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To try to better understand how long a TV should last, we're running 100 TVs through an accelerated longevity test for the next two years. We've just posted our 1-year video update with our latest findings on temporary image retention, burn-in, and more!

TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED TV Review

Tested using Methodology v1.11
Reviewed Nov 24, 2022 at 02:00 pm
Latest change: Retest Sep 21, 2023 at 09:11 am
TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED Picture
7.9
Mixed Usage
Value for price beaten by
: no price info
7.3
TV Shows
Value for price beaten by
: no price info
7.7
Sports
Value for price beaten by
: no price info
8.7
Video Games
Value for price beaten by
: no price info
7.8
HDR Movies
Value for price beaten by
: no price info
8.7
HDR Gaming
Value for price beaten by
: no price info
8.5
PC Monitor
Value for price beaten by
: no price info

The TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED is a mid-range 4k TV released in 2022 that runs the Roku TV smart interface. It sits above the TCL 5 Series/S555 2022 QLED and replaces the TCL 6 Series/R635 2020 QLED. It's available along with the TCL 6 Series/R646 2021 QLED, which runs the Google TV smart interface instead of Roku TV. It has a few new features compared to the R635, including a faster 144Hz refresh rate and a Mini LED backlight that's designed to improve local dimming performance while increasing peak brightness. It's available in 55-inch, 65-inch, 75-inch, and 85-inch sizes, so there are options available for many different needs, and all sizes perform the same.

Our Verdict

7.9 Mixed Usage

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV is great overall. It's a versatile TV that looks great in both bright and dark rooms. It can easily overcome glare, making it a very good choice for watching sports or shows during the day, but it's a bit limited by its narrow viewing angle, as the image degrades from the sides. It's impressive for watching movies in the dark, thanks to its fantastic contrast ratio and decent local dimming. It has a wide color gamut and excellent gradient handling for HDR content. It also delivers an amazing gaming experience thanks to its low input lag, fast response time, and variable refresh rate support.

Pros
  • Fantastic contrast ratio results in deep blacks in a dark room.
  • Great selection of streaming apps.
  • Superb reflection handling.
  • High peak brightness.
Cons
  • Image degrades rapidly when viewed from the side.
7.3 TV Shows

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV is very good for watching shows during the day. It has remarkable peak brightness in SDR and superb reflection handling, so it can easily overcome glare in a bright room. The built-in Roku smart interface has a great selection of streaming apps, so you can easily find your favorite shows. Unfortunately, it doesn't upscale sources properly and has a poor viewing angle, so it's not a good choice for a wider seating arrangement as the image fades and looks washed out from the sides.

Pros
  • Great selection of streaming apps.
  • Superb reflection handling.
  • High peak brightness.
Cons
  • Image degrades rapidly when viewed from the side.
  • Content isn't upscaled properly.
7.7 Sports

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV is very good for watching sports in a bright room. It gets remarkably bright in SDR, and, combined with its superb reflection handling, it can handle a lot of glare if you're in a bright room. The response time is good enough that you won't see much blur behind fast-moving objects, and it has good gray uniformity. Unfortunately, it has a poor viewing angle, so it's not a good choice for a wide seating arrangement, as the image fades and colors look washed out when viewed from the side.

Pros
  • Great selection of streaming apps.
  • Superb reflection handling.
  • High peak brightness.
Cons
  • Image degrades rapidly when viewed from the side.
8.7 Video Games

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV delivers an amazing gaming experience. It has an incredibly fast refresh rate, resulting in clear motion with very little blur. It also has a great selection of gaming features, including low input lag and variable refresh rate support to reduce tearing in games. It supports 4k @ 120Hz gaming from new-gen consoles, and it supports HDMI 2.1 bandwidth on two of its HDMI ports. Unfortunately, although it's one of the only TVs on the market to support a 144Hz refresh rate, the input lag increases at 144Hz.

