Best LED & LCD TVs
Dimensions (W x H x D): TV without stand: 43.7" x 25.3" x 3", TV with stand: 43.7" x 27.7" x 8.5".
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Here's the short version: If you grew up poor and can't mentally justify spending a month of rent in urban California on a single television, if you're poor as heck right now but could conceivably afford this television, if you've never owned a 4k TV, if you've never owned an especially large TV, you will not be disappointed by this gigantic freaking monstrosity of a display. The detailed version: Given the extremely low cost compared to similarly sized TVs it is surprisingly high quality. It has a lot of service integrations, such as Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Instant Video, Google Play Movies, and a few others. IT'S HUGE OH MY GOD I AM BAD AT CONCEPTUALISING PHYSICAL SPACE I DID NOT REALISE HOW BIG FIFTY-FIVE INCHES IS EVEN WHEN ESTIMATING ITS SIZE BASED ON MY EXISTING 40" TELEVISION I LITERALLY HAD TO REARRANGE MY ENTIRE ROOM AND BUILD NEW FURNITURE TO ACCOMMODATE THIS THING??????? Regarding complaints I've seen in other reviews: My product did not show up broken, it has not stopped working despite extensive use since I got it, I have no complaints about the refresh rate, it displays 4k content over HDMI with no issues, they say it's a glossy screen but it's really just unusually and disconcertingly smooth and otherwise significantly less glareful and reflective than my previous television, it has effectively no inconsistencies with backlighting or colour (just a small spot that's slightly brighter, which is only visible at extreme viewing angles or if the screen is effectively displaying nothing but black, and I don't mean like really dark or a scene at night I mean like literally it is displaying the colour black over 50% of the screen, and only then is it noticeable from a front angle, and just barely at that). So if you're one of those folks that buys artisan gold plated audio cables aged seven years in oaken casks, if you buy two of the Ti version of the latest nVidia graphics card because you absolutely need to run everything on "Ultra" at 120FPS in 4k, if you're the kind of person who thinks Grey Goose tastes better, you probably won't like this TV."
"It is a ridiculously good price, says it has HDR (HDR10), it has some local dimming type qualities and is under $400…It’s also from a manufacturer that, quite frankly, I am not very sure of as I am not familiar. What pushed me over the proverbial “edge” to buy this was two-fold…First, it is quasi suggested by Amazon, the price is great and I know it has a Roku built in. The reviews, research and data specs I found for this TV all outweighed going with a more familiar brand. Now, the premier models (aka, flagship) for Samsung and LG are absolutely AMAZING but they also cost a lot more. This TV has a refresh rate of 60hz but some internal hardware bumps it up to 120hz but does give it a bit of a “soap opera” effect. This is different as calibration usually makes the tv show it’s best picture but that doesn’t seem to be the case here. What I love about this is an option to use to have “Speech” mode so language in movies, shows, etc, is clearer without having to turn the TV up in general to loud levels. Breakdown. It has HDR (HDR10 and it looks great for the price). Great up scaling. Screen cast. Roku remote and User Interface. Simple, fast and easy to use User Interface. Good apps/thousands of channels because it is a Roku. 3 HDMI (All can do 60hz 4k at 4:4:4 or 4:2:2). Headphone/speaker out. OTA Tuner. Component input. Great Sound for a budget TV. 1 ARC HDMI. 1 MHL HDMI. As wide as my 2010 Sony 46” TV (small bezel on this). Inexpensive. Full LED backlight array, it seems, with local dimming. It doesn’t perform as well as much more expensive TV’s but it performs well at this price point. Wifi – True Dual Band AC and have had ZERO drop outs thus far. Some cons are: Needs another HDMI input. No 3D (if that is a con). Could use more than 1 USB port. I would recommend taking advantage of the 2 year warranty available so you get the 1 year manufacturer one and 2 after that."
"The Roku OS is super easy, The antenna integration and USB storage for recording live programming are great. If this set can continue to perform, I will replace my main Panasonic Plasma with the new TCL C Series. The pic is from a nature show "The Hunt" streamed from Netflix."
