Review: TCL C835 Mini-LED

These days smart TV’s are not the rarity they used to be and have become the default option for any new purchase. So against the backdrop of such stiff competition, let’s have a look at TCL’s latest Mini-led television, the C835 55″/65″/75″.

Hardware

Sliding it out from its box the TV immediately impressed us with it build quality. The C835 comes with really nice super-thin bezels and a slim body. Though as with almost all tv’s these days, you still get the lower rear bulge which houses the motherboard plus all the ports and connectors.

You’ll find the power port on the right side at the back and all the other various ports on the left hand side. You get a good set of connection options; Four HDMI ports, which include a 144Hz port, a 120Hz port, and the the remaining two ports have a frequency of 60Hz each. Two USB-A 2.0 and one 3.5mm headphone jack. (Which is nice as I’m seeing less and less of these)

Of course a smart TV wouldn’t be that smart without decent software-hardware integration. The C835 runs on an ARM Cortex-A73 processor with four cores running at 1.35GHz, a Mali-G52 GPU running at 550MHz which all adds up to a decent performance level. You’ll see that apps launch quickly and run without any stutters or hangs.

Software

As for software, the C835 runs Android TV which in case you don’t know, is Google’s operating system for smart TVs and streaming devices with a slick easy to use interface. It’s really super practical and it means you’ll get all your favourite apps including Netflix, Disney Plus, Spotify, HBO and YouTube. All of this is easily navigated with the sleek long-ish remote which comes with dedicated Netflix and YouTube buttons. And because it’s Google, you can also access Google Assistant to find content, get answers, and control smart home devices. Don’t forget that Android TV and the Google assistant system also provides a voice assistant, making the television controllable just by talking to it.

Although its bulkiness wouldn’t allow for a proper wall mount, the TV is also easy to put together and the stands provided are durable and comfortably sit the television safely on a solid platform. All you need is a screwdriver, since all the screws are provided.

Sound and Vision

The C835 has a resolution of 3840 x 2160 pixels which is proper 4k and the image quality is excellent with sharp and vivid colour accuracy.

As for screen imaging tech you will get a 4th generation Mini-LED back lit, bright display, able to punch out up to 600Nits of brightness. The beautiful screen is down to the Quantum dot technology used in the LCD panel. Thousands of tiny locally dimmable grouped LEDs power a layer of quantum dots which give you 100% of the DCI-P3 space. I don’t know exactly what all that means, but the depth of colour is phenomenal and makes this screen suitable for use in light or dark environments.

Though visually we felt for a better brightness you’d need to fiddle with some of the settings because the out-of-box set-up was preset to ECO-friendly brightness. We would have preferred it to be increased especially in a bright room.

Talking of presets, you’ll find set ups for standard, movies, games and a dynamic mode. We found the Standard preset was the best baseline for all content but you can adjust colour settings to suit your preferences using the interface sliders.

The TV also supports the HDR10+ standard and Dolby Vision IQ.

We felt that the sound quality you get with the C835 is way better than average, shipping with ONKYO speakers and an integrated double subwoofer. There is also support for Dolby Atmos, but in that case you’ll be looking at external speakers or one of TCL’s sound-bars.

For the Gamers…

Of course TV’s are not just used for  watching TV so we connected a gaming console to an HDMI port. The 120Hz port works best for this, because the higher one might not be compatible with the console software. As a gamer it’s an excellent experience featuring good brightness and awesome HDR, perfect for brighter visuals and local dimming which gives those horror games the scariness they deserve. Apart from the perfect brightness, the television boasts a good refresh rate of 120fps. So all you have to do is plug in your console enjoy an awesome gaming experience.

All-in-All…

The TCL C835 TV is a true standout in the world of smart TVs. With its Mini LED screen technology, the visual quality is absolutely stunning, delivering brightness and dynamic range that surpasses even OLED screens. From stunningly sharp visuals to crystal-clear audio, this TV has it all. But that’s not all – it also boasts an intuitive, fast UI powered by Google TV control, making it easy to navigate and enjoy all your favorite content. So why wait? Treat yourself to cutting-edge screen tech in a smart and stylish package. What’s not to love? Go check one out now!

The TCL C835 TV is available in 55″/65″/75″ screen sizes. You can check out this and other products on the TCL website.