Vizio’s Unexpected Success: A Surprisingly Impressive Basic TV

When I first got my hands on Vizio’s 65-inch Mini LED Quantum TV, I thought the highlight was that Vizio was making a comeback with a quantum-dot TV priced under $398 — the lowest in the market. After being relatively quiet since its acquisition by Walmart in 2024, releasing a budget-friendly quantum-dot TV seemed like a solid move.

However, the real story here is that Vizio unintentionally created the best “dumb” TV available.

Walmart’s acquisition of Vizio was primarily driven by its advertising business, which was the main source of profit at the time. This means that maintaining ad revenue is likely a top priority, with Vizio’s TV operating system serving as the platform for that goal.

To access certain features on a Vizio TV, you now need a Walmart account, and you can’t use any streaming apps on the Mini LED Quantum without agreeing to its data collection policy, which allows Walmart to track your viewing habits. While this is frustrating, it’s not uncommon; many smart TVs gather data to provide personalized recommendations and ads.

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**Vizio Mini LED Quantum specs**
Display type: Mini LED with quantum dots
HDR formats: Dolby Vision, HDR10+, HDR10, HLG
OS: Vizio OS
Connections: 3 x HDMI 2.0 (one with eARC), ATSC 1.0 tuner, USB 2.0, optical audio out
Audio support: Dolby Atmos, DTS: X
Gaming features: 4K/60Hz, 1080p/120Hz (65-inch and up)
Sizes available (inches): 43, 50, 55, 65, 75, 85
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Walmart, similar to Amazon with its Fire TVs, can leverage your viewing data to enhance your shopping experience. For instance, if you’ve been binge-watching Star Wars content, you might find recommendations for related merchandise the next time you log into the Walmart app. While this could be appealing to some, the close link between the TV OS and a retailer feels a bit unsettling to me.

Fortunately, there are ways to bypass this system more effectively than on other platforms. You can connect an external streaming device and set the Vizio to power on to the last used input, effectively avoiding the OS. However, even with an external device, Vizio and Walmart will still monitor the HDMI port and collect data on your viewing. By making specific choices during setup, you can prevent the OS from activating and gathering your viewing information, which is a unique feature among TVs.

During the setup, the TV prompts you to sign in or create a Walmart account. If you opt to skip this step, you’ll receive a warning that you won’t be able to manage payments or subscriptions. Since I handle my subscriptions directly through each streaming service, this isn’t a significant drawback for me. After agreeing to Vizio’s terms and privacy policy, you’re asked to accept the activity data policy to enable smart features. If you decline, you’ll see a warning that skipping this step means missing out on all smart TV features, including popular apps like Netflix and YouTube.

If you decline again, the Vizio transforms into a “dumb” TV, with no OS and three HDMI ports ready for use. To ensure Walmart doesn’t collect your data, you can disconnect the TV from the internet by forgetting your Wi-Fi settings. You can also choose to skip Wi-Fi connection during setup, which will immediately switch the TV to HDMI, although you might miss out on firmware updates.

And for a $400 dumb TV — or even a smart TV at that price — the 65-inch Vizio Mini LED Quantum performs impressively. I watched several World Cup matches using my OTA antenna and caught up on my usual shows through Apple TV, and everything looked solid. Among its picture modes, Calibrated and Calibrated Dark offer the most accurate visuals, though both lean slightly towards blue, giving a cool cast. Calibrated Dark is ideal for color accuracy in darker rooms. With SDR, it peaks at 309 nits brightness (579 nits for HDR highlights), while Calibrated mode reaches an impressive 936 nits, making it suitable for bright environments. However, the glossy screen can reflect nearby lamps, which might be distracting during darker scenes.

There’s a bit of motion blur during fast-paced action, which I noticed while watching the Austrian Grand Prix, especially with the new drone shots. The Mini LED Quantum uses an IPS panel instead of a VA panel, resulting in less deep blacks and some blooming with bright highlights in dark scenes. Still, most users will likely be satisfied with the performance of the Vizio Mini LED Quantum. Even I found myself setting aside my videophile standards and enjoying what I was watching. For a 65-inch TV under $400 (or up to 85 inches for just $768), it’s easy to overlook these minor flaws and enjoy everyday viewing.

Of course, there are some noticeable cost-cutting measures. The TV only has three HDMI 2.0 ports, while many others offer four, including at least one HDMI 2.1 port (though Vizio does include an ATSC 1.0 tuner). The back is made of a cheaper plastic, there’s only one height option for the feet, and the cable management channels can only fit a single cable each. If you have multiple devices connected, you won’t be able to run all the cables through the channel. The speakers are loud but lack quality, which is a common issue even with pricier models.

If you choose to use the Vizio OS, you can limit Walmart’s data collection by disabling Viewing Data in the privacy menu and unchecking personalized ads on your Vizio account page. The Vizio OS is user-friendly, though it can be a bit sluggish at times. It supports all major apps, along with AirPlay and Google Cast, and switching between inputs is straightforward, both through the OS and with a dedicated button on the remote. After a few minutes, the TV enters a screensaver mode featuring AI-generated scenes with music, but since these are channels, they occasionally get interrupted by ads, which isn’t the most relaxing experience.

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**How I test TVs**
I set up each TV in my living room on my home theater credenza. I stream movies and shows through the TV’s apps and from an Apple TV, play discs on a 4K Blu-Ray player, and play games on my Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5. This is done at different times of the day and under various lighting conditions, with curtains open, lamps on, or blackout curtains drawn. While I am a certified calibrator, I do not calibrate the TVs before measurement, as most TV owners don’t bother. It’s crucial to see how well the TVs perform out of the box, with minor adjustments anyone can make.

For measurement, I use color calibration software, a pattern generator, a spectrophotometer, a colorimeter, a luminance meter, and a lag tester.

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If you decide to use the Vizio Mini LED Quantum as a dumb TV, you won’t have to worry about data collection. While this isn’t what Walmart intends, it’s definitely the way to go. If you want streaming apps, you can always connect an affordable streaming device like the Fire TV Stick 4K Select for $40. Just keep in mind that if you use a connected device with the Vizio OS active, your viewing data will also be shared with Walmart.

My main concern is that the ability to use the Mini LED Quantum as a dumb TV might be an unintended feature, and future software updates could change that. If you’re required to use it and accept all the data collection, recommending the TV becomes more complicated. For now, though, the Mini LED Quantum offers excellent performance for the price. If you’re in the market for a large dumb TV to escape constant data tracking, the Vizio Mini LED Quantum is a solid choice — at least for the time being.