OLED 65" Upgrade - how important is HDMI 2.1?

Vicarious_Eyes

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I am in the market for a 65" OLED, under £2k. My main options appear to be thus: Panasonic HZ980, Sony A8H, LG CX, or Phillips 805. Upgrading from a Panasonic 50GT60 plasma, which will be re-purposed elsewhere in the house.

Sources: Freeview, Netflix, Now TV, Blu Ray (1080p), Xbox Series X.
All fed through a Marantz SR6012, which I have recently acquired second hand and have no plans to replace.

Viewing wise, when not enduring CBeebies, we watch mostly Netflix and Freeview (HD where possible, though it's amazing how little HD content there is on Freeview, even after all these years). Nature docs (any Attenborough content) and sport - football, NFL, motorsport - all feature heavily in my viewing, so decent motion handling is required.

This recent bout of upgradeitis (SR6012, XSX) has come about with no real succession plan and I am only now learning of HDMI 2.1. Of course, the Series X will require this tech to fully exploit its capabilities, but none of my other sources support it and the SR6012 will not be compatible. Also, there's the minor issue of HDMI 2.0 cables in walls, which would be a PITA to replace.

So the crunch question, do I really need HDMI 2.1? I've never been an early adopter of tech, always preferring to wait for standards to settle. This Series X is probably the first console I've ever bought within about 2 years of release! I never bought a One, so this console has been an upgrade from a 360.

On the face of it, the LG seems the lowest spec TV for general viewing and motion may be a concern, but supports 2.1 for gaming, but this would require upgrades to the equipment train. The Panasonic and Sony are considered superior for movies/ TV, but lack 2.1. The Sony lacking even in terms of low latency for gaming (which the Panasonic at least has), but is well regarded for motion. The Panasonic feels like a good compromise between the two. I haven't given the Philips much attention but it's in the same price bracket so worth consideration.

As a bit of a Panasonic fanboy from the plasma days, I'm leaning that way, but any advice is more than welcome.
 
No, you don't need HDMI 2.1, VRR is a luxury feature that only supports some games, and ALLM is just engaging game mode which you can do manually.
But depending how much CBeebies are going to be watched you may want to consider an LCD TV instead of a OLED.

Burn in itself works the same on OLED as Plasma, so if you haven't already seen burn in on your current TV, then CBeebies may not be a problem.
 
Cheers Dodge. With over a decade of plasma viewing behind me and two plasmas elsewhere in the house, I see the occasional bit of IR, but I'm not worried about burn in. Plus, I REALLY hope the life of the TV outlasts this CBeebies phase!

You have pretty much confirmed my own conclusions regarding the gaming features of these TVs, I had also considered that even within gaming, there aren't a huge number of titles that will exploit things like 120fps and VRR etc.

So the final question comes down to whether I go Panasonic or Sony...
 
Panasonic's strength is HDR format support and picture processing, its downside is smart TV which lacks app selection, its basic, works well enough for the most popular apps though.

Sony's is with motion processing, Android TV has more app choice, but its perhaps not the best OS when it comes to bugs. If you are comparing the A8H to the HZ980 or HZ1000 then the A8H has significantly better built in sound, which isn't really useful since you already have an AVR. Worth noting that your AVR doesn't seem to support HDR10+, so it won't pass that signal via an external source if you switch it through the receiver first. (which you'll need to do for HD audio). Not sure if you will even use HDR10+ content via an external source though, since its only used on Amazon prime and select UHD Blu-Ray.
 
I think I am just about decided on the Sony A8 as the best compromise for my needs. Ultimately, I want best motion handling I can buy, rather than future proofing HDR formats or HDMI gaming features. I could wait for the 2021 TVs to come down in price for HDMI 2.1, but then the same could be said every year, got to pull the trigger at some point.

I'm going to assume that the 2021 range will be closer to £3k (will there be a Brexit effect on prices? Probably...). The 65" A8 is £1999 pretty much everywhere just now, the best price seems to have been £1679 at Costco just before Christmas. Do we reckon there's much hope of it coming down again in price before the end of the line?
 
Sevenoaks have a few ex display AG9 on clearance for £2k (in store purchase)

Couldn’t see any A8s
 
Edinburgh to Kent for a TV is probably not going to qualify as an essential journey in lockdown!

Sony Centre have the A8 for £1699 grade A refurb, although I'd far rather buy new with extended warranty.
 
Edinburgh to Kent for a TV is probably not going to qualify as an essential journey in lockdown!

Sony Centre have the A8 for £1699 grade A refurb, although I'd far rather buy new with extended warranty.
You’re probably right but you could check if delivery is an option, there’s one in Manchester I think
 
I think I am just about decided on the Sony A8 as the best compromise for my needs. Ultimately, I want best motion handling I can buy, rather than future proofing HDR formats or HDMI gaming features. I could wait for the 2021 TVs to come down in price for HDMI 2.1, but then the same could be said every year, got to pull the trigger at some point.

I'm going to assume that the 2021 range will be closer to £3k (will there be a Brexit effect on prices? Probably...). The 65" A8 is £1999 pretty much everywhere just now, the best price seems to have been £1679 at Costco just before Christmas. Do we reckon there's much hope of it coming down again in price before the end of the line?
£1799 instore @ Costco today offer ends 2nd Feb I was tempted myself and also coming from a 50GT Plasma
 
Thanks for the heads up, this is promising. I'm leaning towards John Lewis as my preferred retailer, so I can take out the accidental damage warranty, so I may submit a price match claim and keep an eye on the price over the next month.
 
Thanks for the heads up, this is promising. I'm leaning towards John Lewis as my preferred retailer, so I can take out the accidental damage warranty, so I may submit a price match claim and keep an eye on the price over the next month.
From what I’ve read they don’t price match Costco as it’s a “membership warehouse non high street retailer” I was going to do the same
 

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