or 75-inch models.
In Canada, the TV is known as the Hisense U88N, and it performs the same. There are similarly named international models, like the U8NAU in Australia, but these models perform a bit differently from the North American models, so our results aren't valid for them. Note that the 55-inch and 100-inch models use two feet instead of a central stand.
| Size | US Model | Local Dimming Zones | Panel Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 55" | Hisense 55U8N | 672 | VA |
| 65" | Hisense 65U8N | 1,600 | VA |
| 75" | Hisense 75U8N | 2,000 | ADS Pro |
| 85" | Hisense 85U8N | 1,296 | VA |
| 100" | Hisense 100U8N | 1,620 | VA |
Our unit was manufactured in February 2024.
Popular TV Comparisons
The Hisense U8N is an impressive TV that is loaded with modern features. It's a TV that caters to almost everyone and performs excellently while watching all types of content or playing video games. It's most comparable to the TCL QM8/QM851G QLED, but it has better contrast, reflection handling, and is the more accurate TV. It's also comparable to more expensive models like the Sony BRAVIA 7 QLED and outperforms that TV in many ways, but it doesn't have the same level of image processing. Still, it's an affordable TV for what it does, and there are very few other TVs that deliver such excellent picture quality for a relatively low price. If you're looking for a fully-featured TV but don't want to spend the money for high-end offerings from Samsung, Sony, or LG, it's hard to beat.
For more options, check out our recommendations for the best TVs for bright rooms, the best 65-inch TVs, and the best TVs for gaming.
The TCL QM8K and the Hisense U8N are extremely similar overall, with just a few minor differences between them. The TCL TV has a slightly better local dimming system, with less haloing around bright highlights and slightly better black uniformity. The Hisense TV has better accuracy out of the box in SDR, but it's less accurate than the TCL TV in HDR. Finally, the TCL has a slightly better viewing angle, and colors don't shift as much when viewed from the sides.
The Hisense U8N is better than the Hisense U8K. It has even better contrast, so blacks are deeper when viewed in a dark room. The U8N is also brighter overall than the U8K, so it handles more glare in a bright room, and highlights stand out more in HDR content. On top of that, the U8N has a faster response time for less blur behind quick motion.
The Hisense U8N is better than the TCL QM7K. The Hisense delivers noticeably better image quality due to its higher peak brightness and more colorful panel. Its image processing is also generally better than the TCL, with the exception of PQ EOTf tracking; the TCL follows the content creator's intent much more closely than the Hisense. Gamers will also appreciate the TCL's 1080p @ 288Hz support.
The Hisense U8N and the Hisense U8QG are very similar overall. The U8QG has better contrast for deeper blacks, does a slightly better job cleaning up low-quality content, and gets brighter in its dedicated gaming mode. The U8QG also supports 4k @ 165Hz and 1080p @ 288Hz, and it has a USB-C alt-display port. However, 288Hz and VRR don't work when using the new port. On the other hand, the U8N has faster pixel transitions for smoother motion. In reality, these differences are minor, and you'd be hard pressed to notice a difference if you had the two TVs side by side.
We buy and test dozens of TVs yearly, taking an objective, data-driven approach to deliver results you can trust. Our testing process is complex, with hundreds of individual tests that take over a week to complete. Most of our tests use specially designed test patterns that mimic real content, but we also use the same sources you have at home to ensure our results match the real-world experience. We use two main tools for our testing: a Colorimetry Research CR-100 colorimeter and a CR-250 spectroradiometer.
Test Results
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