The TCL QM6K Trades Picture Punch for Refined Performance

Balanced and refined performance. Sparkling-clean surface uniformity. Great achromatic levels and shadiness item with precise small blooming. Natural colors. Solid off-axis viewing for an LED TV. Great gaming features. Google TV smarts for creaseless setup and streaming. Hands-free Google Assistant. Supports each large HDR formats.

Not arsenic agleam arsenic apical competitors. Reflection handling is conscionable OK. Mild question stuttering. Bad sound.

It’s been a portion since I had to instrumentality disconnected my metaphorical sunglasses to reappraisal a TV. As brands dive deeper into the brightness wars, with each caller exemplary cranking up the heat, TCL’s caller QM6K takes an progressively uncommon path. Instead of aiming to beryllium the brightest exemplary successful its terms class, the TV’s caller surface tech brings refinement to virtually each different property we look for, from affluent achromatic levels and earthy colors to singular surface uniformity.

The TV’s caller miniLED backlighting strategy inactive brings a superior brightness boost implicit past year’s Q6, but it’s nary longer the austere fund bargain of years past. At $1,000 MSRP, the introduction constituent into TCL’s revamped QLED TV lineup has moved up a level, present much comparable to midrange options similar Hisense’s U7N (8/10, WIRED Recommends).

Thankfully, the QM6K adds plentifulness of different caller goodies to spell on with its upgraded representation performance. The effect is an impressively well-rounded bundle that makes a beardown statement arsenic 1 of the champion TVs you tin get for your money.

Compact Utility

Pulling the 65-inch QM6K from its container reveals a remarkably bladed and airy sheet for its class, stretching conscionable 2.2 inches heavy and weighing a specified 37.8 pounds assembled. The papery framework feels much connected par with cheaper models, astatine archetypal blush, and the usage of wiry basal legs successful spot of the pedestal stands successful immoderate competitors doesn’t bash overmuch to dispel that perception. TCL made immoderate clever choices to the layout though, adding astir 3 inches of clearance and your prime of wide oregon constrictive basal positions for convenient soundbar placement.

I emotion however casual the TV is to determination and it looks beauteous bully connected its feet, with bladed chrome bezels up beforehand and cleanable lines astatine the back. Frankly, I’m amazed TCL could acceptable truthful overmuch into specified a compact package. The concealed seems to stem from the caller mini LED backlighting that signifies TCL’s caller Precise Dimming Series. The strategy comprises respective caller technologies, including a caller LED spot for improved brightness and efficiency, and amended dimming power via a caller Condensed Micro Lens and a reduced “optical distance” betwixt the backlight and panel. TCL says the tighter array besides greatly improves backlight uniformity, portion its caller quantum dot tech provides much close colors.

The QM6K gets aggregate gaming upgrades, including a caller high-refresh sheet for creaseless gaming astatine up to 144 Hz. HDMI 2.1 enactment crossed 2 of its 4 HDMI ports provides features similar VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) and ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode), and the pop-up gaming barroom is arsenic feature-packed arsenic I’ve encountered. There’s besides a caller Zero-Delay Transient Response that claims “virtually nary lag.” I’m nary gaming guru, but the effect felt precise accelerated successful the games I played, to the constituent that God of War Ragnarok was astir disorienting astatine first.

Unlike immoderate TVs we test, the QM6K’s HDMI eARC larboard is separate, letting you link a soundbar oregon web receiver without sacrificing a gaming input. That’s important due to the fact that the bladed framework does not supply overmuch country for dependable quality. The 2.1-channel strategy is anemic and metallic, accounting for the astir budget-y diagnostic successful the package.

As with erstwhile TCL TVs we’ve tested, the QM6K offers enactment for each large HDR flavors, including HDR10/10+, Dolby Vision, and HLG. You’ll besides get plentifulness of astute features, including Chromecast and Apple AirPlay streaming, enactment for Apple Homekit, and hands-free Google Assistant courtesy of the onboard Google TV operating strategy that runs the show.

Swift Setup, Easy Access

Google TV is 1 of my favourite TV operating systems, and a large portion of that is however casual it is to acceptable up and use. A fewer taps connected the Google Home app gets the TV up and online successful minutes. It’s particularly speedy if you’ve antecedently signed up for Google services similar Gmail oregon Gsuite, and the strategy volition adjacent retrieve past recordings for personalized dependable search. Search works large crossed apps, arsenic does the Continue Watching feature. Oddly, the QM6K didn’t look to log my Netflix shows arsenic usual, but I’m not definite which mega marque to blasted there.

My favourite diagnostic by acold is the quality to usage Google Photos arsenic backgrounds. I’ve said this before, but I cannot accent capable however overmuch joyousness this has brought maine implicit the years, statically serving up blasts from the past that span implicit a decennary of memories.

You will, of course, person to motion a spot of your beingness distant arsenic acold arsenic idiosyncratic data, truthful wage adjacent attraction earlier accepting terms. You whitethorn besides privation to mute the TV’s onboard microphone and conscionable usage the caller angular remote’s cardinal cardinal to summon Google Assistant. As for the remote, it’s backlit and mostly good laid retired but TCL’s determination to determination the mute cardinal distant from the measurement to the precise apical near is … a choice.

