This deceptive TV marketing trick is everywhere

It feels like there are more TVs than ever being sold today, and there are just as many different brands to pick from. Between Fire TV, Hisense, Sony, TCL, and the list goes on and on, there’s a lot you have to know before pulling the trigger on buying something. It’s a lot to ask of somebody when a lot of people are simply looking for a new TV to buy. It doesn’t help when some of these companies use wording that feels like it’s designed to confuse you.

There are many examples of this, but the one that irks me the most is Motion Plus 120. If you see this on a TV, it doesn’t actually mean the TV supports 120hz. I can see how you might think that, and I’d be willing to bet that the manufacturer wants you to believe that too. Unfortunately, it’s not the case, and if you buy a TV with this branding and think it’s going to let you play games like Fortnite at 120 FPS on your PS5, I have bad news.

Motion Plus doesn’t mean what you think it does

It’s very misleading, actually

If you’re on the hunt for a 120hz TV and come across something like a Hisense TV for under $500, you might think you hit the jackpot. I know how that feels, because I was in the same boat once, too. Sadly, it’s too good to be true because Motion Plus 120 is actually a 60hz TV pretending to be something it isn’t.

Given the current landscape we’re living in, it shouldn’t be surprising to hear that AI is behind this trickery. No, AI isn’t inherently bad in this scenario, especially since my favorite Dolby formats both utilize it effectively. While your picture has the illusion of looking like it’s running better, it’s not actually at 120 FPS with Motion Plus 120. The big thing here is your Xbox Series X or PS5 won’t let you toggle on the 120 FPS option in the console settings since it’s not actually happening. This would be a big deal to anybody who bought a TV just for that functionality, so don’t make that mistake. You can avoid this by looking up the specs of a TV beforehand. Even if the TV boasts Motion Plus 120, it will still reveal it’s 60hz in the specs.

Motion Plus can actually introduce some lag into games, so that’s something to be aware of even if you don’t plan on using a true 120 FPS mode on your console. Your mileage may vary, of course, so just test out some settings and see if you like having it on. Some people love the soap opera effect, despite how weird I think it looks, so it really is personal preference.

Don’t fall for the tricks

There are a lot of them

Credit: Amazon

So many companies are vying for your dollar, so they’ll do what it takes to get you to buy their product. Things like Motion Plus are just one example of that, but there are even more in the TV space. QLED feels like another example, even if they are good panels. When I first started seeing QLED panels pop onto the scene, it felt like they were trying to confuse people who might be looking for OLED displays.

I feel for the uninformed people who walk into a big box store just to be overwhelmed by all sorts of marketing terms. Luckily, most TVs will fit the needs of the casual person, and it’s only the enthusiasts who would feel burned by falling for something like Motion Plus over a native 120hz display. If you are an enthusiast, you’re less likely to fall for these tricks, but it’s still annoying to see them being used. My best advice is to take note of what you want your TV to do and go from there. If you need 120hz, look for a TV that explicitly says it’s 120hz and stay away from things like Motion Plus 120.