Vizio’s been successfully making budget TVs for years, but recently they’ve targeted more discriminating buyers by adding features like Ultra HD (4K), full array LEDs, local dimming, and even HDR (coming soon in their posh Reference Series).

This year’s mid-range M-Series offers 3 of the above 4 features across the entire line, starting with the 43-inch M43-C1 ($600) and up to the ginormous M80-C3 ($4,000).

I tested the wallet-friendly M43-C1, which promises to be a big hit this Black Friday. On Ben’s Bargains, we’ve already seen the set as low as $510 with a $150 Dell Gift Card from Dell as well as $548 with a $200 Gift Card back in September. It regularly sells for $530 to Costco customers and $528 to Amazon Prime members, and I expect the price tag to easily drop below $500 (possibly $450) around Black Friday.

An Ultra HD Smart TV from a major manufacturer for under $500 is impressive, considering most 4K TVs last year typically cost you a grand or more.

Specs and Build Quality

The M43-C1 feels solidly built with cast aluminum legs that are set about 33 inches apart and a modern black (plastic) bezel that measures a thin 0.59-inch. The sides of the bezel are light silver. You can’t shift the width of the legs like you can with the premium sets from Sony, but they are far more stable than the old-school centered pedestal stands that are going out of favor.

The screen has a semi-matte finish, so it reduces reflections like a matte screen but also boosts color like a glossy screen. The overall design is understated and doesn’t look cheap.

Aside from 3840 x 2160 (4K Ultra HD) native resolution, the M43-C1 has a 60Hz native refresh rate, full array backlighting with 28 LED dimming zones, 802.11ac dual-band MIMO Wi-Fi, VIA Plus (Vizio’s Smart TV platform) and a quad-core GPU with dual-core CPU.

You get four HDMI inputs (4K @ 30Hz) and a fifth HDMI input (4K @ 60Hz) that’s compatible with both HDMI 2.0 and the new HDCP 2.2 copy protection standard.

The remote is where the budget price betrays itself the most. Although not bad—and it even has a backlit QWERTY keyboard on the backside—its keys are pretty small and it’s not in the same class as premium remotes (no backlighting on front side buttons, voice activation, etc.). This may not matter to you anyway if you’re intending to use a universal remote.

By the way, the shift key and number keys didn’t work for me on the QWERTY keyboard, so I ended up having to use either the on-screen keyboard or the keys on the front side of the remote.

Picture Quality and the Soap Opera Effect

The advantages of 4K are more noticeable on larger screens, although that’s more a factor of distance than display size. Today, a 43-inch TV is considered a “smaller” TV, frequently relegated to a secondary TV, such as one found in a bedroom. In small spaces, I think 4K on a 43-inch has some wow factor, but it’s dependent as much on the content as anything else.

Still, the first thing I absolutely had to figure out was how to turn off the “Soap Opera Effect” (SOE). It’s on by default on the M43-C1, and you either love it or hate it. You know when you see it, but SOE is the motion interpolation on TVs that smoothes out movement and makes everything look “hyper-real.” The setting can look good for sports but terrible for most everything else.

Your mission—should you choose to accept it—is to turn off the Soap Opera Effect.

If you want to turn off SOE, go to Picture Settings > More Picture. Set “Reduce Judder” to 1-2 and “Reduce Motion Blur” to 5-6 and “Game Low Latency” to Low. I definitely recommend choosing the Calibrated Picture setting under Picture Mode. The HDTV review site Rtings also has a list of more detailed optimized settings.

After I turned off SOE, I was pleased by the Vizio’s picture. Thanks to the local dimming, its deep black, black detail and contrast are excellent, perhaps falling short of only the most premium sets.

In general, I found Ultra HD content to have greater depth and detail than HD, but it’s not a mind-blowing difference. Obviously, 4K content is limited at this time, but that will change. There’s no doubt, however, that Ultra HD will be the standard within a couple years (or less).

With a native resolution four times that of standard HD, Vizio uses what it calls a “spatial upscaling engine” to blow up the most common video content (720p/108op) to fit the 4K display. The results are really good.

Even if you’re only watching 1080p HD content right now, this Vizio set is a worthy purchase as a regular HDTV as it is an Ultra HDTV.

Vizio Internet Apps Plus

In my review of the 2015 Amazon Fire TV (5/10), I found its 4K streaming capabilities on Amazon Instant Video to be inferior to the app on this Vizio. Thanks to the Vizio’s V6 six-core processor (quad-core GPU + dual-core CPU), I found performance to be excellent for a built-in Smart TV. The dual-band 802.11ac Wi-Fi is fast and buffering was quick with 4K content.

The Smart TV Platform is no-frills, but it’s snappy and non-intrusive.

In fact, if you don’t already own a 4K streaming box or stick and only need Netflix, Amazon, Spotify, Hulu Plus, YouTube and other major channels, then you don’t really need to get a set-top box with this TV.

