Is the Philips 55PUT8115/94 Worth Your Money? A Deep Dive Review
While you can snag a 55-inch Ultra-HD TV for under Rs. 40,000 these days, spending more often grants you superior features and performance. Philips, a brand known for pushing past entry-level limitations, offers the 55PUT8115/94 at a price point that rivals established names like Samsung and Sony. Priced at Rs. 89,990 (often available for Rs. 69,990), this TV promises an impressive experience with Dolby Atmos, Dolby Vision, Android TV, and 20W sound output. But does it truly deliver the best value for your money? Let’s find out in this detailed review.
Design and Specifications: A Solid Foundation
The Philips 55PUT8115/94 goes head-to-head with premium players like Samsung, LG, and Sony. However, it also faces competition from quantum dot LED TVs offered by value-focused brands like Hisense, such as the Hisense 55U6G, which retails for under Rs. 60,000.
Its minimalistic design emphasizes the screen, boasting slim black borders and a subtle Philips logo. While not exceptionally thin, it maintains a clean aesthetic, whether wall-mounted or on a stand. Port placement is a mixed bag. On the side, you’ll find an HDMI port (with ARC support), a USB Type-A port, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and the antenna socket. The remaining ports are located on the bottom, including three HDMI ports, another USB Type-A port, an RJ45 Ethernet port, and the Optical Audio Out (Toslink) port.
One major drawback is the backward-facing power socket. This can lead to bending of the plug when wall-mounting with a low-profile kit, a concern for many users. Additionally, accessing both the side and bottom ports becomes tricky after wall installation, making it essential to connect everything before mounting. While the TV weighs a reasonable 11.5kg (11.8kg with stands), the included stands require a wide table for placement.
Here’s a breakdown of the key specifications:
- Display: 55-inch Ultra-HD (3840×2160 pixels) LED panel
- HDR Support: Dolby Vision, HDR10+
- Refresh Rate: Up to 60Hz
- Connectivity: Bluetooth 5, dual-band Wi-Fi, Ethernet, HDMI ARC
- Sound: 20W bottom-firing speaker system, Dolby Atmos
- Storage: 4GB for apps and app data
Remote Control and Features: Simplicity Meets Functionality
While minimalist remotes are trending, I appreciate the traditional design of the Philips 55PUT8115/94 remote. It features a number pad, playback controls, dedicated hotkeys for popular streaming services like Netflix, Google Play, and YouTube, and a large, tactile D-pad for comfortable navigation. Additional buttons offer quick access to Google Assistant, source selection, and other handy features.
The remote runs on two AAA batteries (included) and is surprisingly lightweight for its size. It utilizes both infrared and Bluetooth, where the latter is dedicated to Google Assistant voice commands. While the infrared connection requires line of sight, it works reliably even when not pointed directly at the TV, conserving battery life compared to Bluetooth.
Beyond Android TV, the Philips 55PUT8115/94 boasts full Google Assistant integration, built-in Chromecast, HDMI ARC, and HDMI CEC for seamless connectivity and control.
Software and Interface: A Familiar Android Experience
Android TV is a popular choice for TV manufacturers due to its reliability and user-friendliness. The Philips 55PUT8115/94 runs Android TV 10 with the refreshed, Google TV-like interface. This familiar system provides a smooth and consistent experience, with over 5,000 apps available through the Google Play store.
While I generally enjoyed the software, a recurring issue emerged after a couple of days of use. Subtitles would load slowly, sound would cut out intermittently, and eventually, the running app (usually Netflix, but also Disney+ Hotstar) would crash, forcing me back to the Android TV home screen. This recurring problem required a full TV reboot to resolve, which became a bothersome routine.
Hopefully, Philips will address this issue with a software update in the near future.
Performance: A Mixed Bag of Strengths and Weaknesses
Philips occupies a specific niche in the TV market, sitting between value-driven brands like Xiaomi and Hisense and premium brands like Sony and Samsung. The Philips 55PUT8115/94 offers a lot on paper, but falls short compared to its competitors in certain aspects. While its picture and sound quality are undeniably good, its performance doesn’t fully justify its price point.
I tested various content across resolutions and HDR formats, including movies like "The Bubble", "No Time To Die", and "Severance", TV shows like "Community" and "Kim’s Convenience", live sports (Formula One), and standard definition YouTube videos. This diverse selection helped me evaluate the TV’s performance across different viewing habits.
Ultra-HD Dolby Vision content looked noticeably better than any other content on the Philips 55PUT8115/94. Shows with muted color palettes like "Severance" and "The Bubble" benefited from the TV’s sharp and detailed picture, delivering a pleasing visual experience. However, the TV’s lack of brightness was a recurring issue, requiring a dark viewing environment to fully appreciate its capabilities. Even with the enhanced brightness offered by Dolby Vision and HDR10+, the Philips TV couldn’t quite match the performance of competing quantum-dot LED TVs in this price range.
Despite the lower brightness, the Philips 55PUT8115/94 displayed crisp detail and smooth motion handling with Ultra-HD content. Fine details in facial expressions and the atmosphere of shows like "Severance" were faithfully reproduced, thanks to the efficient motion processing. Sitcoms like "Community" and "Kim’s Convenience" benefited from the inherent brightness of the content, but still appeared slightly dull compared to competitors. However, I encountered minimal motion artifacts or picture flaws, making the viewing experience generally smooth and distraction-free.
Full-HD content on Amazon Prime Video only displayed minor sharpness differences compared to Ultra-HD content. While Dolby Vision and HDR10+ content offered a noticeably brighter image, the TV’s overall toned-down brightness ensured that SDR content didn’t feel like a significant downgrade.
Standard definition content and live Formula One streams showcased some challenges with sharpness and upscaling. While the results weren’t unacceptable for a 55-inch television, especially with the Australian Grand Prix, this highlights the limitations in handling lower-resolution content.
The sound quality on the Philips 55PUT8115/94 was acceptable but lacked the loudness and refinement of similarly priced TVs like the Mi QLED TV 4K. While the audio was clean, I often needed to boost the volume during dialogue-heavy scenes, only to decrease it when the soundtrack or action sequences played out. While this wasn’t a drastic issue, it impacted the overall sound experience. Investing in a basic soundbar would likely be necessary to overcome the weaknesses of the TV’s integrated speakers.
Dolby Atmos provided a sense of width and depth with supported content, but this was only noticeable at high volume levels.
Verdict: A Pricey Compromise
The mid-range TV market is highly competitive, and the Philips 55PUT8115/94 struggles to stand out due to its price. While it excels in delivering a sharp and detailed image, its limited brightness and average sound quality hinder its appeal. The recurring software issues I encountered during the review period are another concern.
In my opinion, the TV is overpriced by at least Rs. 10,000. Better value-for-money options exist from brands like Xiaomi and Hisense, including quantum-dot LED TVs at a comparable price point.
However, if you prioritize a detailed picture that accurately represents the mood of content, this Philips TV could be a decent choice.
You may also want to consider the Philips 55PUT8215/94 TV, which offers superior overall performance. While officially discontinued, it might still be available at some retailers.
Ultimately, the Philips 55PUT8115/94 is a capable but overpriced option in a fierce market. Consider your priorities and explore alternatives before making your final decision.
