Tag Archives: S525

TCL 5-Series (S525) 4K HDR TV test: A lot of work

"A good basic TV that's just not great."

• Ideal for playing

• Decent contrast

• Attractive design

• Roku app access

• The out-of-box image needs to be edited

• Frustrating image presets

• Not particularly bright

My relationship with TCL TVs started two years ago when I checked the company's 6-TV for 2018. This model put TCL on the map among TV enthusiasts who had never considered the brand before.

Today TCL is the affordable brand to beat. Several models are just as powerful, if not better than the much more expensive competition. I think TCL can be thanked for a shift in the TV industry towards more powerful televisions with lower prices.

Where does the 5 Series 2019 stand in the TCL product range, and is it worth buying one with the 2020 product range from TCL, which is expected to hit the shelves in August? After all, a 65-inch model only costs $ 600, while the 55-inch variant only costs $ 400. These prices are hard to beat. But what can you expect from a TV at this price? Let's dive in.

Out of the box

The TCL 5 Series is a much better looking TV than I expected for the price. The top and side bezels are extremely thin, the profile of the TV is also quite thin, and the "feet" of the TV are also attractive, if not a little light and cheap.

I'm not a fan of the round button next to the TV's Roku logo, and the bottom is a bit big, but overall, the TV looks like it should cost more than it does.

Digital trends Caleb Denison

The TV comes with an increasingly elusive composite video breakout cable, a set of AAA batteries, and a Roku remote control. This special Roku remote control has neither an integrated headphone jack nor a voice remote control, although private listening and voice control are available via the Roku app for iOS and Android. We'll be talking quite a bit about this app review in this article.

properties

Dan Baker / Digital Trends

The 5 Series is not a high-end television, at least not in the price. This TV does not offer local dimming zones for direct backlighting. This means that the TV on the screen has a much more uniform brightness than an edge-lit TV. However, since none of these backlights can dim, it can be difficult to offer deep black, especially in scenes with bright objects on a dark background.

Other than omitting local dimming, it is not apparent that corners have been cut. TCL does not speak often with its video processing, so there is no clear indication that the 5 Series is less powerful than its 6 or 8 Series cousins.

Like all TCL TVs, the 5 Series is a Roku TV. This means that you not only get a Roku home screen with customizable input names and apps, but also the interface through which you can make settings. I'm usually a fan of the Roku TV interface, but not so much with this TV.

configuration

Dan Baker / Digital Trends

Before I go on, I want to make it clear that I am not blaming TCL or Roku for the issues I want to highlight. I think it's a question of partnership and I hope that a firmware update will fix these problems in the future. That's the beauty of smart TVs: you can update them.

It is difficult to get the best picture quality because there is so much work to do.

In the past, my praise for the Roku TV operating system was due to the simplicity and ease of use of Roku. It is an accessible experience, even for people who are not technically inclined. Unfortunately, I lack the simplicity to get the best picture quality that concerns me.

The first thing to tell people when they get a new TV is to go into the picture settings and switch the TV to film mode (cinema, custom, etc.) and then adjust the backlight setting to match the to achieve the desired brightness. By default, the film preset (or an equivalent image) reliably takes on a warmer, more accurate color temperature and often eliminates motion smoothing, which can create the dreaded “soap opera effect”.

With the 5 series, the TV assumes a warm color temperature, but motion smoothing must still be switched off. No big deal, it happens.

This movie preset is now active for every input you have just been set to. Let's say you saw cable or satellite at that point. The movie preset is now activated and probably set up correctly. Now the user has to go to every other input he uses, e.g. B. HDMI 2 for a game console, HDMI 3 for a Blu-ray player, and select the film mode for each of them.

This also applies to streaming apps, which are not easily recognizable for most users. In addition, just opening an app like Netflix and choosing film mode is not enough. You need to start streaming a show to adjust the image settings. A bit of trouble, but forgivable.

