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I tested the Hisense U9N mini-LED TV for weeks, and the dazzling, refined picture and powerful Dolby Atmos sound make it a winner

10:11 pm | February 13, 2025

Hisense U9N: Two-minute review

The Hisense U9N arrived on the scene after the rollout of the Hisense U8N, a mid-range mini-LED TV offering exceptional performance and value for money. And while the step-up U9N series is arguably eclipsed by the U8N when it comes to value, it nonetheless offers a noticeable upgrade in picture and sound quality and has a more premium design.

Availability of the Hisense U9N is limited to the US market, where, befitting a premium TV, it is sold in 75-inch ($1,999.99) and 85-inch ($2,999.99) screen sizes. Those prices are a considerable saving on the initial release prices and are notably less than premium mini-LED TV offerings from Samsung and Sony. For this review, I tested the 75-inch U9N.

The U9N’s specs include a mini-LED backlight with up to 5,300 local dimming zones (in the 85-inch model) and a Hi-View Engine X chipset borrowed from the company’s limited edition ULED X series TVs. Along with providing AI-driven picture enhancements, this carries support for the Dolby Vision, HDR10, HDR10+, and HLG high dynamic range formats.

Picture quality on the U9N is stunning. Images are bright, and have exceptional detail and contrast. Colors pop without looking garish, and it has notably better motion handling than other Hisense TVs I’ve tested. But what really sets it apart from the U8N and also lets it compete in the premium mini-LED TV arena is its precise, refined local dimming, which creates deep, uniform-looking blacks with fine gradations of shadow detail. Also, its picture doesn’t lose contrast and color richness when viewed from off-center seats – an important factor for watching with groups.

Sound quality is another U9N strong point. A built-in 4.1.2-channel Dolby Atmos speaker system delivers robust sound with clear positioning of dialogue and effects, along with a decent bass kick. Audio performance is helped by the TV’s design, which positions the left and right speakers in an angled aluminum bezel so they can emit sound directly at the viewer, while the top surface contains upward-firing speakers for Atmos height effects.

As with other Hisense TVs in the US, Google TV is used as a smart TV interface and it’s a flexible and relatively uncluttered platform with a compelling Ambient mode for displaying artwork and photos. Hands-free voice commands are supported, and there’s also a built-in mic on the remote if you don’t want the TV to be set in 'always-listening' mode.

Gaming features on the U9N include dual HDMI 2.1 ports with support for 4K 144Hz, VRR with AMD FreeSync Premium Pro, and Dolby Vision gaming. Input lag is slightly high compared to the best gaming TVs, but that’s not something more casual gamers will notice.

The Hisense U9N ultimately adds up to a great value. It does cost quite a bit more than the step-down Hisense U8N, but if you do have the money to spend, the upgrades it offers are worth it.

Hisense U9N review: Price and release date

Hisense U9N TV showing colorful landscape image onscreen — The Hisense U9N is one of the brightest TVs we've yet tested (Image credit: Future)

Release date: April 2024
75-inch: $2,999
85-inch: $3,999

The Hisense U9N is sold in 75- and 85-inch screen sizes, with availability limited to the US market. As a 2024 model, prices for both sizes have dropped since the TVs first shipped, with the 75-inch version now widely available for $1,999.99 and the 85-inch for $2,999,99.

In Hisense’s TV lineup, the U9N series slots in between the mid-range U8N series and the limited-release ULED X series, the latter of which it borrows several features from.

Hisense U9N review: Specs

Hisense U9N review: Benchmark results

Hisense U9N review: Features

Hisense U9N TV rear panel ports — The U9N has two HDMI 2.1 ports with 4K 144Hz support; additional HDMI ports support eARC. (Image credit: Future)

Mini-LED backlight with up to 5,300 zones
Dolby Vision and HDR10+ HDR
Two HDMI 2.1 inputs with 4K 144Hz support

The Hisense U9N features a mini-LED backlight with up to 5,300 local dimming zones (in the 85-inch model). It uses the same Hi-View Engine X chipset found in the company’s limited-edition ULED X series TVs, which features AI-driven scene detection and real-time image enhancement. High dynamic range support includes Dolby Vision, Dolby Vision IQ, HDR10, HDR10+, and HLG, and there’s an ultra-wide viewing angle feature to ensure consistent picture quality when watching from off-center seats.

The 75-inch U9N I tested features a 4.1.2-channel built-in speaker system powered by 76W of amplification that supports Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, along with IMAX Enhanced. The U9N’s thicker-than-average aluminum bezel houses front-firing left and right speakers and there are upwards-firing Atmos height speakers located at the top.

Hisense TVs use the Google TV smart TV interface, and the U9N series also features a built-in mic for hands-free voice control. (Works with Alexa is also supported.) Gaming features include 4K 144Hz support for PC gaming, AMD FreeSync Premium Pro, and Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM). The U9N’s inputs include two HDMI 2.1 ports, and there’s also an ATSC 3.0 tuner for receiving Next-Gen TV broadcasts.

Features Score: 4.5/5

Hisense U9N review: Picture quality

Exceptional brightness, refined local dimming
Rich color reproduction
Impressive motion handling

The Hisense U9N’s high brightness levels easily exceed other premium mini-LED TVs such as the Samsung QN90D and Sony Bravia 9. I measured HDR brightness on a 10% HDR white window pattern in Filmmaker Mode at 2,694 nits, while a full-screen HDR white pattern measured 590 nits in the same mode. Those numbers indicate that the U9N can display the full level of highlight detail in most movies and TV shows with HDR without having to resort to tone mapping, and programs like sports will also look good when viewed in bright rooms.

Hisense says the U9N has an anti-reflection screen coating, though I did note some screen glare when viewing with my room’s overhead lights on. One strong picture-quality positive for daytime sports viewing is the U9N’s ultra-wide viewing angle feature, which ensures that pictures had uniform contrast and color saturation even when viewing from far off-center seats – as you might have to do when watching with a crowd of people.

The U9N’s color gamut coverage was also exceptional, measuring 98.9% for UHD-P3 and 81.5% for BT.2020 in Filmmaker Mode. Those results best other premium mini-LED TVs we’ve tested, and rival what you get with the best OLED TVs. Grayscale accuracy in the same mode was less impressive, averaging 3.5 (we normally look for a result under 3), though color accuracy averaged out to an exceptional 1.1.

With its extraordinarily bright picture, the U9N looked fantastic when viewing sports. Watching the Eagles trounce the Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX, the respective green and red hues of the players’ uniforms popped from the screen, and highlights like stadium lights gleaming off helmets gave the image a strong sense of realism and depth. The U9N also did a great job of upscaling the HD picture, making it look near 4K-like.

Darker content such as the Apple TV Plus show Severance also shone on the U9N’s expansive 75-inch screen. Season 2 Episode 4 takes place in a frozen rural landscape, and the U9N rendered details in the wintry scenes with a high level of subtlety. Severance frequently uses monochrome color schemes – blue, especially – for sets and costumes, and the U9N displayed these vividly while also leaving skin tones looking completely natural.

Other scenes from the same Severance episode demonstrated the U9N’s precise local dimming. As the MDR team camps outdoors on a corporate retreat, there are several scenes with campfires being lit and torches wielded at night. On the U9N, these fires blazed against a black background with minimal blooming effects. Even when I checked the blooming torture test clips on the Spears & Munsil Ultra HD Benchmark 4K Blu-ray test disc, I could see only just the faintest signs of backlight blooming.

When I did a hands-on test of a pre-production U9N back in early 2024, I was disappointed with its motion handling. But Hisense clearly made progress on that front with the production version of the U9N, which has no such issue. When I watched a reference scene from Bond film No Time to Die where 007 walks across a craggy mountain cemetery, the picture looked impressively solid, even with no motion processing applied. The U9N's solid motion handling also yielded benefits for sports, which looked fluid yet fully natural.

Picture quality score: 5/5

Hisense U9N review: Sound quality

Hisense U9N TV detail of side and top speakers — A thick aluminum bezel houses front-facing and upward-firing speakers. (Image credit: Future)

4.1.2-channel, 76W speaker system
Auto Acoustic Tuning feature
Good height, width with Atmos soundtracks

The U9N features a 4.1.2-channel speaker system powered by 76W. Front left and right drivers are built into the sides of the TV’s substantial aluminum bezel and upwards-firing drivers are located on the screen’s top. Around the back, a pair of built-in bass drivers handle subwoofer duty.

An array of audio adjustments are provided beyond the U9N’s basic sound presets. The Advanced Settings menu has an Auto Acoustic Tuning feature that lets you optimize the TV’s sound output based on measurements taken of your viewing environment using the mic in the remote control. There’s also a multi-band equalizer adjustment, wall-mount compensation, and a subwoofer level adjustment.

The U9N displayed consistently clear dialogue and volume levels could be set fairly high without hearing any distortion. Watching the recent sequel Twisters, in an early scene where the students seed a tornado, only to get caught up in the ensuing turmoil, the sound of wind and loose objects – like vehicles and bodies – blowing around exceeded the screen area and had a good sense of width and height. Shouted dialogue in this sequence also came across clearly, and there was even a decent level of bass thump.

We usually recommend adding one of the best soundbars to any TV, but the U9N could easily stand on its own as long as you’re not overly fussy about home theater sound.

Sound quality score: 5/5

Hisense U9N review: Design

Hisense U9N TV detail of support feet on TV stand — The U9N's widely spaced support feet require an equally wide TV stand. (Image credit: Future)

Widely spaced support feet
Premium design with angled bezel
Full-sized, backlit remote control

Unlike other premium (or premium-aspiring) TVs I’ve recently tested, the Hisense U9N opts for widely spaced support feet instead of a pedestal-type base. These barely cleared my 59-inch-wide TV stand, with just a 0.5-inch of space on each side, so make sure you first measure your own stand. The feet provide sturdy support for the TV, though I wished there was a variable height option to clear more space for a soundbar, if you choose one.

The U9N’s bezel is angled on the sides to accommodate the TV’s front-firing speakers. This gives the TV a more premium look than other Hisense TVs, which have a more basic design. Rear panel connections include four HDMI ports (two of which are HDMI 2.1), an optical digital audio output, 3.5mm analog audio input and output jacks, and a pair of USB-A inputs.

Hisense’s full-sized remote control has curved edges and a more solid feel than most other TV remotes. The keypad is backlit and there are buttons to directly access the TV’s quick menu and broadcast channels guide, along with streaming services including Netflix and Disney Plus. A centrally located mic button lets you selectively access Google voice commands when you’ve disabled the TV’s built-in mic.

Design score: 4.5/5

Hisense U9N review: Smart TV and menus

Hisense U9N TV Google TV interface onscreen — The U9N's Google TV smart interface. (Image credit: Future)

Google TV with Ambient mode
Live TV program grid
Extensive picture adjustments and quick menu

Hisense uses Google TV as the smart interface for all of its TVs in the US. This provides an editable row of apps at the bottom of the home screen, along with a row of suggested content directly above. The suggestions that appear here are based on both your viewing history and Google search history – an arrangement you sign up for when entering your Google account in the TV’s user profile. My only serious issue with Google TV is that you need to create a Google account to download apps from the Google store, and not everyone will necessarily want to participate in the ever-growing Google-verse.

Scrolling down the home screen reveals a range of suggested content categories, while tabs at the top of the screen let you access a Live program guide with both Google Freeplay free TV channels and broadcast channels received by the U9N’s ATSC 3.0 tuner.

A Screensaver option in the TV’s main menu enables you to configure Ambient mode, which kicks in when the TV is on standby. Selections here include an art gallery with Google-curated images, custom-generated AI art, and photos from your personal Google Photos account. You can also add weather and time widgets, which will show up as an overlay on any images in Ambient mode.

Hisense provides extensive picture adjustments in the U9N’s setup menu, with options to have the TV automatically detect content with Filmmaker Mode and IMAX Mode tags, optimize picture settings based on the scene, and upscale standard dynamic range (SDR) programs to high dynamic range (HDR).

A quick menu (called up by pressing the Menu button on the remote) lets you easily switch picture and sound presets, as well as directly access both picture and sound adjustment menus.

Smart TV & menus score: 4/5

Hisense U9N review: Gaming

Hisense U9N TV showing Game menu onscreen — A Game menu allows for easy gaming-related picture and sound adjustments (Image credit: Future)

Two HDMI 2.1 ports
4K 144Hz, FreeSync Premium Pro, Dolby Vision gaming
15.2ms input lag

The U9N’s dual HDMI 2.1 ports support 4K 144Hz, VRR with AMD FreeSync Premium Pro, and Dolby Vision gaming. We typically ding TVs in reviews for providing only two, rather than four, HDMI 2.1 ports, but an additional HDMI port on the U9N supports HDMI eARC, allowing for both PS5 and Xbox Series X gaming consoles and an external soundbar to be connected all at once, so we can accept it here.

A Game Bar menu (accessible via the quick menu) provides a range of stats and game-related picture and sound adjustments, including genre-specific presets, when the TV is in Game mode.

At 15.2ms, the U9N’s input lag in Game mode is on the high side compared to the best gaming TVs, though I didn’t notice any issues during casual gaming with an Xbox Series X.

Gaming score: 4/5

Hisense U9N review: Value

Hisense U9N TV remote control held in hand — Hisense's full-sized, backlit remote control (Image credit: Future)

Priced lower than premium mini-LED competition
Cheaper Hisense U8N series is also excellent
Still, a great overall value

At around $2,000, the 75-inch Hisense U9N is priced lower than its closest mini-LED competition when it comes to picture and sound quality. You can buy the Samsung QN90D in a 75-inch screen size for around $2,400, while the Sony Bravia 9 will cost you around $3,500. Taken in that company, the U9N is an exceptional value.

The main thing that chips away at the U9N’s value is the also-excellent Hisense U8N (around $1,299 for the 75-inch screen size), which has an even brighter picture than the U9N plus similar gaming features and performance. You get a more refined local dimming with the U9N, however, along with better P3 color space coverage and superior off-axis picture performance. The U9N’s 4.1.2-channel speakers also deliver more powerful and immersive sound than the U8N’s 2.1.2-channel speakers.

All things considered, the Hisense U9N still stands out as a great value, and one well worth considering even at a $700 premium over the Hisense U8N.

Value score: 4.5/5

Should I buy the Hisense U9N?

Hisense U9N TV rear panel subwoofer drivers — Dual bass drivers on the TV's rear convey the ".1" subwoofer channel in Atmos soundtracks. (Image credit: Future)

Buy it if...

You want to watch in bright rooms
The U9N’s high brightness and excellent off-axis picture picture quality make it a perfect choice for viewing sports in bright rooms and with large groups.

…and also want a great TV for movies
The U9N’s refined local dimming and versatile handling of programs with high dynamic range makes it great for viewing movies and TV shows in HDR.

You want great built-in sound
A 4.1.2-channel, 76W speaker system with front- and upward-firing drivers lets the U9N project loud, clean and immersive sound with good bass.

Don't buy it if…

You want the best gaming TV
The U9N has better-than-average gaming features and good gaming performance, but other TVs best it when it comes to measured input lag as well as offering extras like cloud gaming.

You’re on a budget
While the U9N is easy to recommend, Hisense’s U8N also delivers great overall performance and a mostly similar feature set at a much lower price.

Panasonic Z95A review: Also consider...

Samsung QN90D
Samsung’s flagship mini-LED TV costs more than the U9N and doesn’t support the Dolby Vision HDR format. Its picture quality is equally good, however, and it also has a sleeker design and better gaming features, as we found in our Samsung QN90D review.

Sony Bravia 9
Sony’s flagship TV is about as premium as mini-LED gets, and we appreciated its bright yet refined picture and powerful sound in our Sony Bravia 9 review. But, it’s considerably more expensive than the U9N and lacks the Hisense’s HDR10+ support.

Hisense U8N
The step-down series from the U9N in Hisense’s TV lineup, the U8N has a nearly as good picture along with impressive sound quality. It’s also an exceptional value as we said in our Hisense U8N review.

How I tested the Hisense U9N

Hisense U9N TV being measured for brightness by reviewer — Measuring a 10% HDR white window pattern during testing (Image credit: Future)

Tested over the course of two weeks
Measurements were made using Calman color calibration software
A full calibration was made before proceeding with subjective tests

When I tested the Hisense U9N, I first spent a few weeks using it for casual viewing to assess the out-of-box picture presets and get familiar with its smart TV menu and picture adjustments. I next selected the most accurate preset (Filmmaker Mode, in this case) and measured grayscale and color accuracy using Portrait Displays’ Calman color calibration software. The resulting measurements provide Delta-E values (the margin of error between the test pattern source and what’s shown on-screen) for each category and allow for an assessment of the TV’s overall accuracy.

Along with those tests, I made measurements of peak light output (recorded in nits) for both standard high-definition and 4K high dynamic range using 10% and 100% white window patterns. Coverage of DCI-P3 and BT.2020 color space was also measured, with the results providing a sense of how faithfully the U9N can render the extended color range in ultra high-definition sources.

I used the Calman ISF workflow, along with the TV’s advanced picture menu settings, to calibrate the image for best accuracy after I'd assessed its out-of-the-box performance. I also watched a range of reference scenes on 4K Blu-ray discs to assess the TV’s performance, and 4K HDR shows streamed from Max, Hulu, and other services.

You can read an in-depth overview of how we test TVs at TechRadar for more information.

