TCL 40S5401A: A basic and attractive smart TV

TCL 40S5401A is a charming television for those who watch TV but are not looking for spectacular results but just enough to be able to do a little bit of everything (since it is also intelligent).

Design and connectivity

The following image already lets us see both what the television looks like aesthetically and its measurements.

If you look closely, it is a model with a single frame, a metal body and a dark brushed metal color for its front, although very little of it can be seen. This frame is not especially narrow but rather normal, something that does not bother viewing at all. In fact, from the front, the TCL 40S5401A is very pretty.

Measurements and 3/4 view of the television

The back is something else, done in black. The profile , likewise, is very uneven , not at all aesthetic, with a fairly wide area at the bottom, where the connectors and speakers begin to be located, to narrow towards the upper area.

This panel measures 508 x 893 x up to 90 mm in the thickest area and weighs 5.28 kg . You can put it on the wall if you wish, anchoring it with its VESA 200 x 200 mm holes .

The other option, as you will see in the image, is to set up your stand, which is very simple, consisting of two metal V legs located quite close to the edges . With these the model will now measure 560 x 893 x 184 mm .

Tuning and connectivity

We have a complete tune-up with us, so you will have no problem seeing absolutely anything, but not everything as updated as it could be. CI+ is in 1.3 and HbbTV is given in 2.0.2 . For the rest, the analog includes NTSC/PAL/SECAM, BG/DK/I/LL’ and the digital is a DVB-S2, DVB-C, DVB-T2 .

The following image is real, taken on the side of the television, where, as we see, all its physical connectors are located. These consist of the Common Interface slot, a headphone jack, an AV adapter, double HDMI 1.4 input, optical type output for digital audio, satellite jack, RF cable and terrestrial TV, RJ 45 LAN jack and a USB 2.0 port .

TCL 40S5401A Side Connectors

As for wireless connections, we are left with Bluetooth 5.0 HID and A2DP and WiFI MIMO .

Image quality

Our television mounts a 40-inch (101 cm) VA LCD LED panel . On this occasion, the resolution is Full HD, which is 1920 x 1080 pixels, achieving 55 pixels per inch. Its matrix is ​​simple, 24 bits, and its color depth is medium, with 8 real bits but boosting capacity with a color calibration of 10 + 2 pixels.

The TCL 40S5401A works with Micro Dimming and Mega dynamic contrast . As for HDR, the model is compatible with HDR 10 . Additionally, TCL has incorporated a small noise reduction system that will help any image look better. The image processing engine is the one we see so much in the brand’s modest models, the IPQ 2.0 Engine.

Example of display of Micro Dimming technology

For movement, know that the firm adds 800 IRI units (image performance index) to about 60 Hz native. This makes it possible for the television to have a Game mode, although it is very simple and without management.

Audio

The power of the model is a bit lower than what is already considered normal in the market, being 16 W supplied by two full-range speakers. Obviously, the difference with respect to the standard (20) is minimal and, according to the characteristics of the television and the uses to which it will be used, they are more than enough to listen to TV well.

Special audio is processed up to Dolby Digital Plus . It has automatic volume control and an equalizer .

One thing that I really like about this model is that you can listen to TV with headphones connected, via jack or Bluetooth, both through these and, if you wish, also maintaining the sound from the TV speakers. In addition, you can configure the volume to be different, something ideal for those who have hearing problems or for a child, for example.

TCL 40S5401A software/smartTV review

Android TV as an operating system

Although the brand recently surprised us with the inclusion of Fire TV OS, it brings us Google services again, starting, in this case, with Android R or Android TV 11 . Its OSD is available in 29 languages.

When you see the television you will discover that it already comes with a few standard software such as YouTube or Netflix. Don’t worry because they are not the only ones. You have at your disposal the Google Play Store , where apps number in the millions.

Google also offers its assistant in this model, which will help you resolve doubts and perform some simple actions such as opening an application, changing the channel or turning off the TV.

More features found with PAT multi-image , on/off timer , support for pairing tablets for mirroring and smartphones, Hotel mode, program guide, multi-account functionality, quick task switching…

PROS:

• Frameless design
• Metal manufacturing
• HDR despite being FHD
• Android TV
• Price
• Light

CONS:

• Audio quality
• Energy label

TCL 40S5401A Specifications: