Best Flat Screen LED TVs in the UK

Review & Comparison, Last Update September 25, 2024
In this review, we analyse such home electronic devices as LED TVs. These LCD TVs use LED backlighting instead of the cold cathode ...Read more
PROS

The Picture-In-Picture mode allows you to watch videos from two sources on one display. The quad-core processor ensures a fast response to user actions. The number of shades has been increased sevenfold for higher image precision thanks to the PurColour technology.

CONS

Comparatively long panel response time.

OUR VERDICT

The high panel refresh rate provides really smooth rendering of even the most action-packed episodes. This flat screen TV offers its users the maximum watching comfort with a flicker-free video playback.

detailed parameters
Screen Size

55"

Resolution

3840 x 2160 pixels

Panel Type

PLS

Refresh Rate

1300 Hz (PQI)

Smart TV Support

Yes / Tizen OS

Inputs / Outputs

3 х HDMI, 2 х USB, 1 х Component input, 1 х Composite input, 1 х LAN port (RJ45), 1 х Digital Audio Out, 1 х CI/PCMCIA slot, 1 x RF In Wi-Fi

Output Power / Speakers

20 W / 2 х 10 W

PROS

The support of HDR Pro ensures the rendering of a high-contrast picture with more dynamic colours. The 3D colour Mapping minimises colour aberrations and enables you to enjoy a vivid picture with precise colours. The local dimming technology provides a fine backlight control due to advanced zoning implemented.

CONS

The props do not seem rigid enough.

OUR VERDICT

The metallic bezels and case of this LED TV with its ultra slim design make this LG TV an eye-catching addition to any interior. The TV lineup comrpises several models.

detailed parameters
Screen Size

60"

Resolution

3840 x 2160 pixels

Panel Type

IPS

Refresh Rate

1700 Hz (PMI)

Smart TV Support

Yes / webOS 3.0

Inputs / Outputs

3 х HDMI, 2 х USB,  2 х RF In, 1 х Component In (Composite Shared), 1 х Digital Audio Out (Optical), 1 х LAN port (RJ45), 1 х CI Slot, 1 х Headphone out / Line out, Wi-Fi

Output Power / Speakers

20 W / 2 х 10 W

PROS

Owing to the powerful image processing chip, this big screen TV is capable of advanced data post-processing for each pixel in its 4K panel. The USB HDD REC feature allows recording the viewed content to a connected media in one click.

CONS

The bundled remote control is not very convenient.

OUR VERDICT

This LED LCD TV has the proprietary TRILUMINOS technology, which provides a more precise rendering of red, blue and green colours, making the picture more vivid and realistic. The manufacturer offers a range of such TVs in different panel sizes.

detailed parameters
Screen Size

55"

Resolution

3840 x 2160 pixels

Panel Type

IPS

Refresh Rate

400 Hz (Motionflow XR)

Smart TV Support

Yes / Android

Inputs / Outputs

4 x HDMI, 3 x USB, 1 х Composite Video In, 1 х SCART Input, 1 х Digital Audio Out, 1 х LAN port (RJ45), 1 х Audio / Headphone Output, Wi-Fi

Output Power / Speakers

20 W / 2 х 10 W

PROS

The Hisense TV offers pre-installed PVR Ready media player with a rich functionality. This flat screen TV  supports data recording to various USB storage devices. The hardware and software support of HEVC / VP9-encoded content playback allows watching 4K videos online or from a USB storage device without any additional hardware.

CONS

The built-in speakers deliver a sub-par sound experience.

