It's a beautiful thing when one of the best TVs of the year experiences a monumental price cut, and that's exactly what happened to the award-winning Hisense U8N this week during Amazon's October Prime Day event.
We thought this TV was a slam-dunk deal when a 65-inch version cost $1,499, but right now, you can land a 65-inch Hisense U8N for just $997 at Amazon. In fact, you can still get a wildly good deal on any of the four sizes in the U8N series.
Even more surprising than the steepness of its initial Prime Day-driven discount is the fact that the deal has remained active days later. It's as though someone forgot to turn off the sale switch at the end of Prime Day.
We're certainly not complaining, though.
Why is it one of the best TVs of 2024?
When we tested this TV for our full Hisense U8N review, it set a new standard for Mini-LED TV brightness in our lab. If you buy a 65-inch TV or larger, peak brightness stretches well over the 3,000-nit mark when showcasing HDR highlights, meaning small, concentrated areas of brightness (like sunlight reflecting off of the ocean's surface) pop at a level that most TVs don't come close to.
The 55-inch U8N doesn't offer quite as bright of a punch (it's only advertised as reaching 1,500 nits due to a lower dimming zone count), but that's plenty bright for a Mini-LED TV with impressive local dimming.
In addition to its ability to showcase highlights, the U8N also outputs a super-high average picture brightness in both SDR and HDR. This means that, on average, the entire picture is bright enough to hold up in even the brightest of living spaces.
The Hisense U8N offers one of the best sets of on-board speakers I've tested this year.
I suspect that a high number of folks who have already taken advantage of this discount have done so because of the U8N's impressive suite of gaming enhancements. It's not as thorough a toolbox as what you'd get with a much pricier TV, but it's enough for most gamers, be them casual or competitive.
In terms of audio, the Hisense U8N offers one of the best sets of on-board speakers I've tested this year. Ordinarily, I recommend that people pair their TV with one of the best soundbars in their price range. The U8N's internal speakers (and its built-in subwoofer) thump enough that I truly think most people could skate by without a soundbar.
How long will this deal last?
When you list out the U8N's credentials — it's bright display, impressive contrast control, its Dolby Vision support and dedication to gaming — it's really not a surprise that our readers pounced on this current sale. The steep discount an especially good way to save big on our favorite big-screen TV, as the U8N is our current pick for the best 85-inch TV and the best 75-inch TV.
Of course, no TV is perfect and the bad news here is that Hisense cut corners by only offering a pair of gaming-optimized HDMI 2.1 inputs (out of four total), but it has done so responsibly, by designating one of the 2.0 inputs as the U8N's dedicated eARC port. This is important for folks who have two gaming consoles and a soundbar, as it frees up one of the more optimized inputs for gaming.
This is where I usually remind people that a deal will typically only last as long as a sales event, but Prime Day is over, so timing is especially critical, here. The discount could get pulled at any moment, so I recommend acting swiftly.
That being said, Black Friday 2024 is just around the bend, and with it will come a whole slew of new TV deals. We'll be there to cover them as they go live, so be sure to stop back in November.
