50 Inch 4K / HDR on a budget?

Endryu1985

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Hi everyone,

I've been lurking for a bit, but I need your advice if possible!
Honestly, I don't know much about TVs, so any help is appreciated.

I'm looking for a 50" 4K & HDR for under £700 (can't be bigger than 50" due to the TV unit).

I've found the Hisense 50U7A and the Sony Bravia KDL50WF663, both for £600.
Are these any good? Do you have any other suggestions?

It will mostly be used for Netfix, PS4 Pro & terrestrial tv via arial. I know there won't be any improvement with standard tv, but was hoping for good 4K / HDR for the others. I've heard input lag is important for gaming?

Thanks.
 
Ah my bad. I had searched using 4K as a filter. Don't know why it showed up.

What are your thoughts on the Hisense anyway? Any others you'd recommend?
 
Hisense is a good option. Look at Samsung MU7000 @ 49”. If Panasonic ex750 is still available it’s worth a look.
 
You can fit a larger TV on a smaller unit if the limiting factor is stand size by using your own table top stand fitting to the rear wall mount VESA holes of a TV. By today's standards 50" is very small and there is limited choice of good value options compared to larger sizes.

Not only that, but you need to spend more/look at larger options to get decent HDR. A tv like the Samsung MU7000 will at best be average with HDR but how good average HDR looks to you will be subjective.
 
I'd love a larger TV, but unfortunately the TV unit is enclosed, it's not a table. It's built in & takes up most of the wall. The section for a TV can just fit a 50". We are renting at the moment while we save for our own house, so can't change the structure of the room in any way. If it makes any difference, we sit around 2.5 to 3 metres away from the screen.

Thanks for the advice regarding HDR. How are the Samsung NU7100 and NU7400 in comparison? I've just found out that I'm going to get some John Lewis vouchers shortly, so would prefer to limit my search to there if possible. I just don't know where to start, considering there are so many variables!

Thanks for your help.
 
So, I'm very tempted by the Hisense 50U7A.

Quick question, would the inbuilt Netflix App in the TV run at 4K with HDR? I could run Netflix via my PS4 Pro, but I've heard that they reduce quality on the App via a PS4.
 
Most of the new models (2018) are going to carry a premium still. The Hisense U7A is certainly priced much more competitively compared to other manufacturers 2018 offerings but it's still £100 more than the Panasonic 50EX700 in John Lewis.

I had a look on their models just now and can confidently say the EX700 is the best value at £500. Its a 2017 model so its priced more competitively right now.

If you don't mind paying £100 more for a 2018 model the Hisense U7A certainly looks best of the rest.

Samsung's models are always a gamble. Hard to know what panel type you are going to get. The NU7100 would be better value than the U7A if we knew for sure it was using a Samsung VA panel and not a ADS (IPS type) one. So if you get the Samsung you may get lucky, you may not.

John Lewis are pretty good with returns and if you buy online you get a certain amount of time to change your mind even after trying the TV so there is little risk involved if you accept with the Samsung there is more of a chance you may want to return the TV.

About HDR: No TV in this price range or size is going to be good at displaying it. Generally you need to spend a lot more money to get a model that gets brighter and or has decent local dimming to get HDR that is really worth having. A TV like the EX700 or U7A will display HDR with better colour but thats about it. No bright highlights or local dimming and you may have trouble with the picture being too dark using HDR on a model that doesn't reach high nits.

But as far as passing the HDR signal to the TV, you will be better off using the apps built in or a compatible HDR streaming stick like a Roku streaming stick plus than you will with the PS4 pro. The PS4 pro is more likely to have issues and will likely only work with SDR in netflix...but then again you may wish to use the SDR version rather than HDR on a TV of this calibre anyway.
 
Thank you for your detailed reply (and for going easy on a TV tech newbie!), I really appreciate it.

How would I know which panel type I got, regarding the NU7100? Would it say on the box?

At what kind of price range would you expect to be getting better nit value / better HDR? I'm tempted to increase my budget, considering I've just found out I'm getting vouchers, plus have just landed a new job.

Would it be worth going up to somewhere around £900, or would the added benefit not be worth the extra cash?

Thanks again for your help!
 
