VIZIO E40 D0 Review: Affordable, But Lacks Some Features

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VIZIO E40 D0: At First Glance

The VIZIO E series of TVs is a price-friendly offering that plans to balance cost and performance without making too many compromises. One of such E series TV is the VIZIO E40 D0 which was released in 2016.

This TV has decent features but lacks some useful ones found on top-tier TV models. Nonetheless, it has a display that is good for viewing Full HD content, a SmartCast OS, and WiFi.

Is the affordable VIZIO E40 D0 worth considering despite its imperfections? The only way to find an answer to that question is for you to continue reading this review.

VIZIO E40 D0: Design, Dimension, and Weight

The VIZIO E40 D0 comes with a chunky design, and its build material is mainly plastic. Its plastic bezels are averagely thick with a front metallic finish, and a side textured finish.

On the bottom bezel, you will find a small “VIZIO” inscription on the right side. Furthermore, the VIZIO E40 D0 comes with a set of wide feet that are attached to the TV at extreme edges.

Hence, you will need a wide desk if you plan on placing this TV on a desk.

Also, these sets of feet are V-shaped and are made of plastic. Despite being plastic, they are quite sturdy, so they provide enough stability for the television.

Thankfully, the television’s feet are tall, so a soundbar or cable decoder can fit in between them.

Proceeding to the backside of the TV, the VIZIO E40 D0 comes with a bulky back cover with a VIZIO logo at the center. The back cover is also made of plastic and has a textured finish.

Additionally, there is also a space at the top part of the TV’s back which will be handy for carrying the television. Another thing you will find at the back of this TV is the panel that houses the ports.

That is not all; you will also find three control buttons on the left side of the VIZIO E40 D0’s back. The three buttons include the power button, volume control, and input buttons.

One thing that is missing on the back of this TV is a setup for cable management. Hence, you will have to organize the cables manually.

For users who love to mount their TV on a wall rather than place it on a desk, the VIZIO E40 D0 has VESA 200 x 200 mount holes at the back. However, due to the chunky shape of the television, it will stick out when mounted on the wall.

To give more details about the chunkiness, the VIZIO E40 D0 measures 919.4 x 74.0 x 535.6 mm (W x D x H). This measurement proves that the TV is pretty thick.

In addition to that, it is also quite heavy with a weight of 7400 g. However, the VIZIO E40 D0 is still not as heavy as the Samsung UN40MU6300 and the Samsung UN40H5003.

This is because the Samsung UN40MU6300 and the Samsung UN40H5003 weigh 7711 g and 7620.3 g, respectively.

Overall, the structural build of the VIZIO E40 D0 is solid. Although it is quite thick, it is lighter than the other 40-inch TVs I compared it with.

However, this TV lacks a cable management set up, which might make cables to be disorganized.

Putting these together, I will be rating the VIZIO E40 D0 a seven in this design section of the review.

VIZIO E40 D0: Display Features and Picture Quality

The VIZIO E40 D0 has a 40-inches full-array LED display. The full-array LED ensures that there are LED backlights all over the LCD panel of this display.

Hence, everywhere on the display will be illuminated.

Additionally, the VIZIO E40 D0 display has a Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels) resolution. Hence, multimedia content will be decently sharp on this TV.

Another important display feature of this TV is its contrast ratio. To give more details, contrast ratio is the difference between the black and white regions of a display.

Hence, a high contrast ratio will make the blacks of a display deeper and more interesting to watch.

Impressively, the VIZIO E40 D0 has a native contrast of 3,147: 1. This means that the TV will be able to yield deep blacks in the dark scenes of display content.

Aside from its impressive contrast ratio, the VIZIO E40 D0 also features local dimming. Thankfully, the local dimming feature also makes the black scenes of a display even darker and have better highlights.

Moving on, the VIZIO E40 D0 has a mediocre peak brightness of 335 nits. Thus, the display won’t be able to offset reflections properly in a well-lit room.

Unfortunately, this will result in poor visibility.

