The big "How do I choose an HDTV?" thread.

Chairman_Mao wrote:
Fedaykin98 wrote:

Watching the World Cup has convinced me that higher resolution is indeed the eventual future, but I'm assuming 4k requires a lot of bandwidth.

Why do you think that? 4k/UHD doesn't provide much benefit until you get to really large screen sizes, larger than 65", assuming a standard viewing distance. Sports broadcast in 3D certainly failed to convince anyone they needed to watch sports in 3D, so I'm not sure sports will drive higher screen resolutions either. I think 4K's success will depend on TV networks getting on board first and foremost, and they'll need to be convinced it's worth the cost of investing in the new equipment. I can't see Netflix/streaming content providers leading the charge as broadband speeds can barely meet the needs of 1080p material.

I want to see things more clearly than I do. Maybe that's not about resolution, maybe it's about cable quality, I don't know.

Fedaykin98 wrote:
Chairman_Mao wrote:
Fedaykin98 wrote:

Watching the World Cup has convinced me that higher resolution is indeed the eventual future, but I'm assuming 4k requires a lot of bandwidth.

Why do you think that? 4k/UHD doesn't provide much benefit until you get to really large screen sizes, larger than 65", assuming a standard viewing distance. Sports broadcast in 3D certainly failed to convince anyone they needed to watch sports in 3D, so I'm not sure sports will drive higher screen resolutions either. I think 4K's success will depend on TV networks getting on board first and foremost, and they'll need to be convinced it's worth the cost of investing in the new equipment. I can't see Netflix/streaming content providers leading the charge as broadband speeds can barely meet the needs of 1080p material.

I want to see things more clearly than I do. Maybe that's not about resolution, maybe it's about cable quality, I don't know.

Yeah, that's very possible. Cable companies compress the heck out of HD signals, so they often look like crap especially with fast motion. It's too bad ESPN doesn't broadcast OTA, as that provides the best quality HD signal by far.

Yeah, how about Comcast actually start showing real HD first instead of compressed crap before worrying about 4k.

Yeah, how about Comcast actually start showing real HD first instead of compressed crap before worrying about 4k.

I was thinking about it from another angle; the storage on BluRays isn't going to be enough to support 4K all that well. They're already throwing out a ton of video data at 1080p, so going to 4K isn't likely to look any better; they'll just have to drop even more of the original signal.

The net overall improvement will probably be small or zero on most signals, although animation would most likely look fantastic at 4K, because it compresses really well. They could definitely fit a 4K animated video, at an extremely high quality level, on a standard BluRay.

(I'm meaning more 2D than 3D animation; 3D compresses well, but 2D animation compresses extremely well, because of the broad swatches of color without much changing.)

Speaking of 4K and Vizio.. the upcoming fall P series release seems interesting..

http://ces.vizio.com/p-series.html

Vizio claims native 120hz "gaming" mode. First I heard of a 4K panel that can do 120hz.

Well gaming is only going to be 1080p, nothing special for 120hz. But cool to see that in a TV.

TheGameguru wrote:

Speaking of 4K and Vizio.. the upcoming fall P series release seems interesting..

http://ces.vizio.com/p-series.html

Vizio claims native 120hz "gaming" mode. First I heard of a 4K panel that can do 120hz.

Are there even any TV's at 1080p that will actually run native 120Hz signals? I didn't think that was a thing that had happened yet.

Thin_J wrote:
TheGameguru wrote:

Speaking of 4K and Vizio.. the upcoming fall P series release seems interesting..

http://ces.vizio.com/p-series.html

Vizio claims native 120hz "gaming" mode. First I heard of a 4K panel that can do 120hz.

Are there even any TV's at 1080p that will actually run native 120Hz signals? I didn't think that was a thing that had happened yet.

I havent seen one...at least nothing above 32"

The HDMI 2.0 spec only supports up to 60fps at 4K/UHD resolution, so I'm pretty sure Vizio isn't going to support 120hz at that resolution. The marketing page doesn't say "native" anywhere.

Chairman_Mao wrote:

The HDMI 2.0 spec only supports up to 60fps at 4K/UHD resolution, so I'm pretty sure Vizio isn't going to support 120hz at that resolution. The marketing page doesn't say "native" anywhere.