First reviewed: February 2025
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This super-cheap Sony soundbar is one of the best budget options I’ve ever tested

9:00 pm | February 11, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets Soundbars Televisions | Comments: Off

Sony HT-SF150 review

If you’ve decided it's time to upgrade your sub-par TV audio, but don’t want to lose your life savings, the Sony HT-SF150 could be your ideal low-budget solution. This super-slim 2.0 channel soundbar aims to supply “punchy bass without compromising detail and clarity”, simple connectivity and cinematic virtual surround sound – but does it get the job done?

Well, let’s kick things off by talking about setup. It really doesn’t get much easier than this: simply connect your soundbar via HDMI ARC or digital optical, plug it into a power outlet and you’re away. I selected HDMI ARC mainly because it allows you to adjust the soundbar’s volume with a standard TV remote – pretty handy.

After getting the Sony HT-SF150 all set up, I got straight into testing its audio capabilities. I’m happy to report that it fared very well for a soundbar that’s often available for less than its already cheap $129 / £99 / AU$194 list price. I didn’t encounter much tinniness or distortion, even at medium to high volumes – something I’ve experienced with a lot of cheap soundbars. Speaking of volume, this thing can get surprisingly loud, in part thanks to its 120W power output, which is considerably higher than what some of the best cheap soundbars offer.

Person turning on Sony HT-SF150 using remote — (Image credit: Future)

Staying with sound, I was impressed by dialogue clarity when using the Sony HT-SF150. For instance, I watched the movie Smile on Netflix and, when two women were speaking in an isolated room, the vocals were super clear and each character’s tone sounded natural. When listening to a podcast, I could switch to Voice mode using the included remote, which really brings speech to the forefront and presents it in a crisp, clear-cut manner.

In addition to Voice, there are Standard, Cinema, Music, Night and Auto Sound modes. That last mode tunes EQ depending on what content you’re consuming, though sometimes I still needed to do this manually.

Another glowing aspect of this soundbar’s performance is the effectiveness of Sony’s S-Force Front Surround virtual processing, which endeavors to emulate “cinema-style surround sound.” That may be a bit of a stretch for a soundbar with no Dolby Atmos or DTS:X, let alone any sub or rear speakers, but, while watching The Boy and the Heron, I was struck by the soundbar’s ability to accurately map the heron’s flight as he soared across my screen and then towards me. You won’t get incredible verticality or room-filling expansiveness here, but the HT-SF150 certainly outclassed my TV’s efforts.

Button controls on top of the Sony HT-SF150 — (Image credit: Future)

One area where a lot of standalone soundbars fall flat is bass output – it can be hard to muster a meaty boom without a dedicated subwoofer – especially in a budget model like this. And although the HT-SF150 won’t rock your world with mesmerizing low-end output, it still plates up decent bass. This model includes a built-in bass reflex speaker, which gives a leg up to deep tones and makes it ideal for movies or video games with dark or ambient scores.

When playing Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, I was met with impressive depth as the protagonist Cloud faced oversized mechanical monstrosities with thumping footsteps and ground-shaking attacks. I would’ve liked an option to raise bass levels manually to really enhance low-end output, but you won’t get that, unfortunately.

In some places, this game includes speech from the main cast, chatter from background characters or enemies and music from its grandiose soundtrack. This exposed a slight weakness in the Sony HT-SF150 – it sometimes leans into a slightly muddied presentation. When there are several layers to balance out, you may experience some business in the mid-range. There’s no abrasiveness or harshness to endure, just a bit of bloating that can leave some details under wraps.

Bass reflex speaker on reverse side of the Sony HT-SF150 — (Image credit: Future)

You’re probably not expecting perfectly separated, ultra-detailed audio, so for the most part, the HT-SF150 performs well in this department. But sound isn’t the only positive part of this model, I also loved its design. Really, this soundbar looks a lot more premium than many of its budget counterparts. It has a beautiful leather-like finish on top, classy onboard buttons, and an attractive wraparound speaker grille.

The included remote is slim with well-sized button controls and a premium feel. Unfortunately, some features can only be triggered by repeatedly pressing certain buttons on the remote, which can be a bit confusing unless you consult the user manual.

The only frustrating aspect of this soundbar's design is its LED display. As with competitors like the Panasonic SC-HTB100, this thing just uses small lights to indicate volume and sound mode alterations or when it’s in Bluetooth mode. This works fine, but I do prefer a more visual display with letters and numbers – something you get with the Majority Elias, for instance.

Sony HT-SF150 remote in someone's hand — (Image credit: Future)

Back to the positives, though. I found this soundbar to be pretty feature-rich given its price-point. For example, you can toggle Dolby Dynamic Range Control, which makes Dolby Digital audio easier to hear at lower volumes. There’s also multiplex broadcast sound and USB connectivity available. One key feature is the inclusion of Bluetooth 4.2, which enables you to connect your phone to the soundbar and play music.

Musical performance wasn’t amazing over Bluetooth – breathy vocal details in I Want You by Moloko weren’t very audible and could sound a bit lost in the overall mix, even when listening in Music mode. However, the low-end kick in the bass-heavy Splash Mountain by Yung Gravy was commendable and the depth and rapid decay of the drum machine in Black Eye by Allie X also stuck out to me. This soundbar is up to the task if you just want to listen to some tunes in the background, but it won't impress audiophiles or compete with some of the best soundbars.

Overall, the Sony HT-SF150 is a very solid budget soundbar with a broad feature set, generally clear-cut dialogue, considerable power, and an elegant design. For the price, it’s fantastic value and while it’s not without its flaws sonically, it can be trusted to offer a leg up to some of the best small TVs and even some more premium models. So, this soundbar is definitely worth bearing in mind for those on a budget, but if you’re a little short on space, the mini Hisense HS214 is an awesome alternative. Those with a bit more cash may also want to consider one of the best Dolby Atmos soundbars for mind-blowingly good spatial sound.

Sony HT-SF150 and remote against pink background — (Image credit: Future)

Sony HT-SF150 review: Price and release date

$129 / £99 / AU$194
Launched in 2018

The Sony HT-SF150 is available in the UK and has an RRP of £99. In the US and Australia, the model has a slightly different name – the Sony HT-S100F – and a list price of $129 / AU$194. But I bring great news…this soundbar is often available for a fair amount less. I’ve often seen it sell for less than $100 / £90 / AU$180, which makes it an incredibly low-priced option. It may not be the newest soundbar on the market, but it’s compatible with all modern TVs thanks to its use of HDMI and digital optical connectivity.

Sony HT-SF150 review: Specs

Various ports on the reverse side of the Sony HT-SF150 — (Image credit: Future)

Should I buy the Sony HT-SF150?

Buy it if...

You’re working with a tight budget
This soundbar is available at an excellent low price, making it fantastic for anyone on a tight budget. It may have a list price of $129 / £99 / AU$194, but it’s available for even less than this fairly regularly – that’s phenomenal value for money.

You want to keep your set-up looking classy
One of the best things about the Sony HT-SF150 is its high build quality and looks. A lot of budget soundbars have a tendency to lean into a plasticky, cheap-looking aesthetic – but not this one. Even if you have one of the best TVs, this soundbar won’t appear out of place on your unit.

Don't buy it if...

You want surround sound
If you want truly expansive surround sound, you’re going to have to keep looking – you won’t find it here. This Sony soundbar doesn’t support Dolby Atmos or DTS:X (or Virtual:X) – meaning you won't get a next-level spatial impression. And of course, it’s a standalone 2.0 channel soundbar – there’s no sub or rear speakers included.

You’re looking for premium audio quality
For the most part, the Sony HT-SF150 delivers clean audio quality, with clear dialogue and impressive volume. But if you’re seeking truly premium audio, this soundbar won’t cut it. If you want booming bass, tightly controlled highs and super-rich mids, you'll need to stretch your budget a bit further. An all-in-one soundbar that offers all of these things and I can confidently recommend is the Sony HT-S2000.

Sony HT-SF150 review: Also consider

Hisense HS214
The Hisense HS214 is one of the best budget soundbars in the land. Why? It’s super compact, supplies clear dialogue and even has a built-in subwoofer – all for less than $100 / £80. Its small size means this Sony soundbar might produce a wider, more expansive impression, but if you’re short on space, the HS214 is a top alternative. Read our full Hisense HS214 review.

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar
Another solid compact option is the Amazon Fire TV soundbar. It’s not the most elegant-sounding option on the market, but audio is decent for the price and we found this soundbar super easy to use. Again, there's no Atmos or surround speakers included, but it's still a budget rival worth considering. Read our full Amazon Fire TV Soundbar review.

Sony HT-SF150 review: How I tested

Reverse side of the Sony HT-SF150 — (Image credit: Future)

Tested for one week
Connected the soundbar to the Hisense U7K TV at home
Used the HDMI ARC connectivity option

For one week, I had the not-so-arduous task of testing the Sony HT-SF150. During this time, I used HDMI ARC to connect the soundbar to my Hisense U7K TV – which already has solid built-in audio.

While testing, I viewed a variety of TV shows, videos and movies – mainly using streaming services like Amazon Prime Video, Netflix and YouTube. I also played Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth on the PS5 to assess the soundbar’s gaming capabilities. In addition, I connected the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE to the SF150 and trialed Bluetooth connectivity for playing music. I made sure to play tracks from the TechRadar testing playlist to judge the quality of the soundbar’s Music mode.

First reviewed: February 2025
Read more about how we test

I tested Amazon’s Fire TV Soundbar Plus system, and it’s wireless 5.1 surround sound without the expense or fuss

6:23 pm | February 7, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets Soundbars Televisions | Tags: LED, TV, UK, US | Comments: Off

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus: Two minute review

The Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus is a solid soundbar at a decent, but not exceptional, price. While that’s a non-controversial and fairly vanilla statement, it’s a strange situation for Amazon since the company typically subsidizes its products, especially ones like Echo speakers and Fire TV branded TVs, to beat the market. It’s hard to ignore that there are plenty of cheaper options, whether you’re considering a basic all-in-one soundbar or a 5.1-channel soundbar system.

While I’m surprised that the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus is not as discounted as most Amazon products compared to the competition, it is one of the best soundbars I’ve experienced when it comes to ease of setup – everything is already paired and you just have to plug it all in.

The performance is, as expected at this price point, good but not great. The surround sound is immersive and the audio quality is what you’d expect at this price point. The sound doesn’t have quite the clarity of more premium options, but only fussy listeners will notice.

The only big issue I had with the audio quality is that the stereo image is not as wide as it should be from the soundbar, which I’ll get into below. And while the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus is advertised as having Dolby Atmos, it doesn’t actually have the physical speakers for spatial audio, so you won’t find it on any list for the best Dolby Atmos soundbars.

That said, you could do a lot worse for a soundbar system at its price point, whether you’re looking at the most basic configuration or the 5.1-channel one, especially if you see it discounted (as Amazon is wont to regularly do with its products).

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus system on rug — The Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus comes with all the accessories you need, including an HDMI cable and wall-mount brackets (Image credit: Future)

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus review: Price & release date

First available: December 2025
Price: Starting at $249.99 / £249.99 (about AU$400)
Available in the US and UK

The Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus is priced at $249.99 / £249.99 (about AU$400), and is just a standalone soundbar (along with a power cable, HDMI cable, remote, remote batteries, and mounting kit). The next level up comes with a wireless subwoofer and is priced at $374.99 (about £300 / AU$590). The maxed-out configuration (reviewed here) adds surround speakers along with the subwoofer for a 5.1-channel setup and costs $489.99 (about £390 / AU$770).

Surprisingly, this is more mid-range than budget pricing, bucking Amazon’s typical model of subsidizing its hardware for either market share or branding, especially when it comes to either smart home devices or Fire TV ones.

As far as availability goes, those in the US have access to all three configurations while only the most basic configuration is available in the UK. The Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus is not sold in Australia.

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus review: Specs

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus top surface control buttons — A basic set of control buttons is located on the soundbar's top surface (Image credit: Future)

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus review: Features

Surprisingly stripped down feature set
Some EQ and audio modes available through the remote
Virtual Dolby Atmos

Considering the branding, I was surprised to see how barebones the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus is. It doesn’t have built-in streaming the way Roku soundbars do, and it doesn’t have any Alexa-related functionality. There’s no app either, so you’re not going to be able to do any EQ fine-tuning (with an exception that I’ll mention below).

All EQ settings are available via the remote. There are four audio modes: Movie, Music, Sports, and Night. I preferred the Movie mode most since it seemed the least affected. However, Night mode is a nice addition as it keeps any peaks in the audio from getting too loud while simultaneously making everything easy to hear at low volume.

There are also individual bass and treble controls as well as surround sound volume on the remote. A dialogue function boosts the volume of dialogue to make it easier to hear – a great option for those with hearing loss, even if it’s a somewhat subtle effect.

There’s no physical Dolby Atmos on hand – the advertised Dolby Atmos is virtual, meaning you don’t get a true spatial audio experience. You get a full surround sound experience with the rear speakers at least, so there is a lateral 360-degree soundstage, just not the vertical one that spatial audio provides.

Besides the usual HDMI and optical digital connections, the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus also comes with Bluetooth, so streaming a Spotify playlist from a phone is straightforward.

The one area where the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus is unique is that, when paired with certain Amazon Fire TVs, you can fine-tune the audio on a deeper level in the TV’s settings.

Features score: 3.5 / 5

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus subwoofer on rug — Subwoofer level can be adjusted using the bass settings on the remote (Image credit: Future)

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus review: Performance

Sounds good but not the best resolution
Stereo image is a bit narrow
Surround sound is immersive

The sound quality of the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus is pretty good. You might not be impressed if you’ve used hi-fi equipment or premium soundbars, but if you’re looking for your first home theater surround sound system, you should be pretty happy.

Specifically, the high-end is just a tiny bit lacking so the audio doesn’t quite have the best clarity and resolution. This was especially apparent when playing music I’m familiar with, which just didn’t quite have the same sparkle it usually does. However, this is a nitpick.

The mids are fairly well balanced so that they sound full without being compressed or distorted. And there’s lots of bass available from the subwoofer so you get that rumble when watching movies.

You can adjust the subwoofer via the bass settings on the remote to be less impactful (or more) if you want. The treble, as mentioned before, is also adjustable via the remote, though I found the various levels to be a little too subtle.

When it comes to the soundstage, the left and right channels are a little closer together than I would like. This is because, even though the soundbar has left, center, and right channel speakers, the drivers and tweeters for the left and right channels (each channel has a mid-bass driver and tweeter) both face straight ahead. Even though the soundbar is 37 inches wide, this is not enough separation when you’re sitting beyond a 1.5-meter distance from the TV.

Yes, everything that’s supposed to be on the left sounds like it’s on the left and everything that’s supposed to be on the right is there as well. But, the stereo image is still a bit too narrow.

The surround sound, on the other hand, is a pleasure to listen to. The surround speakers offer a 360-degree experience, even when it’s just the atmosphere of a video game like It Takes Two or random background characters talking such as I experienced when watching Fool’s Paradise. I also tested the surround speakers with 5.1-channel audio mixes on YouTube, and it was enlightening to experience the spaciousness these speakers deliver while also confirming that you don’t really need to listen to Bob Marley in anything other than stereo.

It’s worth noting again that, though this soundbar supports Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, this is purely virtual as there are no physical upward-firing speakers. And I didn’t notice anything resembling that vertical sense of space when watching movies and TV with Dolby Atmos soundtracks.

Performance score: 4 / 5

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus rear ports — A minimal set of inputs, including HDMI ARC, optical digital and USB-A, is located on the soundbar's back panel (Image credit: Future)

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus review: Design

Basic aesthetics and design
LED indicator lights instead of alphanumeric display
Most fine tuning done through the remote

Aesthetically, the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus can best be described as utilitarian. All the units come in a matte black. The units are also all pretty boxy, and you would only know that they were made by Amazon because each piece has the Fire TV logo imprinted in shiny black somewhere on it. The various units don’t call too much attention themselves, other than the fact that the sound bar is 37 inches wide so you’ll need a wide enough surface to install it if you’re not wall-mounting.

The ports on the back are surprisingly limited to HDMI, optical digital, and USB. While the HDMI port is ARC-enabled, I would have appreciated a second HDMI passthrough port. This is an issue I frequently find with cheaper sound bars.

Another limitation is that there’s no alphanumeric display on the front, just five LED indicator lights that shine through the front grill cloth to reflect what the volume or various settings are up to.

The controls on top of the soundbar are a bit more limited than on the remote, but the necessary ones are here, namely: power, source, Bluetooth, volume up, and volume down.

All fine-tuning is done on the remote. Luckily, it’s easy to use and has separate bass and treble buttons to cycle through levels as well as a button to turn on/off surround sound, which has its own volume up and down. There are also EQ preset and dialogue buttons.

Design score: 4 / 5

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus rear speaker on table — The Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus system's surround speakers make an instant wireless link to the soundbar when plugged in (Image credit: Future)

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus review: Setup & usability

Already paired out of the box
Easy to use
No real display for current settings

Setting up the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus couldn’t be easier. Everything comes in one big box – all the packaging seems to be materials that can be recycled – and just needs to be removed and plugged in.

The soundbar, subwoofer, and rear speakers are already paired so that once everything is plugged in and powered on, the soundbar will register the other units. A wall-mounting kit is also included, though it’s just for the soundbar. The hardest part (unless you’re planning on mounting) is putting the batteries in the remote.

As far as using the soundbar, it’s also just as straightforward. The buttons on the sound bar itself are a bit basic so you need to keep track of the remote to get most of the functionality. But switching sources and adjusting the audio to taste within its limitations is fairly foolproof.

I do wish there was a front panel alphanumeric display for feedback when making changes. Instead, you have to rely on the indicator LEDs and listen to a voice prompt to know what setting you’ve changed. And if you’re not paying close attention, you have to adjust again to find out what it was on.

