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Watching Netflix’s The Good Place to see how the TV dealt with brighter content and the contrast was similarly okay. A shot of the sky showed some definition, while other shots had a grey tinge in the corners of the screen. TRU Resolution TRU Resolution upscales a wide variety of non 4K content, delivering a more refined image that feels fully immersive." The 55UL5A63DB’s speakers are tuned by Onkyo, but the UL5A misses out on the “Enhanced” speakers of the UL7A and the front-firing efforts of the TL7A. It’s worth noting that the UK31 is best-watched square on. Off-axis viewing loses colour depth and contrast. The 50UK3163DB does a better job than many sets in its class of upscaling HD sources. The results look sharper than HD, yet not so processed that they end up looking unnatural. Provided, anyway, that you keep the set’s motion processing and noise reduction systems set to low or turned off entirely.
Hold down the manual button on the unit for 30 seconds (if unsure of location please refer to the user manual). Toshiba has pinpointed its picture performance as an area of growth, developing the TRU Picture Engine. It breaks down the TV’s picture performance into three parts: micro dimming, motion control and upscaling. Rather than just ‘buying in’ a third-party smart system from the likes of Google, Roku or LG, the 50UK3163DB unexpectedly deploys a smart system of Toshiba’s own design. Even more surprisingly, this system really isn’t bad. Its presentation is compact but effective, for the most part tidily fitting its content links and apps into a couple of ‘shelves’ superimposed over the bottom few inches of the picture.The UL5A sports a surprising number of HDMI inputs (four). Other connections include an optical out, LAN, satellite and aerial antenna, two USBs and, interestingly, VGA and component connections. While it makes sense to include the latter for those who wish to connect a PC or other legacy equipment, it does feel antiquated. There’s Freeview Play for access to catch-up TV, on-demand services and live TV. And Toshiba hasn’t scrimped on the smart side either, with the revamped UI home to such apps as Netflix, Prime Video and Rakuten TV. The new UI is part of a tile/row interface– scroll up or down and there’s access to Sources, Settings or Live TV. A play of Aquaman in 4K HDR highlights the set’s deficiencies; contrast is hot, detail is missing in the brightest areas. However, a switch to the Dolby Vision version helps for a more refined and controlled HDR performance. While the Toshiba UK31 doesn’t have a flotilla of apps, it is not without smarts. Alexa is built-in – although annoyingly, a notification pops up asking if you want to activate it every time the TV is powered on and can’t be turned off unless you log in to Alexa. Toshiba’s reasoning being that you’ve bought an Alexa compatible TV… because you wanted Alexa. I’m not necessarily sure that will be the case for everyone that eyes this set. Audio is perfectly ok for everyday use and is able to go loud without sounding shrill. The set has a 20W downward-firing stereo sound system but supports Dolby Atmos, which is good news if you want to partner it with an Atmos
If multiple variations of your router appear in the network selection screen, select the one which does not have 5GHz at the end. The Toshiba WK3C isn’t the most eye-catching TV, but it isn’t designed to be that. It is a simple and clean-looking display that would look great in spaces like bedrooms or smaller apartments. The Toshiba UL21 is inexpensive, reasonably bright, delivers colour accurate SDR images, and HDR performance is bolstered by Dolby Vision support. If you can find it for the right price, it’s a solid buy.Let’s not beat around the bush, if you’re a serious gamer and own a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X, the Toshiba UL21 isn’t going to meet your gaming requirements. Its panel is limited to a refresh rate of 60Hz and there are no HDMI 2.1 ports, so you can forget about next-gen features like Variable Refresh Rate and 4K@120Hz. This shouldn’t be held against Toshiba though, as these simply aren’t features that have made their way into cheap televisions yet. Alexa Built-in With an Alexa microphone embedded into the bezel, you can explore more of what you love whether it’s getting the latest news and sports results, or even just simple commands like changing the volume without having to search for the remote, simply ask Alexa.
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