85-Inches of Stunning Picture Quality

TCL makes great TVs at several price points, so when a new entry-level option with Mini-LED technology arrived, I jumped at the chance to get one. After spending a few months with the TCL QM6K QD Mini-LED TV, I can confidently say this is an excellent TV with a solid picture that blurs the “entry-level” line with premium perks at an affordable price.

Brand

TCL

Display Size

85-inches

Dimensions

74 x 42 x 2.3 (without stand)

Operating System

Google TV

The all-new 2025 model TCL QM6K Google TV delivers a stunningly clear and bright picture with a new Mini-LED panel, improved local dimming zones, Dolby Vision IQ, and a neat new Halo Control system for improved visuals. Get this TV and elevate your living room. 

Pros & Cons

• Excellent brightness and picture quality
• Affordable
• Very deep blacks

• HDR mode is hit or mess
• Color saturation

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Price and Availability

The TCL QM6K line ranges from a 55-inch TV starting at $499, all the way to a massive 98-inch TV. The 85-inch QM6K TV I reviewed has an MSRP of $1,999, although it often retails for around $1,299.

Brand

TCL

Display Size

85-inches

Display Type

QD Mini-LED

Display Resolution

4K (3840 x 2160)

Refresh rate

144Hz (Up to 288)

Dimming Zones

Up to LD500 Precise Dimming

Dimensions

74 x 42 x 2.3 (without stand)

Operating System

Google TV

Connectivity

Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac)

Speakers

ONKYO 2.1 Speaker System

Others

HDR10, HDR 10+, HLG, Dolby vison, Dolby Vision gaming, Dolby vison IQ

Weight

71.8 lbs

VESA

600×400

2025 TCL QM6K TV Series Lineup and Sizes

In my hands-on testing, I enjoyed the stunning picture quality of the 85-inch QM6K, but this review applies to the entire 2025 series. All sizes have similar specifications, the same upgraded local dimming zones, TCL’s Halo control system to deliver excellent inky blacks, and they should provide a similar experience.

Technically, the QM6K is TCL’s entry-level line for 2025, but I wouldn’t dare call it a budget TV. While it’s not quite as fancy as the newer QM7K line, which goes to a monstrous 115-inches and has triple the dimming zones, it’s a feature-packed TV with excellent picture quality, great black levels, plenty of ports, better sound than I expected, and a comfortable price.

This TV Is Big, Colorful, and Plenty Bright

Cory Gunther / How-To Geek

The TCL QM6K is a beautiful TV that hits all the right notes without costing a fortune. It looks good, sounds good, and has all the Google TV controls and streaming apps I enjoy. My specific model is 85 inches, which is pretty huge. Even while sitting nearly 11 feet away, it’s almost too big. But bigger is always better, right?

If you’re looking for a crisp, colorful, bright TV in a variety of sizes, the QM6K line from TCL delivers. That said, out of the box, it’s almost too bright, so much so that I turned it down quite a bit to ensure it wasn’t frying my retinas. And sure, there’s an Eco mode that’ll automatically adjust the brightness for you, but I tend to avoid that feature on most televisions.

So, what makes the TCL QM6K special and worth considering? The main draw here is the Mini-LED technology, which delivers a bright display with accurate colors and deep blacks. It’s a huge step-up from your traditional LCD screen, yet not as expensive as those fancy OLED TVs on store shelves. It’s a perfect middleground, only at a wallet-friendly price.

Cory Gunther / How-To Geek

The Mini-LED technology is solid, and it was a giant leap to go from my previous 65-inch TV to this 85-inch monster. Combine the size with Mini-LED, and I’m experiencing movies, TV shows, and sports in an entirely different way. The Mini-LED panel provides rich blacks that help dark scenes look uniform yet stunning, which results in a premium TV without jumping to an OLED.

TCL upgraded this model over its 2024 variants with a new “Halo Control System” that helps manage the 500 local dimming zones to eliminate backlight bloom or halos. It does a pretty good job, but it is still barely noticeable at times, although it didn’t concern me much. The QM7K ups that to 2500 zones, if that’s important to you.

Excellent Picture Quality (With Some Adjustments)

While the TCL QM6K didn’t blow me away in any particular area, it handles a little of everything well, which I can appreciate. Consistency is key. TV shows look great, SDR and HDR content are excellent, there is good contrast, and watching movies is thoroughly enjoyable. Whether I tuned into sports or rewatched some dark scenes in Game of Thrones, everything looked good.

I have two complaints, but those will likely boil down to personal preference more than a knock on the TV itself. First, like almost any TV on the market, TCL has several settings, such as Auto HDR Conversion, Dynamic Color, and Eye Health Protection modes, enabled out of the box.

The Auto HDR was the first thing I turned off, as it tried too hard to make certain scenes bright and adjusted colors to the point that most faces (or lips) looked unnatural, almost like lipstick. The Dynamic Color mode caused a similar but less noticeable effect, which I also disabled.

Then, TCL conveniently enables an Eye Health Protection mode that adapts the brightness based on ambient room light, which shifts more often than I’d like. Instead, I manually lowered the brightness to an acceptable level that worked day or night. Turning on the new Filmmaker mode on certain movies gave things a nice look, too.

I eventually used some calibration software to fine-tune and match my preferred style for colors and warmth, but you don’t necessarily need to do that.

