Best 4K TV 2024: Our favourite HDR TVs

While the Panasonic MZ2000 is undoubtedly the best overall Panasonic TV, it doesn’t offer much flexibility with its bolted on sound system. For those who want a less expensive OLED and the freedom to add their own sound system, the MZ1500 is a fantastic TV for those purposes.

If you’ve seen a Panasonic OLED in recent year then you’ll definitely recognise the MZ1500’s design. Nothing has changed in terms of look, and it’s not a TV that’ll grab the attention in a room, but that appears to be the point. It is easy to assemble though, and the swivel screen means you position it to avoid glare or ambient sunlight in a room.

The smart interface is Panasonic’s My Home Screen which is a simple affair. It has all the main video streaming apps, though if you’re after more than that then it’s rather bare. Nevertheless, it’s an accessible interface that doesn’t require a log-in to make use of its features, and for that we appreciate not having to remember another password.

Connectivity accounts for the usual inputs and output, with two HDMI 2.1 ports that support 4K/120Hz gameplay and VRR. We measured input lag at 14.3ms, which is quicker than the Sony A80L but slower than the LG C3 OLED. The Game Control Board offers a series of settings that can be customised during gameplay for those who want the best performance from their games.

Much like Sony’s OLED TVs, the Panasonic features a very natural-looking HDR performance. Blacks on this OLED are rich and deep, the peak brightness is high as we measured over a 1000 nits on a 5% HDR window. That’s more than enough to give HDR some zing and zest.

And it manifests itself through bright highlights, brighter reds and more nuanced blues, as the Panasonic MZ1500 is able to reveal a wider range of colours than the Sony A80L. The addition of Dolby Vision IQ and HDR10+ Adaptive also helps for an improved performance in both bright and dark rooms, and especially with the latter, you can view more detail in dark HDR scenes.

Upscaling is very good, maintaining the look of content without enhancing it, and while this set’s motion processing isn’t as good as Sony, it’s not far behind, smooth and natural look at its ‘Min’ setting.

The sound quality is better than we’d expecting, with warm bass that’s got some depth and weight to it. It’s not the best at delivering dialogue, a little too warm with some words being muffled, but we wouldn’t be rushing out to buy a soundbar to go with this TV. The audio system works well enough on its own.

Reviewer: Kob Monney
Full Review: Panasonic MZ1500

Sony’s X95L is its flagship Mini LED screen, and it’s performance is fantastic. This is absolutely a TV to consider for your home given that it’s fallen below £2000 / $2000 (in the US the X93L is the equivalent model).

This TV allows you attach its support feet in any of three separate positions to find a more accommodating space within your set-up. The 65X95L’s smart interface is provided by Google TV, while there are four HDMI inputs to plug sources into, while the Acoustic Centre Sync port means you can partner the TV’s speakers with those in one of Sony’s current series of soundbars.

Two of the HDMI inputs support 4K at 120Hz, variable refresh rates, and auto low latency mode switching. though there’s no Dolby Vision Game mode, either, and input lag for this model was measured at a rather high 18.8ms.

Our reviewer pegged the brightness of the TV on a 10% white HDR test window was 1560 nits, which is easily around the same brightness of premium OLED and QD-OLED models, except you’re paying significantly less for the privilege of owning this Mini LED TV.

This level of brightness helps to produce Sony’s customary deft and naturalistic images, full of contrast and colour. And while there’s still an element of blooming it has been reduced compared to the 2022 model. Our reviewer found the local dimming to be less aggressive than on Samsung’s Mini LED TVs – and is less of a distraction as a result.

We found upscaling of HD sources to be exemplary, too, adding exceptional refinement and density to less than 4K images without exaggerating noise.

And as usual with a Sony Acoustic Multi-Audio TV, the best thing about this TV’s audio performance is how precisely it places sound effects on the screen. In a perfect world the sound would have more forward projection and impact, as well as bass, but this is excellent performance for a flat-screen TV.

Reviewer: John Archer
Full Review: Sony XR-65X95L

The Philips OLED+907 is an excellent choice for TV and film fans and gamers. We’d describe the look of the OLED+907 as chic with its ultra-thin bezel, metal swivel stand finished in satin chrome and cloth-clad Bowers & Wilkins sound system. It’ll look good in any room.

Connectivity includes four HDMI inputs, two of which are compliant with 4K/120Hz for premium game performance. However, one of those inputs is shared with the eARC port, so if you do decide to add a sound system, that reduces the number of 4K/120Hz inputs for those who have more than one device that can support that feature.

Smarts are provided by Android TV 11, which brings in built-in Chromecast and Google Assistant support. App selection is massive thanks to the Google Play Store, with Freeview Play ushering in all the UK catch-up and on-demand apps through its portal. Ambilight is provided in its three-side form and our reviewer is a big fan of the bias-lighting feature, as it can really add to a room’s ambience in a way no other TV brand can.

The image quality served up is superb. The 55OLED+907 features an OLED EX panel from LG that’s been tweaked and given the ‘Royale’ designation by Philips. In our tests, we measured brightness on a 10% HDR window at 1146 nits, which translates to a profound sense of contrast with OLED’s naturally deep blacks and the Philips’ processing produce bright objects.

The Crystal View setting puts in a performance that’s vibrant and solid, really elevating any content watched in the format. We’d advised some caution with the motion settings, though, as while many modes are provided, we’d rate Pure Cinema as best for the most natural motion.

Audio quality impresses too, although there is no Dolby Atmos support from this integrated 3.1 sound system. Despite that there’s power, weight and a fine sense of detail provided for a TV audio system.

