Buying TVs just got more complicated. The first choice many of us confront now is whether to buy a large screen TV or choose a projector that can project a larger screen. If it’s a TV, there are multiple options from LED to QLED to OLED. Blaupunkt is the newest brand to jump into the QLED fray in India. It’s not a new brand though. Indian audiences are familiar with this nearly century-old German brand with a strong reputation in car audio systems, especially at a time when many Indians used to opt for third party car audio solutions. Super Plastronics India is now an exclusive brand licensee for Blaupunkt’s TV line and has
unveiled a lineup of QLED TVs in time for the big online sales. Should you be interested?
QLED vs LED
The new Blaupunkt Google QLED TV comes in a choice of three sizes – 50, 55 and 65 inches. We checked out the mid-sized, 55-inch version. Samsung has been one of the first brands in India to create a strong association with QLED. The brand’s TVs sit in the premium space in this segment. Blaupunkt’s QLED range takes on the likes of the Mi QLED which are placed in a similar price band. Both LED and QLED TVs are similar in their use of LCD panels with LED backlights. There’s one significant difference though. QLED TVs boast of a quantum (Hence the Q) dot layer that allows them to produce a wider range of colours. Quantum dots are manufactured nanocrystals that consist of ultra-fine semiconductor materials. QLED technology is synonymous with tremendous improvements in overall picture quality.
Bezel-less appeal
Blaupunkt’s Google QLED TV looks premium for its price tag and won’t look out of place in a living room full of fine artefacts. We dig the metallic strip at the bottom end of the TV with the Blaupunkt branding. It creates a nice contrast to the all-black, bezel-less frame of the TV. Set up is smooth too and similar to what we’ve experienced on other Android TVs. It does take a while to come on each time; this again is something we’ve noticed with most smart TVs at a similar price point. The big surprise here is the accoustics.
Boom box
We’ve made peace with average sound quality in most smart TVs under Rs 50,000. It’s probably why this TV pleasantly surprised us with its sound quality. We tested this with U2’s Where the Streets Have No Name that features a mix of dialogues, street sounds and live music and the TV did a solid overall job. The music sounded best at around 40-60% volume levels. This TV includes a 60-watt Dolby stereo box speaker with four installed speakers, and DTS TruSurround sound technology with Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, and Dolby Digital Plus.
The QLED edge
Colours are quite vivid, justifying the premium QLED TVs command over LED TVs even in the affordable segment. The deeper blacks and high contrast ratios make it better for dark room viewing as well as visuals with dark spaces. The QLED 4K display (3840 x 2160 pixels) with 1.1 billion colours peaks at 550 nits and doesn’t disappoint. Aside from vibrant colours, this QLED TV comes with all the Google smarts we expect from a Google TV including Far Field Voice Control to control your TV via voice commands using Google Assistant as well as easy navigation. The remote comes with hot keys for popular apps like
Netflix. Blaupunkt’s Google QLED TV is a solid option if you’re looking to upgrade from a smaller LED TV or at making the switch to a smart TV.
The Blaupunkt Google QLED TV comes in three sizes: 50 inches (Rs 35,999) / 55 inches
(Rs 41,999) and 65 inches (Rs 60,999)