Pros
  • Fantastic contrast ratio results in deep blacks in a dark room.
  • Superb low input lag for a responsive gaming experience.
  • Extremely fast refresh rate.
  • High peak brightness.
Cons
  • Input lag increases at 144Hz.
7.8 HDR Movies

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV is great for watching movies in HDR in a dark room. It has a fantastic contrast ratio and decent local dimming feature, so combined with its high peak brightness in HDR, bright highlights in HDR content stand out incredibly well. It tracks the PQ EOTF well, ensuring it respects the content creator's intent and has a wide color gamut. It also has excellent gradient handling, with very little banding in areas of similar color, and it automatically removes judder from any source.

Pros
  • Fantastic contrast ratio results in deep blacks in a dark room.
  • Great selection of streaming apps.
  • Automatically removes judder from any source.
  • Wide color gamut with HDR content.
  • High peak brightness.
  • Great PQ EOTF tracking.
Cons
  • Content isn't upscaled properly.
  • Some stutter in slow panning shots.
8.7 HDR Gaming

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV delivers an excellent gaming experience in HDR. It delivers an amazing gaming experience overall thanks to its fast refresh rate, low input lag, and fast response time. HDR content looks great thanks to its fantastic contrast ratio, decent local dimming feature, and wide color gamut. It also has amazing peak brightness in HDR, so bright highlights in games stand out well.

Pros
  • Fantastic contrast ratio results in deep blacks in a dark room.
  • Superb low input lag for a responsive gaming experience.
  • Wide color gamut with HDR content.
  • Extremely fast refresh rate.
  • High peak brightness.
  • Great PQ EOTF tracking.
Cons
  • Input lag increases at 144Hz.
8.5 PC Monitor

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV is very good for use as a PC monitor. It has low input lag and a fast response time, ensuring a smooth, responsive desktop experience. It also gets very bright and has superb reflection handling, so you don't have to worry about glare in a bright room. Although it displays chroma 4:4:4 properly for clear text from a PC, it can only do so at 60Hz; if you send anything higher, it'll just skip frames. Unfortunately, it has a narrow viewing angle, so the sides of the screen appear dull and non-uniform if you're sitting up close.

Pros
  • Superb reflection handling.
  • Extremely fast refresh rate.
  • Chroma 4:4:4 is displayed properly for clear text.
  • High peak brightness.
Cons
  • Image degrades rapidly when viewed from the side.
  • Input lag increases at 144Hz.
  • Skips frames with 120Hz or 144Hz signals with chroma 4:4:4.
  • 7.9 Mixed Usage
  • 7.3 TV Shows
  • 7.7 Sports
  • 8.7 Video Games
  • 7.8 HDR Movies
  • 8.7 HDR Gaming
  • 8.5 PC Monitor
  1. Updated Sep 21, 2023: The distortion results in the review were incorrect. We retested the speakers and updated the Frequency Response and Distortion results.
  2. 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.
  3. Updated Jul 17, 2023: Added mention of the newly reviewed TCL QM8/QM850G QLED to the Black Uniformity box of this review.
  4. Updated Feb 28, 2023: We investigated an issue with HDR when FreeSync is enabled from an AMD graphics card.
  5. Updated Feb 16, 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.
  6. Updated Jan 11, 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.
  7. Updated Nov 24, 2022: We received new information on the 85" model and updated the Differences Between Sizes And Variants table with the new information.
  8. Updated Nov 24, 2022: Review published.
  9. Updated Nov 22, 2022: Early access published.
  10. Updated Nov 15, 2022: Our testers have started testing this product.
  11. Updated Nov 11, 2022: The product has arrived in our lab, and our testers will start evaluating it soon.
  12. Updated Sep 21, 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 55-inch TCL 6 Series Roku TV, and our results are also valid for the 65, 75, and 85-inch models. There's another 6-series TV still available, the TCL 6 Series/R646 2021 QLED; it's a very similar TV but runs the Google TV smart platform instead of Roku. The larger sizes perform roughly the same, but they have a slightly better local dimming feature thanks to the increased number of dimming zones. The 85" model performs mostly the same, but it's limited to a 120Hz refresh rate and a slightly different design, with feet instead of the center-mounted stand.

Size Model Number Dimming Zones Max Refresh Rate
55" 55R655 240 144Hz
65" 65R655 288 144Hz
75" 75R655 360 144Hz
85"  85R655 448 120Hz

You can see the label for our unit here.

