TV Advice Needed

[Justin]

The wife and I are talking about taking advantage of the Black Friday sales to buy a new TV. Not sure on budget, but probably under $1000. A projector is also a possibility as our rec room has almost no ambient light. We don't spend loads of money on electronics, so this is likely to be an 8-10 year investment and I'd like to do it right. I run an HTPC and cable box, so smart features aren't important and I'd rather put the money into a good quality panel or screen. Anyone seeing any screaming deals on a good quality mid level set?

[akaFrankCastle]

Avoid Samsung. My only advice. I used to really like their products. Now, I won't take them for free.

My 55" LCD would not stay powered on. Googled it and found it was a crappy capacitor that they used during the build. Class action was apparently in the works. Spent 30 bucks at Radio Shack and fixed it myself.

Washing machine, also Samsung, lost the LCD display 6 months after purchase. Had them replace it under warranty. 3 months later, half the display was out again.

Refrigerator. Less than 24 hours after install it malfunctioned. Ice maker failed and filled freezer with water. Freezer poured onto kitchen and dining room floor. 6k in damages. Replacement fridge lost the compressor a year after install.

You can see where I'm going here?

I don't have any experience with their phones. But their appliances are garbage. Complete and utter garbage.

[Eck]

What size are you looking for? I highly recommend LG. If you're looking for a good TV without all of the bells and whistles (4K HD, 3D, Internet), you can get one well below your budget depending on size.

Although you could probably find some with the new features in your budget too. http://www.lg.com/us/promotions/home-en ... ment-deals

I've also had good experience with Sharp Aquos.

[Entourage]

Go big. I love my 70". Also, I only buy Vizio. I have been buying them since having a hang on the wall TV meant something. They are amazing TV's for the money and never had an issue.

[Justin]

Zac, that's a bummer. I've had a series of Samsung TVs that I've had great luck with, but our most recent TV purchase was at least 6-7 years ago. I'm looking for at least 55", might go 4k to future proof it since we'll have it for lots of years. If I can talk the wife into a projector, I'm thinking 100-110". Our rec room would be perfect for one. Thought about a Vizio, they're well reviewed. Keep the thoughts coming, very helpful!

[mickphatmac]

x2 for Vizio - have 2 and HD is amazing!
42" & 65" over 3 years old no problems

[crawlercreations]

I've actually got an opposite experience than Zac. I've got a Samsung plasma TV that is about 6 years old with absolutely no issues ever. Samsung fridge that is about 5 years old with absolutely no issues too. I've got an LG washer and dryer I've had some issues with though. Washer randomly leaks. Not enough to damage anything but enough to be annoying. The dryer has a temperature switch that likes to fail every year. They're about 4 years old and I've replaced the temp switch 4 times. It is such a common issue I've got extras on hand and can replace it in about 10 minutes. When we were looking for a new TV we wanted a plasma as we wanted the really black blacks and the led tvs just can't get as black as the plasma. With our tv research we found the 2 brands to buy were Samsung and Panasonic. We decided on the Samsung ultimately because we liked the housing more. When the tv was delivered the delivery guy said it was a good choice as he almost never picks Samsungs up for return. This, of course, was research done 6 years ago so it likely has changed since then.

[BOBS 2 68S]

Dito on the Vizio

[Viperwolf1]

I don't have any advice for tvs that are less than 20 years old but micro center is having a sale.

[phyler]

We did the same thing a few years ago. We had an old Sony Trinatron that weighed 200lbs but it wasn't Digital ready. When we got down to our last converter box I started looking. I saw the prices on a nice Samsung 55" at Black Friday. I held off cause I hadn't done my research. I started to kick myself as the prices went higher.

I went and read the CNET reviews and started looking at different sets and thought I had settled on a Samsung based on features, etc. I finally went to a Best Buy to look at it a Panasonic caught my eye. It was brighter, clear and had less bezel than the Samsungs. I knew the Panasonics had gotten good reviews. I ended up with it in early January. Got them to through in 3 years of total protection on the deal too for nothing. Lesson learned, do your research and go look at them. See what you like. Have them put on movies or sports or whatever you like to watch.

I know you don't want to wait, but wait. The stuff that typically goes on sale for Black Friday is not the good stuff. You will get a lot more for your buck in January. You don't need to wait til just before the Superbowl, just a week or two in to January.

Check out Best Buy's Deal of the Day site. After I bought mine, I saw some really nice sets go up there for super cheap.

Also, since you aren't wanting a Smart TV, you should be able to pull off a no-frills 60-70" for under $1k easy.

