Redmi 43-inch FHD TV Review: Does a 43-inch FHD TV shine in a sea of budget 4K HDR TVs

The Redmi 43-inch FHD Smart TV is a good TV overall. Not supporting 4K and HDR is not a con in this case as its picture performance is very good in SDR and better than some 4K HDR TVs we’ve tested in this price range. It has good colour reproduction and the panel works well for movies, TV shows and games. The audio output is fine for everyday use, especially considering the price of the TV. The only downside to the TV is that the UI can get laggy. The Redmi 43-inch FHD SDR TV is a very good option for those that understand the drawbacks of a budget 4K HDR TV and who want a TV that can reproduce content well. The only downside to the TV is the stutter I faced in the UI and hope this is something Xiaomi can fix via an update.

The 43-inch TV market is a very interesting one. Not only is it still one of the most popular screen sizes for consumers in India, but it is also one where consumers have the option between a full HD TV and 4K HDR offerings making the purchase decision all the more confusing. Today we have with us the Redmi 43-inch TV for review. It has a Full HD display and comes with Xiaomi’s own PatchWall UI, the same one we have seen on the recently launched Mi TV 5X (review) and the Redmi Smart TV X series (review). So, should you consider the Redmi 43-inch FHD TV? Does it make a better offering than a 4K TV around the same price range? Let's find out!

Redmi Smart TV 43 specs at a glance

Panel Size: 43-inch  Panel Resolution: 1920 x 1080p - FHD Panel Refresh Rate: 60Hz HDR 10 support: No HDR 10+ support: No Dolby Vision Support: No Weight: 6.5 kgs HDMI Ports: 2 USB Ports: 2 Bluetooth: Yes, 5.0 Wi-Fi: Yes, dual-band Ethernet: Yes Speakers: 20W  Built-in storage: 8GB RAM: 1GB Price: MRP: 25,999

Redmi Smart TV 43 Display Panel and Picture Quality

The Redmi Smart TV 43 has D-LED backlighting and we recorded a peak brightness slightly below 250 nits which is more than sufficient for SDR content. In our Calman analysis, we found that the Movie preset gave us an average delta error of 2.2 which is pretty good. To put things into perspective, the Mi TV 5X gave us an average delta error of 3.5 in SDR using the Movie preset. The lower delta error means better performance for SDR content, but we will talk more about this in our picture analysis. Even in the grayscale tracking, we found low delta errors in the 2-point grayscale tracking which is good with a slightly cool bias.

Above: ColorChecker Analysis for the Movie preset

Below: ColorChecker Analysis for the Standard preset

SDR playback

Since the TV does not support HDR, all the content we consume in HDR was played in SDR. This includes shows like Our Planet, Altered Carbon, and more on Netflix and Jack Ryan, Grand Tour and more on Prime Video. We also played our standard slew of SDR content like Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation, Spider-Man Homecoming and Young Sheldon. All the content on the TV looks quite enjoyable and even though the TV does not have dimming zones, a little bias light in the room ensures you get the best the TV has to offer. 

The Movie preset presented the best colours for most of the content we consumed. By default, the backlighting is set to 80 in the movie preset and I recommend bumping it up to 100 to get the best experience from the TV. For some content like Young Sheldon, the Standard preset brought about slightly punchier colours but for the rest of the content, we stuck to the Movie preset which presented a slightly warmer tone (like it should) while maintaining good colours. You can use the Standard preset and switch the colour temperature to warm if you like but, in my experience, this solution did not work well for all content. If you are looking to leave the TV on one setting, then I recommend keeping it on Movie with the backlighting bumped up.

What we would otherwise consume in HDR was in SDR on this TV and that is no bad thing. A lot of budget HDR TVs today do give a decent overall experience but none of them offer a true HDR experience which is found on much more expensive TVs. If you are looking for a good overall TV viewing experience, then the redmi 43-inch FHD TV will offer you a good experience overall. 

Redmi Smart TV 43 PS5 Gaming

We hooked up a PS5 (review) to the TV and the output we got was 1920x1080p HDCP 1.4 with RGB colours and naturally, no support for HDR. Once again, the experience we got from the console was quite good. There is a toggle to switch on ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode), but there was no visible difference in our gaming experience when switching this toggle on or off. 

We played games like Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart (review), Ghost of Tsushima (review), Dirt 5 (review) and Spider-Man: Miles Morales (review) and more. A good thing is that we got punchy colours with ample brightness for all the games. So, swinging towards the sun gave us a good experience in Spider-Man, but at the cost of details in the dark areas of the screen. In an HDR TV, you would have been able to make out the details in Spider-Man’s suit but the details are not highlighted well on this TV. The same is the case with Ratchet and Clank. But in the grand scheme of things, this is a small gripe as you will only know what you are missing if you know where to look. Else, you are presented with some very punchy colours and the overall gaming experience on this TV is good.

