To help you find the best smart TV for your home entertainment setup, we’ve combed through plenty of models, researching them for resolution, pixel count, and, most importantly, built-in integration with popular smart home devices and TV streaming devices, such as Amazon Fire TV and Roku TV. We also took a look at the functionality of voice-controlled smart assistants, such as Alexa and Google Assistant. Finally, we favored products with useful add-ons, like lengthy warranties, plenty of outputs, and the ability to play a large variety of video formats.
Of the seven TVs on this list, the Toshiba Ultra HD Smart TV impressed us the most, with a large display, up to 50”, built-in Fire TV functionality, compatibility with Alexa, and a stunning 4K resolution with over eight million pixels. Keep reading to learn more about the Toshiba Ultra HD Smart TV and the other models on this list.
Top 7 Smart TVs Compared
#1 TCL Class 5-Series Roku Smart TV (50”, 55”, 65”)
Award: Honorable Mention
WHY WE LIKE IT: A best-in-class app makes this product truly shine, allowing for navigation, volume control, search, and headphone listening right from your phone or tablet. This is a great smart TV for those who prefer smartphones to garden variety remote controls, though it does come with one of those as well.
Read Full Review: TCL 32S327 Roku Review
- 18-month warranty
- Control everything via app
- Roku interface extremely easy to navigate
- Parental controls are confusing
- Not biggest TV on list
The TCL Roku Smart TV is extremely easy to use, this simplicity is furthered by the fantastic related app, which allows you to control every aspect of the device right from your phone or tablet. You can even plug in headphones right into your phone or tablet and listen from there, bypassing the need for Bluetooth or similar functionality. It comes built-in with support for Alexa and Google Assistant, creating another avenue for control, and the UI is elegant, allowing for speedy searches throughout every major streaming platform.
We found the picture to be bright and gorgeous, with stellar clarity belying its somewhat lower resolution. With a 60Hz refresh rate and virtually no motion blur, its direct-lit LED gives good picture quality. The product does offer a suite of parental controls, but we found these to be somewhat confusing to set up and use. Of course, if you want to nearly double the available size, the best 90-inch TVs are coming down in price.
#2 Insignia NS-50DF710NA19 4K Ultra HD Fire TV Edition (43”, 50”)
Award: Best for Live TV
WHY WE LIKE IT: A fantastic product with a stellar 4K display, an 8 million pixel count for clarity, built-in Fire TV support, Alexa integration via remote control, and a pleasing UI that automatically combines streaming options, and live TV on a unified home screen. This is a great product for folks who watch a lot of live TVs. And, if you want to boost the transmission signal of live TV, then you need to read our best TV antenna guide.
Read Full Review: Insignia NS-50DF710NA19
- Integrates live TV with streaming
- Alexa-enabled remote
- 4K
- Using remote without Alexa has learning curve
- No Xfinity app
- Not the biggest TV on list
The Insignia 4K Ultra HD Fire TV Edition boasts a fantastic 4K display that delivers crisp and sharp visuals, with an 8 million pixel count for stunning picture quality, excellent clarity, vivid colors, and deep contrast. The product comes packed in with Fire TV support, so all of your favorite streaming options are available from the get-go, and boasts a highly intuitive UI that automatically combines live TV and streaming options together on one home screen, making deciding what to watch as simple as possible. Streaming services include Netflix, SHOWTIME, YouTube, Hulu, Prime Video, HBO, STARZ, and more. The Alexa-enabled remote works great, allowing for voice control.
Though the selection of streaming options is robust, featuring all of the major players, we did notice that there is no option for the Xfinity app, which could be an issue if that is your cable provider. Additionally, the remote control takes a bit of getting used to, using a series of rings in order to navigate channels. We found using Alexa to be much simpler. If you need a new TV to use with many streaming options, you might want to learn about the best time to buy a TV.
#3 TCL 50S425 4K Roku Smart TV (43”, 50”, 55”, 65”, 75”)
Award: Best for Headphones
WHY WE LIKE IT: A stunning 4K TV available in a wide variety of size options, bottoming out at 43” and maxing at 75”, with Roku functionality built-in, HDR integration, a powerful mobile app, and support for Alexa and Google Assistant. This great television is available in a large variety of sizes, including 65inch 4k, which suits the needs of just about any family.
Read Full Review: TCL 50S425 Review
- Screen size up to 75”
- Roku private listening app
- 18-month warranty
- Packed-in stand isn’t particularly sturdy
- Claims refresh rate of 120 Hz, but actually 60 Hz
- Had trouble with some USB devices
The TCL 4K Roku Smart TV is available in a large variety of sizes, maxing out at 75”, which should make it easy to find a place for it in any room of your home. It has stunning image quality, boasting 4K resolution, and the related app is extremely easy to use, allowing you to control nearly aspect of the television right from your phone or tablet. It has Roku built-in, so it can stream from all major platforms, and the ability to sync with Alexa or Google Assistant. Also, you can listen to your TV’s sound through a pair of smartphone-connected headphones thanks to the Roku app, which includes a private listening mode. It’s great if you don’t want to disturb your partner at night. It has the features we like in our best 65-inch TV choices.
