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TCL 4 Series/S455 2022 TV Review

Tested using Methodology v1.11
Review updated Oct 24, 2023 at 02:58 pm
Latest change: Retest Nov 20, 2024 at 07:20 am
TCL 4 Series/S455 2022 Picture
6.8
Mixed Usage
Value for price beaten by
: TCL S5/S551G
6.2
TV Shows
Value for price beaten by
: Hisense QD7N [QD7, QD75N] QLED
6.3
Sports
Value for price beaten by
: Hisense QD7N [QD7, QD75N] QLED
7.4
Video Games
Value for price beaten by
: TCL S5/S551G
7.0
HDR Movies
Value for price beaten by
: TCL Q6/Q651G QLED
7.5
HDR Gaming
Value for price beaten by
: TCL Q5/Q550F QLED
7.0
PC Monitor
Value for price beaten by
: Hisense QD7N [QD7, QD75N] QLED

The TCL 4 Series/S455 2022, or the TCL 4 Series for short, is an entry-level 4k TV released in 2022. It runs the Roku smart interface, which is very simple and easy to use but not as polished as more advanced TV smart interfaces like LG's webOS or Samsung's Tizen OS. As an entry-level TV, it's pretty basic, with no advanced gaming features like VRR or HDMI 2.1 bandwidth. It also has very limited picture and motion processing, with no advanced features like motion interpolation. It's been replaced in 2023 by the TCL S450R, which is available with either the Roku smart interface or the Google TV interface on the TCL S4/S450G.

Our Verdict

6.8 Mixed Usage

The TCL 4 Series Roku TV is okay overall. It's a decent TV for watching movies in a dark room thanks to its high contrast ratio and incredible black uniformity. It doesn't look as good in a bright room or if you have a wide seating arrangement, as it's not very bright and has a narrow viewing angle. These issues also limit its versatility for use as a PC monitor. It delivers a decent gaming experience, but mainly due to its low input lag, as it lacks any advanced gaming features. Finally, it technically supports HDR but doesn't deliver an impactful HDR experience, as it's not very bright and doesn't display a wide color gamut.

Pros
  • Fantastic native contrast results in deep blacks.
  • Decent reflection handling.
Cons
  • Low peak brightness.
  • Colors aren't displayed properly, even after calibration.
6.2 TV Shows

The TCL 4 Series 2022 is mediocre for watching shows during the day. The built-in Roku smart interface has a great selection of streaming apps, including many free services, so you're sure to find your favorite shows. Sadly, even though it has decent reflection handling, it's not very bright, so it's best suited for a moderately lit or dark room, as glare from windows or bright lights is distracting. It also has a narrow viewing angle, so it's not a good choice for a wide seating arrangement, as the image degrades at an angle. Unfortunately, it can't upscale or smooth out low-quality or low-resolution content properly, so older shows or anything streaming from a low-bandwidth streaming service is blocky and not very sharp.

Pros
  • Decent reflection handling.
  • Great selection of streaming apps.
Cons
  • Poor low-resolution signal processing.
  • Low peak brightness.
  • Image degrades when viewed at an angle.
  • Colors aren't displayed properly, even after calibration.
6.3 Sports

The TCL S455 TV is mediocre for watching sports in a bright room. It has decent reflection handling, but it's not very bright, so glare is distracting in a bright room. It also has a narrow viewing angle, so it's not a good choice for a wide seating arrangement, as the image degrades when viewed at an angle. Unfortunately, it's not very loud, so it's not a good choice for watching the big game with a large group of friends unless you have a separate speaker system or soundbar. It also has just okay gray uniformity, and there's noticeable dirty screen effect in the center, which is distracting when watching sports.

Pros
  • Decent reflection handling.
Cons
  • Poor low-resolution signal processing.
  • Low peak brightness.
  • Image degrades when viewed at an angle.
  • Colors aren't displayed properly, even after calibration.
  • Distracting dirty screen effect.
7.4 Video Games

The TCL 4 Series S455 is a decent TV for gaming. It has incredibly low input lag, which helps it deliver a very responsive gaming experience. It also has a decent response time, so there's just a bit of blur behind fast-moving objects. Sadly, it lacks advanced gaming features like HDMI 2.1 bandwidth or variable refresh rate support, so it's best suited for casual gamers who prefer fancy visuals over high performance, as it doesn't support 4k @ 120Hz gaming from the latest consoles.

