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What we think
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Updated January 10, 2024·
If you often watch movies in dark rooms and value high contrast and deep blacks, the Hisense U8K outperforms the TCL R646, offering better quality for dark-room viewing. However, it's worth noting that the Hisense U8K typically costs more. For gaming enthusiasts, the Hisense has a slight edge due to its higher gaming performance score and response time, which may result in smoother gameplay. On the other hand, if you're on a tighter budget and still want good overall quality, the TCL R646 is much less expensive and offers decent performance across various content, including movies and sports, but with some compromises in brightness and local dimming compared to the Hisense. Both TVs can handle bright rooms well, but if you're placing the TV in a particularly sunny room, the Hisense U8K has a higher bright-room score, implying better performance under lots of light. Lastly, if you care about having great built-in speakers, the Hisense U8K comes with better audio capabilities, which might influence your decision if you don't plan to use an external sound system. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the Hisense U8K (LCD)
- Best in class for bright room
- Very good for dark room
- Very good for movies & TV
- Very good for news, talk, & other TV
- Excellent for cartoons & animation
- Good for upscaling
Advantages of the TCL R646 (LCD)
- The TCL R646 (LCD) has no clear advantages over the Hisense U8K (LCD).
Key differences
Picture Quality
8.7
7.9
8.21/10
CONTRAST
8.43/10
9.2/10
COLOR VOLUME SCORE
7.6/10
miniLED FALD
PANEL TYPE
miniLED FALD
VA
PANEL SUB-TYPE
VA
The Hisense U8K (LCD) has very good picture quality, while the TCL R646 (LCD) has good picture quality.
Movies & TV
8.5
7.8
8.21/10
CONTRAST
8.43/10
10.0/10
BLACK UNIFORMITY
6.8/10
7.0/10
UPSCALING
5.9/10
Yes
HDR10 SUPPORT
Yes
Yes
HDR10+ SUPPORT
Yes
Yes
DOLBY VISION SUPPORT
Yes
The Hisense U8K (LCD) is very good for movies & TV, while the TCL R646 (LCD) is good.
Cartoons & Animation
9.1
8.4
8.3/10
COLOR GAMUT SCORE
7.6/10
9.2/10
COLOR VOLUME SCORE
7.6/10
9.1/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
9.1/10
8.6/10
COLORS OUT OF THE BOX SCORE
7.2/10
7.0/10
GRAY UNIFORMITY
8.0/10
The Hisense U8K (LCD) is excellent for cartoons & animation, while the TCL R646 (LCD) is very good.
The Hisense U8K excels in displaying cartoons and animation due to its very good color performance right out of the box and a very good color gamut, ensuring vibrant and accurate colors. In comparison, while the TCL R646 is very competent with good out-of-the-box color accuracy and a good color gamut, it doesn't match the Hisense's superior color reproduction.
News, Talk, & Other TV
8.6
7.5
9.1/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
9.1/10
7.0/10
UPSCALING
5.9/10
The Hisense U8K (LCD) is very good for news, talk, & other TV, while the TCL R646 (LCD) is good.
The Hisense U8K is known for its ability to produce very good colors right out of the box and having very good upscaling for watching lower resolution content, making it very suitable for news and TV programs. The TCL R646, while still good for these types of content, has less accurate colors out of the box and slightly lower quality upscaling.
Bright Room
9.7
8.9
5.3/10
VIEWING ANGLE
5.3/10
9.1/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
9.1/10
9.1/10
HDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
8.3/10
8.9/10
REFLECTIONS SCORE
8.1/10
The Hisense U8K (LCD) is best in class for bright room, while the TCL R646 (LCD) is very good.
Cost
$698
$600
$200
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
The Hisense U8K (LCD) has a price of $698 and the TCL R646 (LCD) costs $600.
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Key similarities
Sports
6.3
6.6
3.5/10
MOTION PROCESSING
5.3/10
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
120Hz
7.6/10
INPUT LAG SCORE
7.6/10
7.0/10
UPSCALING
5.9/10
9.1/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
9.1/10
Yes
HLG SUPPORT
Yes
The TCL R646 (LCD) and Hisense U8K (LCD) are both only fair for sports.
The Hisense U8K falls short in motion processing for sports, resulting in less smooth action, and while both TVs have narrow viewing angles, limiting good picture quality to a straight-on view, the TCL R646 offers better response time, which matters when tracking fast-moving objects.