Though the TV does boast a USB port, allowing for content to be streamed via stick or external hard drive, we found that it didn’t recognize every device we plugged in. Additionally, the company claims this product has a refresh rate of 120 Hz, but it is 60Hz with some motion interpolation technology to give the illusion of a higher rate. Not a huge deal, but still.
#4 Samsung Series 7 UN65RU7100FXZA Ultra HD Smart TV (43”, 50”, 55”, 65”)
Award: Best for Bluetooth
WHY WE LIKE IT: A sleek, ultra-thin product, with tons of Samsung bells and whistles, including 4K resolution, a powerful UHD processor that automatically upscales standard HD signals to Ultra HD, Alexa and Google Assistant support, and built-in Bluetooth. This is the perfect product for those who like to use Bluetooth to stream to headphones or external speakers in a home theater.
- Built-in Bluetooth for headphones
- UHD processor upscales shows to 4K
- Extremely thin, just 2” wide
- Slightly heavier than comparable models
- Takes a bit to connect to WiFi
- Price on the higher end
The Samsung Series 7 Ultra HD Smart TV is a highly capable product, with plenty of the kind of sheen that has made the company such a major player in the space, including an ultra-thin frame, clocking in at just over 2 inches, a built-in UHD processor that automatically upscales standard HD to 4K and the ability to integrate with Alexa and Google Assistant. The UI is neatly organized, making searching through streaming options and live TV on the faster end, and the built-in Bluetooth is a fantastic addition, allowing for use with headphones and external speakers, though keyboards are not supported. Bluetooth also gives you the option of boosting your audio using wireless headsets, a home stereo, or a soundbar.
We found that the product was slightly heavier than comparable models, though just by a few pounds, and that the prices were, on average, higher than most of the other TVs on this list. We also noticed that it took around a minute for the television to connect to WiFi after turning on or after returning from sleep mode. If you’re looking for a smart TV specifically, this could be one of the best TVs for you.
#5 TCL Class 6-Series 4K Ultra HD Roku Smart TV (55”, 65”, 75”)
Award: Best for Gaming
WHY WE LIKE IT: It offers some quality-of-life improvements over the other TCL products on this list, including Dolby Vision HDR technology and a proprietary Contrast Control Zone (CCZ) technology that helps deliver a deep black and a pure white color array. It also has a low input lag functionality, making it truly shine while playing video games or watching Amazon Prime Video.
Read Full Review: TCL 75R617 4K Review
- Low input lag for gaming
- Colors look great, thanks to Dolby Vision and CCZ
- 18-month warranty
- No Bluetooth
- Remote does not have headphone jack
- 75” model extremely expensive
The TCL 4K Ultra HD Roku Smart TV is perfect for gaming, thanks to its low input lag functionality and suite of color-enhancing technologies, including Dolby Vision HDR, helping to deliver stunning true-to-life graphics and seamless control to all of your favorite gaming applications. The UI is sleek and easy to use, with Roku enabling streaming from all major platforms, and the remote can be controlled via Alexa. Additionally, TCL always packs in an 18-month warranty with their products, which is higher than the standard one-year warranty found with comparable models.
The product does not boast Bluetooth functionality, nor does the remote have a headphone jack, which could somewhat limit your ability to wear headphones comfortably, though the TV does integrate nicely with a related app, which does allow you to stream content from your phone or tablet, though not every streaming platform is supported. Additionally, the 75” model is the highest-priced product on this list.
#6 Samsung UN32M4500A 32-Inch 720p Smart LED TV
Award: Best for Small Spaces
WHY WE LIKE IT: This is a no-frills smart TV that delivers excellent visuals, belying its 720p resolution, and extreme portability, weighing in at just nine pounds. This is a great product for a kitchen or dorm room, and the low weight factor makes it easy to move around at will.
Read Full Review: Samsung UN32M4500 Review
- Super light, just 9 pounds
- Speakers are loud, given the size
- Samsung UI easy-to-navigate
- Smallest screen on list
- Only 720p
- No Alexa or voice support
The Samsung 32-Inch 720p Smart LED TV boasts an extremely small form factor, weighing just nine pounds, making it easy to move around the house at will. The small screen size also makes it a great fit for kitchens, dorm rooms, and anywhere else where space is a commodity. The speakers are loud and crisp, offering clear sound throughout the room, and the picture is fantastic, as the small screen size covers up the lower-than-average pixel count. Samsung’s UI is fantastic, as always, allowing for simple navigation on every major streaming platform.
This is the smallest display on the list, however, so if you are looking for a “wow” factor, you might want to pick a bigger television. Also, we couldn’t help but be saddened by the lack of support for smart assistants, such as Alexa and Google Assistant, making this TV a strictly analog affair, with no voice controls available.
