In Digital Trends’ list of the best TV brands, they divided the brands into three.
The Up-and-Comers, the Legacies, and the Heavyweights.
Under Heavyweights, you’ll see the usual faces:
Samsung, Sony, and LG.
But, something is different.
Suddenly, there’s a fourth…
Vizio TV.
Question is, do they deserve the recognition?
Stick around for the answer.
Keep reading to discover:
- What’s good and what’s bad about Vizio’s Chromecast OS.
- How Vizio stacks up against their competition like Samsung and LG.
- 6 reasons why you should & 3 reasons why you shouldn’t get a Vizio TV.
- And so much more…
Is Vizio a good TV brand?
Vizio is a good TV brand. That’s if you’re looking for an affordable TV with diverse choices. Although it’s lacking in features, it more than makes up for it in a great display. You should also be aware that their TVs are known to be laggy, fragile, and full of ads.
6 reasons why Vizio is a good TV brand
#1: It’s affordable
Among the 4 major TV brands, I often hear ‘cheap’ only when they’re talking about Vizio.
But they’re wrong.
Vizio isn’t cheap…
They’re affordable.
What’s the difference?
Let me explain.
Cheap implies that manufacturers skimped out on the materials they used to make the TV.
Whereas being affordable means their price is closer to its true value.
If you’re looking for truly cheap TVs, you can check out:
- Philips.
- Toshiba.
- Element.
- Hisense.
- Panasonic.
But, if you’re looking for a TV that can justify its price point.
Look no further than Vizio.
Still don’t believe me? Well, I have this table of 55” LED TVs for you:
| Brand | Vizio | Samsung | Sony | LG |
| Model | M55Q6-J01 | Q80A | XR-55A80J | 55NANO75UPA |
| HDR | HDR10+, Dolby Vision | HDR12x, Dolby Vision | HDR10+, Dolby Vision | HDR10+, Dolby Vision |
| Resolution | 4K UHD | 4K UHD | 4K UHD | 4K UHD |
| Price | $530.00 | $899.99 | $1199.99 | $596.99 |
#2: Great display
If there’s one aspect that Vizio really excels at…
It’s their display.
For years, Vizio has perfected its image quality, and it shows.
With their new OLED models, no TV can match Vizio’s display at their price point.
And besides that, they also have:
- HDR10+.
- Dolby Vision.
- Wide viewing angles.
- AMD’s Freesync for gaming.
- Quantum-dot colored panels.
#3: Local dimming
Contrast is important to our viewing experience.
And, beyond our screens, TVs can also enhance their contrast with their backlight.
They can do this using a feature called local dimming.
This feature dims the diodes where blacks appear on the screen.
Pretty cool, huh?
What’s more is that not every TV has this feature, even the high-end ones.
And the TVs that do sometimes have a bad implementation of this. Making the display worse than it already is.
But not Vizio…
In fact, in RTINGS testing of local dimming, Vizio has scored an average of 7.2 out of 10.
Which is a high average considering that they included the entry-level models.
Want to see a live demo of local dimming? You can check this video out…
#4: Chromecast OS
If you hear people say bad things about Vizio’s operating system…
It may be because of reputation rather than truth.
Without going too much into detail, Vizio used to run with Vizio Internet Apps (VIA).
Which was a slow and bloated OS with an outdated interface.
But, since 2017, Vizio TVs have been running on Chromecast.
Chromecast was built with Android TV.
And, while it isn’t perfect…
It offers a wider array of apps and settings customization.
While also being significantly faster than VIA.
Not to mention the following features:
- Google Slides.
- Google Assistant.
- Remote-less control.
- Smartphone mirroring.
- Guest mode and ambient mode.
#5: Voice control enabled
I don’t know about you…
But yelling commands at my gadgets make me feel like Tony Stark.
And that’s why I’m such a fan of voice-controlled TVs.
And Vizio is one of those.
All thanks to Google Assistant.
Note: If you already have a Vizio TV and you’re wondering how to use voice controls, we got you. You just have to follow these 6 easy steps:
- On a mobile phone, download Google Home.
- On your TV, go to Extras.
- Select Google Assistant.
- Pair your phone with the TV.
And you’re good to go. Just say “Hey Google” to give your command.
Alternatively, you can skip step #1 if you already have any of the following smart home devices:
- Google Nest.
- Google Audio.
- Google Nest Mini.
- Google Nest Hub Max.
Note: Some Chromecast versions can also use Alexa or Siri as their voice assistant.
