2023 Best Smart TV in India – The Ultimate Top TV List
Last Updated December 16, 2024
Top 10 Best Smart TV List in December 2024 (Quick List)
Sony Bravia 4K Ultra HD Smart LED Google TV
Refresh Rate: 60 Hertz | 178 Degree wide viewing angle
Connectivity: 3 HDMI ports to connect set top box, Blu Ray players, gaming console | 2 USB ports to connect hard drives and USB devices
Sound: 20 Watts Output | Open Baffle Speaker| Dolby Audio | Clear Phase
Smart TV Features: Google TV | Voice Search | Google Play | Chromecast | Netflix | Amazon Prime Video | Apple Airplay | Apple Homekit | Alexa
OnePlus Y Series 4K Ultra HD Smart Android LED TV
Connectivity: Dual-band Wi-Fi | 3HDMI ports to connect set top box, Blu Ray players, gaming console | 2 USB ports to connect hard drives and USB devices
Sound: 24 Watts Output | Dolby Audio | Dolby Atmos Decoding
Smart TV features: Android TV | OnePlus Connect Ecosystem| Google Assistant | Chromecast, Miracast, DLNA | Auto Low Latency Mode
Vu Premium 4K Series Smart Android LED TV
Connectivity: 3 HDMI ports to connect set top box, Blue Ray players, gaming console | 2 USB ports to connect hard drives and other USB devices | 2.4/5GHz WiFi | HDMI CEC & eARC/ARC | Bluetooth 5.0
Sound: 50 Watt | Built-in Soundbar | Pure Sound | Surround Sound | Night Mode | Sound Only Mode
Smart TV Features: Google TV | Watchlist | Kids Mode | Google play store | ActiVoice Remote Control | Chromecast Built-In | Data Saver | Parental Control
Hisense Tornado 2.0 Series
Refresh Rate: 60 Hertz | 178 Degree wide viewing angle
Connectivity: 3 HDMI ports to connect set top box, Blu Ray players, gaming console (HDMI 1 eARC supported) | 2 USB ports to connect hard drives and other USB devices | Dual-band Wi-Fi | Bluetooth 5.1
Sound: 102 Watts Output | JBL 6 Speakers System | Dolby Atmos
Smart TV features: Google TV | Google Play Store | Google Assistant | Chromecast, Miracast, DLNA, Airplay | Auto Low Latency Mode for VRR
LG 4K Ultra HD Smart LED TV
Refresh Rate: 60 hertz
Connectivity: Wi-Fi (Built-in) | 3 HDMI ports to connect set top box, Blu Ray players, gaming console | 1 USB ports to connect hard drives and other USB devices | eARC | Bluetooth 5.0 | Optical | Ethernet
Sound: 20 Watts Output | 2.0 Ch Speaker | AI Sound (Virtual Surround 5.1 up-mix) | Auto Volume Levelling | Bluetooth Surround Ready
Smart TV Features: AI ThinQ & WebOS 22 with User Profiles | Game Optimizer & Dashboard | α5 Gen5 AI Processor
Samsung Crystal iSmart 4K Ultra HD
Connectivity: 3 HDMI ports | 1 USB port | Ethernet | Wi-fi | Bluetooth
Sound: 20W Output- 2CH | Powerful Speakers with Q-Symphony | OTS Lite | Adaptive Sound | Dual Audio Support (Bluetooth) | Buds Auto Switch
Smart TV Features: Screen mirroring |Universal Guide |Media Home | Tap View | Mobile Camera Support | AI Speaker |Easy Setup | App Casting | Wireless DeX | SmartThings | Smart Hub | IoT Sensor | Web Browser
Acer Series 4K Ultra HD Android Smart LED TV
Connectivity: Dual band Wifi | 2 way Bluetooth | HDMI ports 2.1 x 3 | USB ports 2.0 x 1, 3.0 x 1
Sound: 30 Watts Output | Dolby Audio | 5 Sound Modes – Movie, Music, Standard, News, Sports
Smart Tv Features: Google certified Android TV 11 | Google Assistant | Chromecast built-in | Voice controlled Smart Remote
Samsung – The Frame Series
Display: Matte Display | One Billion Color | PQI 3100 | Dual LED | 100% Colour Volume with Quantum Dot | Wide Viewing Angle | AI Upscale
Connectivity: 3 HDMI ports | 2 USB ports
Smart TV Features: TV to Mobile – Mirroring | Mobile to TV – Mirroring, DLNA | TV Initiate Mirroring | Tap View | Music Wall | Mobile Camera Support | 360 Video Player | 360 Camera Support | Easy Setup | App Casting | Bluetooth Low Energy | WiFi Direct | TV Sound to Mobile | Sound Mirroring | Ambient Mode+ | Wireless Dex
Sound: 20 Watts Output – 2 Ch| Powerful Speakers with Dolby Atmos | Surround Sound | Active Voice Amplifier | Adaptive Sound+
Sony Bravia 4K Ultra HD Smart LED Google TV
Connectivity: 3 HDMI ports to connect set top box, Blu Ray players, gaming console | 1 USB ports to connect hard drives and other USB devices
Sound: 20 Watts Output | Open Baffle Speaker| Dolby Audio | Clear Phase
Smart TV Features: Google TV, Watchlist, Voice Search, Google Play, Chromecast, Apple Airplay, Apple Homekit, Alexa
