Vizio M series (2016) Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET

Vizio

The successor to CNET’s favorite LCD TV of 2015, Vizio’s M series, is getting improved image quality chops and a revamped smart TV system that includes a tablet remote in the box.

The 2016 version of the M series appeared on the company’s website recently without any fanfare or pricing information. No, we don’t know when it’s coming out yet (the site says “soon”) and we don’t even know which sizes it will arrive in.

Vizio’s representatives declined to give us any additional information beyond what’s on the web site now.

According to the site, the new M series will pack many of the same features as the P series, which was announced Wednesday and starts shipping March 27. We suspect the M series will be cheaper, in the area of $1,500 for the 65-inch size. Here’s what we know.

Vizio M series features

• Full-array local dimming with 64 zones
• HDR compatible with Dolby Vision support
• 4K resolution
• Includes free Android tablet remote (6-inch screen)
• Google Cast compatible

Those are some pretty impressive image-quality specifications. The M series halves the number of local dimming zones on the P series, but 64 is still an impressive number (more zones generally leads to improved image quality), and twice as many as the M had last year.

HDR is another high-end picture enhancement new for 2016, although it remains to be seen how Vizio will handle support for Dolby Vision’s competitor, the HDR10 format found, among other sources, on 4K Blu-ray discs. One difference between the P and the M, judging from the website, is that the M series doesn’t get the “Ultra Color Spectrum” feature, so I doubt its coverage of the P3 color space used for HDR will equal the P series’ 96 percent.

The Vizio site indicates in a couple places that the tablet included with the M series has a 720p resolution screen (compared with a 1080p screen on the P series), but in another table on the site all of the M series tablet specs are listed as “coming soon.”

Just like the P series, the M does away with a traditional onscreen menu system in favor of the Google Cast feature and the Vizio SmartCast app.

See my write-up of the P series for more details.

Vizio’s site also lists a new 2016 version of the less expensive E series. Here’s how the series break down:

Vizio’s 2016 4K TV lineup

When we find out more information, we’ll update this article.