China’s Xiaomi brand has announced that its Q2 series QLED TVs are now rolling out across Europe, providing consumers with a more affordable way to obtain premium features such as quantum dots, Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos.
The Xiaomi Q2 QLED TVs are powered by Google TV and come in 50-, 55- and 65-inch sizes. There’s an impressive list of features on the TVs, suggesting that they could provide a good alternative to the more expensive, mid-range models sold by higher-end brands like Samsung Electronics and Sony.
What isn’t clear however is if Xiaomi’s new TVs will make their way to stores in the U.K., for availability has only been announced in Europe. There, buyers will be able to source the smallest 50-inch model for just 700 euros, which would work out at around £620 at the current exchange rate. In addition, as FlatPanels HD noted, the TVs are currently even cheaper with a launch offer price of just 550 euros (£480) for the next two weeks.
For those who can get a hold of one, the Xiaomi Q2 TV looks like a great competitor to budget/premium TVs like Amazon’s new Omni Fire TV QLED, which is currently only available to buy in the U.S. Moreover, it has additional features that the Omni Fire TV lacks, including Dolby Atmos and DTS:X audio.
You’ll also get three HDMI ports on the Xiaomi Q2 TV, in addition to Google TV. That contrasts with the Omni Fire TV, which offers the Android-based Fire TV operating system. The TV is said to be powered by a MediaTek MT9611 system-on-a-chip and has 2GB of RAM and 16GB of storage built in. There’s also support for WiFi 5, Bluetooth 5.0 and HDMI eARC.
What we don’t know is precisely what kind of image quality Xiaomi’s TVs will provide, as the specifications don’t mention anything about local dimming or direct backlighting, which are both present on the Omni Fire TV. Xiaomi does however say buyers can expect 92% coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut, which is roughly equal to something like Samsung’s Q60B QLED TV. However, that’s not as great as some of the cheapest OLED TVs around, such as LG Electronics’ A2 TV, which delivers 98.8% DCI-P3 coverage.
All in all, the Xiaomi Q2 TV looks like it might be worth a look at if you’re interested in buying a relatively cheap TV, ticking a lot of boxes in terms of functionality, for example if you’re intending to pair it with a Dolby Atmos soundbar, it could be a great fit.
