The TCL 5 Series/S546 2021 QLED is a mid-range 4k LED TV released in 2021. It's part of TCL's 2021 lineup, and although it's meant as an upgrade from the TCL 5 Series/S535 2020 QLED, it's not a direct replacement because they're both still available as part of the 5 Series lineup. It uses Google TV, which is a user-friendly smart interface with an excellent selection of apps available to download through the Google Play Store. You also have access to Google Assistant through the built-in mic on the TV for hands-free voice control. There are a few more gaming features like variable refresh rate (VRR) support to reduce screen tearing, but it's still limited to HDMI 2.0 bandwidth.
Our Verdict
The TCL 5 Series is a good TV for most uses. It's great for gaming thanks to its low input lag, quick response time, and variable refresh rate support. It's very good for watching movies in a dark room thanks as it displays deep blacks and has a full-array local dimming feature, but the local dimming feature isn't the best, and there's some blooming around bright areas of the screen. It's good for watching sports and decent for shows in a bright room, as it has good enough brightness to overcome some glare. However, it has a narrow viewing angle, so the image degrades when viewed from the side, making it a poor choice for a wide seating arrangement.
- High contrast ratio.
- Displays 720p, 1080p, and 4k content well.
- Removes judder from 24p sources.
- Gets bright in SDR.
- Quick response time for smooth motion.
- Local dimming raises the black level and causes blooming.
- Can't properly upscale 480p content, like from DVDs.
- Narrow viewing angle.
The TCL S546 is decent for watching TV shows in a bright room. It has decent reflection handling, and it gets bright enough to fight glare in most well-lit rooms. It displays 720p content like from cable boxes well, but it has trouble with 480p content if you watch standard definition TV shows or DVDs from an older source that doesn't upscale the image. It also has a narrow viewing angle, so the image appears washed out from the sides, so it's not ideal for a wide seating arrangement or if you like to move around with the TV on.
- Removes judder from 24p sources.
- Gets bright in SDR.
- Decent reflection handling.
- Can't properly upscale 480p content, like from DVDs.
- Narrow viewing angle.
The TCL 5 Series 2021 is good for watching sports in a bright room. Motion looks smooth thanks to the quick response time, and it performs well in bright rooms because it gets bright enough to fight glare and has decent reflection handling. Unfortunately, there's some dirty screen effect in the center, which is distracting when watching sports. It also has narrow viewing angles, so it's not a good choice for watching sports with a large group of friends as only people sitting directly in front will see a proper image.
- Displays 720p, 1080p, and 4k content well.
- Removes judder from 24p sources.
- Gets bright in SDR.
- Quick response time for smooth motion.
- Narrow viewing angle.
- Uniformity issues with dirty screen effect.
The TCL S546 is great for gaming. It has a quick response time and low input lag for a smooth and responsive gaming experience. It has a few extra gaming features like FreeSync and ALLM support, but it's limited to HDMI 2.0 bandwidth, so you can't take full advantage of the PS5 or Xbox Series X. It's great for dark room gaming as it has a high contrast ratio, but the local dimming feature isn't anything special.
- High contrast ratio.
- Displays 720p, 1080p, and 4k content well.
- Removes judder from 24p sources.
- Quick response time for smooth motion.
- VRR support.
- Local dimming raises the black level and causes blooming.
- Limited to HDMI 2.0 bandwidth.
The TCL 5 Series is very good for watching HDR movies. It delivers deep and uniform blacks thanks to its fantastic contrast and excellent uniformity. It has a full-array local dimming feature, but it doesn't do much to improve the picture quality in dark scenes as there's blooming around bright objects. It supports both HDR10+ and Dolby Vision and displays a wide color gamut, but doesn't get bright enough to make highlights pop.
- High contrast ratio.
- Displays 720p, 1080p, and 4k content well.
- Removes judder from 24p sources.
- Wide color gamut.
- Local dimming raises the black level and causes blooming.
- Mediocre peak brightness in HDR.
The TCL S546 is very good for HDR gaming. It has great gaming features like a great response time, low input lag, and VRR support. However, it has a 60Hz panel and it's limited to HDMI 2.0 bandwidth, so you're limited to 4k @ 60 fps games. HDR content also looks good because it displays deep blacks and has a wide color gamut, but it doesn't get very bright in HDR, and its local dimming feature causes blooming around bright objects.
- High contrast ratio.
- Removes judder from 24p sources.
- Quick response time for smooth motion.
- VRR support.
- Local dimming raises the black level and causes blooming.
- Mediocre peak brightness in HDR.
