Update: TCL TVs are now back on sale at Best Buy after the company announced a software fix [Earlier this year, TCL announced new Series 6 and Series 5 TVs that run on the new Google TV instead of the Roku platform This is because these TVs were discontinued due to software issues
According to The Verge, Best Buy, which exclusively sells TCL's Google TV in the US, has removed the TVs from its shelves, at least temporarily, after receiving complaints of buggy and slow software performance The Verge reports that TCL has been "having user interface stability issues" but quotes TCL as saying that these models "will be available again within a few weeks"
When we reviewed TCL's 5-series Google TV (S546), we encountered no problems - in fact, we loved it and awarded it 45 stars, giving it on our list of best TVs [However, with multiple posts on Reddit and Best Buy's product review page, it appears that complaints about the TV's performance are not rare
The experience seems very much the same across the board, with generally slow software affecting the overall TV viewing experience; The Verge's Chris Welch also mentioned instances where his TV froze and stopped responding
In the past, TCL has sold TVs with a wide range of software, including some powered by Android TV Google TV, however, is a relatively new system, launched earlier this year
The software is designed to offer smarter controls and better integration with Google's smart home devices It is also intended to be a more sophisticated experience with an emphasis on personalized content recommendations thanks to better integration with one's Google account The new interface also puts content first and is a massive redesign compared to Android TV
TCL told The Verge that it is already rolling out updates to improve TV performance and that "customers will see noticeable improvements in the coming weeks"
It is also important to note that Best Buy has yet to confirm whether these problems are the reason the TVs are no longer available or whether they are related to inventory issues This is because in our tests we were impressed with the TCL TV and consider it one of the best Google TVs
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