Therefore, to get a better viewing experience from the VIZIO E40 D0’s display, it is best watched in a room with average brightness.

In addition to the VIZIO E40 D0’s poor brightness, its viewing angles are also bad. Hence, aside from viewing the display while sitting directly opposite the TV, picture quality tends to degrade when you watch from angles.

In addition to its bad viewing angles, the VIZIO E40 D0 does not support HDR (High Dynamic Range). HDR helps a TV display to deliver colorful, bright, and realistic pictures when watching HDR content.

Unfortunately, when you stream HDR content from Netflix, Hulu, and other streaming services that offer HDR content, you won’t get the best experience.

Let’s proceed to the discussion of this TV’s motion performance. To do that, one of the factors we’ll be considering is response time.

For a clearer understanding, response time refers to the time it takes the pixels on a display to undergo color transformation. Moreover, a fast response time is ideal when watching fast-motion content like action movies and sports.

You should be aware that a lower value denotes a faster response which is preferable.

Impressively, the VIZIO E40 D0 recorded a response time of 12 milliseconds which makes it suitable for watching fast-motion content.

In addition to its fast response time, the VIZIO E40 D0 also has a decently low input lag. By input lag, I’m referring to how fast an input signal can register on a television display.

Hence, a low input lag is preferable as it denotes that the signal reflects on the display fast. A low input lag is also good for gaming.

Thankfully, the VIZIO E40 D0 registers an input lag of 29.6 milliseconds when you set the picture mode to “Game.” Hence, this makes this TV suitable for gaming.

However, despite the fact that the VIZIO E40 D0 registers a decently low input lag, intense gamers will prefer it even lower.

In summary, the VIZIO E40 D0 has a high contrast ratio, local dimming, and good motion handling. However, it has a mediocre peak brightness and does not support HDR.

Therefore, I will rate TV a seven out of ten in this section of the review.

VIZIO E40 D0: Sound Features

Regarding the sound unit, the VIZIO E40 D0 boasts a pair of 2 channel 10 watts speakers. However, the sound quality produced by the 20 watts speakers is not encouraging.

Even at maximum volume, the TV doesn’t get adequately loud. To make things worse, the TV doesn’t have a subwoofer; thus, it won’t be able to produce enough bass.

Hence, when you play movies with lots of bass on the VIZIO E40 D0, you won’t get that thumping bass effect. Alternatively, you can buy a subwoofer or a soundbar that will produce the bass you need.

Regardless of its lack of adequate bass, the VIZIO E40 D0 delivers well-balanced audio, which produces clear dialogue. By the way, dialogue refers to conversations between more than one person in TV programs.

Thanks to the clear dialogue produced by the VIZIO E40 D0, conversations in TV programs like movies, news, etc, will be audible.

Additionally, the VIZIO E40 D0 features DTS Studio Sound technology. This sound enhancement technology helps the 20 watts, in-built speakers to produce a 5-channel virtual surround sound.

This implies that this technology will further deepen the intensity of sound produced by the speaker.

Let’s proceed as we discuss the distortion performance of this TV. For better understanding, distortion is the changes from the original sound intended to the sound produced.

When a TV has a good distortion performance, it will produce the exact sound just the way it should be produced. To evaluate the distortion performance of this TV, we will discuss its result in a total harmonic distortion (THD) test.

Obviously, this test measures the ratio of distortion present in an audio signal. For evaluation purposes, you should be aware that a THD value below 1 percent indicates a good distortion level.

From the test, the VIZIO E40 D0 offers an overall decent distortion performance. Its sound distortions are negligible, even at maximum volume.

Specifically, the VIZIO E40 D0 had a THD value of 0.012 percent at 80 percent volume. Also, it had a THD value of 0.244 percent at maximum volume.

Considering the test result and every other thing I have discussed in this section, I will be rating the VIZIO E40 D0 a six out of ten.

VIZIO E40 D0: Ports and Connectivity Features

Just like I mentioned in the design section, the panel that houses the ports on this TV is located on the TV’s back. However, the ports are still pretty accessible.