Compared To Other TVs

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV is a well-equipped TV that delivers impressive performance for the price, with better picture quality than most similarly-priced models. It offers better performance and picture quality than budget TVs while also costing less than most mid-range options. Although there are better TVs available, you'll have to pay considerably more for slightly better performance.

See our recommendations for the best smart TVs, the best TVs under $1,500, and the best 4k TVs.

TCL Q7/Q750G QLED
55" 65" 75" 85"

The TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED is better than the TCL Q7/Q750G QLED. While the Q7 has vastly better black uniformity and low-quality content smoothing capabilities, the TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED outpaces it when it comes to HDR and SDR peak brightness, as it gets much brighter. The 6 Series is also significantly more accurate pre-calibration, has better color volume for more vibrant colors, and has much better reflection handling, so it can easily handle even the brightest rooms.

TCL Q6/Q650G QLED
55" 65" 75" 85"

The TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED is much better than the TCL Q6/Q650G QLED. The Q6 is the lowest-tier TV in TCL's 2023 Q-series lineup, while the R655 is the highest-tier model in TCL's 2022 lineup, so ultimately the R655 just does more. It has a much better contrast, helped by a decent local dimming solution. It gets much brighter in SDR and HDR and has much better color volume. The older model even comes much better calibrated out of the box than the newer one, so you have less to do to make it look its best. Ultimately, the 6 Series offers more in every context than the newer and cheaper model.

TCL 5 Series/S555 2022 QLED
50" 55" 65" 75"

The TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED is a noticeable step up from the TCL 5 Series/S555 2022 QLED. The R655 gets significantly brighter and has much better reflection handling, meaning it can handle more glare in a bright room. HDR also looks noticeably better on the R655 thanks to its higher peak brightness, and bright highlights stand out better. Finally, the R655 is a much better TV for gaming thanks to its faster refresh rate and HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, allowing for 4k @ 120Hz gaming from the latest consoles.

TCL QM8/QM850G QLED
65" 75" 85" 98"

The TCL QM8/QM850G QLED is better than the TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED. The 6 Series does have better color accuracy, however, and respects the creator's intent much more than the QM8. Otherwise, the QM8 is an improvement in every other facet.

Hisense U8/U8H
55" 65" 75"

The Hisense U8/U8H is better than the TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED. The Hisense has a better local dimming feature, as blacks aren't raised as much in dark scenes and there's significantly less blooming, as the local dimming feature on the Hisense dims closer to bright objects in dark scenes, whereas the TCL tends to spread the highlights out across many zones. The Hisense also has a faster response time, making it a better choice for gamers.

Hisense U7H [U7, U75H]
55" 65" 75" 85"

The TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED is better than the Hisense U7H. The TCL has much better reflection handling and higher peak brightness, meaning it can handle more glare in a bright room. The TCL also has much better accuracy before calibration, which is great if you care about an accurate image. Finally, the TCL is better for gaming thanks to its higher refresh rate and faster response time, resulting in much smoother motion handling and less blur behind fast-moving objects.

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

The TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED is better than the Samsung TU7000. Blacks are deeper on the TCL due to its better contrast and a very effective local dimming feature, so it’s better suited for a dark room. The TCL gets significantly brighter in SDR, so it overcomes glare much better in a bright room. The TCL also gets a lot brighter in HDR, supports a wider color gamut, and has much better color volume, so colors in HDR content are more vibrant and lifelike, and highlights pop a lot more than they do on the Samsung. When it comes to gaming, the TCL is much better due to its quicker response time, HDMI 2.1 bandwidth, up to 4k @ 144Hz, and VRR support. 

TCL 6 Series/R646 2021 QLED
55" 65" 75"

The TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED is slightly better than the TCL 6 Series/R646 2021 QLED. HDR content looks better on the R655 thanks to its higher peak brightness and better gradient handling. The R655 is also better for gaming thanks to its higher refresh rate, and its variable refresh rate feature works better at low frame rates.

