Review: Furrion Aurora 4K UHD LED Full Sun Outdoor Smart TV

Verdict:
The Furrion Aurora 4K UHD LED Full Sun Outdoor Smart TV is an affordable, full sun outdoor TV that has incredible visibility, weatherproofing tech and good connectivity to help you live your best backyard life.

If you’re trying to live your best backyard life, but lacking an affordable option for an outdoor TV, the Furrion Aurora 4K UHD LED Full Sun Outdoor Smart TV is a best bet. The Aurora line of outdoor TVs from Furrion gives homeowners an opportunity to enjoy their favorite shows and streaming services in all weather conditions and sunlight scenarios without breaking the bank.

Features

Available in Full Shade, Partial Sun, and Full Sun models, the crowning achievement of the Furrion Aurora TVs is its weather IP54-certified, weatherproof housing which keeps rain, snow, dirt, and debris away so you can enjoy watching the big game or your favorite movie year-round in any weather. Furrion protects the 4K UHD screen with an IK08-rated tempered glass that shields and protects against impacts and scratches, an essential feature for backyards with active kids (and adults) and the random rock or stick that gets thrown from the lawn mower.

Speaking of the screen, the Aurora TVs are equipped with anti-glare 4K ultra high-definition ultra-bright LED screens with auto-brightness control that adjusts as the day progresses. The Full Sun Aurora has up to 1000 nit brightness, with the Partial Sun model brightness shining up to 750 nits. Additionally, the Aurora TVs are designed to withstand operating temperatures ranging from -4 ºF to 122 ºF, and extreme non-operating temps of -24°F to 122°F.

At the time of writing, the Aurora Full Sun model starts at $2,199.99 for its smallest 43-inch size, going up to $2,999.99 for a 55-inch size and $4,099.99 for its largest 65-inch size. The Full Shade and Partial Sun models come in the same sizes, but add in a 50-inch model as well and have similar or lower costs depending on TV size.

The Aurora Outdoor TVs are Wi-Fi enabled and have three external RangeXtend antennas for a stronger wireless connection, an essential feature since most internet routers will most likely be located some distance away from the set. Amazon Fire Stick and Roku streaming devices can be used with the Aurora TV, but if you don’t have to have an external device to watch Netflix Youtube, or Prime Video as this smart TV has those apps preinstalled. Just sign in to your account and start watching. The Full Sun Aurora has three HDMI inputs, two USB inputs, and a single RF Antenna input. For audio beyond the built-in speakers, you can connect a soundbar or sound system via Bluetooth, 3.5mm headphone jack or an optical cable.

Testing Experience

TWICE had the opportunity to test out a 55-inch Full Sun Aurora TV this summer, and while we were excited to see if the set would really be bright enough to see midday in full sun, we had our doubts. We’re happy to report that even in full sun conditions with no shade in sight (it was hot!) the Furrion Aurora Full Sun TV lives up to the claims.

While the screen was brighter morning or evening, at the sunniest times of the day the screen was plainly visible, we were indeed able to enjoy watching in full sun conditions without having to drag over a patio umbrella to see during those times. The Auto brightness worked like a champ during our testing, adjusting fairly quickly as we tried to simulate passing cloud conditions, and viewing from multiple angles benefited from the anti-glare screen.

Setup was a bit tricky, even with two people, mainly due to the weight of the TV and small bezel area. We highly recommend you follow Furrion’s instructions of having two people at least to remove the Aurora from its packaging and to lift and install. Even better, hire your local installation professionals to take the stress for you. The Aurora Outdoor TVs are made for permanent outdoor installation, so we don’t recommend using a stand for it unless you can secure it so it has zero chances of blowing over in the wind.

The built-in speakers on the Aurora Full Sun TV work well, but we recommend connecting to either Furrion’s outdoor soundbars or another sound system to fully enjoy your viewing experience. This is because sound gets lost quickly outdoors with fewer surfaces to bounce back at you as it does in the walls of your home. That being said, we didn’t have to turn the speakers up to max to enjoyably hear the shows we watched. Our neighbors were grateful for that as well.

Furrion sent along a 2021 70w model soundbar to use in our testing, as their newer models weren’t available at the time of testing due to supply chain issues. Still, the 2021 soundbar connected easily through Bluetooth and we were impressed with the extra sound depth it provided. We are also impressed with Furrion keeping the price point for their 70W Furrion Aurora 2.1 Outdoor Soundbar with Built-in Subwoofer just under $200. The sound bar is also engineered for outdoor life and has an IP45 weatherproof housing that lets you use it year-round with your Aurora TV without worry.

Connectivity with our home Wi-Fi was great, even with our wireless router being in the basement and approximately 60 feet away. We were able to connect to Netflix, Youtube and Amazon Prime Video with ease and the TV setting menus were easy to navigate and use.

One of the best parts about testing products is being able to do things your parents would have grounded you for life for. We turned on the garden hose full blast with glee to prove the Furrion’s claim of being waterproof, and it was! We soaked the TV from top to bottom, and we didn’t see a drop of moisture get in. A soccer ball was tossed at the screen a couple of times as well at different speeds to see if it would scuff or scratch. Again, no damage. Letting the TV sit outside for weeks in the full sun of a Utah summer gave us a chance to see if the TV suffered from the heat. We’re pleased to say that the TV turned on and worked perfectly, even in 100-degree-plus weather. We, on the other hand, melted in the heat, but at least we were able to watch TV while doing it.

Our only major con for the Aurora Outdoor TV is that it can be hard to access the ports once the TV is installed on the wall. Of course, you can attach extra HDMI and other cables during initial installation, but then you have to coil and store the extra cords or have them hanging down as an eyesore. The chance you encounter this problem also depends on the type of mount you use. Fortunately, there are mounts from companies such as Kanto and MantelMount that allow you to pull the TV forward and rotate to adjust the viewing angle. Using one of these types of mounts can make it easier to access the back panel of the Aurora, but it’s something to be aware of so you can reduce some frustration in the future.

Verdict

The Furrion Aurora 4K Full Sun Outdoor Smart TV is an affordable, full sun outdoor TV that has incredible visibility, weatherproofing tech and good connectivity. Not having to worry about the weather makes it a luxury to enjoy year-round. It’s a sturdy, capable and reliable smart TV, and we highly recommend this Full Sun TV if you are looking for a cost-effective solution to upgrading your backyard entertainment and the three sunlight brightness options to choose from make it easy to pick the perfect set for your preferred installation location.

Visit furrion.com for more details.

Specifications for Full Sun Model

Max resolution
3840 x 2160

Weatherproof
TV: IP54
Soundbar: IP45

Viewing angle
178 degree / 178 degree

Brightness
Partial Sun: 750 nits
Full Shade: 400 nits
Full Sun: 1000 nits

Sound system
TV: 2 x 8W
Soundbar: 70W (2.1)

VESA
43″: 200 x 200mm
50″: 200 x 400mm
55″: 400 x 200mm
65″: 400 x 200mm

Connection
HDMI Inputs: 3
3.5mm Earphone Outputs: 1
Antenna (RF) Inputs: 1
USB Inputs: 2
Optical Outputs: 1

Dimensions
43″: 38.40 x 23.07 x 4.59″ (976 x 586 x 117mm))
55″: 48.93 x 29.06 x 4.25″ (1243 x 739 x 105mm)
65″: 57.56 x 33.93 x 4.53″ (1463 x 862 x 115mm)

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