Acer H Series 4K Ultra HD
Refresh Rate: 60 Hertz | 178 Degree wide viewing angle
Connectivity: 3 HDMI ports to connect latest gaming consoles, set top box, Blu-ray Players | 2 USB ports to connect hard drives and other USB devices | eARC – Dolby Atmos Passthrough eARC HDMI 1 port | Bluetooth 5.0 | SPDIF | Ethernet | Headphone out
Sound: 60 Watts HiFi Speakers | Dolby Atmos
Smart TV Features: Certified Android TV 11 | Google Assistant | Chromecast built-in | Voice controlled Smart Remote
The Ultimate Smart TV Guide
Smart TVs have been around for a while now, and they’ve become increasingly more popular due to advances in technology and a dramatic increase in their affordability. This is similar to the shift we saw when the world began transitioning from regular cell phones to smartphones. Just like the smartphone revolution in the last decade, smart TVs are quickly becoming the norm in most households, and there are fewer and fewer regular televisions being sold in stores today.
So, what’s all the hype about? What do these new smart televisions offer that the TVs of the past can’t keep up with?
Before smart TVs came along, content was displayed in one of two ways: through an antenna, cable, or a source connected directly to the television. There weren’t many other features you expected your TV to come with, other than your standard brightness and color adjustments. With the advent of smart technology, you can now expect your TV to do much more than that.
Smart TVs are connected to the internet and allow you to use many applications, some of which come preinstalled on the television. They also allow for additional functionality, as you can connect some smart TVs to external devices such as Amazon’s Alexa, allowing you to turn the TV on with just your voice. If you’ve seen a television with a Netflix application installed on it, then that would be classified as a smart TV!
One of the biggest benefits of owning a smart TV is that they are built for streaming content. Rather than having to watch Netflix shows on your small computer screen or your mobile phone, you can stream it directly on your full-screen TV to get the most out of your experience. You can expect to get most popular streaming services on your smart TV, such as Amazon Prime, Hulu, HBO, Disney Plus, and many more. You don’t even have to pay for all your streaming platforms, as there are free streaming services available on many smart TV app stores as well. If you enjoy watching YouTube videos, then you can just watch those directly on your TV for free as well!
Home Entertainment
When it comes to creating a home entertainment setup for yourself or your family, you’ll be hard-pressed to find technology that comes close to what smart TVs offer. Smart TVs today are built with home entertainment in mind. This means that everything from the user interface to the applications has been created with entertainment use in mind. Some TVs allow you to switch from one streaming software to another without losing where you left off. Your TV can recommend content for you, so you’ll never run out of shows or movies to watch. The benefits and convenience of having all of your viewing content in one place for you to access with the touch of your fingertips is why TVs of old are being phased out and replaced with new smart TVs.
Home entertainment isn’t just about what you watch; it’s also about how that content looks when it’s on the screen. Thanks to advanced tech in display, as well as some powerful programs that run on your TV to optimize your viewing experience, you’ll find that your content has never looked better. Some of the best contrast ratios, color intensity, image sharpness, and brightness are now available for your enjoyment from the comfort of your own home.
Best TV for Gaming
Today, console gamers are choosing smart TVs over their older alternatives. This is not only due to their amazing display quality but also because of game enhancement features that can actually improve the image quality without affecting input lag. Furthermore, many smart TVs allow you to seamlessly switch between gaming and streaming content. This is even more useful if you have multiple consoles hooked up to your TV.
