Two months ago I reviewed the TCL QM8L and called it the TV to beat for 2026. The QM7L sits one rung below it in TCL’s lineup for this year, and at $2,499 for the 85-inch model I tested, it’s the least expensive way to get the company’s Super Quantum Dot (SQD) panel technology.
It uses the same SQD quantum dots and color filter as the QM8L and X11L, plus the QM8L’s 26-bit backlight controller and Gemini-powered Google TV. The main differences are in what TCL trimmed to get the price down. A standard HVA 2.0 Pro panel replaces the QM8L’s WHVA 2.0, the dimming zones and brightness ceiling come down, and only two of the HDMI ports run at full HDMI 2.1 bandwidth.
The value pick in TCL’s 2026 lineup
After several weeks with the QM7L as my daily TV, I think TCL cut in the right places, yielding a budget-friendly unit that rivals some flagships. The main compromise you’ll actually notice is built-in audio that’s merely ok. Though for $1,500 less than the 85-inch QM8L, I think most people will be happy to make that trade.
Quick take: Familiar TCL design and a backlit remote without the QM8L’s extras
The QM7L looks a lot like last year’s QM7K. It has a brushed gunmetal frame with thin bezels on the top and sides and a chin along the bottom. The panel is a little over two inches thick, and the back is plastic.
The two-piece center pedestal sits on furniture far narrower than the panel and has two height positions to fit a soundbar underneath. The heavy reliance on plastic is to be expected at this price point.
The remote is the same basic design as the QM7K’s. It’s heavy on plastic with a brushed finish and backlit buttons. You get streaming shortcuts and an input button, but not the brightness rocker from the QM8L and X11L remotes, which I used constantly at night. I seem to have an aversion to using auto brightness. Don’t ask me why.
Quick take: Enough for most daily users
The inputs face out from the right edge, so you won’t have to blindly reach behind a mounted TV, and they’re joined by USB 3.0 and 2.0, Ethernet, optical out, and an ATSC 1.0 tuner.
Only HDMI 1 and 2 run at full bandwidth for 4K at 144Hz, while 3 and 4 top out at 4K at 60Hz. Thankfully, eARC duties fall to HDMI 4, so plugging in a soundbar won’t use up one of the faster ports.
Gamers get 4K at 144Hz, 288Hz at 1080p, VRR, and ALLM. Third-party lag testers put the QM7L around 10 milliseconds at 60Hz.
Quick take: Wide color and plenty of brightness on a standard VA panel
I’ve explained SQD in my X11L and QM8L reviews. The short version is same-color LEDs, smaller quantum dots, and a new color filter, so color holds steady even as brightness climbs. The QM7L retains all of this even at its lower price point.
The QM7L measured a Delta E of 2.6 in Filmmaker Mode at 100 nits with all processing off. That’s good, and in the same neighborhood as the QM8L, though a step back from the QM7K’s 0.8 last year. Below 1.0 is invisible to the naked eye, so while the QM7K didn’t need a calibration, the QM7L could benefit from one.
Gamut coverage is the QM7L’s biggest strength. It covers ~97% of DCI-P3 and roughly 90 percent of Rec. 2020, the same coverage I measured on the QM8L. That’s the best you’re going to find at this price point outside of OLED.
Brightness in SDR is more than any living room needs. I measured just over 700 nits full screen and well past 2,000 nits in a 10% window with the backlight maxed. The glossy panel does pick up direct reflections, but the brightness helps make them less distracting in dark scenes.
Quick take: Bright HDR and well-controlled dimming held back by out-of-the-box accuracy
The 85-inch QM7L has about 1,600 dimming zones, roughly half the QM8L’s count, but the difference is smaller in real content than it is on paper.
TCL rates the QM7L at 3,000 nits, which is right around where my Calibrite tops out, so no disclaimer needed this time. I measured ~2,800 nits in a 10% window, a clear step up from the 2,000 to 2,400 I got from the QM7K. Highlights carry plenty of punch without washing out the shadows around them.
Like the QM8L, HDR accuracy out of the box lags behind SDR, leaning cool and running a touch brighter than intended. Truthfully, most viewers will never notice, and a little calibration helps, but this isn’t a reference display.
Quick take: Clear dialogue at normal volumes but a step down from the QM8L
The QM7L carries the Bang & Olufsen name on a 2.2-channel system with two down-firing drivers and two woofers on the back. It’s the same arrangement as the QM7K, and my verdict is about the same. Dialogue is clear at normal volume levels.
The woofers add a bit of weight, and it doesn’t get especially loud before things start to distort a touch. It doesn’t sound bad per se, but it’s a clear step down from the QM8L. For everyday TV, you can live with the built-ins, but audiophiles might want to budget for a soundbar.
Quick take: The same Google TV and Gemini experience as the QM8L
The QM7L runs Google TV on Android 14, offering Gemini with hands-free voice activation. Gemini handles picture and sound adjustments by voice now, as well as natural language queries. I asked for the Tom Cruise movie with the lowest Rotten Tomatoes score, and it pulled up Cocktail, sitting at 11%, with rent and buy buttons ready to go. It’s still more party trick than tool for me, but it’s the most capable assistant on any TV today.
All that said, I still reach for my Roku Ultra for daily streaming. As one of millions of users with a streaming device, I don’t weigh the built-in OS too heavily, but Google TV remains my favorite.
The TCL QM7L served as my main television for one month in my living room. I watched movies, TV shows, F1 races, and YouTube in both 1080p and 4K.
I used both the native Google TV OS and my Roku Ultra. Measurements were taken with a Calibrite Display Pro HL and DisplayCal on Windows 11, with SDR accuracy tested in Filmmaker Mode at 100 nits with all processing off. TCL provided the QM7L review unit for this review and had no input into its contents.
The QM7L is the least expensive way to get TCL’s SQD picture while retaining most of what makes the QM8L so compelling. The color and brightness are excellent for this price point and should more than meet the needs of most people shopping for a big, bright TV this year.
The QM7L comes in 55-, 65-, 75-, 85-, and 98-inch sizes at $1,199, $1,499, $1,999, $2,499, and $3,999. Most sizes were discounted within weeks of launch.
Both use TCL’s SQD Mini-LED panel technology. The QM8L is brighter, has roughly twice the dimming zones, four full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 ports instead of two, and better audio. The QM7L keeps the color and most of the picture for a lot less.
In most ways, yes. The QM7L adds SQD quantum dots for wider color, improves blooming control, and pushes peak brightness higher. The QM7K had tighter color accuracy out of the box.
Instagram is making its way to yet another screen, and this time, Apple TV is getting a taste of the Reels rabbit hole. The company has launched a dedicated Instagram app for Apple TV, bringing Reels, longer videos, and live shows to the big screen. So, if watching one quick clip on a phone somehow turns into an hour of scrolling, there's now a much larger screen for that.
Instagram brings Reels and more to Apple TV
Audio-Technica, a brand well known for making some of the best studio and professional headphones on the market, has just come out with the ATH-AWX7000, which the company itself claims to be its "finest headphones ever." The new flagship closed-back headphone has debuted at an eye-watering price of $3,799. It combines hand-finished Japanese woodwork with a newly developed 58mm driver.
The earcups are made from Kiso cypress, a prized wood historically used for Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. Each housing is finished by hand with traditional Echizen lacquer, which brings out the grain and is expected to darken over time. The frame and sliders are finished in a deep navy kachi-iro shade traditionally associated with samurai.
This post is brought to you in paid partnership with Best Buy.
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