Top streaming TVs for $500 or less
BEST OVERALL TCL 55R625 (55-inch)
No TV offers this much picture quality for this little cash. The latest version of the TCL 6Series has even better image quality than its predecessor, thanks to improved color technology, and its wellimplemented fullarray local dimming helps it run circles around just about any other TV at this price. As if that’s not enough, the Roku smart TV operating system — which accommodates all of the top streaming services well — is our handsdown favorite for a seamless viewing experience.
BEST WITH AIRPLAY, CHROMECAST Vizio V436-G1 (43-inch)
Vizio’s VSeries has two things that make it a natural if you want to stream from your phone to the TV: Google Chromecast and Apple AirPlay. It comes in a bunch of sizes for less than $500, but we’re listing one of the smallest, the 43inch model here because it’s one of the few TVs this small with a pictureenhancing extra for LCDs: fullarray local dimming. That feature isn’t available in every size, however. Other sizes under $500: 65inch, 60inch, 55inch, 50inch, 40inch.
BEST WITH ALEXA VOICE CONTROL Toshiba 49LF421U19 (49-inch)
This Toshiba features Amazon’s Fire TV system builtin, making it a direct competitor to the TCL’s Roku system. In general we like Roku better than Fire TV, thanks to superior menus and search, but this Toshiba has one cool extra the TCL lacks: builtin Alexa, available by talking into the remote.
Other sizes under $500: 65inch, 55inch, 50inch, 40inch, 32inch.