TCL 115QM891G

If you have a big space for a home theater and an equally big budget, the TCL 115QM891G could be just the right size TV for you. It’s a massive 115-inch QLED panel with a mini-LED backlight system that pumps out over 3,000 nits of luminance according to our tests, making it one of the brightest TVs we’ve tested. Its $19,999.99 street price might elicit sticker shock (not to mention its $26,999.99 retail price), but that’s a pretty standard ask for such a big screen. That said, very few flat panel TVs are available in sizes bigger than 100 inches. The 98-inch Samsung QN90D QLED ($14,999.99) and the 97-inch LG Evo G4 OLED ($24,999.99) are strong competitors, but neither blasts out nearly as much light as the 115QM891G. The brightest and best options for your money are the TCL 98QM851 and the Hisense 98UX (our Editors' Choice), both of which are 98 inches and retail for $7,999.99.

Note that this review is based on testing performed on a prerelease version of the 115QM891G without finalized firmware. It is unlikely that TCL will make significant changes to the final version of the TV, but since the unit we saw is not fully representative of what will be available to consumers, we're not giving the 115QM891G a formal score.

Design: Put It on the Floor

The 115-inch QM8 comes with a table stand, but whether you have a table that can hold its massive frame is the question. If not, a floor stand is available for an additional $500. With the floor stand, the TV is held 15 inches off of the ground by two V-shaped metal legs. Since the screen is so massive, this setup is going to be more comfortable for couch viewing than if it were raised several feet up onto a table, which would put the top edge of the screen around nine or ten feet high. The TV can also be mounted on a wall, but you'll definitely want a few extra sets of hands considering its size.

(Credit: Will Greenwald)

The 115QM891G’s connections sit on the right side of the back of the TV, in a rectangular recess only a few inches from the edge. They include four HDMI ports (one 4K144, one 4K120, one eARC), two USB ports, 3.5mm jacks for composite video in and headphone audio out, an optical audio output, an Ethernet port, and an antenna/cable connector. A third USB port is located directly on the right edge of the TV, for easily connecting external media.

(Credit: Will Greenwald)

The remote is a slim, sleek black plastic wand with a brushed finish that gives it a metallic look. A circular navigation pad sits near the top, with volume and channel rockers below it. Power, settings, input, profile, and Google Assistant buttons sit above the pad along with a pinhole microphone. Dedicated service buttons for Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Netflix, Pluto TV, TCL TV, and YouTube can be found near the center.

(Credit: Will Greenwald)

Google TV drives the 115QM891G, as with most of TCL’s other TVs. It’s a feature-filled smart TV platform that supports all major streaming services including Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Crunchyroll, Disney+, Netflix, Twitch, and YouTube, along with Google Cast and Miracast/WiDi. It also supports Apple AirPlay, and has a far-field microphone array for hands-free Google Assistant.

We don’t typically test TV speakers, and the testing conditions weren’t suitable for it regardless, but it’s worth noting that the 115QM891G has a pretty beefy sound system. It’s a 6.2.2-channel Onkyo system with height channels for spatial audio and 120W peak output. Elaborate and powerful speakers are increasingly common in extra-large TVs; the Hisense 75U9N and 98UX have similar 4.1.2- and 4.2.2-channel setups that have side channels but lack rear channels.

These systems can often put out very powerful sound with compellingly immersive spatial audio imaging with the right room geometry thanks to upward- and side-firing drivers that use acoustic reflections to give the impression of sounds coming from additional sources. They typically can’t replace a full speaker system with physical rear satellites for precision, though, nor can the subwoofers built into TVs generally put out nearly as much wall-shaking boom as a separate subwoofer with enough physical volume to produce the desired effect.

Picture Quality: Pretty, Despite Being Preproduction

The TCL 115QM891G is a 4K QLED TV with a 120Hz refresh rate. It supports high dynamic range (HDR) content in Dolby Vision, HDR10, HDR10+, and hybrid log gamma (HLG). It features an ATSC 3.0 tuner for 1080p and 4K over-the-air broadcasts.