How would I know which panel type I got, regarding the NU7100? Would it say on the box?
Its not published information sadly. Samsung are notorious for shipping different panels on the same model so even if we see in a review that the NU7100 has one panel the model you buy may not have that very same panel. Possible ways of telling are by testing things like viewing angles and how well the TV handles dark scenes in dark viewing environments or alternatively taking a very up-close macro zoom shot using a camera to show the pixel structure of the TV you will buy. You can also find panel info in the service menu but entering and using that is a risk in itself.
At what kind of price range would you expect to be getting better nit value / better HDR? I'm tempted to increase my budget, considering I've just found out I'm getting vouchers, plus have just landed a new job.
Would it be worth going up to somewhere around £900, or would the added benefit not be worth the extra cash?
The problem is lack of choice/lack of availability of models at 49/50". The best choices would be trying to find a Samsung 49Q7F or Sony 49XE9005 still but they have all but sold out now. The new Sony 49XF9005 looks like its going to be the only sub 55" TV that is good with HDR in 2018-19 but it still carries a newly released premium.

If you can wait for the right deal and buy up to 10 months from now, possibly as close as black friday you may find the new 49XF9005 close or below £900. To give you an example it wasn't too long ago that people were picking up this years model at £800.
 
I could potentially go as high as the 49XF9005, as I have the savings. Convincing the other half is a different matter entirely!

Would this set have everything I'd need or are there any major down points that you know of?

Any idea how it would handle 4K / HDR gaming, with input lag etc?
 
I could potentially go as high as the 49XF9005, as I have the savings. Convincing the other half is a different matter entirely!

Would this set have everything I'd need or are there any major down points that you know of?

Any idea how it would handle 4K / HDR gaming, with input lag etc?
I certainly wouldn't recommend buying that model now on current pricing unless you happen to find a good deal. At £1200-1300 it's really not great value when you think it won't be long before its closer to the £1000 mark and even less close to this time next year.

There are downsides to every TV, with the Sony models running Android many people dislike their OS finding it slow and clunky, it often gets bashed in reviews for this reason but it's a small price to pay when the picture quality is best in class for its size. It will handle HDR content a lot better than anything else and it ticks all the boxes you need from a capable HDR TV.

I just don't think it's wise to be spending release prices, but certainly if you want a capable HDR TV and are willing to pay the premium knowing there could potentially be large drops in price then it doesn't matter, it's the only choice.

Input lag isn't something to worry about like it used to be with TVs- they all have low enough input lag for all but competitive gamers.

My advice would be to track the TVs pricing over time and swoop to it when the right deal comes along. If you can carry on using what you have for a while then it's even better, but I would consider even just buying a cheap TV as a stop gap to later sell on instead of paying the current price for XE9005. Suitable stop gaps would be something along the lines of a Samsung 50MU61 series or Panasonic 50EX700 / Hisense 50N6800 that you can often find floating around the £350-400 mark. Especially if you look also at refurbs and open box deals.
 
Yeah, that all makes complete sense. Thanks again for the advice.

A slower OS wouldn't bother me really, providing the picture is decent.

After explaining to the other half that the built in tv unit is a limiting factor, she's decided that she wants a new one (It's over 10 years old with bowed shelving), so she's shopping for one now. I've also braced her for the new budget ;)

So, size shouldn't be an issue moving forwards, and my budget will be around £1000 - £1300.

I guess it gives me more to play with, although it's all very daunting! Back to the drawing board I suppose...
 
I can see the OLED for £1299. With vouchers it will bring it in closer to £1000.

Is the MU7000 comparable to the NU7001? It's £200 cheaper than the OLED.

What would you say is more beneficial, having a 10" larger screen on the NU (If it's similar to the MU), or having OLED?

All of these spec differences, acronyms and serial numbers are bloody confusing!
 
Samsung have once again confused us with model numbering schemes. The NU71xx series are the new MU61xx series. The MU7000 replacement is the NU8000/NU8500.

It just shows you how overpriced the 2018 models are when you see a bottom of the line Samsung from 2018 only £200 cheaper than a flagship performing OLED from the year before...even if it is larger.

If you want to go 65" then look at 2017 models instead, with Samsung that will be MU7000 and higher, with Panasonic there is the EX750 and Sony the XE85xx series and Hisense NU8700.

If you absolutely want a 2018 model the only make that seems to be at least a little competitive with pricing is Hisense with their new U7A.
 
Yeah, it's actually an insane price difference!

Thanks a lot for all your help, it's been very enlightening. Its given me lots to think about and compare.
 
