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Pros
Very affordable. Good image detail. Energy efficient.
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Cons
Oversaturated reds and greens. Sluggish remote. Only two HDMI ports.
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Bottom Line
With the TCL LEFHDE5300 series you get capable LED-backlit HDTVs at affordable prices?the 46-inch model we tested rings up for less than $550. Features are scarce and color accuracy could be better, but this set is still a good deal for the money.
By John R. Delaney
Cash-strapped consumers take note: Chinese HDTV manufacturer TCL has reset the bar for budget-priced HDTVs. We recently reviewed the company's LE40FHDE3000 model and gave it props for its overall bang for the buck, as the least-expensive 40-inch HDTV we?ve ever tested. If you want a slightly bigger screen, though, TCL's LEFHDE5300 series is a better choice. This line has 42- and 46-inch versions, and the 46-inch version we tested, the LE46FHDE5300, is notable for its $549 (list) price, especially considering you might be able to find it for much less if you shop around. It's not without issues, though, color accuracy is a bit off, and the remote was slightly slow to respond in our tests. And like most budget HDTVs, there aren?t many features to be had here. On the plus side, 1080p image detail is sharp and the set doesn?t require a lot of power. If you're on a strict budget, TCL is worth checking out.
Design and Features
The LE46FHDE5300 may be inexpensive, but it doesn?t look cheap. The 46-inch panel is framed by very thin (0.5-inch) matte black bezels on the top and sides, with a slightly wider (0.8-inch) bezel on the bottom. The only adornments are a shiny TCL logo in the center of the bottom bezel and a silver Power button off to the right.
At first glance the set looks extremely thin, measuring just 0.6 inches at its thinnest point. However, it juts out to 2.2 inches at the bottom where the down-firing speakers are embedded. The 25-pound cabinet is supported by a heavy, rectangular glass base that is sturdy but doesn?t provide any swivel. There are four VESA-compliant mounting holes on the back for hanging the TV on a wall using an optional mounting kit.
The right side of the cabinet is home to three rocker buttons (Channel Up/Down, Volume Up/Down, Menu/Input). Around back, facing left, are two HDMI ports, a USB port, and a headphone jack. Downward-facing ports include composite and component A/V ports, PC audio input, VGA video input, digital audio output, and an antenna/cable jack. As with the TCL LE40FHDE3000, and our budget Editors' Choice, the RCA LED42C45RQ, this model only has two HDMI ports and lacks any network port, Wi-Fi, or Web apps.
The set uses the same remote that ships with the LE40FHDE3000. It?s 8 inches long, with a glossy black finish and 37 non-backlit buttons. There are no color-coded keys, but it does have playback controls and a dedicated picture preset button. I noticed a lag in response time when using the remote to change picture settings and while navigating through the settings menus, an issue I did not experience with the LE40FHDE3000.
There are six picture presets: Natural, Sports, Cinematic, Vibrant, ECO, and Personal. Basic settings include Brightness, Contrast, and Sharpness. Expert settings allow you to adjust Backlight, Color, Tint, and Color Temperature. The Advanced settings menu offers an SABC (Screen Adaptive Brightness Control) option that, when enabled, changes the brightness level depending on the content being displayed. There?s also a Dynamic Backlight option that changes the backlighting level depending on screen content, and three noise reduction settings.
Performance
Using images from the DisplayMate HDTV diagnostic utility, a Klein K10-A Colorimeter, and SpectraCal?s CalMan 5 software, I performed a basic darkroom calibration on the LE46FHDE5300 and then measured luminance levels and color accuracy. The set produced a peak brightness of 255.73 cd/m2 and a black level reading of 0.079 cd/m2. The resulting contrast ratio of 3,237:1 is nothing to write home about, although it is higher than what we got from other low-cost sets including the Insignia NS-42E480A13, the Westinghouse UW40T2BW, and the RCA LED42C45RQ.
Color accuracy is sketchy, as you can see from the CIE chromaticity chart below. The closer the red, green, and blue dots are to their corresponding boxes, the better the color accuracy. (Ideally each dot will be inside the box.)? In this case, blues were very close to ideal, but reds and greens land well outside the box. As a result, the LE46FHDE5300?s picture is a little hot, or oversaturated. This was obvious while watching the movie Piranha on Blu-ray; flesh tones looked a bit too red, and Elisabeth Shue?s blond hair had a very slight green cast to it. That said, color accuracy issues are not uncommon with HDTVs in this price range, and are part of the reason you?ll pay a lot more for a same-size set like the Sony Bravia KDL-46HX850, which has extremely accurate colors.
Otherwise, the LE46FHDE5300 offers sharp image detail and moderately good viewing angles. There is some loss of luminance at around 45 degrees off center that gives the picture a slightly washed out look, but colors remain intact.
The LE46FHDE5300 is a relatively energy efficient budget HDTV, requiring 53 watts of power during testing, which is exactly what the much smaller (40-inch) Westinghouse UW40T2BW used, and only slightly more than the same-size Sony KDL-46HX850 (47 watts). The Insignia and RCA models used 64 watts and 67 watts, respectively, and both have smaller screens than the LE46FHDE5300.
