TCL is not necessarily one of the most well-known television companies out there, but it did strike a deal with Roku to incorporate the company’s operating system into its line of smart TVs. Our TCL S405 setup and unboxing guide will help you get started with your new TV, ensuring you spend more time enjoying quality content than messing with the settings.
What’s in the box?
Out of the box, you will get the following (along with the TV itself):
- Two plastic feet with compatible screws
- Power cable.
- Remote with batteries.
- Quick-start manual.
All of this is housed above the TV panel in a small styrofoam box.
Several items are not included with the TV. You will need to buy HDMI cables to connect your TV to other devices. The easiest way to ensure you have HDMI cables is to buy the AmazonBasics High-Speed HDMI cables at the same time you buy your TV. If you do not buy the AmazonBasics HDMI cable, make sure that the HDMI cables are rated as “high speed” cables so they can accommodate the large amount of data 4K HDR content requires.
Additionally, the TV does not come with any wall mounting hardware. For information about wall mounting check out our wall mounting guide video.
Hardware setup
To affix the feet to the panel, take a look at the little arrows located on the part of the feet that connect to the television. You want to angle those arrows toward the TV’s screen, then align the holes and insert the screws (four in total). You probably also want to remove the plastic liner from the bezel.
Features and design
The bezel is fairly thin, with a glossy black finish that contrasts with the screen, coated with an anti-reflective film to reduce glare. The TV is about three inches deep — so it should look pretty good if you decide to mount it — and about 35 inches from foot to foot, assuming you’re working with the 49-inch model.
All the relevant ports and jacks are located on the rear of the TV, near the right side (the left, if you are facing the screen from the front). There are three HDMI ports — one ARC — along with one USB, optical, coaxial, composite, and a headphone/speaker jack.
The Roku remote offers shortcuts to a few popular apps on top of all the regular navigation features; it doesn’t have a headphone jack, but you can use the Roku app on your phone if you want to watch that way.
Software setup
Once you have connected the TV to the internet and powered it on, it will automatically apply a series of updates before prompting you to log into your Roku account (or to create one, if you haven’t already). It will also automatically download some starter apps, including Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Video.
The Roku OS is just as awesome on a TV as it is via Roku’s streaming devices. All your inputs will appear on the home screen — alongside your favorite apps — so it is easy to get wherever you need to go.
We recommend adjusting your picture settings at first use to get the most out of your S405. Select the “Movie” preset unless you are watching high dynamic range (HDR)-enabled content, in which case you’ll want to pick the “Dark [HDR]” setting instead. We also moved the brightness slider down a few points and set sharpness to zero, but this is all personal preference (and depends on your viewing environment).