Today, you’ll find high-quality smart TVs with 120Hz refresh rates, so you’ll be able to keep up with next-gen consoles and maximize your gaming experience. These TVs also come with multiple HDMI ports for you to connect as many console devices as you need without having to constantly switch out wires. Moreover, your connections are viewed as applications, so you can launch your console through the click of a button, as it all connects and interacts with your smart TV. You’ll have one coherent ecosystem for all of your gaming devices and needs.
If that’s not enough, some smart TVs allow for Bluetooth connection, so you can connect mice, keyboards, and even headsets directly to the TV to customize your experience, so that you get exactly what you want out of your TV.
Operating Systems
Besides being the best option for entertainment and gaming, smart TVs work much the same way a computer does, with built-in operating systems that provide additional functionality like voice assistants, viewing recommendations, image optimization, and access to hundreds of applications and free content for your viewing pleasure. Each of these operating systems works differently from one another, just as you wouldn’t expect macOS to work the same way Microsoft Windows does. Smart TV operating systems differ vastly from one another and each has its own distinct advantages and uses.
Some of the operating systems that you can choose from include Roku, Android, Smartcast, Fire OS, Tizen, and Web OS. Each of these operating systems is unique and can greatly enhance your experience if you choose the one that suits your needs. In our guide, we will explain the differences between them, so that you can be confident in the OS that you choose.
Smart TV Apps
Want to listen to some music? How about you download the Spotify or Pandora app onto your smart TV. Want to keep up with sports? You can download the WatchESPN, Fox Sports Go, or the NFL app directly onto your TV. Are you in the mood to stream a show or a movie? You’ll have access to Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, YouTube, HBO, Disney, and much more. Need something for the kids? Just download Nick Jr. or Disney Junior.
The apps you can download extend beyond just streaming and movies. You can download weather apps, cooking guides, news, daily workouts, and much more. All you have to do is visit your OS’s Appstore and find an app that suits your lifestyle.
Advanced Tech in Display
Never before in human history has image quality been so pristine and optimized. You’ll often hear about how TVs today look even better than real life. There is something to this, as smart TVs go above and beyond with image-enhancing features that make colors practically jump out of the screen. If you’re an avid sports watcher, some televisions are outfitted with anti-motion blur technology that can streamline any fast-moving objects on the screen.
You’ve probably heard of HDR before. HDR stands for high dynamic range, and this advanced tech improves the quality of existing pixels on your screen. With so much HDR-compatible content today, it’s no wonder that so many smart TVs have adopted this technology to enhance your display.
You can now purchase 4K smart TVs at incredibly affordable rates. This means that you’ll get all the powerful features you can expect in a smart TV without sacrificing stunning visuals. You have many options to choose from. LED, OLED, QLED, and
Nanocell smart TVs are available at ever cheaper prices, and the advanced technology that powers them is becoming increasingly accessible as the days go by.
Panel Types
Smart TVs have been outfitted with a variety of panel types. You can choose between TN (twisted nematic), IPS (in-plane switching), and VA (vertical alignment). Each of these enhances the experience in its own way. In our guide, we will explain exactly what each of these panels can be used for and what advantages they bring to the table. You’ll find that TN panels, for example, are best for competitive gaming where it’s important to reduce input lag as much as possible. If you’re a movie buff, you’ll have to make a decision between IPS and VA panels.
Connectivity
We live in the age of connectivity, and smart TVs are a testament to this age. Smart TVs are Wi-Fi-enabled, meaning that you can connect them to the internet. This internet connectivity is important, as you can stream any and all of your content directly onto your TV. You can even browse the internet from your TV if you want to!
These TVs allow you to connect your smart home devices to them, so that you can command your television with just your voice. If you’re a smart home user, they can easily become a part of your smart home ecosystem, and you can sync them up with any of the systems that you have in place. For example, you could have it so that your TV switches off at a certain time of day, so that you can conserve your power usage.
Some smart TVs also come with Bluetooth connection, so you can connect external devices like speakers, headphones, mice, keyboards, and other Bluetooth-enabled devices to your TV.
Smart TVs are also built with your entertainment usage in mind, so you can expect ample HDMI ports and USB ports. Having many ports means you won’t have to constantly disconnect and reconnect wires to your TV, which will end up saving you a lot of time.
Smart TV Sizes
Odds are you won’t have to worry about finding the right-sized TV for you. You’ll find that smart TVs today come in every size imaginable. Whether you’re looking for a smaller 24-inch TV for your bedroom or a full-on 85-inch display for your ultimate home entertainment setup, you’ll be able to find the right TV for you.
