Hisense Canvas vs. Samsung Frame TV: I’ve seen both, and here’s how Hisense wins

ZDNET’s key takeaways

• The Hisense Canvas TV is a way of life set that delivers sensible picture high quality and a classy aesthetic.
• The matte-treated show, pretty punchy colours, and free assortment of art work are straightforward to understand.
• The QLED panel falls brief in distinction and HDR brightness, and it is on the bulkier facet.

extra shopping for selections

Comply with ZDNET: Add us as a most popular supply on Google.

For years, the Samsung Body TV has been some of the widespread life-style TVs in the marketplace. Changing a TV right into a framed piece of art work when left idle was, and nonetheless is, a contentious concept that many both love or hate. But when there’s one factor that any client can agree on, it is that competitors is a gorgeous factor. Enter: the Hisense Canvas TV.

Additionally: Our favourite Black Friday TV offers reside now

Like Samsung, Hisense’s Canvas TV is a QLED set handled with a matte, anti-reflection layer and wood borders to make it look as shut as attainable to a bit of artwork decor. You are restricted to 55-inch and 65-inch sizes (for now) in comparison with Samsung’s 32-to-85-inch vary, however that should not be an issue for many homes. 

Actually, after testing a mannequin earlier this yr, I am satisfied I would not need something greater.

That is partly as a result of, in contrast to the Body TV and its One Join Field, which is a separate transmitter case which you can join gaming consoles, audio system, and different peripherals, the Canvas TV has all of its I/O ports and processing parts constructed into the physique, leading to a bulkier construct.

Additionally: Your TV’s USB port is significantly underutilized: 5 useful options you are overlooking

The entire system nonetheless appears to be like like a bit of art work when mounted onto a wall — Hisense’s UltraSlim wall mount comes included within the field and does an excellent job holding the TV flush — however in terms of putting in every thing and plugging issues out and in, Samsung’s method is rather more accessible. That is why I would not desire a bigger Canvas TV measurement, whether or not it is the newer 75 or 85-inch choices.

Some would argue that the dearth of a One Join Field means the Canvas TV appears to be like extra minimal, with the one energy twine dangling out from beneath. (A TV twine hider is your greatest pal right here, by the way in which.) You do not have to forcibly tuck all of your cables and connectors behind the TV again field or in-wall conduit, which is usually a ache level for people who’re renting or dwelling in confined areas.

In Samsung’s protection, the One Join Field can be a one-cable-dangling-down affair, however you may simply have to seek out area to station the enter hub, whether or not that be a wood cupboard or behind the TV.

Additionally: Your TV’s USB port has hidden superpowers: 5 advantages you are not profiting from

Turning on the Canvas TV immediately revealed its greatest advantages and downsides. I will begin with the dangerous information because it’s actually par for the course with midrange life-style QLED TVs. My Hisense mannequin had some noticeable inconsistencies with visible uniformity, whether or not it was the imperfect blacks (as a result of, once more, this is not an OLED TV) or numerous blotches of darker pixels. 

You discover it instantly when the TV activates, and it is on the Hisense boot brand display screen. The viewing angles are additionally not very best, with colours fading rapidly in the event you’re circuitously going through the middle of the TV.

The results of uniformity largely disappear as you begin viewing extra vibrant content material, resembling sports activities, films, and gallery items, because the TV turns into simply vibrant sufficient, even throughout the daytime. It helps that Hisense’s Hello-Matte coating disperses incoming ambient mild, just like home windows and lamps, though not totally to the purpose the place you will not see any rings of white on the display screen. 

The benefit of getting a matte show is usually felt once you’re in Artwork Mode, with the phantasm of gazing an precise artwork piece going into full impact. Extra on that later.

Additionally: I noticed the way forward for TVs at Samsung’s South Korea lab – and I am excited for these 3 issues

Once you put pricing into perspective, whereas the Canvas TV will not ship the identical stage of pop and distinction as Samsung’s Body TV (particularly the Professional mannequin) with its 4K AI Upscaling capabilities, I discovered the image high quality believable, particularly once I was catching up on a March Insanity sport between Alabama State and Saint Francis. 

Whereas I anticipated the Canvas TV to nearly mix the Pearled Ivory shade of the Alabama State jerseys with the wooden ground and basketball, every thing was depicted with glorious shade separation and accuracy.

The Canvas TV expertise is underpinned by Google TV software program, which I’ve heard extra folks reward than criticize. Having examined numerous working programs over the previous month, together with Samsung’s TizenOS and LG’s WebOS, I can confidently say that Google TV is the only option for many customers. The software program strikes the perfect stability of app availability, house display screen structure, and user-tailored content material. 

Save for some Hisense bloatware, most of that are connectivity options that leverage your cellphone and the companion app, you are a comparatively user-friendly interface, one thing the Samsung Body TV lacks.

I will additionally give some extent to Hisense for not charging a subscription to entry any of its Artwork Mode content material, which has a sizeable assortment of 120 preloaded photos. That is not as many choices as what Samsung presents with its on-line Artwork Retailer (3,000+), however you may must pay in order for you something greater than the 30 monthly-curated artwork items (150+ variations per yr) from the Artwork Retailer Streams.

Whereas I by no means thought-about myself an artwork connoisseur, seeing the assorted items of artistry displayed on the Canvas TV and in my lounge jogged my memory of once I first laid eyes on the 2022 Body TV — like I used to be discovering a brand new passion. I simply needed to stand nonetheless, observe the small print, and stroll round like my TV was an art work hung on the MoMA.

Additionally: How we take a look at TVs at ZDNET in 2025

I additionally respect the abundance of settings that include Artwork Mode, together with timers for movement detection (which places the TV into sleep mode when it does not detect any motion within the room for a given time), gallery rotations, defaulting to show portray info, and making use of digital mat boards of various sizes. These aren’t options unique to the Canvas TV per se — the Samsung Body TV was one of many pioneers on this area — however they’re ones I at all times respect having.

ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation

At nearly half the worth of the Samsung Body TV, the Hisense Canvas TV (at present as much as $350 off) is a incredible different that does a number of issues higher. I might advocate the mannequin to customers who desire a related TV-artwork hybrid expertise however do not thoughts the bulkier design (which you may rapidly get used to), lack of smaller and bigger sizes, and barely inferior image high quality. 

Operating on Google TV as an alternative of a extra bloated TizenOS working system is a giant benefit for TV purists, and gaining access to high-quality art work at no additional cost is a win for everybody. Plus, you’ll be able to at all times add your individual media to the TV.

To be clear, I am not discrediting Samsung’s Body TV right here; it deserves the reward it has acquired. (On the time of writing, the 2024 fashions are even on sale, with some sizes promoting for as little as $600.) And with new 2025 fashions on the horizon, together with a Professional mannequin that options a fair sharper Mini LED Panel, the way forward for life-style TVs appears to be like very promising.

Replace log:

• This story was initially printed on March 24, 2025, and was completely up to date on November 25, 2025, after fact-checking and modifications to the worth for Black Friday.