4K TV recommendation max £1000ish budget

Eddiekp

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Hi Folks,

Been looking into TV's, reviews etc for a while and the more i look the more i become more undecided! :)

  1. Sources: Super fast Fibre internet and TV can be connected direct to router (so no dodgy wifi issues). Will purchase 4K Amazon Fire Stick, have Netflix account, Prime account and just general freeview TV. Mainly watch catch up on the later though or the odd recorded programme.
  2. SD vs HD vs UHD use percentage? eg 20% 60% 20%
    Be guessing here but 20% / 50% / 30%
  3. Movies, sport, console games, PC use (in percentage)?
    Netflix/Amazon TV shows 35% / Movies 30% / Xbox One 10% / General TV 10% / Sports 5%
  4. How close can you view the TV?
    3.5m
  5. Do you need to view the TV from the side or only straight on? Straight on
  6. What conditions do you like to view in? During the day? At night with lights on? In the dark?
    Night in dark 65% / Daytime 35% (window is directly opposite TV behind sofa viewing from - we have decent drop down blinds so can cut out a lot of light if needed (daytime viewing less important))
  7. What are you currently using and what do you expect by upgrading to a new TV?
    We are using a Panasonic VIERA TX42AS650B which we brought in 2014. Looking to step on the quality to 4K as even the last jump to this panasonic was impressive. We love our movies and also looking to put in 5.1 speaker system with AV receiver.
  8. Are you interested in being able to use motion enhancements on your TV to reduce judder and/or reduce motion blur? Both frame interpolation and frame insertion let you do this, read more about it here. They both have their upsides and downsides, so read carefully.
    Out of the box no adjustment would be great but i can get a bit techy if needed but seriously dont think i'm a pixel watcher. Obivously if the TV already came with great handling it would help me not worry about it. :)

Please rearrange the following PQ attributes, in descending importance: Probably the below

How accurate the picture is out of the box (without having to change any settings)
Local dimming
Blacks
HDR Colour Accuracy
HDR Brightness
HDR Colour Saturation
SDR Brightness
SDR Colour Saturation
SDR Colour Accuracy


Now for bugs, tell us your possible pet hates related to TVs, in descending order: Cant say i have ever spotted the others apart from the below.

Loss of detail in dark areas
Reflective screens

Now which is most important to you?

Price - I'm stuck on this i read reviews on £700 TV's and think that sounds ok for me then i read reviews on £1000-£1100 TV's and the step on seems amazing on paper but not sure if for my type of viewing it warrants the extra money.
Connections - TV will be wall mounted so do like the look of the smart box on samsungs
HDR PQ
SDR PQ
Sound - Less of issue as looking to use AV receiver and speakers - wouldnt hurt to have general ok sound out the TV for normal viewing is not putting on speakers.
Smart TV (which apps)?

Any help would be Epic. (wish i was just someone who walked in to a shop and went "ill have that one") :)
Edd
 
I think since you are 3.5m from the TV you aren't going to benefit from the increase of detail with UHD at all so you should place more importance in either HDR or screen size which will give you a benefit regardless of how far you will view.

A good HDR starter TV would be the Sony 55XE9005. This will get you local dimming that works decently and a higher peak brightness for HDR.
If you wanted a larger TV for more detail instead of decent HDR, the Hisense 65NU8700 is very good value right now at £1099.

3.5m is about optimal viewing distance for FHD content so by having a 65" TV at that distance you will see more detail with HD, but at the same time probably won't see much of a difference between FHD and UHD, if at all.
 
Hi Dodgexander,

Thanks for the heads up and recommendations. Out of interest from my specification outlined what would be the stand out things to go for your recommended Sony 55XE9005 (£1099) over say the Samsung UE55MU7000 (£769)? Or even the Panasonic TX58EX750B @ £999?

I know the Sony gets great reviews (so already swaying towards this) but trying to pick out the features that would stand out for me. The extra money saved would come in handy to get more out of the sound system i'm also looking to get.

Any help would be great - thanks again, good to know the UHD would not benefit me.
 
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I have the 55XE9005 and think it’s amazing. The Local dimming works so well on my set that the bars stay really black in pitch darkness with movies and the HDR looks great for some things, although I don’t think HDR is that amazing on the whole so probably not worth being the thing you base your next TV on (and yes I’ve seen it on TVs worth twice as much as the 9005 and still been unimpressed). Having the wider colour space does give it more pop though, I can’t deny that.

I sit 2m from the 55” wall mounted and at first I thought that was too near and now I realise it’s perfect. 3.5m as said is too far for 55” so you might be better seeing what you can get in 65 even if it’s not mid range like the XE9005. I did briefly look at the Panasonic EX700b before getting the Sony and it seemed like a decent set.
 
Out of interest from my specification outlined what would be the stand out things to go for your recommended Sony 55XE9005 (£1099)

As @AdamskiP has already mentioned, full array local dimming shines on this set compared to the others mentioned.

I don’t think HDR is that amazing on the whole so probably not worth being the thing you base your next TV on (and yes I’ve seen it on TVs worth twice as much as the 9005 and still been unimpressed).

I agree, it was a nice added extra but not something spectacular as everyone is saying.

I will look forward to seeing more content in the future from gaming in general.
 
Thanks all for the input. Went to Richer Sounds today and i'm definately sold on the Sony XE90005. They actually had the Samsung UM7000 and the Samsung Q6F in there and the Sony stood out more. I know they are playing a top quality loop and probably max out the saturation to blow your mind with colours but it was a cracking TV.
 
Thanks all for the input. Went to Richer Sounds today and i'm definately sold on the Sony XE90005. They actually had the Samsung UM7000 and the Samsung Q6F in there and the Sony stood out more. I know they are playing a top quality loop and probably max out the saturation to blow your mind with colours but it was a cracking TV.

It’s a great TV and you won’t be disappointed in it, just don’t expect to see a huge jump up in resolution because of the distance. You’ll still experience the wider colours and local dimming though and arguably they would make more difference anyway.
 
Got 4% cashback through Quidco and 5 year warranty on the Sony from Hughes. I went to Richer sounds today and had proper crap service so they lost out on the TV and AV receiver and speaker bundle set. :laugh:
 
Got 4% cashback through Quidco and 5 year warranty on the Sony from Hughes. I went to Richer sounds today and had proper crap service so they lost out on the TV and AV receiver and speaker bundle set. :laugh:

Just depends on the shop, the Richer Sounds in Cambridge is small but gives great service.

John Lewis I think are the most consistent of the two though.
 

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