How do you buy a TV in these troubled times?

Tulipone

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So we have decided that now that we can get 4K content, it may be time to update our 40” 3D TV to something like a 43” 4K model. I guess budget would be up to £700 ish and finding it impossible to know the best model for us. There are an array of different models and makes - none of which we can actually look at in a shop. So how do you buy? Any thoughts on what we should be looking for? Any advice gratefully received.
 
Believe it or not, but viewing in a shop can be next to useless when buying a tv. The reality of the image/performance will be significantly different when you get it home (content on display/lighting/space/set up), although discussing a potential purchase with the right person from somewhere like Richer Sounds can be very useful. The three key things to think about in my opinion are budget, the type of content you are planning to watch and viewing distance. Once you decide on those then take a look at some of the excellent guides from @Dodgexander on this forum and the right TV will likely stand out.

Sadly for £700 you will not get an oled (1k up will get you one though). Also, right now is probably not going to be the best value time to buy if you want to really maximize your budget. If you can wait a bit until spring you will likely get more bang for your buck.
 
 
1. You review the guide above
2. At your budget: target a good lcd from 2020 and now perfect time to buy. See the guide but Sony 55xh90 comes to mind
3. Increase slightly your budget and get a 2020 Oled...if you look hard and use any saving you can scavenge £900-£1000
4. Avoid anything below 55 and go 65 if you can. 4k and hdr in all their glory. Anything smaller is not that good and actually often expensive
5. If you still have to go small. Than 48 inch and see again the guide. Your budget should easily cover in lcd. Make sure it is fald (controlled zones for light) as opposed to edge led (illuminated from the sides)
6. TVs are like good shoes. You use them a lot and for a long long time so quality is always rewarded...the trick is to always buy the previous year model aka 2020 in the first 2 quarters of 2021. You get a top tv up to 75 percent discount. My Oled rrp was close to £2k at launch...got it £899 like this.


hope this helps.
 
Moved this to the correct forum section. The best bit of advice I can give people would be to not shop lower than 55" nowadays, and if that's not possible, try not to go for a model smaller than 48" since those TVs tend to be a lot worse quality.

If only shopping for a budget TV, it may not matter so much, but mid and higher end models start at a minimum of 48" (49" with LCD TVs). The Sony 49XH9505 is a popular choice to someone size limited.
 
I appreciate the advice given. I have read through far more than I had previously - trouble now is the knowledge conflicts with desire! I understand that the bigger the screen, the better the quality is possible. TV size dependent, in my head, by room size our 12’x12’ room would look absurd with 55” - even 49” hence the thought of a slightly larger 43” than our existing 40”. I guess next steps to to mock up a 49” and 55” board and see exactly what it means and perhaps consider doing nothing.
 
I appreciate the advice given. I have read through far more than I had previously - trouble now is the knowledge conflicts with desire! I understand that the bigger the screen, the better the quality is possible. TV size dependent, in my head, by room size our 12’x12’ room would look absurd with 55” - even 49” hence the thought of a slightly larger 43” than our existing 40”. I guess next steps to to mock up a 49” and 55” board and see exactly what it means and perhaps consider doing nothing.
You will be surprised how normal 49 or 55 is in your room especially if you can fix in the wall.
Like our guru told you, you get best value for your money at these sizes plus your eyes will thank you :)
 
My room is not much larger than yours and I have 65 inch TV(wall mounted). After a few days you will stop noticing the "oversizd" tele.
 
A 43 will be pretty much the same size as an older 40 due to the slimmer surrounds nowadays (just swapped parents old 40” Samsung to a new 43” and it’s the same width and height. They had a limited space hence the 43 and also they have no desire for anything bigger. They often watch SD, they don’t even watch BBC1 in HD unless I’m there to switch it over!

how far do you sit from the TV and head on vs at ah angle?
 
If you decide to go for a 43" and upgrade to 4K content, the upgrade to 4K will be pretty pointless.

The TV won't be large enough to get the benefit of the higher resolution and the more significant reason for upgrading to 4K, for HDR content, won't be any good on an LCD TV under 49" as anything smaller is restricted to budget models that aren't capable of HDR.

Note that all new TVs will say they have HDR and may also have Dolby Vision and blah ....
However, it's only the upper mid-tier and above TVs in Dodgexanders guide that are actually capable of displaying HDR well. Anything lower and you're better avoiding it, which again, makes the upgrade to 4K content pointless.
 
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Again, thank you for all your advice. Just mocked up a 49“ and then 55” screen - really not enough space for it and think that with current furniture it is what it is and stick with what we have.
 
@Tulipone

If you take a photo from your main viewing position and upload it here I can do mockups with different screen sizes for you. ;)
 
@Tulipone

If you take a photo from your main viewing position and upload it here I can do mockups with different screen sizes for you. ;)
Thanks - I made up a card template. We are limited by furniture / patio doors and life - if it could work would have given it a go. The good news is I haven’t wasted money. The bad news is I don’t have a new shiny thing!
 
