TCL iFFALCON K2A 4K TV Review: A Great Mi TV 4 Alternative

Not everyone likes to spend a lot on their television units, and that is why the budget television segment has slowly been on the rise. A couple of terms being thrown around a lot in this department are 4K UHD and Smart TV. Smart TVs offer seamless playback of various multimedia content with the help of apps such as Netflix, YouTube, Twitch etc. Additionally, with 4K TVs and 4K content on the rise, you are not wrong if you are planning to get a 4K TV. In the scope of these things, another new television has come up, aiming to become your preferred choice of budget 4K smart TV.

Available at a price tag of just Rs. 45,999, the TCL iFFALCON K2A is the newest entry in the budget television segment. The 55-inch smart TV boasts of great features such as native HDR mode, full 4K UHD resolution, a great design and build quality, and a complete Android TV experience. But is the product actually as good as the company claims it to be? Let’s find out as we take an in-depth look at the TCL iFFALCON K2A 55-inch 4K Android Smart TV:

TCL iFFALCON K2A Specifications

Before we begin, let’s take a quick look at the specs of the TCL iFFALCON K2A 4K TV:

Now that we’ve got the specs out of the way, let’s dig into the actual review of the television.

Design and Build Quality

Slim and bezel-less designs are all the rage right now, and the TCL iFFALCON K2A embraces that as well. The body is made up of metal materials with a premium silver brushed metallic finish on top of it. The design follows a minimalistic approach with minimalistic bezels. I know it makes little to no difference, but I absolutely love the iFFALCON’s logo and considering how minimal it is, it literally compliments the overall look of the TV.

The stand does a good job of holding the TV steady. Made out of premium metallic materials, the stand is quite sturdy while looking stunning as well. Also, apart from the looks, it supports the TV quite well too.

Overall, the design is very minimal and yet appealing. The build quality of the TCL iFFALCON K2A is really great. The low amount of bezels make the television modern and in line with the current users’ expectations. It also saves more space and even when the TV is turned off, it draws the viewer’s attention as a piece of artwork in your living room.

The low amount of bezels and the exquisite design allow the television to double up as a piece of artwork in your living room.

Ports and Connectivity

Connectivity is a major area of concern for most users out there, and TCL understands that. In fact, the TCL iFFALCON K2A is one of the rare few television sets out there to offer practically every port one would expect from their display unit, and that too, in abundance.

The right side of the device houses the point for the AC adapter to be connected. Apart from that, there isn’t anything else on the right-hand side of the TV.

Talking about the left side, the TCL iFFALCON K2A has a USB 2.0 port, followed by a 3.5mm headphone jack, two HDMI ports, and finally a USB 3.0 port. The HDMI 1 port is an MHL port, that is, Mobile High-Definition Link, which can be used to pair up a smartphone or tablet with the help of an MHL-adapter. The HDMI 2 port supports ARC, that is, Audio Return Channel. This can be used to hook up your home theater system or sound system as an alternative to the TV’s inbuilt speakers.

Now, if you thought that was all, hang on, since there is more. The TCL iFFALCON K2A has a compartment on the rear side as well, which houses a plethora of ports, namely, 2 more HDMI ports, a LAN port, a cable/antenna port, and the various component and A/V ports. It also features a SPDIF port that can be used to transmit digital audio.

Truth be told, I have absolutely no complaints regarding the connectivity department of the TCL iFFALCON K2A. It covers every port out there, and should more than satisfy every prospective customer’s demands.

Picture Quality

The picture quality of a television is probably one of the strongest judging points for any consumer. Competing head to head with the Xiaomi Mi TV 4 is TCL’s iFFALCON K2A, and boy does this TV up the ante.

Offering a super high resolution of 4K UHD, the display panel on the TCL iFFALCON K2A is absolutely stunning. Pictures look crisp and sharp, and the color reproduction on this panel is great. Considering that the TV will most likely go in your living room, the brightness level on this is more than enough, even if you have the window blinds open.

Thanks to the ELED (Edge Emitting LED) display, the blacks on the screen look deep and the dark scenes from movies are reproduced very well. The major credit for this has to go to the astonishing contrast ratio on this TV. The TCL iFFALCON K2A has a native contrast ratio of 6000:1, which puts it way above most televisions in the same price segment, and even higher for that matter. As a result, the black uniformity is also well maintained.

As for the viewing angles, the TCL iFFALCON K2A has a 178-degree viewing angle. The 55-inch screen size coupled with the large 4K UHD resolution and such great viewing angles, together allow the viewer to sit in any portion of the room and still enjoy great picture quality.

While there are a lot of 4K UHD TVs out there, most companies stop their list of features on that point only. On the other hand, the TCL iFFALCON K2A takes things up a notch, by offering an inbuilt HDR mode. Also, unlike other high-end televisions that offer HDR modes, this one needs no configuring. Turn on some HDR content on Netflix or any other video streaming website, and bam, the television automatically switches to the HDR profile, offering a wide color gamut and local dimming.

Sound Quality

Considering that the TV retails for about 46K, my expectations in the audio department weren’t that high. However, to my pleasant surprise, the sound quality on the TCL iFFALCON K2A is actually pretty good, especially for its price.