The TCL 5 Series is good to use as a PC monitor. It has low input lag for a responsive desktop experience, and motion looks good thanks to the quick response time. It displays chroma 4:4:4 properly with 1080p and 4k signals, which is important for clear text on the desktop. However, there are a few gray uniformity issues noticeable with web pages or documents and has a narrow viewing angle, meaning the image looks shifts and fades at the edges if you sit too close.
- Removes judder from 24p sources.
- Gets bright in SDR.
- Quick response time for smooth motion.
- Displays chroma 4:4:4 with 1080p and 4k signals.
- Narrow viewing angle.
- Uniformity issues with dirty screen effect.
Changelog
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Updated Aug 11, 2025:
Unfortunately, this TV has failed and has been removed from the Accelerated Longevity Test.
- Updated Jul 08, 2025: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
- Updated Apr 17, 2025: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
- Updated Feb 11, 2025: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the 65-inch TCL 5 Series 2021, and our review is also valid for the 50, 55, and 75-inch models. This model is a 4k TV with Google as its smart platform, and it's part of the 5 Series lineup that includes the TCL 5 Series/S535 2020 QLED, which is a 2020 model with Roku TV that's still available in 2021.
| Size | US Model | Canada Model | VESA Mount |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50" | 50S546 | 50S546-CA | 200x200 |
| 55" | 55S546 | 55S546-CA | 200x300 |
| 65" | 65S546 | 65S546-CA | 300x300 |
| 75" | 75S546 | 75S546-CA | 400x300 |
The unit we bought was manufactured in June 2021. You can see the full label here.
Popular TV Comparisons
The TCL 5 Series is a good mid-range TV with gaming features like VRR support, but nothing stands out against the competition. It gets brighter than the TCL 5 Series/S535 2020 QLED, which is great, but it also worsens with local dimming. You can get similarly-priced or cheaper options with better local dimming and/or HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, like the Hisense U7G or Hisense U6G.
See our recommendations for the best gaming TVs, the best smart TVs, and the best 65-inch TVs.
The TCL 6 Series/R646 2021 QLED sits higher up in the lineup than the TCL S546, so it has more features and better performance. The main differences are that the R646 has Mini LED backlighting and has HDMI 2.1 inputs, allowing you to play higher frame rate games than the S546. The local dimming features perform similarly as they raise the black level in real content, but there's less blooming on the R646. The R646 also gets brighter and has much better reflection handling, so it's a better choice for well-lit rooms. The built-in speakers are also much better on the R646, but that won't make a difference if you get a soundbar or receiver anyways.
The TCL S535 and the TCL S546 are both good TVs. The S546 is an upgraded version of the S535, and while it gets better in some areas, it gets worse in others. The S546 gets brighter, making it a better choice for daytime viewing, and it has VRR support, which the S535 doesn't have. The S546 also supports both Dolby Vision and HDR10+, while the S535 only supports Dolby Vision. One area where the S535 is better is with the local dimming because the one on the S546 causes more blooming. Another main difference is that the S535 uses Roku TV as its smart OS while the S546 has Google TV, and while they have some differences, both OS are great.
The TCL S546 and the TCL R635 are both very good TVs. The R635 is a higher-end model than the TCL, so it has a 120Hz panel with a quicker response time, but both TVs have HDMI 2.0 inputs. The R635 also gets brighter and doesn't have issues upscaling lower-resolution content from DVDs, so it's a better choice for watching shows. The R635 uses Roku TV as its smart system, which is user-friendly, while the S546 has Android TV, which has a bigger app store.
The Hisense U6G is better for most uses than the TCL S546. They both have VA panels with a high contrast ratio, but the local dimming feature is better on the Hisense because there's less blooming. The Hisense also has slightly better reflection handling, making it a better choice for bright rooms, and it doesn't have trouble upscaling 480p content if you want to watch DVDs. The main advantage the TCL has over the Hisense is VRR support to reduce screen tearing in games, which the Hisense doesn't have. They have similar operating systems, as the Hisense uses Android TV, and the TCL has Google TV, which is simply an upgraded version, but there are only a few minor differences between each.
We buy and test dozens of TVs yearly, taking an objective, data-driven approach to deliver results you can trust. Our testing process is complex, with hundreds of individual tests that take over a week to complete. Most of our tests use specially designed test patterns that mimic real content, but we also use the same sources you have at home to ensure our results match the real-world experience. We use two main tools for our testing: a Colorimetry Research CR-100 colorimeter and a CR-250 spectroradiometer.
Test Results
Older Test Bench: This product has been tested using an older TV test methodology, before a major update. Some of the test results below aren't directly comparable with other TVs. Learn more
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