If you’re unsure how to begin choosing the right television size for your needs, we’ll explain exactly how to do that in the next section of this guide.
One of the first considerations you’ll need to make is the size of the TV that you’ll need. The size of your TV will probably depend on your intended use and budget. For larger rooms with a lot of space, you may be looking to get a larger television. Sitting too close to your TV or choosing a large TV in a small room may cause eye strain and end up being an uncomfortable experience.
A quick way to calculate what size TV will be comfortable for your specific room is to take your viewing distance in inches and divide it by 2 for the size of the TV that would be a good fit. For example, if my couch setup is 15 feet (180 inches) away from the television, then a 90-inch television would be a good fit for my setup.
With that base knowledge, I can begin to make compromises so that my desired TV will fit my budget. If a 90-inch smart television fully decked out in additional features is too costly for me, I could opt for a lower resolution, cheaper operating system or, on the other hand, I may decide that the size isn’t as important to me as these other features and choose to decrease the size to a 70-inch television.
Resolution (HD/4K/8K)
Next, you should think about your desired resolution and have an understanding of the differences between them.
Resolution is simply a measure of the number of pixels on your TV screen. The higher your pixel count, the better your image will look. However, that’s only true if the content you’re displaying is compatible with the resolution of your smart TV.
HD, or 1080p televisions, have 1920 horizontal pixels by 1080 vertical pixels.
Ultra HD or 4K TVs are the same thing, and the pixels are distributed at 3840 by 2160.
8K TVs are the highest possible resolution available today, and the pixels are distributed at 7680 by 4320.
HD TVs are the cheapest on the market right now. They are best used for TVs that aren’t too large, so that you maintain the picture quality. It may be a good choice to choose an HD TV if you want to get an extra TV for your kitchen or bedroom.
Ultra HD TVs or 4K TVs are becoming more and more affordable every day. Also, newer consoles are supporting 4K content, making these a good choice for console gamers. The picture quality is 4 times better than HD TVs, so you can expect to see clear improvements in your image quality if your content supports the 4K resolution. More movies and shows are becoming available in 4K today, as it is quickly becoming the standard in entertainment. These TVs are sharper.
8K TVs still don’t have compatible content and are very expensive. Due to the current lack of content for 8K TVs, you may opt to choose an 8K TV if you don’t want to have to buy another TV once 8K content becomes widely distributed. If you are willing to pay a premium so that you don’t have to upgrade your setup in the future, then an 8K TV might be a good choice for you.
Display Type
Once you’ve identified your resolution of choice, you can start thinking about what type of display will suit your needs. These display types are just the technology behind how those pixels are made to appear on your screen.
LED displays are the most popular on the market today. They are used in both HD and 4K televisions. LED, which stands for Light Emitting Diode displays, emit light onto an LCD screen. LEDs are able to produce brighter images, which is useful when you’re watching television in a sunlit room. With LED displays, you have a wider selection of TVs to choose from, as they are the most common display type. One thing to note about these displays is that since they emit light, content that is supposed to appear in black won’t look totally black. However, this is being remedied today with more powerful LED technology.
QLED TVs work the same way LED TVs do, except they have a “quantum dot layer.” Some LED TVs can have quantum dot technology without necessarily labeling themselves as QLED TVs. This is because the term QLED is more of a term invented by marketers than technologists. Between the LED and the LCD is a quantum dot layer, which further filters and adjusts the light to create stronger colors and contrasts. QLED TVs are usually priced in the middle of the range between OLED and regular LED displays. They are also produced by fewer companies than regular LED displays, so you will have fewer options.
OLED stands for Organic Light Emitting Diode. Unlike LEDs, which rely on a backlight to light up the pixel, individual pixels on an OLED display produce both color and light. This means that each individual pixel can be controlled, which allows for better image quality. OLEDs produce sharper images with more contrast than regular LEDs, and this means that black colors are deeper, and images like shadows are much more detailed. The picture quality on OLED displays is stunning; however, you will need to pay more for an OLED TV than an LED TV.
Nanocell displays work similarly to QLED TVs, in that a layer placed between the LCD and the LED makes adjustments to the lights in order to create a higher quality image with sharper contrast and better colors. Nanocell displays are also able to display more intense blacks than regular LCDs. The image quality, however, isn’t as great as the OLED display. Nanocell TVs are comparable to QLED displays in their function and quality, and just like QLED, you can expect better image quality than a regular LED display but not as good as OLED displays, which are currently the best display type available.