Setup & usability score: 4.5 / 5

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus remote control — With no app or Alexa control, EQ and sound adjustments on the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus are all carried out using the included remote (Image credit: Future)

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus review: Value

Good, but not great, deal for a surround sound soundbar system
Can find cheaper, though lesser, 5.1-channel sound bar options
Same money can get better-sounding options, but with fewer channels

I may sound a little confused when discussing the price of the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus by saying it’s at once affordable and overpriced. At $489.99 (about £390 / AU$770) for the surround sound configuration, it’s a good mid-tier system for the price that comes with a large soundbar, subwoofer, and two rear speakers. Yet, it’s priced higher than one would expect from the likes of Amazon, especially considering how light on features it is.

This is particularly highlighted when considering the Ultimea Poseidon D50, a 5.1-channel sound bar system that goes for a paltry $119.99 / £149.99 (about AU$180). Sure, the Ultimea comes with many more compromises with slightly worse audio and build quality, but it’s also much, much cheaper.

Of course, you can spend the same amount on something that’s not quite considered premium and get a much smaller package. Consider the Sony HT-S2000, a 3.1-channel system that counts virtual Dolby Atmos as a main attraction. It does have generally better audio quality. Still, you have to pay $499 / £449 / AU$695 for it.

Value score: 4 / 5

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus rear speaker behind sofa — (Image credit: Future)

Should I buy the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus?

Buy it if...

You want the easiest setup possible
All you have to do to set up the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus is to power up the various units. It doesn’t get easier than that.

You don’t want to spend too much for a surround sound system
While it’s not the cheapest out there, the price is pretty good, especially if you go for the configuration with the surround speakers and subwoofer.

You want a straightforward soundbar
Not only is this soundbar system easy to set up, but it’s easy to operate. If you find that too many bells and whistles get in the way, then this might be the one for you.

Don't buy it if...

sound-enabledYou want a lot of features
The Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus is surprisingly stripped down, especially for a surround sound- enabled setup. Sure, there’s virtual Dolby Atmos, but it’s not the real deal.

You want crystal-clear audio
The sound quality is good, but if you’re fussy, you’re going to wish you spent a little more on something with better clarity and resolution.View Deal

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus review: Also consider

Ultimea Poseidon D50
The Ultimea Poseidon D50 is proof you can go really cheap and still get a 5.1-channel system. Yes, there are compromises, such as the lack of any kind of Dolby Atmos support, and it’s also a bit cheap-looking. But, it mostly sounds good, and is easy to set up.

Read our full Ultimea Poseidon D50 review

Sony HT-S2000
If surround sound is not a top priority, but you still want something beyond stereo and have $500 / £500 to burn, the all-in-one Sony HT-S2000’s overall sound quality is impressive and its virtual Dolby Atmos is actually spacious-sounding.

Read our full Sony HT-S2000 review

Hisense AX5125H
Hisense's soundbar system offers 5.1.2 channels in a compact package with wireless surround speakers and subwoofer. It also has an alphanumeric front panel LED display and costs less than Amazon's system.

Read our full Hisense AX5125H review

How I tested the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus on TV stand — The Nakamichi Dragon with its two subs in my home. (Image credit: Future)

I used the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus for a couple weeks
Tested with both TV, movies, and music

I used the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus system regularly for a week. I used it with TV shows, movies, and music. I tested the various EQ options and audio modes as well as played around with all the other settings available, such as the dialogue mode.

After testing, the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus seems to be a decently priced 5.1-channel system that leans a bit on the Fire TV brand, offering mostly convenience and the surround sound experience, and not much else.

I’ve tested a lot of tech gear over the years from laptops to keyboards and speakers, and so have been able to use my expertise towards giving an honest and fair opinion, not to mention a critical eye, to any product I test.

First reviewed: February 2025
Read more about how we test

I spent a month testing the 11.4.6-channel Nakamichi Dragon, and it’s a Dolby Atmos soundbar on steroids

7:00 pm | February 1, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets Soundbars Televisions | Tags: Dolby Atmos, Dolby Vision, DTS, TV | Comments: Off

Nakamichi Dragon: Two minute review

The Nakamichi Dragon is an 11.4.6-channel soundbar system that pushes the outer limits of what a soundbar is capable of. It’s more akin to an AV receiver in its design, features, and execution. Using it, I was frequently reminded of AV receivers by everything from the system’s heavily buttoned remote control to its extensive, detailed setup menu. The Dragon is not aimed at someone interested in simple plug-and-play sound (though it does provide basic setup options and is easy to get up and running) but rather users who like to dig in and painstakingly tweak settings.

At $2,999.99 (around £2,400 / AU$4,750), the Nakamichi Dragon costs double what you’ll pay even for the best Dolby Atmos soundbars on the market such as the Samsung HW-Q990D. That’s quite a lot to pay for a soundbar system, and it takes you into an AV receiver and separate speakers package price territory. But an important Dragon advantage is that it’s a wireless system, though one with the high channel count you’d get from a receiver-based home theater audio rig.

The Dragon isn’t as feature-packed as expected given its relatively lofty price. There’s processing onboard for Dolby Atmos and the Pro version of DTS:X, and there are four HDMI 2.1 ports (one with eARC) that support 4K 120Hz and Dolby Vision pass-through. The system comes with a full-scale remote control that provides quick access to a wide array of audio adjustments and it has Bluetooth aptX HD for wireless music streaming. There’s no AirPlay or Chromecast support for streaming over Wi-Fi, and the system’s control app is primarily used for system setup.

Automatic setup and room EQ features, either the more basic ones you get in premium soundbars like the Sonos Arc Ultra, or advanced ones such as Audyssey or Dirac Live in AV receivers, are also nowhere to be found. Basic setup of the Dragon soundbar system is surprisingly easy, however.

The Dragon system’s sound does its name justice. It can go incredibly loud and the dual subwoofers, each with two 8-inch opposing drivers, provide deep-reaching and very full-sounding bass. Having two subwoofers also helps to even out bass performance, which compensates to a degree for the lack of room EQ processing. (Two subs are provided with the system configuration I tested, but it supports up to four subs.)

With six up-firing Atmos height drivers between the soundbar and the surround speakers, which also provide both side and rear surround channel driver arrays, the level of immersion provided by the Dragon system surpasses any other soundbar system I’ve heard. Not all is perfect with the Dragon’s sound, however: it can come across as aggressive and treble-forward with some content, favoring clarity and presence over subtlety. But if your main thing is action movies or gaming, there’s not too much here to complain about.

At 58.1 x 7.7 x 4.4 inches, the Dragon system’s soundbar is fairly huge – it just about fit my TV stand, which is designed to support TVs up to 75 inches. The soundbar’s stainless steel enclosure is superior to the plastic ones you get on budget models, and the system’s design strikes a nice balance between function and style. A large front panel LED display can be customized to show the names of sources (Blu-ray, Xbox, etc.) and it can also provide visual feedback beyond basic source and volume settings when you hit the Info button on the remote control.

Paying $3,000 for a soundbar system might sound a bit outrageous, but the Nakamichi Dragon is no ordinary soundbar system. It delivers a level of performance that’s more like what you get from a traditional AV receiver-based home theater system from a big honkin' soundbar with wireless subwoofers and surround speakers. If that all sounds appealing to you, you’ll find the Dragon to be a good value.

Nakamichi Dragon soundbar seen from above with Apple TV 4K menu on TV screen — At 58.1 inches wide, the Dragon requires a substantial TV stand for support (Image credit: Future)

Nakamichi Dragon review: Price & release date

Released in October 2023
$2,999.99 (around £2,400 / AU$4,750)

The Nakamichi Dragon soundbar system with two dual-opposing eight-inch subwoofers is listed at $3,999.99, but sells for $2,999.99. It is available in the US on Amazon, and can be purchased and shipped internationally through B&H Photo Video.

Along with the base configuration reviewed here, the Dragon can also be purchased in configurations with two 12-inch subwoofers ($4,199) or four 12-inch subwoofers ($7,199). Dragon pricing is high compared to other premium soundbar systems such as the Samsung HW-Q990D and LG S95TR, both of which have a lower overall channel count and lower rated power.

Nakamichi Dragon review: Specs

Nakamichi Dragon soundbar detail shot of tweeter with subwoofer in background — The Dragon soundbar and surround speakers use matching 1.5-inch Air Motion tweeters. (Image credit: Future)

Nakamichi Dragon review: Features

11.4.6-channel Dolby Atmos and DTS:X
Four HDMI 2.1 ports with 4K 120Hz and Dolby Vision pass-through
Bluetooth aptX HD wireless streaming

The Nakamichi Dragon combines a sizeable 58.1 x 7.7 x 4.4-inch main soundbar unit (1476 x 112 x 196mm) featuring a stainless steel enclosure with two wireless subwoofers and wireless rear surround speakers. The soundbar provides processing for Dolby Atmos and DTS:X Pro and features four HDMI 2.1 ports with 4K 120Hz and Dolby Vision pass-through along with optical digital audio and 3.5mm aux inputs and outputs. There’s no onboard Wi-Fi for streaming, but the Dragon soundbar does support Bluetooth aptX HD for streaming music.

The soundbar’s speaker array consists of three 1.5-inch “Air Motion” folded ribbon-type tweeters, each flanked by a pair of 3-inch mid-range drivers for the left, center, and right channels. Two pairs of 3-inch height speakers are arrayed on the soundbar’s top surface, with the pairs angled at 10 and 20 degrees, respectively, to evenly distribute Atmos height effects from the front toward the back of the room. Along with these, 3-inch drivers are located on the soundbar’s side panels for an enhanced surround sound effect.

Nakamichi’s tall, tower-like dual-opposing wireless subwoofers each house a pair of eight-inch drivers inside a ported cabinet. The system’s Omni-Motion Reference wireless surround speakers each contain side and rear surround speaker arrays consisting of a 1.5-inch Air Motion tweeter and three-inch mid-bass driver, with a three-inch height speaker mounted on top. A PerfectHeight adjustment on the Omni-Motion Reference’s top surface lets you rotate the height speaker up 180 degrees to optimize height effects for your specific room layout and installation.

Unlike other premium soundbars on the market from brands like Samsung, LG, and Sonos, the Dragon has no automated setup or room EQ features. The system’s dual subwoofer configuration does help to evenly distribute bass in your room and compensate for room modes, however, and the extensive sound level and delay adjustments allow for a precise manual setup.

Features score: 3.5 / 5

Nakamichi Dragon subwoofer in corner of room — The Dragon's dual subwoofers are fairly tall, but can be tucked unobtrusively into the corners of a room. (Image credit: Future)

Nakamichi Dragon review: Performance

Powerful, immersive sound
Deep, impactful bass
Overly aggressive sound with some content

The Dragon system sounded good out of the box but strongly benefitted from a manual calibration in the Advanced Sound Setup menu. Once that was done, I cracked open a new 4K Blu-ray disc of the recent Twisters remake that I had bought specifically for this test.

On the Dragon system, the sound of violent tornadoes ripping through space in the Twisters soundtrack was potently rendered, providing an almost unnerving sense of being directly inside the path of destruction. Vehicles propelled through the air and crashing to earth had a powerful impact, so much so that I found myself dialing back the bass adjustment – conveniently located right next to the volume button on the system’s remote control.

On Top Gun: Maverick, another movie that I regularly use to test soundbars, the sounds of jets in the first training scene early in the movie had a strong trajectory as they swooped from the front to the back of the room, and there was impressive verticality to the sound as they crisscrossed overhead. The drums and bass in The Who’s Won’t Get Fooled Again that plays in this scene came through with equal power, with Roger Daltrey’s yawps soaring along with the jets on the soundtrack.

Dolby Atmos music streamed from Apple Music on my Apple TV 4K sounded equally vivid and exciting on the system, especially tracks like Kraftwerk’s Nummern / Computerwelt. This track sounded almost endlessly wide and immersive, showcasing the benefits of six separate height speakers for delivering Atmos mixes. The low-end on this track was powerful and deep but also well-integrated with the rest of the mix, the system’s dual subwoofers working together to energize my room with bass.

With more subtle-sounding fare – Severance season 2 on Apple TV Plus, for instance – dialogue was very clear, and that was the case with most shows and movies I watched. As part of my initial setup, I selected the system’s Movie (Movie 1) sound preset (Music, Game, and Night modes are also available) and also dialed back the treble to the minimum setting. That’s because the Dragon system, while it has a considerable roar, can sound aggressive and even a bit harsh with some content.

I’ve listened with multiple speakers that use the same Air Motion-type tweeter that’s found in Nakamichi’s system and those generally had a much more laid-back quality to the treble. This tells me that the Dragon was voiced to have a bold, even in-your-face sound that befits its name.

Performance score: 4 / 5

Nakamichi Dragon rear input ports — The Dragon soundbar's rear input ports include 4 HDMI 2.1 ports (1 w/ eARC) (Image credit: Future)

Nakamichi Dragon review: Design

Large soundbar and subwoofers
Soundbar height may block the TV image
Solid overall build quality

At 58.1 x 7.7 x 4.4 inches, the Dragon’s design is anything but subtle. This is a big soundbar, and its 4.4-inch height means the top edge will definitely obscure the screen bottom of some TVs. At 32 pounds (14.5kg), it’s also a heavy one – not surprising given its stainless steel enclosure. Nakamichi sells optional floor stands for the Dragon, which will allow it to be used with wall-mounted TVs and projectors.

Aside from being massive, the Dragon soundbar has an appealing design, with top panel controls that light up when touched, angled front corners, and exposed Air Motion tweeters poking through the metal mesh front. The same design chops carry over to the Omni-Motion Reference wireless surround speakers, which also get optional stands. Nakamichi’s wireless subwoofers have a plainer, more utilitarian look, but their tall form factor lets them tuck fairly unobtrusively into the corners of a room.

The Dragon soundbar’s front-panel alphanumeric LED display is a feature I fully expect to see in a soundbar at this price. While it’s welcome, I would have liked an option to dim the display or to shut it off entirely with the remote when viewing, which is a feature you get on some AV receivers.

Design score: 4.5 / 5

Nakamichi Dragon surround speaker against wood panel wall background — The Dragon surround speakers have matching tweeter-woofer arrays on either side to deliver rear and side surround channel, and there's an upward-firing driver on top for Atmos height channels. (Image credit: Future)

Nakamichi Dragon review: Setup & usability

Easy wireless speaker setup
Extensive manual sound adjustments
Alphanumeric front panel LED display

The basic setup of the Dragon system was incredibly easy. After positioning the soundbar on my TV stand, where it occupied nearly the stand’s full width with an inch to spare on each side, I located the subwoofers in the front corners of my room and the surround speakers at either side of my sofa. After plugging all speakers in, they made an automatic wireless connection to the soundbar, with a blue LED indicating that the system was up and running.

After connecting my sources to the soundbar’s HDMI inputs, and my TV to the HDMI eARC port, I renamed the inputs in the setup menu so they would show up on the front panel display as “Blu-ray disc player, Xbox One X console, and Apple TV 4K.” I next made a Bluetooth link to my phone for music streaming by pressing the Bluetooth button on the remote control, which put the Dragon into wireless pairing mode.

So much for the easy part – the next part of the setup was much more laborious. Nakamichi gives you an easy out by providing Small, Medium, and Large room options. (Guidance on which option is best for your particular room is provided in the detailed and well-organized PDF owner’s manual.) Sound with the Small option selected – the closest match for my room – was good out of the box, but for my test, I wanted to go through the full manual setup to see what difference it would make.

Pulling out my tape measure and trusty old Radio Shack SPL meter, I manually entered the listening distance for each channel and also ran the pink noise output to adjust the sound level. With 11.2.6 total channels for the Dragon system I tested, we’re talking a lot of speakers to adjust! The effort was completely worth it, though, since sound clarity and bass evenness received an immediate boost.

Nakamichi’s remote control is large, has an aluminum faceplate, and is packed with buttons to access a wide range of fine adjustments for things like individual speaker channel levels, including height and subwoofer channels. There’s also a Dragon control app that gives you many of the same adjustments. The only thing I didn’t like about the remote is that the keypad doesn’t have the same backlighting feature typically found in AV receiver remote controls offering the same level of granular adjustments.

Another gripe I had with the Dragon was the setup menu, which requires you to jump out of any program you’re watching to make adjustments other than the ones with dedicated keypad controls on the remote. My annoyance with this was mainly during my initial setup and early use, however. Once I had dialed in my preferred settings for movies/TV and music, those adjustments could be stored in the two available Favorite Settings buttons on the remote for easy recall.

Setup & usability score: 3.5 / 5

Nakamichi Dragon remote control on black background — The Dragon's full featured remote provides instant access to many adjustments for tweaking the system's sound on the fly. (Image credit: Future)

Nakamichi Dragon review: Value

Unique value proposition
Other premium soundbars available for much less
Approaching AV receiver-based system price range

The Nakamichi Dragon occupies a unique space in the home theater audio world, combining many of the functions of an AV receiver in a high channel-count soundbar plus wireless surround speakers and subwoofers package. At $3,000, you’re getting a lot for your money here, and there’s really nothing out there that parallels it.

While not as elaborate or high-impact as the Dragon, other premium soundbar systems can provide a similarly satisfying and immersive home theater audio experience. For around $1,500, you can get the Samsung HW-Q990D, an 11.1.4-channel system that also has multiple HDMI inputs with 4K 120Hz passthrough. And for under $1,000, there’s the LG S95TR, a 9.1.5-channel system. Both of these soundbars support Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, and they offer unique audio processing features designed to work with Samsung and LG TVs.

