Let's talk TVs

[gpjoe]

My 10-15 year-old 60" Samsung LCD TV is acting up. I'm pretty sure it's the backlight LEDs, since I get sound and can see the picture when I shine a flashlight on the screen. The failure is intermittent and if I turn the set on and off a few times, or just let it sit with sound only for a bit, the picture returns.

Based on the symptoms, I'm guessing the power supply board to the LED illumination circuit is on it's way out. I'm thinking of trying to replace the board (and very comfortable doing it) at a cost of around 100 bucks.

Still, the siren song of the new TV is beckoning - trouble is:

Direct lighting, edge lighting, full array, OLED,...etc, etc, etc.

My current TV cost me $1200 at the time, the picture quality is fine, and never left me wanting more. Because of tech advancements, I'm guessing my set is the equivalent of a $400-500 set today, however the question now is:

Do I spring for the 65" OLED with newer tech ($1200-1500), or just buy a replacement LCD with LED backlight which would be comparable to my current set?...is the OLED noticeably better to the casual viewer?...or should I just use the extra $700 to buy my log splitter?

Regardless, I'm still going to take the $100 gamble on repairing the old set, and then give it to my sister.

 

[luvmysuper]

OLED is pretty amazing I must say.

 

[Lightcs1776]

How is your eyesight? I have a 65" 4K QLED and a 55" 4k mini-led and I really can't tell the difference between HD and UHD. The 65" is a Samsung and the only thing that disappoints me about it is the web browser. I would love to put Opera on it instead. OLED is pretty pricey still and while someone with better sight may see a significant difference, the cheaper options work for me and still produce pretty nice picture.

 

[gpjoe]

OLED is pretty amazing I must say.

Thanks.

I did forget to add to my original post:

My intention is to view the TVs and compare the picture quality before deciding. The problem there is that the settings and conditions at, say, Best Buy are carefully optimized in a way that may be intended to deceive. I know that's a strong accusation but they are trying to make the highest profit, which makes me skeptical.

So, ultimately it'll be up to me to determine if OLED looks like it is worth double the price.

 

[gpjoe]

How is your eyesight? I have a 65" 4K QLED and a 55" 4k mini-led and I really can't tell the difference between HD and UHD. The 65" is a Samsung and the only thing that disappoints me about it is the web browser. I would love to put Opera on it instead. OLED is pretty pricey still and while someone with better sight may see a significant difference, the cheaper options work for me and still produce pretty nice picture.

That's the thing that has me leaning towards the less expensive set: I'm not sure I could notice a huge difference.

I've read a bit about black levels and contrast among the various different technologies and not sure any of that makes any difference to my eyes.

I mean, my current set doesn't suck, when it works.

 

[gpjoe]

One more thing:

My wife said "Get yourself the good one!" (She's the best.)

So got that covered.

 

[Ad Astra]

The day of fixing a TV seems gone, to me ... Like fridges, another household item enters the "replace with cheap copy" category.

An OK 55-65" really isn't that much these days.


AA

 

[EclipseRedRing]

My wife and I watch mostly old shows and movies, often recorded in low quality by today's standards. We purchased a modest LG TV with a 55" LED screen. We then bought a mid range LG soundbar and the huge upgrade in sound has improved our viewing experience much more than a better screen would have done. By far the biggest problem we have is that we can find very little that we want to watch.

 

[luvmysuper]

I use a 55" OLED as my computer monitor (I also watch TV and movies on it).
I'm 65 and don't have great eyesight, which actually makes a really good picture all that much more important, not less important!
My picture looks every bit as good as it did on the showroom floor.

 

[bonjing]

Thanks.

I did forget to add to my original post:

My intention is to view the TVs and compare the picture quality before deciding. The problem there is that the settings and conditions at, say, Best Buy are carefully optimized in a way that may be intended to deceive. I know that's a strong accusation but they are trying to make the highest profit, which makes me skeptical.