However, Vizio Internet Apps Plus is a totally no-frills platform and not as pretty or flexible as something you’d find on an Apple TV, Fire TV, Xbox or Roku. You press the “V” button on the remote and get a side-scrolling banner along the bottom of the TV that displays your apps. Press it again, and you can access a full-screen window and settings.

There’s no built-in internet browser, but I think if you’re used to simply watching apps on your TV, this is not a big deal.

Conclusion

Despite the Vizio name, I didn’t feel like this TV was a “budget” set in the sense that I was getting a bad picture or that the TV was a cheap plastic eyesore.

With its attractive price tag, Vizio’s M-Series is appealing for first-time owners of 4K HDTVs and budget-conscious consumers simply wanting to purchase a decent HDTV. I think this TV will also win some converts from Sony and Samsung who are curious about Vizio. (It does happen.) The M43-C1 has been rated as having very low input lag, which also makes it an excellent choice for a gamer who wants to use the TV in a bedroom or game room.

Just wait for Black Friday to pick up this quality 4K TV for under $500.

Vizio M43-C1 4K HDTV Review: Performance on a Budget

The Roku 4 ($130) is Roku’s entry into the 4K sweepstakes, and it’s a very well thought-out and compelling product for consumers interested in utilizing their shiny new 4K HDTVs.

Roku has won legions of fans for its easy to use and focused product line that does streaming better than anyone else. The Roku 4 picks up where other Rokus left off and delivers the goods.

Specs and Setup

The Roku 4 is super-sized compared to previous Rokus, measuring 6.5″ x 6.5″ x 0.8″ (vs. 3.5″ x 3.5″ x 1″ of Roku 3) and has a flat matte black top with a big glossy “4,” in keeping with Roku’s traditional design. There’s now a remote finder button on top, which is a unique feature that will come into play at some point or another. (Press it, and the remote will emit your choice of alarm sound. Hopefully, users will be able to upload their own in the future.)

Like the new Fire TV, the Roku 4 has a quad-core processor and dual-band 802.11ac Wi-Fi. However, its 1.5GB memory, 256MB of storage and lack of dedicated GPU pale in comparison to the 2GB RAM, 8GB storage and dedicated GPU of the Amazon Fire TV. So on paper, the Fire TV looks better, but the Roku is a much better performer.

In my review (5/10), I wrote that software bugs really hampered the 2nd Gen Fire TV, and I think that’s the big difference here. While the hardware is debatably comparable, the Roku 4 does it better where it counts—playing 4K video.

Show Us the 4K

4K Ultra HD is the key feature of the Roku 4 and it doesn’t disappoint. Its specs are up to date: HDMI 2.0 output with HDCP 2.2 and up to 4K at 60fps. It doesn’t currently support HDR (High Dynamic Range), but according to Roku’s FAQ page, that could be added later to the product, presumably in a firmware update.

The quality of 4K depends on the content (frame rate, cameras used, etc.), but overall, 4K looks great. Does it look fantastic enough to compel consumers to buy a 4K TV? Last year, I would’ve said no because of limited content. This year, it’s a maybe, especially with a player like the Roku 4. But 4K will definitely be the standard within a couple years, just as 720p/1080p is the current standard.

The Roku 4 is free of the buggy software issues that currently plague the other big 4K set-top box out there right now, Amazon’s 2nd gen Fire TV.

It handled all the 4K content on Netflix, Amazon Instant Video and YouTube (the major providers) with aplomb. Buffering, if any, is brief. It ramped up to Ultra HD almost instantaneously on Netflix and within 1 to 2 seconds on Amazon. This is definitely where the Roku 4 shines. I didn’t experience drop-outs, buffering in-progress or other hiccups.

One of my favorite aspects of the Roku 4 is the 4K Ultra HD Spotlight channel that puts together all the 4K content in one place. Roku has correctly guessed that 4K TV owners will be anxious to find all that content. On the Amazon Fire TV, it took some digging around to find.

4K content is collected all in one location (cross-platform).

Noisy Fan?

I did encounter fan noise. (Yes, the Roku 4 has a fan, but it’s also got a quad-core processor.) Some customers have already been reporting a loud fan noise. I would liken it more to the hum of a laptop fan that’s not even noticeable when you have the sound on. But it’s definitely there, and it did get loud when my customized photo screensaver was running and when I ran the remote finder while playing 4K video.

If you’re sensitive to this sort of thing, I would note this as the biggest “disappointment” of the Roku 4.

Roku Remote and Voice Search

The Roku remote is still the best in its class with a nice weight and responsive feel that is noticeably better than the Fire TV remote or the old Apple TV remote. The Roku remote still has the handy headphone plug (and includes earbuds), which for some reason mostly hasn’t been replicated on other set-top boxes, until the new NVIDIA Shield.