Backlight Types
If you’ve chosen an LED display, you’ll have even more choices to make. Since LED TVs utilize a backlight, you’ll have to think about what kind of backlight you need for your smart TV setup.
Edge-Lit TVs are the most common types of smart TV backlight available. As the name implies, the LEDs are placed along the edge of the TV. These LEDs are oriented towards the center of the screen. Since they are placed on the edge of the TV, these LEDs aren’t great at adjusting the brightness in smaller subsections of your screen.
With full-array TVs, those LEDs are arranged behind the screen in a grid formation. This means that they are usually able to produce better blacks than edge-lit TVs, as those lights can more precisely brighten or darken areas of the TV to create more contrast and make the color black appear darker and more intense.
Operating System / OS
Just like your computer runs on an OS (operating system), so does your smart TV. Your operating system will dictate what apps you have available to you, what the user interface looks like, which devices you can connect to your TV, and much more. This is why it’s important to choose your operating system wisely. We will list the best operating systems here and their distinct advantages, so that you can make the best decision.
Roku TV
You’ve probably heard of Roku before, but you’re not sure exactly what the Roku TV OS has to offer. A distinct advantage of using the Roku TV operating system is that you are able to use applications that are usually offered exclusively to other operating systems. For example, on your Amazon Fire TV, you won’t be able to use the YouTube app, as it is exclusive to Google. This is due to some infighting between the major tech companies, as they don’t want to allow their competition to utilize their applications.
On the user interface side of things, you’ll be able to use a search function to find anything that is located on your TV. This is really useful if you have a lot of applications installed.
Another benefit of Roku TV is on the content side of things. You’ll have more content available to you through private channels, such as AOL, Fox Business, Food Matters TV, and more.
Android TV
Android TV is one of the most common smart TV operating systems available. One of the biggest advantages of using Android TV is the number of applications that you’ll have available to you. It shares the same core as an Android phone, so you’ll be surprised to see many of the same applications available right on your television.
Since it’s Google-friendly, Android TV is optimized for Chromecast use and any other Google application, including Google Assistant.
You should be aware, however, that depending on which TV you get, the UI might be clunky and difficult to use. Android TV is also more prone to error messages.
Vizio Smartcast
If you intend on using a wide variety of streaming services on your smart TV, then you may consider using the Vizio Smartcast OS. This is because Vizio puts a large focus on the aggregation of all the streaming applications that you use. If you’re using a lot of different streaming services, you may find that it takes too long to change from one service to another, as you search your TV for the app that you need and wait for it to load up.
Smartcast streamlines this entire process, as it allows you to search by the movie or show that you want and then launch the relevant streaming service that has that content. This means that you don’t have to go into each streaming service individually to figure out whether or not it has the show or movie you want to watch. On top of this, Vizio will recommend TV shows and movies that are relevant and available to you, so that you’ll always have something to watch from one of the several streaming services downloaded on your TV.
One downside with Vizio televisions, however, is that they tend to be less reliable than other brands.
Fire OS
Fire TV is great if you’re an Amazon user and enjoy using Amazon to stream your content. It also has Amazon Alexa integrated into it, so your TV becomes your own personal assistant, giving you updates on the news, weather, and anything else you’ve asked it to tell you about.
However, if you’re not necessarily interested in any of these features, then you’re better off choosing another operating system. Fire OS has a severely limited set of apps, as you can only download what’s available on the Amazon Appstore. You also can’t use exclusive applications like YouTube.
Tizen
The Tizen OS is exclusive to Samsung televisions. It performs great and has a fantastic user interface. Just like the Roku TV OS, you’ll have access to content that might be exclusive to other TVs. Tizen’s OS also recommends content to watch, just like the Vizio Smartcast.
Overall, the operating system is great and doesn’t have many downsides, other than the fact that it doesn’t have as many application options as Android. If this doesn’t bother you, however, then Tizen is a solid choice as a smart TV OS.
Web OS
If you decide to purchase an LG TV, then you’ll be using Web OS. This has often been dubbed as the most user-friendly of all operating systems available today. This is due to an intuitive bar that appears at the bottom of the screen. You can scroll through the bar to open up your application of choice. You can also customize this bar so that your most frequently used applications appear first.