Samsung Q80C [Q80, Q80CD] QLED
50" 55" 65" 75" 85" 98"

The TCL 6 Series/R655 2022 QLED is better in almost every way when compared to the Samsung Q80C QLED. There's no comparing their image quality; the TCL has vastly better contrast, gets much brighter in HDR and SDR, and has much better reflection handling, so it's better in any brightness. Unfortunately, its viewing angle is inadequate, so the Samsung is much better for wide seating arrangements. The Samsung TV also has better processing than the TCL, so low-quality and low-resolution sources look better, but not likely to the point of overcoming the TCL's edge in overall image quality.

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Test Results

perceptual testing image
Design
Design
Style
Curved No

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV has a very premium design that looks great. Instead of the simple feet found on other TCL TVs, like the TCL 5 Series/S555 2022 QLED, it has a center-mounted pedestal stand that supports the TV well. The borders of the TV are thin, but there's a noticeable dead space between the borders and the first pixels. Note that the 85" model has a slightly different design, with more traditional feet instead of the center-mounted stand.

Design
Accelerated Longevity Test
Uniformity Pictures N/A

This TV isn't part of our accelerated longevity test, but its predecessor, the TCL 6 Series/R635 2020 QLED, is.

Design
Stand

Instead of the basic v-shaped feet found on most other TCL TVs like the TCL 5 Series/S555 2022 QLED, this TV has a center-mounted pedestal stand. It's thin, so you can still place a soundbar in front of the TV, and it supports the TV well.

Footprint of the 55" stand: 11.6" x 11". The stand lifts the screen 2.8" off the table, most soundbars fit in front of it without blocking the screen.

Design
Back
Wall Mount VESA 300x300

The back has a slightly premium design. The back of the stand has a removable cover, meaning you can use it for cable management. The inputs all face to the side, but they're cut into the back of the TV, so they're somewhat hard to access when the TV is wall-mounted.

Design
Borders
Borders 0.35" (0.9 cm)
Design
Thickness
Max Thickness 2.69" (6.8 cm)

The bottom half of the screen houses all the electronics and inputs, and it's thicker than the top half. The thicker section prevents the TV from sitting completely flush against the wall if it's wall-mounted.

7.5
Design
Build Quality

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV has good build quality. Although it's pretty much all made of plastic, it seems well-built overall. The stand is pretty solid and holds the TV in place. Unfortunately, our unit gave off a bit of a burnt-plastic smell during testing, but there were no signs of melted plastic. We've heard isolated reports of this issue with other TVs, but it's unclear if this will fade over time or if it could cause other issues.

Picture Quality
9.2
Picture Quality
Contrast
Contrast
66,000 : 1
Native Contrast
8,081 : 1

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV has fantastic contrast. Dark scenes are displayed well, with deep blacks, even when bright highlights are on the screen. The native contrast of the panel is already exceptional, but the local dimming feature is very effective at boosting it even further.

7.5
Picture Quality
Blooming
7.0
Picture Quality
Lighting Zone Transitions
Local Dimming
Yes
Backlight
Full-Array
Dimming Zones Count Of Tested TV
240
8.5
Picture Quality
Contrast And Dark Details In Game Mode

The local dimming feature performs the same in Game Mode as in the other picture modes.

8.6
Picture Quality
HDR Brightness
Hallway Lights (~1950 cd/m²)
661 cd/m²
Yellow Skyscraper (~700 cd/m²)
477 cd/m²
Landscape Pool (~300 cd/m²)
223 cd/m²
Peak 2% Window
800 cd/m²
Peak 10% Window
1,389 cd/m²
Peak 25% Window
1,667 cd/m²
Peak 50% Window
1,119 cd/m²
Peak 100% Window
704 cd/m²
Sustained 2% Window
791 cd/m²
Sustained 10% Window
1,364 cd/m²
Sustained 25% Window
1,643 cd/m²
Sustained 50% Window
1,116 cd/m²
Sustained 100% Window
703 cd/m²
Automatic Brightness Limiting (ABL)
0.046

This TV has amazing peak brightness in HDR. Bright highlights are bright enough to stand out well, and even large bright scenes are displayed well and deliver a visually impressive experience.

These measurements are in the 'Dark' HDR Picture Mode with the Backlight at its max, TV Brightness set to 'Brighter', Contrast at '100', Local Contrast on 'High', and the Color Temperature set to 'Warm'.

