OnePlus TV 55-inch U1 4K TV
Initially I was not sure about reviewing the OnePlus U series 55-inch 4K TV. For a couple years, since I bought a second television and filled up the living room slot, I have resisted television reviews. And a 55-inch television is even more scary when you stay in a regular size Delhi flat — it is almost like bringing an elephant into a cow shed. But I took the leap of faith and soon after there was a window in the Delhi lockdown, the giant was indeed in my living room.
As I temporarily relegated the old 42-inch LG into the store room, I was happy to note that the 55-inch had eased into the space vacated by the smaller screen in the living room. Yes, the Tankha painting gifted my sister, which used to flank the LG, was nowhere to be seen, but I could live with this screen in my home.
The OnePlus U series has a really thin frame and the panel is almost flat in the rear, except for a small bump towards the bottom. This clear design is stunning as it is simplistic. There will be very few televisions that are thinner than this.
And again we are not looking at a premium television here. The TV props up on two-leg stands on both sides. There is a flap that opens at the back to reveal the ports. Once I pushed in my Amazon Firestick the flap wouldn’t close, but then you don’t need a Firestick on this TV. There are no visible buttons anywhere and that is a bit worrying for me as someone who has two TVs with not even one functional remote between them. Plus, you can use voice to search via Google Assistant or Alexa and this too works really well without you having to press down on a microphone button on the remote.
Once you power on the TV you realise that the bezels are so thin that vanish as you start focusing on the content. When I switched on Netflix for the first time, the app recognised that it was running on a 4K television and soon presented me with the choice to upgrade to the more expensive UHD streaming service. Given the size of the screen and the already impressive visuals it did not take much cajoling. That might be the best upgrade I have ever paid for, because the first show I watched after — Our Planet — almost appeared like a demo show at a television showroom. So as I swiped through the Netflix playlist, the 4K UHD and Dolby Vision tags became strong reasons to pick a show, more to experience the visuals than because of the show itself.
There is also easy options to switch to live TV in cases anyone still has cable at home — I don’t. I used one of the HDMI ports to plug in the FireStick and realised the OnePlus remote controls that screen too. Then you can go to Google Play and download literally any app you need. So who needs cable TV?
Being a OnePlus device, there are some good features that make life easier for users. For instance, there is the built in data saver app that lets you set limits for data consumption on the TV and get alerts for the same. My 1GB alert kept popping up every 115 minutes while watching 4K titles. Though I have expanded by broadband limits using lockdown, this is a great feature to have for all since televisions can consume a lot of data pretty fast.
Then there is the kids mode, where I can set time limits and ensure my son watches just clean stuff on TV. That was a relief.
Overall, the OnePlus U Series is a good option for those looking to upgrade to a larger screen. It is also good for those who want to get rid of all their fire sticks and Android boxes that make TVs smarter. This is a smart TV in the real sense of the term. At a price of Rs 49,999, the 55-inch TV is great value for money and a one-stop-shop for all your entertainment needs.