But what if you accidentally chose a show or film to be presented in HDR (in the case of Netflix, this would actually be Dolby Vision)? You would now choose one of three Dolby Vision image modes: Dolby Vision Dark, Normal or Bright. OK, well, we can choose the Dolby Vision mode we like, but what about SDR content – what most people see most – on other apps like Amazon or Hulu? To customize film mode for SDR apps, you need to play some SDR content on one of these apps.

Sounds frustrating? I'm just getting started. We haven't talked about the regular HDR10 mode that you get with lots of YouTube content and lots of Amazon shows. There are also three modes for HDR10. If we add them all up, there are a total of seven different options between SDR, HDR and Dolby Vision that other image modes like game or standard do not include.

This is far too much work to find the right image preset. In addition, the backlight settings between the dark, normal, and light HDR modes (including Dolby Vision) are maximum, and yet something is happening in the background to brighten the screen.

There's also the question of whether the color temperature and amount of motion smoothing change between Dolby Vision modes, which doesn't make sense to me, and the anomalous "micro-contrast" setting that has something to do with contrast, but is unreliable and is puzzling. It also looks like the TV is dimmed locally if it isn't.

For any of you who is just lost, that's my point. The person who buys this TV will set it up, turn it on and may not touch any of the settings. This is a shame because the ready-to-use image preset with low power consumption is nowhere near the full performance of this TV and frankly doesn't look good.

And if the buyer dares to venture into the picture settings, it is difficult to get the best picture quality because so much work has to be done. I just don't see that in most people.

I suppose we should talk about this image quality now.

picture quality

Dan Baker / Digital Trends

As I just explained, the ready-to-use picture quality of the TCL 5 series TV is not particularly good. It's not poor, but a little overwhelming. This is particularly troublesome when this television can deliver fairly impressive images to the inexperienced eye.

It is an ace for games because of its low latency automatic mode, low input delay, and high refresh rate.

If you jump through the tires and optimize the settings for a better picture, you will be rewarded with seemingly very rich colors and impressive contrast. The last bit surprised me. The contrast of this TV is remarkably good considering that there is no local dimming. Since there are no dimming zones to be controlled, there are no annoying fluctuations in the backlight that have to be managed when viewing in a darkened room.

I was also pleasantly surprised at the diminution of halos around bright objects on a black background. Although the screen never turns pitch black, it gets dark enough to provide adequate contrast.

What does it all add up? An above average TV. It's good. Not very good. Definitely not great. But a solid good. It is an ace for games because of its low latency automatic mode, low input delay, and high refresh rate. The variable update rate is not supported, but this is not to be expected here. It's okay for general television. However, higher content like 4K HDR material deserves better.

Here's the thing: you can do better for not much more money, and I think you should. I'm a fan of TCL, but I can't recommend this TV if the company's 6 Series is so much better for a little bit more money. In addition, the Hisense H8G is a more impressive TV for just $ 100 more at 65 inches.

Do not get me wrong. A lot of people will bring this TV home and get along with it. There is nothing wrong with that. I just don't want people to bring this TV home and learn later that there is something much more pleasant that can be watched for just $ 100 more. Regret is an ugly thing.

Our opinion

At $ 600, the TCL 5 series offers great value for money with good picture performance and a mostly friendly Roku TV experience. Immediately ready-to-use image performance leaves something to be desired and it can be difficult to optimize the image settings for all content. Once adjusted, however, it can offer slightly above-average picture quality that most viewers will enjoy.

Is there a better alternative?

Yes. The TCL 6 series (R625) and Hisense H8G are both better televisions and cost only slightly more. In both cases, the upgrade is worthwhile. It is also worth noting that the Hisense is an Android TV. With this option, you lose Roku.

How long it will take?

So far I have had no problems with the longevity of TCL TVs. However, I only started testing it two years ago. Therefore, it is difficult to say that this TV should have a long lifespan in terms of hardware functionality. In terms of functions, it will lag behind very quickly.

warranty

TCL grants a one-year warranty on parts and labor when the TV is used for non-commercial purchases. More information about TCL's TV guarantees can be found here.

Should you buy it

It's okay to buy this TV if the value for money is appealing. Otherwise, you should spend a little more money to get a much better picture quality.

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