MU6300: Black cabinet, 450 nits HDR sustained brightness, Mega Dynamic Contrast MU630D: Dark Titan cabinet, 430 nits HDR sustained brightness, Ultra Dynamic Contrast.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Someone here complained that the television "isn't bright enough" and that the "contrast was better on his old TV." The factory default settings on the television weren't optimal, but on the Samsung main menu (on the television) there's "expert settings" to decrease the color saturation and increase the contrast. And even leaving the brightness setting at the mid-range level, the television is plenty bright enough - more than bright enough. Maybe they didn't know that under the Audio expert settings there's an equalizer, which is a moot point, since my television linked to my Sony sound system flawlessly. Since the Amazon delivery service installed my television in about 10 minutes, there is absolutely nothing that I can list as a negative here."
"So when my 10-year-old Sharp Aquos LCD HDTV started giving up the ghost I knew I had some reading up to do on current television technology - from backlighting to SmartTV features a lot has changed in the HDTV landscape. For a time I was considering a much more expensive Sony XBR model but ultimately justifying the expense was difficult for a family room television that spends more time tuned to Disney Junior than anything else. Considering just how much prices of HDTVs have fallen in recent years I felt like the sub-thousand dollar range still provided plenty of features and excellent picture quality without a lot of the extras that my family and I wouldn't really notice a whole lot. The price range for this television seems to leave little left over for upgrades to the exterior and honestly, I'm good with it. The outside plastics are all black matte plastics. I'm a much bigger fan of the television's picture and performance in menus. To keep it succinct I think the picture is incredible - the television is both bright but manages to produce very nice black levels. Scrolling through the TVs menus is fast, efficient and extremely responsive. --------------------. ► Picture & Audio Quality: Overall I'm very satisfied with the picture on the 6300. So just be aware that your mileage may vary with the SmartTV features here. --------------------. ► Inputs & Outputs: → 3 x HDMI inputs including 1 x HDMI ARC (audio return channel). → 1x Component mini (Pb Pr Y) + analog audio input. → 1x RG6 Antenna input. → 1x RJ45 Ethernet LAN input. → 1x USB 5V at 0.5A. → 1x USB 5V at 1A (compatible with external HDDs). → 1x Digital Optical audio output. --------------------. ► Closing: All things considered, I feel like the UM6300 was an excellent choice. Recommended!"
Dimensions (W x H x D): TV without stand: 28.9" x 17.1" x 3.2", TV with stand: 28.9" x 19.2" x 7.2".
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"For about $170, I was not expecting a lot of bells and whistles, which is fine for a newly converted "exercise room". I was fearing it to be a "toy" quality because of it's light weight, but once I turned it on, I was pleasantly surprised. Since this TV is in a room not served by cable or satellite, I connected it to a very handy Winegard FL-55YR FlatWave Indoor Antenna and VIOLA!"
"Bought for my Girlfriend, picture is great and love the base. Other than that, picture is great, sound is great, Roku features work great as well and price was super attractive."
"Until about a week in, I look up while my son is watching a show and there's a vertical line of dead, blue pixels about 7" long running through the middle of the screen, about 5" from the left side. In all fairness to TCL, minus the vertical line it's a really nice TV, and I will update my review accordingly when I hear back from their warranty/service department. If they turn a corner and make this right I will update this review but as of now I HIGHLY recommend you consider another brand of TV given the quality of this set and, more importantly, the lack of good customer service from TCL. UPDATE #2: I finally emailed TCL at another address and, to their credit, a US-based rep (Larry) showed some interest in making this right. After setting up the SECOND unit (wall-mount), updating the software, etc., sat down to watch a movie...more dead pixels. So again I emailed Larry, and we agreed at this point TCL would just take both units back (on their dime) and refund me my full purchase price."
"I attempted to get help from the manufacturer and they simply stop responding after I gave them all of the information. I honestly would have been happy if it lasted at least a year for the price I paid but less than 2 months is unacceptable."
Best Televisions
Size: 49-Inch |. Configuration: TV only. Dimensions (W x H x D): TV without stand: 43.7" x 25.3" x 3", TV with stand: 43.7" x 27.7" x 8.5".