OUR VERDICT

The 4K Upscaling algorithm enlarges any Full HD video content to 4K resolution. You can watch your favourite TV channels for free with the integrated Freeview HD solution. On this TV, you'll be able to watch TV shows and series rendered in the cutting-edge resolution. Several panel sizes are available.

detailed parameters
Screen Size

65"

Resolution

3840 x 2160 pixels

Panel Type

VA

Refresh Rate

1000 Hz (SMR)

Smart TV Support

Yes / VIDAA 2.0

Inputs / Outputs

4 x HDMI, 3 x USB, 1 х SCART In, 2 х RF Tuner, 1 х Component input, 1 х Composite input, 1 х LAN port (RJ45), 1 x 3.5 mm Audio Out, 1 x CI+ 1.3 Subwoofer MHL, Wi-Fi

Output Power / Speakers

30 W / 2 х 15 W

PROS

The Panasonic TX-49DX600B is a modern solution, which offers an astonishing 4K picture at a reasonable price. The updated home page with an intuitive menu provides quick access to video content from such web-resources as Netflix 4K, Amazon Prime, and YouTube 4K, that are supported out-of-the-box.

CONS

The capabilities of the built-in Internet browser are rather limited.

OUR VERDICT

The flat screen TVs of this lineup are capable of automatically adjusting the backlight intensity depending on the picture shown, thus providing an optimal visual quality and saving energy. The lineup includes the TVs with various screen sizes.

detailed parameters
Screen Size

49"

Resolution

3840 x 2160 pixels

Panel Type

IPS

Refresh Rate

800 Hz (BMR)

Smart TV Support

Yes / Firefox

Inputs / Outputs

3 х HDMI, 2 х USB, 1 x RF In, 1 х Component input, 1 х Composite input, 1 х LAN port (RJ45), 1 x Digital Audio Output (Optical), 1 x Headphone Output, 1 x CI+ 1.3, Wi-Fi

Output Power / Speakers

20 W / 2 х 10 W

Providing Improvements

After the establishment of mass manufacture of large screen TVs, the picture quality has improved in many aspects. So now it is possible to enjoy your favourite titles at the maximum possible resolution of up to 4K at home. But what are we to do when we want to watch some rarity videos from our collection, which are stored in a DVD quality, for example? With the Samsung UE55KU6000, you will be able to savour videos from your collection in the quality fitting the capabilities of this LED TV model by Samsung. The Ultra Clean View technology automatically analyses the video content played with the proprietary algorithms of signal processing and upscales the original video resolution to a resolution commensurate with UHD standard in case the original resolution is sub-Full HD. To use the big screen of this one of the best flat screen TVs by Samsung to the maximum, you can stream video from your smartphone to the UE55KU6000, thus navigating through your photos and videos using the smartphone controls and viewing this content on the large 55” screen. The powerful quad-core processor provides a quick operation and fast response to user actions, such as selecting different features and effects, playing different files and starting various applications on this LED TV. With that, the HDMI input allows transferring digital content from any compatible device without any loss of quality.

Additional Info

User Manual     Manufacturer

Last updated price $0.00
Stock May be out of stock
ASIN B01EV7LI76

Emphasise Your Individuality

If you like to use the gadgets that are not only functional but also distinguishable for their look, this LED TV by the famous LG company offers you just that. This model packs a huge set of various functions in a stylish, ultra slim metal case. Not only does this LG LCD TV deliver a high-quality picture, it also looks great even when turned off. Casting a glance at the TV exterior with its splendid and balanced curves and shapes can be pleasing just on its own. However, the LG 4K Ultra flat screen TV being turned on, your striving for a feel of aesthetics will surely be satisfied, owing to a crisp, vivid and clear picture based on the IPS panel and 178 degrees vertical and horizontal viewing angles. The 3D Gamut Mapping algorithm serves to minimise colour aberrations and to enable an impressive and realistic colour rendering. But what about the sound quality on this LED TV? The two built-in speakers deliver such a surround sound that it makes you doubt if there are two speakers only in this LG TV model. A near-perfect picture coupled with a surround sound maximises your watching experience. With that, the aesthetics of your interior can be enriched with a distinguishable TV stand.

