Hi All, Wasn't sure if this fell under Hardware, but as it's not for a PC, I thought I'd ask here. Our existing TV is a 40" No-name brand TV, but has developed an annoying fault (TV will randomly click, display random colored pixels and then go black for a second or two), so it's time to get an upgrade. I've been looking at 43-47" 4K TVs, but went into Currys (as we were walking past) to take a look, and saw a few, but what concerned me was the picture processing on the Samsungs was awful - dithering, fuzzy edges, etc but a lot of the other TV's were fine. Obviously I'm still budget conscious (Ideally sub-£500), but I got 10 years out of my last TV, so will probably aim for similar this time, so I'd like to go for some things that would enable it to not fall too far behind the curve. Smart features aren't too important - the Amazon fire TV stick does most of what we need. The only other thing we could potentially do with would be built-in FreeSat, but that's not a dealbreaker. Anyone have any recommendations?
No specific recommendations for models to look out for, however in more general terms, don't use what you see in Currys as an accurate representation of picture quality. For starters, showroom lighting is not at all like the lighting you will have in your home, but more importantly, you'll find most if not all of them will be running in a demo/showroom mode that overblows colour, brightness and sharpness to the detriment of the picture, and may be running from less than ideal sources. AVF would be my first port of call for TV reviews.
Having bought a Samsung UE55H6400 barely 2 years ago, it's developed horrendous backlight clouding, I'd think twice about buying a Samsung again.
I would say only buy a TV that is 'certified Ultra HD'. This means they use HDR 10 bit. This is kind of what you want in a current Television. HDR can be found on other models but it can be a pseudo or lesser effect that can make the picture look worse. There are models using HDR 10 bit that are around £500.
If you have a John Lewis near you, I'd spend an afternoon in there and see if they have any Open Box units. You can often get a bargain if you don't mind an open box unit, or even a return. They still come with a 5 year guarantee too. I picked up a 49" Sony 4K tv for £450, down from £699 about 3 months ago. Obviously, YMMV based on what your nearest John Lewis has to offer.
Thanks All - all good useful info. I've got a Richer Sounds near me - I think I'll pop in there. I've seen this one that looks decent enough: LG 49UH661V, which has good power consumption too. I see soundbars advertised everywhere - Obviously I don't have one at the mo - are they worth it?
I have a Denon soundbase which I'm very impressed with. The improvement in sound quality over standard TV speakers cannot be overstated, but if you've got room for normal speakers then I wouldn't go for a soundbar or base; you pay more for the form factor. If you have Sonos gear I hear their bar and base are very good, if pricey.
