Vizio settles for $3M after saying 60 Hz TVs had 120 Hz “effective refresh rate” | Vizio claimed backlight scanning made refresh rates seem twice as high.::Vizio claimed backlight scanning made refresh rates seem twice as high.
Vizio settles for $3M after saying 60 Hz TVs had 120 Hz “effective refresh rate” | Vizio claimed backlight scanning made refresh rates seem twice as high.::Vizio claimed backlight scanning made refresh rates seem twice as high.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
Vizio has agreed to pay $3 million to settle a class-action lawsuit that alleged the company misled customers about the refresh rates of its TVs.
Vizio was referring to the backlight scanning (or black frame insertion) ability, which it claimed made the TVs look like they were operating at a refresh rate that was twice as fast as they are capable of.
Under the settlement terms [PDF] spotted by The Verge, people who bought a Vizio TV in California after April 30, 2014, can file a claim.
Vizio also agreed to stop advertising their TVs with 120 and 240 Hz “effective” refresh rates but “will not be obligated to recall or modify labeling for any Vizio-branded television model that has already been sold or distributed to a third party,” according to the agreement.
The settlement comes as tactics for fighting motion blur, like backlight scanning and frame interpolation (known for causing the “soap opera effect”), have been maligned for often making the viewing experience worse.
Class-action cases like Vizio’s that end up having a negative cost for OEMs provide further incentive for them to at least stop using the ability as a way to superficially boost spec sheets.
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