NEW: My best value TVs, 2021-2022 Edition

From what I gather you use the code and it allows you to pay interest free for 12 months with the 20% credit being applied back to your account at some point in Feb.

If I go for it, I'll probably clear the full balance once the credit has been applied.

Been hovering over the buy now button all morning and still not sure whether OLED is right for me.
Yeah that’s right. You only need to clear minimum balance of a fiver each month for 12mths. Then, as long as you’ve cleared balance by the end of 12mths, no interest to pay. The 20% gets applied as a credit on the account around a month after delivery. It’s a great deal. The only downside being Very only offer 12mths warranty. However, easy to add a separate warranty from Yr2 onwards if required
 
I like the added spoilers. Maybe you can remove the TV series column and add a row with them above instead. Makes it easier to read in my opinion especially going from one model to the other. See spoiler below for instance. Other than that I find it to the point and very complete. Kudos!

Samsung 55Q80A
*Recommended to European market only due to VA panel, American market IPS.
ProsConsGaming notes
HDR10+ support ideal for users of Prime Video.

Class leading upscaling.
Great motion processing for games.

Excellent easy to use smart TV with Amazing app choice.

SDR Picture accuracy.
Decent choice for a brighter room for SDR use, as long as there no reflections.

HDR use requires a darker setting.
Local dimming is more basic than more expensive models, so expect some backlight abnormalities.

Some people don't get along with Samsung's motion processing.

Picture accuracy has much to be desired in HDR mode.

HDR presentation is quite flat and dim in some titles.

No Dolby Vision HDR support.

Poor viewing angles.

Bad at coping with glare.

People report some Dirty Screen Effect when watching sports.

Motion blur in is bad between dark and brighter areas of the picture.
1x HDMI 2.1 port.

Freesync Premium Pro support.

Motion Xcelerator which allows motion settings to be used in game, without adding input lag.

Picture accuracy in game mode is poor.

Picture quality in game mode isn't as good due to less local dimming.

HGIG Support.
Sony X90J
X92J/93J/94J
ProsConsGaming notes
HDR10+ support ideal for users of Prime Video.

Class leading upscaling.
Great motion processing for games.

Excellent easy to use smart TV with Amazing app choice.

SDR Picture accuracy.
Decent choice for a brighter room for SDR use, as long as there no reflections.

HDR use requires a darker setting.
Local dimming is more basic than more expensive models, so expect some backlight abnormalities.

Some people don't get along with Samsung's motion processing.

Picture accuracy has much to be desired in HDR mode.

HDR presentation is quite flat and dim in some titles.

No Dolby Vision HDR support.

Poor viewing angles.

Bad at coping with glare.

People report some Dirty Screen Effect when watching sports.

Motion blur in is bad between dark and brighter areas of the picture.
1x HDMI 2.1 port.

Freesync Premium Pro support.

Motion Xcelerator which allows motion settings to be used in game, without adding input lag.

Picture accuracy in game mode is poor.

Picture quality in game mode isn't as good due to less local dimming.

HGIG Support.
Very sloppy. You've just cut and pasted a Samsung assessment into a Sony slot.
 
Very sloppy. You've just cut and pasted a Samsung assessment into a Sony slot.
You're quoting an old post that quoted part of the guide before I made more edits. That was corrected some time ago.

Nonetheless, the guide is not perfect, so I appreciate pointing out any mistakes if you find them. Just make sure you're looking at the guide on page one and not parts other people have quoted from as they may be pre-edits.
 
You're quoting an old post that quoted part of the guide before I made more edits. That was corrected some time ago.

Nonetheless, the guide is not perfect, so I appreciate pointing out any mistakes if you find them. Just make sure you're looking at the guide on page one and not parts other people have quoted from as they may be pre-edits.
Guide is much better now, for me atleast. So much easier to navigate on my phone.
 
The Hisense OLEDs are omitted from the guide as they are behind the curve quite a bit with picture processing compared to other brands. It shows itself more with OLED TVs, than cheaper LCD TVs.

.........


Thank you!
I guess I will test it with other games, although I am generally not that smitten with that TV.

I am especially annoyed that faced look orange and when I calibrate the pricture to not look like that anymore everything is just ..washed out and colourless.
On the other hand nature films/docus look really good.

Might send it back...


And on a more theoretical point..There are talks about a new panel type from Samsung with way better brightness, which shall already be released in 2022.
Is there anyhting known about them? I guess I can assume that they will start with the High End products?
 
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Hello,

Im torn between the U8QF and the TCL C825.
Which one is overall the better TV?
 
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Thank you!
I guess I will test it with other games, although I am generally not that smitten with that TV.

I am especially annoyed that faced look orange and when I calibrate the pricture to not look like that anymore everything is just ..washed out and colourless.
On the other hand nature films/docus look really good.

Might send it back...


And on a more theoretical point..There are talks about a new panel type from Samsung with way better brightness, which shall already be released in 2022.
Is there anyhting known about them? I guess I can assume that they will start with the High End products?
If you are changing advance settings like colour balance, you could make things worse. Not only is it not recommended to change advance settings without pro calibration, but some TVs also actually have problems with calibration that can cause adverse effects, especially HDR calibration.

