Don’t settle for 1080p. These 4K TVs have incredible clarity, amazing color and, of course, a 3840 × 2160 resolution.
4K, also known as Ultra HD is the big new thing in TV technology. With four times the resolution of HD, the new format represents a big step up from what’s come before.
But while lots of TVs might technically offer the required number of pixels, it’s actually the new technologies that surround 4K that we’re more excited about, and it’s these that you’ll want to do some research to make sure your prospective TV supports.
Thankfully, while the hardware still remains frustratingly complex, the content is becoming less of an issue, thanks to big players like Apple throwing their weight behind the format with devices such as the Apple TV 4K .
The world of TV buying can feel unapproachable when you’re first getting into it, but give it some time and it will all make sense. Let’s try and make your buying decision at least a bit easier with our picks for the best 4K TVs.
Here are the ten best 4K TVs to help you make your buying decision:
Stunning pictures at an affordable price puts OLED back on top
At the top of our list for 2017 is the LG OLED C7 – available in both 55 and 65-inch iterations. It’s here because it delivers better brightness and light control than last year’s C6 (something we weren’t sure was even possible), making it a high dynamic range performer that doesn’t sacrifice OLED’s class-leading standard dynamic range capabilities. It delivers its new picture thrills at a price that finally makes OLED a financially viable alternative to top-end LCD sets making it, beyond a doubt, one of 2017’s most irresistible TVs.
There are other OLEDs worth considering this year (see: Sony’s A1E OLED or LG’s B7 and W7) but we think the OLED C7 offers the best price-to-performance ratio of any TV under the sun in the year 2017.
An fantastically sleek and capable set
Although LCDs haven’t quite achieved the same black levels as their OLED rivals, the Sony X900E’s HDR performance comes tantalizingly close.
This is achieved through the set’s direct LED backlight, which allows it to achieve a brightness uniformity that edge-lit displays often fall short of.
Add in fantastic detail and motion handling, and you’ve got yourself a set that strikes an excellent balance between price and performance for mid-range 4K TVs, and is well worth a look … even if its Android TV interface can feel a little cluttered, and its remote a little cheap.
TCL’s 55P607 is simply the best budget TV of 2017
TV manufacturers have long sought the formula to a great performing TV at a bargain price and, speaking for the last seven years since LED LCD hit the mainstream, have never quite achieved that perfect balance. Until now.
For us, TCL’s P-Series 55P607 does just that – it packs powerful technology under the hood, including support for WCG and Dolby Vision, in an affordable package that will only get cheaper once the seasonal sales start in November.
If you like your TVs bright, colorful and well-stocked with the latest display technologies, the TCL P-Series 55P607 should be at the top of your list.
Sony’s brand-new flagship TV for 2017 is returning to OLED
If you have the money to bankroll them, the 55A1 – and the A1 OLED series overall – are crowd pleasers in just about every way. Their ‘picture only’ design has been beautifully realized, managing to be simultaneously subtle and dramatic. Their vibrating screen delivers a far more powerful and effective sound performance than I’d thought possible, too.
The real stars of the show here, though, are the A1’s exquisitely detailed, contrast-rich and colorful pictures. These prove emphatically what we’ve long suspected: More brands using OLED technology can only lead to good things.
Phenominally bright panels do wonders for HDR content
Samsung was the first brand to introduce an HDR-compatible screen back in 2015, but it’s not been resting on its haunches ever since.
Samsung’s latest flagship, the Q9F, is a perfect example of this. It ups the brightness to 1500 nits, 50% higher than the level required for UHD Premium certification, making it one of the brightest TV we’ve ever tested.
Outside of an impressive-sounding number this brightness has a real impact on the set’s image quality. Detail is preserved in even the brightest areas of the image, and colors are exceptionally vivid and bright. That means even non-HDR content looks fantastic thanks to Samsung’s SDR upscaling technology.
No TV is perfect, and the Q9F can occasionally suffer from some backlight clouding around bright objects and some settings cause color striping in HDR colors, but in all other respects this is the best television around at the moment.
Sony’s 2016 flagship TV set new standards
Look, there aren’t many people out there willing to drop 5,500 on Sony’s 2016 flagship TV. But those who are will be teated to some of best images this side of a high-tech movie theater. There’s just nothing better in the LED-LCD world.
In fact, it might just be the holy grail of television for 2016: a TV able to combine the extreme, high dynamic range-friendly brightness of LCD technology with a 600 LED backlight arrangement capable of getting LCD closer than ever before to the stunning light control you get with OLED technology.
If all that wasn’t enough, the 65Z9D also sports the ‘X1 Extreme’ video processing system and the latest version of Sony’s reliable Triluminos wide color technology for unlocking the extended color spectrums associated with HDR sources – a must-have if you want to get the most from your movie collection.
LG’s entry level OLEDs continue to impress
LG’s ‚B‘ line of OLEDs has consistently offered a great entry point into the display technology without compromising on what makes it so exciting.
And the B7 series is no different.
Contained within the TVs is exactly the same panel that’s powering the more expensive C7, E7 and yes even the W7 LG televisions, which means an exceptional bump over last year’s OLED panels at a much lower price.
So where has LG saved the money? In a word, sound. The B7’s downward firing speakers are the worst all the company’s OLED TVs. Not only that, but the set is also currently unable to pass Dolby Atmos to an external sound system over HDMI (although a firmware update to fix this is on the way).
If however, you’re content to put up with a standard surround sound experience, then the B7 is a fantastic entryway into a piece of TV tech that still feels futuristic in 2017.
4K HDR TV that doesn’t destroy your bank account
By introducing its exceptional X1 video processor further down its TV range than ever before and being brave enough to dial down the brightness a bit to deliver a more even, immersive backlight experience, Sony’s struck mid-range gold with the X850E Series.