Ghost of Tsushima and Dirt 5 are great examples of how this TV works well. From the watercolour art style of Ghost to the summer filled tracks of Dirt 5, this is a very good TV for those looking for a gaming TV on a budget. I still recommend switching on the ALLM setting even though I didn't find any noticeable difference with this setting off. 

Redmi Smart TV 43 Audio Performance

This is where the TV falls short like most budget TVs but the output isn't unacceptable for the price. While the TV has just 20W of sound output they are clear which is important. We received an update during the course of this review which “Improved the audio performance”. When watching movies and TV shows the dialogues were clear and even during mixed audio, you can make out what characters on screen are saying. While an orchestral background score suffers at high volumes and there is no channel separation between the speakers for an immersive experience, the overall output is acceptable for everyday TV use. I sat about 6 feet away from the TV and was well immersed in everyday content consumption. 

Redmi Smart TV 43 UI

If you’ve used a Xiaomi TV in the past, you should feel right at home with the UI. It offers the best of both Android TV and the company’s own Patchwall UI. Patchwall has evolved to give you IMDB ratings of content as a part of the UI. There are also IMDB top 100 list, and more lists like HDR 10+ content, Dolby Vision content, etc. Although considering this is an FHD SDR TV, you will consume this HDR content in SDR, just so you know. 

While PatchWall has cemented itself as a good alternative to Android TV, the experience on the Redmi 43-inch TV is a bit laggy. We experienced some random stutters when navigating the UI and while at times this can be because of apps updating in the background, it happened often enough to not be the case here. While the lags aren’t so bad that they detract from the overall experience of the TV, they are noticeable present in everyday use. 

Redmi Smart TV 43 Remote control

You get the same remote control we’ve seen with Xiaomi TVs for a very long time now. It's slim, sleek, and minimalistic. It has directional buttons, power, Google Assistant, OTT hotkeys for Netflix and Prime Video and a volume rocker. You still need to double-tap the volume down button to mute the TV and I wish we get a dedicated mute button on the remote with the next refresh.   

Redmi Smart TV 43 Build and design

Considering this is a budget TV, we didn't expect any outstanding features with the build and design and what's on offer here is what you'd expect from a budget TV. The TV is held in place by 2 plastic feet and has glossy plastic bezels which aren't too thick. 

For connectivity we have 2 HDMI ports, 2 USB ports, AV in and an ethernet port along with an antenna port. There is also Bluetooth and dual-band Wi-Fi which is nice. Overall, it is a simple looking TV and that's ok considering you'll spend more time with the display which has decent performance. 

Redmi Smart TV 43 Bottom Line

The Redmi 43-inch FHD Smart TV is a good TV overall. Not supporting 4K and HDR is not a con in this case as its picture performance is very good in SDR and better than some 4K HDR TVs we’ve tested in this price range. It has good colour reproduction and the panel works well for movies, TV shows and games. The audio output is fine for everyday use, especially considering the price of the TV. The only downside to the TV is that the UI can get laggy. The Redmi 43-inch FHD SDR TV is a very good option for those that understand the drawbacks of a budget 4K HDR TV and who want a TV that can reproduce content well. The only downside to the TV is the stutters I faced in the UI and hope this is something Xiaomi can fix via an update.

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Samsung The Frame 2021 Review: Elegant design, punchy colours

The 50-inch Samsung Frame has a unique design that will definitely appeal to those that want their TV to blend into the decor of their room and the One Connect Box makes cable management a breeze. The picture quality of the TV for content consumption is very good for HDR and SDR content and Samsung’s Intelligent Picture Mode is good enough that you don't need to delve into the picture presets yourself. The UI is smooth and easy to navigate and even for gaming, the TV can make the content pop. While the HDR calibration for the PS5 isn't ideal natively, it's nothing that a little tinkering won't fix, making the TV good for gaming. However, those looking to exploit HDMI 2.1 features found on the PS5 and Xbox Series X will have to look at the 55-inch variant or higher as the 50-inch variant lacks a 120Hz display. On the downside, the TV does not support Dolby Vision and it loses out on some bright highlight details because of its lower peak brightness. The sound output though clear is average for mixed content like movies and gaming. If you are in the market to pick up a 50-inch TV around 75 to 80K, you can definitely consider the Frame. 

