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Sharp UH30U TV Review

Tested using Methodology v1.0
Review updated Mar 01, 2017 at 06:31 am
Sharp UH30U Picture
7.2
Mixed Usage
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench
7.2
Movies
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench
7.0
TV Shows
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench
7.1
Sports
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench
7.7
Video Games
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench
7.8
HDR Movies
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench
5.7
HDR Gaming
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench
5.8
PC Monitor
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench

While the Sharp UH30U 4k TV is not exceptional at anything, it is an all-around good TV. Its main flaws are the oversharpness of upscaled content and the loss of color at an angle.

Our Verdict

7.2 Mixed Usage

The Sharp UH30U UHD TV is a good overall TV, especially if you don't mind the over-sharpening on upscaled content or the limited viewing angle.

Pros
  • Wider color gamut
  • Good overall picture quality in both a dark and a bright room
Cons
  • All upscaled resolutions are over-sharpened.
  • Limited viewing angle
  • 7.2 Mixed Usage
  • 7.2 Movies
  • 7.0 TV Shows
  • 7.1 Sports
  • 7.7 Video Games
  • 7.8 HDR Movies
  • 5.7 HDR Gaming
  • 5.8 PC Monitor
  1. Updated Mar 01, 2017: Review published.
  2. Updated Jul 17, 2015: Our testers have started testing this product.
  3. Updated Jul 16, 2015: We've purchased the product and are waiting for it to arrive in our lab.

Test Results

Design
9.0
Design
Style
Curved No

The bezel is very thin on the Sharp UH30U 4k TV. However, even if it is Sharp's highest-end model, it feels a bit more like a mid-range TV from a build quality standpoint.

The two feet stand can be used in two positions.

Design
Stand

We used the closer stand position, which had a footprint of 34" by 14.5" on our 70" LC70UH30U.

Design
Borders
Borders 0.43" (1.1 cm)
Design
Thickness
Max Thickness 2.16" (5.5 cm)
Picture Quality
8.3
Picture Quality
Contrast
Native Contrast
3,785 : 1

The native contrast ratio is good.

0
Picture Quality
Local Dimming
Local Dimming
No
Backlight
Direct

The TV has a feature named 'AquoDimming', but it isn't local dimming. Instead, it is simply a software-only smoothing feature.

6.3
Picture Quality
SDR Peak Brightness
SDR Peak 2% Window
343 cd/m²
SDR Peak 50% Window
308 cd/m²
7.5
Picture Quality
Gray Uniformity
50% Std. Dev.
2.542%
50% DSE
0.185%

The gray uniformity is decent, for an LED TV. It has no major vertical banding or dirty screen effect problems.

4.2
Picture Quality
Viewing Angle
LCD Type
VA
Color Shift
20°
Brightness
30°
Black Level
15°

As usual for most LED TVs, the colors lose saturation when you watch it at an angle. You can still see the picture, but it doesn't look as great as directly in-axis.

Update 01/06/2017: We have changed the methodology of testing. Since this is an old TV which we don't have anymore, we extrapolated the results from 2016 TVs.

9.4
Picture Quality
Black Uniformity
Native Std. Dev.
0.756%

When we first got it out of the box, it had major flashlighting in the corners. Fortunately, they mostly disappeared after a few days.

9.0
Picture Quality
Gradient
Color Depth
10 Bit
8.5
Picture Quality
Pre Calibration
White Balance dE
2.66
Color dE
2.7188
Gamma
2.11

The THX mode has good calibration by default, although nothing exceptional. See more details here.

9.8
Picture Quality
Post Calibration
White Balance dE
0.29
Color dE
0.6086
Gamma
2.2

The white balance is really easy to calibrate, but the colorspace controls are not as accurate.

7.0
Picture Quality
480p Input

Low resolution content doesn't look too soft but is over-sharpened when upscaled to the native 4k resolution, even when the sharpness setting is set to the minimum. Some people might like this, but it is unfortunate that you cannot remove it

7.0
Picture Quality
720p Input

Cable TV and other 720p content looks okay on the Sharp UH30U. Unfortunately, 720p content is also over-sharpened.

8.0
Picture Quality
1080p Input

The upscaling of 1080p content is as good as with other brands. Blu-rays also suffer from the over-sharpening, which shouldn't need it.

10
Picture Quality
4k Input

Native 4k content looks very good on this TV.