You’ve also got voice search on the remote which was introduced earlier this year in the revamped 2015 Roku 3. It’s quick and responsive but not as powerful as Siri or Alexa.

Updated Mobile App

The newly redesigned Roku mobile app

The mobile app was updated this year with voice search and Roku Feed—which allows you to keep track of actors and movie releases. The app already doubles as a remote, app launcher and photo streamer that also allows you to upload your mobile pics as a Roku screensaver. The app, which was also redesigned in October, is intuitive and a worthy alternative to the already great physical remote.

If It Ain’t Broke…

Some things remain the same, for good and (slightly) bad. The Roku platform (now OS 7) is still a breeze, even if some apps (e.g. Amazon’s) aren’t as flashy as the ones we’ve seen on Xbox One or the Fire TV. The app is not really Roku’s fault, though. And the notoriously buggy Sling TV app still seems relatively stodgy on the Roku 4.

Roku natively plays the most services that people want. Every streaming player will have Netflix or Hulu, but do they have Amazon Video (not Apple TV or NVIDIA Shield), Google Play Movies (not Fire TV) and Sling TV (not Apple TV)?

Searching across various services is something that’s been on previous Rokus, but it’s a game-changing feature that really makes Roku’s platform so user-friendly. Roku has 20 channel partners currently, and it’s still an unbiased search not weighted towards any service.

Conclusion

I do not hesitate to recommend the Roku 4 as your first choice in set-top boxes if you already own a 4K TV and want to dive right into the 4K current. It’s pricey but offers almost flawless performance.

If you don’t own a 4K TV, then buying a Roku 4 now might be a little premature because of its higher price tag. Standard HD performance on the Roku 4 is not going to be any different than, say, the cheaper Roku 3. Plus, you might just want to wait for the new Apple TV that doesn’t do 4K at all.

Now you can watch your favorite snow monkeys in scintillating Ultra HD.

Roku 4 Review: The Real Deal

This fall, Amazon introduced the 2nd generation Fire TV ($100) amidst a slew of hardware updates for other big-name streaming devices from Roku, Apple and Google (and to a lesser extent, Nvidia). Two new features headline the second Fire TV: 4K streaming video support and Alexa, the “Siri-like” voice assistant that’s currently found on Amazon’s Echo “smart” speaker.

The Fire TV is identical in form factor to the first version, measuring a compact 4.53″ x 4.53″ x 0.69″.  The optical audio output is gone, in favor of a microSD slot to expand your storage up to 128GB. (It has 8GB onboard storage.) I think this change will be welcome to most users, especially for gamers.

Speaking of gamers, Amazon has also released a $140 Fire TV Gaming Edition with a 32GB microSD card, game controller and two games.

The internals of Fire TV 2 now boast a 64-bit quad-core processor and dedicated GPU for “75% more processing power” over the 1st generation Fire TVs. While the interface and loading of content seemed snappy, I didn’t notice any huge difference, but the potential for gaming is there—should the current anemic selection improve.

Connectivity has been boosted this year. You get HDMI 2.0 with HDCP 2.2 and dual-band 802.11ac Wi-Fi over last year’s 802.11n. Much needed when it comes to the bigger bandwidth required for 4K streaming.

Let’s Get to the 4K!

I was very anxious to test the 4K capabilities of the Fire TV 2. TL;DR: it’s disappointing. And that’s not because of the limited 4K content out there, which has been well-documented. Read on for the long version.

While you already know you need an Ultra HDTV to play 4K material from the Fire TV 2, you may not know that you need an HDMI input that’s HDCP 2.2 -compliant (aka the copy protection). Most major brand 4K TVs produced since 2014 have at least one HDMI input with HDCP 2.2, but definitely check your 4K TV to make sure.

You’ve probably also guessed you need pretty fast internet to handle Ultra HD resolution (3840 x 2160). Amazon says you need at least 15Mbps, but that’s the bare minimum and real world speeds never match the listed speeds that your cable company tells you.

The Fire TV offers 3840 x 2160 content at up to 30fps, although the new Roku 4 will do 60fps. Since most content is not even there yet (e.g. Netflix Ultra  HD is 24 fps), that’s not a deal breaker.

Fire TV 2 GUI Looks the Same

My first disappointment with 4K on the Fire TV came in the user interface. The new Fire TV sports the same platform as the previous Fire TVs, and that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s a good platform, albeit Amazon Prime-centric, as we already knew going in from last year’s version. No, the main problem is Ultra HD (4K) content—the whole reason for this unit’s existence—is buried 4 or 5 rows from the top, after Recent, Featured Apps, Prime Originals, etc. I wanted to dig into 4K stuff right away, and it wasn’t easy to find.