 

Samsung’s The Frame has been one of the most unique TVs available in the market with the ability to use the TV literally as a picture frame on the wall when not in use. Since the launch of the first generation of the Frame, we have seen a number of TV manufacturers offer a variety of ambient modes including the ability to use your TV as a picture frame. But the one thing that set Samsung’s The Frame apart from the competition was its unique bezels that make the TV look like a real frame, the one connect box that makes cable management a breeze and of course, the picture quality of the TV. Today we have with us the 50-inch 2021 Frame from Samsung. Does it live up to the legacy?

Samsung The Frame 2021: Specs at a glance

Panel Size: 50-inch (available in 43, 55, 65 and 75-inch screen sizes)  Panel Type: VA  Panel Resolution: 3840 x 2160 - 4K Panel Refresh Rate: 60Hz (55-inch and higher have a 120Hz display) HDR 10 support: Yes HDR 10+ support: Yes Dolby Vision Support: No Weight: 12.2 kgs HDMI Ports: 4 USB Ports: 2 Bluetooth: Yes, 4.2 Wi-Fi: Yes, dual-band Ethernet: Yes Speakers: 20W Built-in storage: 16GB Price: 75,990

Samsung The Frame: Display Panel and Picture Quality

Kicking things off with the display panel, the TV has QLED backlighting and does not come with any dimming zones. Using the Calman we got sustained brightness of 350 nits but we recorded a peak brightness of slightly over 500 nits in some real-world use. But the brightness calibration when it comes to the PS5 (review) is a mystery which we will explore in later sections. In our ColorChecker analysis, we got an average delta error of 10.5 in the BT 2020 colour space in HDR which is quite impressive. While the SDR numbers in terms of delta error were higher than we’d like, this did not translate into the real-world performance of the TV. In real-world use, the TV can produce some punchy colours which we’ve experienced on Samsung TVs in the past. 

Samsung The Frame: 4K and HDR performance

Let’s get the bad news out of the way, the Frame does not support Dolby Vision. It supports HDR 10 and 10+ along with HLG. While the lack of Dolby Vision is missed, TV can produce good HDR content. In this case, it is an acceptable tradeoff rather than having a spec on paper and lack performance. 

We saw our standard slew of content on the TV from streaming services like Our Planet, Altered Carbon, Jack Ryan, Grand Tour, Ready Player One and many more. The most interesting thing to note is the picture presets. While you do have the ability to switch from Standard to Movie, so on and so forth, I’d recommend keeping the “Intelligent mode” of the TV on as it does a great job of judging the content on the screen and changing the settings accordingly. The only recommendation I’ll make is to go into the ‘Expert Settings' and switching ‘Picture Clarity Settings’ off to turn off motion smoothing. 

For HDR content, the intelligent mode brings about warm tones when needed and skin tones look natural. While the TV isn’t the brightest, we’ve seen, it isn’t dull by any means, retaining a good amount of highlights in HDR content. You’ll only know what you are missing if you know where to look. If I had to describe the colours on this TV in one word it would be punchy and that shows when you consume HDR content.  

Samsung The Frame: SDR performance

We played a lot of content on this TV in SDR and Samsung has done something very right with its “intelligent mode” picture setting. When watching animated content, the colours look very vibrant. Even in a movie like Spider-Man: Homecoming, the reds and blues in Spider-Man’s suit are very well accentuated while the skin tones and other colours are natural without exhibiting any unnatural vividness. Sure, you can play around with the settings yourself. For example, the Movie preset works well, just remember to change the colour temperature to Warm 2 and bump up the backlighting to full. 

Even in a show like Young Sheldon, skin tones look good without overexposure and the colours look very natural. You can change the picture preset to Dynamic to get punchier colours but at the cost of details. Once again, leave the Intelligent mode on and you don't need to worry about a thing. 

Samsung The Frame: Gaming

This is where things get quite interesting. When you set up the PS5 with this TV and adjust the HDR brightness, it looks like the TV is compensating in some ways for its lower peak brightness by letting you set the brightness of the console much higher than it can handle. This was very evident in a game like Dirt 5 (review) that looked burnt when we played it and we had to change the HDR settings in the game to have an enjoyable experience. Going back into the PS5 settings and changing it based on what I felt was right rather than what was on display yielded better results. While there is a loss of detail in very bright highlights, the picture quality is in no way bad. Once again, you wouldn’t know what to look for as it was only in the extremely bright highlights that there is a loss of detail on this TV.

In Spider-Man Miles Morales (review), the sun is raining down on you while you can still make out the details in Spider-Man’s suite is impressive. Colours in games just pop on this TV and even in Ghost of Tsushima, the watercolour colour art style of the game comes to life. 

The only downside to the TV's gaming performance is that to take advantage of the 120Hz panel and some HDMI 2.1 features, you need to invest in the 55-inch or larger variant of this TV. The 50-inch TV is limited to 60Hz. The TV’s game mode supports low latency and from the single-player games we played, we didn’t face any disturbing input lag on the TV. 

