Open your TV’s settings menu, usually by pressing the “Menu” button on your TV remote. The first-and biggest-step to getting better picture quality is to choose the right preset. Most TVs come with different presets, like “Standard”, “Movie”, and “Vivid”, that use different combinations of settings. Once you get used to it, you’ll never go back. It may not “pop” like it did in the store, but you’ll actually see more detail in the picture, and more lifelike colors. But even the out-of-the-box “Home” settings are less than ideal, even if they’re not quite as bad as the old “vivid” settings were.įor the best possible picture quality, you’ll have a better viewing experience by turning most of these features off, and adjusting the brightness, contrast, and color to more lifelike settings. These days, things are a little better, since most TVs will ask you to put them in “Home” or “Store Demo” mode when you set them up. If you have a TV that’s more than a couple years old, you may still be using those awful settings. Furthermore, extra sharpening and smoothing features are usually just marketing gimmicks, and actually add artifacts to your image, rather than making them look better.įor a long time, TVs used to come with these “vivid” settings out of the box, which is terrible for at-home viewing. Those overly bright whites actually have a blue tint, which is inaccurate and can strain your eyes when you’re watching in the dark. Colors that “pop” are usually ugly and un-lifelike, and can remove detail from the image. However, most of these features are not ideal for your living room. That means their backlight is as bright as possible, contrast is set so the image “pops”, sharpness is turned up way too high, and motion is ultra smooth. Instead, they’re designed to be eye-catching in the showroom, next to other TVs under fluorescent lights. Most TVs are not designed to have the best picture quality out-of-the-box. Why TV’s Don’t Come with Optimal Picture Quality Feel like you aren’t getting the best picture from your shiny new TV? Want to make sure you’re watching movies as they were intended to be seen? Here’s what you need to know about HDTV picture quality, and how to adjust your set for the best image.

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