I’ve tested a lot of budget TVs while working for Beebom, and trust me, the major let down, has always been the audio section. Either the sound is too cranky, lacks clarity, or is simply not loud enough. Thankfully, the TCL iFFALCON K2A suffers from none of those issues.

The 16W speakers on the TCL iFFALCON K2A are loud enough to cover all corners of your room. The vocals sound great, and there is a significant amount of bass as well. Additionally, for the concerned nerds out there, the iFFALCON K2A has just the right amount of Total Harmonic Distortion (THD), which provides a great level of balance between the sound levels.

Now, I wouldn’t go as far and say that the television in itself can replace your home theater system because it cannot. However, for most users who prefer watching sports and TV serials, along with the occasional movie, the speakers on the TCL iFFALCON K2A should suffice.

For most users, the speakers on the TCL iFFALCON K2A should suffice.

Smart Features

• Android TV

So you thought that just because this is a budget television, the features would be limited? Well, think again. The TCL iFFALCON K2A is actually an Android TV, running on Android Nougat 7.0 out of the box. The OS has been specially optimized for TV to enjoy big screen high-resolution entertainment.

The Television comes with the official Google Service (Play Store/Game/ Movie & TV) and other TV edition Apps like Netflix, YouTube etc. Additionally, you can download more apps from the Google Play Store that have been specially designed for Android Smart TVs.

• Smart Remote

The TCL iFFALCON K2A comes bundled with not one but two remotes. While one is the standard television remote, the other one is a smart remote that can be used for voice input as well as an air mouse.

Buttons can be a tricky thing, and while the average user doesn’t give much thought to it, the overall feedback from the remote can really hamper a user’s overall experience with the TV. Thankfully, there is decent key travel on the standard TV remote and it provides haptic feedback. On the other hand, the smart remote, which is made for voice input and air mouse capabilities, feels light yet sturdy in hand, and awesome to use.

• Built-in Chromecast

So you’ve got an Android TV, but what if you want to play content from the comfort of your smartphone? Well, fret not, since the TCL iFFALCON K2A comes with an inbuilt Chromecast to allow for seamless multimedia playback. With the help of Chromecast, you can cast your favorite videos, games from your mobile device to your TV while ensuring 100% quality. Simply press the cast button on your Android or iOS device, to play your favorite content on the screen easily.

Performance

So, now that we’ve covered all the specs and smart features, it’s time to see how the iFFALCON K2A fares up in real-world tests. Well, the TL;DR version of it is that it is pretty darn good, except for a few minor issues.

The overall video performance of the television set is absolutely great and more than justifies its price tag. In fact, the picture quality is so good, that when you turn off the lights and just concentrate on the display panel, you won’t be able to differentiate the iFFALCON K2A from any 60-70K television out there.

The 4K capabilities of the display are great as well. We have a Sony PlayStation 4 Pro and an Xbox One X in our office, and both the gaming consoles ran perfectly on the television. The television managed to maintain a proper 60Hz refresh rate with no frame drops.

As for the Android TV department, the performance was decent but did leave scope for more. Thanks to the 2.5GB RAM and the quad-core A53 processor, the performance for normal usage was pretty good. Apps opened up swiftly, and there was only a negligible amount of lag. However, the TV is not meant for high-end games, which, truth be told, is acceptable, considering this is a budget offering.

Talking about the smart remotes, I honestly think that the two remotes are great, but I’d prefer the standard remote over the Air Mouse any day. Yes, typing is a hassle, but at least it works. On the other hand, the Air Mouse remote does experience lag and connectivity issues, and voice recognition, as we all know, depends on what you’re trying to search. For users wanting to search Indian TV shows, I’d recommend sticking to shelling out a few more seconds by typing what you want, rather than attempting to make the voice search understand your speech. For everything else, the smart remote is pretty good.

TCL iFFALCON K2A: Worth It?

At 46K, the TCL iFFALCON is an absolute stunner. While just a thousand rupees more than Xiaomi’s offering, the TCL iFFALCON K2A offers an exquisite design with sturdy build quality. The picture quality is top-notch, and the sound quality should satisfy most users out there. Also, unlike Xiaomi’s Patchwall, the TCL iFFALCON K2A comes with Android TV, so you get a much better user experience, with easy access to the Google Play Store and the plethora of apps it houses.

Pros:

• Excellent Build Quality
• Exquisite Design
• Amazing Picture Quality
• Sound is loud, clear, and rich
• Great Value for Money

Cons:

• Can’t handle intensive games
• Slight lag while using Air Mouse

Buy TCL iFFALCON K2A 55-inch 4K UHD TV from Flipkart: (Rs. 45,999)

SEE ALSO: 12 Cool Android TV Tips and Tricks to Enhance Your TV Experience

TCL iFFALCON K2A Review: A Great Budget 4K Smart TV

Up until now, the budget market for televisions was almost non-existent, with only poor options available that nobody would recommend buying. While Xiaomi thought of capturing the monopoly in this segment with the Mi TV 4, the TCL iFFALCON K2A has managed to bring heavy competition to it. At just a thousand rupees more, the K2A offers a much smarter TV thanks to the proper implementation of Android TV, and an amazing picture quality. If you’re on the hunt for a budget 4K Smart TV, I’d honestly suggest the TCL iFFALCON K2A in the blink of an eye.