Conclusion
If you?re in the market for a simple, inexpensive, larger-than-40-inch HDTV, the TCL FHDE5300 series has you covered. It delivers a bright picture and sharp image detail, has relatively wide viewing angles, and is energy efficient. While its color accuracy is not optimal, it offers a better all-around picture than comparably priced sets like the Insignia NS-42E480A13 and the Westinghouse UW40T2BW. That said, it still can?t match the overall picture quality of our reigning Editors? Choice for budget HDTVs, the 42-inch RCA LED42C45RQ.
Cash-strapped consumers take note: Chinese HDTV manufacturer TCL (The Creative Life) has reset the bar for budget-priced HDTVs. We recently reviewed their LE40FHDE3000 model and gave it props for its overall bang for the buck, and for being the cheapest 40-inch HDTV we?ve seen here at the PCMag.com Labs.? However, if a 40-inch screen just won?t cut it, consider 46-inch version of the company's LEFHDE5300 series, the LE46FHDE5300. This $549 (list) 1080p LED-backlit HDTV offers significantly more viewing area than its smaller sibling, and it?s a relative steal at just under $550 (or less if you shop around). However, it is not without issues; color accuracy is off and the remote is slow to respond. Like most budget HDTVs, there aren?t many features on this model, either. ?On the plus side, image detail is sharp and the set doesn?t require a lot of power. The 42-inch version, the LE42FHDE5300, is available for even less, and while we haven't tested that specific model, our tests based on the LE46FHDE5300 give a good sense of how it will perform. ? Design and Features ? The LE46FHDE5300 may be inexpensive, but it doesn?t look cheap. The 46-inch panel is framed by very thin (0.5-inch) matte black bezels on the top and sides, with a slightly wider (0.8-inch) bezel on the bottom. The only accoutrements are a shiny TCL logo in the center of the bottom bezel and silver power button off to the right. ? At first glance the cabinet looks extremely thin, measuring just 0.6 inches at its thinnest point. However, it juts out to 2.3 inches at the bottom where the down-firing speakers are embedded. The 25-pound cabinet is supported by a heavy, rectangular glass base that is sturdy but doesn?t provide swivel movement. There are four VESA-compliant mounting holes on the back for hanging the TV on a wall using an optional mounting kit. ? The right side of the cabinet is home to three rocker buttons (Channel Up/Down, Volume Up/Down, Menu/Input). Around back facing left are two HDMI ports, a USB port, and a headphone jack. Downward-facing ports include composite and component A/V ports, PC audio input, VGA video input, digital audio output, and an antenna/cable jack. As with the TCL LE40FHDE3000 and the Editors' Choice RCA LED42C45RQ, this model only has two HDMI ports and lacks any network port, Wi-Fi, or Web apps. ? The LE46FHDE5300 uses the same exact remote that ships with the LE40FHDE3000. It?s 8 inches long, with a glossy black finish and 37 non-backlit buttons. There are no color-coded keys, but it does have playback controls and a dedicated picture preset button. ?I noticed significant lag in response time when using the remote to change picture settings and while navigating through the settings menus, an issue I did not experience with the LE40FHDE3000. ? There are six picture presets: Natural, Sports, Cinematic, Vibrant, ECO, and Personal. Basic settings include Brightness, Contrast, and Sharpness. Expert settings allow you to adjust Backlight, Color, Tint, and Color Temperature. The Advanced settings menu offers an SABC (Screen Adaptive Brightness Control) option that, when enabled, changes the brightness level depending on the content being displayed. There?s also a Dynamic Backlight option that changes the backlighting level depending on screen content, and three noise reduction settings. ? Performance ? Using images from the DisplayMate HDTV diagnostic utility, a Klein K10-A Colorimeter, and SpectraCal?s CalMan 5 software, I performed a basic darkroom calibration on the LE46FHDE5300 and then measured luminance levels and color accuracy. The set produced a peak brightness of 255.73 cd/m2 and a black level reading of 0.079 cd/m2. The resulting contrast ratio of 3,237:1 is nothing to write about, although it is higher than what we got from the Insignia NS-42E480A13, the Westinghouse UW40T2BW, and the RCA LED42C45RQ. ? Color accuracy was sketchy, as you can see from the CIE chromaticity chart below. The closer the red, green, and blue dots are to their corresponding boxes, the better the color accuracy (ideally each dot will be inside the box).? In this case, blues were very close to ideal but reds and greens landed well outside the box. As a result, the LE46FHDE5300?s picture is a little hot, or oversaturated. This was obvious while watching the movie Piranha on Blu-ray; flesh tones looked a bit too red and Elisabeth Shue?s blond hair had a very slight green cast to it. That said, color accuracy issues are not uncommon with HDTVs in this price range, and is one of the reasons you?ll pay more for a set like the Sony Bravia KDL-46HX850, which has extremely accurate colors. ? Otherwise, the LE46FHDE5300 offers sharp image detail and moderately good viewing angles. There was some loss of luminance at around 45-degrees off dead center that gave the picture a slightly washed out look, but colors remained intact. ? The LE46FHDE5300 is a relatively energy efficient budget HDTV and earns our Greentech stamp of approval. It required 53 watts of power during testing, which is exactly what the much smaller (40-inch) Westinghouse UW40T2BW used and only slightly more than the Sony KDL-46HX850 (47 watts). The Insignia and RCA models used 64 watts and 67 watts, respectively, and both have smaller screens than the LE46FHDE5300. ? Conclusion ? If you?re in the market for a 46-inch HDTV but need to keep expenses below $600, the TCL LE46FHDE5300 has you covered. It delivers a bright picture and sharp image detail, and it has relatively wide viewing angles. It?s energy efficient, too. While its color accuracy is not optimal, it offers a better all around picture than comparably priced sets like the Insignia NS-42E480A13 and the Westinghouse UW40T2BW. That said, it still can?t match the overall picture quality of our reigning Editors? Choice for budget HDTVs, the RCA LED42C45RQ.
