Question Replacement TV buying advice

[abaddon879]

With it being a new year and all that, I've decided to treat myself to a new TV to replace my Sony KDL-32D3000 which is about 8 years old now and will be migrated to the bedroom to see out it's remaining days.

To replace it however, I need something bigger as I now have a lot more room and the 32" looks small in comparison to the room.
The sofa is positioned 7-8ft away from where the TV will be, so from looking at the distance guides, I would want to be looking in the 50"-55" range I believe for HD content.

I am not a huge gamer, so the TV will mainly be used for streaming films and watching normal TV. This is why I have tried to avoid 4K panels, as I heard they struggled with SD content. Should I consider 4K as a future proof technology, as I likely won't upgrade again for a number of years.

I want to keep the budget fairly low however, so around £600-700 is the limit I have set. I understand this seriously limits my options in this size range.

I have been a big fan of Sony TVs, but have heard there may be issues with their new Android TV integration which could cause issues with the current models? This has lead me to consider some of the Samsung models, which seem to be getting good reviews.

The sets I have considered are:
Sony
SONY BRAVIA KDL55W756CSilver 55 inch Smart LED Android TV 1080p HD Youview - £729

Samsung
SAMSUNG UE55H6400 55 inch 3D Smart LED TV 1080p HD Freeview HD - £649
SAMSUNG UE55JU6400 55 inch 4K Ultra HD Smart LED TV Freeview HD - £749
Buy Samsung UE55J6300 Curved LED HD 1080p Smart TV, 55" with Freeview HD and Built-In Wi-Fi | John Lewis - £769

Obviously I realise I could drop to 50" and get a better panel, which I'm willing to do if it would be worth it, but I don't want to regret not getting the bigger size.

Are there any others I should consider, or does anyone have any thoughts?

 

[Old Bones]

7-8 feet away would normally be a 32-40in in Full HD, and even with 4K upscaling, I'd personally think 55in might be pushing its bit. I'd say 40-43in with no problem (one size up from old set is a good rule of thumb), and possibly 48-50in, if you want to really go for it. One of the biggest reasons that TV's get returned is the wrong size, and although you get used to a larger screen pretty quickly, going from a set that is about 33in (?) wide to one thats 48in (the bulk of it screen) is a bit of a jump. 42-43in wide sounds a bit less in your face. 48-50in at most would be fine (go to someones house to look at theirs, and cut out some cardboard to gauge the size in your room). Which has a vaguely useful guide, but you want it to fit. A TV isn't like buying bog paper - buying in bulk isn't better value.

Next, you've chucked in a 4K set, and a (decent) entry one at that. 4K has about 8 million pixels, Full HD about 2 million, and SD less than 400,000. So yes, upscaling from SD to 4K is a bit of an effort. I did actually flick the LG 4K OLED onto BBC1 for a customer the other day - Nigella didn't look that bad, but the HD was way better, and you wouldn't want to watch much SD on it. And thats the OLED.

Freeview HD, Full HD, smart and wifi are all standard (I dont really care about the OS - can you change the channels, the imputs and get Iplayer? Fine). 4 HDMI's is best, but three would do at a pinch, and decent remote.

Your paying for the best blacks and the best movement - the better they are, the more it costs. Full HD sets had three levels amoungst the 4 big brands. 100hz 2D are decent entry (the Sony W75), whilst 400hz (or whatever number was attached to them) 3D sets would be mid level, which is where the Samsung H6400/J6300 sit. They are classic mid range TV's, and I'd add the Sony 50 W8 as well. Mid level gives you the best panels your going to get now (the OLED is £1299), and the Samsungs you mentioned or the Sony W8 are your best bet. I'm happy recommending either. High level has gone.

Go somewhere decent to look at the sets - you'll pretty quickly see the difference between an entry level and mid level, and see which one appeals. Dont worry too much about numbers - think levels. If you really want 55in, its up to you, and both the W8 Sony and J6300 are available for around £750, but in a 48-50, both can be had for £539, and £599 - thats money towards a blu-ray or sound bar.

 

[abaddon879]

Thanks for your reply!

It appears there is lots of conflicting information on screen size vs distance. some such as THX would have you believe that you need a much larger screen.
I had used the distance guide at RTings (TV Size to Distance Calculator and Science) and HDTVtest (TV Viewing Distance Calculator: What Screen Size To Buy?) which suggest a 55" or 60" for 1080p at 8ft away, but clearly this is at the upper end of the scale. Having seen some other sites, such as Dolby or Samsung, they do recommend a lower amount (2.5x the screen size or the distance divided by 3).

