HD PICTURE QUALITY. HD picture quality was excellent. It did an excellent job displaying the finest detail of HD content. Color temperature was slightly on the warm side, lending images a reddish tone. Contrast--the difference between the darkest blacks and brightest whites--was good, so images had depth and dimension, typical of most models we test. The brightness level was good, making it a suitable choice for most rooms. Black levels are very good, with help from Vizio's full-array "Active LED Zones" feature, delivering fairly deep blacks that help contrast in darker scenes (though quality does degrade as you move to the sides). In scenes with subtly shaded light-to-dark areas, such as a sky during sunset, the model did a very good job producing a smooth transition without distinct, coarse bands. There was slight display non-uniformity that created brighter cloudy areas most noticeable on very dark scenes (or in the black bars of a letterboxed movie). We routinely see this issue with LCDs and severity can vary from model to model. Film mode operation for HD film-based content was excellent, with no visible jaggies along the edges of objects during motion scenes. Deinterlacing on the other hand was only good, with some jaggies visible when converting 1080i video content, such as from cable, to the display's native resolution.
VIEWING ANGLE. This Vizio has a moderate viewing angle overall, decent, but not quite as good as the better-performing TVs we've tested. The optimal seating position for best picture quality is directly in front of this model. When we viewed the TV from the sides, image quality got worse. The picture showed a moderate loss of color, so flesh tones looked a bit washed out, along with a moderate color shift. Black levels visibly brightened, reducing contrast especially on dark scenes. When viewing the image from above or below eye level to the screen, the vertical viewing angle was very good. The picture showed minimal change in color, contrast, and black level.
ULTRA HD PERFORMANCE. Overall UHD performance was very good but HD-to-UHD upconversion fell short. All native 4K content (non HDR) we played on this model, including movies and test videos, was presented in full 4K detail with excellent fidelity when played back via the TV's HDMI input. This TV can stream 4K programs from Netflix and YouTube. Images were clean and finely detailed.
HIGH DYNAMIC RANGE (HDR) PERFORMANCE. Though this model is HDR compatible, its HDR performance was ineffective and lacked the enhancements in image quality expected from this capability. The display's lack of brightness capability (by HDR standards) did not enhance the realism of our 4K test videos mastered for high dynamic range, while revealing little contrast between moderately bright and very bright highlights within a scene. It did a good job reproducing a greater range of nuanced shadow detail from black to white, with no obvious banding on areas of the image that have subtle shade variations, and some noted loss of near-white shadow detail in the brightest areas. Very bright, colored objects lacked correct saturation, and any extended range of color capability was not apparent from our test patterns.
MOTION BLUR. This Vizio monitor has good motion performance, with some blurring on our motion tests. Though this model includes Vizio's "Clear Action", a feature designed to reduce motion blur; we found it introduced excessive dimming to the image so we turned the feature off.
SCREEN REFLECTIVITY. Though not as mirror-like as on some models, this screen surface is glossy and therefore susceptible to reflections from a nearby lamp or window. It does a good job reducing glare from ambient light and maintains contrast in a brighter room environment.
SOUND QUALITY. This model has good sound quality; about average among the models we've tested. When watching a movie blockbuster, a concert, or TV show, it delivers decent performance but falls short of the better performers. Bass was adequate, which added some fullness to the sound, treble lacked detail, and the overall sound was a bit thin and closed in. The speakers produced a good volume range so this model should play sufficiently loud in typical room environments, but quality does degrade at the highest settings. Most people would find this sound quality acceptable.
EASE OF USE. On first power up there is an on-screen guide that helps you through setting up the TV. Although this TV is internet enabled it requires the use of a tablet device (not included with this TV) to give it access to online services such as streaming, web browsing, or even access to the TV’s own picture settings menu. To access these services viewers must provide their own mobile device to download the Vizio app necessary to control the TV. All interactions with the TV including surfing Netflix selections, or browsing the web, are done via your mobile device, not on the big screen.
INTERNET FEATURES. This TV does not have internet capability built-in, and requires a tablet, or mobile device in order to access the Internet. The mobile device you own will determine which apps and services can be used with the TV, though most popular streaming services such Netflix, YouTube, Hulu, HBO Go and HBO Now, are widely available.
CONNECTIONS. This model has four HDMI inputs-- one supports ARC (Audio Return Channel), one component input, no composite input. It also has one USB port, an optical digital audio out, an Ethernet port, WiFi wireless networking; Casting, which allows you to send streaming content from your mobile device to the TV via your home network; Screen mirroring, where the image on your smartphone or other compatible device can also appear on the TV. This model lacks an antenna/cable RF input -- so it can't tune-in off-air channels -- but not a problem if you stream content, or use a cable box, satellite box, or external tuner. The cable connections on the rear panel are recessed with side or bottom-facing ports, so wires don't protrude beyond the display's depth.
INCLUDED IN THE BOX. A quick start guide. A remote control with batteries. No printed manual is included.
ABOUT ULTRA HD TESTING: We test UHD picture quality using 4K movies, videos, photos, and test patterns to confirm these displays deliver performance to this format's full potential. We check the TV's ability to reproduce 4K image detail, as well as high dynamic range (HDR) for TVs that support this capability. Image quality is tested using a 4K movie player connected to the TV's HDMI input, as well as from files stored on flash drive plugged into the TV's USB port. We also check the quality of 4K streaming from Netflix or YouTube (if the service is supported by the TV), and how well the TV can upscale HD movies to the display's higher UHD resolution while keeping artifacts such as "jaggies" along the edges of image content to a minimum. The best UHD TVs, and HDTVs, present high fidelity images that reveal the full quality of the best source content without degradation.