Another option is the Sony Bravia Theater Quad (around $2,200). This 4.1.4-channel wireless speaker system offers audio processing features designed specifically to work with Sony TVs, but it can also be used with any TV or projector setup. It’s a more compact and elegant alternative to soundbar-based systems, and with Sony’s 360 Spatial Sound Mapping at work, it doesn’t skimp out on audio immersion.

Finally, the Dragon’s $3,000 price is a threshold where you should also consider an AV receiver-based system. You can buy a 9.2-channel receiver such as the Onkyo TX-RZ50 for as little as $999, and then the sky is the limit when it comes to which speakers you add to your setup. The advantage to this option is that receivers offer extensive switching and control options, and they also provide automatic setup and room correction processing solutions such as Audyssey and Dirac Live. But going the AV receiver route means running wires – lots of them – plus a more complicated setup.

Value score: 3.5 / 5

Nakamichi Dragon top panel controls shown from above — The Dragon soundbar's top-panel control buttons (Image credit: Future)

Should I buy the Nakamichi Dragon?

Buy it if...

You want a wireless home theater audio system
With an 11.4.6 channel count and dynamic overall audio performance, the Dragon comes closer to a traditional home theater speaker system than other premium soundbars.

You want a soundbar without typical soundbar limitations
The Dragon’s six upfiring height speakers mean it doesn’t skimp on Atmos immersion, and its dual subwoofers deliver deeper and more powerful bass than you get with typical soundbar systems.

Don't buy it if...

You want a simple, no-fuss setup
While the Dragon system’s various components easily make a wireless connection, optimizing its sound for your particular space can be time-consuming.

You listen to music as much as watch movies
The Dragon system’s sound is a good match for electronic music and action movies, bringing everything to vivid, dynamic life, but it can also sound aggressive and in-your-face with some content.

Nakamichi Dragon review: Also consider

Sonos Arc Ultra
The new flagship soundbar from Sonos is an all-in-one 9.1.4-channel unit, and it can be supplemented with the company’s wireless speakers and subwoofer for an even higher level of Atmos immersion. It has no HDMI inputs beyond an HDMI eARC connection for a TV, however, and also no DTS support. Here's our full Sonos Arc Ultra review.

LG S95TR
LG’s 9.1.5-channel soundbar system also has Dolby Atmos and DTS:X support and it provides impressive surround sound immersion at a considerably lower price than the Dragon. Bonus points if you own an LG TV, which provides features to enhance the S95TR’s performance and usability. Here's our full LG S95TR review.

Samsung HW-Q990D
Samsung’s flagship soundbar system tops out at 11.1.4 channels, which is the closest you’ll get to the Dragon when it comes to Atmos (and DTS:X) immersion. It’s also half the price, supports AirPlay and Chromecast, and has similar HDMI 2.1 connectivity and gaming support as the Dragon. Here's our full Samsung HW-Q990D review.

How I tested the Nakamichi Dragon

Nakamichi Dragon system with TV showing green landscape — The Nakamichi Dragon with its two subs in my home. (Image credit: Future)

Tested for over a month
Served as my main system at home
4K Blu-ray discs, TV streaming apps, and Apple Music used as sources

The Nakamichi Dragon arrives in a shipping container about the size of a coffin, so expect to enlist help when lifting it into your home. Once unboxed, I set it up in my near-3,000 cubic foot home theater room and connected TV, Apple TV 4K, Xbox Series X, and 4K Blu-ray sources via HDMI. For music testing, I listened to Dolby Atmos music streamed on the Apple Music app by the Apple TV 4K.

I listened with the system for over a month, using it as my main system for casual TV watching, movies, and music. I performed an in-depth audio calibration, measuring the distance between all speaker channels and my listening seat, and then inputting that data in the Dragon’s setup menus. This also involved adjusting the sound level for each channel with pink noise generated by the soundbar that was measured with a sound pressure level (SPL) meter.

I have 20-plus years of experience reviewing home theater speaker systems and components, including soundbar systems. Prior to testing the Dragon, I used Sony Bravia Theater Quad wireless speakers as my main home theater audio system, and before that an AV receiver-based 5.1.4-channel speaker system, so I have a good understanding of where the Nakamichi Dragon sits among its wireless and wired speaker competition.

First reviewed: January 2025
Read more about how we test

I tested the Epson QB1000, and this stunning, super-bright projector is perfect for gaming

1:09 am | January 31, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets Home Theater Projectors Televisions | Tags: HDR, Mad Max | Comments: Off

Epson QB1000: two-minute review

The Epson EH-QB1000 is a fantastic projector, and in terms of performance, specifications and features, no other beamer comes close at this price.

The QB1000 uses a three-chip LCD design and laser light source that’s capable of producing an incredibly bright 3,300 lumens, which is higher brightness than many of the best 4K projectors can manage. In addition, thanks to excellent out-of-the-box accuracy the resulting images are not only bright but also naturally saturated. There’s a very low input lag, 4K 120Hz high frame rate support, and even HDR10+ high dynamic range support, making this beamer a cracking all-rounder.

The SDR performance is clean and detailed, with good motion handling and great accuracy. The HDR images are even better thanks to the dynamic tone mapping that gets the most out of the specular highlights and expanded shadow detail. The result is a rich and nuanced image with plenty of visual pop. The same goes for HDR10+ content, with its additional dynamic metadata.

Epson includes a host of higher-end features that are often absent from competing projectors. These include fully motorised lens controls and up to 10 lens memories for those using a ‘Scope ratio (2.35:1) screen. The menus themselves are comprehensive but simple to navigate, plus there are also extensive picture controls if you fancy getting your new beamer professionally calibrated.

The build quality is excellent, with a solid chassis and a choice of matte black or white finishes. There’s an extensive selection of connections, including two HDMI 2.1 inputs, along with a well-designed remote control that has a very useful backlight. There’s even a motorised lens cover to keep out dust, which is important because the light path on an LCD projector isn’t sealed.

Aside from the possibility of dust blobs, the only other limitation is the black level, which could be deeper. It’s also worth pointing out that the Epson isn’t native 4K, but can still produce higher-resolution images thanks to pixel-shifting technology. So when you add it all up, you really won’t find a more highly specified or better performing 4K HDR home cinema projector for the money.

Epson QB1000 review: price and release date

First available: December 2024
Price: £4,799 / $7,999

The EpsonQB1000 is the new entry-level model in the brand’s range of Premium Residential projectors and is available now in a choice of matte black or matte white finishes. The QB1000 currently retails for £4,799 in the UK but costs more in the US, where it will set you back $7,999.

Epson QB1000 on table — The QB1000 has a specified 3,000 lumens light output, and its laser light engine has a 20,000-hour lifespan (Image credit: Future)

Epson QB1000 review: Specs

Epson QB1000 review: design

Fully motorised lens controls
10 lens memory positions
Backlit remote control

The Epson QB1000 looks identical to the earlier Epson LS12000, with the same matte black or white chassis and central lens flanked by large forward-firing cooling grilles. The bodywork is solid and well-built, the motorised lens cover is retained, and there are basic controls at the rear, along with a removable cover to keep things tidy. There’s also an optional ceiling mount if required.

Setup is simple thanks to a generous throw ratio and motorised lens controls that include 10 lens memories for those using a 2.35:1 screen. The QB1000’s increased brightness makes it ideal for rooms with lighter-coloured walls, and as a bonus, the weak contrast ratios won’t be as obvious. There are also various picture modes, along with extensive calibration controls.

The connections are located in a long recess at the rear of the unit, where you’ll find two HDMI 2.1 inputs with support for 4K 120Hz, eARC, HDCP 2.3 and HDR10+, alongside regular HDR10 and HLG. There are also three USB ports, a 12V trigger output, an Ethernet port and RS-232C serial connector, along with support for various integrated control systems when used in a custom installation.

Design score: 5/5

Epson QB1000 rear panel ports — Ports include 3 HDMI 2.1 connections (1 with eARC) with 4K 120Hz support for gaming (Image credit: Future)

Epson QB1000 review: features

Dynamic HDR Tone Mapping
Support for 4K 120Hz high frame rate
Support for HDR10+ with dynamic metadata

The Epson QB1000 incorporates the same 3LCD design the brand uses on all its projectors, and this particular technology is limited to Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels). However, the QB1000 can accept and display 4K content (3840 x 2160 pixels) by using pixel-shifting technology that literally shifts each pixel diagonally to increase the perceived resolution and create more detailed images.

Despite using the same laser light source as earlier models it has a claimed peak brightness of 3,300 lumens, which is massive, and an average lifespan of 20,000 hours. As with all beamers that use LCD display technology the black levels are poor, with the QB1000 producing a claimed native contrast ratio of 5,000:1, although the dynamic laser feature can boost this to 5,000,000:1.

New this year is dynamic tone mapping that analyses HDR10 content and optimises the image, allowing the QB1000 to deliver improved performance with HDR compared to the earlier LS12000. As with the earlier model there is also support for HDR10+, which means the QB1000 can use the format’s dynamic metadata to deliver an image optimised to its inherent capabilities.

The QB1000 has improved motion handling and upgraded frame interpolation. As a result, it can deliver smooth and detailed motion with sport, although I’d recommend leaving the frame interpolation off when watching film-based content. The Epson also supports higher frame rates up to 4K 120Hz, which makes this beamer a great choice for any next-generation gamers.

Features score: 5

Epson QB1000 picture setup menu screen — Picture accuracy is excellent in the Cinema mode (Image credit: Future)

Epson QB1000 review: picture quality

Incredibly bright HDR images
Impressive HDR tone mapping
Very low input lag for gaming

The Epson QB1000 impresses right out of the gate, with the kind of bright, detailed and saturated picture that makes big-screen projection so enjoyable. With quality content, primary colours are punchy, while the uniformity of the LCD chipset is good with no signs of patchiness, banding or dust blobs. The latter can be an issue with LCD due to the light path not being sealed.

The out-of-the-box accuracy is excellent in the Cinema mode, with whites that aren’t awash in blue. The same goes for the skin tones, which look suitably natural, while the image itself is pleasingly sharp thanks to effective 4K upscaling and the three LCD panels being well-aligned.

Despite its inherent brightness, the QB1000 is surprisingly quiet, although the noise levels will increase if you use the higher laser settings. However, there’s so much brightness available that you don’t need to move the power up too high to illuminate even a large projection screen.

In fact, the QB1000 has sufficient brightness to handle rooms with light-coloured walls, and the option of a white finish also lends it to more lifestyle-friendly installations. The reflected light in this kind of setup has the added advantage of disguising the Epson’s poor contrast performance.

Black levels are the QB1000’s big weakness, with the contrast ratio only measuring 4,300:1 in my tests. To be fair at least this is close to the 5,000:1 Epson claims in its marketing, but it does mean blacks look more like a dark grey. You can use the dynamic laser feature to improve the contrast performance but in reality this only helps with fades to black and the rest of the time the blacks remain the same.

One area where Epson has improved the performance is in terms of motion handling, even with the frame interpolation turned off. When it’s engaged this feature results in smoother motion, which makes it very effective when watching fast-paced sports. However, make sure it's switched off for movies and TV dramas, so they don't end up looking like cheap video.

The inclusion of HDMI 2.1 inputs means the QB1000 can support frame rates up to 4K 120Hz. This makes it a great choice for gamers, and this appeal is only enhanced by the inclusion of ALLM (auto low latency mode), which automatically selects the Game mode when a console is detected. In Game mode the input lag measures a very impressive 19ms, with only Sony’s VPL-XW5000ES projector measuring lower.

The QB1000 supports high dynamic range, and really impresses with a bright and detailed image where the highlights pop and the shadows reveal more subtleties. The QB1000 doesn’t use a colour filter, which means it only covers 88% of the DCI-P3 wide colour gamut. However, thanks to the increased brightness and new dynamic tone mapping the results are often excellent.

For example, the Alfred Hitchcock classic North by Northwest was shot on the larger VistaVision film format and the resulting 4K disc is stunning. The QB1000 expertly delivers the sumptuous images, fleshing out the fine detail and rich colours with skill. The crop-duster attack is a particular treat, with the Epson’s increased brightness helping to bring the Indiana cornfields vividly to life.

Furiosa is the prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road and enjoys the same epic desert vistas and insanely detailed production design as the earlier film, along with a deliberately stylised colour scheme. The QB1000 handles all these visuals perfectly, while the excellent motion handling ensures all the frenetic vehicular action is delivered smoothly and without any annoying artefacts.

The WW1 thriller 1917 is about a mission across no-man’s land and boasts superb photography and HDR10+ encoding. As a result, the QB1000 can render all the detail in the native 4K image, as well as deliver bright and clean daytime vistas. The nighttime scenes are more of a challenge, and while the blacks could be better, the bright flares really cut through the darkness.

Picture quality score: 4/5

Epson QB1000 remote control — The QB1000's fullly backlit remote control makes it easy to adjust settings in a dark room (Image credit: Future)

Epson QB1000 review: value

Fantastic value for money
Cheaper than any direct competitor

The Epson EH-QB1000 is fantastic value for money value, especially when compared to its direct competitors. The Sony VPL-XW5000ES is currently £4,499/$5,999, and while it might be native 4K it doesn’t have motorised lens controls, dynamic HDR tone mapping, or HDR10+ and 4K 120Hz support. The JVC DLA-NZ500 is more expensive at £6,499/$5,999 and while it is native 4K, has better blacks levels and does include motorised lens controls, lens memories and HDR10+, it still lacks support for 4K 120Hz and doesn’t have a Game mode, so it’s not the best choice for gamers.

Value score: 5/5

Epson QB1000 back panel control buttons — (Image credit: Future)

Should I buy the Epson QB1000?

Buy it if...

You want a super-bright picture
The laser light source not only delivers a longer lifespan of 20,000 hours but also 3,300 lumens of peak brightness. This is brighter than any projector aside from Sony’s super-high-end XW8100.

You want 4K 120Hz support
The HDMI 2.1 inputs allow the QB1000 to support frame rates of up to 4K 120Hz, which makes this beamer a perfect choice for next-gen console owners or anyone using a high-end PC gaming rig.

You want HDR10+ support
The inclusion of HDR10+ allows the QB1000 to take advantage of the format’s dynamic metadata, ensuring tone mapping that’s optimised for the lower brightness of a projector compared to a TV.

Don’t buy it if…

You want native 4K
The QB1000 has Full HD resolution, and while it can accept and project 4K sources by using pixel-shifting technology, the detail isn’t as impressive as native 4K beamers from Sony and JVC.

You want deep blacks
The QB1000’s LCD display technology doesn’t deliver deep blacks or impressive contrast, so if that’s important you should be looking at the more expensive JVC NZ500 D-ILA projector instead.

You want support for 3D
Epson dropped 3D support with the previous generation, so if you’re a fan of the format you’ll either have to look at an alternative DLP projector or the high-end and very expensive JVC NZ800.

Also consider...

Epson LS12000
Epson LS12000 is less bright than the QB1000 but also costs less. It's also a great choice for gaming with 4K 120Hz support and it has great overall picture quality.

Read our full Epson LS12000 review

Sony VPL-XW5000ES
The Sony VPL-XW5000ES costs less than the Epson but is less bright and lacks the Epson's motorised lens controls, dynamic HDR tone mapping, and HDR10+ and 4K 120Hz support.

JVC DLA-NZ500
The JVC is more expensive than the Epson, has better blacks levels and includes motorised lens controls, lens memories and HDR10+ support. it lacks 4K 120Hz support, however, and doesn’t have a Game mode

Epson QB1000 on table with lens open — (Image credit: Future)

How I tested the Epson QB1000

Measured with Calman calibration software
Evaluated using SDR and HDR content
Reviewed in a dedicated home cinema

As with all my TV and projector reviews I use a combination of subjective viewing and objective measurements against the industry standards. For projectors, I also do all my testing in a dedicated home cinema with a completely blacked-out environment and high-quality screen.

The subjective testing is based around watching a variety of familiar scenes, primarily sourced from 4K and 1080p Blu-rays, plus the Spears & Munsil UHD Benchmark 4K disc. Any test scenes have been specifically chosen to evaluate a display’s black levels, contrast performance, colour accuracy, upscaling, image processing, motion handling, and HDR tone mapping.

For the objective testing, I measured the QB1000’s brightness, greyscale and colour gamut in SDR, before doing the same in HDR. I also evaluated the accuracy of the HDR tone mapping, along with the colour gamut coverage for DCI-P3. To do this I used a pattern generator and colour meter combined with Portrait Displays’ Calman calibration software. I measured the QB1000’s input lag in milliseconds using a specialised Leo Bodnar tester.

First reviewed: January, 2025

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Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED TV review: the best Fire TV yet, and a solid option for sports and gaming

7:00 pm | January 25, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets Televisions | Tags: Dolby Vision, HDMI, Star Wars, TV | Comments: Off

Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED TV review: Two minute review

The new Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED enters a seriously competitive mini-LED TV market, taking on Samsung, Hisense, TCL and Roku. It doesn’t stand out in this crowded arena, but it is a solid all-around TV for the price.

The Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED’s picture quality is pretty good overall compared to the best TVs. Colors are vibrant, textures and details are lifelike and contrast is well-balanced. Motion handling is good for both sports and movies. Unfortunately, it suffers from crushed black levels in some picture modes, resulting in a loss of shadow detail.

Audio quality is a mixed bag on the Omni Mini-LED. Sound is accurately placed with a good sense of direction, speech is clear and there’s generally good bass. While the sound can go beyond the borders of the screen, it feels narrow and contained, especially with Dolby Atmos effects. For those wanting a full home theater experience, I’d recommend one of the best soundbars.

