Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

This review is going to be about the 65" version (P652UI-B2) of the new Vizio UHD "P" series of which I just picked up from BB. So for full disclosure and fairness, my original intent was to purchase the LG 65" UHD (65UB9500), after a few weeks of back and forth between the two models. However BB didn't have the LG in stock, and no expected date for replenishment, however upon inquiring, they had just received one of the 65" Vizio's in that same day, so I went for it. Let me just say my first impressions are so far I do not regret the decision. The original deciding factor for the LG was the 10-bit color processor over the Vizio's 8-bit, however it was very close otherwise, and I was a bit worried about several reviews of these Vizio's being DOA right out of the box or damaged. Upon opening the box however and to great relief, the unit was perfect. Did a temporary set up as wall mounting will come tomorrow, just to make sure the set powered on, etc. Set-up is pretty straight forward and the tv guides you through setting up inputs and connecting to your wired or wireless home network. The P65 has wireless "ac" capability however I've not yet gotten a ac capable router so I connected the set to the wireless 5ghz band of my router for the time being. The set will also ask what is connected to each input ie; HDMI 1,2, etc and label the input accordingly. After completing set up and a quick scrutinizing check of the screen for dead or stuck pixels, none were found so it was on to getting some initial impressions of picture quality with different sources. As I am certified in ISF calibration I will be updating my impressions after I calibrate the set as well. I first watched a few HD channels using my Time Warner cable dvr and performance was about as expected for an out of the box set, overly bright and saturated colors because of the "Vivid" mode the set was defaulted to so I set the picture mode to "Calibrated", tamed the back light a bit and the picture was more acceptable and the 4k upscaling does it job. My next test was with 4k content available on Netflix. I used the set's Netflix app and signed in and selected the Netflix exclusive series "House of Cards" and to my surprise, the "UHD" streaming option was next to the title as apparently Netflix can tell the TV is UHD capable. This is where the set really shines and makes it worth every penny, even before being calibrated. As I said earlier, I connected the P65 to the 5ghz band of my wireless network and never once had an issue with the UHD Netflix stream, no freezing or buffering, just beautiful 4k resolution. The picture looked every bit as good as almost any 4k demo I'd seen. Details in skin, hair, clothing, etc were all there and crystal clear. I also watched an episode of "Breaking Bad" which is available in 4k as well, and while appearing a tad bit grainy at times, was still absolutely fantastic. My last pre-calibration test was video games. As I am a somewhat avid gamer when I have the time, one of the selling points of the Vizio P series is the low input lag being reported by many in reviews and forums that I've read. To test gaming performance I used my Sony PS4 game console connected via HDMI, and the tv set to its "Game" mode in picture settings, which basically disables all extra and picture enhancement circuitry that can have an impact on input lag. As I play mainly FPS games I chose "Destiny" and "Battlefield 4" multi-player modes and I can confirm I noticed no impact on my gaming performance that could be attributed to input lag or the set itself. What I did notice however was these games looked absolutely fantastic in 4k resolution, even being upconverted. Destiny took on a whole new look with added depth and detail and an almost 3D quality, and Battlefield 4 never looked better, even compared to my high end gaming pc. I'm not going to go into specific specs and the remote as those can be found on many reviews already, but what I will say, is that so far I give the new Vizio P series a high recommendation and if you want a straight forward, no nonsense performance built yet price friendly UHD tv, then the new Vizio P series is a no-brainer. Update: The P65 has now been wall mounted and calibrated and I'm extremely pleased with the results. The P65 has the option of two or eleven point white balance, as well as CMS adjustments, however I went with two point white balance and was able to get a near perfect 6500k RGB balance across the board, the CMS was a bit more tricky especially with red flesh tones. To its credit however, the set's grayscale was extremely close out of the box however using the "natural" color temp setting. I generally recommend every set be calibrated individually, however I will provide my final settings in the comments section upon request. Post calibration test were pretty much the same content as well as a few of the UHD nature demo videos available on Netflix and again, 4k is where this set delivers. I watched an Ocean program which contained scenes of coastal rocks, coastal wildlife and underwater scenery and I could make out every crevice on a rocky outcropping, the detail on underwater kelp leafs, coral was vivid and lifelike, it was the next best thing to actually being right there. Standard