Our Verdict
The M Series 2017 is a good TV for a mixed usage. It has good picture quality in a dark room, good handling of motion and features a nice set of HDR related features.
- Great blacks
- Low motion blur
- Better than average local dimming
- Image quality deteriorates at an angle
- Handling of reflections is below average
- Lacks a TV tuner
Great choice for movies in a dark room. The Vizio M produces deep and uniform blacks, and it sports a decent local dimming feature that enhances its contrast further.
The M Series 2017 does an ordinary job with TV shows. It gets decently bright, but it doesn't do a great job at handling reflections. Unfortunately, its upscaling capability is average as well.
Decent TV for watching live sports. The Vizio M series handles motion well, and it produces a uniform image free of major blotchiness. Unfortunately though, picture quality does degrade at an angle.
Great TV for video games. The Vizio M 2017 has low input lag and motion blur. Games feel responsive, and its image flicker feature can greatly enhance the clarity of motion.
The Vizio M 2017 handles HDR movies well. It gets decently bright, and it can reproduce a slightly wider range of colors. It's not the best at handling gradients though.
Very good HDR gaming performance. An HDR input doesn't affect the input lag of the M Series 2017, making it a good choice for HDR consoles.
The M Series 2017 makes for an average PC monitor. While it supports the necessary resolutions for sharp text, the narrow viewing angle causes edges of the screen to darken from up-close. The input lag, while fine for more casual gaming, can also seem a bit sluggish for use with a mouse.
Changelog
- Updated Mar 12, 2018: Converted to Test Bench 1.2.
- Updated Jan 23, 2018: Retested input lag with the latest firmware (3.4.8.15). Input lag is ~9 ms higher across the board; this is also the case with the E Series 2017 and HDMI port 1 on the P Series 2017.
- Updated Aug 10, 2017: Converted to Test Bench 1.1.
- Updated Jun 09, 2017: Review published.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The Vizio M Series 2017 that we bought is the 65" with SKU M65-E0. Different sizes have different panel provenances, so it is possible our review doesn't represent exactly all sizes. If someone's Vizio M Series 2017 doesn't correspond to our review, let us know and we will update the review.
Update 03/12/2018: We have received reports of different panels in the 50" Model (M50-E1). One reader has an offset sub-pixel arrangement which can result in a less-accurate 4k image, especially when used as a PC monitor as the sub-pixels are nonstandard. For another reader the same model of TV has a regular sub-pixel arrangement, which is unlikely to have these issues. There may be a panel lottery in this size.
| Size | Model | Effective Refresh Rate | Real Refresh Rate | Local Dimming Zones |
| 50" | M50-E1 | 120 Hz | 60 Hz | 32 |
| 55" | M55-E0 | 120 Hz | 60 Hz | 32 |
| 65" | M65-E0 | 120 Hz | 60 Hz | 32 |
| 70" | M70-E3 | 120 Hz | 60 Hz | 32 |
| 75" | M75-E1 | 120 Hz | 60 Hz | 32 |
Popular TV Comparisons
The M Series 2017 is a good performer at its price, and offers some of the features found on the more expensive Vizio P Series 2016. It is generally a good pick over its direct competition.
The Vizio M Series XLED 2017 is a bit better than the Vizio E Series 2017. The M Series has a better local dimming feature than the E Series, making it a better choice for movies and HDR content in a dark room. It is also brighter than the E Series with SDR content. The 55" Vizio E Series uses an IPS panel, making it a slightly better choice than the M Series if you watch TV in a wide, bright room.
The TCL P Series/P607 2017 is better than the Vizio M Series XLED 2017. The TCL P607 has much better input lag, both for HDR and SDR, and a better response time, which is great if you play video games. The TCL P607 is better for watching TV shows in bright rooms as its brightness can fight glare better, and it has better reflection handling. On the other hand, the Vizio M Series 2017 is better for movies as it has better black uniformity and better 24p judder removal, which is great if you watch low fps movies. Finally, the Vizio M Series 2017 has better gray uniformity, which makes it marginally better for sports fans.
The Vizio P Series XLED 2017 is significantly better than the Vizio M Series 2017. The P Series has lower input lag and lower response time, which is great if you play video games. The P Series has better local dimming and is equipped with motion interpolation for those who like the soap opera effect. Finally, the P Series is better suited for watching TV shows in brighter rooms, as it has higher brightness to fight glare and slightly better reflection handling.
The Vizio M Series XLED 2017 is much better than the Element Amazon Fire TV. The Vizio M Series supports HDR and has a local dimming feature that improves dark room performance. It also has lower input for gaming and is more consistent in removing judder from 24p sources. The Fire TV has an optional motion interpolation feature that can make motion appear smoother by introducing some soap opera effect.
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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