I did look at some in Currys (not a great place to view, but was convenient at the time) and still believe I would like a slightly bigger screen to fill the space, so am looking more in the 48-50" range as you suggest.

The main contenders now appear to be:
SAMSUNG UE48H6400 48 inch 3D Smart LED TV 1080p HD Freeview HD - £499
SAMSUNG UE48J6300 48 inch Curved Smart LED TV 1080p HD Freeview HD - £539
SONY BRAVIA KDL50W755CBlack 50 inch Smart LED Android TV 1080p HD Youview - £529
SONY BRAVIA KDL50W805C 50 inch 3D Smart LED Android TV 1080p HD Youview - £549

A couple of questions on these.
1. Other than the curved screen, are there any changes worth noting between the H6400 and the J6300? I do however quite like the look of the curved display, but need to spend more time looking at it to be certain. A £40 difference is fairly minimal.
2. Is there any difference between the W755 and the W805 other than 3D being included in the W805? For a £20 difference I think I would go without as it doesn't include any glasses (unlike the H6400).

What Hi-Fi have rated the J6300 very highly, and given it their 2015 award for 42-52" under £1000, following in the footsteps of the H6400 it seems. Sony on the other hand are more traditional flat panels but continue to get strong reviews.
I have a feeling I need to take a trip to Richer sounds and try have a demo of them side by side to choose.

 

[Old Bones]

It appears there is lots of conflicting information on screen size vs distance

God, yes - its a nightmare. US sites tend to be a bit on the macho size, but the manufacturer sites tend to be 2.5-3x, which is what I've always used, and customer feedback tends to support that sort of ratio for most people.

Answers to questions:
1) Apart from being curved, having a fixed stand, no scart and with the Tizen OS system, there is not a lot of difference between the two. Refresh rates are a nightmare as well, but put it this way, the 6400 has an offical refresh of 400hz. The 6300 reflects the fact that Samsung now have something called PQI, but the number used is 800. Does it sound like they've double the number? If you can see them next to each other, I'd be interested what you think. We've still got the 40 & 32in 6400, but the 32in 6300 has never been set up next to either of them, so can't make a staight comparison, but I suspect they are much the same. If you like curved, then go for curved.

2)Often asked question - yes, the W805 is better. The rule is that if its costs more/has a higher series number, its notmally better. The actual refresh rate of the 805 is a mystery to us all, but its a mid level set, so its very much par with the 6400/6300. Again, look at the two and see what you think. Sony have both active and passive 3D on that series (depends on the size) - if its passive, anything will do, and if its active, then just buy the Samsung ones. Or just dont worry about it.

Go to a decent place and look - but no problem with any of the three.

 

[abaddon879]

Frustratingly my local RS only have the H6400 on display, and when mentioning the J6300 he advised me that it wasn't as good as the new JU6 series and that 4k displays have no problem upscaling SD content (despite all reviews saying otherwise).

They also didn't have the W805 but do have the W755 on display, which is a lesser panel so not a fair comparison.

Might have to enquire at John Lewis to see whether they have any on display, otherwise it seems the only one of the three I can see in the flesh before buying will be the H6400. Whilst not a bad screen, I would like to do a visual comparison.

Anyone know of anywhere in the Berkshire area that might have the W805 or J6300 on display?

 

[Old Bones]

advised me that it wasn't as good as the new JU6 series and that 4k displays have no problem upscaling SD content (despite all reviews saying otherwise).

Hmmmm....

Firstly, although 4K sets (at least the good ones) are not bad at upscaling HD, the amount of upscaling from SD to 4K is a lot! And the JU6 series is decent entry, so its OK, but its not going to be fantastic. When I look at a H6400 and a JU6400 next to each other, the JU6400 is doing OK against it when looking at refresh on HD, but its not quite as good. Thats to be expected. However, I think you need to see all three/four in the flesh (although the size might be varied), just to put your mind at rest. Good luck.

 

[abaddon879]

So I managed to find the W805 at John Lewis, however they again did not have the others to compare it to. I liked the minimalist design, however I'm not sure the extra £100 premium over the H6400 is necessarily worth the extra 2" and supposed better black levels.

For this reason I think I will narrow my selection between the 48H6400 and the 48J6300, which I have found for £499 and £509 (From Argos, which I presume John Lewis or Richer Sounds would match) respectively.

The only differences I can see are:
H6400 is flat, has 3D and has the older OS
J6300 is curved, comes without 3D and runs the latest Tizen OS (which presumably will continue to receive updates in future).

Considering the £10 difference, which would your choice be?