My 4 year old (or maybe more) LG crapped out just before the football game last night. I loved the picture while it was working.
I'm thinking going with a LED @50" but I'm curious what everyone recommends. Any suggestions?
For those of you with 4K, is it worth it? When do you actually use all that resolution capability? Cable (FIOS) is only 720K right?
I'll go with a Smart TV, although, I don't think it is an option anymore for a decent TV.
Anything else to think about?
If you search the basketball board you will find previous TV threads. But let me bottom line it for you.
Go to Costco and get the biggest screen you can afford (that will fit your space of course). Nobody ever says, well, it's a good picture, but it's too big. Sure, there are probably some caveats to that like if your living space is a tiny house, but for most people, bigger is more enjoyable. People will tell you get a 'xxx' brand but at this point, there is so little difference in the quality of the different displays, particularly at the high end, that it really doesn't make much difference as long as you aren't getting a cheap knock off. I prefer to stick to Vizio just because the bang for the buck is great. You can probably find a slightly better Sony or Samsung, but you'll pay at least 20 or 25% more for a 2 or 3% better picture. Once it's in your house with nothing to compare it to, you'll never know or regret saving the money.
Get it at Costco because their return policy is great - 90 day return, no questions asked so if something remarkably better comes out, you can just change. Also they extend the warranty to two years on most electronics and it will be tough to significantly beat their price.
As for 4k and smart TVs, well pretty much if you get the best picture you possibly can you will be talking about screens with these features. It's hard to find a top of the line monitor that isn't 4k with smart apps. I love having Amazon built into my TV - saves an extra fire stick or apple tv connection. If you save money going with a 1080 monitor, it's unlikely to be the best display made by the manufacturer.
As for 4k content, there really isn't much right now. Some Netflix and on demand programming is 4k, but usually at an extra cost. You can also get 4k bluray but when is the last time you popped a DVD in to watch? Most broadcast TV isn't even 1080p. But there is more 4k content coming all the time so it makes sense to go with a 4k monitor at this point.
Lots of people will suggest getting at least 120 or 240hz. I suppose if you like it, that's fine, but the broadcast is only 60hz so the TV has to interpret the extra screens displayed to reach the higher frequencies. I think it looks fake. Many will say it makes fast moving sports less jittery. Again, any top of the line screen will be at least 120 if not 240hz so play with it and decide which you like.
Do not get a curved screen - you need a really huge screen (80" or bigger) to really take advantage of it as most viewing distances and it limits how well you can see the TV from the side, so if you pack more than 4 people in to watch, the people on the edges will not have a great view.
Well, that's my 2 cents - good luck.