Samsung The Frame: Audio Performance

Samsung’s The Frame 2021 has 20W of sound output for the 43 and 50-inch variant whereas the larger screen sizes have 40W of sound output. Clear is the best way to describe the sound output from the TV. While you will miss the bangs and thuds of an action movie, dialogues are easily audible and the background score of most movies and TV shows sounds fine. 

The speakers can get really loud but I found that keeping it at about 40 percent volume gave a loud room-filling sound. There is a loss of detail at very high volumes but for the average bedroom, the performance should be fine. It makes sense to invest in a soundbar with this TV especially considering its eARC port and support for Dolby Atmos.   

Samsung The Frame: UI

Samsung’s TVs run on the company’s own Tizen UI and functional is the best way to describe it. Pressing the home buttons brings up all the apps neatly in a row at the bottom of the display and if you have an external device like a PlayStation 5, then that also comes up in the content navigation. You can rearrange the apps and external sources based on your preference making navigation a breeze. 

The settings are at the far left of the navigation bar and once you select it, there is a second row of quick settings for you to interact with before delving deep. Even the other settings like picture, external source, audio, and more are easily accessible and no setting feels too buried as the UI is very easy to navigate. 

There is also the Art mode and Ambient mode in the TV which is a highlight of the Frame. In Art mode, you can have your family picture or simply pictures from Samsung’s vast catalogue occupying the TV adding to your room decor. The ambient mode has a vast number of settings from changing the background based on the mood to relaxing views of the mountains and even balls bouncing on the screen. You can also have weather information on the screen when the TV is not in use. 

To delve deep into the settings of the TV with ease, I highly recommend you download and set up the smart things app. The app has the usual set of functions letting you switch on/off the TV, control the art and ambient mode on the TV, navigate the apps, control the volume and change the source. Needless to say, if the remote control is out of reach, then the smartphone app is your best friend. 

Samsung The Frame: Remote Control

Speaking of the remote control, it has a minimal design. It has a USB-C port at the bottom so no need to change the batteries. You can also leave the remote control under light and let it recharge as it has a small solar panel at the back, which is really cool. Coming to the buttons, the volume rocker and channel changer have a distinct click to them when used and you can simply press the volume button to mute the TV. You have OTT hotkeys for Netflix, Prime Video and Samsung TV Plus. The rest of the navigation is pretty simple and overall, the remote control is easy to use. 

Samsung The Frame: Build and design

Samsung’s One Connect box is the most unique design adding to the convenience of cable management, but the Frame goes beyond that. It has simple black borders which can be customized with different coloured designs to give it a picture frame like feel. We have the light brown one here for review. While it does add to the picture frame appeal of the TV, some might find it distracting especially in an age of nearly bezel-less TVs. Nonetheless, it is a personal preference. 

The TV can be wall-mounted and that's where it would do the most justice to its design, but if you place it on a table-top, it has 2 slim feet that slot in and hold the TV well in place. The feet protrude forward so you might want to check for space in case you plan to place a soundbar below the TV. Then we have the One Connect Box which houses all the connectivity options. It connects to the TV via a single cable that's almost invisible making the TV the centrepiece of your room without being surrounded by wires. The One Connect Box has four HDMI ports (one of which supports eARC), two USB ports, Optical, AV, and antenna.    

Bottom Line

The 50-inch Samsung The Frame has a unique design that will definitely appeal to those that want their TV to blend into the decor of their room and the One Connect Box makes cable management a breeze. The picture quality of the TV for content consumption is very good for HDR and SDR content and Samsung’s Intelligent Picture Mode is good enough that you don't need to delve into the picture presets yourself. The UI is smooth and easy to navigate and even for gaming, the TV can make the content pop. While the HDR calibration for the PS5 isn't ideal natively, it's nothing that a little tinkering won't fix making the TV good for gaming. However, those looking to exploit HDMI 2.1 features found on the PS5 and Xbox Series X will have to look at the 55-inch variant or higher as the 50-inch variant lacks a 120Hz display. On the downside, the TV does not support Dolby Vision and it loses out on some bright highlight details because of its lower peak brightness. The sound output through clear is average for mixed content like movies and gaming. If you are in the market to pick up a 50-inch TV around 75 to 80K, you can definitely consider the Frame. The closest competitor we’ve tested is the Sony X80J.

