What is a smart TV?
Simply put, a smart TV is a TV that can connect to the internet. Some have web browsers built in, and most have access to apps that let the TVs access popular services like Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Instant Video, and Hulu Plus.
Keep in mind that these features, even at their best, tend to be inferior to dedicated devices like Roku boxes, Fire sticks, or Apple TV. Smart TVs’ integrated smart functions are often buggy and slow compared to stand-alone solutions.
Whether or not you want your TV to have apps, nearly all TVs released in 2015 are smart TVs. Only entry-level TVs with poor picture quality have no smart functionality at all. If you want a good TV, you’ll need to get a smart TV.
Samsung Smart TV 2015
| Smart TV | Our Score | OS | Remote |
| Samsung KU6300 | 7.2/10 | Tizen (2016) | Smart |
| Samsung J5200 | 6.3/10 | Tizen | Basic |
| Samsung J5500 | 6.2/10 | Tizen | Basic |
| Samsung J6200 | 7.3/10 | Tizen (2014) | Basic |
| Samsung J6300 | 7.2/10 | Tizen | Basic |
| Samsung JU6400 | 7.5/10 | Tizen | Basic |
| Samsung JU6500 | 7.2/10 | Tizen | Basic |
| Samsung JU6700 | 7.1/10 | Tizen | Smart |
| Samsung JU7100 | 7.7/10 | Tizen | Smart |
| Samsung JU7500 | 7.9/10 | Tizen | Smart |
| Samsung KS8000 | 8.1/10 | Tizen (2016) | Smart |
| Samsung JS7000 | 7.5/10 | Tizen | Basic |
| Samsung JS8500 | 8.1/10 | Tizen | Smart |
| Samsung KS9000 | 8.2/10 | Tizen (2016) | |
| Samsung JS9000 | 8.1/10 | Tizen | Smart |
| Samsung KS9500 | 8.2/10 | Tizen (2016) | Smart |
| Samsung JS9500 | 7.9/10 | Tizen | Smart |
Samsung’s smart offerings took a bit of a step back this year. There are fewer apps now that the platform has moved to the Tizen OS, but on the whole, the OS feels familiar and fairly intuitive to use.
The remote is sleek and works very well, though the lack of buttons could make finding your way around tricky at first. Samsung’s navigation guides (found in the menus) are useful in figuring out how to get around with voice and motion control.
The browser is pretty quick, though it was not able to handle all the HTML 5 tests we ran it through. An LG TV, by comparison, handled those just fine.
Right now Samsung has a good, but not stellar, smart system, though that should improve with time. For reviews of picture quality, check out our reviews of Samsung’s 2015 lineup.
Sony’s Android TV 2015
| Smart TV | Our Score | OS | Remote |
| Sony W600D | 6.5/10 | Basic | Basic |
| Sony R510C | 6.8/10 | Basic | Basic |
| Sony W800C | 7.1/10 | Android | Basic |
| Sony W850C | 6.7/10 | Android | Basic |
| Sony X810C | 7.6/10 | Android | Basic |
| Sony X830C | 7.1/10 | Android | Basic |
| Sony X850D | 7.6/10 | Android | Basic |
| Sony X850C | 7.5/10 | Android | Smart |
| Sony X900C | 7.5/10 | Android | Smart |
| Sony X930D | 7.9/10 | Android | Basic |
| Sony X930C | 7.9/10 | Android | Smart |
Sony’s Android TV interface is nice and clean, and the apps that are present work well. Unfortunately, the selection is still pretty limited, though most of the popular apps are now available.
The included remote isn’t very good, and the touchpad remote is also pretty poor. For most people, the TV Sideview app for iOS and Android will likely be the best way to control and navigate the TV. You also get Google cast functionality, which is pretty useful.
You have a couple of different options for browsing the web on this TV, including Opera and Google Chrome,
If you want an attractive smart OS and don’t mind the relatively few apps, a Sony smart TV is a good choice. For more on Sony's various TVs, check out our reviews of Sony’s 2015 lineup.
LG WebOS 2.0 2015
| Smart TV | Our Score | OS | Remote |
| LG UH7700 | 7.4/10 | WebOS 3.0 | Smart |
| LG LF5800 | 6.6/10 | Basic | Basic |
| LG LF6100 | 6.5/10 | Basic | Basic |
| LG LF6300 | 6.5/10 | WebOS | Smart |
| LG UF6400 | 6.6/10 | WebOS | Basic |
| LG UF6800 | 6.5/10 | WebOS | Smart |
| LG UF7600 | 6.9/10 | WebOS | Smart |
| LG UF7700 | 6.8/10 | WebOS | Smart |
| LG UH8500 | 7.8/10 | WebOS | Smart |
| LG UF8500 | 6.9/10 | WebOS | Smart |
| LG UF9500 | 7.3/10 | WebOS | Smart |
| LG EC9300 | 8.5/10 | WebOS | Smart |
| LG EG9100 | 8.5/10 | WebOS | Smart |
| LG EF9500 | 8.8/10 | WebOS | Smart |
| LG EG9600 | 8.8/10 | WebOS | Smart |
LG’s WebOS smart platform continues to impress, with a gorgeous interface and great motion and voice-enabled remote.
The browser is a bit slow, though it did pass the Peacekeeper HTML 5 test, which Samsung’s did not. It also now has more apps than Samsung’s smart TVs (though we expect that will change with time).
If you don’t have complex needs and want an attractive, functional interface, LG’s is the one to beat.
For reviews of LG TVs’ picture quality, please see our reviews of LG's 2015 LED TVs.
Vizio Smart TV 2015
| Smart TV | Our Score | OS | Remote |
| Vizio D Series 4k 2016 | 7.5/10 | Basic | Basic |
| Vizio P Series 2016 | 8.2/10 | SmartCast | Tablet |
| Vizio D Series 1080p 2016 | 7.4/10 | Basic | Basic |
| Vizio E Series 2015 | 7.3/10 | Basic | Basic |
| Vizio M Series 2015 | 7.4/10 | Basic | QWERTY |
| Vizio P Series | 7.5/10 | Basic | QWERTY |
Vizio’s smart TV platform is pretty limited. It’s fine for accessing the basics – things like Netflix, Hulu Plus, or YouTube – but there’s not much selection beyond that.
The remote doesn’t have advanced features like motion control or voice input, but the M and P-series remotes do have a QWERTY keyboard on the back. All the Vizio remotes do have buttons for launching Netflix, Amazon Instant, and iHeart Radio, which let you skip the app launcher and get directly into those three apps.
They’re nothing fancy, and you won’t be blown away by the amount of things you can do, but Vizio’s smart features at least get the job done. For the picture quality of Vizio’s TVs, take a look at our full coverage of Vizio's 2015 lineup.