We test TVs using a Klein K-10A colorimeter, a Murideo SIX-G signal generator, and Portrait Displays’ Calman software. The 115QM891G unit we tested was a preproduction version, and we were only able to perform measurements in its Vivid picture mode rather than any movie picture mode we typically use for picture quality tests. We set the color temperature to the warmest setting to get the most accurate colors possible in this mode (as Vivid picture modes by default make the picture bluer because blue is perceived to be brighter).

The 115QM891G is incredibly bright, standing alongside TCL’s own 98QM851 and Hisense’s 75U9N and 98UX models in putting out the most light of any TVs we’ve tested by far. With an HDR signal, the TV shows a peak brightness of 896 nits with a full-screen white field and 3,374 nits with an 18% white field. That’s significantly brighter than the 75U9N (2,630 nits) and the 98UX (3,060 nits), and bested only by the 98QM851’s stunning 3,836 nits. However, since both TCL models we tested were preproduction units, we still consider the Hisense 98UX to be the brightest TV we’ve formally scored. Black levels are almost negligible at 0.0007cd/m^2, effectively completely black.

(Credit: Will Greenwald)

The above charts show the 115QM891G’s color levels in Vivid mode with the warmest white balance setting, with an SDR signal compared against Rec.709 broadcast standards and with an HDR signal compared against DCI-P3 digital cinema standards. The Vivid mode makes little effort to tamp down on saturation with an SDR signal, but this isn’t too uncommon. In both cases, colors are well balanced, though magenta leans toward red, and white is slightly warmer than ideal. 

While we couldn’t perform our qualitative tests on the 115QM891G in Movie mode, we were able to watch content in that mode as well as the Vivid mode we tested. The “Lion” episode of BBC’s Dynasties looks amazing on the 115QM891G. In Vivid mode, the sunny savanna is bright and eye-catching, and the colors are balanced, but they’re also oversaturated without tweaking additional settings beyond white balance. Movie mode looks much more accurate, with natural color saturation for a lifelike picture. Trees silhouetted against a cloudy sky look properly dark in both modes, while the texture and colors of leaves can be clearly discerned. Hopefully, the Movie mode won’t be significantly tweaked before it's finalized because it looks great.

As an aside, Vivid mode offered an acute reminder that motion and clarity settings can make fine, uneven textures like fur look very strange when moving, and thus should generally be disabled on any TV (as they usually are in Movie modes).

The party scenes in The Great Gatsby look excellent, with the cuts, contours, and textures of black suits and white shirts and lights both coming through clearly, retaining excellent shadow and highlight details in the same frames. Skin tones are well balanced, but splashes of color like orange dresses are just a touch muted. The Vivid picture mode fixes this, but then the oranges look cartoonish and the darker details of suits can look a bit crushed.

HDR demonstration footage on the Spears & Munsil Ultra HD benchmark disc looks vivid and lifelike in Movie mode. Sunny landscapes show plenty of detail from shadows in forests to sunny grass, and colors appear accurate if just a bit muted. Vivid mode pumps up the saturation predictively, and in the warmest white balance setting the colors still look well balanced, though they do lean a bit too much toward oversaturation. Brightly lit objects against black backgrounds strongly pop out in both modes. The slight haze of light bloom can be seen around the edges, though.

Due to testing conditions, we were unable to measure the 115QM891G’s input lag to evaluate its gaming performance. However, in terms of features, it should please most gamers, with a 120Hz panel capable of 144Hz variable refresh rate (VRR), AMD FreeSync Premium Pro certification, and a useful quick menu for checking settings in Game mode.

Verdict: A Promising Car-Priced, Car-Sized TV

The TCL 115QM891G is absolutely massive, with an incredibly bright and colorful picture and a 6.2.2-channel audio system. It’s also extremely expensive at $20,000, which is more than the price of a fairly recent Honda Civic. It’s worth considering if you want one of the biggest QLED TVs available for your home theater (and you can afford it), but because the unit we tested wasn't a finalized version, we're not giving it a formal review score. With that in mind, our Editors' Choice winner among extra-big-screen TVs is the Hisense 98UX, another exceptionally bright TV with excellent performance, a 4.2.2-channel sound system, and a somewhat more reasonable price ($8,000 for 98 inches).