Philips The One 2021 is one of the most versatile TVs on the market (Review)

Choosing a TV has become extremely difficult in recent years because of very high diversity.But a model that has always stood out was and continues to be Philips the One.A TV created for those of us who want to pay for a good price on a product with almost all the top features on the market, without breaking the rifle.And today we are talking about the latest generation model, ie 2021 and compare it with the two -year version I have been using at home for some time.

The easiest way is to talk about the identity of this product and see what makes it special, regardless of the generation of which it belongs.First, Philips The One offers a 4K -resolution LED panel with diagonals between 43 ″ (108cm) and 75 ″ (198cm).It supports HDR10+ content and Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos technologies.This combination of specifications is made by a very good performer when it comes to playback.

However, to provide a complete experience, the manufacturer also focused on the software component.It is based on Android TV and offers a lot of pre-installed useful applications.But if you need more, the Google Play store will always be at your disposal.And let's not forget the best part, which we intentionally left at the end: AMBILIGHT.Philips created this lighting system in 2002 and has since included it, in one form or another in its TVs.This is the case of The One, and in the case of this series we are talking about the Ambilight 3 version.

Philips the One 2021 - What does it do special?

There are expensive and full of functions that are more pompous and there are accessible TVs that offer you the strictly necessary ... and somewhere in the middle we find Philips the One, that is a TV with a rich offer of technologies and specifications that make it suitable forany kind of user.All of these come at a fair price that does not fit into the expensive TV area but which is an idea above than basic models from less known producers.

While the software part and screen performance are topics that I will develop widely in the following lines, now I want to tie the less important features such as size and weight.Philips The One is a nice TV with a very solid construction that will attract a few looks from those who step on your threshold.The model tested today has a 58 ″ diagonal, or in metric system 146cm.However, the size of the TV is as compact as possible, and the lack of three edges make it measure about 1.3m width, 82 cm high and 25 cm thick.The latter is due to the stand, the TV itself measuring 6.85cm in its thickest area.

The size is not something you should worry about, so if you have a meter and a half space, you stay with pretty real estate to put a plant or console next to.Personally I would recommend placing the TV in an open area in front of a white wall.In this way Ambilight enlightenment will not be constrained by anything and it will be free to radiate throughout the room.The only thing I would take into account is the weight.Even with the stand, Philips The One weighs 20kg, so you will have to put it on a pretty solid support, whether we are talking about a convenience or vesa system for wall mounting.

Android TV is the hottest operating system for TVs

Philips tried to create a balanced product to include some of the strongest market technologies: HDR, Dolby Vision and Atmation, VRR and ALMM for gaming and a smart operating system with a lot of functions..In everyday use, the Android TV on The One will prove extremely useful and offers you a degree of freedom that you do not meet on other TVs.

Among the pre -installed applications we find some very popular: Spotify, Netflix and YouTube.In addition, you can download from Google Play shop about anything else, from games to browsers such as Google Chrome or Brave.And if you want to try your luck, you also have access to GeForce Now from Nvidia and Steam Remote Play.In combination with Bluetooth controllers support (PlayStation 4 goes perfect), it gives you the ability to play some of the hottest titles on Philips the One, without the need to connect a PC or a console.

Along with the applications offered by the operating system, the TV also offers a Screen Mirroring function.This is compatible with both Android and iPhone phones and the connection is extremely simple.In the past I have encountered some difficulties in connecting my phone (iPhone XS Max) to The One, but after the last software update they disappear and the experience is very fluid.

If you want to interact with the TV in a more unique way, it comes with Google Assistant.It can be activated via the dedicated button on the remote control, and the commands can be entered vocally with the microphone in it.And if there is still a microphone, it is compatible with Amazon Alexa, even if it is more limited than the solution from Google.

The graphic interface is simple and can be accessed quickly through the Home button.Pressing it will display the main screen that hosts your most commonly used applications, along with a rather interesting integration of applications such as Netflix.For example you can continue to watch your favorite series directly on the main page.A simple press on Thumbnail will take you directly into the Netflix app that will start playing the selected show automatically.YouTube and Spotify are other platforms that I use regularly.Both can be controlled from the phone so Philips the One can be the center of your system of entertainment without problems.

There is a worse part too, and this is the performance.Even if it has been improved compared to the model I have at home, the new one is still stumbling when and when, and some more heavy applications like GeForce Now are Hit or Miss.Even if it works, it feels not working at ease and would enjoy some extra performance.But it is expected from a model in this price category in which the manufacturer has tried to "cram" as much software as possible.

