TCL C635 Series

Good picture, poor software, hopeless multivision – OK so bought C745 TCL QLED Dec 2023. $1400 PLUS an absurd $700 to install! Had initial problems with connecting Bose hub until I realized it needs the ARC HDMI port. With that solved I started using the TV and quickly realized the GUI is pooey! The EPG is missing channels as it's Freeview based. The multivision function (dual screen with different… Read more

sources) is unusable. The TCL help desk is no help, saying 'does not work on this model' Sorry, it's in the user manual. So in summary good picture but really poor controls, dodgey software and basic functionality that does not work. Not a good buy. ..‍‍

Very good picture and sound – Since writing the following review the Google interface seems to have fixed itself, so it is all good now - I've changed my rating from 3 up to 5 stars. .... Once you have found the thing you want to watch, the picture and sound are great. But getting there can be painful! I haven't used Google TV on anything but this, but it seems to be poorly… Read more

implemented (perhaps the RAM and CPU are under-powered too), and the design is horrible even if it did work consistently. It is like being lost in a huge shopping complex, with all sorts of tricks in the architecture to keep you lost until you give up and buy something that you didn't really want. So, would I recommend this TV? Maybe. I have finally figured out how to go where I want with the controls fairly quickly, even though they are glitchy, and as I said the picture and sound are actually good for the price.

TCL and Google could have done better – Picture quality out of the box poor. Like many other TV’s adjustments have to be made and saved for individual inputs, to select Channels you have to access drop down, which is it you want Home button, settings input, too many options to remember, try to mirror cast, or stream from phone best of luck. Recommended Magiconnect app keeps running… Read more

24/7, chewing up battery. Looking at screen from side on leaves you with a washed out screen. EPG not as good as Samsung or old Panasonic. Onkyo Speakers are excellent, could have done much better

Nice TV rushed out the door with too many flaws – I bought the TCL C635 Series QLED TV. Now, let's get one thing straight: if this review were only about the QLED screen, I'd have given it 4 stars. However, there are many parts to a TV, such as software, the remote, speakers, in and outputs etc. Based on the dismal failures of the majority of components of this TV, it gets an overall score of 1… Read more

star... but only because I can't give zero stars.

Pros The screen is amazing. It's bright, crystal clear, no jerking, no ghost images during action scenes. The screen adjusts to whatever resolution the video is that's being played. I've now watched a few movies again because it's so detailed on this screen. You can even see the pimples and other gooey stuff close-up. Overall, and compared to Samsung et al, it is as good as similar screens in that price range.

Cons Despite the amazing quality of the screen, it has zero anti-glare properties. Even my old Kogan TV does better during daylight. The TCL screen works best with curtains drawn and no light coming through cracks. Otherwise, it's like a black mirror and highly reflective.

The remote is a disaster and keeps on slipping out of my hands like a torpedo. Why? It's thin, round and slippery. It is not ergonomic and whoever designed it knows nothing about product design. When I press a button, the command often doesn't happen or several commands happen at once without my doing. Sometimes, the command occurs after 5 or 10 seconds. Originally, it was a mystery to me what the few buttons did because they aren't labelled. I had to memorise them.

The manual is a joke. Useless. In particular there's no Google TV manual.

I hate Google TV. You can't customise it. 90% of apps are not your choosing and the constant unsolicited "Recommended for you" crap gets on my nerves. You can't delete most apps because Google wants you to subscribe to Netflix, Stan, buy movies from YouTube etc. It's an annoying marketing hub, nothing else.

Google TV loves to crash. It loves to freeze, show you the Google screen saver and TCL's solution is for us all to pull the power cord, wait for a minute, and then plug it back in. If it doesn't get better, then contact TCL. You need to immerse yourself in the menu and beware that both Google and TCL can track you. They compile data on your usage to give you "recommendations" and to streamline their offerings for you.

When TCL partnered with Google, didn't they think of developing a 100% working software and hardware first? Obviously not. It's all rush-rush out the door. Money, money, money...

The audio coming from the TV is amazing... but it's TOO QUIET. What did you say? Yes, although the volume control goes to 100, the ONKYO speakers' amplifier already maxes out at 37 or 38. Some movies where actors whisper are hopeless to watch. What did you say, I can't hear you? This is not necessarily a speaker issue but the amplifier is obviously too weak. Older movies that were recorded at lower volumes, you can barely hear. When a dog barks somewhere in the neighbourhood - forget it. If someone revs up their lawn mower or if my son coughs - also, forget it. Even if the wind blows...what? Forget it.

I could go on with more cons but I think you get the point. Nice TV screen but the rest of the product is poorly thought through and a very immature product.

Amazing TV with a FATAL flaw – Anything good I can say about this TV doesn't matter. Yes, visually this could easily be the best display within the price range, boasting features that you normally have to pay double the cost of this TV for. But there's one fatal flaw that made this TV unusable for me and despite everything else that was great, had to return it. The audio is out… Read more

of sync and not in a way you can fix as it is inconsistent. Watching a show, you could watch as voices would move way out of time with the movement of the mouths, then come back pretty close in in sync then back out again. Almost as if the system was struggling or lagging. Comparing the internal Google TV with a Chromecast with Google TV I noticed much more lag navigating the internal Google TV as believe this to be the main contributing factor to the inconsistency of the audio lag. It did perform much more consistently with the chromecast however I still found it wasn't quite in sync and you lose a bunch of options like dolby vision running it this way. I found the audio lag to be unacceptable in either use cases, audio synchronization should be a given and not a feature we have to pay a premium for so I simply won't accept this issue. This is extremely disappointing for everything else you get with this TV.