3 common Vizio TV problems
#1: Sometimes laggy
As mentioned above, Vizio uses Chromecast OS.
Which is, in itself, an offshoot of Android TV.
And Android TVs, for better or for worse, has a reputation for being controversial.
This is due to their UI being bloated and, sometimes, laggy.
Furthermore, due to updates, older smart TV models can become outdated quickly.
Which can degrade their processor.
You might also like: Vizio TV Screen Flickering: 7 Ways To Fix It ASAP
#2: Ads
Ever get an ad while watching a YouTube video?
So annoying, I know.
Now, imagine getting an ad…
Everywhere.
And that’s one of the reasons why people aren’t getting Vizio TVs.
After their new firmware update, you can get banner ads anywhere on your TV…
As long as you’re connected to the internet.
It doesn’t matter if you’re watching cable or using a flash drive. You’ll get an ad everywhere.
#3: History of collecting data
In today’s world, does privacy still exist?
I’m sorry for the sudden heavy question, but you should know that we still have privacy…
But not for Vizio.
And, to explain this, let me tell you a story.
What happened?
The story started in 2014.
Vizio rolled out their first smart TV to the general public.
And that’s where years of tracking and selling data began.
What have they been tracking, you ask?
Users’ viewing habits. How long they watch, what they watch, when they watch.
Then they matched that with the users’ personal data:
Their age, sex, income, household…
Creepy, right?
Well, it doesn’t end there.
Because they sold that data to the media, marketing companies, and analytics groups.
What’s the response?
It didn’t take long for someone to notice.
In 2016, US Federal Trade Commission filed a lawsuit against Vizio TV.
Why?
For violating our right to privacy.
They settled out of court for 2.2 million dollars.
In addition to that, Vizio has also agreed to delete all of the data collected prior to the lawsuit.
What now?
A report from Insider informs us that the reason why Vizio TVs are cheap is that your data is their commodity.
Thankfully, after the lawsuit, Vizio now allows you to turn off their spying features.
To do this, you need to:
For 2019 or older models
- Go to your settings.
- Select System.
- Press Reset & Admin.
- Look for Viewing Data.
- Turn it off.
For 2020 or newer models
- Go to your main menu.
- Select Admin & Privacy.
- Look for Viewing Data.
- Turn it off.
- Go back and now select Advertising.
- Turn on Limit Ad Tracking.
Frequently asked questions:
Is Vizio better than Samsung?
Vizio isn’t better than Samsung.
But the competition is far closer than it should be.
First of all, let’s get it out of the way:
Vizio is way less expensive than a Samsung.
If you’re looking for value instead of the best, go for Vizio.
But let’s compare them head-to-head in 3 categories:
- Audio.
- Display.
- Software.
Audio
Samsung is the clear winner in audio.
Vizio offers decent sound quality.
But Samsung has recently acquired Harman and AKG.
Which are two of the pioneering audio companies in the world.
And it shows on their newer models having amazing audio quality.
Video
This one is close, but Samsung wins for using Quantum image processing.
Software
In terms of performance, Vizio’s Chromecast and Samsung’s Tizen are tied.
But Vizio wins here because Tizen has fewer apps than Chromecast.
Is Vizio or LG better?
LG is better than Vizio.
Vizio is cheaper than LG, but not by much.
However, LG performs better in:
- Audio.
- Software.
- Hardware.
- Picture quality.
You might also want to know: Where Are LG TVs Made? 9 Things You Need To Know
Why are Vizio TVs so cheap?
Vizio TVs are cheap because we lack perspective.
The truth is, Vizio isn’t that cheap…
Their competition is just so expensive.
When you buy TVs, you’re also buying their brand.
That means that manufacturers like Samsung, Sony, and LG tend to have pricier TVs.
Besides that, Vizio TVs aren’t that rich in features.
But what they lack in features, they excel in one aspect: their display.
And the fact that they’re really good at one thing, instead of being okay at everything…
Makes them a great affordable choice.
Do Vizio TVs last long?
Vizio TVs can last long, but that doesn’t mean that they always do.
The average lifespan of a TV ranges from 4 to 10 years.
Ideally, a Vizio TV should last for that long.
However, many users have reported that Vizio TVs are prone to damage.
Especially its backlight.
So, at the end of the day…
With Vizio, you pay for what you get.
So you can’t realistically expect it to last 10 years.
And many users have complained that their Vizio only lasted them a year or so.