A good TV should never disappoint you. Whether you’re tuning in for a big game, racing losers online, or just streaming a show in the background, the picture should be clear and the content should be easy to access.
TCL’s latest mid-tier hero to accomplish this task is the Q6 (a replacement of sorts for last year’s 5-Series). It’s a solid TV in every way that matters, right down to its new Google operating system. Casting movies, photos, and apps from your phone to your screen is easier than ever, and you’ll still find nearly the same ease of use as you used to on the older Roku models.
As always, this is one of the best TVs for most people, especially if you don’t need the faster refresh rate of higher-end models for gaming. You can even choose between two positions for the TV’s included legs, which means it can fit on older, more svelte TV stands.
Same Old TCL
TCL Q6 remote.
Photograph: TCL
Besides a new remote that pairs with the new Google operating system (this one is more pill-shaped and longer), there isn’t much that tells you you’re looking at the latest era of TCL. The TV is still about 2 inches thick and thus easy to mount, and it still has super thin bezels on each side.
The biggest change is the aforementioned legs, which are nicer in the center position, though I’d still prefer a pedestal mount or to wall mount this TV if I bought it. It can be hard to fit a soundbar between the thinner leg sections (yes, you should have a soundbar).
Setup takes no time. Just sign in with Google and download every app that you’re interested in. There isn’t much that this doesn’t have. The one app I couldn’t find that I regularly use was F1 TV, but even that has Google Chromecast integration, so I was able to stream it from my computer or phone to the TV with ease.
The built-in Chromecast functionality finally puts TCL on par with fellow mid-tier TV brand Vizio with its Smartcast interface. It can’t be overstated how nice it is to quickly pull up stuff on a phone to watch it on TV, especially if you have friends and family over. All they need to do to cast to your TV is to connect to your Wi-Fi.
The downside of the new OS is that it can be a bit sluggish. I frequently found myself waiting for it to respond between app changes, occasionally making me a little confused whether I’d actually clicked on an app or was waiting for it to load.