Pros
  • Fantastic native contrast results in deep blacks.
  • Incredibly low input lag.
Cons
  • Poor low-resolution signal processing.
  • Low peak brightness.
  • No extra gaming features.
  • Colors aren't displayed properly, even after calibration.
7.0 HDR Movies

The TCL 4 Series Roku TV is an alright TV for watching movies in HDR in a dark room. It has fantastic contrast and incredible black uniformity, delivering deep uniform blacks in a dark room, but it lacks a local dimming feature to improve the appearance of bright highlights. Sadly, HDR adds very little overall, as it's not bright enough for bright highlights to stand out the way the content creator intended, and it doesn't display a wide color gamut, so HDR content looks dull overall.

Pros
  • Fantastic native contrast results in deep blacks.
  • Removes judder from 24p sources and the native apps.
  • Incredible black uniformity.
Cons
  • No local dimming.
  • Low peak brightness.
  • Can't display a wide color gamut.
  • Colors aren't displayed properly, even after calibration.
7.5 HDR Gaming

The TCL 4 Series Roku TV is an okay TV for gaming in HDR, but mainly due to its decent gaming experience. It has incredibly low input lag, ensuring it delivers a responsive gaming experience, and it has a decent response time, with just a bit of blur behind fast-moving objects. Unfortunately, it lacks advanced gaming features like 4k @ 120Hz support or variable refresh rate support. Although it technically supports gaming in HDR, this is almost nothing overall, as it's not bright enough for bright highlights to pop, and it doesn't display a wide color gamut.

Pros
  • Fantastic native contrast results in deep blacks.
  • Incredibly low input lag.
Cons
  • No local dimming.
  • Low peak brightness.
  • No extra gaming features.
  • Can't display a wide color gamut.
  • Colors aren't displayed properly, even after calibration.
7.0 PC Monitor

The TCL 4 Series Roku TV is a decent TV for use as a PC monitor. It has incredibly low input lag and a decent response time, so your cursor movements are smooth and responsive. It displays chroma 4:4:4 signals properly to help with text clarity. On the other hand, it has decent reflection handling but mediocre peak brightness, so it's best suited for a moderately-lit or dark room. The image degrades at an angle, so it's important not to sit too close to it, or the sides of the screen will degrade.

Pros
  • Decent reflection handling.
  • Incredibly low input lag.
  • Displays chroma 4:4:4 properly for clear text.
Cons
  • Low peak brightness.
  • Colors aren't displayed properly, even after calibration.
  • Distracting dirty screen effect.
  • 6.8 Mixed Usage
  • 6.2 TV Shows
  • 6.3 Sports
  • 7.4 Video Games
  • 7.0 HDR Movies
  • 7.5 HDR Gaming
  • 7.0 PC Monitor
  1. Updated Nov 20, 2024: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  2. Updated Sep 11, 2024: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  3. Updated Jul 17, 2024: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  4. Updated May 02, 2024: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  5. Updated Feb 13, 2024: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  6. Updated Dec 05, 2023: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  7. Updated Oct 24, 2023: We've updated the text in the review to reflect our latest test methodology updates.
  8. Updated Oct 12, 2023: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  9. Updated Sep 11, 2023: We bought and tested the TCL S4/S450G, and added relevant comparisons below.
  10. Updated Aug 09, 2023: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  11. Updated Aug 01, 2023: Converted to Test Bench 1.11. With this update, we've added a new Upscaling: Sharpness Processing test and revamped our Blooming test so the scores and picture better match the real world experience. With this change, it was necessary to remove the Black Crush test. Finally, we've updated our usage scores to better align our scores with user expectations.
  12. Updated Jun 19, 2023: We've added a mention of the newly-reviewed LG UR9000 in the Viewing Angle section of this review.
  13. Updated Jun 07, 2023: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  14. Updated May 04, 2023: We've added a mention of the newly-reviewed Samsung CU7000 in the Flicker-Free section of this review.
  15. Updated Apr 21, 2023: Converted to Test Bench 1.10. With this update we've revamped our Gradient testing, added a new test for Low Quality Content Smoothing, and expanded our Audio Passthrough testing.
  16. Updated Apr 03, 2023: Added the TCL S451 and TCL S453 variants to the Differences Between Sizes And Variants section of the review.
  17. Updated Apr 03, 2023: We uploaded the brightness measurements and uniformity photos after running the TV for four months in our Accelerated Longevity Test.
  18. Updated Feb 15, 2023: Updated to Test Bench 1.9, modifying our Contrast testing and splitting our local dimming testing into multiple sections covering Blooming, Black Crush, and Lighting Zone Transitions. You can see our full changelog here.
  19. Updated Feb 06, 2023: We uploaded the brightness measurements and uniformity photos after running the TV for two months in our Accelerated Longevity Test.
  20. Updated Nov 28, 2022: We added the TCL S45 variant to the Differences Between Sizes And Variants section of the review.
  21. Updated Nov 17, 2022: We uploaded the initial brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
  22. Updated Oct 06, 2022: Noted that the color gamut is better on the recently-reviewed Vizio M6 Series Quantum 2022.
  23. Updated Aug 17, 2022: Review published.
  24. Updated Aug 12, 2022: Early access published.
  25. Updated Jul 14, 2022: Our testers have started testing this product.
  26. Updated Jun 21, 2022: The product has arrived in our lab, and our testers will start evaluating it soon.
  27. Updated Jun 07, 2022: We've purchased the product and are waiting for it to arrive in our lab.