8.6
Picture Quality
HDR Brightness In Game Mode
Hallway Lights (~1950 cd/m²)
652 cd/m²
Yellow Skyscraper (~700 cd/m²)
476 cd/m²
Landscape Pool (~300 cd/m²)
213 cd/m²
Peak 2% Window
804 cd/m²
Peak 10% Window
1,388 cd/m²
Peak 25% Window
1,658 cd/m²
Peak 50% Window
1,116 cd/m²
Peak 100% Window
704 cd/m²
Sustained 2% Window
799 cd/m²
Sustained 10% Window
1,362 cd/m²
Sustained 25% Window
1,634 cd/m²
Sustained 50% Window
1,114 cd/m²
Sustained 100% Window
703 cd/m²
Automatic Brightness Limiting (ABL)
0.045

Switching to 'Game' mode doesn't result in any noticeable difference in peak brightness with HDR games.

8.4
Picture Quality
PQ EOTF Tracking
600 Nit Tracking Delta
0.0102
1000 Nit Tracking Delta
0.0104
4000 Nit Tracking Delta
0.0105

The TV has excellent PQ EOTF tracking. Shadow details are preserved well, but near blacks are dimmed a bit. With content mastered at lower peak brightness levels, there's a sharp cutoff near the TV's peak brightness, but content mastered at 4,000 nits has a slightly smoother roll-off, so fine details are better preserved in bright scenes.

9.0
Picture Quality
SDR Brightness
Real Scene Peak Brightness
715 cd/m²
Peak 2% Window
813 cd/m²
Peak 10% Window
1,404 cd/m²
Peak 25% Window
1,666 cd/m²
Peak 50% Window
1,116 cd/m²
Peak 100% Window
701 cd/m²
Sustained 2% Window
806 cd/m²
Sustained 10% Window
1,374 cd/m²
Sustained 25% Window
1,639 cd/m²
Sustained 50% Window
1,112 cd/m²
Sustained 100% Window
701 cd/m²
Automatic Brightness Limiting (ABL)
0.046

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV has remarkable peak brightness in SDR. It's bright enough to easily overcome glare even in bright rooms. There's very little variation in brightness with different scenes, but very large, bright scenes are quite a bit dimmer than smaller highlights. Very small highlights in near-black scenes are dimmed by the TV's local dimming feature, though.

These measurements are after calibration in the 'Movie' Picture Mode with the Backlight at '100' and TV Brightness set to 'Brighter'. Local Contrast was set to 'High', Contrast was set to '100', and the Color Temperature set to 'Warm'.

8.3
Picture Quality
Color Gamut
Wide Color Gamut
Yes
DCI P3 xy
92.35%
DCI P3 uv
95.23%
Rec 2020 xy
70.16%
Rec 2020 uv
76.21%

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV has a great HDR color gamut. It has fantastic coverage of the DCI-P3 color space, with slightly better coverage than the TCL 5 Series/S555 2022 QLED. It has just decent coverage of the wider Rec. 2020 color space, though, which is a bit disappointing. The tone mapping is good overall, which is important for content that exceeds the color space of this TV.

8.0
Picture Quality
Color Volume
1,000 cd/m² DCI P3 Coverage ITP
76.6%
10,000 cd/m² Rec 2020 Coverage ITP
35.4%
White Luminance
798 cd/m²
Red Luminance
183 cd/m²
Green Luminance
562 cd/m²
Blue Luminance
53 cd/m²
Cyan Luminance
619 cd/m²
Magenta Luminance
238 cd/m²
Yellow Luminance
744 cd/m²

This TV has great color volume. Dark saturated colors are displayed well, thanks to its fantastic color volume. Colors are bright and vibrant thanks to its high peak brightness in HDR.

8.0
Picture Quality
Pre Calibration
White Balance dE
2.88
Color dE
2.02
Gamma
2.24
Color Temperature
6,124 K
Picture Mode
Movie
Color Temp Setting
Warm
Gamma Setting
2.2

This TV has very good SDR accuracy before calibration. The white balance is good, with no significant issues. There are a few noticeable issues with saturated blues and cyan, but the overall color accuracy is great. The color temperature is a bit warm, but it's not too bad. Gamma follows the 2.2 target we chose for a moderately-lit room well, but most scenes are slightly too dark.