With Web OS, you also have more multimedia options than other operating systems. It’s Bluetooth compatible, meaning you can connect anything that is Bluetooth compatible to it. This includes keyboards and headphones.
It’s also great for multitasking, as you can jump from one app to another without losing your progress. All your content, including AV inputs, is displayed as clickable apps, making this a great operating system for gamers.
Flat vs Curved
Most smart TVs offered today are flat screens. However, more and more manufacturers are shipping curved-screen TVs to the market.
Curved TVs aren’t necessarily better than flat screens. Some of the advantages of curved screens are that when they are viewed up close, they may give you a more immersive experience as the screen curves around your field of view. You may also get added depth to your image when looking at a curved screen. Finally, aesthetically speaking, a curved screen is generally more pleasing to the eyes than the more artificial look of the straight-lined rectangular look of flat screens.
The drawbacks with curved TVs are that light that reflects on the screen may actually be exaggerated due to its shape. Another big drawback is that you’ll have a less optimum experience when looking at the screen from wider angles. Due to their curvature, curved TVs are at their best when being viewed directly in the center. They are also more expensive than regular flat screens, and they don’t necessarily add that much to justify their higher cost.
The choice, however, is still yours. At the end of the day, if you find the curve more aesthetically pleasing, you want to create a more immersive entertainment experience, and you enjoy the novelty of a curved television, then you go ahead and purchase the television that suits your unique preferences!
Bezel
The bezel is the frame that surrounds your screen. It’s not part of the display itself. Generally speaking, TVs with less bezel are seen as being more aesthetically pleasing. However, this is more of a personal consideration rather than one that will definitely enhance or reduce your experience. A bezel-less television gives you more screen size without the need to increase the size of the TV as a whole.
Before choosing a TV, you should make sure that you’re happy with the width of the bezel or if you want to find a model that is without a bezel altogether. Bezel-less TVs are a little more expensive as it takes slightly more work to ensure the structural integrity of the television when it’s not being supported by a thick bezel.
Connectivity and Ports
There are some basic connectivity inputs to think about before choosing your smart TV. The more connection options your TV has, the better you’ll be. You may not decide that you need it right now, but later down the line, you may decide to use a device that requires a specific connection from your television.
The most basic of these is the HDMI port. HDMI or High Definition Media Input is now the standard for all modern devices, and you’ll be hard-pressed to find a TV without it. In the highly unlikely scenario that you find a TV without an HDMI port, then you may opt out of purchasing this TV. You can never have too many HDMI ports!
Next up is USB. If you want to connect your flash drive to your television to display your content, then you may want to make sure that your TV has a USB connection.
A smart TV isn’t very useful if it can’t connect to the internet. Make sure that your TV is compatible with your Wi-Fi and that it has sufficient Wi-Fi range. If Wi-Fi isn’t an option for you, since the source is too far away, then you’ll need to check if the TV has a LAN port.
Finally, if you want to be able to connect Bluetooth devices to your television, then you should check if it’s Bluetooth compatible. This is useful if you want to connect peripherals like keyboards, mice, or even Bluetooth headphones or speakers to your TV.
HDR Support and Panel Technology
Your smart TV may come with advanced image-enhancing features like HDR, IPS, VA, or TN. If you’ve seen these labels and don’t quite understand what they mean or how to choose between them, don’t fret! We’ll explain the differences here and what these features have to offer!
HDR (high dynamic range) improves the quality of the pixels on your screen. You may have seen televisions claim that they have HDR support, but you should know that HDR isn’t actually compatible with all the content that you watch. Rather, the content that you watch needs to be HDR-enabled for you to take advantage of the improved picture quality. HDR creates images with a wider range of colors, darker blacks, and brighter whites. Reflections and lights are more lifelike and appear almost glinting due to the achievable brightness. HDR televisions are usually much brighter than regular TVs to achieve these astounding effects.
If you think that you’ll be displaying a lot of HDR-enabled content, then it may be a good choice to invest in an HDR-enabled TV.
Panel technology includes TN (twisted nematic), IPS (in-plane switching), and VA (vertical alignment). These differ in how your LCD screen reacts to the applied voltage. They each have their benefits and drawbacks, and depending on your intended use, one may be a better option than the other.
