Hisense UR9 RGB MiniLED: An Affordable TV in Its Class

RGB Mini-LED TVs have officially arrived, and Hisense’s UR9 was the first to hit the market, followed by Sony’s Bravia 7 Mark II and TCL’s RM9L. I wouldn’t blame you if you weren’t jazzed to learn what the new display technology means, particularly if you were just getting used to terms like OLED, QLED, and art TV. Thankfully, understanding why the Hisense UR9 RGB MiniLED is a step up in picture quality compared to its competitors is more about the experience it provides than knowing the technical terms.

Even so, the general function of mini RGB tech is not so difficult to understand: Traditional LED and QLED televisions achieve their bright and colorful images by shining white or blue LEDs through an LCD panel. The newer mini RGB works by emitting red, green, and blue lights, resulting in better color accuracy, excellent contrast and brightness, and finer control over color zones. LG and Samsung use new tech called micro RGB, claiming it to be more advanced than mini RGB thanks to smaller LEDs, although both achieve roughly the same result.

The UR9 is the flagship in Hisense’s lineup, but it isn’t priced that way at just $2,000 for the 65-inch model I tested. What you get with the UR9 is an improved picture quality compared to the brand’s other models, which are typically priced lower than sets from big names like Samsung, Sony, and LG. I’ve tested countless Hisense entry-level models over the years, including a few that had poor contrast and brightness, putting them more in line with TCL, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV bargain models that cost around $800.

Not the case with this gaming monster, with its unusual-but-welcome 180-Hz refresh rate (330-Hz variable) when you link a high-end computer to the DisplayPort connection on the side. Overall, I was impressed by the picture quality at this price point, even if the UR9 can’t quite compete with the latest (but pricey) Samsung and LG models that use micro RGB tech.

Standard Setup for a Unique Television

Photograph: John Brandon

The all-black, notably thin (only 1.8 inches!) UR9 comes with a stand that’s much easier to assemble than the Sony Bravia 7 Mark II RGB TV. Once in position on my stand, setting up the Google TV operating system was simple, save for dealing with a known bug with the Google Home app’s QR code that required manually entering my Gmail address and password. The UR9 uses Wi-Fi 6E, which is faster than Wi-Fi 6.