Samsung battles Vizio to sell off big TVs for the big game
The two biggest TV makers purge 2017 inventory by lowering prices in time for a certain football contest. You win.
- Although still awaiting his Oscar for Best Picture Reviewer, David does hold certifications from the Imaging Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Standards and Technology on display calibration and evaluation.
Half of the US TV market is owned by two companies: Samsung and Vizio. Think of them as the New England Patriots and the Philadelphia Eagles.
Samsung is the perennial favorite, steeped in cutting-edge tech and marketing dollars. Vizio is the scrappy upstart, whose working-class TVs earn high marks for value.
Just in time for New England and Philly to compete in the big game I can't name, Samsung and Vizio will meet online and in stores to compete for your hard-earned dollars. In advance of new 2018 models, both companies have announced sales on their 2017 televisions, and many are at their lowest prices of the year -- either the same as Black Friday 2017 or, in the cases of the Samsung sets below, even cheaper.
Here's a sampling of the best deals from each company, concentrating on truly football-sized sets: 65 and 75 inches.
The most notable for bargain hunters is the Vizio E series, which is just ridiculously cheap at both sizes and offers very good picture quality. My overall favorite is Vizio's M series, however, and in my tests it actually outperformed the more expensive Samsung Q7. On the other hand the Samsung far outclasses the Vizio for design and features.
Big Samsung and Vizio TVs on sale for the big game
| Brand | Model | Size | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vizio | E65-E1 | 65-inch | $750 |
| Vizio | M65-E0 | 65-inch | $1,000 |
| Vizio | P65-E1 | 65-inch | $1,200 |
| Samsung | UN65MU8500 | 65-inch | $1,400 |
| Samsung | UN65Q7F | 65-inch | $2,200 |
| Vizio | E75-E1 | 75-inch | $1,600 |
| Samsung | UN75MU8500 | 75-inch | $1,800 |
| Vizio | M75-E1 | 75-inch | $1,850 |
| Samsung | UN75Q7F | 75-inch | $3,300 |
Looking for even more picks? Check out my full list of best big TVs for the big game.