TCL 32P500K 32-Inch LED Smart Android TV HD, HDR, Micro
TCL 32P500K 32-Inch LED Smart Android TV HD, HDR, Micro Dimming, Netflix, YouTube, DVB Compatible, Dolby Audio, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, USB 2 x HDMI, Narrow Design for Kitchen, Bedroom [Amazon Exclusive] [Energy Class E]
From the brand
| Dimensions: | 6.89 x 28.82 x 18.9 cm; 2 Kilograms |
| Model: | 32P500K |
| Manufacture: | TCL |
| Dimensions: | 6.89 x 28.82 x 18.9 cm; 2 Kilograms |
Purchased this for Christmas and it delivers on everything promised at a great price point. Fantastic image quality and colour range for movies, and impressive frame rate for gaming. Could not be happier with it!
I bought this tv last year after a lot of deliberation and exploring multiple options. I am really happy with my decision. Very good picture and sound quality. Smooth UI and switching between apps is flawless with very rare lagging. Turning off and on would fix the issue. Looks nice and sleek. If you are looking for a 40 inch TV under budget, go for it. It’s worth note that there is no mic in the remote so it is not possible to give audio instructions.
It’s a good tv. And does everything that is expected from the specs. Apart from Its says it has HGIG support it doesn’t seem to work correctly when utilising it, it seems to hard clip white digital levels at 650 nits.
Seems ok, only the slow response to remote is a bit annoying. Hope it doesn’t get worse as some times you have to press a button several times .
Does wats its meant to do
Great picture
Easy to use and set up
Negatives – it’s very slow to start up in the mornings. My Samsung just turns on. This thing needs to display 2 TCL locos in slow-mo, then the Android logo before finally granting you control. There’s no rushing it!!
The remote control – as others have mentioned, some days it’ll respond to the first touch.. most of the time, you’re hitting the button repeatedly whilst waving it about like a magician failing to perform a basic trick.. but it does work. Eventually.
The screen does not like dark scenes. It’s definitely a struggle for it. Maybe I haven’t played with the settings enough to find a way to fix this, but currently, anytime a scene gets dark, it struggles to display properly.
Positives.. the price. Obviously.
It does look very nice, and not at all like a cheap budget TV.
It’s been very reliable, displays very well in HD/SD quality with streams such as Netflix, Prime, ITVX, etc. The ports all function as intended.
Overall – very fair quality for such a low price. If you want high quality display, darks, and a non argumentative remote, you should look elsewhere and at a higher budget. But if it’s just for casual lower quality HD/SD TV/movie streaming, perhaps a bedroom TV or kids room, and you don’t want to spend a lot.. I certainly don’t regret it! (Bought to replace a 27″ non HD pc monitor without RC attached to my Roku, so it’s an upgrade!!)
I’m more use to smart tv from lg
It was a headache to set up no clear instructions.
Be prepared for long set up time with apps remembering passwords etc.
took a while to suss out layout etc.
normal tv doesn’t come up straight away your Home Screen is just apps.
Apart from all that perfect size for bedroom. I got 32inch.
Set-up was pretty easy.
Log into your local wi-fi, sign into your Google account and let the scan for Freeview TV channels run its course. Its initial offer to scan a QR code with your phone didn’t seem to work, and how would it if you weren’t already logged into your home wifi? Maybe some people are using Ethernet.
After that, you’re pretty much there. I never did find out what ‘pairing your remote control’ was all about as it was already working (duhhh!) and never got any confirmation that I’d succeeded.
I say ‘pretty much’ as the Android apps that are ready installed are a tad disappointing, although in some cases, like adding NOW TV was merely a case of searching for it on the Play Store app and installing it. We also rent Amazon Prime and Netflix, but these were already ‘native’ to the TV.
My biggest gripe, for which it transpires there is more than one way to work around, is the omission of something as ‘main-stream’ as BBC iPlayer, or All4 for that matter, and perhaps more understandably the very latest iteration from ITV called ITVX, the latter of which we actually pay for as it then includes the entire range of Britbox as well as largely ad-free catch-up all for 60 p.a. In fact, of all the UK TV streaming apps only My5 can be installed from the built-in Google Play Store app.