Meanwhile, it is quite unfortunate that the VIZIO E40 D0 comes with a minimal number of ports. To begin with, this TV has only two HDMI ports which are rather disappointing.

The reason for my disappointment is that televisions with similar features, like the Samsung UN40H5003, have up to three HDMI ports. However, one of the HDMI ports on the VIZIO E40 D0 is ARC (Audio Return Channel) compatible.

The ARC port allows you to connect the TV to a soundbar. Hence, it is more like a two-way transmission of multimedia signals between the TV and the sound system.

Additionally, regrettably, the VIZIO E40 D0 comes with a single USB port. Therefore, users won’t be able to plug in multiple USB devices at the same time.

Other ports available on this TV include an RF port, a digital optical port, one component-composite port, and an Ethernet port. For wireless connectivity, the VIZIO E40 D0 is integrated with 802.11ac WiFi but it has no Bluetooth.

Moving on, let’s discuss the VIZIO E40 D0’s remote control. The TV comes with a VIZIO XRT133 SmartCast remote control similar to other VIZIO TVs.

The remote is relatively large and made of plastic with a metallic black finish. Thankfully, the remote is quite functional.

Additionally, the remote control comes with just a few buttons. To give more details, the XRT133 SmartCast remote control features six single buttons.

These buttons include a power button, an input source button, a mute button, and two other buttons. In addition to the six buttons, it has a volume and channel control with a single pause/play button, all combined in a separate button section.

Even with its decent functionalities, the VIZIO E40 D0 remote control has some design flaws. One of the flaws is the lack of dedicated buttons for quick access to streaming applications.

Also, the VIZIO E40 D0 remote control doesn’t have a built-in microphone for voice input. As a matter of fact, the remote looks scanty.

In conclusion, the VIZIO E40 D0 comes with a limited port selection, and its remote control is missing some useful buttons. Regardless, the remote is functional and should serve its purpose effectively.

Therefore, I will rate the VIZIO E40 D0 a seven out of ten in this section of the review.

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VIZIO E40 D0: Smart Features

As expected of a smart TV, the VIZIO E40 D0 comes with an operating system known as SmartCast. The operating system interface features some basic functions such as the application menu, quick apps, and settings menu.

This makes the interface look basic and understandable. Nonetheless, even with its simple form, the interface still lags, which makes the TV take a bit of time to respond to commands.

Additionally, transitions and animations are rather uneven, and navigation on the interface will be quite challenging.

Furthermore, the VIZIO E40 D0 operating system isn’t integrated with the preloaded apps you would normally see on other smart TVs’ interfaces. That’s where the TV’s integrated Chromecast comes in handy.

The Chromecast allows you to pair and stream content from apps like Netflix, YouTube, and Spotify from your mobile devices to the TV. Additionally, the Chromecast comes with some built-in apps that you can access with subscriptions.

As an added feature, you can download the SmartCast app to use as an alternative means of controlling the TV. With the SmartCast app, you will be able to preview channels without having to scroll through the channel guide on the TV to search for what you want.

In summary, the VIZIO E40 D0 SmartCast OS isn’t so great; it lags and also isn’t preloaded with streaming apps. However, its built-in Chromecast is pretty functional.

Considering all that, the VIZIO E40 D0’s smart features deserve a rating of eight out of ten.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

The VIZIO E40 D0 is a price-friendly smart TV with moderate performance.

However, the VIZIO E40 D0 has poor peak brightness, lacks support for HDR, and its viewing angles are nothing to write home about. Also, this TV has few ports, its sound unit lacks bass, and its OS lags.

On the bright side, it has a low input lag, and its response time is quite good. Thankfully, this TV delivers a decent viewing experience and is suitable for watching fast-motion content and playing games.

Overall, I frankly think this TV has a lot of flaws regardless of its affordability. Hence, if you have a tight budget and you don’t mind its flaws, then you can take VIZIO E40 D0 into consideration.

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