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Coocaa 32-inch HD ready S3U Pro TV Review: Good panel, bleak smart features

What the Coocaa 32-inch S3U Pro has going for it is a good SDR, HD ready panel for content consumption from a set-top-box or even an external source like a Fire TV stick. If smart features are not important to you and you want a good panel on a budget, then you can check out this TV. The audio output from the TV is average. Where it falls short is with its Coolita OS 1.0. which make the device feels more like an internet-enabled TV than a smart TV. It lacks popular streaming apps and the app store has only a handful of apps, as of writing this review. The catch is that for a decent smart TV experience you will need to spend at least Rs 4000 more. If you are going to use a TV with your set-top-box only, then you can go ahead and check this TV out and save the Rs 4000, considering the overall performance of the panel of the TV. If you decide to delve into the world of a “smart TV” you can always consider a device like the Fire TV stick to make this a “smart TV” as the panel it offers is pretty good for everyday content consumption, considering the 11K price point.

A 32-inch TV today is considered an entry-level TV. It has an HD ready resolution and comes with the most basic features one would expect from a TV. While there are 32-inch HD ready TVs available around the 10K budget, most of them don't come with any decent smart capabilities. To get a 32-inch TV running on the Android TV UI, you will have to shell out 15-16K. Here we have brands like Xiaomi, OnePlus, AmazonBasics and more offering TV with decent smart capabilities. Today we have with us the Coocaa 32-inch S3U Pro. The TV runs on the company's own Coolita OS 1.0. Let's dive deep into the TV and see how it performs. 

Coocaa 32-inch HD ready TV Specs at a glance

Panel Size: 32-inch  Panel Type: IPS Panel Resolution: 1366 x 768 - HD Ready Panel Refresh Rate: 60Hz HDR 10 support: No Dolby Vision Support: No Weight (with stand): 3.2 kgs HDMI Ports: 2 USB Ports: 1 Bluetooth: No Wi-Fi: Yes (2.4Ghz Only) Ethernet: Yes Speakers: 2 drivers with a total sound output of 20W Built-in storage: 4GB Price: MRP: 10,999

Coocaa 32-inch HD ready TV: Display and picture quality

Let's kick things off with the display panel and picture quality. The TV has an HD ready resolution and does not support any HDR formats. In our measurements, we recorded a peak brightness of about 200 nits which is more than sufficient for SDR content. In our ColorChecker Analysis, we found that the movie preset had a low delta error of 4.6 while the standard preset had a delta error of 14.7, but the real-world performance tells a different tale. Let's break down the content we consumed on the TV.

Above: ColorChecker Analysis in Standard preset of the Coocaa TV.

Below: ColorChecker Analysis in Movie preset of the Coocaa TV.

Coocaa 32-inch HD ready TV: SDR performance

Since the TV does not support HDR, all the content we saw on this TV was in SDR and the results were quite interesting. Starting with the settings, while the Standard preset has a higher error than the movie preset, we found that keeping the TV on the standard preset and switching the colour temperature to warm gave a better overall performance. Look at the image of Jack Ryan below.

Above: Jack Ryan on Prime Video played via PS5 on Standard Preset

Below: Jack Ryan on Prime Video played via PS5 on Movie Preset

In the Movie preset you can see that while the colours are a tad more accurate, but there is a loss of detail in this dark scene. On the other hand, the Standard preset gives you more details of the scene. For most content consumption, I recommend keeping the TV on the Standard preset and changing the colour temperature to warm. 

Even content like Our Planet on Netflix played in SDR on the TV and the overall output was good and enjoyable. Same for Young Sheldon on Prime Video or even Spider-Man: Homecoming on Netflix. In both cases, we have good colours and the TVs brightness is ample enough to get the job done in a decently-lit room. If you are looking for a TV to connect your set-top box then this is a good budget panel to have.  

Coocaa 32-inch HD ready TV: Gaming performance

We connected our PS5 (review) to the TV and while the PS5 is overkill for this TV, it should give you an idea of the gaming capabilities of the TV. There are two “game mode” settings in this TV - one in the picture presets and the other in the settings. It would be tough for me to tell you which one works for input lag as toggling both on and off had little effect on anything but the picture settings. 

We played our standard slew of games from Spider-Man Miles Morales (review), Ghost of Tsushima (review), Dirt 5 (review) and more and honestly, considering we are playing in SDR the experience was acceptable considering the price of the TV. The console is outputting in 1080p on this TV so you are getting a super-sampled image on the 1366x768 display, which is good. You will notice the low resolution of the display on in-game text, but that's just a small niggle in an otherwise decent experience. The colours in the games looked good, and there was no sequence that felt too dark for comfort. So, if you have a PS4 or Xbox One and hook it up to this TV, you should do fine. 

Overall, the panel performs quite well for a TV priced around 10K. but you have to know that HD ready TVs have been around for about 2 decades so we'd be surprised if the TV delivered sub-par performance.  

