Smart tv

[lurker]

I want to buy a new telly
Going for a 50”or there abouts
Probably from AO or my son suggests John Lewis.
So...... what brand???

Looking at LG and Samsung
But the toshiba ones at same spec seem to be cheaper(price wise) and I am wondering why.

 

[RogerS]

Read the reviews...if someone on here says model A from supplier X is really good, do not assume that model B is as well.

Decide what tech you want to have

See what's available on offer as it's Black Friday

 

[lurker]

As suppliers with AO or jl have been good experiences , I am really after brand recommendations.
Donkeys years ago, I used to work for Sanyo and know well that in some cases the only difference is the badge.

 

[Rorschach]

These days most are made in Turkey and then branded so don't assume a Japanese brand for example will be made in Japan.

 

[lurker]

Sanyo used to make theirs in Lowestoft

 

[lurker]

These days most are made in Turkey and then branded so don't assume a Japanese brand for example will be made in Japan.

As I have said, I am aware.

 

[Rorschach]

As I have said, I am aware.

Just making sure.

For myself, I don't think brand really matters so much these days with so many names being owned by one corporation and manufacturing outsourced. I gave up any notion of brand loyalty/quality a long time ago. I find the item that suits the needs I have and that is the best price/value for my budget and go with that.

 

[artie]

I bought a 50" Hisense more than a year ago.
Cheap and does all I require.
I don't watch TV so it's no more than a large monitor.
No problems with it so far.

 

[billw]

I like Samsung, not expensive, quality is good enough for me to look at the picture and think yeah that's nice. I'm no expert by any stretch.

 

[craigs]

I recently swapped out a samsung 6k series for a new sony bravia 55 which is currently £200 off at AO. am very pleased with it

 

[JamieT]

I did a lot of research a year ago and went with an 55” LG OLED and it’s great. At the time The Which? top ten had, I think, 8 LG’s in it. The operating system has some great features, the magic remote, apps available and the picture quality is amazing for sport and films. The remote App isn’t the best if the kids lose the actual one. I’m on Apple for everything else but if I’d been on Android then I’d have been more tempted by the Samsung’s as they have some integration features.

 

[RogerS]

As suppliers with AO or jl have been good experiences , I am really after brand recommendations.
Donkeys years ago, I used to work for Sanyo and know well that in some cases the only difference is the badge.

Just be aware that there are variations between models in any brand. For example, LG...when I looked into getting a new TV, LG seemed to get good reviews...at least the ones that I read. Now with Black Friday I was tempted to get a discontinued model (BTW that's another tip...manufacturers' change their models faster than I can make a bad joint..but you probably know that already) and saw an LG at a very good price. Checking reviews suggests that it's a low-end budget model with low-end performance.

 

[mg123]

I want to buy a new telly
Going for a 50”or there abouts
Probably from AO or my son suggests John Lewis.
So...... what brand???

Looking at LG and Samsung
But the toshiba ones at same spec seem to be cheaper(price wise) and I am

Very subjective with TV's, for what it's worth my opinion is as follows:

I have 2 LG's, I was very happy with the first one, the second not quite so much. Its a QLED nanocell product and I have banding issues where black lines can be seen due to the back-light. Its not terrible by any means and is still fit for purpose but can get a little annoying.
I've also used (and still have most of) Samsung, Philips, Aldi own brand Hitachi and Blaupunkt large flat screen TV's. My personal favorite brand has been my Samsungs. The Hitachi is the worst for sound quality (like most modern flat screens in all fairness), Blaupunkt has a more grainy image and also not great sound, the LG's are generally good apart from the banding issue previously mentioned, Philips was great at the time but that was my first flat screen many years ago and was an old plasma so I can't comment on their modern offerings, Aldi was the best value with their standard 3 year warranty but their UI was clunky and not very intuitive, the Samsung have been the best in all areas including the interface as well as the aesthetics. In general I've found Sony to be more expensive for comparable models so I've never purchased one.

However you'll find good and bad models in every brand. Viewing the TV beforehand is always best but obviously not so easy right now.

I would highly recommend John Lewis as they've proven to be cost competitive and often provide a free extended guarantee but as always do the research. My Samsung came with a 5 year guarantee with John Lewis and was also the cheapest on the net when I bought it.

As for why the price difference, its down to brand premium in some instances and you'll also be paying over the odds for the newest tech. 4k has barely made any inroads in broadcasts and yet 8k models are now also on the market.

TLDR: Buy a Samsung 4k model you most like the look of, and buy it from John Lewis.

 

[Steve_Scott]

First decide in the tech you want. OLED gives the best black and contrast. When you see it you realise how washed out standard LED TVs are. Samsung’s QLEDs are good, but not as good as OLED.

All OLED panels are made by LG but that doesn’t mean all OLEDs are all the same. The processor makes a massive difference to the performance. This is true on all TVs, not just OLED.

Naming is confusing and models change frequently so do your research and work out what you want and why that other one is £200 cheaper (typically last year’s model with an out of date processor) and work out what you don’t want... no need to spend more on a tv with the same panel and processor that has better speakers if you use an AV amp. Find the sweet spot for you/your needs.

Another point to consider is the User Interface. Big name brands will all be ok but this can fall apart with some lesser brands which makes life a pain. I really like LG’s webOS but it’s personal preference.

Finally... consider Richer Sounds as a supplier. They know their stuff and offer an extended warranty as standard. Alternatively, if having the best, most up to date kit matters to you, consider renting...

hope this helps

 

[Rorschach]

OLED is susceptible to screen burn, something to watch out for if you watch the same channels for long periods.

 

[Fitzroy]

I have two Sony TVs. When choosing I went with LED rather than OLED, the concern of dead pixels and burn in with OLED was too great, as I tend to keep TVs for longer.

I went with a mid top range unit from the previous year costing c.£1000. I can easily see the difference between SD and HD content and actively switch over, I also pick up on some processing atrifacts, especially motion blur so wanted a unit with better tech inside beyond the panel.

I narrowed my choices to LG,Samsung, and Sony as they get consistently good reviews. I then used whathifi to pick a specific model based on a good review.

have fun.

fitz.

 

[Mal-110]

I have just been through this process and the TV arrives tomorrow.
The first thing I checked out was the size. I initially thought of a 55" but it proved too large for the space. So opted for a 50" This considerably reduced my choice as 55" seems very popular. Then it was down to connectivity as I have a Humax PVR, TEAC amp DVD and tuner that serves as a soundbar and a MInI Linux PC. My mini PC has a 4K graphics card. So a 4k tv seemed the right choice. OLED or QLED? QLED is Samsungs answer to OLED and is cheaper overall. So I went for the 50" Samsung. They grade their TVs and the second number is the grade and the higher 60-70-80 etc indicates higher features. I chose the standard QE50Q60TA. I like to buy local and my TV shop had this model and its the same price as AO or Curries. So I bought it. Will let you know what it's like after set up.

 

[lurker]

Thanks for all of comments, I always value the opinions of folks on this forum.
It’s looking like a LG from JL that my son suggested. Rather than the toshiba that I was eyeing up on AO.

 

[sammy.se]

I bought an LG recently and am very happy with it.

 

[Chris70]

LG. (LG make screens for Samsung, I believe).