While much of the recent attention on Vizio has been connected to its imminent acquisition by retail giant Walmart, the TV maker has just announced its first TV to break the 75-inch screen size barrier. The new 4K TV model has an 86-inch screen and will be available on April 29 for $999, a price that undercuts almost every other 86-inch model from competitors.
Along with this new TV, Vizio has also announced a major rebranding of its TV model categories.
Its entry-level D-Series will now be identified by resolution: 720p screens will now be known as Vizio HD TV models and 1080p TVs will be called Vizio Full HD TV.
The current M-, P-, and Quantum models will all be merged into a single category called Quantum, while the range-topping Quantum Pro models will keep their existing name.
So where does the new 86-inch model live? The low price offers a clue: it belongs to Vizio’s V-Series TVs (the company’s most affordable 4K TVs), which will now be known as the Vizio 4K TV line. So you can consider the 86-inch TV as the first new 4K TV line model. It’s joined by all of the existing V-Series models in 43-inch to 75-inch screen sizes.
Feature-wise, the 86-inch 4K model is nearly identical to its 4K siblings. It has a full-array LED backlight and support for Dolby Vision and HDR10+ — the two most common versions of dynamic HDR — along with HDR10 and HLG. Where it goes above and beyond the existing models is in its ability to do up to 120 frames-per-second (fps) video when set to a 1080p (FullHD) resolution, giving gamers a much smoother experience when playing high frame rate games.
There are three HDMI 2.1 ports, including one that is ARC/eARC compatible.
On the audio side, it supports Dolby Digital and Dolby Digital+, as well as DTS:X and DTS Virtual:X for immersive audio. Interestingly, the TV also supports Dolby Atmos, but only via passthrough, which means you can connect a Dolby Atmos-capable AV receiver or soundbar, but the TV’s internal speakers can’t provide an Atmos experience.
Also on tap is dual-band Wi-Fi 6 connectivity, which should provide a strong and fast wireless connection for streaming 4K content from the many apps available on the Vizio Home Screen interface. It also enables the TV’s considerable support for content casting and smart home platforms like Apple AirPlay 2, Chromecast Built-in, Apple Home, Google Home, and Amazon Alexa.
Bluetooth connectivity lets you use a set of wireless headphones or earbuds for private listening (or you could connect a Bluetooth speaker) and the included remote is voice-capable.