If when changing some advance settings in one scene to correct skin tones you're noticing later on the picture looks odd elsewhere this is likely what you're seeing.

I think Hisense have made some serious ground with their TVs, and I usually recommend them. Just can't recommend their OLEDs since everything I read about them has obvious problems at the moment. I think it's worse with OLED than their LCD TVs, for instance the Hisense U8Q LCD TV from 2020 was a very good TV.
Hello,

Im torn between the U8QF and the TCL C825.
Which one is overall the better TV?
The TCL has more up to date and featureful smart TV, with a promised upgrade path (outside the UK) to Google TV also. It carries 1x HDMI 2.1 port which can be useful if you're going to game with the TV.

In SDR, both TVs will be very good. In HDR the Hisense should have the edge because it can get brighter. The U8Q does have a known issue with motion blur though, so despite having the better HDR picture quality a lot may depend on whether you notice the problem or not.
 
Thank you for the answer.
How big is the difference in peak brightness between these two?
Around 200-400 nits. Dutch reviewer measures 1125 and 1513 on a 25% window. French reviewer 932 and 1190 on a 10% window. Both are very similar overall. Hisense has the edge on HDR brightness and TCL offers better sound and HDMI 2.1. Most likely also slightly better video processing.
 
If you are changing advance settings like colour balance, you could make things worse. Not only is it not recommended to change advance settings without pro calibration, but some TVs also actually have problems with calibration that can cause adverse effects, especially HDR calibration.

If when changing some advance settings in one scene to correct skin tones you're noticing later on the picture looks odd elsewhere this is likely what you're seeing.

........

hmm no, I only changed the colour intensity, brightness and contrast.
I just have the problem that in some content the faces are orange and in other content the picture looks washed out.
 
hmm no, I only changed the colour intensity, brightness and contrast.
I just have the problem that in some content the faces are orange and in other content the picture looks washed out.
Probably just bad picture accuracy out of the box then. Make sure you're using a theatre/movie preset and not one like 'standard' or 'vivid'.

Brightness, colour intensity and contrast are all picture processing options, they are not to correct errors and must be left as default. Errors have to be corrected by pro calibration, and for HDR I'm not even sure that's possible on your TV.
 
Depends on your priorities. Comes down to LCD vs OLED. Apples and Oranges. Chalk and Cheese etc etc.
Hello, and a happy New Year! FYI I just ordered a 65" Samsung QN95A for €1,679 (- €250 cashback) from Samsung's Partner Program in Belgium, I guess it's a nice deal when I see the prices at box.co.uk (£ 1,899) or at Boulanger in France (€2,290 - €300 cashback for the QN97A) ;)

By the way, you should check the Pros column for Samsung 65QN91A, 65QN92A, 65QN93A, 65QN94A, 65Q93A, 65QN95A & 65QN97A, it doesn't really indicate the Pros of those TVs, but merely repeats the title :)

Have a nice evening!
 
Hello, and a happy New Year! FYI I just ordered a 65" Samsung QN95A for €1,679 (- €250 cashback) from Samsung's Partner Program in Belgium, I guess it's a nice deal when I see the prices at box.co.uk (£ 1,899) or at Boulanger in France (€2,290 - €300 cashback for the QN97A) ;)

By the way, you should check the Pros column for Samsung 65QN91A, 65QN92A, 65QN93A, 65QN94A, 65Q93A, 65QN95A & 65QN97A, it doesn't really indicate the Pros of those TVs, but merely repeats the title :)

Have a nice evening!
Happy new year too, and congratulations on the deal!
Thanks for the feedback. I have corrected the error.
 
I think Hisense have made some serious ground with their TVs, and I usually recommend them. Just can't recommend their OLEDs since everything I read about them has obvious problems at the moment. I think it's worse with OLED than their LCD TVs, for instance the Hisense U8Q LCD TV from 2020 was a very good TV.
Speaking about the Hisense U8Q, you put it in the high tier last year and called it the cheapest path to true HDR TV.
Do you still feel the same today?

I still see U8QF for sale in my neck of the woods for 1000e - 1100e (for the 65 inch model).
Would you say it’s still a good buy?

For comparison, I see Samsung 65Q80A, LG OLED65A1 or the Hisense 65U8G (which I know is a downgrade from U8F) going for the same price, with Philips 65OLED706 going for 300e more, but you have these listed only as starter TVs (and Philips as middle tier) in this year’s guide, so if you still think U8Q belongs to the high tier, it sounds like a steal to me.

I’m looking for a TV with good picture quality without paying premium (don't really care about Smart TV features) and U8Q sounds like what I’m looking for (will be using it for browsing web as well, so I’m thinking no OLED).
The only thing I’m bummed out about, is that I checked Vincent’s HDTVTest video on it and he didn’t recommend it, but then again, he’s looking for a premium product…
He also mentioned in his review that U8Q should be a weaker counterpart to the American H9G, but if U8Q is similar to the U6G for example, that still sounds great to me (does the comparison work here?).
 
