“Budget” doesn’t have to mean “bad” in today’s TV land. Between Vizio, Hisense and TCL, you can find a good picture at a good price. You won’t get the bells and whistles from TVs that cost over $2,000, but you don’t always need that.
For 2023, TCL revamped its lineup, ditching the well-regarded 5-Series and 6-Series for S Class and Q Class, with the Qs offering more features. Within the Q Class, you get three tiers: Q6, which features a QLED screen ($600 for the 65-inch model); Q7, which adds a smoother 120Hz refresh rate ($800); and QM8, with mini-LED backlighting ($1,300).
We reviewed the Q6, which essentially replaces the 5-Series that we considered the best TV of the budget bunch last year. It’s still a solid bargain, but the competition is catching up.
The Q6 produces good color and handles HDR content well while remaining very affordable. It won’t wow you, and it runs Google TV slowly, but you get a solid TV for the price.
What we liked about it
The price is right
Let’s take a moment to marvel at what you get for your money with the TCL Q6. With a current street price of $600 for the 65-inch model (and just $500 for the 55-inch model), you’ll enjoy 4K sharpness on a large quantum-dot LED screen. A few years ago that would have cost you twice as much.
The specs of the Q6 and last year’s 5-Series are very similar. You gain support for Dolby Atmos sound, and you can also pick an 85-inch model if you want to go ridiculously big. The Q6 has three HDMI ports instead of four on the 5-Series. The Q6 features the same 60Hz QLED screen that came with the 5-Series.
But the competition keeps getting tougher. Hisense’s new U6K starts at a slightly higher $650 for the 65-inch model and offers mini-LED backlighting, which promises better contrast and more brightness (it’s also on sale for as low as $500 as of this writing). You have to bump up to the much more expensive QM8 to get mini LEDs in the TCL lineup.
Impressive color for the cost
Even without mini-LED backlighting, the Q6 delivers a good picture overall. It looks best when playing high dynamic range (HDR) video, such as Dolby Vision. When watching “John Wick 4,” the lavish clothes, with bright reds and greens, popped off the screen. Similarly, the electric colors of Pandora in “Avatar: The Way of Water” looked vibrant.
Dark scenes stymied the Q6 a bit. During the Harkonnen invasion in Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune,” the TV’s Dolby Vision Bright mode caused the scene to look washed-out instead of helping differentiate the shadows from the light. A TV with mini LEDs would probably have handled the contrast better.
The Q6 also suffers from limited viewing angles. As soon as you stray from the center, the colors lose their saturation.
It’s pretty good for gaming, too
Like the 5-Series, the Q6 supports some advanced gaming features such as auto game mode with AMD Freesync to lower latency. The TV’s vivid colors make the scenery come alive, whether you’re in Yankee Stadium playing MLB The Show or zipping through the Mexican countryside in Forza Horizon 5.
But because the Q6 doesn’t do HDMI 2.1 and the panel has a refresh rate of 60Hz, you can’t take advantage of the best features of an Xbox Series X or PS5. While the colors popped, details weren’t particularly sharp, and fast motion resulted in some blurring.
What we didn’t like about it
Sluggish interface
The Q6 runs Google TV, which is a robust OS with plenty of apps and features. You also get plenty of ways to adjust the picture to your liking.
It may be too robust for the Q6, though, as apps take several seconds to launch, and after launch, it would take a while for content to start playing.
If the speed vexes you, the fix is to add a separate media streamer, such as a $40 Roku Streaming Stick 4K, and bypass the TV’s interface completely.
Tinny sound
You shouldn’t expect great sound from a TV at this price, but the thin audio that comes out of the Q6 is worse than usual. The sound lacks low end, which makes voices sound tinny and hard to understand. Forget about getting a rumble from an explosion.
Similar to improving the interface, your best bet to overcome the weak sound is to budget for a soundbar if you buy a Q6.
How it compares
 |
 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Size options (inches) | 55, 65, 75, 85 |
55, 65, 75 |
| Dimensions (65-inch model) | 56.9 x 32.8 x 3.2 inches |
57.1 x 33.1 x 3.1 inches |
| Panel Type | QLED |
Mini LED LCD |
| Connections | 3 HDMI (1 eARC) |
4 HDMI |
| HDR | HDR Pro+, Dolby Vision, HDR10+, HDR10, HLG |
Dolby Vision, HDR10+, HDR10, HLG |
| Price | From $500 | From $580 |
Bottom line
If you’re looking for a good overall viewing experience without spending a lot, the TCL Q6 fits the bill. With its good color reproduction, the image on the screen will do just fine, especially for HDR content.
You have other choices for affordable TVs, including the U6K from Hisense, that features mini-LED backlighting for improved contrast for just a slightly higher price. We’ll have to see how the U6K will stack up to the Q6 in real-world testing, but in the meantime, if you want a large 4K TV for a low price, you won’t be disappointed in the Q6.