Coocaa 32-inch HD ready TV: Audio performance

While the 32-inch Realme TV (review) we reviewed earlier this year has 24W of sound output from 4 drivers, the Coocaa TV we have today supports 2 drivers with a sound output of 20W. The sound quality isn't the best, and of all the sound presets, I found leaving it on standard and keeping the surround sound off had the best output. While the speakers are fine for everyday content consumption like news, documentaries and TV shows, it's with movies, games and any form of mixed audio where they lack the punch. At about 25 the volume is easily audible for a small to a mid-sized bedroom (10 feet by 12 feet) but don't expect to be engulfed in a cinematic experience. 

Coocaa 32-inch HD ready TV: UI

The Coocaa  S3U Pro runs on the company’s own Coolita OS 1.0. While the 1.0 should be an indication that it's in its first generation, it lacks popular streaming services like Netflix, Prime Video, Hotstar, Sony Liv, Voot, and many many more. It has YouTube and Hungama Play, if that's something you consume. 

The UI only occupies the bottom of the screen and all the apps and app stores are listed in a line, much like what we’ve seen with LG’s WebOS. If you select YouTube, you get a second row showing you content in the service without actually opening the app. We’ve seen the same implemented in LG’s WebOS UI on many TVs. While it is functional and works well, the lack of apps like we’ve seen on Android TVs is disappointing. There is no assistant here either for voice commands. While this TV is about Rs 4000 cheaper than a 32-inch HD ready Android TV, the lack of the smart OS shouldn't be a problem for those looking to exclusively consume content via a set-top box. You can always invest in a Fire TV Stick in the future to get a smart TV experience from this TV. 

Needless to say, the Coolita OS 1.0 offers a very basic internet-enabled TV experience. 

Coocaa 32-inch HD ready TV: Remote control

The remote control that comes with the TV is simple and ergonomic. It’s not a Bluetooth remote control so you have to point it in the vicinity of the TV to get it to run. It has OTT hotkeys for YouTube and Hungama Play. It also has a volume rocker, home, back, menu, source, select, directional buttons and more. Overall, the remote is simple and easy to use.  

Coocaa 32-inch HD ready TV: Build and design

The TV has simple silver plastic feet holding it in place and the feet have an arch design similar to the one we saw on the Blaupunkt Cybersound TV (review). The chin of the TV is the thickest bezel and the silver there blends with the feet. The TV has black bezels on the other 3 sides. They do a good job of blending in, making it as though the TV has almost no bezels but if you pay attention, you will notice them. 

Coming to connectivity, the Coocaa TV has two HDMI ports, one USB port, an antenna port, 3.5mm out, AV in and a LAN port. There is no Bluetooth. While the TV supports Wi-Fi it only supports the 2.4GHz band which shouldn't be a problem for most users. 

Coocaa 32-inch HD ready TV: Verdict

What the Coocaa 32-inch S3U Pro has going for it is a good SDR, HD ready panel for content consumption from a set-top-box or even an external source like a Fire TV stick. If smart features are not important to you and you want a good panel on a budget, then you can check out this TV. The audio output from the TV is average. Where it falls short is with its Coolita OS 1.0. which make the device feels more like an internet-enabled TV than a smart TV. It lacks popular streaming apps and the app store has only a handful of apps as of writing this review. The catch is that for a decent smart TV experience you will need to spend at least Rs 4000 more. If you are going to use a TV with your set-top-box only, then you can go ahead and check this TV out and save the Rs 4000 considering the overall performance of the panel of the TV. If you decide to delve into the world of a “smart TV” you can always consider a device like the Fire TV stick to make this a “smart TV” as the panel it offers is pretty good for everyday content consumption considering the 11K price point.

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TCL C825 65-inch Mini LED TV Review: Fantastic picture performance

The TCL C825 is a fantastic TV for content consumption. It can get very bright, delivering a very good HDR experience while retaining good details in dark areas. It has very good colour reproduction for SDR content as well. While the colours aren’t as accurate as of the Sony X90J for example, they do a very good job for real-world content consumption. Most people will be very satisfied with the colour reproduced by the TCL C825. The TV has very good sound output. It also comes with two HDMI 2.1 ports with support for 4K at 120Hz, VRR and ALLM, making it a great TV for those looking to play games on a PS5 or Xbox Series X on this TV. Sadly, only two of the four HDMI ports support HDMI 2.1, one of which is eARC enabled. The only place where the TV falters is with inconsistencies and bugs in the UI. But if you invest in a device like a Fire TV Cube or Apple TV, then you can expect an immersive experience when consuming content on this TV. The 65-inch TCL C825 is priced at Rs 1,49,990 as of writing this review, making it about Rs 40,000 cheaper than the Sony 65-inch X90J. It is also cheaper than the LG 65-inch C1 OLED TV by Rs 1 lakh approx, as of writing this review and considering the price of the TCL C825, it is definitely a value for money proposition when it comes to picture performance.