Reviewer: Steve May
Full Review: Philips 55OLED+907

The QN95B has been replaced by the QN95C, but right now it’s dropping so fast in price that it can be had for just over £1000, and in that context it is a bargain. While the previous incumbent of this position, the QN94A, is still available, the QN95B improves upon its picture performance.

When it comes to HDR, you won’t find a more capable TV than this Samsung on this list. In its Standard mode we measured its HDR performance at 2369 nits, which is bright enough to make content visible in a room with lots of ambient light so what’s on screen won’t appear washed out. It produces a colourful and vibrant image with a splendid array of colours and, in our estimation, compared to the step-down QN90B model, we feel it’s more controlled in how it deploys its vast amounts brightness, more accurately representing brighter objects in a bright scene.

That level of brightness does produce blooming, with halos of light around bright objects that can distract. This isn’t too distracting from a head-on position, but people watching at wider angles will be more sensitive to it.

When it comes to gaming, the QN95B is outfitted with Auto low latency mode to the TV into its quickest mode for gaming, while variable refresh rate support (HDMI VRR and AMD FreeSync Premium Pro) reduces screen tearing for better picture quality. We measured input lag at 10.2ms, which makes the QN95B one of the most fastest and most responsive models on the market.

Like it is for most TVs, audio is the QN95B’s weakest area. The sound from the built-in speaker unit is crisp and clear, and the OTS (Object Tracking Sound) system cleverly places audio where it should be on screen. But the TV lacks weight and sounds thin, the lack of bass is especially notable in action films. We’d recommend budgeting for a soundbar.

Reviewer: Kob Monney
Full Review: Samsung QE55QN95B

Another TCL TV features on this list, and the C845K is one of the more impressive affordable Mini LED sets we’ve reviewed as of late.

Available for less than £1000 in its 65-inch size, this is an aggressively priced Mini LED set that performs better than the similarly specced Hisense U7K. It’s not perfect, but if you’re looking for a bright HDR performance, this TCL TV is arguably the stand out model below £1000.

The build quality is heavy duty, so it’d be tricky to try and place this TV on a wall without some assistance. The back end is also fairly chunky too, so despite the Mini LED backlight, it isn’t the skinniest Mini LED we’ve ever seen. Our reviewer wasn’t a fan of the remote that came with the TV, describing it as cheap and cheerful for such a well specified TV.

And the TCL C845K has some impressive features for the price. It has 576 local dimming zones in its Mini LED backlight for more precise brightness and reduction in blooming that can affect picture quality. Brightness can hit 2200 nits, which is brighter than even the brightest OLEDs on the market such as the LG G3. For gaming it has HDMI 2.1 support with 4K/120Hz, ALLM and VRR, as well as Dolby Vision Gaming where it’s supported. An input of lag of 15ms is good, if not among the quickest that can be achieved.

HDR support equals Dolby Vision, HDR10, HLG, and HDR10+, so the TCL can play nice and optimise colour and brightness with those formats ensuring the best picture quality that the C85K is capable of. Google TV is supported for the user interface, which we found to be more attractive and better organised than Android TV. At the moment, it doesn’t yet support the UK catch-up apps, but TCL is offering users a Roku stick for anyone who wants one.

Picture performance is an area that greatly impressed us. The TL C845K does need some tweaking from its settings to produce its best picture, but once done it is capable of excellent contrast, convincing black levels merged with spectacular brightness, alongside bold colours. You’d get a better picture performance out of the box with Mini LEDs from the likes of Sony, but it’s not available at this price.

The 65845K’s sound is as aggressive as its pictures. It’s 70W sound system is able to pump out a sound that’s very loud but remains detailed and offers an impressive amount of bass. When pushed to its limits it can sound coarse and bass features some distortion, but otherwise this TV’s audio performance is better than other TVs that cost a significant amount more.

Hisense has been one of the leading lights in offering an impressive specification for its TVs at an affordable price, but that hasn’t always meant a stellar performance. The Hisense U7K is a 4K TV we can heartily recommend, though.

Priced at an aggressive £1499 / $1049, the Hisense is a Mini LED that undercuts Samsung’s range of Neo QLED Mini LED TVs such as the QN85C. It claims a performance of around 1000 nits of peak brightness and delivers a very complete and convincing image when given native 4K HDR content.

Our reviewer found there were numerous subtle differences in tone and colour volume visible in the image, with skin tones enjoying plenty of variety, while the rest of the colour palette was vibrant without ever becoming overblown or unnatural. Black tones are respectably deep with no crushing evident even in dark scenes. It supports every useful HDR standard in HDR10, HDR10+ Adaptive, Dolby Vision IQ; along with IMAX Enhanced certification and Filmmaker mode for greater picture accuracy. 

The performance of the audio system is not the best we’ve heard, eliciting good clarity from the midrange but rather tentative in describing bass and producing a flat, undynamic sound overall. We’d recommend you budget to add a soundbar to this TV.

The VIDAA U interface keeps things simple with all the major on-demand and catch-up apps included, and we found it didn’t take too long for its algorithms to start suggesting content we’d actually want to watch. Gaming-wise it supports AMD FreeSync Premium for PC gamers, auto low latency mode and refresh rates up to 144Hz, making this a competitive TV to the likes of the QN85C and TCL 65C845K Mini LED models.

The Hisense U7K is a bit of a bargain for its price. It’s well specified, and performs very well for its price point with good picture and gaming skills.

Reviewer: Simon Lucas
Full Review: Hisense 65U7KQTUK