The Omni Mini-LED has a good stock of gaming features including 4K 144Hz, Dolby Vision gaming, VRR (AMD FreeSync Premium Pro is included) and ALLM support. Performance is smooth and while it won’t beat the best gaming TVs from LG and Samsung, it provides a good mid-range alternative, though its graphics could be better.

Amazon’s Fire TV smart TV platform performs well enough and has a good number of picture settings for those who like to experiment. While Fire TV can be on the cluttered side, and there’s occasional stutter, it's a perfectly decent smart TV platform.

With a similar price to its main competitor, the Hisense U7N, the Omni Mini-LED’s real value comes down to what sort of prices it can hit during Prime Day and Black Friday. Discounts are already appearing, so it has the chance to seriously up its value when the sales begin.

Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED TV review: Prices & release date

Amazon Omni Mini-LED with red flowers on screen — (Image credit: Future)

Release date: November 2024
55-inch: $819.99 / £849.99 (about AU$1,316)
65-inch: $1,089.99 / £1,149.99 (about AU$1,750)
75-inch: $1,499.99 / £1,599.99 (about AU$2,409)
85-inch: $2,099.99 / N/A (about AU$3,373)

The Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED series is the latest entry in Amazon’s Fire TV range, following the Amazon Fire TV Omni QLED. It is the first Fire TV to feature a panel with a mini-LED backlight and is available in 55, 65, 75 and 85-inch (US-only for the 85-inch) sizes.

Its launch prices are strikingly similar to the Hisense U7N, one of the best mini-LED TVs on the market. The U7N has seen major discounts since its release in April 2024, especially during Black Friday, and the Amazon Mini-LED is already following suit.

Despite a relatively recent release, the 55-inch Mini-LED (the size I tested) is already down to $699.99 / £749.99 (about AU$1,122) and the 65-inch is down to $959.99 / £949.99. I expect these prices will drop even further during peak trading events in 2025 such as Amazon’s own Prime Day and Black Friday.

Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED TV review: Specs

Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED TV review: Benchmark results

Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED TV review: Features

Amazon Omni Mini-LED TV connection ports — The Amazon Omni Mini-LED features two HDMI 2.1 ports, a first for an Amazon Fire TV (Image credit: Future)

First mini-LED panel in Amazon’s TV range
4K 144Hz support for gaming
Dolby Vision IQ and HDR10+ high dynamic range

The Amazon Omni Mini-LED is the first set in Amazon’s Fire TV range to feature a display panel with a mini-LED backlight, a step-up feature from its LED and QLED TVs. The Omni Mini-LED features 512 dimming zones and supports both Dolby Vision IQ and HDR10+ high dynamic range.

Gaming support on the Omni Mini-LED includes 4K 144Hz, VRR (including AMD FreeSync Premium), ALLM and Dolby Vision and HDR10+ gaming. A game mode provides optimal picture settings for gaming but does not feature a game bar, a useful feature in gaming TVs from brands like LG, Samsung, Hisense and Panasonic. It also only features two HDMI 2.1 ports.

(One HDMI-related issue occurred during my testing. When switching a source from HDMI 2 to HDMI 1, the TV kept switching back to HDMI 2. I found that turning the TV off at the wall fixed the problem, which is something to bear in mind should this issue happen to you.)

The Omni Mini-LED has a 2.1-channel speaker array with Dolby Atmos support plus several preset audio modes including Standard, Movie and Sport.

The Omni Mini-LED uses Amazon’s own Fire TV as its smart TV platform. Fire TV supports all major streaming services such as Prime Video, Netflix and Disney Plus as well as UK-based streaming services such as BBC iPlayer and ITVX. It also has an Ambient Experience, where photos and artwork can be displayed on the screen when the TV is idle and it supports hands-free Alexa voice control.

Features score: 4.5 / 5

Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED TV review: Picture quality

Amazon Omni Mini-LED with butterfly on screen 2 — The Amazon Omni Mini-LED demonstrates very good detail (Image credit: Future)

Bold color and accurate detail
Better than expected contrast
Black crush in darker scenes

The Omni Mini-LED’s peak HDR brightness as measured on a 10% white window pattern was 845 nits in the Standard picture preset and 973 nits in Filmmaker Mode. These results were with out-of-the-box settings for both picture modes, where the backlight was set to 80 and 70, respectively, and are roughly in the range of the Hisense U7N, which hit 807 nits in Standard mode and 1,074 nits in Filmmaker Mode.

Raising the backlight to 100 for both modes, the Omni Mini-LED hit 1,081 nits in Standard mode and 1,333 nits in Filmmaker Mode. While the higher backlight settings resulted in much higher brightness levels, I found it made highlights look blown out when watching movies.

Measuring fullscreen HDR brightness on a 100% white window pattern, again with out-of-the-box settings, the Omni Mini-LED hit 431 nits in Standard mode and 481 nits in Filmmaker Mode. When bumping up the backlight to 100 in picture settings in those modes, the Omni mini-LED hit 538 and 633 nits, respectively.

For picture testing and measurements, I used the Omni Mini-LED's out-of-the-box settings. When measuring color and grayscale in Filmmaker mode (with local dimming set to Medium), it averaged 2.9 for color accuracy and 4.8 for grayscale accuracy.

However, I did find that the Omni Mini-LED has potential for those who want its picture calibrated. After using the TV's calibration tools in Filmmaker Mode (SDR), it averaged 1.7 and 2.5 for color and grayscale accuracy, respectively, which are notable improvements.

Watching an HD stream of Fight Club via Disney Plus, the Omni Mini-LED did a solid job of upscaling, with both textures and contrast improved. It also did a good job of displaying the movie’s murky, dark color palette.

Color on the Omni mini-LED was very good overall. A 4K Dolby Vision stream of Star Wars: The Last Jedi on Disney Plus showcased vivid reds during the throne room fight scene. They verged on oversaturation but were still pleasing to the eye. A 4K Blu-ray of La La Land also demonstrated stunning color reproduction, with Mia’s yellow dress given a dynamic punch.

Measuring the Omni Mini-LED’s HDR color gamut coverage, it yielded results of 70.3% for BT.2020 and 94.9% for UHDA-P3 – both good results that are comparable to the Samsung QN85D and Hisense U7N.

Amazon Omni Mini-LED TV with geyser on screen — The Amazon Omni Mini-LED delivers solid contrast (Image credit: Future)

Contrast was generally strong, with the Omni mini-LED displaying a good balance between light and dark tones, something that could be seen in the opening crime scene and aerial shots of the city when watching a 4K Blu-ray of The Batman. I found that Dolby Vision Filmmaker Mode was the best overall picture preset, though setting local dimming to Medium in the picture settings resulted in the best contrast. Also, when watching the black-and-white scenes in Oppenheimer, there was a good range of gray tones throughout.

Black levels and shadow detail were a mixed bag on the Omni Mini-LED. The contrast was solid and it demonstrated decent backlight control, but I found it would crush black tones in darker scenes, resulting in a loss of shadow detail. For example, in the same opening crime scene of The Batman, with local dimming set to Medium in Dolby Vision Filmmaker Mode, the detail in clothing was lost. Brighter picture modes such as Dolby Vision IQ or Dolby Vision Bright rectified this, but contrast also looked less accurate in those modes.

Textures were generally very good on the Omni Mini-LED, with facial features and details in a wide range of movies including The Batman, Top Gun: Maverick and Oppenheimer all looking accurate and true-to-life. Pictures could occasionally look on the soft side compared to more premium mini-LED TVs, but they were still solid for a mid-range model.

Motion in Sports TV mode was accurate out-of-the-box. When watching an HD stream of a soccer game, I found that setting Smoothness (judder reduction) at 4 and Clarity (blur reduction) at 10 were the optimal adjustments. For viewing sports, I found the Omini Mini-LED to be better than both the Hisense U6N and U7N, which required a lot more setup.

Motion was also good for movies, with the Omni Mini-LED easily handling the intense, fast-moving flight sequences in Top Gun: Maverick. Interestingly, I found I couldn’t alter the Natural Cinema motion setting in Dolby Vision Filmmaker Mode, but it did not seem to make a noticeable difference when tested on other picture modes.

Picture quality score: 4 / 5

Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED TV review: Sound quality

Amazon Omni Mini-LED TV with La La Land on screen — The Omni mini-LED has average built-in sound quality, so movies such as *La La Land* could benefit from a soundbar (Image credit: Future)

2.1-channel speakers
Good accuracy and placement
Sound is narrow and contained

The Omni Mini-LED has a 2.1-channel speaker system totaling 24W of power. It supports Dolby Atmos and comes with several sound modes targeted towards different types of content such as Movie, Sports, and Music. In my testing, I generally found Movie to be the best sound preset.

Watching the Batmobile freeway chase sequence in The Batman, the Omni mini-LED demonstrated good sound placement and accuracy – as cars swerved across the screen, the sound of the screeching tires also swept across the screen. Bass was decent, with a good level of rumble stemming from the Batmobile’s engine. When watching Top Gun: Maverick, the sound exceeded the confines of the screen during flight sequences, giving it an expansive quality, and the dialogue was clear throughout my viewing.

Even so, in both The Batman and Top Gun: Maverick, Dolby Atmos effects were so faint as to be unnoticeable, with the rain in The Batman and height channels in the Mach 10 scene in Top Gun: Maverick never hitting – something to be expected from a TV with basic, 2.1-channel built-in speakers. For those using the Omni Mini-LED mainly for watching movies, I’d recommend adding a soundbar.

Sound quality score: 3.5 / 5

Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED TV review: Design

Amazon Omni Mini-LED TV feet — The Amazon Omni Mini-LED's tall feet allow plenty of space for a soundbar (Image credit: Future)

Tall feet allow space for a soundbar
Hand-free voice control
Bland design for the price

One of the Omni Mini-LED’s best design features is its supplied feet. They are tall enough to easily fit a soundbar without the soundbar obscuring the bottom of the screen, a common issue with many TVs.

Otherwise, the Omni Mini-LED’s design is very uninspired, with a rather generic and slightly bulky appearance compared with mini-LED rivals from Hisense, Samsung and TCL. I expected a slimmer depth at this price.

The Omni Mini-LED comes with Amazon’s latest generation Alexa Voice remote, which still feels a little cheap and flimsy compared to remotes from other brands. Hands-free Alexa voice control is available via the TV’s built-in microphone – a welcome feature that can also be turned off in the settings.

Design score: 4 / 5

Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED TV review: Smart TV & menus

Fire TV smart TV platform
Sometimes stuttering performance
Advanced picture setup options

The Omni Mini-LED uses Amazon’s Fire TV smart TV platform, which is featured on the Amazon Fire TV Stick range as well as TVs from other brands.

Fire TV’s home screen provides a good number of movie and TV recommendations (especially for Prime Video) based on your viewing history and lets you easily jump back into programs you’ve previously been watching. It also has a large, revolving banner ad at the top that takes up roughly one-third of the screen.

Performance-wise, Fire TV is generally responsive when navigating though there were occasional stutters and freeze-ups during my testing. Menus, while fairly easy to get around, could be a little more user-friendly. There are plenty of settings to tailor the picture to your taste and even 2-point, 11-point and Color Grading calibration tools for those who want advanced fine-tuning.

While Fire TV gives preference on its home screen to Prime Video movies and TV shows, it does provide access to a wide array of streaming services including Netflix and Disney Plus.

Smart TV & menus score: 4 / 5

Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED TV review: Gaming

Amazon Omni Mini-LED TV with Battlefield V on screen — The Amazon Omni Mini-LED, shown here with *Battlefield V,* has a good stock of gaming features and performs well (Image credit: Future)

4K 144Hz and Dolby Vision gaming
13.4ms input lag time
Only two HDMI 2.1 ports

The Omni Mini-LED is well-equipped with gaming features, including support for 4K 144Hz, VRR (including AMD FreeSync Premium Pro), ALLM and Dolby Vision gaming. It is the first of Amazon’s FireTVs to feature 120Hz support, but only features two HDMI 2.1 ports, which is currently the case for all TVs not made by LG or Samsung.

The Omni Mini-LED performs well, even at higher frame rates. Playing Battlefield V on Xbox Series X, I found chaotic battle sequences, quick targeting and panning shots all ran smoothly and showed quick response times. When I measured the input lag time, it hit 13.4ms, which is similar to TVs from Hisense, TCL, and Sony, but doesn’t quite beat the best gaming TVs from Samsung and LG. Still, it sits below the 15ms threshold gamers look for.

For picture quality during gaming, the Omni Mini-LED delivers good detail and dazzling colors along with solid contrast, again shown in desert and night missions in Battlefield V. I did find that textures took on a soft, muddy tone in some cases, which detracted from the experience a bit, but overall the Omni mini-LED is a solid gaming TV.

Gaming score: 4 / 5

Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED TV review: Value

Amazon Fire TV remote — The Amazon Omni Mini-LED is supplied with the Alexa Voice remote (Image credit: Future)

Extremely competitive mini-LED TV market
Closely matches rivals’ prices
Potential for discounts

The Omni Mini-LED enters a highly competitive mini-LED TV market dominated by Samsung, Hisense and TCL, and also competes with budget models from Roku.

Its primary rival is arguably the Hisense U7N, which delivers similar features and performance and has very similar prices. For the 55-inch model I tested, we’ve seen the U7N average about $598.99 / £699.99, and it has gone as low as $480 in Black Friday sales. But the Omni Mini-LED has already hit $699.99 / £749.99 only months after release, and as an Amazon product, it has the potential to drop lower during Prime Day and Black Friday.

The Omni Mini-LED is a solid TV for the money, offering good performance and many features that will please most TV buyers. It doesn’t quite beat the Hisense U7N in terms of value, but that could all change come Prime Day.

Value score: 4 / 5

Should you buy the Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED TV?

Amazon Omni Mini-LED with flower on screen — (Image credit: Future)

Buy it if...

You want a TV ready for sports
Compared with other budget mini-LED TVs, the Omni Mini-LED is ready for sports out-of-the-box, requiring almost no setup in its Sports mode.

You want a good-value TV
The Omni Mini-LED is well-priced for what it offers and has the potential for big discounts during sales events such as Prime Day and Black Friday.

Don't buy it if…

You want the best built-in sound
The Omni Mini-LED's accuracy and sound placement are very good, but it lacks in other areas.

You want the best smart TV platform
While Fire TV has its plus points, a cluttered home screen and sometimes stuttering performance means it falls short of the likes of Google TV and LG's webOS.

Also consider

Hisense U7N
The Omni Mini-LED's closest rival, the Hisense U7N offers a similar list of features, plus similar picture quality and overall performance. The U7N isn't quite as good for sports, but it's better for sound. Your choice should come down to the price at the time of buying. Read our full Hisense U7N review. View Deal

Amazon Fire TV Omni QLED
The Omni QLED is the step-down model from the Omni Mini-LED, using a QLED panel that doesn't offer as good a picture or as many gaming features as it's limited to 60Hz. It is, however, a good budget option if you're looking for something cheaper. Read our full Amazon Fire TV Omni QLED review. View Deal

Samsung QN90D
A much more premium mini-LED TV, the Samsung QN90D offers impressive picture quality and superb motion handling for sports. Plus, it comes with a full suite of gaming features and better built-in sound. Be prepared to spend a lot more on this TV, however. Read our full Samsung QN90D review. View Deal

How I tested the Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED TV

Tested in light light-controlled environment
Used SDR and HDR sources for testing picture quality
Measurements were taken using Portrait Displays' Calman color calibration software

Amazon Omni Mini-LED with testing equipment attached — (Image credit: Future)

To test the Amazon Omni Mini-LED, I first conducted casual viewing to establish the TV's most accurate picture mode. In this case, it was Filmmaker Mode, which I used to carry out both subjective and objective testing.

For subjective testing, I used reference scenes from both SDR sources, such as HD streaming and broadcast TV, as well as 4K Blu-ray and streaming HDR sources. I tested the Omni Mini-LED's color, contrast, detail, motion handling, and black levels. Some of the same reference scenes were also used to test the Omni Mini-LED's built-in audio quality.

I also tested the Omni Mini-LED's gaming features and performance using an Xbox Series X.

For objective testing, I took measurements of the Omni Mini-LED's brightness, color and grayscale accuracy, and HDR color gamut coverage. The measurements were taken using a colorimeter, test pattern generator and Portrait Displays' Calman color calibration software.

Brightness measurements were taken using both SDR and HDR white window patterns, ranging in size from 1-100% with a focus on 10% (peak brightness) and 100% (fullscreen brightness). Color and grayscale accuracy were taken in SDR, using Delta E values, looking for a score below 3. HDR color gamut coverage was measured for the BT.2020 and UHDA-P3 color spaces.

For input lag testing, measured in milliseconds, I used a Leo Bodnar 4K HDMI input lag tester.

First reviewed: January, 2025
Read TechRadar's reviews guarantee

Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 review: a well-rounded portable laser projector with Google TV

10:00 pm | January 24, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets Home Theater Projectors Televisions | Tags: DLP | Comments: Off

Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22: One minute review

Epson’s smaller, portable EpiqVision home projector models were long overdue for an update, and that’s just what it has done with the Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22. This introduces the tilting, swiveling stand design that’s proven so popular with many other recent projectors, and it packs in Google TV for streaming, which helps bring the EpiqVision Mini EF22 closer to parity with its competition. Add in a pair of stereo speakers and the EpiqVision Mini EF22 proves an effective all-in-one system.

The Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 beams a laser through its 3LCD projection system, providing respectable brightness near 1,000 lumens. It makes for a decent picture, though it doesn’t manage quite the exciting color gamut of triple-laser options like the JMGO N1S Pro. Its 1080p resolution will also have you sticking to smaller projection sizes than you might otherwise opt for with the best 4K projectors like the BenQ X300G or even the older Xgimi Horizon Pro.

While the EpiqVision Mini EF22 is a simple and effective little home theater projector selling for a reasonable $999, it struggles to contend with the market it’s entering. Not only are there many great new projectors in the $1000-$2000 range but there’s also a sea of slightly older models that have come down in price. It’s a good projector, but I’m hard-pressed to find a reason to choose it over the alternatives. I’d snag myself a BenQ X300G or Xgimi Horizon Pro instead, both of which have been seeing some impossible-to-ignore discounts.

Epson EF-22 projector on table with remote — (Image credit: Future)

Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 review: Specs

Epson EF-22 projector on table — The JMGO N1S Pro 4K delivered strong picture quality across the board (Image credit: Future)

Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 review: Prices & release date

Release date: October 2024
Price: $999

The Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 launched in late 2024 with a starting price of $999 (£799, AU$1,599). It has seen some discounts since then, though these tend to come and go. The EpiqVision Mini EF22 comes in a variety of colors, giving you more options. You can find it in Stone Blue, Opal Green, Quartz Rose, Onyx Black, and Diamond White.

Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 review: Design & features

Built-in stand makes setup easy
Google TV and automatic image adjustments
Built-in 2x 5W stereo speakers

Like many of the new consumer projectors in 2024, the Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 comes with a stand built in. This makes it easy to adjust the vertical tilt and horizontal angle of the projector, even supporting vertical projection up toward the ceiling. This provides a simpler setup, though anything but a perfectly lined-up projection will result in some digital corrections that detract from the usable image.

The EpiqVision Mini EF22 makes automatic vertical and horizontal keystone adjustments very quickly, letting you shift the projector around and see the image change shape in real time. It’s also quick to focus automatically. It has an optional setting to avoid obstacles when projecting, and this proves effective, but it is a slower process than the other automatic corrections, taking a few seconds. The EpiqVision Mini EF22 rounds out its smart projection features with eye protection that dims the projector when it detects someone in front of it.

The Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 is plenty compact, proving not dramatically different in size from the JGMO N1S I recently tested. That said, projectors can certainly come smaller, as LG showed with the LG CineBeam Q. It’s hard to have small projectors get very bright or offer solid audio, though, and those aren’t sacrifices the EpiqVision Mini EF22 made. It features stereo speakers and is rated to hit 1,000 ISO lumens. It also comes with Google TV. Unfortunately, Epson didn’t make the most of the projector’s size, as it opted to include just one HDMI port (with ARC), a USB-A port, and a 3.5mm audio output jack. It’s providing options, but not many. The focus of the EpiqVision Mini EF22 really is on being a standalone device that doesn’t call for external connections.

The Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 comes with a simple remote. It’s all plastic with rubber buttons and nothing too elegant, but it’s effective. It has simple navigation controls, a Google Assistant button, a shortcut to the HDMI input (making the input selection button a bit redundant), dedicated volume and brightness controls, and shortcuts for projection settings, auto-focus, as well as YouTube, Netflix, and Prime Video. None of the buttons have backlighting, making it a bit hard to use in the dark, but at least some of the buttons are white, and it’s easy enough to feel out the volume buttons.

Design & features score: 4/5

Epson EF-22 showing image of animated movie with toys — The JMGO N1S Pro 4K's picture is at its best with bright and colorful images (Image credit: Future)

Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 review: Picture & sound quality

Decent brightness
No unsightly motion smoothing
Color could use a boost

The Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 provides an overall good-looking image, but it’s not the most impressive I've seen in this projector category. While natural content looks solid, with the projector offering a great presentation for Dune, it can struggle elsewhere. In the extremely colorful Mind Game, it didn’t keep up with some of the triple-laser options on the market, like the JMGO N1S, and I noticed some banding in color gradients. That said, the 3LCD technology avoids some of the unsightly swimming-pixel artifacts I’ve seen from DLP projectors displaying large monotone regions, as well as DLP rainbow artifacts.

The EpiqVision Mini EF22 doesn’t keep up with some of its 4K competition either. BenQ’s X300G may have originally been much more expensive, but it’s come down considerably in price, and it has the chops to really threaten the EpiqVision Mini EF22.

I took a rough measurement to overall brightness in the Dynamic profile, which achieved 959 lumens with an ANSI test pattern and a matte white screen. There again, it’s just decent. Competitors like the Dangbei Atom and JGMO N1S offer as much, and slightly more expensive options from BenQ and JMGO take it to another level.

Gaming on the Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22, I found the projector added considerable latency if it had any sort of processing going on (i.e., keystone correction or digital zoom). With these disabled, the projector still had a tangible delay between actions and on-screen effects, but it wasn’t significant enough to slow me down as I worked my way through numerous encounters in Hades. Oddly enough, there’s no specific picture profile for gaming that would disable the projector's processing automatically, so you’ll have to manage these settings on your own.

With two speakers on the rear of the EpiqVision Mini EF22, it works reasonably well whether you set the projector up in front of you or at the back of the room. They provide a bit of stereo separation, which adds a touch of depth, though they’re no substitute for a dedicated audio system. They get reasonably loud for a small, quiet room, but the sound gets a bit muddled at higher volumes, making it hard to pick out everything that’s going on in a song, for example. You’ll get clear enough mids and a bit of bass, but higher frequencies tend to suffer when the volume is cranked.

To the EF22’s credit, it doesn’t mess around with any unsightly motion smoothing. Right from the jump, it provides good, clear motion.

Picture and sound quality score: 3/5

Epson EF-22 projector on table closeup of lens — (Image credit: Future)

Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 review: Value

Effective all-in-one package
Comes up short next to the competition

The Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 puts plenty into one package. It’s a decent projector, providing a bright image that can handle impromptu movie nights or let you settle in to binge the next hot series, as long as you turn the lights off. With Google TV, it’s ready to stream a great variety of content with no external sources. And it packs in a good enough set of speakers to make do in quiet, intimate viewing conditions. The built-in stand also proves helpful, making it that much easier to set up in various places without the need to stack up a pile of books or go buy a separate stand.

The biggest thing holding the EpiqVision Mini EF22 back in the value department is the competition it faces. You can get much brighter projectors and ones that offer 4K or provide more vivid color for the same price or just a little more. Compared to these, the EpiqVision Mini EF22 ends up feeling lacking.

Value score: 3/5

Epson EF-22 projector on table pointing at ceiling — The JMGO N1S Pro 4K comes in a styrofoam carry case. Although portable, it is on the weightier side (Image credit: Future)

Should I buy the Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22?

Buy it if...

You want a simple all-in-one: The Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 is easy to set up and easy to use. It has the streaming platform, speakers, stand, and display all covered. It performs decently in each department as well, giving you a reasonably well-rounded experience.View Deal

You can’t stand DLP rainbow artifact and dithering: Epson’s 3LCD projection technology gets around a couple visual artifacts that often impact DLP projectors. If you see rainbows or are distracted by weird pixel movement when watching DLP projection, you may prefer the look of Epson’s projector. View Deal

You can’t stand motion smoothing: The Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 doesn’t mess around with motion smoothing at all. While most projectors I test have it enabled by default, forcing you to turn it off manually, the EF22 lets you avoid it entirely. View Deal

Don't buy it if...

You can’t control ambient lighting: Projection at 1,000 lumens is decently bright and can work in a dim or dark room. But if you can’t close the blinds and dim the lights, it won’t be enough for a bright room.View Deal

You’re a big gamer: The Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 has no optimizations for gaming. It requires all of its image adaptations to be disabled to avoid serious input latency, and even then the latency is perceptible. There are much better gaming projector options, like the BenQ X300G.View Deal

You plan on setting it up with more home theater gear: A key aspect of the Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 is its all-in-one nature. It’s well-rounded, but not exceptional in any one area. If you’re planning on pairing your projector with separate speakers and video sources, you may as well go with one that goes more all-in on visuals (and one that has more useful ports).View Deal

Also consider

JMGO N1S Pro

The JMGO N1S Pro costs twice as much, but its tri-laser projection system is brighter and way more colorful. If you can tolerate DLP artifacts, it makes for a great alternative with more stunning visuals.

Read our JMGO N1S Pro reviewView Deal

LG CineBeam Q 4K Projector

The LG CineBeam Q gets you upgrades in color quality and resolution thanks to its 4K, triple-laser projection system. It’s also tiny, making it far more portable. But it sacrifices brightness and audio for its size.

Read our full LG CineBeam Q reviewView Deal

BenQ X300G

While this projector might have a high MSRP, it’s recently seen its price reduced to become incredibly competitive. It’s much brighter and offers 4K visuals and gaming enhancements. If you can live without the built-in stand of the Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22, strongly consider this one instead.

Read our full BenQ X300G reviewView Deal

Epson EF-22 projector Google TV interface — (Image credit: Future)

How I tested the Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22

Tested at home in multiple, real-world viewing conditions
Presented the display with a variety of media and formats
I have tested numerous projectors and displays over the last half-decade

I tested the Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22 at home, in real-world conditions. This saw it faced with ambient light coming in from numerous windows, in-room lighting, as well as ambient noise that both the projector and speaker systems had to overcome. The projector was tested both against a bare, white wall and an Akia Screens CineWhite screen. It was presented with streamed content, HDR and non-HDR, and PC gameplay.

My testing evaluates the projector’s performance concerning its price and competition from other models that I and my colleagues at TechRadar have tested.

I have been testing projectors since 2021 and displays for even longer.

First reviewed: January 24, 2025
Read TechRadar's review guarantee

Hisense HS214 review: I was impressed by this small soundbar’s audio capabilities, especially given its incredibly low price

3:00 pm | January 20, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets Soundbars Televisions | Comments: Off

Hisense HS214 review

The Hisense HS214 could be the perfect soundbar for you if you've decided it's time for an upgrade on plain ole TV audio, but you’re working on a pretty tight budget. The Hisense HS214 is a popular budget option, typically priced at just $99 / £79 (about AU$160). It’s a 2.1 channel soundbar with a built-in sub that aims to offer powerful audio via a compact, all-in-one build. But does it deliver?

Well, before I answer that definitively, let’s take a look at sound quality. I’m happy to report that out of the box, the Hisense HS214 sounds pretty good. When watching I Think You Should Leave on Netflix, a scene with two characters conversing in a people-filled room had clear dialogue, which was decently separated from background murmurs.

Similarly, when watching Howl’s Moving Castle, the vocals of protagonist Sophie felt a bit more defined in the overall mix than with standalone TV audio. During one scene, whistling winds were also replicated accurately, without any tinniness or unintentional harshness – something I always listen out for in my hunt to find the best soundbars available in all price brackets.

Red LED light on Hisense HS214 — (Image credit: Future)

One aspect of the HS214 that Hisense talks up is its bass output. That’s mainly because the Hisense HS214 has a built-in woofer, which is meant to offer “powerful bass”, according to the Chinese electronics giant. And in fairness, the soundbar mustered up a bit more of a boom than my TV could manage alone – although it wasn’t massively striking, that’s to be expected given its size.

I watched the horror movie Smile and during a heart-racing scene with screaming and object-smashing, the deep bass playing throughout was a touch underpowered, meaning the full weight of the scene was slightly restricted. Luckily, this can be remedied significantly, thanks to the bass boost/reduce option on the remote. This enables you to raise or decrease bass output by five levels. When cranking up low-end output, the spooky scene in Smile had more impactful bass, which created a darker atmosphere in the build up to the scene’s climax (I won’t spoil it, don’t worry).

So, even if you won’t get massive, imposing bass out of this mini soundbar, it has the potential to offer a considerable leg-up to some of the best small TVs. You may notice the soundbar struggling with deeper bass tones and sub-bass when listening to music, however. For instance, when I tuned in to the bass-heavy Splash Mountain by Yung Gravy, the low-end boom from deep bass running throughout the track was a little bit feeble. More generally, music sounds solid with the HS214, though. It’s decently clear for the most part and doesn’t get awful tinny like some cheap soundbars.

Underside of Hisense HS214 exposing subwoofer — (Image credit: Future)

I mentioned that bass boost/reduce option a moment ago, but you might be wondering what other features the Hisense HS214 has to offer. You get three different sound modes here: Movie; Music; and Night. However, those of you with a Hisense TV will also be able to access Sport and Night mode if you alter the EQ mode via the soundbar settings menu, rather than the soundbar’s remote. Each of these are well differentiated, with Movie adding a bit of emphasis in the low-end. I used this for the majority of testing.

Another feature is surround sound mode, which to clarify, has nothing to do with Dolby Atmos or DTS:X/Virtual:X. When I realised this was an option, I was looking forward to trying it, because even if the HS214’s overall audio quality was good, it didn’t offer much of a spatial impression. Unfortunately, though, surround mode isn’t worth activating. I tried using it when playing Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth on PlayStation 5 and despite providing broader, more nuanced positioning, it wasn’t long before I switched it off. And that’s down to one big issue – it significantly hampers audio quality, which is tinny and a bit unpleasant.

This isn’t the end of the world, of course – the HS214 sounds totally fine without surround mode. And even if it doesn’t offer mesmerizing spatial audio, it does plate up a solid helping of power. It has a total power output of 108W and can get pretty loud, making it an ideal step-up for TVs with weaker audio, or sound that gets easily distorted at higher volumes. And placement isn’t too bad either. During gameplay, one character whizzed across the screen on a motorbike and I got a solid impression of his directionality. Of course, this is a small soundbar and you won’t get much width out of it – especially with Surround Mode off – but general audio placement is decent.

Side of Hisense HS214 with Hisense logo

(Image credit: Future)

One more feature worth mentioning is the dimmer option, which can alter the brightness of the LED light display on the front of the soundbar. I kept it at max brightness, but I have to say, I wasn’t a massive fan of the LED display used here. Rather than displaying volume numbers, EQ modes and more, you just see a small light flash when you change settings or volume. This isn’t the most clear or intuitive and a lot of cheap soundbars, like the Majority Elias, for instance, use clearer displays with words and letters.

But look, I don’t want to be overly critical, especially as I personally like the design of the Hisense HS214 overall. It has an almost leather-like plastic casing on top of that soundbar which is attractive and adds a touch of class. It also has button controls for power, source and volume if you don’t have the soundbar's very neat-looking remote to hand.

Hisense HS214 remote — (Image credit: Future)

On the reverse side, there are a number of ports that enable you to connect your soundbar to a TV in multiple ways. These include: HDMI (ARC); AUX; coaxial; digital optical; and USB-C. That means it should be good to go with any modern TV and gives you plenty of options if all of your HDMI slots are used up. I opted for the HDMI ARC connection type and found setting the soundbar up incredibly easy – just plug in the connector and a power cable and you’re good to go.

All in all, the Hisense HS214 is a very solid budget soundbar. It’s wide of the mark on spatial audio and you may not be wowed in the bass department, but it’s an attractive, compact, easy-to-use soundbar that plates up clear dialogue and solid amounts of power. Given the price you pay, that does make it an attractive offering. If that’s all you need, I’d say this soundbar is worth considering, but for those seeking a stronger spatial impression, one of the best Dolby Atmos soundbars will offer a more nuanced, expansive and premium-sounding experience.

Connectivity ports on underside of the Hisense HS214 — (Image credit: Future)

Hisense HS214 review: Price and release date

$99 / £79 (about AU$160)
Launched in 2021

The Hisense HS214 is positioned as a budget, entry-level option for those looking to add a bit of power to their TV setup. It was released back in 2021 and has a list price of $99 / £79 (about AU$160). However, you may well be able to snap this soundbar up for even less. I’ve personally seen this soundbar available for less than £70 via Amazon UK, for instance, so keep an eye out for some sweet deals.

Hisense HS214 review: Specs

Power port for Hisense HS214 — (Image credit: Future)

Should I buy the Hisense HS214?

Buy it if...

You’re working with a fairly tight budget
If you’re looking for a solid, cheap soundbar, the Hisense HS214 is an option worth considering. For less than $100 / £80, you get decently powerful audio, clear dialogue and a bundle of connectivity options – not bad at all!

You’re a little low on space
Something I really liked about this soundbar was its ultra-compact build. It was small enough to just fit under my TV stand and so if, like me, you’ve not got a ton of space to play with, this soundbar will fit the bill.

Don't buy it if...

You want truly cinematic sound
Sure, the Hisense HS214 has a surround mode, but it’s just not very good. On top of that, it’s a small, standalone soundbar, so you’re not going to get the most immersive sonic experience.

You’re an audiophile
And if you’re someone who’s picky about sound, this soundbar might not quite hit all the right notes for you. It’s by no means a poor-sounding soundbar, especially for its price, but if you’re hoping for top-tier music replication, deep, impactful bass and supremely crisp vocals, this may fall short.

Hisense HS214 review: Also consider

Panasonic SC-HTB100
This soundbar is UK only, but if it’s available to you it’s a great budget option. You don’t get any fancy tricks from the Panasonic SC-HTB100 – no Atmos or DTS:X and no hi-tech display either. But if you want clear dialogue, strong connectivity options and solid EQ options at a low price, you’ll be well-served here. Read our full Panasonic SC-HTB100 review.

Amazon Fire TV Soundbar
But here’s one that’s available in the US as well – the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar. This budget option supplies pretty impressive sound, as well as a simple setup process and ultra-compact build. Once again, there’s no Atmos and you’re unlikely to be blown away in the bass department, but this is still a very solid option. Read our full Amazon Fire TV Soundbar review.