Differences Between Sizes And Variants

We bought and tested the 65-inch TCL 4 Series Roku TV, and these results are also valid for the 43, 50, 55, 75, and 85-inch models. There's a Black Friday variant of this TV known as the TCL S45, which performs the same as this TV. This TV is also sold as the TCL S451 and the TCL S453, but not all sizes are available on all three variants. These three models perform the same, but the S453 variant comes with a three-year warranty instead of the 1-year warranty on the other models.

Unfortunately, TCL releases different lineups in different regions, so this specific model isn't sold outside of North America.

Size Black Friday Variant S451 Model Number S453 Model Number S455 Model Number
43" - TCL 43S451 43S453 43S455
50" 50S45 TCL 50S451 50S453 50S455
55" - TCL 55S451 55S453 55S455
58" - - - 58S455
65" - TCL 65S451 65S453 65S455
75" 75S45 TCL 75S451 75S453 75S455
85" - TCL 85S451 - 85S455

You can see the label for our unit here.

Compared To Other TVs

The TCL 4 Series Roku TV is an okay entry-level 4k TV. Compared to 2023 models, it delivers okay picture quality, but there are better options for gaming in this price range, like the Hisense U6/U6K or the TCL Q6/Q650G QLED.

See our recommendations for the best budget TVs, the best small TVs, and the best Roku TVs.

TCL S4/S450G
43" 50" 55" 65" 75" 85"

The TCL 4 Series/S455 2022 is slightly better than the TCL S4/S450G. The S455 has better black uniformity and higher contrast, so it looks a bit better in a dark room. The S455 also gets slightly brighter, so it's slightly better in a bright room. On the other hand, the newer S450G has better picture processing, so it's a better choice if you mainly watch low-quality or low-resolution content, like old TV shows.

Hisense A6/A65K
43" 50" 55" 65" 75"

The Hisense A6/A65K is better than the TCL 4 Series/S455 2022. The Hisense delivers better picture quality overall, with slightly higher peak brightness and a significantly better color gamut, so HDR content looks more vivid and lifelike. The Hisense also has better picture processing and sharpness processing, which is great if you watch a lot of older, low-resolution content.

Amazon Fire TV Omni Series
43" 50" 55" 65" 75"

The TCL 4 Series/S455 2022 and the Amazon Fire TV Omni Series are very similar overall. The TCL is a slightly better choice for a darker room, as it has better black uniformity, with less cloudiness in dark scenes. The Amazon, on the other hand, gets a bit brighter, so it can handle a brighter room slightly better.

Samsung CU7000/CU7000D
43" 50" 55" 58" 65" 70" 75" 85"

The TCL 4 Series/S455 2022 is slightly better overall than the Samsung CU7000. Even though the TCL also lacks local dimming, it has a much better contrast ratio than the Samsung and has much better black uniformity, making it better for watching movies or playing cinematic games. The CU7000, however, has a faster response time, making it better for fast-action in games as well as for watching sports, but this also introduces stutter in movies.

TCL 4 Series/S435 2020
43" 50" 55" 65" 75" 85"

The TCL 4 Series/S455 2022 is a bit better than the TCL 4 Series/S435 2020. The 2022 version looks a bit better in a dark room, as it has much better black uniformity, with less cloudiness in dark scenes. The 2022 version also gets a bit brighter, and it supports eARC instead of just ARC, allowing you to pass high-quality lossless audio signals through to your connected soundbar or home theater receiver.

Hisense U6G
50" 55" 65" 75"

The Hisense U6G is significantly better than the TCL 4 Series/S455 2022. HDR looks much better on the Hisense, as it gets significantly brighter, and its full array local dimming feature helps it deliver bright highlights that stand out. The Hisense also has a much wider color gamut, so HDR content looks more vivid and lifelike. The Hisense is also brighter in SDR, so it can handle more glare in a bright room.