The quality of the image and sound

Philips the One is a real performer when it comes to image quality.The 4K resolution is not new to 2021, when you find it on much cheaper models than the one tested today, it is just a small part of the story.The TV comes from the factory to standard mode, which at the same time doubles as an eco mode.And this is not necessarily well, as the colors are a bit deleted and the brightness is quite under what you would expect from a TV.

This goes easily repaired by selecting a different image mode.And the manufacturer offered some of which to choose (natural, movie, game, etc..) and gives you the freedom to calibrate it as you like.Each way has its characteristics, but it seemed naturally to me the most balanced.I use it when I watch SDR movies, when I watch football matches and when i sit on youtube.When I see HDR movies or use Netflix, I use Movie mode because it is the most balanced and in combination with HDR10+ support you will get very dark black shades, which I would have the courage to say they go to a level close to OLED.Of course, we see that we are not dealing with such a panel, but the performance on black levels is very good.

In gaming things are binișor.Activate the game mode, the extra settings (VRR and ALMM) and sudden.And in combination with a PlayStation 5 and its 4K gaming capabilities at 60fps you get a good experience for gaming on the console.The input lag is a bit large for me but a casual user will not even notice that.And for what it is, The One is doing well with the games.

At the end of the day, if you pay little attention to it and you have a formed eye, you can achieve a good performance from the Philips the One panel.Covering color spectrum is good, HDR performance is also at height and gaming technologies make it a very balanced package.

Nor does the sound leave it more.Although we are talking about a 20W system consisting of two speakers (10W/piece), audio fidelity is decent.He lacks the pronounced bass and I could get it out of the lack of a subwoofer and loses details here, but for the movies he proved to be decent.Voices are clear and easy to distinguish, music is surprising by punchy and sound as a whole is balanced.On the volume area is quite good, being loud at maximum volume, but I noticed that it begins to distort a little as you climb the volume.

There is a better place here, but for what it is, the audio system inside The One will satisfy most users.No, you will not hear all the details of your favorite music and may not even take every sound from a game, but the performance is better than other TVs I have tested, so the conclusion vis-a-vis of the ARIt sounds like this: for a normal man, The One sounds proper and offers enough volume so you can give a little party with friends in the living room.

AMBILIGHT 3 is an important selling-post

Even if it does not excel at anything, Philips The One has a feature that we do not meet on other TVs and can highlight it from a large alternatives that revolve through the same price.Composed of three lanes of LEDs, the ambient lighting on this TV will give you a completely new experience and help you immerse in the world of movie or game you are running.

The football matches are more interesting when the field continues on the wall and the fireworks in the stands also illuminate the background, and the games seem to attract you more easily in their world when the vivid colors do not stop suddenly once you look at the edge of the screen.And the best part is that you can extend this lighting system to the whole room ... Right house.Using Philips Hue technology, the TV is compatible with the entire manufacturer's ecosystem and a simple bridge can synchronize the atmosphere of movies and games with the lights in the house..

Both myself and Dan, we have other products from the Philips Hue catalog in the house and we found the extremely interesting synchronization.Even if the application gives more failures from time to time, once you have tied all the lights in the house you can create extremely interesting effects.Whether you look at the match in a light room in the stadium colors, or activate the way that responds to the sound to create a disco effect at parties, the possibilities are numerous.Just imagination to have;Ah yes and money for these crazy bulbs and LED strips that have quite peppery prices.

I have to admit, however: this lighting is not for everyone.Some of those who trampled the threshold of the studio were not necessarily delighted by the television lights.And among our acquaintances the opinions are divided.Where some people were delighted by Ambilight, others were distracted by extra lighting.

The One is ambitious ... Maybe too ambitious

In an attempt to thank everyone, Philips has implemented in The One as little of each type of technology.Even if it is well and offers the versatility you need in an entertainment system, it does not excel in any category.The image is good, but it has improvements, the audio system exists and does a decent job, but an accessible soundbar is likely to "say" better, and the performance in gaming is above average, but it does not rise close to some levelModels like LG C1.And then, for whom is this TV?

Design și Construcție - 8

Calitatea Imaginii - 7.5

Calitatea Sunetului - 6

Software - 9

Caracteristici Extra - 7.5

7.6

Greu de trecut cu vederea

Philips The One is an ambitious TV that evolves with each new iteration that the manufacturer brings to the market and I am sure it is one of the few product series that has managed to create such a well-defined identity in the market..And this can be seen when you start to be interested in the subject and start associating "The One" with that TV with Lights and 4K resolution at good price.