Whats going on in the tv world?

[MacBH928]

I think I am missing out big time. I am in complete shock of TV prices. There are 55+ tvs that can be bought for as cheap as $300 . I remember when large screen tvs were easy in the $3000-4000 range.

I am not sure what is the difference between those cheap models priced $300 all the way to the higher end expensive ones for $2000 like LG G4. I thought the cheap ones (how they even got this cheap!?) were some seriously bad chinese low quality ones that has all sorts of discoloration and issues but youtube reviewers are praising brands like Skyworth, TCL, Hisense. Sure the expensive ones are "better" but are they 10x the price better?

Please someone fill me in here and tell me whats going on as I am about to buy a second tv.

 

[BotchQue]

I purchased a 55" Sony OLED last year, to replace my 14-yr-old 47" LG, or was it a Toshiba... I can't remember! It was a stunning upgrade: 4" bezels went to 1/2", brightness skyrocketed (I currently have the brightness set to 55%, that's enough in my room with windows on two sides). Colors are magnificent, and the dynamic range (HDR) is fantastic.
Hit your local box store and walk around. I would suggest getting on your knee and look at the TVs so that the store's fluorescent lights are reflected on the screen, there's a huge difference in the models. If your TV room is dark (basement, home theater) reflective glass is best (slightly better contrast) but in a room with windows, the non-glare coatings usually win out (as in my case).
I would also recommend the EweTube channel "Digital Trends", Caleb does a great job of reviewing this area, which is changing by leaps and bounds a lot (the Hisense and TCL models you mentioned got high praise, and they're getting into the 100"+ sizes!)
Good luck, and let us know what you end up with!

 

[Flamingdeathbolts]

It really depends what your needs are. I have one of those cheap Samsung 55” UHD TV’s that was under $400. Going on almost 6 years with no issues. Picture quality is…umm okay.

If you really want a nice picture quality go for OLED.

 

[waw74]

you get what you pay for, and it's usually in the black level.

The expensive ones are typically OLED, on those each individual pixel lights up. So for a black part of the image, no pixels are on, meaning you get really dark blacks.

the others are typically LED, or QLED. On those, there is a white backlight behind the entire screen, it goes through a color filter (bunch of tiny red, green and blue squares, one for each pixel) and the image is produced by tiny LCD shutters either blocking the light or allowing it to pass. It typically doesn't block all the light, so your blacks are more grey. Depending on the price, you might get a zoned backlight where it can turn down the backlight in certain portions of the image. This will help with the darker parts of the image, but can also lead to halos around bright parts of the image since dark parts of the image bordering bright parts share backlight zones. Again price is key here, cheaper sets might have one backlight (less common now) more expensive might have what's called microLED backlights, with 1000 or more zones. QLED works exactly the same as LED, except its RGB filter is done using quantum dots, which allow for a much more precise color. QLED also allows for a bit brighter image compared to LED

pricer units also typically have faster electronics. Which will lead to faster input switching, and potentially a better gaming experience. Also when switching input types (frame rate, SDR to HDR) most TVs black out for a moment while it re-syncs to the new signal. On cheaper models, that might be out for 2-3 seconds, on more expensive closer to 1, and on some of the newer ones, they've made a way so that it doesn't black out at all.
Matching the frame rate to the video that is being played will cause smoother motion.
Dynamic range allows for more colors and a brighter image. YOu'll typically see SDR (standard dynamic range), HDR (High DR), or Dolbyvision. In a SDR image, each color (R,G,B) of each pixel can be one of 256 steps (0 thru 255), allowing for about 16 million total combinations, In an HDR image, each color has 1024 steps for just over 1 billion combinations. Best way to visualize this is underwater scenes, on cableTV where it's compressed even more than SDR, you'll typically see bands of colors. IN HDR you have more colors available, so the it can smooth out those bands more. Also HDR is brighter. To vastly simplify, SDR has 256 steps from 0 to 10 brightness, HDR has 1024 steps from 0-15 brightness. so more steps over a bigger area.

AppleTV allows you to match both frame rate and dynamic range.


wiki article explaining why you should match frame rate - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-two_pull_down
Differences in HDR and SDR - https://www.rtings.com/tv/learn/hdr-vs-sdr
backlight explinations - https://www.cnet.com/tech/home-ente...how-it-improves-samsung-tcl-hisense-roku-tvs/

 

[MacBH928]

I purchased a 55" Sony OLED last year, to replace my 14-yr-old 47" LG, or was it a Toshiba... I can't remember! It was a stunning upgrade: 4" bezels went to 1/2", brightness skyrocketed (I currently have the brightness set to 55%, that's enough in my room with windows on two sides). Colors are magnificent, and the dynamic range (HDR) is fantastic.
Hit your local box store and walk around. I would suggest getting on your knee and look at the TVs so that the store's fluorescent lights are reflected on the screen, there's a huge difference in the models. If your TV room is dark (basement, home theater) reflective glass is best (slightly better contrast) but in a room with windows, the non-glare coatings usually win out (as in my case).

