TCL X11L review: One of the best out-of-the-box TVs that's entered our testing lab

TCL X11L Mini-LED Smart TV

ZDNET's key takeaways

• The TCL X11L is available now for $8,000 for the 85-inch.
• Its all-new SDQ-Mini LED panel has great color accuracy, with a peak brightness of 10,000 nits and over 20,000 local dimming zones.
• It's available in very limited screen sizes and at a premium price.

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In January 2026, TCL came to a tentative agreement to buy a controlling stake in Sony's Bravia TV brand, with electronics (including new TVs) made by the co-owned brand hitting store shelves sometime in 2027. 

For a brand that was once seen as a budget option, they've made significant strides to improve its products and reputation with each new generation. Hardware refreshes like updated LED and QLED panels and support for hi-res audio like Dolby Atmos helped push picture and sound quality to compete with established brands like Samsung, Sony, and LG.

Also: The best 85-inch TVs you can buy

The 2025 generation of TCL TVs saw flagship models like the TCL QM8K offer premium features and high-quality picture and audio that could (and does) rival OLED. And now with the release of the TCL X11L, the brand has more than proven that it is more than capable of handling the Bravia brand and the exacting standards that come with it.  

"The pictures don't do it justice." 

That's what ZDNET lab engineer Samantha De Leon said to me as we pored over testing data for the TCL X11L, and I agree. Straight out of the box, this is one of the most gorgeous televisions I've ever seen in my nearly decade-and-a-half career, and with minimal adjustments, you'll be getting a picture that blows a lot of OLED options out of the water. 

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At our lab, we use a special imaging camera to test color accuracy, brightness, and contrast across a variety of preset picture modes to see how well each screen performs. Hands down, the X11L has some of the most impressive out-of-the-box results we've ever gotten out of a consumer-grade TV. 

The brand claims that its new LED technology is capable of producing up to 100% of the BT.2020 color gamut, and this display came exceptionally close, only needing a few tweaks to zero-in.

Taylor Clemons/Samantha De Leon/ZDNET

As you can see from our test results, the X11L comes very, very close to perfection when it comes to recreating colors. If that wasn't impressive enough, the SDQ-Mini LED panel also boasts over 20,000 local dimming zones to help achieve near-perfect black for sharp contrast as well as a peak brightness of 10,000 nits for bright white colors and exceptional visibility in almost any room.

Each square on the charts represents a target color, while the dots are the actual colors produced by the screen. The Standard picture mode, which is likely what you'll be using the most often, is already remarkable, but color accuracy improves even more in Filmmaker and the dedicated Game modes. 

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The TCL X11L doesn't seem to be plagued with as much of the dreaded blue-shift other LED and even some OLED options show, which can make images look dull and desaturated even to an untrained eye. And with speakers designed by Bang & Olufsen, you'll get top-notch audio to complement the bright pops of color, inky blacks, and bright whites. 

ZDNET's buying advice

The TCL X11L feels like a proof of concept to show Sony that is capable of producing an elite TV on-par with the Bravia OLED brand. The out-of-the-box picture quality is some of the most impressive I've ever seen, coming within a hair's breadth of perfection. 

But all of this comes at a steep retail price, with the 85-inch version selling for $8,000 while the 98-inch will run a cool ten stacks; and unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be any plan to release smaller sizes. However, it's an encouraging sign that TCL is able to coax such high-quality images out of LED technology, and I can't wait to see what it can do with Sony's OLED panels.