Best TVs 2018

Quick Tips for TV Shoppers

TV buying can be a flurry of obscure-sounding acronyms and confusing specs, which is why we have our in-depth buying guide and articles that explain everything from OLED technology to HDR content. Here are a few key details you should pay attention to on every TV you consider buying.

4K is the way to go: You'll get better picture quality with 4K resolution than you will with the older 1080p HD format, and 4K sets have replaced HDTVs as the standard for modern TVs.

Get the right size: We recommend picking the largest screen size that will fit your home and budget. You can expect to pay about $500 for a lower-priced 55-inch 4K TV and at least $900 for a 65-inch model.

Pay attention to refresh rate: The higher the refresh rate, the more realistic the motion or video should appear on-screen. While 60Hz is common, we recommend 120Hz rate or higher.

Pay the right price: You can spend thousands on a new TV, but it's often possible to find most of the features you want for under $500.

Additional Shopping Advice

As you shop for TVs and read reviews, you'll see that not all TVs use the same display technology. Most TVs use LCD display panels with LED backlighting. These TVs offer great brightness and can have superb color quality, but struggle with blacks and dark imagery. The best displays available today use OLED, which stands for organic light-emitting diode. Using organic material to create individual light-emitting pixels, there's no need for a backlight, making for slimmer display panels that offer the deepest black levels available. Of the two, OLED is more expensive.

MORE: Buying a TV? Here Are 11 Things You Should Know

Many manufacturers are also offering enhanced versions of LCD technology under brand names like Samsung's QLED. These are still backlit LCD displays, but they use quantum-dot technology and local backlight dimming to narrow the gap in quality between LCD and OLED panels.

Another important feature if you want the best picture available is high dynamic range (HDR) support. This technology lets TVs deliver more colors, better contrast levels and increased brightness. There are different formats of HDR, with a basic standard called HDR10 and several competing premium formats, like Dolby Vision, HDR10 Plus and Technicolor Advanced HDR. Each format has its benefits, but you'll  see the full capability of each only when playing media that is supported by the display.

MORE: Smart TVs: Everything You Need to Know

Skip the curved TV sets, though. Flat screen TVs have remained the standard for premium home theater gear because they can be easily enjoyed by multiple viewers. With a curved panel, sharing the screen with other people is hampered by severely limited viewing angles. The bottom line is that curved TVs are mostly a marketing gimmick.

Finally, you will almost definitely be getting a smart TV, because nearly every TV on the market has both network connectivity and support for streaming apps like Netflix and Hulu. However, not all smart-TV platforms are created equal. Some of the larger manufacturers, like Samsung and LG, offer their own proprietary TV interfaces, while others opt for third-party solutions, like Roku and Android TV.

What Else You Should Get with Your TV

Streaming Services: There are several streaming options ready to serve up all the shows and movies you can binge-watch. Many current TVs have major services like Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Video baked in, with apps preinstalled. Some smart TVs also come with cable-replacement apps built in, such as Sling TV and PlayStation Vue.

Streaming Devices: If your TV doesn’t already offer these sort of smart features, you can easily add them with a separate streaming device, like a Roku Stick or a Google Chromecast.

HD Antenna: When it comes to free content, there's still nothing quite as robust as the free local and network HDTV channels you can get with a simple antenna. Today’s HDTV antennas are affordable and effective, pulling in channels from miles away while stowing away out of sight, thanks to slim designs.

Soundbar: You'll also want to think about getting a soundbar. Most TVs are built to be slim, attracting shoppers with svelte designs that can be hung on a wall. The narrow confines look slick for a gorgeous display, but they make for lackluster audio. A soundbar gives you big sound and booming bass without the tangle of wires and clutter of a 5.1 or 7.1 surround system.

Universal Remote Control: You'll need a way to command all these devices, along with whatever Blu-ray player, cable or satellite box and other devices you connect to your TV, but it seems like every device has its own remote control. Tame the clutter with a universal remote, which lets you condense these clickers into one handy device. Some even let you control your smart-home gadgets.