8.4
Picture Quality
Color Gamut
Wide Color Gamut
Yes
DCI P3 xy
95.25%
DCI P3 uv
96.64%
Rec 2020 xy
70.87%
Rec 2020 uv
74.13%

You cannot control the color gamut directly with this TV. 'Movie' and 'THX' modes are based on the limited Rec.709 standard, while the other modes have the wider gamut.

8.0
Picture Quality
Reflections
Reflection
1.8%
Screen Finish
Semi-gloss

Its semi-gloss finish is good at handling direct reflections. There is no rainbow or glare around bright objects.
It can get brighter than the average TV, and should be good enough for any type of room.

0
Picture Quality
3D
3D
No
3D Type
No
Picture Quality
Pixels
Type LED
Motion
7.8
Motion
Motion Blur
Refresh Rate 120 Hz
Response Time
11.3 ms
Overshoot
18.1 ms

On one hand, the response time of the pixels is really fast on this TV. On the other hand, the overshoot is really long on dark to bright transitions. Therefore, on average, the motion blur on this TV is good, but not exceptional.

9.0
Motion
Image Flicker
PWM Dimming Frequency
480 Hz
BFI
Yes
BFI Frequency
60 Hz
10
Motion
24p Playback
Judder-free 24p
Yes
Judder-free 24p via 60p
Yes
Judder-free 24p via 60i
Yes

To enable the reverse 3:2 pulldown without interpolation, set 'Film mode' to 'Standard'.

10
Motion
Motion Interpolation
Motion Interpolation (30 fps)
Yes
Motion Interpolation (60 fps)
Yes
Inputs
6.6
Inputs
Input Lag
1080p @ 60Hz
46.2 ms
1080p With Interpolation
116.6 ms
1080p @ 60Hz Outside Game Mode
61.2 ms
1080p @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
N/A
4k @ 60Hz + HDR
N/A
4k @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4 + 8 bit HDR
N/A

Under Game or PC mode, the input lag of the Sharp UH30 is 46.2ms, which is average. It shouldn't be a problem for most gamers.

6.0
Inputs
Supported Resolutions
Resolution 4k
1080p @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
No
1080p @ 120Hz
No
4k @ 30Hz @ 4:4:4
Yes
4k @ 60Hz
Yes
4k @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
Yes

Chroma 4:4:4 is supported in PC mode. For 4k @ 60hz @ 4:4:4, set the input HDMI range to 'Full'.

Inputs
Side Inputs
Inputs
Rear Inputs
Inputs
Total Inputs
HDMI 4
USB 4
Digital Optical Audio Out 1
Analog Audio Out 3.5mm 1
Analog Audio Out RCA 0
Component In 1 (shared)
Composite In 1 (shared)
Tuner (Cable/Ant) 1
Ethernet 1
DisplayPort 0
IR In 0
SD/SDHC 1

The Sharp UH30U also have a 3.5 mm audio In port not mentioned above.

Inputs
Inputs Specifications
HDR10
No
5.1 Passthrough ARC Dolby Digital
Yes
Dolby Vision
No
5.1 Passthrough ARC DTS
Yes
5.1 Passthrough Optical Dolby Digital
Yes
5.1 Passthrough Optical DTS
Yes
HDMI 2.0 Full Bandwidth Yes
ARC Yes (HDMI 1)
USB 3 Yes (1)
HDCP 2.2 Yes
CEC Yes
MHL Yes (HDMI 2)
Variable Analog Audio Out Yes
Sound Quality
7.2
Sound Quality
Frequency Response
Std. Dev. @ 70
3.04 dB SPL
Std. Dev. @ 80
4.04 dB SPL
Std. Dev. @ Max
6.1 dB SPL
Max
91.2 dB SPL
Low-end Cutoff
89 Hz

The frequency response is good at lower volumes, but progressively worsens as the volume increases. At maximum volume the response is poor and pumping may be present. However, the loudness and low-end are pretty good.

4.8
Sound Quality
Total Harmonic Distortion
Distortion @ 70
0.008
Distortion @ 80
0.038
Distortion @ Max
2.771

Good distortion levels at low volumes, however there is a significant jump in distortion under heavy load.

Smart Features
Smart Features
Apps

The Sharp UH30U has the Android OS, with a very similar build as the one on Sony TVs. The OS needs a bit more work to catch up to the competitors, but it is improving fast.

8.0
Smart Features
Interface
Smart OS Android
Smart Features
Remote
Remote Smart

Two remotes are included with this Sharp TV. The fancy touch remote is better than Sony's equivalent for Android, but it is not as good as LG's or Samsung's.

Smart Features
Misc
Power Consumption 97 W
Power Consumption (Max) 214 W
Firmware 13000_20150703