TN panels are the oldest of the three. If you’re a gamer who cares about input lag, then they are the best choice as they have lower input lag compared to the other two types. They have higher refresh rates, making them a great choice for competitive gaming where every frame counts. They are also usually cheaper than the other two. The biggest drawbacks with these panels are the color quality; the colors aren’t as accurate as the other panels, making them a poor choice for people who like to watch movies and shows. Another major drawback is how much the color is disrupted when you view the TV at larger angles.
IPS panels produce more accurate colors than TN panels. The viewing angle issues are practically eliminated as well, making them better choices for home theatre-type setups. The refresh rates and input lag fall between TN and VA panels. Generally speaking, these may be a good choice if you’re more of a casual gamer who wants to be able to
watch movies and TV shows with good image quality while also being able to switch over to your video games without worrying about potential performance issues caused by the television.
VA panels offer better color performance than TN and the best contrast ratio of the three. Today, you’ll find VA panels with refresh rates comparable to IPS panels but not as high as TN panels. VA panels are also the brightest of the three. If you know what you’re looking for in terms of color and contrast performance, and you want something that is brighter with higher contrast ratios, then a VA panel is a good choice. If you’re going to be watching a lot of movies and TV shows and you don’t have a concrete idea of what you want, then you may opt to choose an IPS panel.
Refresh Rate and Motion Enhancement
The refresh rate of your smart TV is the number of times every second the screen refreshes the image. You will see TV manufacturers represent this number in hertz. The higher the Hz, the higher your refresh rate, which means the image is being refreshed more times per second.
Before you choose your smart TV based on the refresh rate, you should know where and how it matters. If you’re going to use your TV to watch movies, then the refresh rate requirement will be 24Hz, while TV shows can go up to 60Hz. Most televisions display 60Hz, so if you’re using a television for viewing entertainment, then you won’t need to look for anything special in this regard.
However, if you’re a gamer who’s using the newer-gen consoles, then you’ll want to look for a 120Hz TV. The PS5 has a current refresh rate of 120 Hz, making these TVs a good investment, especially as newer consoles come out and catch up with this refresh rate. 120Hz is as high as most televisions go today, and there really isn’t a reason to go above this.
Next, you should factor in motion blur into your viewing experience. LCD and OLED televisions displaying objects in motion may cause a smear or blur effect on the screen. To combat this, you can purchase televisions with anti-blurring and motion enhancement tech built into them. If you’re using a true 120 Hz TV, then motion blur actually becomes less of an issue as the refresh rate is able to keep up with the movement of the object. If you decide to opt for a 60 Hz TV, then motion blur becomes more of an issue, and so you may want to look into motion blur reduction tech.
Game Enhancer
If you intend to game often on your smart TV, then it may be worth investing in a TV that comes with a game enhancer. Instead of the television simply outputting the same settings regardless of the content being displayed, game enhancers do exactly what it sounds like—they improve your gaming experience.
One example of this is Samsung’s game enhancer. This game enhancer optimizes the colors, contrasts, and sounds of your game while you are playing, all without making changes to the input lag. This means that you’re getting the best visuals possible for your television without negatively impacting your gaming performance.
Built-in Speakers
When purchasing a TV, the visual performance usually gets all the attention. What about the sound? Imagine coming home with your 120-inch Smart TV, decked out with all the features that you could ever need, only for it to sound like someone murmuring inside a trash can. While this scenario is highly unlikely, it’s still worth your while to look into the speaker quality of any television you’re buying, unless you’re planning on getting an external sound system.
For home theatre purposes, the two main audio formats are Dolby Atmos and DTS:X. So, you’ll want to look into a television that supports one of these two formats with its sound system.
One of the biggest things to look out for with thin televisions is the interference caused by varying sounds coming out of the same soundbox. This can cause audio distortion, especially when louder sounds are playing from the speakers. Some TVs separate the tweeter from the main speaker enclosure, minimizing this distortion.
Some TVs come with sound features like audio-tracking sound, which can greatly enhance the viewing experience as the sound follows on-screen action.
There are also optimization features that enhance spoken word audio so that when actors talk, it sounds louder than other background sounds.
Efficiency and Energy Consumption
Finally, you’ll want to consider your TV’s energy consumption. In general, LED TVs consume less energy than LCD TVs.
If energy consumption is a major concern for you, make sure that the TV you purchase has an “Energy Star” rating. This rating will help determine how power-intensive the TV is.
If you don’t want to choose a TV based on energy consumption but you don’t want your TV to consume a lot of power while it’s on standby, then you can purchase a smart power strip, which automatically disconnects the power from your TV when it’s not switched on.
