The Insignia F30 is often less expensive and might be a better choice for casual viewing in a budget-conscious setting. It is well-suited for bright rooms, but it doesn't excel in streaming experience or gaming performance. The TCL S546, being somewhat more expensive, provides a better overall streaming experience and is a good choice for mixed usage, including sports, movies, and gaming, though it could be less impressive in very bright rooms. Consider your main use case: cost efficiency and bright room viewing lean towards the Insignia F30, while a better streaming and gaming experience justifies the TCL S546's higher price. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the Insignia F30 (LCD)
Good viewing angle
Advantages of the TCL S546 (LCD)
Good for bright room
Good for dark room
Good for movies & TV
Key differences
Picture Quality
5.6/10
7.4/10
4.29/10
CONTRAST
8.21/10
6.2/10
COLOR VOLUME SCORE
8.0/10
LED
PANEL TYPE
LED FALD
IPS
PANEL SUB-TYPE
VA
The TCL S546 (LCD) has good picture quality, while the Insignia F30 (LCD) has poor picture quality.
Movies & TV
5.3/10
7.0/10
4.29/10
CONTRAST
8.21/10
5.5/10
BLACK UNIFORMITY
6.8/10
5.5/10
UPSCALING
5.9/10
Yes
HDR10 SUPPORT
Yes
No
HDR10+ SUPPORT
Yes
No
DOLBY VISION SUPPORT
Yes
The TCL S546 (LCD) is good for movies & TV, while the Insignia F30 (LCD) is poor.
Gaming
5.6/10
6.6/10
5.8/10
RESPONSE TIME SCORE
7.6/10
8.7/10
INPUT LAG SCORE
8.0/10
2.5/10
MOTION PROCESSING
4.6/10
0.0/100
GAMING LOCAL DIMMING
60.0/100
5.8/10
GAME HDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
6.9/10
The TCL S546 (LCD) is only fair for gaming, while the Insignia F30 (LCD) is poor.
The Insignia F30 is considered poor for gaming mainly because it has a slow response time, which can make fast-moving content blurry. On the other hand, the TCL S546 is considered fair for gaming because it has a better response time and input lag, meaning faster reaction to user inputs and clearer motion during gaming.
Cartoons & Animation
5.9/10
6.6/10
5.9/10
COLOR GAMUT SCORE
7.8/10
6.2/10
COLOR VOLUME SCORE
8.0/10
5.4/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
8.2/10
8.1/10
COLORS OUT OF THE BOX SCORE
4.4/10
7.5/10
GRAY UNIFORMITY
7.0/10
The TCL S546 (LCD) is only fair for cartoons & animation, while the Insignia F30 (LCD) is poor.
The Insignia F30 (LCD) performs poorly in displaying cartoons and animation because it has very good colors out of the box but a poor color gamut, leading to less vibrant and diverse colors. The TCL S546 (LCD), on the other hand, offers a fair experience as it has poor colors out of the box but a better color gamut, providing richer and more varied hues essential for animated content.
News, Talk, & Other TV
5.4/10
6.4/10
5.4/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
8.2/10
5.5/10
UPSCALING
5.9/10
The TCL S546 (LCD) is only fair for news, talk, & other TV, while the Insignia F30 (LCD) is poor.
The Insignia F30 performs poorly for news and talk shows due to a lower SDR brightness, which can affect its ability to overcome glare in brightly lit rooms, and despite very good colors out of the box, it lacks local dimming which would improve contrast.
Bright Room
5.5/10
7.2/10
7.2/10
VIEWING ANGLE
5.3/10
5.4/10
SDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
8.2/10
5.6/10
HDR BRIGHTNESS SCORE
6.8/10
6.0/10
REFLECTIONS SCORE
6.0/10
The TCL S546 (LCD) is good for bright room, while the Insignia F30 (LCD) is poor.
The Insignia F30 performs poorly in bright rooms due to its lower SDR and HDR brightness and fair reflection handling, while the TCL S546 is better suited with its higher SDR brightness and equivalent fair reflection handling, ensuring a clearer image under bright conditions.
Cost
$340
$398
$100
$200
$300
$400
$500
$600
The Insignia F30 (LCD) has a price of $340 and the TCL S546 (LCD) costs $398.
The TCL S546 (LCD) and Insignia F30 (LCD) are both only fair for sports.
The Insignia F30 and TCL S546 both have fair performance when watching sports, where response time and motion processing are very important, which could lead to noticeable blur during fast movements on screen. Both TVs struggle with reflections handling and have limited viewing angles, affecting visibility in well-lit rooms or for those watching at an angle; however, the TCL S546 has marginally better motion processing features, making it a slightly better choice for fast-paced sports action.
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How the Insignia F30 (LCD) and the TCL S546 (LCD) compare to other TVs
"Still one of the best bargain TVs. The best feature remains its quick and responsive implementation of Fire TV OS and all the goodies that come with it. Having Alexa inside the Insignia 4K Ultra HD Fire TV Edition brings a lot of value, from voice control of TV functions to access to your smart home devices."
Get a great deal on the Insignia F30 (LCD) or the TCL S546 (LCD)
About Insignia
Insignia is an in-house brand from BestBuy. It offers a range of TV sets that are lower-end and smaller size. They are manufactured in China by Hisense, which is another TV brand. Insignia TVs use Amazon's Fire OS as the smart TV software, providing users with a highly user-friendly experience.
About TCL
TCL, the highly recognizable TV brand from China, has firmly established itself as the second-largest manufacturer in terms of sales volume. Renowned for striking an impressive balance between affordability, picture quality, and design, TCL TVs deliver a compelling overall package. While they have traditionally excelled in the low-end and midrange TV segments, TCL has recently made remarkable strides in the realm of high-end televisions, introducing impressive models that rival top competitors. Most TCL TVs use Roku software which is very user friendly and easy to use, but they have a few other models that use Google TV which has the largest app selection, but is not as user friendly as Roku.
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec TVs team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest TV information and makes it digestible for you.
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