I've been doing some research this morning, and have a few more questions. I hope you don't mind helping and that the random newbie questions aren't annoying.

Are the 65NU7100 and 65MU7000 comparable? It's £100 more, but I can't tell if the extra money would be worth it at all.

I think I'm going to stick away from OLED screens, as I'm worried about burn in from gaming, so the LG B7 is out (unless I'm worrying unnecessarily?).

Price wise, I've found the below:

MU7000, 55 inch - £699
MU7000, 65 inch - £999
NU7100, 65 inch - £1099
XE8577, 55 inch - £799
XE9005, 55 inch - £999
OLED B7V, 55 inch - £1299

Which, out of these would you lean towards? I'm happy to pay in the above price range. Taking your advice on size, I'd prefer a bigger screen now I'm not limited by the unit.
 
Hi mate, good to see you have done some research!
Are the 65NU7100 and 65MU7000 comparable? It's £100 more, but I can't tell if the extra money would be worth it at all.
Confusing Samsung model numbers!! NU7100 is the new MU6100 (bottom range). Anything N is a 2018 Samsung model and overpriced, no exception here, they price their entry level 2017 model close to that of a mid range 2017 one.

I think I'm going to stick away from OLED screens, as I'm worried about burn in from gaming, so the LG B7 is out (unless I'm worrying unnecessarily?).
Probably worrying unnecessarily, there is a lot of misinformation and scare mongering out there regarding burn in. I would read: OLED Burn In Risk and if you want further reinforcement ask in the OLED owners threads to see how many people actually have burn in, its rarer than you think but it does depend how you use the TV, not only how long you game at one time but how often.

MU7000, 55 inch - £699

MU7000, 65 inch - £999
Both these are very good deals right now.
NU7100, 65 inch - £1099
A 2018 model the same as the MU61 2017 Samsung model and horribly priced right now since its just been released.
XE8577, 55 inch - £799
If you are strictly looking at a 55" and value a better anti reflection filter and want android TV instead of Tizen on the Samsung MU7000 this is a decent option. You do lose 2x UHD and HDR capable HDMI ports though. Some people prefer Sony's picture processing.
XE9005, 55 inch - £999
This is a good option if you want the best HDR you can get for the money. In the case of this versus a 65" like the Samsung MU7000 its a question of good HDR vs mediocre HDR and larger. Larger is always better if you have the better quality sources to back it up, but good HDR is also a big plus if you use lots of HDR content. Sadly there are still only 2x UHD and HDR capable HDMI ports on this model too though.
OLED B7V, 55 inch - £1299
Probably the best value of the lot right now, most overall gains in picture quality in all areas, sadly the 65" models are still quite expensive though.
Which, out of these would you lean towards? I'm happy to pay in the above price range. Taking your advice on size, I'd prefer a bigger screen now I'm not limited by the unit.
I would go for the B7. I do think 65" would be nice but I am not sure I could go for the 65" MU7000 knowing the B7 was only £200-300 more even if it is smaller. Have you seen the: OLED Price Changes thread? Some people have been getting it for £1200 with discount codes.
 
Thanks again for such a detailed breakdown.

Bloody Samsung model numbers! I can see why they've done it from a business sense point of view though. It makes it confusing if you don't have a lot of knowledge about TVs. It's certainly tricked me!

Regarding how the TV would be used for gaming - it's used daily, sometimes hours at a time on the same game. I just don't know if it's worth the risk, but I'll definitely read more into the risk thread you posted.

I'll check out the owners thread, but like I say, it's used for gaming a lot. I just don't know if I'd be able to relax whilst others play!
 
So, just to update you, I've gone for the Samsung UE65MU7000.
It arrives on Wednesday :)

Thanks for all of your help with this.
 
Last edited:
Thanks :D

Any advise on getting into the service menu, and any "risks" involved?
 
Nicely done! Hope you get a goodun.

Is there a reason you want to get to the service menu? It's always risky, if you make a mistake you can brick the TV.

I think from the off state its mute, 1, 2, 8, power as shown with another model here:

But that tutorial doesn't apply to your model which I think already comes with bluetooth anyway.
 
Ah, I only wanted to get into the service menu to check the panel as you said earlier. It looks like it comes with a pretty basic remote, so no number buttons etc.

I can't see anything saying if it does or doesn't come with bluetooth though.
 

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