CHOICE recommends TVs that earn an overall score of more than 75% and at least 70% for standard definition (SD) and high definition (HD) picture quality performance.

The overall score is made up of high definition picture quality (30%), standard definition picture quality (20%), 4K picture quality (5%), user interface (10%), remote control (10%), smart TV (10%), EPG (5%), energy consumption (5%) and sound quality (5%). Voice assistant scores are not included in the overall score.

Picture quality is one of the major components of our TV test and includes both a technical and subjective assessment of how well the TV can handle a number of different source materials. CHOICE has found many TVs with very high resolution struggle to upscale SD sources to their native resolution, leading to low scores in our testing for SD. SD accounts for 20% of the overall score.

Picture quality is one of the major components of our TV test and includes both a technical and subjective assessment of how well the TV can handle a number of different source materials. Online streaming routinely delivers HD-quality video and most of the free-to-air stations now broadcast HD content on their main channel. HD accounts for 30% of the overall score.

The on-screen user interface should be easy to read, easy to follow, tell the user what is happening (e.g. tells the user to wait while TV is scanning for DTV broadcasts), and show clear prompts, which button to press, or what to do next. User interface accounts for 10% of the overall score.

The tester checks the size and spacing of the buttons, dials or touch pads to make sure they're easy to reach, logically grouped and not too close together. Labels should be big enough to read and of sufficient contrast to be easy to read in low light. The remote's overall size and shape is assessed for how well it fits in the hand and how easy it is to use with one hand. Remote accounts for 10% of the overall score.

The tester plays a number of high quality voice and music recordings on a DVD player connected to the TV and compares it to a reference system. The assessment is made at a volume that the tester feels is sufficient for listening in a normal room and also at the TV's maximum volume (assuming the latter is louder). Sound quality accounts for 5% of the overall score.

Energy accounts for 5% of the overall score. Standby and in-use energy measured to deliver an annual cost to the owner assuming you watch 10 hours of TV a day and leave the TV in standby when not in use.

EPG refers to the electronic program guide. This accounts for 5% of the overall score.

We have increased our testing in this area as TVs become an intrinsic part of the modern smart home. The Smart TV assessment accounts for 10% of the overall score.

Based on 10 hours in use and 14 hours in standby mode for 365 days.

'Tested' means you should be able to find this model in stores (we check availability every time we test). 'Discontinued' means you may only be able to find this model online locally or overseas or in a second-hand store, if at all. We publish information on discontinued products as members have expressed interest in older models.

The recommended retail price as supplied by the manufacturer or the average price you can expect to find the TV for online.

Running costs per year standby. Based on 30c/kWh with the TV in standby mode for 14 hours per day.

While many CHOICE members have reminded us that we are living in a metric world, this information hasn't reached the TV companies who continue to show their products in inches rather than centimetres. Our TV comparison table provides screen measurements in both so you can decide which figure is more suitable.

The majority of TVs deliver a resolution of 3840 x 2160 also called 4K or Ultra High Definition (UHD) which is an improvement over HD or a resolution of 1920 x 1080)

This figure notes the number of HDMI inputs for your TV.

Some TVs have a number of video and sound inputs, but some can only be used when others are not in use.

Bluetooth 3 is a good option for sharing data from a mobile device.

Bluetooth 4 increases transfer rates with less power required.

Rounded up to the next centimetre or half-centimetre, with the base attached and all protruding parts included. Power cord and connecting cables excluded.

Weight of the TV, including the stand.

While not indicating the origin of the components, this is at least an indicator of where the TV was assembled and shipped.

TVs with support for 4K or Ultra High Definition (UHD) video are able to show a picture resolution of 3840 x 2160 which may be an issue to consider if 4K movie content becomes readily available and you watch lots of streaming video that supports 4K such as Netflix.

High Dynamic Range (HDR) TVs deliver greater contrast between dark and bright colours, giving you greater detail in shade areas and more realistic colours in difficult video situations such as overly dark or overly light scenes. However to enjoy HDR, you need a TV to support the format and the content needs to have the information stored in the video to let the TV know how to deal with the picture.

Netflix is one of the most popular streaming services at the moment and some of the latest TVs now have a dedicated button on the remote making it easy to access the service.

Handy for connecting a USB 3 external drive for recording live TV to watch later.

This connection (a small black plug with a small red laser light) streams digital audio from your TV.

Useful for internet access when you can't get a network cable connection from the router to the TV.

TVs supporting Wi-Fi 802.11ac can transmit data over the popular 2.4GHz band, as well as a secondary 5GHz band. Having access to more bands frees up data congestion for quicker transfers. Having a TV that supports dual band Wi-Fi is particularly handy when it comes to large file transfers, such as photos, music and videos.

This feature should help lessen the irritating situation where commercials seem to deliver a louder volume than the show.

This feature alters the audio output to enhance the speech effect.

A setting on your TV where it recognises, through an HDMI connection, that you have turned on your home theatre system or soundbar and it will automatically turn off the TV speakers.

On the remote control.

Smart TVs now essentially conduct searches and process commands using your voice with trigger words such as 'OK Google' or 'Alexa' telling the TV that it should act on your commands.

Closed captions retained when changing channel.

The TV has some form of log-in control to prevent children accessing inappropriate content.

The TV can be set to require a login for individual channels.

You can set your favourite channels to show up in a custom list by selecting a dedicated button on your remote control.