Toshiba 46TL868B review

Toshiba's eye for creating a bargain is arguably at its most effective yet with the Toshiba 46TL868B. It ticks the latest fashion box, for a start, by boasting an exceptionally slender bezel and an extremely trim rear.

Then it confounds expectations raised by its sub-£700 price by providing not only a Freeview HD tuner but also active 3D playback, DLNA network support, USB multimedia support, optional Wi-Fi and even smart TV services courtesy of Toshiba's Places platform.

It even manages to boost its picture credentials by including 100Hz processing, a surprisingly effective Edge LED lighting system and the sort of picture calibration options generally only reserved for much higher-grade TVs.

We liked

The fact that the Toshiba 46TL868B is routinely available for less than £700 is undoubtedly this TV's single most attractive point. But there are plenty of other cheap TVs in the world that are nowhere near as desirable.

So attention must also be given to how good the Toshiba 46TL868B's picture quality is - in 2D and 3D mode - for its low price. And to the amount of multimedia and online features it provides for its money. And to the slickness of the space saving design.

We disliked

The Toshiba 46TL868B's audio is predictably rather flimsy, thanks to a fundamental shortage of bass and a predictable lack of raw power and range. But it's actually perfectly fine with the fairly undemanding stuff that makes up most of a typical TV's diet.

There are also minor issues with backlight consistency, especially during 3D viewing, and the Toshiba 46TL868B's standard definition pictures look a little rough around the edges at times.

Also, Places could benefit from a bit more content coming online.

Final verdict

For its money, the Toshiba 46TL868B is a really excellent TV. It cunningly ticks all of the key feature boxes right now - Freeview HD tuner, active 3D playback, USB and network multimedia playback, Edge LED lighting - and encases them in a fashionably thin chassis that wouldn't look out of place on a TV costing twice as much.

As if that wasn't enough, it also delivers HD 2D and 3D picture performances so clean, bright, colourful and sharp that they make the efforts of many other 'budget' LCD TVs seem positively grubby by comparison.

There are issues, for sure. Backlight inconsistency during very dark 3D scenes is one, and a pretty flimsy audio performance would be another. But taken as an overall package, with its price positioned to the front and centre of our thinking, the Toshiba 46TL868B is one of Toshiba's biggest bargains yet.