 

A lot of brands including TCL, Samsung and LG have started launching Mini LED TVs in India. TCL announced its C825 mini-LED TV at the beginning of the year and it is available in India in 55 and 65-inch screen sizes. We have the 65-inch variant with us for review and long story short, this TV has fantastic picture performance along with very good sound output. But it falls short when it comes to some UI niggles. The TV is feature-rich with two HDMI 2.1 ports (overall four HDMI ports) and comes with an Onkyo 2.1 system built-in. Let's dive deep into the performance of this TV. 

TCL C828: Specs at a glance

Panel Size: 65-inch (also available in 55-inch) Panel Type: VA LED Panel Resolution: 3840 x 2160 - 4K Panel Refresh Rate: 120Hz HDR 10 support: Yes Dolby Vision Support: Yes HDR10+ support: Yes Weight (with stand): approx 32kgs HDMI Ports: 4 USB Ports: 2 Bluetooth: Yes Wi-Fi: Yes Ethernet: Yes Speakers: 60W (15Wx2+30W Subwoofer) Built-in storage: 32GB Price: Rs 1,49,990

TCL C825: Display and picture quality

Let's kick things off with the performance of the Mini LED TV panel. This is the first Mini LED TV that we have tested. We have the 65-inch variant with us and the TV boasts of a 4K resolution with support for all popular HDR formats including Dolby Vision, HDR 10, HDR 10+ and HLG. The TV is also the first we have tested to come with support for Dolby Vision IQ. 

Above: TCL C825 has a peak brightness surpassing 1000 nits.

Below: Grayscale Tracking shows the TV has a cool bias. 

Kicking things off with our Calman analysis, this TV is the brightest we have tested, crossing the 1000 nits mark at the 5 to 10 percent window and gives us sustained brightness of over 500 nits which is extremely impressive. However, when it comes to colours, the TV has a cool bias even on the cinema preset with a warm colour temperature selected. However, the TVs its real-world performance tells a different tale. 

Above: ColorChecker Analysis, Movie preset, rec 709 colour space

Below: ColorChecker Analysis, Movie preset, rec 2020 colour space

TCL C825: 4K and HDR performance

“Holy smokes, this TV can get bright!” is the first thing that will come to mind when you start consuming HDR content. The bright highlights can get really bright while retaining all the details in the dark areas. We saw our standard slew of Content on Netflix in Dolby Vision such as Our Planet, Altered Carbon, and many more. We also saw The Dark Knight and Ready Player one in Dolby Vision using the Apple TV app. This was the first time we had Dolby Vision IQ as a setting in addition to Dolby Vision Bright and Dolby Vision Dark. Dolby Vision IQ essentially controlled the backlighting of the TV to give you a more comfortable viewing experience based on the lighting in the room. While this was good and effective for a pitch-dark room, I still recommend leaving some bias light on in the room and leaving the settings to Dolby Vision bright as the bright highlights can really get punchy on this TV. The details in the dark sequences are also very well maintained.

Even for HDR 10 content on Prime Video, in a show like Jack Ryan which has a slightly dark environment we use to check the performance of the TV, the details were well defined and visible. Needless to say, this TV can give the best of the best a run for its money when consuming HDR Content. While the colours aren't as accurate as what we saw on the X90J (review), they still get the job done very well. 

TCL C825: FHD & SDR performance

SDR content also looks fantastic on this TV. From our regular shows like Friends, Young Sheldon, to movies like Mission Impossible and Spider-Man Homecoming, it all looks vivid, albeit with a slight cool bias. In a show like Young Sheldon, you have very good colours, but the skin tones are still better on a TV like the Sony X90J for perspective. The red and blue in Spider-Man’s suit are well defined with the black web design distinctly visible. Needless to say, even for everyday TV viewing, the TV does an excellent job. 

Picture presets, like Standard, Dynamic, Movie, etc. do change the settings based on the content being consumed and if you don't want to play around with the picture presets, you can simply toggle on the intelligent picture settings and the TV will change the settings to best suit the content. This worked well 8 out of 10 times, so safe to say, you can leave this toggle on. 

TCL C825: Gaming performance

Hallelujah! The TCL C825 supports 4K at 120Hz (natively) along with RGB HDR. It has four HDMI ports, two of which support HDMI 2.1 including eARC. The TV also supports VRR, but we don't have an Xbox Series X (review) to test that. We do however have a PS5 (review) and played a lot of games on the console on this TV. If you are looking for bright, punchy colours and a good gaming experience, then the TCL C825 can definitely be a consideration. In a game like Spiderman Miles Morales (review), when swinging towards the sun, you will notice that the red web lines in Spider-Man's black outfit can lose details on some TVs but here, they are very clearly visible. Even the details and colours in his suit to the bright sparks of Spidey’s venom powers, all are clearly visible.