So, ultimately it'll be up to me to determine if OLED looks like it is worth double the price.

You’re absolutely correct, my Sony has a showroom mode for picture quality. I don’t know what model Sony we have but we’ve been pretty happy with it. It’s maybe 3 years old, lcd. I will say watching the latest Batman was pretty difficult with how dark it was.

Now your choice of picture quality really depends on what you watch/stream and what is and what may be available to your wants. Our next Tv will be most likely be oled with dolby vision capable.

 

[DesertIguana]

Well TV’s use to be pricy, today they are cheap.

My buddy was electronic guru, he said today most TVs, are great.

Was in Wal-Mart the other day, mand TV’s are under 300 bucks for 50”.

 

[njpaddy]

When we moved at the beginning of 2021, my wife wanted a bigger TV than our 40" Samsung LED because she wanted the sofa further back than our old place. We bought a 65" Sony X90 4K UHD LED/LCD from Costco for around $1400. I fibbed a little and told her if she got the tv, I'd need to special order a new 4K UHD all-region disc player to watch my foreign silent films. She agreed, as long as she doesn't ever have to be in the same room as a silent film. I still don't understand the difference between Oled and Led, 4K Blu vs 4K UHD. We're retired and watch mostly older movies and tv shows, so the Sony is fine. My wife is one who insists our dvds don't need upgrading to BD, much less 4K. The only 4K UHD disc I've bought to date was Cabinet of Dr Caligari, a 1920 silent. I have to admit the 4K was a big improvement over my BD. I wasn't expecting that in a 100+ year old film. Unfortunately, the 4K reviews of some BD talkies I had hoped to upgrade, haven't been that good.

 

[gpjoe]

The day of fixing a TV seems gone, to me ... Like fridges, another household item enters the "replace with cheap copy" category.

An OK 55-65" really isn't that much these days.


AA

I agree. It's more of a challenge than economy.

If I can pick up the board for 100 bucks, swap it out, and give my sister a 60" TV, it's a win.

If it fails, I'll be smarter.

Besides that, have you tried to give somebody, anybody, including your local hazardous waste and recycling service a non-functional LCD TV? Mine won't take it, and my trash pickup won't take it. Short of cutting it up into pieces and hiding it in my regular trash, I would have to pay to get rid of it. I think Best Buy will take em for $50 IF you buy a new TV from them AND pay for delivery.

It's ridiculous.

 

[gpjoe]

My wife and I watch mostly old shows and movies, often recorded in low quality by today's standards. We purchased a modest LG TV with a 55" LED screen. We then bought a mid range LG soundbar and the huge upgrade in sound has improved our viewing experience much more than a better screen would have done. By far the biggest problem we have is that we can find very little that we want to watch.

I have a Yamaha sound bar, and wound also like a bluetooth subwoofer for a bit more bottom end.

It's funny you mention the "old" stuff. My problem with sound, it seems, is that I have a hard time hearing dialogue when watching new movies. I don't know if it's poor sound engineering by the movie makers now-a-days, but I can usually hear the dialogue perfectly on the oldies.

 

[Jay21]

If you plan on watching programs with static images, like news or sports that have a constant logo, OLEDs do have burn in. You can help slow it down, but there will always be burn in risk with the current OLED technology.

 

[gpjoe]

Well TV’s use to be pricy, today they are cheap.

My buddy was electronic guru, he said today most TVs, are great.

Was in Wal-Mart the other day, mand TV’s are under 300 bucks for 50”.

Agreed. A TV comparable to my 60" Samsung which cost 1200 buck over 10 years ago can easily be found today for $400-500.

My "problem" will be deciding if it's worth it to me.

I was hoping for (and have received ) some input on what the membership thought about the higher end technology.

 

[gpjoe]

If you plan on watching programs with static images, like news or sports that have a constant logo, OLEDs do have burn in. You can help slow it down, but there will always be burn in risk with the current OLED technology.

That is very good to know.