Plenty of people will be shrieking “Get a Fire HD or Roku stick!” at this point, but if you’ve got a ‘smart’ TV, surely you’d want it to be the whole deal in itself?
I then got weaving to find out how such exclusions could be overcome. I already knew about ‘sideloading the APK files’ from previously experience with a Fire tablet that is now to all intents and purposes a ‘vanilla’ Android tablet.
It’s easy enough to alter the security settings to allow ‘untrustworthy’ installations, but this is only the beginning. It’s also easy enough to locate the APK files on the web and download them to your phone.
Then by installing a copy of the ‘Send Files to TV’ app at both ends, mercifully available on the TV’s Google Play Store, you can transfer the three missing installation files (APKs) to the TV where they can be run from a File manager app (yet another that you download rom Google Play store) in much the same was as you run a ‘dot exe’ file in Windows File Explorer.
Whoopee, I thought. Then I tried them all
Yes, the front screens appeared but only to crash. I may have to try this process with different ‘vintages’ of APK files, as I understand some people have succeeded.
THEN, I side-loaded a copy of Aptoide.TV which is an alternative app library to Google Play Store, and my heart lifted as it listed BBC iPlayer so I installed it from there — still no sign of ITVX or All4 though. Yes it installed iPlayer but where was it? No sign of an icon, despite being able to run it from the settings list of apps.
That Fire or Roku stick is looming methinks.
However, in the meantime, I’ve found that I can easily ‘cast’ the required stream from my phone apps to the TV with very little fuss so all is not lost.
Back to the TV.
On the plus side, I assume that it has a better or more sensitive tuner than its predecessor as the former would only pick up a handful of the available Freeview channels from the amplified indoor aerial I’m forced to use. I’m really pleased to find that all the HD channels have tuned in. Picture quality is good but not astounding. It is after all ‘only’ an HD-ready (768 lines) screen, from before they started their dizzy climb through ‘Full HD’ to 4K and even 8K UHD.
However, this doesn’t matter too much with a screen that’s only 32″ diagonal and viewed from 8 feet away in a bedroom.
Speaking of bedrooms, you can opt to have the LED stand-by light completely ‘off’. On the first night, I got nothing but moans about the white light leaking from the vents at the back throwing patterns on the wall!
You do have to keep reminding yourself that you only paid 149 for it, not the 1000 I shelled out for the 55″ Samsung downstairs!
Minor niggles? Well, I set up my Bluetooth ear buds to work with it only to find that I have to make alterations to the audio delay (lip-sync) every time and then restore it when using the speakers. Oh yes, and the instruction manual (and even the download version) is just too generic to be of any use, having no mention of ‘pairing the remote’ for a start.
As a main TV? Probably not!
As an excuse to never get out of bed except for the call of nature? Definitely!
i purchased this 2022 version as 2nd TV putting in kitchen, wall mount. Made in Poland.
Android TV, which allows to install App whatever you like, Android platform is better for my usage. not Smart TV (e.g. Samsung Tizen platform), SONY is good but they do not focus on selling product at 32″ Android market.
I saw lots of comments, and those downsides are expected, so that i still go for this TV with adding extra quid to cover the downsides.
1. UI response time is expected slower, probably the processor of the TV. You can plugin a Fire TV Stick in HDMI comes with lots of preloaded App. As those Apps are processed by Fire TV stick, it can overcome the response of the TCL.
2. Sound is not perfect, but if you can pair with a BLUETOOT speaker/soundbar. You can hear incredibly sound. of course, if you have a bluetooth speaker with. Besides, TCL offers user can use the Bluetooth as connectivity, no matter Speaker, but no test on keyboard, mouse. should no complain at this price point.