Another option too is Plasma. Only makes sense in dark rooms though. I would have gone with the Panasonic plasma (they stopped making them 2 years ago but they were the best TV's on the market) but our TV room is super bright with a southern exposure.

Last comment, I don't believe my TV will last 5 years. I hope it lasts that long and then some but with most of today's technology, I just know that it will break sooner than I would have liked. Our old Sony is at my parents house hooked to their cable box in the basement. I bet that TV outlasts this one and the one after that.

[B.O.B.]

My Samsung TV's are great no issue with one for the five years we have had it and just got a bigger one for the new house that is awesome. I will agree about other appliances that the fall short on. Salespeople said to stay away from Samsung when I was looking for washer/dryer. I do have a small Panasonic that I have had for about 10yrs that has held up really well. Good luck

[Dukietown]

I love my Samsung and have had nothing but good experiences with it. Granted it's ~9 years old but it's still working like a champ.

As far as current tech goes I'd recommend going 4k res and OLED panel. Curved is up to you. Bestbuy has a 60" LG 4k OLED on sale for $899 right now.

You can't touch a 4k projector for under $10k that I've found. The cost of large format displays has really come down to make them more desirable in some ways than a projector. Keep in mind the cost of the projector AND having to replace the bulb ~once a year depending on how much you use it. Bulbs can easily be $300+

Screen size should be dictated by viewing distance or vice versa. There is such a thing as too big of a screen! There are lots of calculators out on the web where you can either put in the screen size to get the recommended viewing distance or you can put in a fixed viewing distance to get recommended screen size.

[Justin]

Do you have a link for that LG tv? I'd love an oled set, but all the prices I'm seeing are $1700+, which isn't happening.

[Dukietown]

Sorry I read it wrong, I was looking at this one: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/lg-60-class ... Id=4594500
It's LED, not OLED.

Still seems like a good price on a mid-level display. Seems to be well liked/reviewed overall.

[Rox Crusher]

I used to buy Sony exclusively. The ones I owned all lasted for several years, including a couple of LED that were on more than they were off.

About 18 months ago we decided to get a bigger TV in UHD / 4K. I intended to buy another Sony but the Samsung picture was just so much more clear and crisp.

We absolutely love it and haven't had any issues in the relatively short time we have had it. Again, it's on more than it is off so we don't expect it to last for 10 years like the Sonys did.

[Justin]

How do you like the 4k? That's one of the things ive been trying to decide about.

[Rox Crusher]

How do you like the 4k? That's one of the things ive been trying to decide about.

It's kind of weird at times. Sometimes the definition is so crisp that it seems like it is 3D or crisper than real life. Hard to explain.

The other thing is that there isn't a lot of 4K content available yet. What's really annoying is watching a show where some of it is in 4K. Sons of Anarchy was this way for some reason.

Watching fast action sports like NASCAR or NFL makes it all worth it so long as you get the version with the 240 refresh rate.

[Jesus_man]

We've had some LG stuff and are pretty happy with them as a brand. Our 47" LG LCD tv is 6years old and it's been great. Lately tho, when I push the input button on the side, it seems to think I am pushing menu. That's aggravating and I could probably get around it if I could program my Kenwood remote better to change the input there.

In storage we have what I think is a panosonic plasma 50". Was a great TV, but we rarely watched it because it was downstairs. Seems I know. Especially considering we had theater seating and surround sound! Maybe it was just too far from the ?

It's so hard to compare TV's in the store as they are not likely tuned to perform their best. So it's not an apple to apple comparison.

I think we'll be in the market for a new TV again in a year or so. Want to see a curved one in person!

[Dukietown]

How do you like the 4k? That's one of the things ive been trying to decide about.

It's kind of weird at times. Sometimes the definition is so crisp that it seems like it is 3D or crisper than real life. Hard to explain.

The other thing is that there isn't a lot of 4K content available yet. What's really annoying is watching a show where some of it is in 4K. Sons of Anarchy was this way for some reason.

Watching fast action sports like NASCAR or NFL makes it all worth it so long as you get the version with the 240 refresh rate.

That feeling of it being sharper than life is more about the 240hz refresh than the resolution. I had that same feeling the first time I used the 120hz refresh on my Samsung. Like you said it's great for sports, terrible for movies. Pop in 300 on blu-ray sometime and turn the 240 refresh on. The movie loses all of its magic haha.

Like you said there isn't a ton of 4k content available yet and it'll still be a while before the service providers get infrastructure in place to shoot and broadcast in 4k. Much like when 1080p HD sets came out years ahead of the content.