9.6
Picture Quality
Post Calibration
White Balance dE
0.24
Color dE
0.76
Gamma
2.20
Color Temperature
6,492 K
White Balance Calibration
11 point
Color Calibration
Yes

The Roku companion app makes it very easy and quick to calibrate this TV. The results after calibration are fantastic, and other than saturated blues, there are no noticeable issues.

You can see the full settings used for our calibration here.

7.9
Picture Quality
Gray Uniformity
50% Std. Dev.
2.183%
50% DSE
0.165%
5% Std. Dev.
1.062%
5% DSE
0.095%

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV has good gray uniformity. The sides of the screen are noticeably darker than the center. The center of the screen has a bit of dirty screen effect that can be distracting when watching sports. Dark scenes look much better, and there are no significant issues.

7.4
Picture Quality
Black Uniformity
Std. Dev.
0.967%
Native Std. Dev.
1.544%

This TV has just okay black uniformity. With local dimming disabled, the screen is cloudy, and the backlight bleeds through all four corners. Enabling local dimming significantly improves black uniformity, but there's a bright halo around the cross in the center of the screen, so it's not perfect. If you'd like a similar TV with better black uniformity, check out the TCL QM8/QM850G QLED.

5.3
Picture Quality
Viewing Angle
Color Washout
23°
Color Shift
32°
Brightness Loss
30°
Black Level Raise
13°
Gamma Shift
17°

Unfortunately, the TCL 6 Series Roku TV has a poor viewing angle. This TV isn't a good choice for a wide seating arrangement, as colors fade and lose accuracy as you move off-center.

9.0
Picture Quality
Reflections
Screen Finish
Semi-gloss
Total Reflections
1.9%
Indirect Reflections
0.5%
Calculated Direct Reflections
1.5%

The reflection handling of this TV is superb. The semi-gloss finish reduces the intensity of direct reflections significantly, and indirect reflections aren't very noticeable. Direct reflections cause some smearing, though, but overall there's no issue with visibility in a bright room.

7.0
Picture Quality
HDR Native Gradient
100% Black to 50% Gray
6.0
50% Gray to 100% White
6.0
100% Black to 50% Red
8.0
50% Red to 100% Red
8.0
100% Black to 50% Green
8.0
50% Green to 100% Green
6.0
100% Black to 50% Blue
8.0
50% Blue to 100% Blue
6.0
4.7
Picture Quality
Low-Quality Content Smoothing
Smoothing
3.0
Detail Preservation
8.5
4.0
Picture Quality
Upscaling: Sharpness Processing

Unfortunately, like the TCL 5 Series/S555 2022 QLED, signals aren't scaled properly. Adjusting the scaling setting has no impact on this. It isn't an issue unless you have a really old DVD player that doesn't support upscaling; it's unlikely that you'll encounter this issue with modern equipment.

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

Like most TVs on the market, this TV uses a BGR (Blue-Green-Red) subpixel layout instead of the traditional Red-Green-Blue layout. For video content, it doesn't cause any issues, but if you're planning on using this TV as a PC monitor, this reduces text clarity a bit, although there are easy workarounds for it. You can read more about this here.

Motion
7.8
Motion
Response Time
80% Response Time
5.9 ms
100% Response Time
11.9 ms

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV QLED has a very good response time, very similar to the TCL 5 Series/S555 2022 QLED. There's very little black smearing in dark scenes, and transitions are consistent with different types of content. Some motion blur is visible when playing games or watching sports.

9.9
Motion
Flicker-Free
Flicker-Free
No
PWM Dimming Frequency
960 Hz

Unfortunately, the TCL 6 Series Roku TV uses pulse width modulation (PWM) to dim the backlight, and it flickers across all picture modes with all settings. The flicker pattern is extremely unusual and appears to be a combination of multiple separate waves, but the overall frequency is very high and won't bother most people.

Motion
Black Frame Insertion (BFI)
Optional BFI
Yes
Min Flicker For 60 fps
60 Hz
60Hz For 60 fps
Yes
120Hz For 120 fps
Yes
Min Flicker for 60 fps in Game Mode
60 Hz

This TV has an optional backlight strobing feature, commonly known as black frame insertion. It flickers at either 60Hz or 120Hz, depending on the content. The score for this test is based on the flicker frequency and not the actual performance.

