TCL 5-Series Google TV (S546) Review

2022-09-23 23:52:59 By : Mr. Liew Charles

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The TCL 5-Series runs very smoothly in most apps and handles a PlayStation emulator with ease. There are some exceptions, however, like the HBO Max app, which is admittedly slow and problematic on virtually every Android TV and Google TV device. It is fine for watching TV shows in a bright room.

A 4k LED TV is the TCL 5 Series/S546 2021 QLED. It’s a brand new TV in TCL’s portfolio, and while it’s meant to replace the TCL 5 Series/S535 2020 QLED, both are still offered as part of the 5 Series lineup, so it can’t be considered a direct replacement. It uses Google TV, a sophisticated interface with many user-friendly programs that can be downloaded from the Google Play Store. Google Assistant is accessible via the TV’s built-in microphone.

There are a few more gaming features, such as variable refresh rate (VRR) support to reduce screen tearing, though these are only available with HDMI 2.0 inputs. Although it has a local dimming feature and a VA panel that displays deep blacks, it’s not very successful at improving picture quality in low-light environments. In addition, the accuracy of our unit is poor right out of the box, resulting in a reddish tint, but this can vary from unit to unit. When used as a PC monitor, the TCL TVs series is excellent.

It offers no input lag for a responsive desktop experience, and the fast response time makes motion appear beautiful. For reading text, it has a chroma 4:4:4 display with 1080p and 4k signals. The image appears wrong around the edges when sitting too close to our device due to limited viewing angles and issues with gray uniformity visible on online pages or documents.

The design of TCL’s mid-range TVs probably won’t win any design awards, but the sleek black plastic design serves its purpose as a reliable housing for a good 4K smart TV. It may not have the flashiest look or be the slimmest piece in the TV aisle, but it serves its purpose. Any of the mounts in our list of best TV mounts can be used to hang the case on the wall, as the case has holes for a 200mm x 300mm VESA mount. The 55-inch TV we reviewed weighs 34.4 pounds and has dimensions of 48.3 x 28.1 x 3.0 inches.

Even for a 55-inch screen, that’s light enough that you can probably set it up without help, but we’d still advise having a second pair of hands. Also included is a two-position stand that lets you choose between a 22.7-inch and 42.3-inch spacing between the included feet. The plain, boomerang-shaped plastic feet have no other features, such as an integrated cable guide. The biggest cosmetic improvement over last year’s TCL 5-Series Roku TV (S535) is a tiny fabric-covered sensor bar located under the bottom bezel just below the TCL logo.

The far-field microphones on this small gray bar enable hands-free voice control of Google TV via Google Assistant. It also contains a light that illuminates when voice input has been activated. On the back of the case, near the power button, is a physical switch that allows you to turn off the microphones. It is a large switch with clear labeling that makes it clear whether it is on or off, so there is no doubt whether the microphones are enabled for room monitoring.

We won’t spend much time discussing the picture quality of the TCL 5-Series because there are experts who are better prepared to rate TV screens. For example, this particular TCL panel gets a rating from RTings of just under an 8 out of 10. The TCL 5-Series didn’t strike us as particularly impressive out of the box, and we found the brightness to be excessive. After messing with the settings for a while and finally turning up the gamma, among other things, things looked crisp, colorful, and appropriate for my tastes.

This is something we’d recommend any new buyer do right away. Even though this is a QLED TV and not an OLED TV, the black levels really amazed me. Now virtually everything we do on the TV, including games on Stadia and the PS5 or my favorite shows, looks fantastic. Disney’s Encanto in Dolby Vision on the TCL 5-series was a great treat, even for a mid-range panel that you can sometimes get for less than $500.

We’re not usually one to be impressed by a TV, but watching Disney’s Encanto in Dolby Vision on the TCL 5-Series was an absolute joy. One thing we did observe, however, is that some display options don’t seem to be applicable to Google TV or the non-media apps you use on the system. For example, we noticed that changing settings like color saturation had little effect on the display of Android TV apps, but was very noticeable on one input. Again, this is likely a Google complaint rather than one from TCL.

Along with the new operating system, TCL’s Google TV gets a remote that looks drastically different. It replaces the familiar Roku type with a slimmer Google TV model that offers an unexpected amount of features. Google TV adds a few extra buttons, but ties them together with powerful features I’d like to see on more smart TVs.

