jazzcarnival

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Dear All,

If I will be watching almost exclusively 1080p media, does it even make sense to buy a 4K TV?

I don't watch sports, TV, Netflix, HBO, Hulu, no gaming...

Will my 1080p media look better on a Full HD TV or a 4K? Following the advice on this forum I'm about the purchase the Hisense 50U7QF, but if there is no real benefit in my case I might would consider buying a Full HD TV. I'm not planing to purchase again my movie collection in 4K format any time soon and I will not make any use of the 4K capabilities of the TV. Given the lifespan of a TV nowadays maybe the 4K move is not making much sense for me.

I checked prices for 50" Full HD TV´s and they are not cheap, any ideas why? I thought that most people would move right away for 4K.

Thanks!
Jazz Carnival
 
Dear All,

If I will be watching almost exclusively 1080p media, does it even make sense to buy a 4K TV?

I don't watch sports, TV, Netflix, HBO, Hulu, no gaming...

Will my 1080p media look better on a Full HD TV or a 4K? Following the advice on this forum I'm about the purchase the Hisense 50U7QF, but if there is no real benefit in my case I might would consider buying a Full HD TV. I'm not planing to purchase again my movie collection in 4K format any time soon and I will not make any use of the 4K capabilities of the TV. Given the lifespan of a TV nowadays maybe the 4K move is not making much sense for me.

I checked prices for 50" Full HD TV´s and they are not cheap, any ideas why? I thought that most people would move right away for 4K.

Thanks!
Jazz Carnival
Can you even buy a non 4K tv these days?
 
I checked prices for 50" Full HD TV´s and they are not cheap, any ideas why? I thought that most people would move right away for 4K.
Here in the UK, pretty much all TVs bigger than 43" are 4K these days so those wanting a new TV with a screen bigger than that have no choice but to go 4K. Unless things are different in your country, you might want to check your links again - are the 50" Full HD models you're finding actually brand new and in stock from reputable retailers or are they possibly older (or even reconditioned) sets, still selling for near the original RRP on the likes of eBay ?

As for which is best, then yes - in theory, a Full HD TV should perform better with 1080p content due to the 1:1 pixel mapping (no upscaling needed), however it's not always a simple as that. It's perfectly feasible for a 1080p picture to look better upscaled on a premium, branded 4K TV than a cheap, supermarket-brand Full HD set with poor picture processing.

FWIW, I have no issues with 1080p material on a 55" TV @ 9ft away - the quality generally looks great and viewing it on a large screen makes for a better viewing experience, too. What's your viewing distance ?
 
I've recently bought a 4k tv after owning a 1080p and like you most of my content is HD. The picture quality and colour are amazing, with a noticeable difference.

I'd set yourself a budget and figure out the ideal size set for your room then get the best tv you can for that.

There's a bunch of really useful guides on here with suggestions of tvs at different price points, it may also be worth looking at the refurb tv but make sure you get a decent warrenty.
 
Normally it makes little sense to buy 4k for you, but because there's a lack of higher quality HD TVs nowadays you have next to no option.

Once you get into higher budgets and larger sizes (48" and up) then you start to see 4k TVs that will be very impressive with HD. Not because they can upscale better, but because other areas of the picture boost the picture quality in other areas; for example better, more accurate colours, or better blacks and contrast.

If you're in the price territory of the Hisense 50U7Q I wouldn't expect too much, I'd suggest going for something that costs a bit more money or maybe instead consider a 50" Samsung or Philips which will have marginally better upscaling than the Hisense. The Hisense is a standout TV because of its peak brightness and local dimming compared to other budget options, but its upscaling isn't quite as good as others.

What's your current TV and what are you wanting to get by upgrading? Typically you're going to be disappointed if you're expecting a new TV to polish poorer quality content, a bit like how people were disappointed in their HD TVs back in the day when they watched SD content.