I was completely shocked to find a 75' Sony TV for sub $1000! I know Sony charge premium for brand name and LG+Samsung has way surpassed them in the TV market but it seems like I am outdated. My info is from 2013 or so.

I am surprised your OLED TV at 55 brightness is looking great in 2 window room. All the reviews I read are saying OLED is best kept away from sunny areas. For that you want QLED that is much brighter.

I would also recommend the EweTube channel "Digital Trends", Caleb does a great job of reviewing this area, which is changing by leaps and bounds a lot (the Hisense and TCL models you mentioned got high praise, and they're getting into the 100"+ sizes!)

I'll Check it out.

HDTVTest is the best channel I found. The guy test TVs based on science. H

Good luck, and let us know what you end up with!

I'll see where it goes but in my mind a 2/3 year old LG model should be higher quality than a brand new TCL/Vizio. The old models are savagely discounted although they were "THE BEST TV IN THE WORLD" 2 years ago.

 

[Basic75]

Modern smart TVs are so cheap because they are subsidised by selling you out.

CTV industry’s unprecedented “surveillance”

48-page report citing Ars Technica urges FTC, FCC investigate connected TV data harvesting. Gen AI, potentially racially discrimniatory practices head concerns.

arstechnica.com

 

[MacBH928]

@waw74 great post that explains things simply!

you get what you pay for, and it's usually in the black level.

The expensive ones are typically OLED, on those each individual pixel lights up. So for a black part of the image, no pixels are on, meaning you get really dark blacks.

Thats a very high price difference for a darker black. I have samsung LED from 2013 and I can't say I am bothered by the black levels. Yes I can see, if you put careful attention, it can get darker but its not like ruining the tv experience.

wiki article explaining why you should match frame rate - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-two_pull_down
Differences in HDR and SDR - https://www.rtings.com/tv/learn/hdr-vs-sdr
backlight explinations - https://www.cnet.com/tech/home-ente...how-it-improves-samsung-tcl-hisense-roku-tvs/

thanks, will check it out

 

[HDFan]

All the reviews I read are saying OLED is best kept away from sunny areas.

My older OLED is just fine in a room with a relatively sunny room. Have no problems with brightness. Sometimes find it almost too bright.

 

[MacBH928]

My older OLED is just fine in a room with a relatively sunny room. Have no problems with brightness. Sometimes find it almost too bright.

OLED burn ins are scaring me. Does it get burn in if the images are repetitive like watching same channel 3 hours a day then switching over to something else, or does it get burn in if its always constantly on the same image like a computer menu bar/task bar

 

[HDFan]

OLED burn ins are scaring me.

always constantly on the same image like a computer menu bar/task bar

With normal use, i.e. no images constantly fixed on the screen, then it isn't an issue. TV's have technologies that they use to minimize the risk of burn in.

These risks are blown all out of proportion. I've probably read 100's of posts of people worrying about OLED brightness and burn-in. Don't remember a single post where it actually happened, although I suppose they do exist.

 

[TechWhisperer]

Cheaper televisions deliver cheaper image quality.

 

[Duncan-UK]

Cheaper televisions deliver cheaper image quality.

Ever so slightly snobby...

I bought a 65 LED LG set for my parents about 3 years ago - their budget was about £600 which was £1,000 less than I paid for my own LG LED sets. Frankly I can see no material difference between the sets - certainly nothing to justify the £1,000 price difference.

Whilst it's true that I haven't tested UHD discs on my folks set, 4K from Apple TV looks great, as does normal blu-ray and HD TV channels. What's not to love for the price?

It all depends on your usage plans and where in the house the TV is going to sit. I'm not going to pay OLED amounts for a TV that sits on the kitchen wall and isnt used very often (even though its a 65 inch set).

 

[MacBH928]

Ever so slightly snobby...

I bought a 65 LED LG set for my parents about 3 years ago - their budget was about £600 which was £1,000 less than I paid for my own LG LED sets. Frankly I can see no material difference between the sets - certainly nothing to justify the £1,000 price difference.

Whilst it's true that I haven't tested UHD discs on my folks set, 4K from Apple TV looks great, as does normal blu-ray and HD TV channels. What's not to love for the price?

It all depends on your usage plans and where in the house the TV is going to sit. I'm not going to pay OLED amounts for a TV that sits on the kitchen wall and isnt used very often (even though its a 65 inch set).

thats the thing, the huge price difference seems to come with little gain. Most people will not be able to tell the difference. I think maybe the difference is in quality control, then again I had a multi-thousand Samsung tv that got an annoying un even lighting so I do not trust those "brand" names.

 

[MacBH928]

With normal use, i.e. no images constantly fixed on the screen, then it isn't an issue. TV's have technologies that they use to minimize the risk of burn in.

These risks are blown all out of proportion. I've probably read 100's of posts of people worrying about OLED brightness and burn-in. Don't remember a single post where it actually happened, although I suppose they do exist.

I have been looking at reviews and in real life and many people claim they cant tell much difference between and OLED and QLED screen and QLED comes much cheaper with no burn in worries.

That being said, there was 1 OLED samsung tv with matte screen. The blacks looked darker than ink, its more black than my current tv turned off. That was an impressive one. I think its the top of the line model.