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Here's the short version: If you grew up poor and can't mentally justify spending a month of rent in urban California on a single television, if you're poor as heck right now but could conceivably afford this television, if you've never owned a 4k TV, if you've never owned an especially large TV, you will not be disappointed by this gigantic freaking monstrosity of a display. The detailed version: Given the extremely low cost compared to similarly sized TVs it is surprisingly high quality. It has a lot of service integrations, such as Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Instant Video, Google Play Movies, and a few others. IT'S HUGE OH MY GOD I AM BAD AT CONCEPTUALISING PHYSICAL SPACE I DID NOT REALISE HOW BIG FIFTY-FIVE INCHES IS EVEN WHEN ESTIMATING ITS SIZE BASED ON MY EXISTING 40" TELEVISION I LITERALLY HAD TO REARRANGE MY ENTIRE ROOM AND BUILD NEW FURNITURE TO ACCOMMODATE THIS THING??????? Regarding complaints I've seen in other reviews: My product did not show up broken, it has not stopped working despite extensive use since I got it, I have no complaints about the refresh rate, it displays 4k content over HDMI with no issues, they say it's a glossy screen but it's really just unusually and disconcertingly smooth and otherwise significantly less glareful and reflective than my previous television, it has effectively no inconsistencies with backlighting or colour (just a small spot that's slightly brighter, which is only visible at extreme viewing angles or if the screen is effectively displaying nothing but black, and I don't mean like really dark or a scene at night I mean like literally it is displaying the colour black over 50% of the screen, and only then is it noticeable from a front angle, and just barely at that). So if you're one of those folks that buys artisan gold plated audio cables aged seven years in oaken casks, if you buy two of the Ti version of the latest nVidia graphics card because you absolutely need to run everything on "Ultra" at 120FPS in 4k, if you're the kind of person who thinks Grey Goose tastes better, you probably won't like this TV."
"It is a ridiculously good price, says it has HDR (HDR10), it has some local dimming type qualities and is under $400…It’s also from a manufacturer that, quite frankly, I am not very sure of as I am not familiar. What pushed me over the proverbial “edge” to buy this was two-fold…First, it is quasi suggested by Amazon, the price is great and I know it has a Roku built in. The reviews, research and data specs I found for this TV all outweighed going with a more familiar brand. Now, the premier models (aka, flagship) for Samsung and LG are absolutely AMAZING but they also cost a lot more. This TV has a refresh rate of 60hz but some internal hardware bumps it up to 120hz but does give it a bit of a “soap opera” effect. This is different as calibration usually makes the tv show it’s best picture but that doesn’t seem to be the case here. What I love about this is an option to use to have “Speech” mode so language in movies, shows, etc, is clearer without having to turn the TV up in general to loud levels. Breakdown. It has HDR (HDR10 and it looks great for the price). Great up scaling. Screen cast. Roku remote and User Interface. Simple, fast and easy to use User Interface. Good apps/thousands of channels because it is a Roku. 3 HDMI (All can do 60hz 4k at 4:4:4 or 4:2:2). Headphone/speaker out. OTA Tuner. Component input. Great Sound for a budget TV. 1 ARC HDMI. 1 MHL HDMI. As wide as my 2010 Sony 46” TV (small bezel on this). Inexpensive. Full LED backlight array, it seems, with local dimming. It doesn’t perform as well as much more expensive TV’s but it performs well at this price point. Wifi – True Dual Band AC and have had ZERO drop outs thus far. Some cons are: Needs another HDMI input. No 3D (if that is a con). Could use more than 1 USB port. I would recommend taking advantage of the 2 year warranty available so you get the 1 year manufacturer one and 2 after that."
"The Roku OS is super easy, The antenna integration and USB storage for recording live programming are great. If this set can continue to perform, I will replace my main Panasonic Plasma with the new TCL C Series. The pic is from a nature show "The Hunt" streamed from Netflix."
Best OLED TVs
Smart Functionality: Yes.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I'd say the 1080P OLEDs are still the best value for PQ in town, in fact I'd still get one over *any* 4K LCD, but if you can afford to step up to a 4K OLED it's very much worth it. LG has improved on the input lag considerably in these 2016 sets, the C6 and above all measure around 34ms in Game mode. Also I've had a lot of experience with many monitors on the PC side, and overall, I'd have to crown this LG OLED as my favorite display for gaming."