I generally don't keep anything on the screen statically for long, but still good info.

 

[gpjoe]

When we moved at the beginning of 2021, my wife wanted a bigger TV than our 40" Samsung LED because she wanted the sofa further back than our old place. We bought a 65" Sony X90 4K UHD LED/LCD from Costco for around $1400. I fibbed a little and told her if she got the tv, I'd need to special order a new 4K UHD all-region disc player to watch my foreign silent films. She agreed, as long as she doesn't ever have to be in the same room as a silent film. I still don't understand the difference between Oled and Led, 4K Blu vs 4K UHD. We're retired and watch mostly older movies and tv shows, so the Sony is fine. My wife is one who insists our dvds don't need upgrading to BD, much less 4K. The only 4K UHD disc I've bought to date was Cabinet of Dr Caligari, a 1920 silent. I have to admit the 4K was a big improvement over my BD. I wasn't expecting that in a 100+ year old film. Unfortunately, the 4K reviews of some BD talkies I had hoped to upgrade, haven't been that good.

I am by no means an -----ophile with anything. It seems with most things it often tends to drag you down with technical jargon and muck up the waters, so to me seeing is believing.

I'm sure there are practical differences that can actually be seen and heard, and I will need to determine how important those differences are, and and the cost/benefit. I don't mind spending money but I'm a "value" guy.

Right now, I'm perfectly happy watching movies in the standard DVD format, and do notice a slight improvement with Blu Ray. I don't believe that I've ever watched anything in 4k.

 

[luvmysuper]

I have a Yamaha sound bar, and wound also like a bluetooth subwoofer for a bit more bottom end.

It's funny you mention the "old" stuff. My problem with sound, it seems, is that I have a hard time hearing dialogue when watching new movies. I don't know if it's poor sound engineering by the movie makers now-a-days, but I can usually hear the dialogue perfectly on the oldies.

The amount of bass in newer films really drowns out dialogue. I'm to the point that I always have closed captioning on so I can easily understand dialogue without having to go over it again and again.

That is very good to know.

I generally don't keep anything on the screen statically for long, but still good info.

Screen burn in is a thing, though it's not a thing like it used to be. Burn in takes hours and hours and hours or days at a time with a static, non-moving image. New technology has automatic pixel shift and pixel repair in place that makes this a non-issue for most applications.
As I said, I use mine as a computer monitor and despite screen icons in one static position for hours every day, or Badger and Blade website text in one location for hours and hours every day, there is no issue with my screen in any way shape or form.

Here’s why you can stop worrying about OLED burn-in

Most OLEDs have built-in measures to prevent burn-in

reviewed.usatoday.com

 

[Jay21]

Right now, I'm perfectly happy watching movies in the standard DVD format, and do notice a slight improvement with Blu Ray. I don't believe that I've ever watched anything in 4k.

This statement here is everything I need to know to give you a recommendation. Home theater is one of my other hobbies, and I’m into resolution, color space, and frame rates in an attempt to recreate the material as the director intended in a theater.

If you are happy with viewing that type of material at home as you mentioned, you would be best served by buying the largest screen size the Mrs. and wall space will allow from brands like Hisense, TCL, or Samsung. The only other brand I recommend is Sony, which is my theater choice, but there is a large step up in price. I would only ever recommend an LG if it was OLED. The other brands I cannot recommend because of lower quality.

Stick with LCD displays and LED backlights. The type of backlighting won’t matter if you’re not into watching UHD material with its expanded colorspaces. Local dimming is a bit overrated because it causes halos around bright objects against dark backgrounds. It can be distracting.

Another thing to consider, when I’m in my home theater with all the bells and whistles, I’m amazed at what it presents, but I’m perfectly happy on the couch next to the Mrs. watching material on our living room TV without any bells or whistles and using the built in TV speakers. In fact, that’s where we spend most of our viewing time now anyway.

You may want to check out rtings.com as I feel they have the most unbiased reviews out there.