Samsung TU7000
43" 50" 55" 58" 60" 65" 70" 75" 82" 85"

The TCL 4 Series/S455 2022 and the Samsung TU7000 are very similar overall. The TCL is a bit more versatile, as it has more HDMI inputs than the Samsung so you can connect more devices. Both TVs deliver similar picture quality and motion handling, but the TCL can remove judder from 24p sources, like a Blu-ray player, so it's a bit better for movie lovers. On the other hand, the Samsung sounds better, so if you want to watch shows without a soundbar or separate speaker system, the Samsung is a bit better.

LG UR9000
43" 50" 55" 65" 75"

The TCL 4 Series/S455 2022 is a bit better than the LG UR9000 overall. While a bit dimmer than the LG in HDR, the TCL has much better contrast and black uniformity, making it the more pleasant TV to watch movies on in a dark room. The LG, for its part, has a much wider viewing angle, making it the better TV to watch with friends. The LG is also better to use as a PC monitor due to its RGB subpixel layout and better gray uniformity.

+ Show more

Test Results

perceptual testing image
Design
Design
Style
Curved No

The overall design is pretty basic; it looks good but isn't very premium. It has thin bezels on three sides, but there's a bit of dead space between the side bezels and the first pixels, which is a bit distracting.

Design
Accelerated Longevity Test
Uniformity Pictures
Design
Stand

The V-shaped feet are wide-set, so they take up a lot of space, and you'll need a large cabinet for the larger sizes if you're not planning on wall-mounting it.

Footprint of the 65-inch model: 50.8" x 11.6". The feet lift the TV about 2.6" above the table, so most soundbars don't fit without blocking the IR receiver for the remote and part of the screen.

Design
Back
Wall Mount VESA 200x200

The inputs face to the side, but they're housed in a central electronics box, making them difficult to access if you wall-mount the TV. There's no cable management at all.

Design
Borders
Borders 0.39" (1.0 cm)
Design
Thickness
Max Thickness 3.15" (8.0 cm)
6.5
Design
Build Quality

The build quality is just okay. It's built using basic materials and cheap plastic, so even though there are no serious issues with it, it doesn't feel very solid overall.

Picture Quality
7.5
Picture Quality
Contrast
Contrast
10,942 : 1
Native Contrast
10,942 : 1

The TCL 4 Series Roku TV has fantastic native contrast, but it lacks a local dimming feature to improve its dynamic range. Overall, simple scenes that are fairly dim look good with deep, uniform blacks. When there are mixed scenes with bright highlights and dark areas, black levels are raised considerably, and dark areas look washed out.

10
Picture Quality
Blooming

This TV doesn't have a local dimming feature, so there's no blooming around bright objects or subtitles in dark scenes.

10
Picture Quality
Lighting Zone Transitions
Local Dimming
No
Backlight
Direct
Dimming Zones Count Of Tested TV
N/A

This TV doesn't have a local dimming feature, so it can't adjust the backlight of individual zones to brighten up highlights without impacting the rest of the image. But this means that there's no distracting flicker or brightness changes as bright highlights move between zones.

8.0
Picture Quality
Contrast And Dark Details In Game Mode

Switching to Game Mode makes no noticeable difference in dark scene performance.

5.2
Picture Quality
HDR Brightness
Hallway Lights (~1950 cd/m²)
263 cd/m²
Yellow Skyscraper (~700 cd/m²)
206 cd/m²
Landscape Pool (~300 cd/m²)
109 cd/m²
Peak 2% Window
288 cd/m²
Peak 10% Window
288 cd/m²
Peak 25% Window
288 cd/m²
Peak 50% Window
288 cd/m²
Peak 100% Window
290 cd/m²
Sustained 2% Window
288 cd/m²
Sustained 10% Window
288 cd/m²
Sustained 25% Window
288 cd/m²
Sustained 50% Window
288 cd/m²
Sustained 100% Window
290 cd/m²
Automatic Brightness Limiting (ABL)
0.000

Unfortunately, this TV has poor peak brightness in HDR. It's not bright enough to deliver an impactful HDR experience, as bright highlights don't stand out or look very realistic.

These measurements are after calibrating the HDR white point with the following settings:

  • Picture Mode: Dark HDR
  • TV Brightness: Brighter
  • Brightness: 100
  • Contrast: 100
  • Color Temperature: Warm

5.2
Picture Quality
HDR Brightness In Game Mode
Hallway Lights (~1950 cd/m²)
259 cd/m²
Yellow Skyscraper (~700 cd/m²)
203 cd/m²
Landscape Pool (~300 cd/m²)
109 cd/m²
Peak 2% Window
290 cd/m²
Peak 10% Window
291 cd/m²
Peak 25% Window
291 cd/m²
Peak 50% Window
290 cd/m²
Peak 100% Window
290 cd/m²
Sustained 2% Window
290 cd/m²
Sustained 10% Window
291 cd/m²
Sustained 25% Window
290 cd/m²
Sustained 50% Window
290 cd/m²
Sustained 100% Window
290 cd/m²
Automatic Brightness Limiting (ABL)
0.000

There's no noticeable difference in brightness between the regular HDR peak brightness measurements and the peak brightness in 'Game' Mode.

