In June, Vizio announced the pricing for its highly anticipated debut 4K OLED HDR smart TV models, but wouldn’t commit to a release date. Now we know when you can get them: Right now.
The $1,300 55-inch model and $2,000 65-inch model are both available at Best Buy, with a $100 discount on each until October 9.
Vizio’s OLED TVs set a new benchmark in terms of price, with the 55-inch model coming in $300 under the regular price of LG’s most affordable 55-inch OLED, the $1,600 BX Series (one of the best OLED TV deals around).
The new TVs support virtually all major HDR formats (Dolby Vision, HLG, HDR10, and HDR10+) and are equipped with Vizio’s new ProGaming Engine. Curiously, though you’ll be able to hear Dolby Atmos sound if you buy an Atmos-capable speaker like Vizio’s $1,000 Elevate soundbar, the OLED TVs themselves are not Dolby Atmos compatible.
The Elevate soundbar won’t be released until later in October, according to a Vizio spokesperson.
These models come equipped with four HDMI 2.1 ports, which can support 4K video at up to 120 frames per second; they also support variable refresh rate (VRR) for better compatibility with modern game consoles and PC gaming.
Like other Vizio TVs, these OLED models use the company’s SmartCast software for downloading apps from streaming providers such as Netflix and Disney+, and bake in Chromecast and Apple’s AirPlay 2 technology for casting compatibility with all major devices.
Digital Trends has yet to receive one of Vizio’s OLED TVs for testing, so we can’t comment on how well they perform. Given that Vizio is buying its OLED panels from LG Display — the same source LG Electronics and Sony use for their OLED models — it’s safe to say they should have very good picture quality.
The real question will be, does that picture quality look good enough that it’s worth saving yourself the extra $300 over the price of the LG BX Series? We’ll let you know as soon as we publish our in-depth review.
