You may not be as familiar with Vizio as other brands like Samsung or LG but Vizio is fast becoming one of the most popular smart TV choices out there for consumers. Not only do they compete rather well against brands like Samsung, but they can also often be cheaper whilst just as good in many performance areas.
Where Vizio TVs Are Made
Vizio TVs are made and manufactured in Asia and South America in countries including China, Taiwan, Mexico, Thailand and Vietnam. Whilst the sales are handled in the States, the manufacturing is outsourced to these Asian and South American countries by companies based in them including BOE, Foxconn, Innolux, KIE, Tonly, TPV and Zylux. This keeps the labour and material costs down meaning that the end product is more affordable than some of the other options out there.
Vizio relies on these manufacturers to manage the prices paid for nearly all of the components found in their TVs – LCD & OLED panels, glass substrates, liquid crystal material, driver integrated circuits, polarizers, colour filters, chipsets etc.
These manufacturers find the best prices for each component before building the Vizio TVs. This drastically keeps Vizio’s costs down and means the retailer can sell the TVs for competitive prices. Once the TVs are built they are shipped out to retailers where they are sold.
You shouldn’t let the fact that Vizio outsources their manufacturing to other parts of the world put you off though, Vizio manufacturers build their TVs to the highest of quality. 1.1 million units sold in Q2 2021 tells you everything you need to know about their popularity! So whilst the TVs are built across predominantly Asia, the sales are done in the USA.
All About Vizio
Vizio is a company that is based in California. It was founded in 2002 by its then chairman, chief executive Willian Wang. Wang wanted to sell affordable TVs after looking around the market and seeing many current TVs over $1k. Many of the other most popular brands at the time (and currently) were building their TVs in the United States and Europe. This contributed to the high cost for the end consumer. Wang decided that in order to keep the costs down for a competitive TV, he’d need to partner with manufacturers in Asia where parts and components are typically cheaper.
Wang funded the project with a home loan and investment from venture capitalists and eventually managed to land a distribution deal with Costco.
Vizio TV Options
Vizio has since branched out and now sells their TVs through a multitude of distributors including Target, Walmart, Amazon and Best Buy. Like other popular brands, Vizio has a variety of different series including the D-Series, E-Series, M-Series, P-Series and the most recent P-Series Quantum.
The D-Series is the most popular series in the Vizio range starting at $149.99 and capping at the higher end of $799.99. Whilst a cheaper option, the D-Series still features 4K UHD and comes in a range of sizes. The E-Series is a little step up from the D-Series and packs in Dolby Vision HDR. The E-Series comes in at $329.99 and goes all the way up to $1299.99. Both Series allow you to connect your devices like Alexa and Google assistant and the TVs themselves come loaded with all the apps you’d expect on TVs like LG and Samsung.
If you want to go one better, you can always take a look at the Vizio M-Series. The M-Series is higher-end and packs more features. This series also includes bigger size ranges and betters the Active Full Array on the Plus versions which helps with the depth of dark colours. The M-Series starts at $599.99 and caps out at $1,499.99.
The P-Series includes Ultra Color Spectrum which gives the TV over one billion colours but is largely similar to the M-Series. Finally, the P-Series Quantum improves the Active Full Array and makes use of Quantum Dot technology which increases the brightness and screen colour depth.
Vizio TVs also look great. The Californian designers at Vizio work very closely with the manufacturers to make sure they are not only affordable but so they look attractive too.
Vizio VS Samsung
Because Samsung is a giant in the TV space, it’s a good benchmark for other TV brands. Vizio does a good job of competing with Samsung except it lags behind in terms of size options and audio quality. However, Vizio TVs have more ports meaning you can connect more devices to your TV than if you owned a Samsung TV. Vizio provides all the core features that Samsung TVs do and they are a lot cheaper pound for pound.
In a Nutshell
So, whilst Vizio TVs are sold primarily in the USA, they are made in Asia. If you’re looking for an affordable smart TV, take a look at Vizio. You may just be surprised at just how good they look and all the features they pack.