fare cable performance was good to great depending on the channel and other variables although the P65 does up-convert everything to 4k resolution so mileage will vary depending on the source. Video games again were outstanding however and graphics were much more natural looking, and less cartoon-ish with Battlefield 4 maps looking more convincing as a war zone and colors while vivid, were more subtle and natural along with improved shadow detail and depth. So now post calibration the Vizio P65 maintains its 5-star rating from me and comes with a "just do it", purchase recommendation. Update: Had a small hiccup where a UHD vid in the P65's Netflix app froze with the audio still going and the set became unresponsive to any remote commands. After a couple minutes it seemed to reset itself and powered off and back on by itself. I then played more vids but the issue never repeated itself. I have a HTPC connected to this set which I generally use to stream movies via XBMC, but I decided to test the set's media playback app and through DLNA it was able to find my NAS unit, I navigated to a movie folder and it played back flawlessly every file I tried, complete with 5.1 audio as well. While the media navigation menu is rather basic looking and no ability to download cover art for movies as with XBMC, I will admit this was more convenient than having to fire up the HTPC and switch inputs, etc. I have not tried video playback via the set's own USB port yet, but I will update with those results when I do. Update 06/07/15 Ok, so eight months later I'm on my second set after exchanging twice from the original. The original developed a white strip down the center which appeared to be the back-lighting was slightly brighter or a panel issue which I didn't notice at first. Also the set had some minor DSE (dirty screen effect) in the corners and edges of the set. The exchange process was relatively smooth except for the shipping times, but I had no issues with Vizio customer service or being authorized for an exchange after sending pics of the screen in, although I have read here that others have. The biggest issue was that you are told by Vizio you will receive a factory re-certified set instead of a new one, however I took my chances. So it took about two weeks to receive the first set, which upon inspection physically was fine and in a brand new factory sealed box. My set was wall mounted so I wanted to inspect the new set before removing the old one, and once we fired it up I noticed a dead pixel right in the center, deal breaker and the exchange set was refused. I contacted Vizio again the same day, and set up a new exchange once they received confirmation of the refusal by the carrier. The second set arrived after another two weeks, and I immediately had doubts. The box had a hole in it that was the same shape as a fork lift fork (rectangular) and upon pulling the set out of the box, the back panel was smashed right where the hole was in the box as if a fork lift punched it. Second set refused also. Again contacted Vizio and set up yet another exchange, and again, Vizio gave me no hassle. Third set was expedited and I received it in about a week this time, and the factory box was inside a brown shipping carton. Removed it from the factory sealed box and I'm pretty sure this set was brand new. It still had the factory tape around the edges and all of the advertising material stuck to it. Fired it up and inspected the screen and was for all intents perfect. No back light issues, no DSE or dead pixels. The only issue is that the gaming low latency bug is there on this set as my first one, but no big deal as its an easy workaround fix until a firmware update. Other than that, the new set has been calibrated and the picture is fantastic, maybe even better than the original set I had, so my overall impressions of the set remain the same, although it appears there may be a bit of panel lottery at play depending on the set. But its a first of its kind from Vizio so some issues are to be expected, none so far deal breakers for me. Update 08/08/20 So it has been roughly 5 years and a couple months since my last review of this tv and I unfortunately, I have to join the chorus of the 5 year mark is life expectancy of these sets. It still works, but it has started the power cycle issue where it will generally power off and then on about 5mins into watching, and may or may not do it again in a viewing session. So to clarify, this set is now in my MSTR bedroom having been replace in the living room by a 2018 "F" series with HDR/Dolby Vision, etc. The set is still on when I wake up in the morning so apparently the issue is not as severe, but I'm definitely of the opinion the issue will get worse from here until eventually it will just stay black or not power on at all. More than likely the culprit is the power board, which I may or may not try to find and replace myself, however I will more than likely just replace the living room Vizio with whatever the newest latest is and move that one to the Mstr bedroom, as I would be gaining HDR/Dolby vision, updated HDMI inputs, etc which this one currently lacks. This will probably be my final update for this particular set, but I must say I'm somewhat disappointed with the longevity, otherwise its been an admirable performer.