A Light Touch

Adjusting the representation is astir arsenic elemental arsenic setup. I urge starting with the Filmmaker Mode, arsenic it offers bully default settings and disables garish ones similar question smoothing. I made a fewer tweaks, starting with turning disconnected the Adaptive Brightness nether the Eye Health tab. In SDR mode, I backed disconnected the Contrast a smidge and raised the backlight significantly. Don’t hesitate to crank it successful SDR—some modes, similar Standard, person the backlight maxed which is telling, and thing beneath the halfway constituent keeps the TV successful Eco mode. In HDR, the backlight is already acceptable to the highest level arsenic it should be.

For Dolby Vision shows and movies, I deliberation astir radical volition admit the splashier Dolby Vision Bright, though you’ll privation to crook disconnected the question smoothing. Unlike galore fund (and immoderate premium) TVs, the QM6K’s Dolby Vision Dark mode is perfectly usable adjacent with darker content, but it tin look a small dim and lackluster.

Balanced Beauty

Once I locked successful the QM6K, I was pleased to observe it provides 1 of the astir balanced and well-rounded performances you’ll find astatine this level, and adjacent above. The TV doesn’t slope connected its brightness to beryllium sure. TCL claims a 53 percent summation implicit past year, but that inactive puts the TV good beneath 1,000 nits, portion Hisense’s fiery U7N pushes good supra that mark. The QM6K doesn’t person the aforesaid vivid popular arsenic that model, but it adds capable punch to satisfyingly airy up HDR highlights similar sunlight splashing connected water, laser bursts, and explosions.

Brightness plays a large portion successful immoderate TV’s impact, but opposition is cardinal and the QM6K’s achromatic levels are among the champion I’ve seen successful its class. It can’t lucifer the depths of premium QLED TVs with the lights disconnected similar Sony’s Bravia 9 (9/10, WIRED Recommends), fto unsocial OLED TVs, but it holds its ain admirably. Even successful debased lighting, representation aspects similar missive boxes oregon the depths of abstraction look positively oily.

As promised, the TV avoided immoderate noticeable blooming crossed virtually everything I watched. Using 1 of my astir torturous demos, the Starfield test, I yet noticed immoderate slowed dimming and raised achromatic levels, but adjacent premium LED TVs similar Samsung’s QN90D get tripped up there. The QM6K’s shadiness item is coagulated successful some SDR and HDR, adjacent with reflection handling that’s mean astatine best. I tried swapping to Dolby Vision Dark connected immoderate of my murkiest trial videos and recovered the bulk of details shining done successful astir environments.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, fixed TCL’s claims, colors look strikingly natural, from insignificant variations successful tegument tones to emerald trees and water blues. Scott Lang’s overgarment successful Ant-Man tin look astir achromatic connected budget-forward TVs, but the QM6K perfectly rendered its midnight blue. I recovered myself noticing small details similar the wood greenish of the java instrumentality successful his boss’s bureau astatine Baskin Robbins (they ever find out) oregon Scott’s comically blistery pinkish polo. Like astir each LED TVs, the colors and brightness slice off-axis, but it’s hardly noticeable until you instrumentality a hard angle. OLED TVs and a fewer premium QLED models similar Samsung’s QN90D bash better, but it's amazingly good.

The TV’s fabulous surface uniformity is likewise impressive, astir afloat avoiding the “dirty surface effect” communal successful fund and midrange TVs. The QM6K stomps the different fantabulous U7N successful this department. Hisense’s exemplary easy showed noticeable columns and different aberrations, portion TCL’s looks crystal wide crossed adjacent pugnacious scenes similar sunlit skies. I had to truly question retired issues to find them, lone noticing immoderate tiny discoloration successful grayscale demos and a fewer mildly perceptible columns erstwhile panning skylines successful video games.

Motion effect is simply a large measurement up from erstwhile models acknowledgment to the QM6K's high-refresh panel, showing lone insignificant blur successful fast-moving video. There’s immoderate noticeable stuttering successful camera pans which tin beryllium fixed with the judder simplification setting, but adjacent the mild mounting looked a spot disconnected to maine and it’s not a large contented anyway. It's the last checkmark connected an accomplished representation crossed the board.

TCL’s archetypal “Precise Dimming” TV already seems to unrecorded up to the hype. It’s worthy considering astatine afloat price, but I expect that to driblet earlier agelong for adjacent amended value. You won’t get eye-tingling brightness, truthful those with pugnacious rooms whitethorn privation to spell for the U7N oregon if your fund allows, the brighter and much dazzling U8N (8/10, WIRED Recommends). Apart from an unusual HDR contented I experienced, TCL’s QM7 from past twelvemonth is besides a large bargain connected sale. Otherwise, if you’re aft a brilliantly balanced TV for the money, the QM6K is simply a blistery ticket.