Suggestions for TVs

Technology and Internet
#1

I’m thinking about getting a new TV, either 55, 60 or 65-inch.

It will be used primarily for Foxtel Go (i.e. streaming) and Plex on a Windows Media PC, and some casual gaming (F1 & Star Wars Battlefront).

At this stage, I’m thinking I want at least 100hz refresh, and am leaning towards 1920x1080 rather than 4K. 10 years ago when I bought my 32-inch Samsung that this is replacing, I deliberately bought 720 instead of 1080, as the content I watch was generally pretty average. I’d say now it’s the same, except I’m ready for 1080.

I also have no interest in ‘smart’ functions, as I will have a Media Centre / Gaming PC for that.

So, any recommendations?

Should have added, budget is around $1k. Tempted to go for this Kogan if it comes back into stock.

Thanks!
John

#2

I would be very tempted by the Kogan units, I’ve had a couple of TV’s with smart functions and after never using them feel that all I need is a big display (I’ve also got an AV receiver to handle audio, so it really is just display I want).

My Samsung was playing up earlier this year and I think it was that Kogan unit I was looking at before I managed to fix it :smiley:

#3

We just spent a week in a holiday unit with a 55 inch Kogan TV.

Quick review:
The picture was quite good.
Sound was rubbish.
Generic OS was total crap.

The screen also had some light bleed around the edges which you would only notice if you are a pedant and the screen is mostly black, but can be annoying once it is pointed out. Probably related to the frame rather than the screen itself. My old bedroom DSE 32 inch is worse for this problem (same OS too) but also only cost a couple of hundred dollars. You get what you pay for.

If you had a separate receiver that controlled the channel and input selection, and separate speakers it would be OK. One other thought, ALDI often have 4K units below this price. Future proofing given your rate of turnover and price range?

Sad thing I had stayed in the holiday unit previously and it had had a 60 inch LG which was heaps better in all respects. Bloody schoolies probably wrecked it.

#4

The thing is, most TVs these days are “smart” to a greater or lesser extent, so probably you’ll need to accept that, even if you never use it. I’m still using my Samsung 32" (1080) that I bought a hundred years ago, but will be looking to replace it soon enough, depending on how quickly I become annoyed at still having analog channels (which ppop up if I press the wrong button) and not getting access to some of the newer channels like 7Flix. Dont even know if thats any good.

I’m considering something from the Hisense range. Undecided about size but it cant be much bigger than 50"

#5

I suggested to a friend that she look for a 100 or 200 hz tv with 1080x1920, but there was almost none available. Apparantly anyone who is not governed completely by the price is going for UHD, even though there is minimal content available.

If you were to go for a UHD capable tv, then you probably need to consider whether you HDR support. I don’t know enough about HDR to make a comment.

One thing I have found is that Smart TV apps are generally poor so your approach in using an external box is wise.

#6

Also just upgraded from Samsung’s Series 3 or 4 LCD 32" 720P TV, to a 42" JVC non-smart, 100hz tv (which I’d not recommend, besides not being the size you want, I only bought it because it was a 42" HDTV for $495…).

I briefly considered Aldi’s 4K tvs, but in reality, we’re half a decade away from 4K content becoming anywhere near “common”, so - why bother - it’ll likely just mean a more pixelated viewing experience. (Certainly broadcast television wont go 4K other than special events for years, given how long it’s taken networks around the world to settle on the formats they’ve finally settled on.)

The JVC’s picture can be quite nice showing HD freeview channels… Not too bad for the other channels… Reasonable with my HDMI DVD player… And rubbish with my early Intel Mac Mini (DVI->HDMI). I’m going to see if mini display port to HDMI works any better via my 2009 MacbookPro, but otherwise I think I’ll have to upgrade to a 2011 (2012 - last DVD version) Mini… And its sound - again from freeview channels isn’t too bad, but playing other content is rubbish.

Cheers
cosmic

#7

One thing I had seriously considered was getting a large monitor of an appropriate size and capacity and using my Mini + the eyetv Diversity I still have. But my Samsung (which is 100Hz in addition to being FHD and not smart) is still good. Can’t justify buying again even though its been years.

#8

My family have had a Sony 4K TV for 1.5 years and the upscaling is fantastic - it is in no way worse. Even non HD content looks pretty good. Better than it does on our old Samsung 1080p TV (which was fine despite some dying HDMI ports). DVDs look better than on the old TV and Blu-Rays look great. I’m very glad we went for a 4K TV. However I do believe that for this to work well you’ve got to get one that actually upscales well.

#11

We had a 40 inch Samsung but it was 8 years old so I don’t think we would have had any luck… We got a heap of random static from one HDMI port and the other one was very intermittent and while it had 4 inputs, swapping around became really annoying, so the old TV was relegated to the status of ‘upstairs TV’ where it only needs 1 or 2 inputs.

#12

Just shy of a year ago I was faced with the dilemma of replacing my beloved 720P Panasonic Plasma, I was trying to find a 1080P TV without ‘smart’ functionality. Bloody near impossible, as it turns out…

After a lot of research and looking at different TVs with the same source video (hint: take a USB key with a video you’re familiar with shopping with you, ask to reset the TV to defaults and play from your USB. A good shop/salesperson will bend over backwards to accommodate your requests for a sale.) we ended up with one that was a long way from the top of my list on paper… we picked up a Hisense 4K 50" set at a very good price - I wasn’t looking for 4K, but it was the ‘dumbest’ set with the best picture at defaults.

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#13

As the OP is going for a 65 inch TV it might be getting to the size where it is better to get a UHD and upscale content? At 55inch yeah probably just FHD would be fine.

Re smart Tvs, yes I have yet to see one where the apps aren’t crap, but can’t you just ignore them?