The Hisense UR9 is among the first TVs launching in 2026 with RGB display technology, which promises color comparable to a highly coveted OLED TV, but with brighter backlighting to ensure more precision, and a picture that holds up better in less-than-ideal living room setups. It's also a reinvention of sorts for Hisense's high-end, big-screen-only U9 series—it runs from a standard-large 65 inches to a massive 100 inches—which returns after a couple of dormant years. Its predecessor was my favorite big-screen TV of 2024, and that was without the innovative shine of a new display tech to draw my eye. Now, with Hisense's RGB Mini-LED panel and more screen-size options, it has even more to offer, and a price that should appeal to buyers looking for a big TV on a (relatively) constrained budget.

Why You Should Care About RGB

RGB display technology changes the backlighting in your TV, using individual red, green, and blue diodes in each backlighting source, rather than a single white (or sometimes blue) light. This allows for greater control over color and saturation.

The technology has been around in some form or another for some time, but many TV brands are releasing new and improved versions of the technology that combine it with quantum dot (QD) technology to further enhance color and mini- or micro-LED backlighting, which creates local dimming zones for adjustable brightness and high-dynamic range (HDR).

So now we're going to see a wave of new screens that threatens to break OLED's dominance as the go-to tech for high-end TVs by offering similarly beautiful color but with a brighter display.

Hisense's RGB take in the UR9, dubbed RGB Mini-LED, combines RGB diodes with up to 3,000 local dimming zones and a peak brightness of 5,000 nits to deliver a captivating image. I watched the opening round of the World Cup, and the afternoon game looked stunning in my bright living room. I also played hours of Gran Turismo 7 on my PS5 Pro, and was pleased that even night races looked amazing under similar conditions.

Across the board, the UR9 blows away all of the mini-LED TVs I've tested in the past couple of years. It does, in fact, look more like a top-tier OLED than a mid- to high-end LED TV. And as promised, that incredible picture was consistent across a range of lighting conditions, including a brightly lit room. That's quite a feat in my book.

Superb Glare Resistance

Complementing that improved resilience to bright room lighting, where RGB seems to thrive, the UR9 features a screen coating called" Obsidian,” which mitigates glare from direct sunlight incredibly well. Though far less flashy than RGB, this may actually be my favorite thing about the UR9: You don't need to crank up the brightness to watch during the day in a window-lit room, where the colors would otherwise look faded and washed out.

Anti-glare coatings are one of those little features we often overlook, but I think they should be really important to most people. If you are putting your TV in a room with windows, there will likely be a time of day when outside light affects your TV's performance.

Case in point, I was able to watch some of those World Cup games from my dining room table, sitting about 20 feet away at a less-than-ideal 45-degree angle. Most TVs are hard to see from that particular vantage point. (Trust me, I've tried.) In fact, Samsung's high-end OLED TVs are among the only models I've tested that could handle the task.

We often try to view TVs under the best possible conditions to see what they’re truly capable of, but it's also important to celebrate models that handle poor lighting and viewing angles. Having that flexibility gives you peak performance in a wider range of conditions. It makes life easier by ensuring you don't have to fidget with curtains or blinds or turn the lights off to see the beautiful screen you paid for.

Other Bits I Like

On the sound front, the UR9 features a 4.1.2-channel speaker setup with Dolby Atmos support, tuned by experts at the luxury French audio brand Devialet. This is the second or third time I've found a TV with strong enough audio hardware that I wouldn't insist you pair it with a soundbar or surround-sound speakers. (Though I still think it would help.)

It also offers a few surprising ports. Aside from the expected options like a trio of HDMI 2.1 ports, including one with eARC support, it has a USB-C DisplayPort sitting on its left edge, which allowed me to easily use the TV as an external monitor with my MacBook.

Hisense UR9 Versus TCL QM8L

As the two dominant forces in the world of mid-to-high-end best bang-for-your-buck TVs, I think it’s worthwhile to give some specific notes for folks choosing between the UR9 and TCL’s QM8L SQD Mini-LED TV, which are both similarly luxurious (and expensive) options from budget-friendly brands.

With the TCL QM8L, you'll get one of the best quantum-dot mini-LED TVs on the market with thousands of local dimming zones and a brightness to match. The Hisense UR9 counts on an RGB mini-LED screen to counter the reengineered super quantum dots embedded into its rival's panel.

Ultimately, I think the UR9's versatility makes it a better buy in most situations. While the QM8L can get brighter and has more local dimming zones, both of which improve its HDR quality, the color and contrast from the RGB lighting and the anti-glare features of the UR9 go a long way toward ensuring you're seeing the best possible picture as often as possible. In a time when even lower-cost TVs can produce surprisingly high brightness, anti-reflective screens are a major factor in the decision-making process, especially for viewing in bright rooms.

Still, the good news is that both TVs are excellent. You won't walk away disappointed, regardless of which way you go.

Who Should Buy the Hisense UR9?

The Hisense UR9 is an excellent TV—one of the best of the year to date. It offers future-proof display tech and superb features. If you're looking for a large, high-brightness alternative to our top recommended OLEDs, such as the LG C6 or Samsung S95H, this is the move.

And, while not exactly cheap, the $2,000 starting price for a 65-inch set is relatively affordable for a brand-new 2026 TV with such features and specs. For reference, the LG C6, which launched last month, currently costs $2,700. And TCL's first RGB TV, the RM9L RGB, starts at a whopping $6,000 for an 85-inch screen, compared with $4,000 for an 85-inch UR9. With technology prices generally on the rise, the cost of the newest TVs can be daunting, but the promise of their new technology is also remarkably impressive.