Best Smart Tv Under 300

Table of contents:

• Size and resolution
• Matrix type
• Backlight and HDR
• CPU
• What parameters are important for games

Size and resolution

4K resolution became the industry standard a few years ago and will remain so for many years to come. According to data for 2019, 4K TVs account for 25% of sales in Russian retail, since 2015 this segment has grown more than eight times.

First-tier manufacturers are starting to promote 8K models. But buying such a device is almost pointless now, since there is almost no content in this resolution now.

Models with a large diagonal become cheaper every year. Models with screens of 55-60 inches for 2019 fell in price by 10%, and with a diagonal of 60 and more - by 20%.

Matrix type

Entry and mid-level models have LCD matrices (IPS or VA). IPS provides natural colors but lower contrast. VA is rich in color saturation with high contrast, but viewing angles are usually worse, it is not very comfortable to watch such a TV at an angle.

The medium-high segment is occupied by QLED and Nano-IPS. Both technologies combine LCD matrices with so-called quantum dots - a layer of microscopic particles that allows you to purify the light supplied to liquid crystals from impurities of "parasitic" shades and further enhances the luminous flux.

If the main feature of OLED is the “perfect” black color, then QLED produces the purest and brightest white.

Backlight and HDR

Extended color gamut (read more about HDR here) is a favorite term for marketers from all areas related to the image, whether it be TVs, smartphones, monitors, photo equipment, cinema, and even video games.

The presence of high-quality HDR is a sign of an expensive TV.

In the budget and middle segment, FRC technology is often used - with the help of high-frequency flickering of the backlight, an 8-bit matrix can visually approach a 10-bit one, but the effect is imperfect.

"Real" 10 bits require high backlight brightness. Below 400 nits, HDR display is only nominal.

LCD TVs in the budget segment are equipped with contour LED backlighting without zoning with a brightness of 200-300 nits. Even such models often have the HDR label on the box and the corresponding mode in the menu, but in fact this means compatibility with such content rather than a real ability to display it at the proper level.

Mid-range LCD TVs sometimes also have backlight zoning, but lack the brightness for HDR.

CPU

Modern TVs are not complete without an integrated processor that is responsible for smart functions and image processing. The diversity in this market is perhaps even greater than among modern smartphones - some companies use solutions from Mediatek, but large manufacturers like LG, Sony and Samsung develop chips on their own.

The power of the chip determines the stability of the system, the performance when playing files in 4K resolution, and how quickly the TV turns on (some models can boot up to a minute).

Most manufacturers pay a lot of attention to artificial intelligence. Every year more and more advanced content upscaling, noise reduction, color grading, smart audio processing, HDR effect creation and motion smoothing are introduced, which are actively used in marketing to justify the high price.

What parameters are important for games

Best Smart Tv Under 300 support many technologies that come in handy in games. To connect standard Xbox One and PS4 consoles, a relatively inexpensive LCD TV with a frequency of 60 Hz and a response time of up to 16 ms is enough (more on response time and input lag).

The response time of OLED is about 1 ms, for most LCDs - from 6 ms to 18 ms. At a frequency of 120 Hz, a response time of less than 8 ms is optimal.

Modern consoles do not support frame rates above 60 fps, and in 4K the frame rate rarely rises above 30 fps. The new generation consoles promise enough power for 4K / 60 fps and even 120 fps.

TV input delay varies from 7 to 40 or more ms: Wikipedia. A delay of up to 70 ms is considered normal for most genres of games, but this time includes not only the TV, but the entire signal path: pressing a key, signal transmission, processor processing, creating a frame with a video card and sending a frame to the screen. So a good setting for a TV would be a delay of up to 18ms.

TV manufacturers do not list input lag in their specifications, so you have to rely on reviews from publications like DisplayLag and Rtings here. But if you are not going to conquer the eSports scene of some online shooter, it will be enough to make sure that the TV has a “game” mode that turns off unnecessary processing.

To get the most out of your top gaming PC or next generation consoles, choose a TV that supports 120Hz, adaptive sync (VRR), and HDMI 2.1. TVs of 2018 and 2019, if they support VRR at 120 Hz, then only at WQHD (1440p) resolution and without HDR.