11 hours Ago By Matt Jancer
Right off the bat, I’ll say I haven’t tested this yet. It just came out yesterday, and as much as I’d like to overnight a TV and stay up all night watching it, that’d make for a shitty review. We’ll give this a proper test down the road.
What gets me excited about the QM7K is that over the past seven years, I’ve considered TCL’s mid-range tier of 4K smart TVs to be the best value TVs, period. Their displays look far better than a sub-$1,000 TV should.Whereas the cheapest TCLs lack features such as Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos, and the most expensive TCLs rub shoulders with Sony and Samsung above the one-grand mark, the mid-range distinguishes itself year after year.
The QM7K is the latest entry in that range.This year’s upgradesI’ve yet to get my paws on the QM7K, so I can’t say definitively how well (or not well) it works or how nicely the display looks until I do, but given TCL’s track record of late, I’d be awfully surprised if they blew it and launched a clunker.The QM7K promises greater brightness over the QM7, its direct predecessor, and introduces the Halo Control System for more precise lighting control.
thin as a wafer – credit: tclGiven that I’ve deemed the Roku the best streaming service, I’m perennially bummed that TCL’s mid- to premium-tier TVs no longer ship with Roku built in, but rather Google TV. That streak continues with the QM7K. It’s not my streaming platform of choice, but it’s not exactly a tick on the list of cons.
Currently, I’ve been using the TCL QM7 for TV device testing, and with the most recently updated version of its built-in Google TV, it runs smoothly and simply enough. I prefer it to Samsung’s smart TV user interface, for example, as I find it cleaner to use and quicker to navigate. You can always add a Roku box or Apple TV box later (or whichever streaming device), if you prefer.
Right now, the strongest argument against picking up a QM7K so early after its release is its own pappy, the QM7. Comparing 55-inchers, the QM7K costs $1,300, while last year’s QM7 costs $500. The price gap between the two for their 65-, 75-, and 85-inch variants shrinks to “only” about twice as much for a QM7K versus a QM7.
The QM7 isn’t an old TV. Last year, when it was launched, the 55-inch version retailed for $800, and by late summer, I could find it for its current $500 price. I expect the QM7K will drop in price before long, too, erasing some of that price difference between it and the QM7.
The question then is, how badly do you want one now? Enough to pay the early adopter tax? I’m left scratching my head as to why major brands will discount their best products so soon after introduction, as I’d assume it encourages people to hold back on sales initially.But hey, if Apple is doing it and is the most valuable company in the world, who’s to say TCL won’t continue to do it?The post TCL Launched the QM7K, the Next Contender for Best-Value 4K TV appeared first on VICE..