Thanks - I made up a card template. We are limited by furniture / patio doors and life - if it could work would have given it a go. The good news is I haven’t wasted money. The bad news is I don’t have a new shiny thing!
That’s a shame, guess all that is left is to move to a bigger house?!? Surely the only sensible option.... :rotfl:
 
I am still so confused so apathy strikes. We have decided that 49” is the smallest bigger size from 43” and likely 49” makes more sense. So we are 6‘- 8’ from the screen, two people, each off set from head on to the screen so neither directly head on. Not sure what the critical difference is between a narrow or wide viewing angle - I guess we are approx 4’ apart at 8’ from the screen. We tend to watch Freesat (soon 4K) and Apple TV 4K drama/movies/general tv. Maximum of £1000 with no real desire to pay more, happily pay less if possible. Any thoughts on what we should go for? Grateful for anything to help break my deadlock!
 
Sony XH9505.

If you can, get a 55", it's honestly not too big at that distance. I sit about 9ft away from a 65" and it's fine.
Getting a 55" will get you a few extra features such as a wide-angle filter for anyone who sits at an offset angle.

If you can't the 49" is still the top choice in your budget.
A friend of mine recently bought one after me cajoling him to spend the £200 as he has Amazon Prime, Netflix etc and he's really blown away by it coming from a horrible little cheap supermarket TV for the last 10 years.

Other options would be the Samsung Q90 but it's more expensive with nothing really extra to offer..
 
I am still so confused so apathy strikes. We have decided that 49” is the smallest bigger size from 43” and likely 49” makes more sense. So we are 6‘- 8’ from the screen, two people, each off set from head on to the screen so neither directly head on. Not sure what the critical difference is between a narrow or wide viewing angle - I guess we are approx 4’ apart at 8’ from the screen. We tend to watch Freesat (soon 4K) and Apple TV 4K drama/movies/general tv. Maximum of £1000 with no real desire to pay more, happily pay less if possible. Any thoughts on what we should go for? Grateful for anything to help break my deadlock!
You need to figure out viewing angles first, use a protractor to determine at which angle your viewing positions are. Your decision will help you choose between an LCD TV and OLED.

This is especially critical if you are looking at a TV like the 49" Sony XH9505 since it has very narrow viewing angles at 49", with the 55" and over having the wide viewing angle filter. If you have a need for good viewing angles, and for the TV to look as good at a side to head on then you need to consider OLED.
 
If you can, get a 55", it's honestly not too big at that distance. I sit about 9ft away from a 65" and it's fine.
Getting a 55" will get you a few extra features such as a wide-angle filter for anyone who sits at an offset angle.

If you can't the 49" is still the top choice in your budget.
A friend of mine recently bought one after me cajoling him to spend the £200 as he has Amazon Prime, Netflix etc and he's really blown away by it coming from a horrible little cheap supermarket TV for the last 10 years.

Other options would be the Samsung Q90 but it's more expensive with nothing really extra to offer
Thank you for your opinion. It all helps. So going from a 40" we chose to miss 43" as it seems the opinion is not to bother as unlikely to see any improvement. 49" is going to be huge in our room and 55" is a (6") step too far. If it really is that our current Samsung UE40C8000 is better than other choices, it may be the best option is to do nothing until something awful happens to that.
 
Sony XH9505.

If you can, get a 55", it's honestly not too big at that distance. I sit about 9ft away from a 65" and it's fine.
Getting a 55" will get you a few extra features such as a wide-angle filter for anyone who sits at an offset angle.

If you can't the 49" is still the top choice in your budget.
A friend of mine recently bought one after me cajoling him to spend the £200 as he has Amazon Prime, Netflix etc and he's really blown away by it coming from a horrible little cheap supermarket TV for the last 10 years.

Other options would be the Samsung Q90 but it's more expensive with nothing really extra to offer..
Totally agree with Sloppy Bob. You really are getting so much better value at 55". Trust me, it will look massive for the first few days/week but honestly it will seem much smaller after a short period. That 6" in space is virtually nothing. The Sony is a great choice if you are going for an LCD. Personally I would think about holding out though for a month or so though as discounts are more and more likely nearer to spring (for instance there is currently and extra 10% off Sony OLED TVs at the moment). It is only a matter of time before the XH9505 is discounted.
 
Thanks both for your continued support. I guess we are -/+ 20degrees from centre. As it sits in a corner on a stand, I have to figure that in also - our living room has one wall with no features on it (staircase - wall 1, patio doors - wall 2, access to dining room off set - no wall 3). It would be totally impractical to put the TV on that one remaining wall.
 
Ultimately, whatever you buy, buy it online (not that you have that much of a choice currently) and it can be returned if there are any issues.

There have been some great deals on Sony Refurbs in the last few days. It might pay to keep an eye on them as well.

I've bought 2 TVs from them and they've both been absolutely fine. Extended warranties are negotiable in price, up to 5 years, so just the same as a new TV.

They don't have anything just now but stock changes all the time.

 
Thanks both for your continued support. I guess we are -/+ 20degrees from centre.
Then you don't need to worry about buying a TV with narrow viewing angles.
 

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