These measurements are after calibrating the HDR white point with the following settings:

  • Picture Mode: Dark HDR
  • Game Mode: On
  • TV Brightness: Brighter
  • Brightness: 100
  • Contrast: 100
  • Color Temperature: Warm

9.1
Picture Quality
PQ EOTF Tracking
600 Nit Tracking Delta
0.0059
1000 Nit Tracking Delta
0.0059
4000 Nit Tracking Delta
0.0054

The TCL 4 Series Roku TV tracks the PQ EOTF incredibly well. Near blacks are boosted a bit, causing a loss of fine shadow details, but midtones display properly. Bright scenes are cut off, unfortunately, as the TV clips bright highlights, causing a loss of fine details.

6.1
Picture Quality
SDR Brightness
Real Scene Peak Brightness
252 cd/m²
Peak 2% Window
285 cd/m²
Peak 10% Window
285 cd/m²
Peak 25% Window
284 cd/m²
Peak 50% Window
284 cd/m²
Peak 100% Window
284 cd/m²
Sustained 2% Window
285 cd/m²
Sustained 10% Window
284 cd/m²
Sustained 25% Window
284 cd/m²
Sustained 50% Window
284 cd/m²
Sustained 100% Window
284 cd/m²
Automatic Brightness Limiting (ABL)
0.000

This TV has mediocre peak brightness in SDR. It's bright enough to overcome glare in most moderately lit rooms, but not if you have a lot of windows or bright lights. There's no variation in peak brightness with different scenes.

These measurements are after calibration with the following settings:

  • Picture Mode: Movie
  • Brightness: 100
  • Contrast: 100
  • Color Temperature: Warm
  • Gamut: 2.2

6.8
Picture Quality
Color Gamut
Wide Color Gamut
No
DCI P3 xy
76.25%
DCI P3 uv
81.44%
Rec 2020 xy
54.89%
Rec 2020 uv
59.91%

The TCL 4 Series Roku TV has a fair color gamut in HDR. It has good coverage of the DCI-P3 color space used by most current HDR content, so most content is displayed properly and looks realistic. Coverage of the wider Rec. 2020 color space is disappointing, though, as it can't display a wide color gamut and tone maps more aggressively, meaning content mastered in this color space appears dull, and there's a loss of fine detail in scenes that contain highly saturated colors. If you want a budget-friendly TV that displays a wide range of colors, look into the Vizio M6 Series Quantum 2022.

6.1
Picture Quality
Color Volume
1,000 cd/m² DCI P3 Coverage ITP
45.9%
10,000 cd/m² Rec 2020 Coverage ITP
19.8%
White Luminance
291 cd/m²
Red Luminance
61 cd/m²
Green Luminance
209 cd/m²
Blue Luminance
20 cd/m²
Cyan Luminance
230 cd/m²
Magenta Luminance
81 cd/m²
Yellow Luminance
268 cd/m²

This TV has mediocre color volume. It's mainly limited by its incomplete color gamut in both DCI-P3 and Rec. 2020, but due to its low peak brightness, colors aren't very bright. Despite its high contrast ratio, it can't display dark, saturated colors very well.

6.6
Picture Quality
Pre Calibration
White Balance dE
1.92
Color dE
5.43
Gamma
2.10
Color Temperature
6,904 K
Picture Mode
Movie
Color Temp Setting
Warm
Gamma Setting
2.2

The TCL 4 Series Roku TV has just okay accuracy in SDR before calibration. The white balance is excellent, with no noticeable issues, and gamma is close to the 2.2 target, but most scenes are a bit too bright. Unfortunately, color accuracy is bad, with noticeable issues in every color. Colors are noticeably off, even with most real content.

8.5
Picture Quality
Post Calibration
White Balance dE
0.20
Color dE
3.57
Gamma
2.20
Color Temperature
6,508 K
White Balance Calibration
11 point
Color Calibration
Yes

This TV has excellent accuracy after calibration, but it's worse than most similar TVs. The white balance is easy to calibrate and looks fantastic after calibration. There are no noticeable issues with shades of gray, and gamma follows the 2.2 target perfectly. The color temperature is perfect. Unfortunately, colors are still noticeably off, and the TV can't display them properly. These issues make it nearly impossible to improve color accuracy on this TV.