Hisense HS214 review: How I tested

Tested for one week(s)
Used at home with the Hisense U7K TV
Predominantly used the HDMI ARC connectivity option

I put the Hisense HS214 to the test over a week-long period. I mainly used HDMI ARC when connecting the soundbar to my Hisense U7K TV – a model which had integrated support for the HS214 in its options menus.

While testing, I watched a number of TV shows, videos and movies – mainly using streaming services like Amazon Prime Video, Netflix and YouTube. I also played Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth on the Playstation 5 to judge the soundbar’s capabilities for gaming. In addition, I connected the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE to the Hisense HS214 using Bluetooth connectivity for playing music. I made sure to play tracks from the TechRadar testing playlist to assess the quality of the soundbar’s Music EQ configuration.

First reviewed: January 2025
Read more about how we test

Hisense 110UXN review: a super-bright, 110-inch mini-LED TV

6:30 pm | January 19, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets Televisions | Tags: Dolby Vision, Star Wars, TV, UK | Comments: Off

Hisense 110UXN review: Two minute review

The Hisense 110UXN is the company’s flagship mini-LED TV and has a cinema-sized 110-inch screen. Hisense’s mini-LED TVs often sit among the best TVs, but the 110-inch is both amazing and frustrating.

A quick note – the model I tested is referred to as the Hisense 110UXN in the UK, and although it is essentially the same TV as the Hisense 110UX in the US, the latter's panel is said to have exceeded 10,000 nits brightness, whereas the UXN is capped at 10,000 nits. As a result, I will refer to it as the UXN, but it is the same TV as the 110UX in all but brightness.

Priced at $14,999 / £19,999 (roughly AU$24,300), the Hisense 110UXN, while cheap for a TV this size and with this level of technology, is still a premium-priced set that will outstretch most people’s budgets.

Picture quality on the 110-inch UXN is generally very good. It has dynamic, bold color, black levels matching the best OLED TVs, balanced contrast and lifelike detail. Brighter content looks amazing, but backlight blooming issues keep its picture from true greatness.

The 110-inch UXN’s sound is immersive, punchy and detailed. Pushed to higher volumes, it never distorts, demonstrating tight control. Dolby Atmos effects are limited in their presentation, however, often seeming lost in the mix, and bass sometimes feels limited. While most will be happy with the 110-inch UXN’s sound for everyday viewing, those looking for sound quality to match the picture may want to invest in one of the best soundbars.

The 110-inch UXN’s excellent gaming features including 4K 144Hz, VRR (with AMD FreeSync Premium Pro), Dolby Vision gaming and ALLM, rank it up there with the best gaming TVs. Performance-wise, the UXN is responsive, smooth, and a joy to play on. Gaming on a screen this big is a fun experience! It does only feature two HDMI 2.1 ports – something those with multiple consoles should keep in mind.

The 110-inch UXN sits at the top end of the TV market and is priced at a premium. For a screen this big, you may want to instead consider one of the best 4K projectors, many of which can be found for substantially less while delivering an equally large picture.

Hisense 110UXN review: Price & release date

Hisense 110UXN with ferris wheel at night on screen — (Image credit: Future)

Release date: November 2024
110-inch price: $15,000 / £20,000 / around AU$24,300

The Hisense 110UXN is Hisense’s flagship mini-LED TV for 2024 (smaller sizes were released at the end of 2023). It sits above the rest of the company’s ULED range, including the Hisense U8N, Hisense U7N and Hisense U6N.

Released in November 2024 in the US and December 2024 in the UK, the 110-inch UXN is a premium-priced TV, with initial launch prices of $20,000 and £20,000 in the US and UK, respectively. The 110-inch UXN has since fallen to $15,000 in the US.

Hisense 110UX review: Specs

Hisense 110UXN review: Benchmark results

Hisense 100UXN review: Features

Hisense 110UXN with valley during sunrise on screen — (Image credit: Future)

Mini-LED panel with 40,000 local dimming zones
Dolby Vision and HDR10+ HDR support
Hi-View Engine X Processor

The Hisense 110-inch UXN uses a mini-LED panel with up to 40,000 local dimming zones. It features the company’s flagship Hi-View Engine X processor, which uses a 16-bit neural AI chipset to provide AI picture and sound options. Hisense claims the 110-inch UXN can hit 10,000 nits peak brightness (more on how I got on with that later), making it one of the brightest TVs available. It supports both the Dolby Vision IQ and HDR10+ HDR formats, as well as IMAX Enhanced.

For sound, the 110-inch UXN has a 4.2.2-channel speaker array, including both up-firing and side speakers, and supports both Dolby Atmos and DTS:X surround sound formats. It also has Hisense’s Hi-Concerto feature, which enables the TV’s built-in speakers to work with compatible Hisense soundbars and wireless speakers.

Gaming is well covered on the 110-inch UXN, with 4K 144Hz, VRR (AMD FreeSync Premium Pro included), ALLM and Dolby Vision gaming all accounted for. It’s said to support 240Hz at 1080p HD resolution, but I was unable to test this. It does only come with two HDMI 2.1 ports, as is currently the case for all non-LG and Samsung TVs.

The 110-inch UXN is a formidable TV, weighing 85kg (187 pounds) but has a surprisingly slim design for a TV of this size and a premium metal-finished frame.

Hisense’s smart TV platform depends on your region. The US and Australia get Google TV. For the UK, HIsense uses its own VIDAA smart TV platform, which has ample settings to customize picture and sound and provides access to all major streaming apps such as Netflix and UK-based streaming ones such as BBC iPlayer and ITVX. It also supports Freely in the UK, which allows for live broadcast TV to be streamed over Wi-Fi.

Features score: 4.5 / 5

Hisense 110UXN review: Picture quality

Hisense 110UXN with butterfly on screen — The Hisense 110UXN has bold, bright and vivid colors that make pictures jump off the screen. (Image credit: Future)

Superb detail and contrast
Bold, bright images
Picture requires some setup

Hisense claims that the 110-inch UXN can hit 10,000 nits of peak brightness and while I wasn’t quite able to confirm this, I did measure 9,600 nits on a 5% white HDR window pattern in Standard Mode. Crucially, however, this was achieved using the AI Brightness Burst adjustment in Picture Settings, which intermittently increases brightness.

Measured on the 10% HDR white window pattern we use for testing, the 110-inch UXN clocked in at 3,050 nits and 2,665 nits in Standard and Filmmaker modes, respectively. Fullscreen brightness measured using a 100% HDR white window pattern hit 941 nits in Standard – one of the highest fullscreen brightness results I’ve ever measured – and 628 nits in Filmmaker Mode.

Moving onto viewing, an HD stream of Fight Club on Disney Plus showed decent contrast and shadow detail, but textures were soft – unsurprising given the size of the screen. Generally, picture quality for SDR pictures was acceptable, but the TV’s upscaling didn’t do much to enhance the picture quality.

Watching 4K HDR programs on streaming services and Blu-ray, I had to tweak the picture settings a fair amount to get a picture I was happy with. If you’re going to purchase this TV, be prepared to invest time into getting the picture right. I found that turning off settings such as Ultra Resolution helped. For my HDR viewing, I generally stuck to Filmmaker Mode and Dolby Vision Dark for Dolby Vision movies. Those looking for a brighter picture can opt for Dolby Vision IQ, but note that you can’t alter the motion smoothing which is set to on by default in that mode.

Colors on the 100-inch UXN are vibrant, bright and accurate. Watching a 4K Dolby Vision stream of Star Wars: The Last Jedi on Disney Plus, the reds throughout the throne room fight scene had plenty of punch. Similarly, watching a 4K Blu-ray of La La Land, colors were dynamic and boosted by the TV’s high HDR brightness, which gave Mia’s yellow dress a vibrant glow against the dark backdrop in the ‘A Lovely Night’ scene.

Hisense 110UXN with The Batman Gotham street on screen — The Hisense 110UXN delivers impressive contrast and detail, as shown here during a street shot in *The Batman*. (Image credit: Future)

Measuring the 110-inch UXN’s HDR color gamut coverage, it yielded 97.9% for UHDA-P3 and 84% for BT.2020, both of which are phenomenal results. It also achieved a 1.7 average (below 3 is good) for SDR color accuracy, another impressive result.

The 110-inch UXN’s black levels were deep and it displayed great shadow detail throughout testing. In the opening section of The Batman, details in clothing and objects were maintained in the dimly lit scenes. Contrast was also very good, with a solid balance between the darker backgrounds and lamp lights and torches.

The Batman is a challenging movie due to its low-light mastering (400 nits), and I could see backlight blooming around brighter objects and people during my viewing. Setting the local dimming to Medium or Low (High was the default) in picture settings helped to lessen the issue, though some blooming was still present throughout most content with darker scenes that I watched.

Picture detail was realistic and refined throughout my viewing. In Top Gun: Maverick, every facial mark and hair was visible in close-up shots in the cockpit. The same was true for the clothing in The Batman and La La Land, where fabric and textures looked authentic and accurate.

Motion was generally well handled by the 110-inch UXN. When watching sports including soccer and rugby, it displayed camera pans and fast-moving images with a good level of solidity, though it did benefit from the motion smoothing provided by the Standard preset. And when watching Top Gun: Maverick, the 110-inch UXN handled the chaotic flight sequences well with motion settings turned off.

Picture quality score: 4 / 5

Hisense 110UXN review: Sound quality

Hisense 110UXN side-mounted speakers — Side-mounted speakers on the 110UXN greatly help with spatial audio (Image credit: Future)

4.2.2-channel speaker array
Expansive, accurate sound
Bass sounds contained at times

The 110-inch UXN has a 4.2.2 channel, 102W built-in speaker array and supports Dolby Atmos and DTS. Two up-firing speakers sit at the top of the frame, and there are two side-firing speakers and two subwoofers on the rear.

I found the best sound mode for most viewing was Theater. Watching The Batman, screeching tyres and swerving traffic were accurately placed on screen during the Penguin-Batmobile car chase. In La La Land, the jazzy score was tightly controlled and had an excellent balance between the brash trumpets, warm bass tones and beating drums.

I did find that Dolby Atmos effects, while present, weren't very pronounced. In The Batman, the rain throughout the movie was audible but the effect wasn’t as powerful as what I’ve heard on some of the best OLED TVs. Bass was decent throughout, but it didn’t have the power I was expecting from two built-in subwoofers.

Overall, most people won’t feel the need to attach a soundbar to the 110-inch UXN. But, if you’re looking for sound to match the picture, you may want to invest in one.

Sound quality score: 4 / 5

Hisense 110UXN review: Design

Hisense 110UXN rear angle shot — Despite its imposing size and weight, the Hisense 110UXN is surprisingly slim (Image credit: Future)

Trim design and profile despite size
Weighty
Basic feet for a premium TV

The 110-inch UXN weighs a whopping 85kg (187 lbs) and comes with two carry handles on the rear for transportation. This is a hefty TV that will require multiple people for installation.

Despite its size, the 110-inch UXN is slimmer than you’d expect, and its trim bezel means most of the 110-inch screen is used to display pictures. It uses two support feet, which is typical for a TV this size.

Hisense’s remote is USB-C rechargeable and takes cues from Samsung’s SolarCell TV remote with a solar panel on the rear in place of traditional batteries. While it is a bit bottom-heavy, the remote has a nice, burnished steel look and a premium feel.

Design score: 4 / 5

Hisense 110UXN review: Smart TV & menus

Hisense 110UXN with VVDAA home screen — VIDAA (Hisense's smart TV platform in the UK) is responsive on the 110UXN and has plenty of settings to customize the picture (Image credit: Future)

Google TV in the US and Australia, VIDAA in the UK
A good number of settings for picture customization
Slightly laggy navigation

The 100-inch UXN’s smart TV platform varies depending on your region. In the US and Australia, you get Google TV and if you’re in the UK, you get Hisense’s own VIDAA. I tested this in the UK so will be discussing VIDAA, but If you want to know about Google TV, check out our Hisense U8N review.

VIDAA has access to all the best streaming apps like Netflix, Disney Plus and Prime Video, and major UK streaming apps such as BBC iPlayer, ITVX and Channel 4. It also supports Freely, a service that enables you to watch broadcast TV live over Wi-Fi without the need for any cable or satellite dish. There are a good number of picture settings, something I found necessary to apply.

VIDAA ran more smoothly than on budget sets I’ve tested such as the Hisense U6N and Hisense U7N thanks to the 100-inch UXN’s stronger processor. VIDAA is not the most visually appealing smart TV platform, however, with menus that look a little bland and dated.

Smart TV & menus: 4 / 5

Hisense 110UXN review: Gaming

Hisense 110UXN with Battlefield V and Game Bar on screen — The Hisense 110UXN boasts an impressive list of gaming features and superb graphics (Image credit: Future)

16.1ms input lag time
Big-screen gaming is fun
A good number of gaming features

The 110-inch UXN only has two HDMI 2.1 ports but supports 4K 144Hz gaming, with VRR (AMD FreeSync Premium Pro), ALLM and Dolby Vision gaming all featured as well. There is no dedicated Game picture preset(other than Dolby Vision Game), with the TV’s Game Mode overlaying the existing picture presets. It also features a Game Menu where settings can be adjusted on-the-fly.

I found that Standard picture mode with Game Mode turned on suited gaming best. The 110-inch UXN’s input lag time measured 16.1ms at 4K 60Hz. (Gamers typically look for under 15ms.) However, I generally found the 110-inch UXN to be responsive and fun to play on. With Battlefield V on Xbox Series X, it handled chaotic gunfights and packed battle sections well. I did find when using the Game Mode menu that frame rates generally varied from 98Hz-120Hz, but this didn’t deter from my experience.

The 110-inch UXN displays graphics in a dynamic, bright and colorful manner. Playing a desert mission in Battlefield V, the vast waves of sand and bright blue skies all looked punchy and accurate.

Gaming score: 4.5 / 5

Hisense 110UXN review: Value

Hisense USB-C rechargeable TV remote against white wall — The Hisense 110UXN comes with Hisense's premium remote, which has a USB-C port and solar cell on the bottom rear, both for charging (Image credit: Future)

Very pricey
Significantly more expensive than ultra short throw projectors
Cheaper than large micro-LED and OLED TVs

At $15,000 / £20,000 (roughly AU$24,300), the 110-inch UXN is a super-premium mini-LED TV that will outstretch most people’s budgets. This is roughly the same price as one of the best projectors, the JVC DLA-NZ800, which retails for $14,999 / £14,999 (roughly AU$24,300). It’s also pricier than the best ultra short throw projectors such as the Samsung The Premiere 9, which costs $5,999 / £5,999 (roughly AU$9,750).

Although the 110-inch UXN is cheaper than 97-inch OLED models and larger micro-LED screens and offers uniquely high brightness levels and very good picture and sound quality, it still goes a step too far price-wise compared to other premium sets.

Value score: 3 / 5

Should you buy the Hisense 110UXN?

Hisense 110UXN with La La Land on screen — The Hisense 110UXN comes at a premium price that most won't be able to afford (Image credit: Future)

Buy it if...

You want cinema experience at home
The 110UXN delivers a bold TV experience that's highlighted by its bright, colorful and detail-rich picture.

You want a giant-screen gaming TV
The 110UXN combines a great list of gaming features, solid performance and stunning graphics to deliver a big-screen gaming experience that's downright fun.

Don't buy it if…

You're on a budget
The 110UXN is unsurprisingly an expensive TV, outpricing premium 4K projectors, big screen OLEDs and other 98-inch-plus TVs by a substantial margin.

You don't want to spend time setting up the picture
Out of the box, the 110UXN's picture needs tweaking. Expect to spend a lot of time in the settings getting it to look just right.

Also consider

Hisense U8N
One of the step-down models from the UXN, the U8N is still delivers a bright, detailed and colorful picture with excellent gaming performance and comes in an 85-inch screen size. If you're looking for a cheaper, smaller alternative to the UXN, the U8N should be your first choice.

Read our full Hisense U8N review View Deal

Samsung QN90D
Though not as bright as the Hisense UXN or even the U8N, the Samsung QN90D delivers superb contrast and impressive motion handling and comes in a 98-inch screen size. It has more gaming features than the Hisense range as well. If you're a sports fan, the Samsung QN90D is one to consider.

Read our full Samsung QN90D review View Deal

How I tested the Hisense 110UXN

Hisense 110UXN with testing equipment attached — (Image credit: Future)

Tested in light controlled cinema room
Tested SDR and HDR sources for picture quality
Measurements taken using Portrait Displays' Calman color calibration software

I tested the Hisense 110UXN in a light-controlled cinema room at the headquarters of AWE, a Hisense TV distributor. I spent the first portion of my time with the UXN doing casual viewing to establish the most accurate picture mode, which in this case was Filmmaker Mode.

For my critical viewing, I used several reference scenes from both SDR (broadcast TV and streaming) and HDR sources (4K Blu-ray and streaming). I tested the UXN's picture for color, contrast, black level, detail, HDR performance and motion. I also used these same sources to test the UXN's audio performance. To play 4K Blu-rays, I used the Panasonic DP-UB820 4K Blu-ray player.

I also tested the UXN's gaming performance and features using an Xbox Series X.

After this, I moved on to objective testing, which involved taking measurements with Portrait Displays' Calman color calibration software, two colorimeters and a test pattern generator.

I used both SDR and HDR white window test patterns ranging from 1-100% in size to measure the UXN's brightness, focusing on 10% for peak brightness and 100% for full-screen brightness.

