Television reviews are full of talk about blooming, color gamut, and peak brightness, but most families just want one thing: a huge screen that looks good in the dark and does not empty the bank account. The TCL 65 Inch Class S5 sits squarely in that territory, a 4K LED panel with Dolby Vision and HDR PRO+ built around the Fire TV platform, plus Alexa and Apple AirPlay 2 thrown in for good measure. I put this television in the place of honor in my living room for a month and watched everything from sports to slow burn dramas on it. This review is the honest record of what that experience was like.
Before the details, the standard note. This article contains affiliate links, and if you buy through one of them the site earns a small commission at no extra cost to you. That commission does not change how I test or what I recommend, and I treated this television exactly as I would a purchase made with my own money.
Design and Build
The S5 looks more expensive than it is. The bezel is thin around three sides, the bottom edge carries a brushed metal accent, and the whole panel sits low on two narrow legs that give it a tidy, floating appearance. There is no wall mount included, but the back panel carries standard VESA mounts if you want to hang it, and the legs themselves offer two height positions to clear a soundbar.
The build is what you expect from a value LED television. The plastic back is fine, the inputs are easy to reach, and the panel has a modest gloss that sits between matte and mirror. In a dark room the reflection is not a problem, though very bright rooms with windows behind you will show it, which is true of nearly every TV at this price.
The port selection is genuinely complete. Three HDMI ports, including one with eARC for a soundbar, plus two USB ports, Ethernet, and both optical audio and a headphone jack. That last one is rare at this level and a quiet gift for anyone who still uses wired headphones at night.
Key Features
The core of the S5 is its 4K LED panel with Dolby Vision, HDR10, and HDR PRO+ support. Dolby Vision content, which Netflix and Disney Plus serve in abundance, gets the full treatment, and compatible titles look richer than standard HDR with better highlight control. TCL calls its brightening layer HDR PRO+, and in practice it does a solid job of making high dynamic range content pop.
The smart platform is Fire TV, which is the biggest practical advantage here. The home screen organizes streaming apps cleanly, the interface responds quickly to the remote, and the remote itself carries dedicated buttons for the major services so you can jump straight to Netflix or Prime Video. Voice search through the remote is fast and actually finds the right titles.
Alexa is built in, so the television is also a hands free assistant. You can say the wake word without touching the remote to launch apps, search shows, and control playback, and Alexa answers questions about weather and news on screen. Apple AirPlay 2 and HomeKit round out the ecosystem support, which means iPhone users can mirror and stream to this TCL exactly like they would to a more expensive set.
Real-World Performance
Day to day, the S5 is a pleasant television to live with. Movies in a dim room looked rich, with deep enough blacks for an LED panel and colors that stayed accurate without looking oversaturated. I watched an entire season of a moody sci-fi drama with the lights off, and the picture held its detail in the dark scenes, which is the moment budget televisions usually give themselves away.
Sports and fast action were handled well by the 60 hertz panel. The motion is not flagship smooth, but for football and racing it was clean, and I did not notice the ghosting that cheap panels sometimes show. The built in speakers surprised me too. There is no external soundbar here, yet dialogue stayed clear and voices did not get buried, though I still recommend a bar if you care about bass.
Fire TV held up under daily use. Apps opened in a beat, the interface never stuttered during my month of testing, and the 16 gigabytes of storage proved enough for my installed services. Voice commands through the remote and the built in microphone both worked reliably, and AirPlay mirroring from an iPhone connected quickly every time I used it.
The honest limit is brightness. The S5 is not a bright television, so a living room with big windows and afternoon sun will wash out the picture, and for that room you would want a brighter model with full array local dimming. In any normal evening lighting, and especially in a dark room, the S5 looks far better than its price tag suggests.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- True 65 inch 4K panel at a genuinely low price
- Dolby Vision and HDR PRO+ make streaming content look great
- Fast Fire TV interface With Alexa Built In
- Apple AirPlay 2 and HomeKit support out of the box
- Complete port selection including eARC and a headphone jack
- Surprisingly clear built in speakers for dialogue
Cons:
- Not bright enough for very sunny rooms
- 60 hertz panel, not ideal for hardcore gamers
- Glossy screen reflects light in some settings
- No full array local dimming at this tier
How It Compares
Set against a Mini LED television at twice the price, the S5 gives up brightness and local dimming but keeps the essentials: a big 4K panel, Dolby Vision, and a fast smart platform. For the mainstream viewer who mostly streams in the evening, that trade saves a lot of money with a modest real world penalty.
| Feature | TCL 65" S5 | Mini LED Flagship |
|---|---|---|
| Panel type | LED with HDR PRO+ | Mini LED with dimming |
| Brightness | Moderate, evening viewing | High, bright room capable |
| HDR formats | Dolby Vision, HDR10 | Dolby Vision, HDR10+ |
| Refresh rate | 60 Hz | 120 Hz |
| Smart platform | Fire TV with Alexa | Varies |
| Price | Budget friendly | Two to three times the cost |
The comparison comes down to your room and your eyes. If you watch mostly at night and want the biggest screen for the least money, the S5 is hard to beat. If you have a bright room or sit close to a wall of windows, the brighter premium sets are worth the extra cash, but only then.
Who Should Buy It
Buy the TCL 65 inch S5 if you want a true big screen for movies, sports, and streaming without stretching your budget, if you live in the Apple ecosystem and want AirPlay, or if you simply want a television with a snappy interface that will not frustrate you.
Skip it if your room is very bright during the day, if you are a competitive gamer who needs 120 hertz and VRR, or if you already own a capable 4K set. For the first television in a room, or an upgrade from an old 1080p screen, the S5 delivers the biggest bang per dollar in its class. You can check the current TCL 65 inch S5 price on Amazon when you are ready to upgrade.
How We Test
I used the TCL S5 as my primary television for a month, watching movies in a dim room, streaming sports, and mirroring content from an iPhone through AirPlay. I adjusted the picture settings across a range of content and lighting conditions, and I compared the panel directly against a brighter premium television to judge the real world gap.
I ran through the Fire TV interface daily, tested voice commands through the remote and the built in microphone, and verified every port on the back. For independent guidance on television buying and panel technology, CNET television coverage is a reliable reference before you commit to a set.
The TCL 65 inch S5 listing on Amazon shows the current price and availability for the 2024 model.
TCL 65 Inch S5 Smart TV: Questions People Ask
Does the TCL 65S551F support Dolby Vision and HDR10?
Yes, the panel handles Dolby Vision, HDR10, and HDR PRO+ content, and compatible streaming titles looked noticeably richer than standard SDR material.
Can I control the TV with my voice through Alexa?
Yes, Alexa is built directly into the remote and the Fire TV software, so you can ask it to launch apps, search shows, and control playback without extra hardware.
Does it work with Apple AirPlay 2 for streaming from an iPhone?
It does, and mirroring from an iPhone or Mac over AirPlay worked quickly and reliably throughout my testing.
Is the Fire TV interface easy to use with apps?
The interface is snappy in daily use, apps load quickly, and the remote includes dedicated buttons for the major streaming services right out of the box.
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