Additional Info

User Manual     Manufacturer

Last updated price $0.00
Stock May be out of stock
ASIN B01EBXEQPG

Unique Screen

What is the most important aspect one should consider when buying a flat screen TV? Most of us will definitely answer that it is the picture quality the screen delivers. The Sony corporation surely knows how to offer its customers an optimal visual experience as it constantly develops in-house technologies, like those being manifested in their flagship XD80 lineup, for example. TV panels fitted with the TRILUMINOS technology, the innovation introduced by the Sony, allow making another step to achieving picture realism due to enhanced rendering of red and green colours. The technology allows a picture displayed on a screen to look more realistic, the maximum number of colours the panel is capable of rendering being increased. The KD55XD8005 big screen LED TV has Android TV software installed, which opens wide possibilities of viewing various high-quality video content online. This software suite has a very intuitive and thought-through navigation menu with a great number of available content resource pages, so a user can quickly access them spending minimum time on search. In case you want to receive a video stream with simultaneous video watching and saving to a connected media, such as a USB thumb drive or a portable HDD, you can use the USB HDD REC feature to do so. And if you want to have an individual sound listening experience without disturbing your family members, you can use a set of wireless headphones that is easily paired with this Sony flat screen TV.

Additional Info

User Manual     Manufacturer

Last updated price $0.00
Stock May be out of stock
ASIN B01IF52BE4

Personal Cinema

Films have the power to immerse us in a certain atmosphere and make us muse about something or vice versa get a charge of positive emotions at the end of a hard day without much thinking. To experience same emotions today you don't need to go out to a cinema anymore seeing you've got the Hisense K5510 LED TV with outstanding picture characteristics. This TV features a huge 65" screen. On such a big screen, you'll be able to see the tiniest details of episodes with great precision as the TV supports 4K resolution too. With a big range of connectivity options, you can use this flat screen TV model as a video and audio output device for various gadgets starting from Blu-Ray players and gaming consoles to AV receivers. The K5510 LED LCD TV offers 4 HDMI ports each of which is capable of transmitting digital video and multi-channel audio signals simultaneously. For sound output, this TV uses a pair of powerful 15 W speakers. Despite a rather high maximum volume, the sound on this flat screen LED TV loses clarity at the levels close to the maximum. Thus for achieving the best watching experience, it is advisable to use an external acoustic system, for example, a stereo system. The onboard PVR Ready media player solution has decent functionality and supports not only viewing of video content but also saving it to various flash drives via a USB port. This TV set allows you to watch any 4K video content directly from the supported Internet resources, without any additional hardware.

Additional Info

User Manual     Manufacturer

Last updated price $0.00
Stock May be out of stock
ASIN B01FDF1MDK

Energy Efficiency Without a Quality Loss

One of the downsides of the large screen TVs is high electric power consumption, which is not the case with the Panasonic TX-49DX600B LED TV. The TV has a system of automatic backlight adjustment that allows tuning the backlight parameters optimally for every individual frame. The intensity of the backlight is increased and reduced correspondingly to the frame shown. This background fine-tuning not only contributes to the visual quality but also allows saving the electric energy as the biggest share of power consumption in flat screen TVs falls on their LED backlight. Along with the cutting-edge visual adjustment system, this LED TV has a high-performance processor, which ensures a quick response to user actions when searching for or playing video content. This processor is used in combo with the Firefox OS to make a quick search of video content and lag-free operation possible. The TX-49DX600B model also features a Wi-Fi module to eliminate the need for annoying signal transmission cables and establish a reliable wireless Internet connection. Using such online services as Netflix 4K, YouTube 4K, and Amazon Prime grants you сan access literally to all movies and popular TV series at UHD resolution. With the Panasonic TX-49DX600B, watching your favourite films or playing the most thrilling games on a console will be a really pleasant experience!

Additional Info

User Manual     Manufacturer

Last updated price $0.00
Stock May be out of stock
ASIN B01CEBQOUC

Infographics


What is an Led Tv

Today, LCD TVs with LED backlight gained well-deserved popularity among buyers. These devices use the cutting-edge video technologies and have a great functionality compared with their predecessors, such as Internet connection feature and the capability to view the video content in on-line mode. For using these features, you will need a cable Internet connection or a Wi-Fi Internet connection. With the first option widely available nowadays, for using a wireless connection you will need a Wi-Fi router.
Modern LED TVs consume little power, thus saving your money. LED TVs also have a reduced thickness and weight design compared with the plasma TVs. Still, the most important benefits of these TVs are the natural color reproduction and higher image rendering quality. LED backlight provides the high dynamic contrast ratio and allows the application of zone lighting of the screen. So what are the main points one should take note of when choosing among several models? In today's review, we'll try to highlight the key LED TV features to consider when buying an LED TV.