I then measured the UXN's color and grayscale accuracy, looking for an average measurement below 3. I also measured the UXN's HDR coverage of the UHDA-P3 and BT.2020 color spaces to see how accurately the UXN can display colors with ultra-high definition (UHD) sources.

Finally, I measured the UXN's input lag using a Leo Bodnar 4K HDMI input lag tester, with under 15ms representing an ideal result for gaming.

For a more detailed explanation of how we test TVs at TechRadar, check out the link.

First reviewed: January, 2025
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XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro review: a strong contender for the portable projector crown

3:34 am | January 16, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets Home Theater Projectors Televisions | Comments: Off

XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro review: Two-minute review

Chinese electronics brand XGIMI is on a continued mission to be the brand of choice when searching for a projector, hoping to lure you away from the likes of Samsung, BenQ or LG in the process. The MoGo 3 Pro, released alongside the much higher-end Aura 2 4K UST projector towards the end of 2024, certainly has a resumé to suggest it’s in with a fair shot of becoming one of the best portable projectors: full HD resolution, 450 ISO lumens brightness, Google TV and Netflix onboard and, of course, a portable design. And yes, I recognize XGIMI has diverted away from the design of the previous two MoGo projectors and has instead adopted something akin to Samsung’s The Freestyle projector.

Admittedly, the new XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro’s new look does make it a lot more portable and it has added practical benefits. The cylindrical design allows the projector lens to remain covered up when it’s not in use and it can be tilted through a 130º angle. XGIMI claims this allows the projector to beam onto the ceiling but, in my use, I wasn’t able to do so without physically angling the whole projector unit itself. A full 180º of tilt would allow it to perform better in this regard, if that’s what you’re looking for in a projector.

Images projected onto a wall using the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro are of excellent quality, although you will want to dive into the picture settings to make some adjustments for the best results. Out of the box, images could look washed out and overexposed, but after diving into the albeit limited picture settings and making a few adjustments, I found that the projected images were able to deliver good color and contrast. I was impressed with its ability to combat some bright ambient light filtering into my testing room, too. Naturally, when the lights went down, the images projected onto my wall became much clearer.

XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro projector viewed from the side, with the unit angled at 90 degrees — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

Because the MoGo 3 Pro is a portable projector it needs to rely on its built-in speakers for sound, which is where things get less positive. The XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro has 2 x 5W Harman Kardon speakers built in which, sadly, fail to deliver anywhere near a cinematic experience, despite XGIMI's claims. Dolby Audio and Dolby Digital Plus are both supported formats, but it adds little to what is an overall unengaging sound. For casual viewing with friends, family or even by yourself, it can pass, but if you’re planning on movie nights when you’re away camping or on holiday, for example, then you’ll likely be disappointed. You can connect a Bluetooth speaker to help boost things on the audio front, and a Mini HDMI connection is onboard with ARC support, meaning you can connect a soundbar, for example, using a Mini HDMI-to-HDMI cable. But if you’ve taken the MoGo 3 Pro away on a camping trip, you’re unlikely to have access to a full-fat external audio system.

The XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro also doesn’t have a built-in battery, which naturally can also affect its portability. If you know you’re going to want to take it somewhere where a power outlet won’t be accessible, then you can connect a USB-C power bank with a minimum power output of 65W, or you can buy the optional PowerBase stand, which not only raises the projector off the ground or a small table, but has its own built-in battery to keep it powered. XGIMI says the stand allows you to “continuously play a full-length movie without interruption,” although I found that would be the case only if said movie is 2.5 hours or less.

The other disappointing aspect I found when using the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro was that it could be slow in use. Volume adjustments using the remote control took a few seconds to register; navigating around the main home page regularly suffered from lag and I even found when trying to watch a particularly fast moving scene from The Incredibles on Disney+ that the projector just completely crashed. I should stress that this was an isolated incident that I couldn’t repeat with other fast-motion content such as sports.

The XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro projector is, ultimately, a good option for anyone who wants big-screen thrills when on the go or perhaps as an option for a second bedroom at home in place of installing a TV. Keep in mind when comparing projectors, the 450 ISO lumens from the MoGo 3 Pro is about equivalent to 500 ANSI lumens. It does well against its main competition, Samsung’s The Freestyle projector, particularly when it comes to brightness. But, if your budget can stretch, you’ll find greater performance from the likes of the 4K RGB Laser equipped LG CineBeam Q.

XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro review: Price & availability

Launched on September 6, 2024
List price of $449 / £429 / AU$1,099
Optional accessories cost extra

The XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro was announced and officially launched at IFA Berlin on September 6, 2024, alongside the Aura 2 4K UST projector. It’s available to buy now for $449 / £429 / AU$1,099 for the standalone projector. You can buy it bundled with the PowerBase stand for $499 / £499 / AU$1,199

You can also pick up an optional carry case for the MoGo 3 Pro projector, which is only available in green, for $69 / £59 / AU$99.

The XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro portable projector’s list price is significantly less than the Samsung The Freestyle projector in the US, UK and Australia. However, Samsung’s projector does have greater HDR support, with HDR10+ available. The MoGo 3 Pro maxes out at ‘standard’ HDR10, although as we said in our Samsung The Freestyle projector review, “I didn’t see much of a picture quality difference when viewing in HDR from standard HD format”, so the MoGo 3 Pro’s lack of extended support isn’t necessarily a mark against it.

XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro review: Specs

XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro review: Design & features

XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro projector being held in a hand — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

Compact and lightweight
Google TV interface
Can double up as a Bluetooth speaker

The XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro sports a cylindrical form factor and is finished in an anodized silver aluminum color. It’s lightweight at just over one kilogram, making it a breeze to not only move around your home, but to throw into a bag to take on the road with you. The main projector unit itself features an integrated stand, which also houses the built-in speaker system.

When connected to power, the MoGo 3 Pro turns on as soon as you lift it up to separate it from its stand. You can then tilt it through 130º to project an image onto a wall or screen. Alternatively, when you lift the projector from its integrated stand to power it on, you can leave it in this position, where it will light up in one of three selectable colors. In this mode, you can use it as a nightlight or you can stream music to it via Bluetooth, and you can select an option that will see the light pulse – this is more of a flickering of the light rather than it moving in time with the music.

XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro projector remote control — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

A remote control comes supplied with the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro and two AAA batteries to power it. The remote feels good to hold, although I wasn’t enamored with the layout of the buttons. I found it required a bit of a learning process: the home button is in the bottom right for example and I’m used to it being more central on the majority of other remote controls I’ve used. I also occasionally pressed the Google Assistant button when I actually wanted to select ‘settings’. The remote control isn’t backlit, which can make things even trickier. Fortunately, the volume button is in an obvious and hard-to-miss place at the bottom, although I found the projector took a short while to register whenever I wanted to turn the volume up. Alternatively, because the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro uses the Google TV operating system, you’re able to use your phone as a remote control via the Google Home app.

The single-chip DLP projector uses an LED light source, which XGIMI says is good for 25,000 hours of use. The company’s ISA 2.0 technology is onboard, which gives access to a number of especially useful setup tools, including automatic keystone correction, autofocus, obstacle avoidance, screen alignment and eye protection. Automatic screen adjustments are just a click away via a button on the remote control and you’re free to manually adjust settings further if you wish. I found autofocus to be the most successful of all the settings, while auto keystone correction delivered mixed results. The idea of this setting is that it will automatically realign the screen if you move the projector around. In most instances it worked fine, but I was occasionally forced to dive into the manual settings to get the screen aligned properly.

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Close up of XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro projector speaker and power input — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

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Close up of XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro projector output connections — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

A small selection of accessories is available for the MoGo 3 Pro, including a PowerBase stand which has a built-in 20,000mAh battery for keeping the projector running when a power outlet isn’t accessible. XGIMI says it’s good for 2.5 hours of playback time when the projector’s brightness setting is set to Eco mode, which is just enough for movies such as Deadpool vs Wolverine, but too short for recent releases such as Wicked. When using the MoGo 3 Pro with just the PowerBase stand, the projector defaults to Eco mode. It can be changed, but it will impact battery life significantly.

A carry case is also available to keep it better protected during transport and a Creative Optical Filter can be placed over the MoGo 3 Pro’s lens to project a much larger image onto a wall. It’s intended to be used with the XGIMI Wall app to project underwater seascapes or immersive starry night sky images.

While the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro features a Mini HDMI input for connecting to either an external sound system or a media streaming device, for the most part, you’ll likely be using the built-in apps to access content. In this regard, it’s good news as the MoGo 3 Pro uses Google TV, which provides access to a huge selection of apps and services. Perhaps most crucially, Netflix is supported. The ubiquitous streaming service doesn’t always play nicely with projector systems – a third-party app is required to access it on XGIMI's own Aura 2 for example, which uses the Android TV OS instead – so it’s great to see it front and center here. In a similar vein to the Samsung Freestyle projector, the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro uses the older Wi-Fi 5 standard, which is more than capable enough to handle streaming, and didn’t cause any issues during my use.

XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro projector on PowerBase stand — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

As a predominantly streaming-focused projector, connections on the MoGo 3 Pro are limited to micro HDMI. It would have been great to have received a cable or adaptor in the box, but alas, you’ll need to buy one if you want to connect an external gaming console, Blu-ray player, or other HDMI source. The micro HDMI connection does support HDMI-ARC, which allows you to connect it to a soundbar or other audio system, but there isn’t a 3.5mm audio output. You can also stream music to the projector via Bluetooth, or from the projector to a Bluetooth speaker thanks to dual Bluetooth support. I connected the projector to a Beats Pill to test this feature and experienced no obvious signs of audio delay. Android users can stream wirelessly via Google Cast, and AirPlay is supported too. XGIMI says in the support menus that you need to download the MagiCast app from the Google Play Store, but I searched for it and had no luck. I eventually found another app called AirMirror that allowed me to mirror the screen of my iPhone and stream music via AirPlay.

Design & features score: 4 / 5

XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro review: Picture & sound quality

Scene from Toy Story projected onto a wall by the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro projector — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

Decent brightness even in ambient light conditions
Impressive picture quality after some adjustments
Sound is poor unless you turn it up to maximum

I went into my review of the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro with limited expectations about the picture quality it would be able to produce, given its size and limited specs. I’d previously reviewed the XGIMI Aura 2 which produced a gorgeous and bright image, but this was expected since it has a 2300 ISO lumens rating. The MoGo 3 Pro’s 450 ISO lumens rating, therefore, suggested to me it would only really function at its best in the dark.

The XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro supports the HDR10 HDR format, which did provide some benefit to contrast in movie scenes with dark and bright elements. The company claims the projector supports 90% of the DCI-P3 color gamut. With Game mode activated, XGIMI says the MoGo 3 Pro has input lag of ≈ 27ms with auto keystone correction turned off and ≈ 60ms with it turned on.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that it held up well in a brighter room, with ambient sunlight coming in through a small opening. With the overhead lights turned on, it was totally unusable, but with just some sunlight creeping in, I was able to watch the projected image without too much fuss. You are able to project an image up to 200 inches in size, but XGIMI says that for best results you’ll want to stay within a boundary of 60 to 120 inches. For reference, the size of the image I was able to project onto my wall was around 80 inches, with the projector positioned around 200cm (80 inches) from the wall. XGIMI says the throw ratio of the MoGo 3 Pro is 1.2:1.

There are slightly different picture presets depending on whether you’re watching HDR or SDR content. The majority of my testing used HDR content, which presented Standard, Sport and Game presets. I left it on Standard most of the time as I felt this offered the best overall picture. I was surprised to not find a ‘Movie’ picture preset, especially given the fact this will likely be the projector’s main use.

Google TV home screen projected onto a wall by the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro projector — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

There are also three different brightness settings hidden within the menus: Standard, Eco and Performance. Again, I left the standard option selected the majority of the time. Eco mode limits brightness to 40% to help prolong battery life, and in darker rooms is perfectly fine to watch. If you’re watching in a brighter room, however, it doesn’t do as good a job.

Performance mode, meanwhile, introduces a blue tint to the image, which was a little peculiar... I was expecting this mode to ramp up the brightness further, but it seemed to have the opposite effect. When this mode is selected, the built-in cooling fan also gets turned up to 11 to the point where it’s clearly audible. It’s also worth noting that the performance brightness mode can only be enabled when the official power adapter is plugged directly into the projector unit. It won’t work with other power adapters or when connected to a power bank or the PowerBase stand.

A scene from Toy Story projected onto a wall by the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro projector — Enabling Performance brightness mode introduced a blue/green tint to the image. (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

A stream of Alien: Romulus provided a good test of darker content for the MoGo 3 Pro and, considering its size, specs and price, I was pleased with the results when watching in a dimly lit room. It was able to unearth details in shadowy areas of a scene, while brighter areas such as lights had a satisfying pop.

I switched over to Toy Story on Disney Plus for its color-rich palette and generally bright scenes. The various reds, yellows, greens and blues were prominent, although not quite as vibrant as I’ve seen on TVs and higher-specced projectors. Nevertheless, it was still an enjoyable watch.

Seeing as though the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro is designed to be taken out of the home with you, I set it up in my courtyard to see how it fared when being used outside. I will preface by saying I was projecting onto a dark grey wall, but it was also at night and so, despite the color of the wall coming through, I was still able to watch without trouble. I have no doubts that if you project onto a white wall, a sheet or even a portable projection screen, you will have no issues when watching movies on the road.

Scene from Toy Story projected onto an outdoor wall by the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro projector — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

I also watched my favorite clip from The Incredibles and came across an issue with a fast-moving scene about two-thirds into the movie. When Dash is running through the forest away from Syndrome’s goons, the projector seemed to just crash and stopped playing the movie. Pressing the home button returned me to the main home page, but the same thing happened again when I attempted to watch the scene again. I wasn’t able to replicate this again with any other content, so it could be a one-off, isolated incident or due to a bug that can be fixed via a future firmware update.

The projector’s built-in speaker system is more difficult to be excited about. At full volume it does produce a spacious sound that will ultimately pass for whatever you’re watching. At lesser volumes however, it’s too quiet to do any real service and it lacks any real impact. Connecting a Bluetooth speaker is a fuss-free experience and can work wonders to boost the overall sound output, especially as I didn’t experience any signs of audio lag.

Picture & sound quality score: 4 / 5

XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro review: Value

Cheaper than its closest competitor
Great features and performance
Portable power options cost extra

Dark scene from Alien: Romulus projected onto a wall by the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro projector — (Image credit: Future / Max Langridge)

With a list price of $499 / £449 / AU$1,099, the MoGo 3 Pro offers enough to make it worth recommending. Its most obvious competitor, the Samsung The Freestyle, costs more in most markets yet has a similar specs list. Samsung’s offering doesn’t go quite as bright, but it does use the excellent Tizen operating system and it supports cloud gaming. Like the MoGo 3 Pro, there’s no built-in battery, but an optional base is available to make it truly portable.

To this end, I think the XGIMI's optional battery-powered base is the better choice as it’s also a tripod. Samsung’s option only raises the projector a few extra inches, so you may still need a table to put it on for optimal results. XGIMI's MoGo 3 Pro also has the added benefit of keeping the lens protected when it’s not in use. You will need to consider spending extra on the PowerBase stand (which is more cost effective to buy as a bundle with the projector) or a power bank that meets the required criteria.

If you can spend more and your only need for a portable projector is to use it in your garden, then almost any projector will do the job when plugged into an extension cord.

Value score: 4 / 5

Should you buy the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro?

Buy it if...

You want a well-specced portable projector
The MoGo 3 Pro is especially portable thanks to a compact design and lightweight build. A lightweight battery-powered tripod base, or power from an external power bank, allows it to be used practically anywhere.

You plan to watch in dark conditions
The MoGo 3 Pro does well to combat ambient lighting in rooms, but when the sun goes down, it really comes into its own.

Don't buy it if...

You want 4K picture
The MoGo 3 Pro only supports up to full HD 1080p, which does mean picture quality can diminish if you supersize your projected image

You like to game at odd angles
27ms of input lag with auto keystone turned off is pretty decent, but this does mean you have to have the projector set up to directly face your projection surface.

Also consider

Samsung The Freestyle 2nd Gen
It’s been mentioned throughout this review for good reason, Samsung’s portable projector looks incredibly similar and has a similar spec sheet. It fares better in the gaming arena, but its picture isn’t quite as bright. But it costs quite a bit more than the XGIMI, and rarely receives discounts.
Read our in-depth Samsung The Freestyle 2nd Gen review.

LG CineBeam Q
LG’s portable projector rocks a funky retro design and supports 4K content with HDR. Color performance is excellent and brightness levels are good for a portable model. It does cost a lot more, but you also get a lot more in return compared to the MoGo 3 Pro.
Read our full LG CineBeam Q review.

How I tested the Xgimi MoGo 3 Pro

I used the projector in a range of light conditions
Set it up inside and outside to test portability
Watched a variety of dark and bright content

I tested the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro at home over a period of about a month so I could experience it during various daytime living conditions. This meant multiple light sources, be it natural daylight or overhead lightbulbs, came into my testing room, at which point I rated the picture to see how well it performed.

The projector was tested against a white wall for the duration of my review, but also on a dark grey wall outside to assess its portable credentials. Both performed well and I could see noticeable differences before and after calibration.

I used a variety of content, including HDR and SDR content from a variety of streaming services.

My testing evaluates the projector's performance against other reviews my colleagues at TechRadar have conducted. I have been writing about and reviewing displays for five years.