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The U8Q is a 1300 nit TV which makes it just as good for watching HDR material as pro HDR TVs in this year's guide. The reason it's so cheap is because it's a 2020 model.
That doesn't mean it's perfect though. Smart TV is basic, there's no HDMI 2.1 and there's a known problem with motion blur which can appear sometimes as people's faces move in dark scenes. It's still a whole lot better than what you can buy for the same money otherwise though.

Samsung Q80A and LG A1 are interesting choices compared to the U8Q, both TVs are a lot worse with HDR, the Samsung because of its peak brightness and local dimming being quite a bit poorer, the LG because it's also dim for HDR content (even by OLED standards) but that doesn't mean these TVs don't do some things better than the Hisense U8Q. For instance, the LG A1 will have a lot less motion blur overall, have much better viewing angles and will make for the better SDR TV due to OLED tech. It also like the Samsung Q80A has a better smart system than Hisense.

The question is where do you place your priorities? If it's going to be used for HDR then you should definitely go for the Hisense U8Q. If you are going to use the TV only for SDR, the other options are fine.
 
It's still a whole lot better than what you can buy for the same money otherwise though.
This is what I'm shooting for.
The question is where do you place your priorities? If it's going to be used for HDR then you should definitely go for the Hisense U8Q. If you are going to use the TV only for SDR, the other options are fine.
My two priorities are HDR and size.
I'm thinking that 65 is on the smaller side...I'd honestly love to go for 75 or even 80+, but I'm not aware about any model that would be in the pro HDR tier but not cost premium (not ready to spring for XH9505...)

Unless you think there's something that would fit that criteria (even an older model), it sounds like I should go for U8Q.

And thank you for your reply Dodge, your comments on this site over the years have helped me out a lot :)
 
The obvious alternative from the U8Q is the TCL C825 but since it's a 2021 model it's going to be more expensive right now.

If you're open to second hand TVs there's been a few good HDR TVs since 2016 that would also work. The Sony XG9505 is practically the same TV as the XH9505 and the Panasonic DX902 (2016 model) is still a very good TV today.
 
The obvious alternative from the U8Q is the TCL C825 but since it's a 2021 model it's going to be more expensive right now.

If you're open to second hand TVs there's been a few good HDR TVs since 2016 that would also work. The Sony XG9505 is practically the same TV as the XH9505 and the Panasonic DX902 (2016 model) is still a very good TV today.
Doesn't seem many UK retailers stock the TCL C825. Any idea what the reasoning for this is?
 
Btw, are there any plans for the better US Hisense models to be available in Europe some day?
 
Btw, are there any plans for the better US Hisense models to be available in Europe some day?
Not as far as I know. The U8Q isn't far off the H9G in the USA, main differences are with firmware and smart systems. This year in Europe Hisense put IPS panels on their TVs for some reason.
 
hello all, just a quick bit of advice please

looking for an OLED 83 inch screen and the LG OLED83C1 seems to the one to go for

is it much of a concern that it doesnt have HDR10+ support?

from what i understand, as long as it has Dolby Vision support since DV can support 12 bit colours? which makes it superior to HDR10+

am i correct in thinking that?
 
hello all, just a quick bit of advice please

looking for an OLED 83 inch screen and the LG OLED83C1 seems to the one to go for

is it much of a concern that it doesnt have HDR10+ support?

from what i understand, as long as it has Dolby Vision support since DV can support 12 bit colours? which makes it superior to HDR10+

am i correct in thinking that?
Bit depth isn't important. Playing HDR10+ content will just fall back to HDR10 on the LG.

Same goes the other way round. If you bought a Samsung without Dolby Vision, Dolby Vision content would play back as HDR10.

Have a think about what you watch. Most people don't use HDR10+ much, but if you watch a lot of Prime videos then it may be beneficial to get a TV that supports it too. Either way, the format support of the TV comes secondary to its ability to display HDR to begin with, so the LG will still be very impressive with only HDR10 and since there aren't any 83" OLEDs that support HDR10+ anyway it's not really worth thinking too much about imo.
 
They don't stock TCL TVs at the usual places, but its available:
How many HDMI 2.1 ports (4k 120hz) does the TCL 65C825 UK model have please? Im hearing conflicting information. If only one HDMI 2.1 port, wouldn’t this be used for eArc if connecting e.g a Sonos Beam 2 for Dolby atmos, making all the other ports redundant for 4k 120hz gameplay e.g Xbox series X
 
How many HDMI 2.1 ports (4k 120hz) does the TCL 65C825 UK model have please? Im hearing conflicting information. If only one HDMI 2.1 port, wouldn’t this be used for eArc if connecting e.g a Sonos Beam 2 for Dolby atmos, making all the other ports redundant for 4k 120hz gameplay e.g Xbox series X
It doesn't have any, only the EU version has one. Usually, eARC can be bolted on to HDMI 2.0 ports so it's likely one of those will be used for a soundbar on the European TV.
 

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