In a game like Dirt 5 (review), the brought highlight of the sun pouring onto the race track is also an experience worth having. It really does feel like driving on a desert track with the bright sun shining on you. 

Even Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart (review) with its beautiful cartoon-like environments and bright muzzle flashes of the guns is an experience worth having. Needless to say, those of you looking for a gaming TV can definitely consider the TCL C825. 

TCL C825: Audio performance

The TCL C825 comes with 60W of sound output for the 65-inch variant - two 15W drivers and a 30W subwoofer. The subwoofer is at the back of the TV while the 15W drivers are front fracking hidden behind this grey fabric material. The sound from the TV can get really loud and detailed and unless you are finicky for good bass during high octave explosion in movies, you don't need a soundbar with this TV. 

It has very good channel separation especially during the race sequence at the 12-minute mark in Ready Player One. The bass during this sequence including the grunts and crashes of the car to the roar of King Kong all are good and clearly audible. Same for shows with dialogues be it documentaries or even movies with mixed audio. 

A good thing about the TV is its intelligent audio settings. Switch this on and it changes the settings based on the content and this works quite well. Although you can go into the TVs settings and manually change the preset to suit one that works for you. For me, it was mostly a movie or standard. The TV supports Dolby Atmos as well, but don't expect the sound to come from above or behind you when using the TV speakers. 

TCL C825: UI

This is where the TV suffers and shows inconsistencies. It runs on Android TV 11 and comes with a stock UI with the usual bells and whistles like far-field mics, Chromecast built-in, Google Play Store giving you access to streaming services, etc. It's the same Android TV experience we’ve seen on many TVs in the past. The TV does not run on the Google TV UI but is expected to get the new UI via an update. 

While the TV UI works well, for the most part, there were times when Netflix froze, the Google Assistant refused to work and the UI lagged. I was forced to restart this TV on more than one occasion until I finally gave up and consumed content from my Fire TV Cube. I hope TCL can fix the bugs in the UI via an update as it is the only Achilles heel in an otherwise good TV. 

TCL C825: Remote control

The remote control that comes with the TCL C825 is a simple candy bar remote control offering function over form. It has dedicated OTT hotkeys for services like Netflix, Prime Video and Zee5 and also comes with traditional channel settings, navigation, source selection, Google Assistant, etc. While the remote is ergonomic and good overall, I wish the mute button were closer to the volume rocker and there were dedicated playback controls to add more convenience to it.  

TCL C825: Build and design

Well-built and premium is the first thing that comes to mind when you will see the TCL C825. It isn't the slimmest TV out there which is fine considering the features it packs under the hood. There is a prominent only logo at the back where the subwoofer is housed. The borders have this silver finish giving the TV a premium feel. 

The grey fabric finish hides the front-firing speaker drivers and it also adds an elegant look to the TV. You also have an LED indicator out here and it is as subtle as the one found on the Sony X90J which is very good. 

The stand holding the TV in place is sturdy and is a single central stand. So even if you have a small table on which you will house this TV, you should be able to accommodate a 65-inch one as I have. 

All the connectivity options are on one side facing outwards and easy to reach. We have two USB ports, four HDMI ports, ethernet, AV In, 3.5mm aux, optical and antenna ports. 

Bottom Line

The TCL C825 is a fantastic TV for content consumption. It can get very bright delivering a very good HDR experience while retaining good details in dark areas. It has very good colour reproduction for SDR content as well. While the colours aren’t as accurate as of the Sony X90J for example, they do a very good job for real-world content consumption. Most people will be very satisfied with the colour reproduced by the TCL C825. The TV has very good sound output. It also comes with two HDMI 2.1 ports with support for 4K at 120Hz, VRR and ALLM making it a great TV for those looking to play games on a PS5 or Xbox Series X on this TV. Sadly, only two of the four HDMI ports support HDMI 2.1 one of which is eARC enabled. The only place where the TV falters is with inconsistencies and bugs in the UI. But if you will invest in a device like a Fire TV Cube or Apple TV, then you can expect an immersive experience when consuming content on this TV. The 65-inch TCL C825 is priced at Rs 1,49,990 as of writing this review making it about Rs 40,000 cheaper than the Sony 65-inch X90J. It is also cheaper than the LG 65-inch C1 OLED TV by Rs 1 lakh approx. and considering the price of the TCL C825, it is definitely a value for money proposition when it comes to picture and sound performance.

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