While remote controls for smart TVs are often very basic, meaning no buttons but directional arrows and a plain interface, Google TV adds a few extra buttons. All the usual buttons are present, including those for turning on, returning to the home screen, accessing settings, and muting or adjusting the volume.

However, Google TV also offers additional features, such as buttons to access your watchlist, activate Google Assistant for voice searches and commands, jump directly to the local channel’s program guide, and open an on-screen keyboard. Even better, the Fast Panel feature lets you view your favorite apps without returning to the Home screen by bringing up recent, favorite, and other information. A button for the TCL Home app is also available, providing you with an on-screen interface to control various networked smart home devices.

The TV’s connections are located six or seven centimeters from the edge of the screen on the right side of the TV casing. There are three HDMI ports (one of them with ARC), a USB port and a coaxial port for an antenna or cable. Besides a normal 3.5-millimeter jack for headphones or speakers, there is a composite AV port that requires the included converter, a digital optical audio port for connecting older audio devices, and a few other ports.

The TCL 5 Series has three HDMI 2.0 ports, one of which supports eARC for your audio devices, three composite video inputs, a 3.5mm headphone jack, an RF input, an Ethernet port, a single USB 2.0 port, a digital audio input, and three HDMI 2.0 ports. Essentially, most casual buyers will find everything they need here, but PS5 and Xbox Series X owners will lament the lack of HDMI 2.1 capability.

The TV has two 8-watt speakers that deliver decent stereo sound and respectable volume. The 5-series Google TV is no exception to the rule that poor audio quality is common on TVs in this price range. The TV’s low-end performance is surprisingly good considering it doesn’t have an integrated subwoofer, although treble can be lost in the mix at low volumes.

A Dolby Atmos-enabled soundbar is required to enjoy the more immersive audio format, which also improves the audio support of the 2020 5 Series Roku TV. Although it has room-filling volume, sound quality deteriorates noticeably when the volume is increased above 50%, with bass distortion and occasional audio interruptions. Again, these problems can be quickly fixed by adding one of the best soundbars.

The fact that Google TV is still a relatively young platform and TCL has been selling Android TV for some time might contribute to this problem. After the introduction of the Chromecast, TCL was one of the first companies to adopt Google TV and undoubtedly the first to integrate it into a low-priced mid-range panel. The 5 Series’ numerous eccentricities may be overcome in the near future, but for now they make it hard to recommend.

The TCL 5-Series’ excellent picture quality and useful Google TV experience enhancements might be just what you’re looking for if you’re sure you want a new TV that works with Google TV out of the box, and if you’re not afraid of occasional bugs. we’d advise the average person to look for something more reliable if they’re just looking to buy a new TV.

The TCL 5 series for its strengths in the performance department. The TCL 5 series offers an amazing amount of storage compared to the Chromecast with Google TV and its insufficient memory, with almost 6 GB left after we added all our favorite apps. There’s plenty of room to install emulators or games that are compatible with Android TV. Storage is affordable, but as other companies, including Google, have shown, it’s incredibly easy to go wrong.

The TCL 5-Series works pretty smoothly in most apps after a reboot and handles a PlayStation emulator with ease. The exception is the HBO Max app, which is sluggish and difficult to use on virtually every Android TV and Google TV device. Early in the TV’s life, things worked surprisingly slowly for a few hours after a reboot, but an update in late December fixed those issues. Since then, the TCL 5 series has offered consistently reliable speed when accessing apps and menus, with the exception of a short delay when waking up from sleep.

We hope you like this article on TCL 5-Series Google TV (S546) Review. Overall, the TCL 5-Series Google TV (S546) offers consumers a significant step up from the already excellent TCL 5-Series Roku TV (S535). Overall performance is higher, HDR and audio formats are supported in more places, and Google TV offers an excellent smart TV experience. It’s easy to prefer the Google device over the Roku TV version because the price difference between the two is so small.

The Google TV options on TCL’s more expensive 6-series are what we’re most excited about because they upgrade the QLED display with a mini-LED backlight that offers better brightness and contrast control. The Google TV version of the TCL 6-Series Roku TV (R635), which we called one of the best TVs of the year, should be a truly remarkable TV.

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