"TCL takes privacy and security very seriously, and particularly appreciates the vital role that independent researchers play in the technology ecosystem."
TCL says the problem affects "a limited number" of its TVs—model numbers 32S330, 40S330, 43S434, 50S434, 55S434, 65S434, and 75S434.
This TV has a Chinese backdoor, confirmed by TCL. Just for your information.
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A few tips/info for those who bought this TV:
1. Pairing remote via bluetooth
The remote uses IR by default which is a pain in the neck. Press the Home and OK buttons simultaneously, the remote will pair via bluetooth.
2. Checking for dark spots/dead pixels
Install "Puffin TV Browser" from the play store. Then use the browser to visit http://lcdtech.info/en/tests/dead.pixel.htm for dead pixel test, click start. You will be able to switch through different colors using the "OK" button on the remote. Use these to check if your TV has dead pixels or dark spots.
3. Updating OS
Go to Settings -> Device Preferences -> About -> System Update and select Network Update. The TV should find the latest version of the OS (if not already installed) and start updating.
4. Fixing the lag in Android TV
Go to Settings -> Device Preferences -> About. Scroll down till you are on "Build". Keep pressing OK while on Build several times to enable Developer Mode. Now go to Settings -> Device Preferences -> Developer Options. Scroll down until you see "Background process limit" under Apps subheading. Change this from "Standard limit" to "At most 4 processes" or below. You can also disable all the animations under "Drawing" subheading to make the TV even snappier.
Note: Some folks have reported that these settings don't stick. That is, the TV forgets these when you restart. This is a bug with earlier versions of TCL software, make sure you are running the latest version.
5. Calibration
It seems that the calibration settings from rtings work well for this TV. Try the following settings (press the "Settings" button on the remote (gear symbol) to get to the TV settings.
Picture -> Picture Mode = Movie
Picture -> Brightness = 50
Picture -> Advanced Settings -> Brightness Settings -> Brightness = 50
Picture -> Advanced Settings -> Brightness Settings -> Contrast = 90
Picture -> Advanced Settings -> Color -> Color Saturation = 45
Picture -> Advanced Settings -> Color -> Color Temperature = Warm
Picture -> Advanced Settings -> Color -> Dynamic Contrast = Off
Picture -> Advanced Settings -> Color -> Dynamic Backlight = Off
Picture -> Advanced Settings -> Clarity -> Sharpness = 0
SDer drfilthy recommends a slight variation here: https://slickdeals.net/forums/showpost.php?p=
Go to YouTube and watch a few 4k videos. "Breathtaking Colors of Nature in 4k" is a good one. Play with these picture settings to suit your needs.
-------------------ISSUES [I] & FIXES [F]:
I: While streaming Youtube, occasionally would abruptly exit Youtube and enter regular TV broadcast without me touching remote control. Does not happen with Netflix. Remote is not paired
F: ???
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I have a TCL 6 series, Hisense from BB, and Onn from Walmart. The 6 series is noticeably better than the other two but not by a massive margin. The Hisense and Onn are almost identical in terms of image quality.
It's insane to me that they can sell quality 4k 65" TVs for this price. Like seriously, the Hisense and Onn look unbelievable for the price.
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2nd part is contrast. The TCL is pretty good.
3rd part is upscaling OTA. TCL is good the Hisense is just awful.
I take the TCL over the other cheap ones but that glossy screen is annoying. Avoid LG since contrast is pretty bad. TCL 6 series is better option if you get a deal.
Regarding Samsung which you can get deals on....I would get except for center DSE. 6 and 7 series does not have DSE. The DSE in the center is an off yellow. Beware of samsung model numbers...higher does not mean better from last year. In fact, its worse. Although samsungs have the best upscaling I have ever seen in a TV.
Rtings.
Gray uniformity on our Samsung RU9000 is decent; however, this can vary between individual units. The sides are visibly darker and there's some dirty screen effect at the center of the screen. There's also a bit of flashlighting in the bottom corners of the screen, but it isn't visible in regular content. Uniformity is much better in dark scenes.
Times sure have changed.
Not an expert with TVs, but some things that bother me would be the delayed audio update when raising/lowering the audio (from silent to blasting audio after releasing the volume button) and some delay when navigating some apps.
I do appreciate the audio only mode, which I use when going to bed.
Overall, for the price, I can't really complain.
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