3. When you talk about the picture quality, can confirm it is UP to 1080p when you plug in the Fire TV stick, it can tell and be reflected on screen. it will show “Not that good resolution”. Probably it comes from the App playing movie like Netflix….(Disney+ is always in High Definition). Don’t forget the connectivity with WiFi, and TV system processing power are all taken into account. I used a Fire Stick to offload the resource (Streaming, WiFi connection) from TV, Means i swtich to use HDMI, no issue at all. Again, no complain at this price point.
4. I plugged in Aerial Antenna to watch World Cup, in HD mode.
All in All, Android TV with 32″ as released in 2022. This is the model to buy. If you have a sound bar/bluetooth speaker, Amazon Firestick, you can even extend the usability of this TV rather pay 350 pounds to buy Samung, Sony.
No iPlayer but that can be solved through sideloading it if you know how to do this, and the remote came with dead batteries – popped in new ones and all good. This is a BBC thing rather than TCL as they likely need to test it fully.
Picture quality is alright, could be better but honestly for a 32″ TV where I am sitting about 6ft from it the TV is more than adequate and the other smart features are fine as it runs android TV
The TV also goes through WIFI set up very easily and appears to be easy to use.
Naturally, I was keen to leave as soon as possible so I didn’t spend any time there once I had trained her in iperating the power button and that repeated on/off cycles were successful in order to avoid tech callouts. As such I don’t have any further experience.
I did get a call a few days later to say “It’s not working”. Before I could utter the words “put it back in the box and send it back with a message saying ‘user incompetence – cannot operate power button'” I bit my lip and popped around to fin “it’s not working” to mean she had picked upi the wrong remote control from the old TV which was now in the recycling centre.
So all is good. No further calls after a month and beleive me, she would have called”
I could have been put off by some very ill-informed reviews here! Only 720 HD, surely they have not built sets with that resolution for years? But on a 32″ screen so what. In fact while watching a programme via my Sky Q Mini Box through the HDMI input, I hit the i button to see that the resolution was in fact 1080. I must admit, the specifications page on the TCL website is confusing sometimes referring to 720 and at other times 1080. So, I rang the TCL number provided by Amazon to find it had changed to 02037953308. In the end, I was put through to a very knowledgeable lady who confirmed that the resolution is 1080. She also gave me a part number for a remote control with built in microphone for issuing voice commands (RC602S) as the supplied remote does not have a microphone. More about that later.
With TVs I usually like to play around with the settings but in fact, the picture did not need tweaking, it is excellent. I did use the equaliser to push the bass up and the sound was better than expected via the internal speakers. In fact, I use the headphone output to connect to speakers in the ceiling via a small amplifier which is fine – doubt that I am benefitting from the Dolby Sound with that configuration.
Although I am mainly using Sky with the TV I tuned in the Freeview channels and even though I have a very old aerial, the TV tuned in excess of 140 channels. Some of the newer frequencies obviously did not work but that is an aerial issue. Interestingly, the TV identified the Freeview streamed channels (bet hardly anyone knows or let alone cares about them) but the TV could not resolve them unlike my large LG.
As mentioned, Sky via HDMI works well.
On the Android side, many apps including Netflix AND Prime TV are provided but as others have noted the Google Play Store where you normally find apps (generic names apk) is not well stocked for this TV and strangely the BBC iPlayer cannot be found at all. But here, geekiness sets in. Go to the Play Store and download a programme called Downloader. Once installed search for iPlayer. It will come back with a message that Downloader needs a browser add on. Download that and search for iPlayer.apk, there are many to choose from but the latest version can be downloaded and it works. But there is an issue and that is that you really need a mouse to navigate. As it happens, I had an old cheap keyboard/mouse that was easy to install and makes navigating the screen even easier. Also search for an app called on Downloader called Mobdro. This is easily installed and gives you access to hundreds of global TV stations including News and Sports.
Finally, I said that I would come back to voice commands. I use an iPhone and was surprised that there is an app called Android TV. When the TV is on, it connects to the app and can act as a keyboard, a track ball for mouse functions and using the iPhone microphone, you can use voice search. The trick is to touch the microphone button and then speak rather than keeping the button depressed while speaking. It works well and the app is free. I am sure that there must be a similar app for Android phones.
