Best TV to Buy Under 500$

In 2005, it was impossible to find decent models for less than $500 if you were looking for an LCD television. Although the best models cost more but there are some models that work very well in this price range depending on the type of use. Keep in mind that most models come in a broad variety of sizes too If you’re looking for the top TV for less than 500 dollars but don’t want to sacrifice quality, you can always choose a smaller model.

Best 4k TV Under $500: Hisense 55H8G

The most affordable 4k TV under $500 that we’ve evaluated is the Hisense 55H8G. The Hisense 55H8G is an excellent 4k TV for the price. It also looks more expensive than it actually is. It uses the Android TV smart interface, which gives you access to a very large selection of apps and allows for a ton of customization, but it may not be the easiest to use at times.

It’s got a great native contrast ratio that’s enhanced by its full-array local dimming function it’s quite impressive to find within this range of prices. This makes it a fantastic choice for watching movies in a dark room, and its high maximum brightness means it won’t cause too much glare, even in the case of watching a lot of daytime TV in a bright space. Both casual and serious gamers will appreciate its fast response time which leads to minimal motion blur and low input delay.

As with many models that have the VA panel, its viewing angles are quite poor and it’s not the most ideal option when you’re watching with a lot of people in a large seating arrangement. Also, while it’s good for HDR content because of its wide color gamut, it can’t get nearly as bright when it comes to HDR content as other more expensive models, which means that HDR images don’t pop how they should. This is a very good option at a reasonable price, and is the top TV for under $500 we’ve tested.

Best TV Under $500 For Gaming: Vizio M55Q7-H1

If you’re a fan of gaming, then the most effective TV under $500 is the Vizio MGQ7-H1. This TV is a solid price and provides an excellent overall experience. It even includes advanced gaming features, such as variable refresh rate (VRR) and an auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM). Vizio’s SmartCast interface can be slow and buggy, but it’s one of the few smart platforms that’s ad-free. We tried the 65-inch model, we expect the 55 inch to perform the same.

It’s got a 60Hz refresh rate, but this should be adequate for casual PC gamers as well as console gamers. It’s got a great response time and minimal blurring when watching videos that are fast-moving, and extremely low input delay. This makes it responsive to gaming. It has a high contrast ratio, which delivers dark blacks. However, it only has adequate brightness, which means you might have issues with glare in very bright spaces, despite its superior reflection control.

It doesn’t have HDMI 2.1 ports. They’re only equipped with the bandwidth of HDMI 2.0. It’s not the ideal option for HDR gaming as its HDR brightness in Game Mode is sub-par, which means that highlights don’t seem to pop as they should. Also, although it features local dimming that is full-array, its performance is mediocre which is actually reducing the TV’s contrast ratio. However, for a budget TV, this is among the top TVs that cost less than $500 that can be used for gaming and the majority of people will be happy with the quality of it.

The Best TV under $500 that has Wide Viewing Angles 55UP7000PUA

The LG 55UP7000PUA is a great TV to choose if you have a large seating arrangement. It’s a basic model that comes with an IPS-like display with wide viewing angles, so the picture is fairly accurate no matter where you’re viewing it from. We have tested the model with a 65-inch size. However, we expect the same results to apply to the 55-inch model.

It doesn’t have any trouble upscaling lower-resolution content, which is ideal for watching cable TV, and you can leave it on your favorite news channel for the entire day without having to worry about the possibility of burning-in permanent. It’s perfect for indoor usedue to its decent high-end brightness and excellent reflection handling. It should be avoided in rooms with high light sources. It’s equipped with LG’s webOS smart technology similar to other premium TVs, which is easy-to-use and has plenty of apps that you can download. The remote however isn’t equipped with a microphone to control voice.

It is not recommended for HDR or SDR movies. Its panel has a low contrast ratio, which creates a grayish appearance to blacks, it has disappointing black uniformity, and does not have an option to local dim the brightness to improve it. In terms of HDR it supports only HDR10 and doesn’t display a wide color gamut and doesn’t get bright enough to let highlights shine. Besides these issues, it’s the best TV under $500 with wide viewing angles.

Notable Mentions

Hisense U6G The Hisense U6G is an alternative to the Hisense H8G. It’s performance is superior in all aspects, but it costs more than $500.

LG UP8000: The LG UP8000 is a more expensive version of the LG UP7000 and performs better overall, but it costs more, and is worth the cost of the UP7000 instead.

Toshiba Fire TV 2020: While the Toshiba Fire TV 2020 4K TV is affordable but the TCL 5 series is more expensive and comes with a larger color selection.

Samsung TU7000: While the Samsung AU8000 is the higher-end model The Samsung TU7000 can be found in smaller sizes at as low as $500.

LG UN7000: The LG UN7000 is an older version of the LG UP7000 that you can likely find cheaper and with similar performance.

TCL 4 Series 2020: The TCL 4 Series 2020 doesn’t offer more features than the TCL 5 Series, but it’s cheaper and still has Roku.

Vizio V5 Series 2021: The Vizio Series 2021 is a good TV, and it’s available in a 43 inch size, similar to the Samsung AU8000, but the smart system is a bit sluggish.

Hisense A6G – The Hisense A6G entry-level model comes with an IPS panel similar to the LG UP7000 but is not as brilliant as the UP7000 and does not have many of the options.