HD PICTURE QUALITY. HD picture quality was sub par. Image detail was fine on HD content, but color accuracy was below that of most models, along with a color temperature that was slightly on the warm side, lending images a reddish tone. There was visible coarse banding on the background of images, and an uneven reproduction of shadows that gave people in our test videos a less than natural appearance. Lack of contrast gave images a somewhat flatter appearance with little depth. Depth of black level was below average, with darker scenes in particular looking hazy, with little contrast. Image brightness was very good (with the backlight control turned up), so the picture is well suited for a brighter room. A lower backlight setting is recommended for a dimmer viewing environment. 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 ineffective with visible jaggies along the edges of objects during motion scenes on movies. Deinterlacing on the other hand was excellent, with minimal jaggies visible when converting 1080i video content, such as from cable, to the display's native resolution.
VIEWING ANGLE. This RCA has a wide viewing angle overall, better than that of most TVs. It will provide the same picture quality, with fewer problems than most TVs, for typical viewing conditions -- say, if your family is seated across a long sectional or in chairs off to the sides. With dark scenes this model didn't fare quite as well. When viewed from the sides, the depth of black levels varied depending on the vertical position of the viewer's head. As we moved closer to the screen this limitation became even more apparent, especially if seated on the floor looking upward where black levels brightened significantly.
ULTRA HD PERFORMANCE. Overall UHD performance was decent and 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. Via the USB port, high-resolution photos were displayed in full 4K detail but added oversharpening reduced picture fidelity. With regular HD content, the TV's HD-to-UHD up-conversion processing fell short, revealing some visible jaggies along the edges of diagonals when playing HD content.
HIGH DYNAMIC RANGE (HDR) PERFORMANCE. HDR performance had very limited effectiveness. When playing HDR content, the TV does not trigger new picture settings that are optimized for HDR. Therefore, we couldn't optimize the HDR image without adversely affecting our optimized HD settings so we left the settings as is. The display did not have the peak brightness capability necessary (by HDR standards) to enhance the realism of our 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. There was no visible loss of near-white shadow detail in the brightest areas. Brighter colored objects remained nicely saturated.
MOTION BLUR. This RCA TV has good motion performance, with some blurring on our motion tests. This model does not include a blur reduction feature.
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 fair sound quality with below average performance. It's acceptable for typical programming, but shortcomings become obvious with movie soundtracks and music. Bass was lacking, but treble was nicely detailed, while the overall sound was on the bright side and a bit thin and closed in. The speakers produced a good volume range so this model should play sufficiently loud in typical room environments and without obvious distortion. If sound quality matters to you, you might want to add a soundbar or other external speaker system.
EASE OF USE. On first power up there is an on-screen guide that helps you through setting up the TV. RCA includes a traditional button keypad remote for control of basic functions, along with a dedicated button for direct access to Netflix streaming service. The high contrast labels on the buttons make them easier to read in a dimmer viewing environment. It lacks the ability to add custom labels to different input sources. Consider the TV's stand is 31 inches wide when choosing a table top to place it on.
INTERNET FEATURES. This TV provides basic Internet functionality with a selection of applications via its "SmarTVirtuoso" portal. Movie streaming services that can be downloaded to this TV, or are built-in, include Netflix and YouTube.
CONNECTIONS. This model has three HDMI inputs and one "component/composite shared" input (which means you can only use one type or the other at a time). It also has two USB ports, an optical digital audio out, a headphone out, an Ethernet port, a VGA video input, 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. Analog connections are made via special breakout cable adapters (included) that attach to the TV as single plugs.
INCLUDED IN THE BOX. A printed user manual. An electronic manual in the TV's menu. A remote control with batteries. Breakout cable adapters (one component, one composite with stereo audio).
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 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.
