Roku LED 4K – Select Roku - 43" Class Select Series 4K LED Smart RokuTV Review

This TV is a streaming genius in a budget-panel body. Its smart platform and connectivity score in the mid-90s percentile, making it smoother to use than TVs twice its price. But the display hardware sits in the 13th percentile, so don't expect reference-quality HDR. For under $200, it's a brilliant deal for casual viewers.

The Roku Select Series 43" 4K TV is a streaming powerhouse that's almost suspiciously good at being a smart TV. Its smart platform scores in the 94th percentile, and its connectivity hits the 93rd. That means it gets you to your shows faster and connects to more of your stuff than nearly any other TV we've tested. For around $200, you're getting a 4K HDR screen with a built-in experience that's smoother than what you'd find on TVs costing twice as much.

But there's a trade-off, and it's in the picture department. The display itself lands in the 13th percentile, which is a polite way of saying the panel tech is basic. It's a direct-lit LED, not a fancy Mini-LED or OLED. So while the smart features are top-tier, the foundation they're built on is decidedly budget. Think of it as a brilliant brain in an average body.

Let's talk numbers. This TV's party trick is its software. A 94th percentile smart score means the Roku OS is blisteringly fast, launching apps in a snap and making navigation feel effortless. Pair that with 93rd percentile connectivity, including Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.2, Apple AirPlay 2, and Miracast, and you've got a TV that plays nice with everything in your house. For gamers, it's surprisingly capable with a solid 82nd percentile gaming score, thanks to HDMI 2.1 support and VRR at 60Hz.

The audio is another bright spot, sitting in the 89th percentile with Dolby Audio and eARC. That means the built-in speakers are better than you'd expect, and it can pass high-quality sound to a soundbar without a hitch. The HDR support is also strong at the 90th percentile, with HDR10+ and HLG. But here's the catch: the picture quality metric is at the 40th percentile. The HDR specs are there on paper, but the direct-lit LED panel just can't deliver the same contrast and peak brightness as more expensive sets. It's a good picture for the price, not a great one in absolute terms.

Here's the thing: this TV is almost all value. At a street price hovering between $198 and $200, you're paying for a brilliant smart TV that happens to have a 4K screen attached. The price-to-performance ratio for streaming and smart home integration is off the charts. You'd typically have to buy a separate streaming device and a mid-range TV to get this level of seamless connectivity and software polish, and that combo would cost you well over $300. Roku just bundles it all in for the price of a basic panel.

Stacked against its peers, the Roku Select's story is clear. It smokes similarly priced basic TVs from other brands on smart features and connectivity. A comparable TCL or Hisense at this price might have a slightly better panel (maybe hitting the 20th percentile instead of the 13th), but their smart software often feels clunky and slow in comparison. If you step up to a $500-$600 TV like the Hisense U6 Series Mini-LED, you'll get a massive jump in picture quality (think 70th+ percentile) but you're paying more than double. The Sony BRAVIA 5 and LG OLEDs are in a different universe for picture quality but cost 5-10x as much. For pure, no-fuss streaming, the Roku is the efficiency champion.

Skip this TV if your main criteria is cinematic picture quality. The display ranks in the 13th percentile, which means its direct-lit LED panel can't deliver the deep blacks, high contrast, or eye-searing brightness of Mini-LED or OLED TVs. If you're setting up a dedicated home theater room or you're a stickler for perfect HDR, your money is better spent on a panel with better hardware, even if it means a less slick smart interface.

We recommend the Roku Select Series 43" TV without hesitation if your priority is a fantastic, frustration-free streaming hub for a bedroom, office, or secondary space. The data is clear: it excels at being smart and connected. But we have to give a hard data-backed anti-recommendation if you're a videophile or your main living room TV needs to wow with picture quality. That 13th percentile display score is a real limitation. For the vast majority of people who just want to watch Netflix without fighting their TV, this is the one to get.