ZDNET’s key findings

• Telly promises a free television in exchange for your data and some advertisements.
• The ads weren’t nearly as intrusive as I thought they would be and the audio and video quality was excellent.
• A built-in camera not only adds useful functionality, but also offers some fun new ways to interact.

When I first heard about the Telly program – which offers a completely free 55-inch TV if you’re willing to watch a few ads – I was decidedly uninterested. When you can get a pretty decent 55-inch smart TV for under $400, why bother with a TV that bombards you with ads?

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However, the lure of free TV and sheer curiosity won out and I applied for the program last June. I had almost forgotten about it until I received an email in mid-December telling me to complete my order as I had been accepted into the beta program.

And now, after more than a month with Telly, I don’t regret signing up at all.

Before we get into the technical part, I want to point out that this is the heaviest TV I’ve seen in a long time. It was the only TV I’ve ever had two people deliver it. But that makes sense, given the addition of the second screen. The lower screen also means it’s a good bit taller than any of the other TVs – nearly 40 inches – so you’ll need a lower stand.

When I first turned on my device, the main screen played an ad for a credit app. The bottom screen showed the weather, NFL scores, a news article, a running news ticker, and an ad for a local hospital. The ad took up about a fifth of the bottom screen.

My first thought was: “That’s all?”

Also: How “free” is Telly’s free TV?

The ads weren’t nearly as intrusive as expected. The ad below does occasionally expand to take up the entire second screen, but that doesn’t happen often. And Telly understands what you’re watching — say, an NFL game — and displays relevant ads.
I was able to quickly navigate to where I wanted to go on the main screen, and the rotating display at the bottom of the screen fit well with the rest of the information…information that I was starting to find useful.

The bottom screen shows several widgets that you can turn on or off (I disabled the stock quotes widget). In my setup, one widget showed local weather, one showed NFL scores, and one offered headlines from the sources I selected. There’s also a news ticker at the bottom and a small display on the right.

When I pulled up my first few pieces of content, I found that the second screen didn’t distract me at all. In fact, I actually enjoyed it. It was convenient to see the NFL scores without having to look at my phone, and I saw several news stories that prompted me to look for more information. The TV didn’t inundate me with ads like I thought it would, but instead provided useful information tailored to my interests.

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One minor downside is that Telly isn’t a smart TV. It comes with some apps pre-installed, like Zoom and Spotify, but you can’t add more. All your streaming content is accessed via an Android dongle that plugs into the HDMI port. It’s still perfectly accessible; it just requires an extra step and a second remote control.

The TV has the usual inputs on the back – two USB ports, three HDMI 2.1 ports (one of which is eARC for a soundbar), two audio outputs, and a cable/antenna input. There are also built-in LED lights on the back. From the settings menu, you can change them to one of nine colors, adjust the brightness, or turn them off entirely. I have third-party LED backlights on my main TV, and I appreciate the ability to control Tellys directly from the settings.

Telly has a camera, which I tried out on a Zoom call. The quality of the camera that the other person saw wasn’t great, but it was perfectly adequate for this purpose. There are promises that there will be more content that makes use of the camera, such as fitness, gaming, and even TV parties where you see your friends on the second screen while you all watch the same thing, but these aren’t available yet. The camera is covered by a physical shutter when not in use.

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This TV also comes with a collection of games, some of which can be played on the main screen and others on the bottom screen while watching content on the main screen. The games are controlled via the TV’s remote and include classics such as Asteroids, Breakout, Centipede, Crossy Road, Deal or No Deal, Trivia Crack and more. Telly promises that motion-controlled games are on the way.

How does this TV look and sound? Better than expected.

As for the actual specs, Telly has been pretty secretive about the display. It’s 4K capable with a 60Hz refresh rate and HDR and HDR10+ support, but not VRR support. Picture settings include the basic brightness and contrast controls, as well as an “advanced” menu that includes a color tuner and a toggle for noise reduction and movie mode.

I found the picture quality to be comparable to most other sets I see, and although this set doesn’t seem to have a local dimming feature, the contrast was good. I watch TV in a bright environment with lots of natural light, but Telly coped well with that. The set’s brightness automatically adjusted to suit the room.

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The sound on this set surprised me, as most budget TVs have subpar sound. But not Telly. Of course, the sound isn’t technically coming from the TV, as there’s a built-in Dolby soundbar sitting between the two screens. But the sound is plenty loud, reaching a maximum level I’d never use, and the speakers provided a pretty decent bass rumble during action scenes. Dialogue came through clearly and distinctly, which I think a lot of TVs struggle with.

One minor downside is that there are no sound settings if you want to fine-tune it – not even sound profiles to choose from. But I found the default settings to be fine for everything I tried. When I plugged in my PS5, I got exactly what I expected – a decent display that played every game I tried without blurring or stuttering. There are no fancy gaming options or settings like you’ll find on other TVs, but I was perfectly happy with gaming on this set.

Buying advice from ZDNET

It’s true that some of Telly’s features – a built-in camera, a voice assistant, even the built-in backlight – aren’t unique. The second screen is the novelty here. Given that Telly’s premise is essentially “every TV is selling your data, why shouldn’t the customer get something in return?”, I expected the second screen to be a barrage of blatant advertising. Instead, I got a subtle nudge to check my credit score and buy myself some shoes.

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As with all TVs, I’m sure Telly collects data on what shows I watch and sends them to who knows where. But if you’re willing to deal with that fact (which you Are if you own almost any Smart TV), Telly is a pretty good chance to not only get an innovative TV, but a free.

This set won’t win any awards for its video quality, and it doesn’t offer any fancy options for gamers, but for the vast majority of users—myself included—it’s perfectly adequate.