When we talk about affordable 4K UHD TV, we can find TCL S525 and S425 introduced by TCL as part of their 2019 TV lineup. TCL S525 comes with 4 screen size options : 65-Inch (65S525), 55-Inch (55S525), 50-Inch (50S525) and 43-Inch (43S525), while there are 6 screen size options of TCL S425 : 75-Inch (75S425), 65-Inch (65S425), 55-Inch (55S425), 50-Inch (50S425), 49-Inch (49S425) and 43-Inch (43S425). You may easily guess that TCL S525 is the higher model than TCL S425 from their model number. Why is TCL S525 as the higher model better than TCL S425? Let’s find out the answer in this article.
What Should You Know about TCL S525?
TCL S525 is affordable 4K UHD TV model with Dolby Vision support from TCL’s 2019 TV lineup. It comes with TCL’s NBP Photon Technology and iPQ Engine on top of its 4K UHD Resolution. NBP Photon Technology is able to bring wide color spectrum on the screen of TCL S525 so that we can enjoy rich color details. iPQ Engine can deliver more accurate color reproduction while also optimize DCI-P3 color space coverage. HDR Dynamic Contrast and HDR Pro Gamma come as the contrast technology of TCL S525. HDR Dynamic Contrast brings more vibrant contrast between the dark blacks and bright whites while HDR Pro Gamma can adjust the screen brightness based on the environment lighting conditions. TCL S525 supports HDR10, HLG and Dolby Vision so that you can enjoy enhanced details and expanded contrast from wide range of HDR content sources. 120Hz CMI comes as the refresh rate technology of TCL S525. It can deliver fluid motion for action movies and sports. 120Hz CMI of TCL S525 is also completed with Auto Game Mode to bring minimum gaming lag when we use this TV as our gaming monitor. Dual-Core GPU/CPU is integrated as the processor of TCL S525. It can optimize the color, clarity and contrast of the picture delivered on the screen of this TV. Roku TV comes as the smart TV platform of TCL S525. It can deliver wide range of premium entertainment with 802.11ac dual band wireless that provides fast internet connection to our favorite content providers. RC280 remote control that included with TCL S525 is indeed only standard remote without built-in voice control, but we can control this TV conveniently with our voice using Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa since they are both already supported. 2Ch 16W is the speaker system integrated with TCL S525. It’s indeed only basic speaker system but it still can deliver good sound output with Dolby Digital Plus integrated with it. We can also easily attach our favorite soundbar to this TV if we are not satisfied with the sound delivered by 2Ch 16W of this TV.
| TCL S525 Price | |
| 65-Inch (65S525) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
| 55-Inch (55S525) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
| 50-Inch (50S525) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
| 43-Inch (43S525) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
What Should You Know about TCL S425?
If you are looking for the most affordable 4K UHD TV model in the market, then TCL S425 should be one of the choices that you can find. TCL S425 comes with 4K UHD Resolution that completed with 4K Creative Pro Upscaling Engine that allows us to enjoy brilliant picture clarity not only from original 4K content sources but also from non 4K contents that upscaled into near 4K picture quality. TCL S425 already supports HDR contents although it’s only HDR10 formats. We can enjoy enhanced details and expanded contrast from our favorite HDR10 contents on the screen of this TV. 120Hz CMI comes as the refresh rate technology of TCL S425. It can deliver smooth motion images for our favorite action movies and sports. We can find Dual-Core CPU/GPU is integrated with TCL S425 to optimize the color, clarity and contrast of the picture of this TV. The smart TV platform of TCL S425 is Roku TV. Roku TV allows us to enjoy wide range of premium contents from our favorite content providers. 802.11ac dual band wireless is attached to this TV to bring fast and stable internet connection. The internal speaker system of TCL S425 is quite basic 2Ch 16W speaker system. 2Ch 16W speaker system of this TV is powered by Dolby Digital Plus so that we can still enjoy good sound quality from it. It’s indeed a good idea to attach your soundbar to this TV if you are looking for more powerful surround sound from this TV.
| TCL S425 Price | |
| 75-Inch (75S425) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
| 65-Inch (65S425) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
| 55-Inch (55S425) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
| 50-Inch (50S425) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
| 43-Inch (43S425) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
Similarities & Differences Table
Let’s take a look at the key specs and features of TCL S525 and S425 in the similarities & differences table below. It’s important for us to look at their specs and features before we talk further about their comparison.
| TCL S525 |
TCL S425 | ||||||||||
| Similarities | |||||||||||
| Introduced | 2019 | 2019 | |||||||||
| Brand | TCL | TCL | |||||||||
| Resolution | 4K UHD | 4K UHD | |||||||||
| Display Technology | LED | LED | |||||||||
| Upscaling Technology | YES | YES | |||||||||
| Refresh Rate Technology | 120Hz CMI | 120Hz CMI | |||||||||
| Processor | Dual-Core GPU/CPU | Dual-Core GPU/CPU | |||||||||
| Smart TV Platform | Roku TV | Roku TV | |||||||||
| Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa | Compatible | Compatible | |||||||||
| Remote Control | RC280 | RC280 | |||||||||
| Built-in Wifi | 802.11ac dual band | 802.11ac dual band | |||||||||
| Speaker System | 2Ch 16W | 2Ch 16W | |||||||||
| Differences | |||||||||||
| Color Technology |
|
NO | |||||||||
| Contrast Technology |
|
NO | |||||||||
| HDR Support |
|
HDR10 | |||||||||
| HDMI/USB | 4/1 (Except 3/1 in 43S525) | 3/1 | |||||||||
| Price | Higher | Lower | |||||||||
|
|
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TCL S525 and S425 Comparison
We can find that there are several similarities and few differences between TCL S525 and S425 in the table above. Based on their similar and differences specs & features, we can talk more about the comparison between those two 4K UHD TV models.
