It can be a real headache looking for a new TV, especially with similar-sounding model names from rival brands touting the same features and technologies for almost identical prices.
Browsing the best TVs on the market comes down to one major thing: which TV is going to give you the best bang for your buck? Buying one of the best OLED TVs like the awesome LG G5 or Samsung S95F flagships would be great, but they come at a premium price, often exceeding $2,000 / £2,000 for a 65-inch model.
Thankfully, you don’t have to spend these premium prices to get an excellent TV that should cover all your needs, especially for movies and gaming. Nowadays, TVs from more ‘budget’ brands such as Hisense and TCL compete with major brands when it comes to both features and performance.
As TechRadar’s TV tester, I’ve picked three models that do bang for your buck better than any other TVs.
TCL QM7K/C7K
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The mid-range model in TCL’s 2025 mini-LED TV lineup, the 7-series, referred to as the QM7K in the US and the C7K in the UK, has a robust list of features and delivers great performance for the price.
With high brightness (over 3,000 nits!) and bold, vibrant colors, the QM7K/C7K also has effective local dimming, which produces deep blacks and strong contrast. Textures look realistic on 7-series TVs, and detail is refined. I was seriously impressed with the QM7K/C7K’s picture quality when I tested it, and while not perfect, it’s a real improvement over previous TCL mid-range TVs.
The QM7K/C7K is also one of the best gaming TVs you can get in its price bracket. With 4K 144Hz, AMD FreeSync Premium Pro, Dolby Vision gaming and ALLM all supported, plus a respectable 13.5ms input lag time for smooth performance, there aren’t many better gaming TVs at this price.
I’ve seen the 65-inch QM7K selling for as low as $799 and the 65-inch C7K for £799 / AU$1695. For what this TV offers, those are staggeringly low prices.
Hisense U8Q
The Hisense U8Q is one of the flagship models in Hisense’s 2025 mini-LED TV lineup. Its predecessor, the Hisense U8N, was one of the best mini-LED TVs of 2024, so the U8Q had some big shoes to fill, and it does just that.
The U8Q delivered staggering brightness when we tested it, hitting 3,337 nits. Its superb backlight control also delivered powerful contrast in challenging scenes from TV shows such as The Last of Us. Colors were rich and vivid and the U8Q’s higher brightness gave them that extra level of pop.
The U8Q is also an excellent gaming TV. Its three HDMI 2.1 ports support 4K 165Hz, AMD FreeSync Premium Pro, ALLM, and Dolby Vision and HDR10+ gaming. Plus, it has an ultra-low 9.9ms input lag time for snappy, responsive gaming performance.
For what it offers, the U8Q is brilliant value. It costs $1,099 for the 65-inch model in the US, and has been as low as $999 before. In Australia, it’s priced at AU$1,895. Those are fantastic prices for a flagship TV with this level of performance.
In the UK, the U8Q’s value isn’t quite as good, with the 65-inch model costing £1,699. Still, given the specs, that price is very competitive.
LG B5
The LG B5 is the latest entry in LG’s B-series of OLED TVs, which sell at a cheaper price than most OLEDs.
The B5 delivers all the picture quality highlights expected from an OLED TV. It has deep, inky blacks, vibrant color and 3D-like detail. It doesn’t have the brightness of more premium OLEDs, clocking in at 668 nits, but its picture still has punchy contrast and looks fantastic.
It’s also a superb gaming TV, with a full suite of features supported across four HDMI 2.1 ports, including 4K 120Hz, AMD FreeSync and Nvidia G-Sync, HGiG, Dolby Vision gaming and ALLM. An ultra-low 9.2ms input lag time (in the TV’s Boost mode) makes for fast-paced and ultra-responsive gaming, as I discovered when playing Battlefield V on the B5.
Buying the B5 is the cheapest way to get a 2025 OLED TV. The 65-inch model costs $1,099 / £1,349 / AU$2,295, and while that’s more than what you’ll pay for mini-LED models from Hisense and TCL, it’s a brilliant price for an OLED. For the 65-inch step-up LG C5, you’d be paying $1,399 / £1,799 / AU$4,295!
Honorable mention: LG C4
OK, so this is a cheeky honorable mention. The LG C4 sat at the top of most of our best-of lists for the past 12 months as it delivers exceptional picture quality and brilliant gaming features and performance for a very competitive price.
Now that we’re in the latter part of 2025, however, the C4 has become difficult to find. Where available, it’s currently getting great discounts, so if you see this TV listed, it’s absolutely worth buying!
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james.davidson@futurenet.com (James Davidson)