Granted, there isn’t much 4K content to begin with, but actually with Amazon Instant Video alone, there are at least 12 Prime shows available in Ultra HD, including the new alternate history series The Man in the High Castle (which is pretty cool). These 4K shows should be plastered all over the new Fire TV. Instead you’re more likely to stumble upon the 1080p versions first. Boo! (Also if you start watching the 1080p version and switch to Ultra HD, it won’t remember your place. 1080p and Ultra HD (“UHD”) versions are displayed as two separate programs.)

A Bag of Hurt

First off, 4K in general looks great, although the “wow” factor is dependent on the content itself and what kind of cameras it was shot in. I found new 4K content on Netflix, Amazon Video and YouTube to watch.

A shot from Amazon’s Sneaky Pete in Ultra HD. Good luck seeing it on the Fire TV.

But I ran into two major —very serious—problems. One is speed. I tried all sorts of 4K content on Amazon Instant Video, and it would frequently take several minutes (if ever) to start streaming in 4K. At first the video would be HD (720p), then switch to 1080p HD, and after a few minutes—if I was lucky—finally become Ultra HD. Sometimes the transition didn’t happen at all and would stay stuck at 1080p after 10 minutes.

I thought maybe something was wrong with my internet (although it’s 150Mps on a 5GHz wireless network). But when I switched over to the built-in Amazon Instant Video app on the 4K test TV (a Vizio), Ultra HD content streamed within seconds.

Then I tried Netflix 4K content on the Fire TV 2, and lo and behold, it was streaming in Ultra HD within seconds. Ruh-roh!

The second major problem began occurring after a few days of testing. Once again, it was Amazon Instant Video. After a minute of playing Ultra HD video, the screen turned to black and returned  to the menu screen, which possibly indicated an issue with the input or HDMI cable… except that other 4K content through other channels (Netflix, YouTube) was still working fine.

So there are serious issues with 4K on Amazon Instant Video, and it looks like a software issue. It better get fixed fast.

It’s not the only software issue – people are having problems with Dolby Surround everywhere else but Amazon Instant Video. I wasn’t able to test this bug, but as you can see, there are definitely issues with 4K streaming, particularly with Amazon’s own service.

Alexa, Your Digital Voice Assistant and Other Goodies

Alexa is the cloud-based digital voice assistant found in Amazon’s Echo smart Bluetooth speaker. It’s an evolution of last year’s Gary Busey-endorsed voice search, so it will tell you the weather (it works) and trivia like who the Prime Minister of Canada is (currently Stephen Harper but didn’t mention the new PM-designate) or when World War II started (it went with Sept 1, 1939). Alexa works pretty fast when she can deliver what you’re asking.

While weather and trivia are nice additions, content search is the most essential and practical aspect, and I’d like to see more improvements, beginning with search that goes outside of Amazon Instant Video. Roku’s been doing for years, and the new Apple TV promises this feature, as well.

I’d also like to see improved filtering of results. For example, “Show all movies with Tom Cruise” came up with a nice list of Cruise movies, but “Show all Amazon Prime Movies with Tom Cruise” or “Show all Oscar-Winning Dramas”  got nothing.

X-Ray was added to the 1st Gen model earlier this year, but it’s worth mentioning this fun feature that lets you pull up actor/IMDB info on command, like on the Google Chromecast. ASAP (Advanced Streaming and Prediction) is another cool feature which pre-buffers Amazon Instant Video shows based on viewing habits. But it’s also not new to the 2nd Gen Fire TV.

Games

The new micro SD slot (up to 128GB) is good for gaming… if the games were there.

I tried out a couple free games like the popular Crossy Road and Table Top Racing, and these Android games worked perfectly well, but with the Amazon Fire TV’s specs, there should be more interesting games made for this platform. There are rumors that Amazon is working on a game, but right now gaming on the Fire TV just feels like untapped potential.

Conclusion

Before I started reviewing and using the 2015 Fire TV, I was not aware of just how many problems people were already having with it. If you go to to customer reviews on Amazon or Best Buy, you will see many legit reports of buggy performance all over the map.

AFTVnews.com (the unofficial Amazon Fire news site) reported that nearly 500 Amazon employees have been doing internal testing on the 2nd gen Fire TV. Due to Fire OS 5 issues, the 2nd Gen Fire TV orders are now delayed to November 7, and the new voice-activated Fire TV stick orders are delayed to November 13th on Amazon.

No doubt the pressure of today’s expected annual release cycle for tech products has something to do with it. And while firmware updates may (and will) fix some of the glitches, consumers have other choices to throw their money at in the meantime.

If you’re buying the Amazon Fire TV specifically for its 4K capabilities, I cannot recommend it. If you just want a regular HD streaming box, there are too many options out there, especially cheaper ones—including Amazon’s own Fire Stick—that do the job just as well or better.

Amazon Fire TV (2015) Review: Don’t Buy it for the 4K