Motion
Motion Interpolation
Motion Interpolation (30 fps)
Yes
Motion Interpolation (60 fps)
Yes

This TV has an optional motion interpolation feature to improve the appearance of motion. It can increase the frame rate of content up to 120fps, but it doesn't look very good with busy scenes. Slow scenes look good, but there are significant artifacts in busier scenes.

7.2
Motion
Stutter
Frame Hold Time @ 24 fps
29.8 ms
Frame Hold Time @ 60 fps
4.8 ms

Unfortunately, there's a bit of stutter when watching low frame rate content like movies. It's especially noticeable in slow panning shots.

10
Motion
24p Judder
Judder-Free 24p
Yes
Judder-Free 24p via 60p
Yes
Judder-Free 24p via 60i
Yes
Judder-Free 24p via Native Apps
Yes

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV automatically removes judder from any source, ensuring a smooth movie-watching experience.

9.5
Motion
Variable Refresh Rate
Native Refresh Rate
144 Hz
Variable Refresh Rate
Yes
HDMI Forum VRR
Yes
FreeSync
Yes
G-SYNC Compatible
Yes
4k VRR Maximum
144 Hz
4k VRR Minimum
< 20 Hz
1080p VRR Maximum
144 Hz
1080p VRR Minimum
< 20 Hz
1440p VRR Maximum
120 Hz
1440p VRR Minimum
< 20 Hz
VRR + Local Dimming Yes

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV has an extremely fast refresh rate. Along with the Samsung QN95B QLED, it's one of the only TVs on the market with a 144Hz refresh rate. It also supports variable refresh rate technology, ensuring a nearly tear-free gaming experience. It works across a wide range of refresh rates, and thanks to low framerate compensation, it remains nearly tear-free even if the frame rate drops low or if you're playing a game that's locked at a low frame rate. Note that the 85" model is limited to a 120Hz refresh rate.

There are a few oddities when using this TV with an AMD graphics card. With FreeSync enabled on the TV and in the AMD control panel, everything works fine. If you enable HDR in Windows or in a game directly, the TV re-handshakes and looks like it's in HDR, but all of the TV's settings show that it's in SDR. Even though the settings show that the TV thinks it's in SDR, the brightness levels are higher, the TV is tone mapping properly, and colors are more saturated, confirming that the TV is doing exactly what it's supposed to be doing in HDR. This issue doesn't occur with an NVIDIA graphics card.

Inputs
9.6
Inputs
Input Lag
1080p @ 60Hz
11.7 ms
1080p @ 60Hz Outside Game Mode
126.6 ms
1080p @ 120Hz
6.6 ms
1080p @ 144Hz
14.3 ms
1440p @ 60Hz
11.8 ms
1440p @ 120Hz
6.7 ms
1440p @ 144Hz
N/A
4k @ 60Hz
11.6 ms
4k @ 60Hz + 10-Bit HDR
11.5 ms
4k @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
11.8 ms
4k @ 60Hz Outside Game Mode
139.0 ms
4k @ 60Hz With Interpolation
133.3 ms
4k @ 120Hz
6.7 ms
4k @ 144Hz
13.8 ms
8k @ 60Hz
N/A

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV has superb low input lag, ensuring a very responsive gaming experience. The input lag is also low in 'PC' mode, which is great as you can enjoy clear text and a smooth desktop experience. Oddly, though, the input lag increases significantly when running at 144Hz.

