Many years ago, the CE Pro staff collectively had fun reviewing an early generation of a Seura outdoor television. We put the company’s groundbreaking 1080p through its paces, including spraying it with a hose and throwing reference-grade HD images at the display. 

Now, nearly 10 years later we were fortunate enough to get our hands on the newest generation of Seura outdoor televisions: The Shade 2 Series. 

Seura’s newest outdoor televisions build upon the precedent set by its earlier generation products, including the model we reviewed back in 2013. 

The Shade 2 Series is available in a choice of 43-, 55, 65- and 75-inch screen sizes. All four models provide users with a 4K resolution and brightness capabilities up to 700 nits. Seura states the televisions are rated to operate in temperatures ranging from -24 degrees to 104 degrees, and Seura points out the TVs are IP56 rated. 

Designed for use in partially shaded environments, the Shade 2 TVs also provide other features such as three HDMI inputs and high dynamic range (HDR) compatibility. 

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Additionally, and this is an important feature for homeowners that want an outdoor AV system that doesn’t compromise—and one that doesn’t require a substantial investment into a separate audio system. The Shade 2 series comes with companion two-channel active soundbars. 

The soundbar internal amplifier is rated to produce 50 watts-per-channel, and like the televisions, the soundbar is engineered to live outdoors. 

Seura Shade 2 Series Setup

Shipping a 55-inch model, along with a stand and mounting bracket, which is also available from Seura, the television installs easily. 

Experienced custom integrators should have no issue unboxing, hanging and securing the Shade 2 Series. 

Summarizing the ease of installation—once the stand, the mounting bracket and soundbar were unboxed, it was basically as simple as aligning the mounting hardware with the VESA screw pattern on the rear of the television. 

Starting with the soundbar, which needs placement before the mounting bracket, we aligned the soundbar hardware and mounting bracket to arms of the upright mount that was sent to facilitate the review. 

Once the soundbar and television were safely fastened to the stand, we plugged the 3.5mm audio input cable that is attached to the soundbar and connected it to the output of the television. Inputs and outputs are located on the back panel of the TV behind a weatherproof protective door. 

Running two HDMI cables I connected a Dish Joey set-top box (STB) and an Apple TV. The last thing to do before turning the TV on was to plug the TV in and the power supply for the active soundbar. 

Performance and Conclusions

If installed into shaded areas, which is the design application of the line of products, the Shade 2 Series will deliver to homeowners and business owners a quality video experience. 

In my yard I placed the 55-inch Shade 2 Series under the eave of my roof facing out towards my backyard. Through the support of my Access Networks’ Core network I was able to connect my Apple TV and Wireless Dish Joey STB to watch sports, movies and streaming content, and each type of content looked great. 

The Shade 2 Series product produced more than enough brightness to watch television in the peak daylight hours of the afternoon. The TV handles a variety of video formats well, with no signs of compression artifacts or interlacing issues. 

As for the video elements that non-videophiles will easily notice—attributes such as brightness levels, color saturation, color accuracy and black levels—the Shade 2 series delivers highly saturated colors with bright color and white levels. 

What’s really interesting about an outdoor television versus the purchase of an outdoor audio system is that while music is fun and can serve as the background to outdoor entertainment, the Shade 2 Series product is more than capable as serving as entertainment during a range of activities. 

Hosting a small family gathering that did comply to my local COVID-19 regulations for social distancing and the wearing of masks, the outdoor TV was the focal point at my house over the Labor Day holiday weekend.

Further underscoring the value of the Shade 2 TV with its companion soundbar is the level of conversation it started amongst family members. In the past, we’ve hosted family parties at our house and played music with our outdoor speakers. No one has ever asked about my outdoor audio system, but with the TV in my yard I had plenty of questions about the Seura product, which impressed everyone from teenagers, to senior members of my family. 

Maybe—take that back—the only question I answered incorrectly related to the outdoor television was its price. Given the picture quality, along with the ease of setup and the soundbar, I actually thought the Seura product was priced at a much higher level than it actually was … $2,499 with the soundbar is a killer price for a product that delivers high levels of fun and value. 

Outdoor AV has come a long way over the past few years and there is no greater example at how quickly the quality has increased within the category than with the new Seura Shade 2 series of outdoor televisions. 

The Seura Shade 2 Series MSRPs:

• 43-inch Shade 2 Series Outdoor TV with soundbar is $1,999
• 55-inch Shade 2 Series Outdoor TV with soundbar is $2,499
• 65-inch Shade 2 Series Outdoor TV with soundbar is $3,999
• 75-inch Shade 2 Series Outdoor TV with Soundbar is $5,999

Seura Shade 2 Series Accessories:

• 43-inch Shade Series TV cover is $189
• Slim Wall Mount (SW-2) is $229
• Tilting Wall Mount (TW-5) is $299
• Articulating Wall Mount (AFMW-2) is $499
• Floor Stand (FS-1) is $699
• Short-Arm Ceiling Mount is $549
• Long-Arm Ceiling Mount is $599

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