"Though not all 4k movies are HDR (and I will definitely not replace all my blurays to 4k), there are select 4k HDR movies that just seem perfect for OLEDs. 5) I will be writing a review on the 2017 Oled models (which look fantastic), and though they do have improved HDR features, wider color gamut, and improved peak brightness, unlike 2015 to 2016 where 2016 signature Oleds were clearly superior, 2016 models are a great choice even after seeing the 2017 models. Although nothing would make me happier than having a 65" OLED of my own right now, patience for the right TV has kept me from making an $10,000 investment in Oled a few years ago when the technology was just taking baby steps. Along with the rest of the 2016 signature Oleds (G6, E6, B6, C6 all share the same video processor and specs), the C6 Oled is the only curved model, on the "lower end" and a great combination between 2016 oled technology and cost. Compared to the EG9600, it got rid of the curved screen, and it included all three HDMI 2.0a & HDCP2.2 ports that would allow for UHD HDR content through HDMI (not just apps) which made me feel like it was future proofed at the time. Simply put, the Oled technology in the EF9500 (also EG9600) will not be able to keep up with UHD players and UHD content hitting the market in the coming years in terms of ability, and in terms of the level of maturity in the OLED technology itself. However, LG's Oled's ability to decrease black levels in individual pixels to virtually off levels while displaying rich and vibrant color images creates enough of an image contrast to create superb HDR images and video. Athough HDR was added by a firmware upgrade on the EF9500 and EG9600 models, the increase in brightness in the 2016 signature lineup and wider DCI-P3 color range of 99% changes HDR and UHD video on an LG OLED from a Gimmick, to a industry competitor. It's the ability for UHD content to display content in HDR. The HDMI ports were all 2.0 and not HDCP 2.2 which meant future UHD players with the ability to play content in HDR would not work through HDMI. Gizmondo wrote a great article on the comparison and extremely improved visuals of Netflix's Daredevil with HDR (Dolby Vision to be exact) on a 2016 Oled when compared to the 4k TV he already had, which just means I'm going to rewatch both seasons when I do get the TV :-). 4) Lastly, from looking up many forums and researching Oleds the past few years, the issue of Oled technology maturity have been an issue for previous models. Between the comparison of 2015 and the 2016 lineup, and keeping in mind the progress made in the last few years to elevate 4K content and UHD content, I realized that a shift was made in the entertainment industry from not only focusing on acquiring a higher resolution (4K), but to display video content to near flawless levels. When researching HDR, brightness is the most important factor in being able to properly elevate UHD content into the HDR realm. To me, there was NOTICEABLE difference in color and brightness when compared to the 2015 models, and if the content is HDR capable the distinctions were even larger. I am choosing the 65E6 OLED TV for my household because for the price, you're not just paying for a TV that looks good, you want a TV that hits a homerun for everything. So take it from someone who has been price checking and following Oleds for years, the 2016 LG OLED lineup successfully achieves the perfect balance between, OLED maturity, technological ability, and price that I and many others have long been waiting for. UPDATE 04/13/16- I have recently come across a CNET article which goes over HDR10 and Dolby Vision HDR more in depth, and I want to share some information for those on the fence of buying a new TV of any brand in the next coming months. As the CNET article explained, VIZIO and LG are the only major TV brands at this time to support both HDR10 and Dolby Vision HDR on their newer TV's (Vizio will add HDR10 through a firmware update). Unlike HDR10 which can be downloaded through a firmware update, Dolby Vision is only capable in TV's that have their Dolby Vision Chip imbedded inside the processor of the TV. As the CNET article also explains, Dolby Vision and HDR10 act differently on how the video content will be displayed in HDR, with some studios, directors, and producers showing a preference for Dolby Vision for some content, and HDR10 for other content. From what Netflix and Amazon have explained, shows that are HDR capable may be available in either HDR format which means that your TV or the streaming service will choose whichever HDR format looks best on your TV, or whichever they are only capable of. From what the Article explained HDR10 is open format which means more user friendly, but the HDR settings are static and don't change throughout the Movie/TV show whereas Dolby Vision might take some more time to work with, but it has the ability to adjust HDR from frame to frame which sounds great. Either way, HDR10 and Dolby Vision are just becoming known by most people, but it's important for those on the fence for either an LG, Vizio, Samsung, Sony, or other to know what their TV is actually capable of before buying and make sure they understand what their TV is, or isn't capable of."