Picture Technology
Both of TCL S525 and S425 comes with 4K UHD Resolution that completed with Upscaling Technology. Upscaling technology allows us to enjoy excellent picture clarity from both original 4K content sources and non 4K contents that upscaled into near 4K picture quality. We can also find that Dual-Core GPU/CPU is integrated with both of TCL S525 and S425 to optimize the color, clarity and contrast of the picture delivered on those two TVs.
We can find that TCL S525 comes with TCL’s NBP Photon Technology combined with iPQ Engine as its color technology. NBP Photon Technology and iPQ Engine can’t be found in TCL S425. TCL’s NBP Photon Technology can deliver wider color spectrum for richer color details, while iPQ Engine can brings more accurate color reproduction and optimize DCI-P3 color space covrage of TCL S525. TCL S525 also comes with HDR Dynamic Contrast and HDR Pro Gamma that’s not installed on TCL S425. HDR Dynamic Contrast can bring better contrast vibrancy between the bright and dark area of the screen, while HDR Pro Gamma can adapt the screen brightness according to the environment’s lighting condition.
While both of TCL S525 and S425 already support HDR, we can find that they support different HDR formats. TCL S425 only supports HDR10 format, while TCL S525 supports wider range of HDR formats. We can enjoy enhanced details and expanded contrast from HDR10, HLG and Dolby Vision in TCL S525.
Refresh Rate Technology
The refresh rate technology of TCL S525 and S425 are basically similar. They both come with 120Hz CMI (Clear Motion Index). 120Hz CMI can bring fluid motion images for our favorite action movies and sports. Additionally, we can find Auto Game Mode is integrated on top of 120Hz CMI of TCL S525. Auto Game Mode can bring more smoother gaming scenes so that you can experience more responsive gaming experience.
Smart TV Platform & Remote Control
Roku TV comes as the smart TV platform of both TCL S525 and S425. Roku TV allows us to enjoy wide range of premium entertainment from our favorite content providers. We can also find that 802.11ac wireless is attached to both of TCL S525 and S425 to provide fast and stable internet connection. The remote control that included with TCL S525 and S425 are similar. They both come with standard RC280 remote control. Although RC280 is only standard remote without microphone for voice control, we can control TCL S525 and S425 conveniently with our voice using Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa since they are both already supported.
Speaker System
The speaker system that integrated with TCL S525 and S425 are quite basic. They both come with 2Ch 16W speaker system. Although it’s quite basic, we can still enjoy good sound quality from 2Ch 16W speaker of those two TVs since it’s already powered by Dolby Digital Plus. If you have higher audio taste, then I’m sure that you need to attach your soundbar to enjoy more powerful surround sound that can meets your audio expectation.
Price
TCL S525 comes as the model that positioned higher than TCL S425 so we can find that TCL S525 is usually offered at the higher price as well. It’s important for us to check the price of TCL S525 and S425 before we can find their latest price difference since TV prices are indeed changing from time to time.
Why is TCL S525 Better than TCL S425?
Both of TCL S525 and S425 are positioned as affordable 4K UHD TV from TCL’s 2019 TV lineup. TCL S525 is the model that positioned higher than TCL S425. Why is TCL S525 better than TCL S425? From our discussion above, we can find that TCL S525 is better than TCL S425 because It comes with better contrast, color, HDR support and gaming experience. But we can also find that we need to prepare more budget for TCL S525. So if you are looking for better contrast and color, Dolby Vision and HLG support and more responsive gaming experience with Auto game Mode while you don’t mind to spend higher for that, then TCL S525 is the model that you should choose.
| TCL S525 Price | |
| 65-Inch (65S525) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
| 55-Inch (55S525) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
| 50-Inch (50S525) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
| 43-Inch (43S525) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
TCL S425 is one of the most affordable 4K HDR TV that we can find in the market. It indeed doesn’t come with NBP Photon Technology, iPQ Engine, HDR Dynamic Contrast and HDR Pro Gamma but basically It still can deliver good 4K picture quality with its 4K UHD screen that completed with 4K Creative Pro Upscaling Engine. It also can deliver enhanced details and expanded contrast from HDR contents although it’s indeed limited to HDR10 content sources. So if you have more limited budget for your next 4K UHD TV, then TCL S425 is the model that you should choose.
| TCL S425 Price | |
| 75-Inch (75S425) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
| 65-Inch (65S425) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
| 55-Inch (55S425) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
| 50-Inch (50S425) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |
| 43-Inch (43S425) | Check Today’s Offer (Ebay.com)…. |