You can see the full calibration settings for this TV here.

6.6
Picture Quality
Gray Uniformity
50% Std. Dev.
4.611%
50% DSE
0.232%
5% Std. Dev.
0.831%
5% DSE
0.098%

The gray uniformity is just okay. There's significant vignetting, as the corners are much darker than the center. There's also a disappointing amount of dirty screen effect in the center, which is distracting when watching sports or displaying anything with large areas of uniform color.

9.9
Picture Quality
Black Uniformity
Std. Dev.
N/A
Native Std. Dev.
0.435%

The black uniformity on this TV is incredible. There are no signs of backlight bleed, and the background around the test cross is extremely uniform, with no bright or warm spots.

5.1
Picture Quality
Viewing Angle
Color Washout
24°
Color Shift
27°
Brightness Loss
28°
Black Level Raise
15°
Gamma Shift
15°

Unfortunately, the TCL 4 Series Roku TV has a disappointing viewing angle, so it's not ideal for a wide seating arrangement, as anyone sitting off-center will see a washed-out image. There's also a significant color shift when looking at the screen off-center, so it's not ideal for use as a PC monitor, as the sides of the screen shift in color. If you're looking for a comparable TV with a better viewing angle, look at the LG UR9000.

7.4
Picture Quality
Reflections
Screen Finish
Semi-gloss
Total Reflections
5.3%
Indirect Reflections
0.7%
Calculated Direct Reflections
4.6%

The reflection handling is decent. The semi-gloss coating reduces the intensity of direct reflections a bit, but they're still noticeable, so it's not ideal for use in a bright room.

7.5
Picture Quality
HDR Native Gradient
100% Black to 50% Gray
6.0
50% Gray to 100% White
8.0
100% Black to 50% Red
8.0
50% Red to 100% Red
10
100% Black to 50% Green
6.0
50% Green to 100% Green
8.0
100% Black to 50% Blue
6.0
50% Blue to 100% Blue
8.0

The TCL 4 Series Roku TV has good gradient handling in HDR. There's some noticeable banding in all shades, and it's worse in shades of gray, green, and blue, but it's not too bad.

4.8
Picture Quality
Low-Quality Content Smoothing
Smoothing
3.0
Detail Preservation
9.0

Unfortunately, this TV has poor low-quality content smoothing. Even with all processing settings enabled, macro-blocking and pixelization are still very noticeable. On the other hand, fine details are still preserved well.

4.0
Picture Quality
Upscaling: Sharpness Processing

This TV can't upscale low-resolution content very well. Even with the best settings, the image is a bit soft overall, and hardcoded text is a bit blurry.

The optimal sharpness settings for low-resolution or low-bitrate content, with no over-sharpening, are as follows:

  • Sharpness: 30

Picture Quality
Pixels
Subpixel Layout
BGR
Type LED
Sub-Type
VA

This TV uses a BGR subpixel layout, which is fine for video content and games. Unfortunately, this reduces text clarity if you plan on using the TV as a PC monitor, but there are ways to work around it, so it's not a dealbreaker. You can read more about this here.

Motion
7.1
Motion
Response Time
80% Response Time
6.3 ms
100% Response Time
16.4 ms

The TCL 4 Series Roku TV has a decent response time. Transitions to and from dark shades are significantly longer than bright shades, causing a long trail behind fast-moving objects with darker shades. Brighter shades look a bit better overall, and there's no overshoot in any transition, which is great.

4.0
Motion
Flicker-Free
Flicker-Free
No
PWM Dimming Frequency
120 Hz

Unfortunately, this TV isn't always flicker-free. The exact setting depends on the picture mode you're using, but a brightness setting of 18/100 or lower with the 'Movie' Picture Mode causes it to flicker at a low frequency. This flicker causes distracting duplications in motion and can cause headaches in people sensitive to flicker. Thankfully, this is pretty dim, corresponding to a brightness of about 90 cd/m², which is too dim for most viewing environments, so it's not really an issue. If you're particularly sensitive to flicker, check out the Samsung CU7000/CU7000D, a comparable TV with much better performance in this regard.

Motion
Black Frame Insertion (BFI)
Optional BFI
No
Min Flicker For 60 fps
120 Hz
60Hz For 60 fps
No
120Hz For 120 fps
N/A
Min Flicker for 60 fps in Game Mode
120 Hz

There's no backlight-strobing feature, commonly known as black frame insertion, on this TV. It always flickers at a fixed frequency unless you have the backlight above about 18/100. This low-frequency flicker acts similarly to a BFI feature and helps reduce persistence blur, but it also causes a noticeable image duplication.