There are LED TV models with an advanced feature of displaying the 3D video content. If you are interested in these models, you can check our amazing 3D TVs and Smart TVs, and Curved TVs reviews.

What Features to Compare

The most important criterion when choosing any LED TV is its Picture Parameters. In the first place, we need to determine the TV screen size (diagonal). One should choose the diagonal of an LED TV (available options range between 10" to 90") based on the size of the room, in which it will be located. Owing to the more up-to-date and advanced LED-backlighting technology the offered LED TV screen sizes today are bigger than those of plasma TVs. The next point calls for considering the type of the panel used. Currently, there are 3 main types of flat screen TV panels: IPS, S-PVA, UV²A. IPS panels offer the largest viewing angles. S-PVA panels provide a higher black level, and the UV²A panels combine the advantages of the two previous types, which makes them best suited for the high-end TVs. UV²A panels are manufactured by Sharp. Talking about the panel resolution, we should note that it is characterised by the number of panel active components, pixels (dots), horizontally and vertically. The higher the screen resolution, the more details and the better overall quality the picture will be rendered at when playing files from a variety of electronic media, as well as from the television signal source. The high panel resolution is especially beneficial for the digital TV signal such as the one provided by HDTV and UHDTV broadcast standards.

The last parameter, which directly affecting video picture parameters of an LED TV, is the panel refresh rate, which in turn is determined by the response time of each pixel. The higher the frame refresh rate, the faster the image is updated on the screen of an LED TV and the smoother and more natural the motion looks (IPS-panels have a relatively big response time). Despite the high specified refresh rate values by many manufacturers (up to 1200 Hz), the actual refresh rate ranges from 50 Hz to 120 Hz, while the higher numbers are obtained using specific measurement methods, various marketing "tricks" (refresh rate of some specific area of the screen, etc.) and proprietary technologies. It should be kept in mind that the human eye cannot tell the difference between the screen refresh rates of an LED TV starting from 100 Hz and higher.

The next important feature to consider when choosing an LED TV is its Functionality. Smart TV feature, for example, makes it possible to connect our flat screen TV to the Internet and use a browser, interactive applications, online movie theaters and other integrated services. This requires the availability of an Internet connection. LED TVs may be equipped with a wired Ethernet connection and a wireless Wi-Fi connection. The best option is to have both these types simultaneously. A built-in processor (CPU) of a TV is utilised for loading the applications and surfing the Internet, thus, the more powerful this processor is the better the user experience is. Some TVs have multi-core CPUs with 4 or even 8 cores. There are also TVs that support the function of the 3D-image display. These LED-TVs support a particular 3D video format that can be transmitted using the three methods: side-by-side, over-under, or full side-by-side encoding. Functionality also determines the possibility of connecting various external devices (via the USB-ports, the SD-card ports, video and audio interfaces - HDMI, DVI, etc.) in addition to receiving the broadcast TV signal.

The last important parameter, which should be pointed out, is the TV Sound Quality. The quality of sound reproduction can be estimated by many different parameters, but in practice, manufacturers prefer to limit the specifications of this feature with the output power of the built-in speakers and the number of the speakers. Most modern TVs come with built-in audio hardware decoder that supports multi-channel audio playback (up to 8 channels) (mainly - DTS or Dolby Digital audio streams). The availability of a built-in decoder and speakers not only allows you to watch your favorite movies enjoying the multi-channel audio support but also simply listen to music.

Sources:

1. David Katzmaier How to buy a TV in 2017CNET. January 31, 2017.

2. TV Buying GuideConsumer Reports. August 2016.

3. John R. Quain, Buying a TV? Here Are 11 Things You Should KnowTom's Guide. August 27, 2015.

4. Will Greenwald The Best TVs of 2017PCMag. January 11, 2017.

5. Andrew Laughlin How to Buy the Best TVWhich?

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