Also, what's your viewing distance? Many people view so far from the TV that upscaling really isn't a big deal at all, and 1080p looks fine on any TV, even the worst at upscaling.
 
Hi Dodgexander,

Thank you for you inputs.

Currently I have no TV as I just moved to a new place and I sold my old non 4k TV. I'm new to the 4K market. This is why I'm asking that many questions. :)

Could you please recommend me some good options from Samsung and Philips as you mentioned above? I don't really have a set budget for my new TV, but given the lifespan of the TV´s nowadays and how fast the technology is moving I don't know if it's a good idea to spend too much money on a TV.

Like a mentioned before I will not make use of the 4K quality as I'm not using any 4K source, but I would like some good options to watch my 1080p media. I'm not even that interested in the Smart TV functions. Airplay compatibility would be definitely a plus. Otherwise I could connect a Chromecast or Roku to the TV.

In case I use a Roku 4k or a the new Chromecast for my media the upscaling should not be a big deal right, as the TV will not be dealing with the process, right?

Best regards
Jazz Carnival
 
Dodgexander has put together this fantastic list of suggested TVs which I found really useful when I was in the market for a new one.

I ended up buying a refurbished Sony 55XH9505 for £679 with a 5-year warranty from the Sony refurb centre.
 
In case I use a Roku 4k or a the new Chromecast for my media the upscaling should not be a big deal right, as the TV will not be dealing with the process, right?
Either the streaming device or the TV will do the upscaling of HD to 4K, depending on the streaming device video output settings you choose. It's not a given that one would necessarily do a better job than the other - you would need to experiment with whatever combination of TV and device that you end up with.

With a decent TV (that upscales well) and branded streaming device, the chances are that there won't be much in it for 1080p to 4K I would suspect, so most people would go for the most convenient option - one that doesn't require them to switch back and forth if they're watching a mixture of material at different resolutions (eg. 4K if they watch both 1080p and 4K stuff)
 
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Dodgexander has put together this fantastic list of suggested TVs which I found really useful when I was in the market for a new one.

I ended up buying a refurbished Sony 55XH9505 for £679 with a 5-year warranty from the Sony refurb centre.
Hi Knight Who says Ni,

Thanks!

I would just like to know from Dodgexander which one would be a good option given my requirements. The list is quite generic.

Either the streaming device or the TV will do the upscaling of HD to 4K, depending on the streaming device video output settings you choose. It's not a given that one would necessarily do a better job than the other - you would need to experiment with whatever combination of TV and device that you end up with.

With a decent TV (that upscales well) and branded streaming device, the chances are that there won't be much in it for 1080p to 4K I would suspect, so most people would go for the most convenient option - one that doesn't require them to switch back and forth if they're watching a mixture of material at different resolutions (eg. 4K if they watch both 1080p and 4K stuff)

Hi Mikej,

Thank you!

I just need to find out which TV would be the right choice for me.
 
Hi Dodgexander,

Thank you for you inputs.

Currently I have no TV as I just moved to a new place and I sold my old non 4k TV. I'm new to the 4K market. This is why I'm asking that many questions. :)

Could you please recommend me some good options from Samsung and Philips as you mentioned above? I don't really have a set budget for my new TV, but given the lifespan of the TV´s nowadays and how fast the technology is moving I don't know if it's a good idea to spend too much money on a TV.

Like a mentioned before I will not make use of the 4K quality as I'm not using any 4K source, but I would like some good options to watch my 1080p media. I'm not even that interested in the Smart TV functions. Airplay compatibility would be definitely a plus. Otherwise I could connect a Chromecast or Roku to the TV.

In case I use a Roku 4k or a the new Chromecast for my media the upscaling should not be a big deal right, as the TV will not be dealing with the process, right?

Best regards
Jazz Carnival
Please see: **New** My best value TVs, 2020-2021 Edition

I'd suggest high tier models, as there's little value in cheaper TVs now.

There are also more guides in my signature.
 

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