Motion
Motion Interpolation
Motion Interpolation (30 fps)
No
Motion Interpolation (60 fps)
No

This TV doesn't have an optional motion interpolation feature.

7.9
Motion
Stutter
Frame Hold Time @ 24 fps
25.3 ms
Frame Hold Time @ 60 fps
0.3 ms

Due to the relatively slow response time, there's very little stutter when watching movies or other low frame rate content. It's still a bit noticeable in slow panning shots, but it's better than most TVs.

7.8
Motion
24p Judder
Judder-Free 24p
Yes
Judder-Free 24p via 60p
No
Judder-Free 24p via 60i
No
Judder-Free 24p via Native Apps
Yes

This TV automatically removes judder from 24p sources, including Blu-ray players and streaming sticks with a Match Frame Rate feature or from the native apps. Sadly, it doesn't remove judder from devices that send a 60Hz signal, including most cable boxes.

0
Motion
Variable Refresh Rate
Native Refresh Rate
60 Hz
Variable Refresh Rate
No
HDMI Forum VRR
No
FreeSync
No
G-SYNC Compatible
No
4k VRR Maximum
N/A
4k VRR Minimum
No VRR support
1080p VRR Maximum
N/A
1080p VRR Minimum
No VRR support
1440p VRR Maximum
N/A
1440p VRR Minimum
No VRR support
VRR + Local Dimming No Local Dimming

This TV is limited to a fixed 60Hz refresh rate. It doesn't have a variable refresh rate feature, so you'll see more tearing in games.

Inputs
9.7
Inputs
Input Lag
1080p @ 60Hz
11.3 ms
1080p @ 60Hz Outside Game Mode
51.4 ms
1080p @ 120Hz
N/A
1080p @ 144Hz
N/A
1440p @ 60Hz
N/A
1440p @ 120Hz
N/A
1440p @ 144Hz
N/A
4k @ 60Hz
10.7 ms
4k @ 60Hz + 10-Bit HDR
10.8 ms
4k @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
10.8 ms
4k @ 60Hz Outside Game Mode
50.7 ms
4k @ 60Hz With Interpolation
N/A
4k @ 120Hz
N/A
4k @ 144Hz
N/A
8k @ 60Hz
N/A

The input lag is incredibly low, delivering a smooth, responsive gaming or desktop experience if you're using it as a PC monitor.

7.1
Inputs
Supported Resolutions
Resolution 4k
480p @ 59.94Hz (Widescreen)
Yes
720p @ 59.94Hz
Yes
1080p @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
Yes
1080p @ 120Hz
No
1080p @ 144Hz
No
1440p @ 60Hz
Yes (forced resolution required)
1440p @ 120Hz
No
1440p @ 144Hz
No
4k @ 60Hz
Yes
4k @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
Yes
4k @ 120Hz
No
4k @ 120Hz @ 4:4:4
No
4k @ 144Hz
No
8k @ 30Hz or 24Hz
No
8k @ 60Hz
No

Most common resolutions are supported, but only at 60Hz. 1440p is supported, but you have to force it either through a custom resolution on a PC or by manually setting the resolution on some game consoles. Chroma 4:4:4 signals are displayed properly with 1080p or 4k signals but not with 1440p signals. This is essential for clear text from a PC.

Inputs
PS5 Compatibility
Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM)
Yes
4k @ 120Hz
No
1440p @ 120Hz
No
1080p @ 120Hz
No
HDR
Yes
VRR
No

This TV doesn't support everything the PS5 has to offer, as it's limited to a 60Hz refresh rate, and it doesn't support a variable refresh rate. It automatically switches to the low input lag 'Game' mode, as long as you have Auto Low Latency Mode enabled for the input you're using.

Inputs
Xbox Series X|S Compatibility
Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM)
Yes
4k @ 120Hz
No
1440p @ 120Hz
No
1080p @ 120Hz
No
HDR
Yes
VRR
No

The TCL 4 Series Roku TV can't take full advantage of the Xbox Series S|X, as it's limited to a 60Hz refresh rate and doesn't support a variable refresh rate. It automatically switches to the low input lag 'Game' mode, as long as you have Auto Low Latency Mode enabled for the input you're using.