So, in summary, this is a high quality and keenly priced TV. OK, it helps if you enjoy technical challenges but straight out of the box, you will be connected in minutes and Netflix and Prime TV are there waiting for you as well as Freeview and if you have a suitable satellite TV dish pointed at 28 degrees you can get the free Freesat channels and if you nudge the dish to 19 degrees, you can receive the free Astra bouquets.
Done a lot of research buying this tv because the chances are he won’t use the actual tv for terrestrial channels which he hasn’t got setup in his bedroom..
32in Version. Sleek design with small bezels around the edges and looks stylish.
Very lightweight cant believe how light this tv is you can literally pick it up with 2 fingers.
Screen quality is quite amazing really for such a small value tv, Had netflix running off it and the quality doesnt seem any different than my Samsung 4k tv, obviously smaller screen produce good image hence not needing a 4k tv at 32in.
Sound quality a lot of people said was bad, but I find it not too bad, its not the best and certainly not as good as a sound bar, for a budget tv though I’m pretty happy with it.
Features are amazing, comes preloaded with netflix and has a dedicated button on the remote, wish it had a youtube button but it’s easy navigating around the android menu.
Had to side load different apps I wanted but this wasnt too much of a problem but a bit annoying since it’s only got 1 usb port, had it had 2 it would have been so much easier.
Only bad point I’ve noticed with this tv, when watching some youtube videos it feels like the tv is constantly flickering, its hard to notice this but you can kind of feel it happening especially if your looking away from the tv and you catch the screen in the corner of your eye.
This doesnt seem to happen on netflix only youtube that I’ve noticed and after tweaking the picture settings a little I managed to sort it out but it does happen sometimes. Maybe just the refresh rate or settings from youtube app havent had too much time to research that.
All in all I’m pretty impressed with the TV, it was on offer for 169.99 and great android features.
It takes a bit longer to boot up because of the android operating system, and if you are buying and using purely as a tv this could be a bit annoying but its literally 15-30seconds to boot up not too bad really.
Happy with it and would recommend, maybe not as a main tv for the main room but defo a secondary tv, it’s perfect. Thanks Amazon!
Picture quality is fine, and although not 1080p, 720p is fine for the bedroom, and combined with the HDR makes for quite a nice sharp viewing experience. It also seems to upscale very well too, so lower resolution 576i signals/inputs actually look better than some other TV’s in the house.
On to the sound, its not great. Very tinny, its all high, little to no mids or bass. But it is acceptable, well its better than acceptable and lets face it, this TV isn’t going to be the centre piece of a home AV system.
The Android TV operating system on this TV is fantastic. It works really well. I thought this is what was going to let the set down, but it works just as well as my much more expensive main living room Android tv. No problems at all running Kodi, and no problems with ANY streaming apps like Netflix, or Amazon Prime.
The play store for Android TV doesn’t contain all the apps that are available for your phone or tablet, but that is down to google, nothing to do with the set, and if you want apps not on the play store, I use puffin tv browser (which can be got from the play store) then just down load them from the web, or maybe use Aptoide.
I have used the set with a wireless keyboard and it worked fine, I have also used a usb memory stick and it recognised it straight away. The wireless connection is the same as any other, with automatic or manual, easy to set up and has stayed connected, no problems with wireless reception.
My only real gripe is that it could have had another usb port. With no bluetooth a dongle will be needed to support any bluetooth/wireless accesseries like the aforementioned wireless keyboard, and also for storage. If you are going to use the TV with a PVR function you will need more storage, and usb seems to be the only way to provide it on this set.
The set physically is very light, and also very slim, it seems well put together, nothing feels loose and is quite pleasing to look at.
Would I buy another, Yes, absolutely.
Pro’s: Cons:
Price Sound
Picture quality One USB port
Connectivity
Excellent Android TV
Light and Slim
Attractive design
DVB S2 (HD)Satellite Tune