 By John R. Delaney Contributing Editor, Monitors and HDTVs As a Contributing Editor for PC Magazine, John Delaney has been testing and reviewing business displays, PCs, servers, and other assorted hardware and peripherals for the past 8 years. A 13-year veteran of PC Magazine's... Subscribing to a newsletter, constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. ');}} '); } }
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The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is “partially” opposing a request by the estate of Aaron Swartz for the release of documents related to the investigation that led to Swartz’s arrest and prosecution in federal court. In court papers filed today, MIT counsel states that its opposition stems from two factors: its concerns about people in the MIT community named in the documents and the security of its computer networks. MIT has previously stated that it would release the documents with redactions of names and other information. MIT President L. Rafael Reif said in email to the MIT community earlier this month: On Friday, the lawyers for Aaron Swartz?s estate filed a legal request with the Boston federal court where the Swartz case would have gone to trial. They demanded that the court release to the public information related to the case, including many MIT documents. Some of these documents contain information about vulnerabilities in MIT?s network. Some contain the names of individual MIT employees involved. In fact, the lawyers? request argues that those names cannot be excluded (?redacted?) from the documents and urges that they be released in the public domain and delivered to Congress. The paper filed today reiterates this position, basing it on threats already made to MIT staff and three separate hacking incidents at the university. The information includes “email, the names, job titles, departments, telephone numbers, email addresses, business addresses, and other identifying information of many members of the MIT community.” Swartz has become a symbol in the Internet community since his suicide. His supporters have led the debate about the role MIT played in Swartz’s prosecution and the vigilance of the U.S. Attorney General in the case. MIT claims it is fully cooperating in the investigation that has come since Swartz’s suicide.
After I had been running at night for more than a decade, a relatively under-the-radar service called Nextdoor got me to start running during the day. Almost nobody likes to exercise, and for many, overcoming the motivational hump of putting on your shoes and gym clothes can be trying on even the best of days. One evening late in January I had finally overcome this initial barrier to entry, and was just about to stop blogging to do my usual 30-minute nightly sprint when I got the email. “Woman robbed at gunpoint in Dogpatch, San Francisco” the subject line screamed. Unlike many of the emails I constantly receive, this was highly relevant to me, especially because, upon further inspection, the robbery had happened one block from my house. Until this email, I hadn’t given too much thought to Nextdoor, a service that I signed up for at the Allen & Co conference last summer, where co-founder Nirav Tolia?had given a talk about the local social network. The company started out as Fanbase in 2009, and was an attempt to create a user-generated content version of ESPN. Founders Tolia and Sarah Leary decided to pivot around May of 2010, and spent the next four to five months testing out different ideas. Fanbase officially pivoted to Nextdoor in September of 2010, starting out its pilot in Lorelei, a neighborhood in Menlo Park. Now a Facebook for your neighborhood, about half the Fanbase funding ended up carrying over, and Tolia and Leary ended up raising an additional $40.2 million for the new Nextdoor product. Initially enthusiastic, I had also invited my neighbors to use the platform, which had resulted in a de facto neighborhood support group (including the services of a pet psychic) when their adventurous cat Kiki went missing. I wrote a post about it for TechCrunch and then sort of forgot about it, rarely logging on to peruse the listings of free stuff and garage sales. Well I was certainly giving the service some thought now: “What if I had been that woman who was robbed?”"What if I had ventured out of my house just 15 minutes earlier?” I was still in my gym clothes, after so much effort, and feeling antsy from my day of work. Worse, I was now worried about a random stranger I had only heard about through the Internet, and I still needed a run badly.
Android/iOS: If you happened to snag You Need a Budget's desktop app last week on sale, you might have been disappointed to find the popular finance tool's mobile apps were still $4.99. Thankfully, they're both now free. 
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