We had an opportunity to experience Vizio’s M80-C3 once again, exactly four months after we originally ran our review on it back in June, to see if our opinion has changed any. I can confidently say that sitting in front of this TV now is just as enjoyable as it was when we had first been introduced to it. Still the most affordable 4K TV of it’s size (“4K for $4K”), it packs a better picture than some of the other TVs we have spent time with in recent months.
Within the last few months, we have sat briefly with some of Sharp’s 4K models, only one of which long enough to run a review on. The other models didn’t grab our attention enough to bother working out a deal with, to allow us the time to test one out. This disrupted the perfect competitive flow that Vizio and Sharp have been bathing in over the last few years with their successful 1080p models. Vizio has clearly taken the top position with the M80-C3 for “affordable 4K” TVs, without any fear of nearby competition.
One of the only things we pointed out about this model was the fact that it didn’t offer 3D. This is still a bit of a downer for some of us, but we still stand our ground when we say that it doesn’t come anywhere near being a deal killer. Vizio launched a 4K TV to one-up their previous 1080p monsters with, while providing the best possible price one would find on the shelves. This model offers clarity and richness that you would expect in any good 4K TV, but that price falls right into the same category of the 1080p models before it. This helped rock the price boat for 4K TVs and contributed to the price selection we have now. Now we are seeing prices dropped all over and it’s the OLED screens that are taking the high price points. It’s safe to assume that next year, Vizio will probably throw a rock into that pool as well.
The M80-C3 starts off right out of the box with a solid image with great vibrant colors, amazing depth and an excellent clarity. Given, this time around we weren’t taking it out of the box as this model has been sitting around for awhile before we found our way to it. It still looks just as well as the first one we looked at back in June, and this one hasn’t been personally calibrated outside of the factory demo settings.
This is one of those models that immediately pops out as you walk by, letting you know that 4K is here and 1080p has already become a fossil in comparison. Something any frugal Blu-ray fan should own, at least within the series as not everyone needs 80-inches. The models in the 4K M-Series fall as low as $599 (43-inch model), with the most popular model leaving the shelves being the M60-C3 60-inch model ($1299-$1380 seems to be the average price at the moment).
It would be nice to have one hanging permanently here on the wall for future demos and benchmarks with other gadgets. If we’re lucky, we may be able to convince someone high up to justify it in the budget of things. Maybe my hopes are high, but it never hurts to dream big–80 inches big in this scenario.
Make sure to check out our full-review of the M80-C3 we did back in June. If you’re lucky, you might be able to justify it within your budget as well.