9.6
Inputs
Supported Resolutions
Resolution 4k
480p @ 59.94Hz (Widescreen)
Yes
720p @ 59.94Hz
Yes
1080p @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
Yes
1080p @ 120Hz
Yes
1080p @ 144Hz
Yes
1440p @ 60Hz
Yes (forced resolution required)
1440p @ 120Hz
Yes
1440p @ 144Hz
No
4k @ 60Hz
Yes
4k @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
Yes
4k @ 120Hz
Yes
4k @ 120Hz @ 4:4:4
Yes
4k @ 144Hz
Yes
8k @ 30Hz or 24Hz
No
8k @ 60Hz
No

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV supports most common resolutions, but there are a few issues. Unfortunately, the 4k @ 144Hz feature doesn't work well with all sources, as it didn't work on our test PC with an RTX 3060, but it worked fine on a different PC with an RX6600XT. It supports chroma 4:4:4 with 60Hz signals, which is important for clear text from a PC. Unfortunately, with 1080p and 1440p signals chroma 4:4:4 isn't displayed properly at 120Hz. Chroma is displayed properly with a 4k @ 120Hz signal, but you have to be in either the 'Game' Picture Mode or have Game Mode enabled; otherwise, it skips frames, resulting in a 60Hz refresh rate.

Inputs
PS5 Compatibility
Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM)
Yes
4k @ 120Hz
Yes
1440p @ 120Hz
Yes
1080p @ 120Hz
Yes
HDR
Yes
VRR
Yes

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV is fully compatible with the PS5. Note that the variable refresh rate feature doesn't work with a 1440p resolution, but this is a limitation of the PS5, not the TV.

Inputs
Xbox Series X|S Compatibility
Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM)
Yes
4k @ 120Hz
Yes
1440p @ 120Hz
Yes
1080p @ 120Hz
Yes
HDR
Yes
VRR
Yes

This TV is nearly fully compatible with the Xbox Series S|X. It supports everything except for Dolby Vision gaming @ 120Hz, but very few TVs or games support this.

Inputs
Inputs Specifications
HDR10
Yes
HDR10+
Yes
Dolby Vision
Yes
HLG
Yes
HDMI 2.0 Full Bandwidth
Yes (HDMI 1,2,3,4)
HDMI 2.1 Class Bandwidth
Yes (HDMI 1,2)
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)

HDMI ports 1 and 2 support the full bandwidth of HDMI 2.1 (48Gbps according to CRU), and those are the only ports that support the 144Hz max refresh rate. Unfortunately, it doesn't support ATSC 3.0, so over-the-air broadcasts are limited to 1080p.

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

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV supports eARC, and unlike the TCL 5 Series/S555 2022 QLED, advanced audio formats work perfectly and are passed through automatically, with no downmixing.

Sound Quality
6.6
Sound Quality
Frequency Response
Low-Frequency Extension
142.54 Hz
Std. Dev. @ 70
2.86 dB
Std. Dev. @ 80
2.55 dB
Std. Dev. @ Max
3.23 dB
Max
87.3 dB SPL
Dynamic Range Compression
4.02 dB

The TCL 6 Series Roku TV has an okay frequency response. Like most TVs, there's very little bass response, with no thump or rumble in its deep bass. Dialogue is very clear, even at high volume levels, but like the TCL 5 Series/S555 2022 QLED, it can't get very loud and lacks a room correction feature, so it's not a good choice for noisy environments.

7.0
Sound Quality
Distortion
Weighted THD @ 80
0.130
Weighted THD @ Max
6.764
IMD @ 80
2.30%
IMD @ Max
3.29%

This TV has decent distortion performance at moderate and low listening levels. It increases significantly at high volume levels, especially in the high treble range.

Smart Features
8.0
Smart Features
Interface
Smart OS Roku TV
Version 11.5.0
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
No

Unfortunately, like all Roku TVs we've tested, there are large ads on the home screen and they can't be disabled.

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

There's a great selection of streaming apps to choose from, and most of the more popular streaming services are available.

7.0
Smart Features
Remote
Size
Small
Voice Control
Search, Some Other Features
CEC Menu Control
Yes
Other Smart Features
No
Remote App Roku

Fortunately, this TV comes with the voice remote found with most premium Roku devices. You can access voice controls either through the remote or through the Roku companion app. There are a few quick access buttons for popular streaming services, but like most TVs, you can't change them.

Smart Features
TV Controls

The power button is on the bottom bezel of the TV below the TCL branding, and you can change inputs with it too.

Smart Features
In The Box

  • Remote (with 2x AAA batteries)
  • Power cable
  • Manual

Smart Features
Misc
Power Consumption 75 W
Power Consumption (Max) 221 W
Firmware 11.5.0 build 4235-DK