Why you can trust TechRadar We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.
So often cheap TVs fall at this early stage of reviews, and though the 40F8073-T doesn't challenge more expensive TVs on pure image quality, it does come through with its reputation just about unscathed.
Don't expect to perform a full custom calibration – this is not a screen fit for a home cinema. However, despite the lack of advanced-level tweaks, the 40F8073-T's native Cinema preset mode is good enough to rely on, successfully hiding the worst aspects of picture noise during standard definition Freeview HD broadcasts. It's also a quick fix to this TV's ultra-bright panel, which does need toning down.
Detail
The 40F8073-T isn't an100Hz screen, so I expected some motion blur. That's exactly what happens when watching Freeview HD channels, with camera pans and any kind of motion immediately lessening detail to a big degree. However, a complete lack of judder means that the 40F8073-T's smooth – if detail-poor – images remain easy to watch and never distracting. It's a fixture while watching Blu-ray discs, too, which undoubtedly provide the best-looking images on the 40F8073-T.
Upscaling of standard definition channels and DVDs is limited, with some picture noise visible and mosquito noise regularly surrounding moving objects and people.
Colour and contrast
The 40F8073-T's contrast is good, with deep blacks and bright, clean peak whites helping the 40F8073-T supply some good colour. Skin tones look spot-on and blacks, in particular, are convincing.
However impressive blacks are, during my test disc Hugo on Blu-ray I did notice a lack of shadow detailing. A common trait on budget TVs without much in the way of advanced picture processing, this failure leaves dark areas of the image spilling into each other and subtracting a sense of realism especially in dingy sequences.
Viewing angle
Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the 40F8073-T is its complete lack of LED light leakage. So common is a tendency for cheaper TVs to look blotchy in the corners of the screen – something that's especially noticeable in a blackout – that the 40F8073-T's near-uniform panel brightness is something of a shock.
Better still, the viewing angle is thoroughly decent, with contrast and colours holding up pretty well when the 40F8073-T is watched from the wings.
It's the final salvo in a picture performance that, though not perfect by any measure, is good enough for the 40F8073-T to maintain its position as one of the all-round best value TVs for general living room use.
