HD PICTURE QUALITY. HD picture quality is excellent. Reproduction of fine HD image detail is excellent. There is slight oversharpening of image detail that we could not minimize in the picture settings. Color accuracy is excellent, so colors, especially flesh tones, look very natural and lifelike. Contrast—the difference between the darkest blacks and brightest whites—was good, so images have depth and dimension. The model has fairly deep black levels, just shy of the best models, which gives dark scenes better depth (though quality does degrade as you move to the sides - see viewing angle). Image brightness is 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 is visible banding (unnatural contours) on scenes with subtly shaded light-to-dark areas, such as a sky during sunset, rather than smooth transitions. The deinterlacing and film mode operations are excellent on HD content; there is little or no trace of jaggies on the edges of objects for video and film-based 1080i video content, such as from cable.
4K UHD PICTURE QUALITY. 4K UHD picture quality is excellent. All native 4K content (non HDR) we played on this model, including movies and test videos, is presented in full 4K detail with excellent fidelity when played back via the TV's HDMI input. For color, contrast and black level, the TV performs similarly to its HD picture quality.
HIGH DYNAMIC RANGE (HDR) PERFORMANCE. HDR performance has very limited effectiveness. The display's lack of high peak brightness capability (by HDR standards) limits its ability to show the benefits of HDR on 4K content. There is no significant contrast revealed between moderately bright and very bright highlights within a scene, while the brightness levels in the mid-to-lower tones, like those in an indoor scene, are nicely preserved. It does 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 is no visible loss of near-white shadow detail in the brightest areas. Brighter colored objects remain nicely saturated.
VIEWING ANGLE. This Vizio has a narrow viewing angle overall, below-average performance among TVs for this attribute. Only those seated directly in front of the screen will see the best picture quality. When we view the TV from the sides image quality degrades significantly. The picture shows a strong loss of color, so flesh tones look very washed out. Black levels visibly brighten, reducing contrast especially on dark scenes. When viewing the image from above or below eye level to the screen, the vertical viewing angle is good. The picture shows some change in color, contrast, and black level.
MOTION BLUR. This Vizio TV has good motion performance, with some blurring on our motion tests. This model does not include a blur reduction feature.
SOUND QUALITY. This model's sound quality falls short with below average performance. It's acceptable for typical programming, but shortcomings become obvious with movie soundtracks and music. Bass is lacking in depth and definition, but treble is nicely detailed, while the overall sound is on the bright side and a bit thin and closed in. The speakers produce a good volume range so this model should play sufficiently loud in typical room environments, but quality does degrade at high volume settings. 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. The remote has a traditional design with a full number key pad. It also provides convenient direct button access to streaming services including Vudu, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Xumo, Crackle, iHeartRadio. Consider the TV's stand is 30 inches wide when choosing a table top to place it on.
INTERNET FEATURES. This TV provides Internet functionality with a selection of applications via its "SmartCast" portal with access to a library of applications. Movie streaming services that can be downloaded to this TV, or are built-in, include Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu and HBO Now. Support for external voice assistants (not built in to the TV) include: Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant.
CONNECTIONS. This model has three HDMI inputs—one supports ARC (Audio Return Channel), one composite input, and no component 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.
WHAT'S INCLUDED. A quick start guide. An electronic user guide via the TV's menu. A remote control with batteries. A detachable power cord. No printed manual is included.
