BEIJING, June 26, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Thirteen well-known IT professionals judged the performance of smart TVs through a publicly staged test of new models from China's six best-selling brands: Hisense, Skyworth, TCL, Samsung, Sony and Sharp on June 25. The testing process was monitored by 20 news outlets in Beijing and the Beijing Oriental Public Notary Office. The event was sponsored by Huxiu.com.
The results were divided into two sections, quantitative and qualitative. In all, 23 aspects were judged, including start-up speed, function switch convenience, multi-screen interactivity, number of applications, live viewing, VOD podcasting, multi-tasking, UI design, offline playing, use of the remote control, etc. All TVs were purchased by Huxiu.com under public supervision from Suning Appliance in Beijing to assure random selection.
Hisense 55K600X3D VIDAATV took first place, followed by Sony KDL-55W900A, TCL L55E5500A-3D and Samsung UA55F6400AJ. Fifth and sixth places went to Skyworth 55E760A and Sharp LCD-52LX845A.
Hisense was one of the few companies that demonstrated their uninterrupted multi-tasking capabilities in the field test, while judges were impressed by Samsung's reboot in less than ten seconds after a power-off, thanks to Samsung's focus on product details. Sony was acclaimed for its excellent technical design, but judges noted, "We do not know whether the focus is on the remote control or on the TV," revealing a gap between Sony's superior hardware and its remote control. Both TCL and Skyworth's products were considered extreme in their designs - TCL's remote control was too simple, while it proved too difficult to find Skyworth's USB interface.
Data from China Market Monitor indicated that in the first five months of 2013, more than 50 percent of TVs sold in China were smart ones; 70 percent of surveyed consumers said their next purchase will be a smart TV. It is expected that by 2015, sales of smart TVs will account for more than 90 percent of China's total. Huxiu.com believes that at this major turning point, a single event is unlikely to provide the final word on which TV is best. However, this test gives a good indication of which sets are likely to provide maximum value.
Scores for 10 Unique Tests, Total Score: 60
| Ranking | Brand | Model | Total Score |
| 1 | Hisense | LED55K600X3D | 55.3 |
| 2 | Sony | KDL-55HX950 | 31.5 |
| 3 | TCL | L55E5500A-3D | 31.2 |
| 4 | Samsung | UA55F6400AJ | 30.6 |
| 5 | Skyworth | 55E760A | 21.8 |
| 6 | Sharp | LCD-52LX845A | 20.7 |
10 Criteria for a Smart TV Experience
| 1 | Start-up time | Customers really want their TV to start working as soon as possible after they turn it on. Non-optimized smart TVs boot up far too slowly, negatively impacting user experience. Hence, the time from clicking the "on" button to full operation is the first step in measuring the "intelligence" of the new TVs. |
| 2 | Function switch convenience | Smart TVs integrate many functions, but users are discouraged by the complexity of switching between them. The ability to switch between basic functions with ease is an essential component of a truly smart TV. |
| 3 | Number of smart apps | The more "factory installed" apps, the better the user's experience. |
| 4 | Live TV experience | Speed, clarity and personalized design are of prime importance. |
| 5 | Online VOD intelligence | VOD speed, personalized memory function and the ability to intelligently recommend programs to users are the main features of the VOD experience. |
| 6 | Multitasking ability | Whether the TV can process multiple commands fast and accurately without delay is a criterion for intelligence. |
| 7 | Design of UI | Human-machine interaction, simple operation logic and a well-designed interface are all key to the consumer experience. |
| 8 | Media decoding ability | It is extremely important for a smart TV to have the ability to decode and play videos, HD movies, photos stored in USB drives and MTVs in various formats. |
| 9 | Human-machine interaction of the remote | Consumers clearly prefer remote controls that have a simple and logical layout, are comfortable to hold, are responsive and have good human-machine interaction. |
| 10 | Screen connectivity | The connectivity of the screen to mobile devices such as tablets and handsets is a new metric for the degree of intelligence. |
