The best TVs to buy for the Super Bowl

The Super Bowl comes at a point on the calendar when last year’s TVs are all being heavily discounted and this year’s models — only recently announced at CES — are about to start shipping if they haven’t already. We’ve got you covered on the deals front, but here, I’m going to list off some great TVs that earn our recommendation regardless of whether they’re on sale.

You’ll be satisfied with any of these picks for many years after Super Bowl LVII, but the thrill of victory is that much sweeter when you’re watching your team win on a shiny new TV. And if your Chiefs or Eagles come out on the losing side, at least you’ll have a nice consolation prize.

I haven’t gotten around to reviewing the Hisense U8H, but I did end up buying one for myself over the holidays — so hopefully that tells you something. And I haven’t been disappointed. For the money, this Mini LED 4K TV can hit some truly impressive peak brightness levels. Sometimes intense HDR action can even get overwhelming in a dark room, but if you’re like me, that’s the whole appeal of splurging on a nice TV at home. Sure, I know Top Gun: Maverick was a riot in theaters, but I can’t ask for a much better living room experience from a TV that costs under $1,000 for a 65-inch model.

Fox’s HDR stream of the big game should look pretty great — even if the “4K” part is still being upscaled. The Hisense U8H runs Google TV software with bonuses like support for Apple’s AirPlay 2. This is one TV that definitely outperforms its price tag.

LG’s C2 is about to be replaced by the company’s 2023 model, the C3. But apart from a slight uptick in brightness compared to last year’s C2 and some webOS software refinements, the two TVs are otherwise very similar. The C2 delivers phenomenal contrast, vivid colors, and all four of its HDMI ports are capable of supporting 4K 120Hz output.

Perhaps most important when it comes to sports is that OLED TVs have a near-instant picture response time, which helps prevent any of the on-field action from going blurry throughout the game — whether you’re watching football or something else with fast movement.

You can routinely find great discounts on the C2 as retailers work to burn through their remaining stock. My main gripe with this TV is how convoluted webOS has become — particularly the homescreen. But it’s pretty easy to ignore, and that’s doubly true if you plug in a streaming player from Apple, Amazon, Google, or Roku.

Samsung’s first-ever QD-OLED didn’t fail to impress last year. With even better color brightness and viewing angles than the LG C2, the S95B is a fantastic value. The quantum dot technology and native RGB panel let Samsung crank color luminosity higher than conventional OLED without losing any saturation, so the gridiron at State Farm Stadium will look fantastic on this TV throughout Super Bowl LVII.

All of the standard OLED picture benefits are here, too: brilliant contrast, impressive HDR highlights, and that ultra-quick responsiveness. If you can find a deal on the S95B, it’s worth jumping on.

TCL 6-Series Google TV

Best Buy has been marking the 65-inch model of TCL’s Google TV 6-Series down as far as $699 in recent months. And it’s simply not possible to find a better option for that money. This 4K set got off to a bumpy start with numerous software bugs, but TCL put in the work and ironed out the vast majority of them.

If you head over to the R646 owner’s thread at AVS Forum, many buyers are thrilled with the brightness and sharp picture offered by the 6-Series as well as the value it has delivered. Sure, there are weaknesses: viewing angles aren’t the best, and like many Mini LED TVs, only two of four HDMI ports can do 4K 120Hz — and one of those is also used for eARC. But for the price, the R646 checks off a ton of boxes, like Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, great color reproduction, and sufficient gaming chops.

TCL’s R646 6-Series Google TV features Mini LED backlighting for an impactful, bright picture. The TV’s performance and frequent improvements via software updates make it among the best values on the market.

Most people buy Samsung’s Frame TV for its style and ability to blend into home decor. Last year, the company switched to a matte screen that only helps make the “art frame” aesthetic even more convincing. But The Frame is no slouch when it comes to TV specs.

So long as you choose one of the larger sizes, you get full-array local dimming for impressive contrast for all your favorite sports action and movies, plus 4K 120Hz support (with Samsung’s Gaming Hub built into the TV’s software). And when you’re not watching anything, The Frame can showcase a vast selection of artwork that makes it look more high-class than regular 4K TVs.

The newest model of Samsung’s art-inspired 4K TV retains the same QLED display as its predecessor but uses a new anti-glare matte display, which provides artwork and photos with qualities that resemble an actual canvas.

Amazon Fire TV Omni Series (75-inch)

Seventy-five inches of Super Bowl Sunday action for under $800? That pitch alone might make Amazon’s Fire TV Omni tempting for some people. Amazon’s set supports Dolby Vision — though its peak brightness can’t compete with more premium TVs — and hands-free Alexa voice commands. So if you’ve already bought into Amazon’s ecosystem with other devices, this could be a decent pick for a jumbo TV to put somewhere in the house.

Amazon’s Fire TV Omni features Dolby Vision and built-in microphones for Alexa commands. It also provides access to Netflix, Prime Video, Disney Plus, and most major streaming services.