TCL 28S305 28-Inch 720p Roku Smart LED TV (2017 Model)

Okay, I installed this TV 3 hours ago and so far good! The picture, clarity, color are all better than my 28" Sharp which this is replacing. The Sharp worked fine for 6 years, about as long one should expect it to. SCAM ALERT I did run into a situation and I want to warn others about it. When I was setting up Roku, I could not get it to activate and it gave me the number of Roku support to call. I phoned and was told by a Jerry Maxwell I would need to purchase a license. There was a standard for 3 years 3 device for $79.00 or a deluxe licence for 5 years unlimited devices (dont have cost). I was angry that I had to pay 79.00 for Roku since I had a Roku stick already but I thought what the hell I want Roku. I told the guy this is bull****!. He said he would call back. In the meantime I tried activating through my roku account and it went through! So maybe Jerry did something but when he called back, I said its working and I m not paying $79.00! He hung up. So SCAM ALERT

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OK, so right off the bat I will say "WOW". For about $170, I was not expecting a lot of bells and whistles, which is fine for a newly converted "exercise room". Upon delivery I was amazed at how light this TV was. While mounting on an articulating arm mount, I actually held it in place with one hand while I screwed it into the mounts. I was fearing it to be a "toy" quality because of its light weight, but once I turned it on, I was pleasantly surprised. The colors are great, it is rich in features and has some very intuitive interface design qualities. -- Its a smart TV, and happily the features work great. It connected to my WiFi with no problems and the connection is strong (meaning the internal adapter is well made). Previously Ive had issues with Vizio TVs connecting, so this was a great relief. The integrated Roku works flawlessly and the set up was easy and intuitive. It quickly walked me though my Roku, Hulu, Amazon and other accounts. Since this TV is in a room not served by cable or satellite, I connected it to a very handy Winegard FL-55YR FlatWave Indoor Antenna and VIOLA! I had 40 channels of OTA TV to augment my Roku. The remote is small and is just like a normal Roku remote with the addition of channel and volume controls plus a handy mute button. And as a fantastic BONUS - by adding a thumb drive to the TVs rear USB port, you can pause live TV for up to 90 minutes. That was totally unexpected and a really nice surprise. (NOTE- they suggest a 16GB drive or less. Anything more wont extend the 90 minutes and would be wasted space). Bottom line: Great little TV, lots of features; great interface, Smart TV that works -- and it has an earphone jack if you need it.

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I am thrilled with the TV. It is terrific for my purpose. Surprisingly great picture quality. I am not using a cable, satellite or antenna feed of any kind. I have my WiFi connection for the Roku channels, a Google Mi TV Box, a Chromecast unit and an Android TV Media Box with KODI app installed. It is fabulous! Just cant praise it enough. I do have one minor gripe .. the light on the front-bottom of the set that blinks to tell you when some command is being received from the remote. The only time this light turns OFF is when there is a picture on the screen or when the set is unplugged. My usage is in the bedroom .. that is supposed to be dark at night. I do not want to get up and unplug the TV at the end of an evenings viewing. There needs to be a way to use the remote to turn this light OFF. (update: TCL has responded to this review and has solved this problem. The light goes off when the TV does. Success! Thank You TCL.) The only other problem I had was not TCL, Roku or Amazons fault. It was the transit company who did not deliver in two days by 8 PM as they committed to. They were a day late but that will happen if you let the package sit on the floor at the airport freight terminal for 27 hours without it moving. Doesnt make much sense to pay the high price to expedite it out of Atlanta and then have it sit for two days at the receiving airport. It was a day late. The family was so excited with the anticipated arrival of the new TV .. only to have the celebration quashed by the freight delivery company. Unfortunate.

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Bought at a good price during amazon prime only sale earlier in the year. Quick easy set up with wall mount bought on amazon as well. Quick Easy wireless setup with access to applications such as Netflix, YouTube, HBO. Use on the wall for a room that’s 8 by 10 feet

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This was the first new TV I ever bought. Up until now, it has been hand-me-downs and used TVs for cheap. I was extremely dismayed when the first unit I received was broken. However the return and replacement process was easy, free and only took 2 days before the replacement arrived. It was shipped in the original box which is very well packaged, so I think the first TV was just a fluke. It is a brightly colored TV box though, so the delivery person will probably not leave it at your door. I had to be present for UPS to drop off. But they didnt make me sign anything, so it might be hit or miss in your area. Keep that in mind when ordering. Actual product review. Wow. I. Am. Impressed. Ive only had Netflix up until now, so this was a major upgrade for me. I am now jacked in to Roku and have added many channels to my TV to start my transition away from cable TV. I have not tested the OTA tuner yet, but will get to it eventually. If it has problems I will update this review. If it works I probably wont bother. There are 3 HDMI inputs (one is ARC enabled). It has a SPDIF output which I connected to my stereo. It also has an old school composite RCA input which I connected to my SNES. Im really happy that they kept 1 old input like that. Now for the only downside. I am very tech savvy, just not very interested in most new tech. I design and program computers for a living. I understand the guts of hardware and software. I had no trouble at all with the setup of this TV and I was impressed by the level of integration with various web services. However, I think of my parents with a TV like this. If they could not get me to come set it up and train them how to use it multiple times, it would be returned. For an "average" person who is minimally savvy with their IPhone, this TV would be a challenge to set up. Maybe this is just the state of modern consumer tech, because it seems like TCL and Roku put a lot of effort into making the options well presented and organized. But there is a LOT in there. Dont buy this TV for your aging parents unless you want to be fiddling with it on every visit. But otherwise, its a solid purchase and you will not be disappointed. Oh and since it is a "TV" the picture quality is excellent. Not the best I have seen, but very very good. Especially at this price point. Update: Im old enough to clearly remember the days when advertisers suddenly discovered that they could record their ads at higher volume so that the networks would play them at a higher volume and ANNOY THE HELL OUT OF ALL THEIR POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS! Im new to smart TVs. Maybe its this one free station. Maybe its just a mistake with this one show. Heck it could even be a software bug. But it could also be that the laws written in response to the loud TV ads somehow dont apply to streaming content. Doesnt really matter though. Im still happy with it and just like the good old days of analog TV the MUTE button works great when the ads come on.

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Super easy to set-up, easy access to netflix and sling from your remote control. 40 inch is a 40 inch screen indeed (dont know why another review complained about it). Loving it so far!!

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This is the first TV we bought and we wanted a smart TV. The past reviews of TCL were way too good. Hence, we went with the latest 2017 version. The delivery was quick and the TV is very light. Good resolution and top of that its Roku compatible. That means you dont have to buy Roku dongle. In a gist, its value for money. Must buy if you are looking for a cheap Smart TV with a brand name involved.

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