Note: Other smart TVs worth mentioning that we have not included on this list include the LG Signature OLED 88Z9, the Hisense 50-inch Class H6570G 4K Ultra HD Android Smart LED TV, and the Vizio PX-65-G1 P Series. The LG Signature is an 8K resolution TV using the WebOS operating system and LG’s most powerful AI-powered intelligent processor. The Hisense Android TV offers 4K quality, four times the resolution of HD screens, and a full-array LED backlight. This Hisense model also has Bluetooth connectivity which comes in handy when you want to expand your audio with either a soundbar, stereo, or headphones wirelessly. The Vizio 65-inch TV features a quantum color that delivers up to 165% more color than standard 4K TVs. This Visio model has Dolby Vision HDR, and works with Apple airplay, as well as an Apple home kit.
#7 Toshiba 43LF711U20 Ultra HD Smart TV (43”, 50”)
Award: Top Pick
WHY WE LIKE IT: A stunning product, with 4K HD resolution, an 8 million pixel count, and a refresh rate of 60 Hz, plus all of the benefits of a Fire Stick built right into the television, with a speedy processor that makes searching a breeze and Alexa support on the remote. This is just a fantastic TV with a truly gorgeous display, accurate color, plus a host of smart features. It is the best TV for the money. 4K content looks amazing on this set.
Read Full Review: Toshiba 43IF711U20
- 4K resolution
- Remote features voice-controlled Alexa support
- Automatically updates via WiFi, adding new features
- Not biggest TV on list
- Built-in web browser is wonky
- No Bluetooth for headphones, etc.
The Toshiba Ultra HD Smart TV offers up to a 4K HD resolution, and it shows, a bright, beautiful display that boasts stunning clarity, thanks to its 8 million pixel count and a wide color gamut. The built-in Fire TV functionality gives you instant access to all major streaming platforms, such as Netflix/YouTube/Hulu/Amazon Instant Video, and the quad-core CPU/multi-core GPU makes navigating menus and searching for content extremely speedy. The Alexa-enabled remote works great, even allowing for control of smart home appliances, and the product is constantly updating on the fly, thanks to WiFi.
Though this television isn’t the biggest on the list, capping out at 50”, the gorgeous display and smart features more than makes up for it. We did have a spot of trouble navigating the built-in web browser, as it offers a somewhat clunky interface, but we didn’t find much need to surf the net on it anyways. If you want to go a bit bigger, check out the best 55-inch smart TV.
How We Decided
To help narrow down the above list, we researched these smart TVs across a spectrum of functionalities, and smart platforms, looking for products that delivered crisp and clear visuals that met or exceeded their advertised resolutions, with high-quality speakers that produce the kind of world-class sound that is ideal for Hollywood blockbusters and streaming dramas alike. They also had to have the perfect black level and the right contrast ratio. We also tried to find a nice mix of 4K and standard HD products, to match whatever entertainment budget you are working with.
We also wanted to make sure these TVs were actually smart, with easy access to all major streaming platforms, via Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV, or Samsung’s proprietary UI. We favored products with simple-to-navigate menus and powerful internal processors to make searching as quick as it would be on a computer or tablet.
Finally, we took a look at additional smart features, such as Alexa and Google Home functionality, providing hands-free control over the unit, and built-in Bluetooth for headphones and external speakers. We also researched the remotes to make sure they worked as advertised and checked out any related apps to see if navigating via phone or tablet was effortless. Viewing angles were also considered. Every product on the above list also has a warranty of at least one year, with a few boasting 18 months. Additionally, if you make a big purchase, you will want to decide, is an extended warranty on a TV worth it.
Smart TV Buying Guide
The Most Important Features to Consider
- Screen Size and Resolution
Just like their not-as-intelligent counterparts, smart TVs live and die by their max resolutions. By the way, we have an additional guide if you’re still wondering, “What is a smart TV exactly?” If you absolutely need to have the crispest picture quality, go for something offering a 4K or Ultra HD resolution. If you are fine with standard HD, at 1080p or 720p, then you can save a few bucks by eschewing 4K. Screen size is also something to consider. Where is it going to be placed? If it’s going to be the centerpiece of your entertainment room, bigger might be better. If it’s going to be placed in a kitchen, small bedroom, or dorm room, then you might want to pick a smaller television, to conserve space. Alternatively, if you’re buying a TV for a senior, then you’ll want a large unit that’s easy to use. - Access to Streaming Platforms
The best part of a smart TV is that they are bundled with access to Roku, Fire TV, or a similar streaming provider, meaning you won’t have to fork over extra cash for external streaming devices. Make sure that the television you are thinking of buying has access to all of the major streaming platforms, including Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, etc. Additionally, look for products that offer useful apps, including web browsers and, on occasion, simple video games. So, if you’re doing a lot of binge-watching, then you’ll want to snag a high-performing Smart TV for streaming, as you’ll read about in our Hisense H5500G review. - Voice Control
Many smart TVs offer smart assistant integration, allowing you to use Alexa or Google Assistant to control the device. Though the hands-free operation is certainly a perk, most of these products do require an external purchase, such as an Amazon Echo, in order to achieve this functionality. Still, once you are set up, this can turn the TV into something of a smart home hub, allowing you to adjust smart appliances throughout the house. If you like the option of voice control, read our Samsung Series 7 TV review for a model that offers this option.
While these smart TVs have great features that enhance your viewing experience, there’s plenty more to investigate. So, if you want more, check out our lists of the finest conference room TVs and top-tier Ultra HD TVs.