Inputs
Inputs Specifications
HDR10
Yes
HDR10+
No
Dolby Vision
No
HLG
Yes
HDMI 2.0 Full Bandwidth
Yes (HDMI 1,2,3,4)
HDMI 2.1 Class Bandwidth
No
CEC Yes
HDCP 2.2 Yes (HDMI 1,2,3,4)
ATSC Tuner
1.0
USB 3.0
No
Variable Analog Audio Out Yes
Wi-Fi Support Yes (2.4 GHz, 5 GHz)

Unfortunately, the HDMI ports are limited to HDMI 2.0 bandwidth, and the tuner is limited to ATSC 1.0, so you can't stream 4k content over the air.

Inputs
Input Photos
Inputs
Total Inputs
HDMI 4
USB 1
Digital Optical Audio Out 1
Analog Audio Out 3.5mm 1
Analog Audio Out RCA 0
Component In 0
Composite In 1 (adapter required, not incl.)
Tuner (Cable/Ant) 1
Ethernet 1
DisplayPort 0
IR In 0
Inputs
Audio Passthrough
ARC/eARC Port
eARC
eARC: Dolby Atmos Over Dolby Digital Plus
Yes
eARC: Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
Yes
eARC: LPCM 7.1 Over Dolby MAT
Yes
eARC: Dolby TrueHD 7.1
Yes
eARC: DTS:X Over DTS-HD MA
No
eARC: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1
No
eARC: LPCM Channels (Bitstream)
7.1
ARC: Dolby Digital 5.1
Yes
ARC: DTS 5.1
Yes
Optical: Dolby Digital 5.1
No
Optical: DTS 5.1
No

This TV supports eARC, allowing you to pass high-quality, uncompressed audio to a compatible receiver through an HDMI cable. Unfortunately, it doesn't support DTS audio formats, which is disappointing, as many Blu-rays use DTS for their main audio track. If you plan to watch Blu-ray movies, connecting your player directly to your audio receiver or soundbar is best.

Sound Quality
5.6
Sound Quality
Frequency Response
Low-Frequency Extension
151.02 Hz
Std. Dev. @ 70
3.16 dB
Std. Dev. @ 80
3.77 dB
Std. Dev. @ Max
6.43 dB
Max
85.5 dB SPL
Dynamic Range Compression
4.20 dB

Unfortunately, the TCL 4 Series Roku TV has a sub-par frequency response. The low-frequency extension (LFE) is very high, so there's very little thump or rumble in its bass. The frequency response isn't well balanced above the LFE, either, so dialogue is a bit muddy, and there's no room correction feature. It doesn't get very loud, either, so it's not a good choice for a noisy environment.

6.7
Sound Quality
Distortion
Weighted THD @ 80
0.156
Weighted THD @ Max
0.380
IMD @ 80
5.55%
IMD @ Max
17.78%

This TV has decent distortion performance. There's a bit of noticeable distortion in dialogue, but it doesn't increase much at max volume.

Smart Features
8.0
Smart Features
Interface
Smart OS Roku TV
Version 11.0.2
Ease of Use
Easy
Smoothness
Very Smooth
Time Taken to Select YouTube
4 s
Time Taken to Change Backlight
4 s
Advanced Options
Many

This TV runs the Roku TV smart interface, which is very simple, with fewer animations and a simpler user interface than you'll get with more premium TVs. It's very fast, though, and easy to use.

0
Smart Features
Ad-Free
Ads
Yes
Opt-out
No
Suggested Content in Home
Yes
Opt-out of Suggested Content
Yes

Unfortunately, like all Roku devices and most TVs on the market, there are large ads on the home page. You can opt out of suggested content and personalized ads, but this doesn't change the number of ads you see; they'll just be less personalized.

8.0
Smart Features
Apps and Features
App Selection
Great
App Smoothness
Average
Cast Capable
Yes
USB Drive Playback
Yes
USB Drive HDR Playback
Yes
HDR in Netflix
Yes
HDR in YouTube
Yes

The Roku app store has a great selection of apps you can download, and they run smoothly for the most part.

6.0
Smart Features
Remote
Size
Small
Voice Control
Search, Some Other Features
CEC Menu Control
Yes
Other Smart Features
No
Remote App Roku

This TV comes with the same basic remote as all recent Roku TVs. There's no mic for voice control on the remote itself, but you can use voice control through the Roku app on your phone. It allows you to change inputs, launch apps, and search for content. The app also features a private listening feature, which lets you transfer audio from the native apps to your phone's speaker or connected headphones. Many of the advanced picture settings are only available through the Roku companion app.

Smart Features
TV Controls

There's a single button below the TCL branding on the bottom bezel that you can use to change inputs or power the TV on/off.

Smart Features
In The Box

  • Power cable
  • Remote
  • 2x AAA batteries
  • Manual

Smart Features
Misc
Power Consumption 67 W
Power Consumption (Max) 131 W
Firmware 11.0.2 build 4110