In many ways, the AD32UMMB’s pictures are rather good – certainly better than you’ve a right to expect for £200, and better than those of Kogan’s same-price 32XXXYA. The main reason for this is that the Hannspree model delivers a much more convincing black level response.

Hannspree AD32UMMB – Picture Quality

For starters, the overall tone of dark scenes is surprisingly good, for two reasons. First, the black colour the screen can achieve is unexpectedly credible, as very dark scenes suffer relatively little with the notorious grey or blue mist problem so common on budget – and even a few not-so-budget! – LCD TVs.

We’re not talking black levels to rival the best premium sets around, and even those of the Finlux 32F8030-T go slightly deeper. Nor are we entirely convinced by the set’s claimed 3,000,000:1 contrast ratio! But the Hannspree’s black level depth is certainly exceptional for a 32in TV as absurdly cheap as £200.

The other dark-scene advantage of the AD32UMMD over ultra-cheap rivals is the uniformity of its backlighting. Aside from two tiny and subtle jets of extra light angling up from near the screen’s centre there’s pretty much zero sign of the distracting patchy clouding often seen with LCD TVs.

On the downside, the AD32UMMB does have to remove a touch more brightness from its pictures to consistently deliver its contrast prowess than some people might like – especially if they’re looking for a set to go into an extremely bright environment like a conservatory. This fact also means that very dark scenes can lack shadow detail, leaving the darkest areas looking somewhat hollow and flat. The AD32UMMB’s approach is still far preferable, though, to blacks that look grey and lots of backlight inconsistencies.

Good black levels generally prove to be the cornerstone to a strong colour performance, and this is true of the AD32UMMB too. The naturalism of the set’s tones with everything from low-lit skin tones to gaudy chatshow backdrops is excellent for a TV at the HannSpree’s price, and it even manages to limit both patching and striping when reproducing subtle colour blends.

To be clear, you can expect a markedly more expressive and dynamic palette from more expensive TVs. But really the fact that I’m not finding the AD32UMMB’s colours painfully over-ripe or unsubtle is achievement enough for £200.