And then there’s the overall size. Don’t get me wrong—I absolutely love this 85-inch beast and can’t wait for the NFL season. But a TV this big certainly isn’t for everyone, and while it’s fine for my living room, I think 75 inches might be the sweet spot for most people. At this size, some older content will show pixels more easily than a smaller TV, which is noticeable, especially at closer distances. If you have room for it, go big; you’ll love it.

A Familiar Google TV Experience

Cory Gunther / How-To Geek

Like many TVs that aren’t made by Roku or Samsung, this unit is powered by Google TV. And while you probably have a TV OS preference, I’m a big fan of Google and Roku’s options. Thankfully, the QM6K sports Google TV, delivering endless apps, benefits, and features.

Google TV is fast, supports a wide array of streaming apps, and recommends endless content for you to watch. I uninstalled a few bloatware apps out of the box, installed all my favorites, and have no complaints about the experience. While I couldn’t get the TV to respond to voice commands while it was turned off (like using my voice to turn it on), once it was on, using the Google Assistant to launch apps and specific channels was easy. I have a newborn baby at home, and usually my hands aren’t free, so asking Google to play ESPN on YouTube TV or adjusting the volume with my voice is a game-changer.

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If I have one complaint about the software, the hardware is likely to blame. Unlike similarly priced models like the Hisense U7N I tested, TCL’s QM6K only has Wi-Fi 5 inside, not Wi-Fi 6 or 6E. That’s quite a bummer when you spend over $1,000 on a TV. Seriously, it’s 2025, guys. I didn’t experience any lag or loading while streaming Netflix, but live sports had the occasional hiccup, which worries me for the NFL season when I start using multiview to watch 3–4 games simultaneously.

Otherwise, the internal hardware delivers a fast, smooth, stable experience while flipping through menus, opening apps, scanning channel guides, and doing anything else. It’s been smooth sailing.

Sound Quality and Remote

Cory Gunther / How-To Geek

I did want to mention the overall sound quality and remote, two things that often go overlooked on a TV. The remote is nothing to write home about, but it’s not bad either. It’s all plastic, even if there’s a faux brushed metal look on top.

You have all your usual Google TV controls, quick-launch buttons for popular streaming apps, and voice controls. It is backlit, which is a huge plus, and something everyone can appreciate. I wish it were a little shorter, but that’s nitpicking.

Cory Gunther / How-To Geek

While the sound quality is not amazing, it is better than expected. TCL uses a new 40W Onkyo speaker system (2 x 10W + 20W) that’s plenty loud and crisp. The highs are decent, and you’ll get a bit of bass during select movie scenes, which was a surprise.

I watched Dune: Part Two and was very impressed with the darker scenes, vivid and bright blue eyes, and solid sound quality. The rumbling in some scenes helped deliver the experience I was after. I rarely need to turn the volume above 25, but it goes up to 100. I’m not even going to attempt to try that.

Plenty of Features, Ports, Gaming Modes

I’m not a huge gamer, but the few games I tried on my PS4 turned out great, even on such a massive screen. In fact, I’d go as far as to say gaming is a strength of this TV. The low input lag and high refresh rates help in that regard. This TV supports both 4K at 144Hz and 1080p at 288Hz, paired with a solid VRR range.

The TV also has an Auto Game Mode (ALLM) with AMD FreeSync Premium Pro. It has two HDMI 2.1 ports, two HDMI 2.0 ports, and an eARC port. Other ports include two USB, Ethernet, and optical audio.

You can take advantage of full Dolby and DTS advanced passthrough, Dolby Digital+, PCM, and other features, including Dolby Vision HDR, HDR10+, and other formats like Dolby Vision gaming and Dolby Vision IQ. Sure, there are cheaper TVs that’ll be good for gaming, and 85 inches is a bit big, but you’ll enjoy gaming on the QM6K in any size. I never experienced any noticeable lag while gaming.

And finally, I like that the TV itself has dedicated power and mute buttons on the bottom, in case you lose the remote. Personally, I welcome physical controls. For those not mounting it to a wall, it has decent plastic feet that work in two different width positions, and they’re tall enough that you should be able to fit a soundbar underneath.

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Should You Buy the TCL QM6K?

Cory Gunther / How-To Geek

So, should you buy a TCL QM6K TV? That depends on your wants, needs, and budget, but I can confidently say it’s an excellent TV for the price. Getting a huge Mini-LED panel will take your home theater to the next level without spending thousands on OLED or a 4K UST projector.

The TCL QM6K TV nails the basics, does everything well, and does it without costing an arm and a leg. Sure, you can get a random 65-inch TCL for under $500 at Costco or Walmart, but it’ll be nowhere near the quality, brightness, or accuracy of this new 2025 model with Mini-LED.

This is one of those TVs that should be on your radar for its price-to-performance, and if it goes on sale, you’d better jump on it. TCL does have more expensive models that are higher up in its lineup, but if you’re not too picky, this is the one to buy.

Brand

TCL

Display Size

85-inches

Dimensions

74 x 42 x 2.3 (without stand)

Operating System

Google TV

The all-new 2025 model TCL QM6K Google TV delivers a stunningly clear and bright picture with a new Mini-LED panel, improved local dimming zones, Dolby Vision IQ, and a neat new Halo Control system for improved visuals. Get this TV and elevate your living room.