Gaming
8.6
8.2
6.8/10
RESPONSE TIME SCORE
8.0/10
7.6/10
INPUT LAG SCORE
7.6/10
3.5/10
MOTION PROCESSING
5.3/10
90.0/100
GAMING LOCAL DIMMING
70.0/100
9.2/10
GAME HDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
8.7/10
The Hisense U8K (LCD) and TCL R646 (LCD) are both very good for gaming.
The Hisense U8K is known for good gaming due to its fair response time and good input lag performance, whereas the TCL R646 stands out in gaming for its very good response time and good input lag, making both TVs suitable for a responsive gaming experience.
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How the Hisense U8K (LCD) and the TCL R646 (LCD) compare to other TVs
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Hisense U8K (LCD) | TCL R646 (LCD) |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$698 | $600 | ||
Brand | |||
Brand | Hisense | TCL | |
Release Date | |||
Release Date | August 1, 2023 | August 1, 2021 | |
Full name | |||
Full name | 55U8K | 55R646 | |
Screen Size | |||
Screen Size | 55" | 55" | |
Screen Resolution | |||
Screen Resolution | 4K | 4K | |
TV FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Operating System | |||
Operating System | Google TV | Android TV | |
Sound Quality Score | |||
Sound Quality Score | 8.3/10 | 10/10 | |
NextGen Ready | |||
NextGen Ready | Yes | No | |
HDMI Ports | |||
HDMI Ports | 4 | 4 | |
Coax Ports | |||
Coax Ports | 1 | 1 | |
DISPLAY QUALITY SCORES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Picture Quality Score | |||
Picture Quality Score | 8.7/10 | 7.9/10 | |
Bright Room Score | |||
Bright Room Score | 9.7/10 | 9/10 | |
Gaming Score | |||
Gaming Score | 8.6/10 | 8.2/10 | |
Movies & TV Score | |||
Movies & TV Score | 8.5/10 | 7.8/10 | |
Sports Score | |||
Sports Score | 6.3/10 | 6.6/10 | |
PHYSICAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Dimensions w/o Stand (H x W x D) | |||
Dimensions w/o Stand (H x W x D) | 28.2" x 48.5" x 3" | 28.5" x 48.3" x 3.6" | |
Dimensions with Stand (H x W) | |||
Dimensions with Stand (H x W) | 30.5" x 48.5" | 30.9" x 48.3" | |
Weight without Stand | |||
Weight without Stand | 41.2 lbs | 42.3 lbs | |
VESA Mount | |||
VESA Mount | 400 x 300 | 300 x 300 | |
DISPLAY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Color Depth | |||
Color Depth | 10 bit | 10 bit | |
Black Frame Insertion | |||
Black Frame Insertion | Yes | Yes | |
Auto Low Latency Mode | |||
Auto Low Latency Mode | Yes | Yes | |
Contrast | |||
Contrast | 8.2/10 | 8.4/10 | |
Local Dimming | |||
Local Dimming | 8/10 | 6.5/10 | |
SOUND | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Speaker Setup | |||
Speaker Setup | 2.1.2 | 2.0 | |
Speaker Power | |||
Speaker Power | 50 W | 30 W | |
Dolby Atmos | |||
Dolby Atmos | Yes | Yes | |
DTS:X | |||
DTS:X | Yes | Yes, Bypass only | |
Get a great deal on the Hisense U8K (LCD) or the TCL R646 (LCD)
About Hisense
Hisense, a Chinese TV manufacturer, entered the US market in approximately 2011 and has since acquired TV divisions from various companies such as Toshiba, Sharp, Hitachi, and NEC. Currently ranking as the fourth largest vendor in terms of sales volume, Hisense aims to capture a wide range of TV budget segments. They offer exceptional value with TVs that often outperform their competitors at similar price points, making them a compelling choice for consumers. In the US, they use Google TV as their smart TV software which provides the largest app selection and a very modern user interface, however it is not as user friendly as the software from other vendors.
About TCL
TCL, the highly recognizable TV brand from China, has firmly established itself as the second-largest manufacturer in terms of sales volume. Renowned for striking an impressive balance between affordability, picture quality, and design, TCL TVs deliver a compelling overall package. While they have traditionally excelled in the low-end and midrange TV segments, TCL has recently made remarkable strides in the realm of high-end televisions, introducing impressive models that rival top competitors. Most TCL TVs use Roku software which is very user friendly and easy to use, but they have a few other models that use Google TV which has the largest app selection, but is not as user friendly as Roku.
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