On the hunt for an affordable 32-inch TV for your kitchen, bedroom or snug while the prices are low during Amazon Prime Day? This TCL set could well fit the bill.
The 32-inch TCL SF540K is now available at Amazon for £109.
We saw the price of this four-star TV fall briefly a short while ago, but it didn't hang around, returning to £179 for a few months. Now that Prime Day week is upon, however, the recommendable telly has dropped to this all-time low price.
This dinky size may not be what everyone is looking for, but they are a great choice for those who are short on space or looking for a smaller set for another room.
While it is not the best TV on the market, this 32-inch TCL has a surprisingly full feature set that includes the Fire TV smart platform. And, as our expert reviewers concluded, "achieves a thoughtful and easy-to-enjoy balance between all the key picture elements".
While expectations need to be tempered at this price (and because this is a 'small' TV), the TCL SF540K offers a surprisingly stacked feature set and a very likeable picture performance.
The headline is the inclusion of Amazon's Fire TV operating system, which means the whole user experience is rather like that of a Fire TV Stick.
It's colourful, intuitive and grants access to pretty much every streaming app you're likely to need, including all of the major UK-specific catch-up apps, which are neatly wrapped up under the Freeview Play banner.
You can use the mic built into the remote to chat to Alexa, too, essentially turning the TV into a big Amazon Echo device – albeit one that requires a button press to operate.
Unlike most TVs at this level, which have an 'HD Ready' 720p resolution, the SF540K has a 'Full HD' 1080p resolution.
It also boasts VA panel technology and a direct LED backlight, and it supports HDR in the HDR10 and HLG formats. And while the TV isn't packed with gaming features, it does offer ALLM switching and a low input lag of 15.3ms, so it's a good option if you need a very affordable gaming TV.
In action, the TCL SF540K isn't super-bright or vibrant, but it is balanced and controlled, which is more than can be said for most rivals.
Black levels are reasonable and there's plenty of shadow detail, bright highlights are free of nasty 'clipping', and colours are fairly warm and natural. It's sharper and more detailed than the other 32-inch TVs we've tested recently, too, and motion is handled well.
Our only real criticism of the picture performance (taking into consideration the price, of course) is that it has fairly limited viewing angles, which means those sitting substantially off-axis from the TV will find the picture looks a bit washed out.
The sound quality is, unfortunately albeit not unexpectedly, worse than the picture. The thin and limp delivery won't be a huge problem for daytime TV, but it will be a frustration for movies and games. Luckily, excellent cheap soundbar Prime Day deals are also available...
Ultimately, this is a very solid-performing and smart TV. We awarded it four stars at £149, but it actually launched for £179, making it a real bargain at the new price of £109.
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