QLED TVs are relatively new in the Indian market, including Haier's QLED offerings. The company recently launched its QLED series of smart Google TVs, and I've been using the 55-inch S9QT model. Here's how my experience has been with the TV:
Design:
The TV features a combination of metal and plastic in its body design. The back is predominantly plastic, while the sides are framed with metallic accents. The centrally mounted table stand is also made of metal and is well-designed, which is a rarity in today's smart TVs. The thin bezels around the display look sleek and don't appear overly thick during use or when the TV is off. The bottom chin of the TV is covered with blue fabric featuring the Haier branding, Dolby Atmos/Dolby Vision IQ on the left, and a red LED power indicator on the right. The back of the TV houses all the ports, including two bottom-facing USB 2.0 ports, four HDMI 2.1 ports, a LAN port, and an audio out. The TV is slim and has a unique appearance, especially due to the metallic stand, framing, and fabric-covered chin. The remote control is a silver bar with standard control buttons, resembling the layout found on smartphones. Notably, the mute and volume buttons are side-mounted, similar to smartphones. In addition to the usual navigation and select keys, Google Voice, app shortcuts, source, and home buttons, there's a shortcut button for quick access to all your apps, which is a convenient addition.
Display:
I tested the 55-inch QLED model of the QLED series, which features a 3840x2160 Quantum dot LED panel with support for Dolby Vision IQ, HDR10, and HLG video formats. The TV's display is sharp and well-calibrated, offering ample detail and contrast for high-resolution videos. The display handles fast-moving scenes without significant color retention or shadow highlights. The TV supports variable refresh rates of up to 120Hz, which would be beneficial for gaming with consoles like PS5 or Xbox Series X/S. While I didn't test it with a gaming console, I did try a 4K 60Hz sports stream with MEMC, and the TV performed well. Dolby Vision IQ adjusts picture settings based on the room's lighting conditions. Dolby Vision and HDR content are handled effectively, particularly for dark scenes, skin tones, and overall contrast transitions. Streaming content with Dolby Vision enabled results in vibrant skin tones and details, although larger landscape scenes might lack a bit of accuracy. Bright-to-dark scene transitions benefit from local dimming, providing punchier and more contrast-rich pictures. Considering its price, the TV does a decent job with handling HDR content.
Software and Performance:
The TV runs on Google TV based on Android TV 11, equipped with a quad-core 1.3GHz CPU, G52 MC1 GPU, 3GB of RAM, and 32GB of storage. While the hardware and software versions are not the latest, the TV's general performance is satisfactory. It handles high-bitrate streaming videos smoothly and can play heavy files using the pre-loaded media player or third-party media players from the Play Store. Chromecast and voice commands work reliably. The pre-installed Haismart app offers access to movies from various free sources.
Sound:
The TV features 30-watt stereo speakers that perform adequately for watching sports. While they provide loud and punchy output for movies and series, they might struggle with clear dialogues. In a 15x15 room with few people, the sound output is decent and clear, but a dedicated set of speakers would enhance the movie and series-watching experience. Dolby Atmos support is present, and content tuned for Atmos delivers improved depth and overall audio experience.
Verdict:
Priced at Rs. 69,990 (MRP Rs. 1,20,990), the Haier S9QT is a solid offering in the QLED TV segment. It features a quality display panel that handles Dolby Vision and HDR content better than many LED TVs in the Rs. 60,000 to 70,000 range. The sound quality is decent but not exceptional, and the TV offers reliable performance for app switching and high-bitrate content playback. The package includes a premium-looking table stand and remote control.