That point is more that even if its 1080P@120hz that is still interesting..

TheGameguru wrote:
Chairman_Mao wrote:

The HDMI 2.0 spec only supports up to 60fps at 4K/UHD resolution, so I'm pretty sure Vizio isn't going to support 120hz at that resolution. The marketing page doesn't say "native" anywhere.

That point is more that even if its 1080P@120hz that is still interesting..

Agree, it is interesting. But I wonder what difference does it make when current gen consoles aren't going above 60fps? Even with Steamboxes coming out, I don't think the TV market for 120fps gaming PCs is particularly large. Also input lag will be way more important than hz when it comes to latency.

FYI I am looking for soundbar advice here:

http://www.gamerswithjobs.com/node/1...

And then there was one. Samsung's out of the plasma game, leaving LG to dominate (haha) the market.

Heheh... my Samsung Plasma is now a collector's item.

Now that I've finally moved in to a new apartment with enough space, it's time for me to buy my first TV. Up until now I've used small ~25" computer monitors for everything, leaving me with practically zero point of reference for what I want or need in a TV. Also, from a glance at various recommendations, it seems like this is a really awkward time to be buying a TV as the previous "bests" are all discontinued and new models won't be coming out for several more months?

Also, from all the love that the recently departed plasmas get, I have to assume that the burn-in issues were resolved to the point that they are no longer incompatible with gaming?

Burn-in isn't a significant problem, but it doesn't seem to matter because you're probably getting an LCD, since nobody wants to sell plasmas anymore.

There are tons of TVs that you will love compared to a computer monitor. My only advice is to get the biggest you can budget/fit. Bigger than you think you need. It's real, real easy to get used to.

Me when I got my 52" LCD: "Holy balls, this is too big!"
Two days later: "Well, maybe not too big."
Two weeks later: "I could go for bigger."
When I got my 65" plasma: "Eh, this isn't that big."

You can still definitely pick up a plasma, but I'd say either get Samsung's P5500. You're using it for gaming, and input lag is going to be a big deal. Most of the other plasmas, especially cheaper smart/3D TVs, have pretty poor input lag. Forget about
LG.

If you want to go LCD, I'd probably go with Vizio, except I don't know what the input lag is like on their 2014 models. But they have dropped 3D and offer full array LED back lighting with micro dimming, which should give you about as good a contrast ratio as you're going to get in a LCD. Plus the price is very affordable.

Wow, this feels just like watching Beta die.

Fedaykin98 wrote:

There are tons of TVs that you will love compared to a computer monitor. My only advice is to get the biggest you can budget/fit. Bigger than you think you need. It's real, real easy to get used to.

Me when I got my 52" LCD: "Holy balls, this is too big!"
Two days later: "Well, maybe not too big."
Two weeks later: "I could go for bigger."
When I got my 65" plasma: "Eh, this isn't that big."

Oh man, this is so true. I have yet to hear anyone wish they'd bought a smaller TV. Plenty who think the opposite, though.

Yeah this is awful...there will be a day when I will be forced to buy some LCD because Plasma is completely gone

I'm glad I was able to pick up my Samsung Plasma before they stopped producing. I've been extremely satisfied with it so far.

Yeah, I'm really happy to have that S64, now.

Stupid consumers. God, this is so much like the death of Beta.

Malor wrote:

Yeah, I'm really happy to have that S64, now.

Stupid consumers. God, this is so much like the death of Beta.

In a way it's worse. At least Beta/VHS has since been replaced by far superior technologies. I'm not sure how quickly that will happen to plasma (but I am secretly hoping the answer involves lasers).

Yeah, although I'm more forgiving of stupid consumers in this case than I was with Beta, because, well, plasma doesn't look good in most stores. You have to be educated to know it's genuinely better than the eye-searingly-bright LCD right next to it.

And it would be a hard thing to sell, even if you were a very knowledgeable salesperson.... "who are you going to believe, me, or your lying eyes?"

Full Array LED and 4K will probably be just about it for the near term future. OLED has shown to be a complete bust for manufactures.. apparently no one wanted a bizarrely curved for no good reason TV.

I'm honestly surprised there isn't even a reasonable push for high end OLED PC Monitors (24"-32") range. I guess we will have to work through IPS 4K PC monitors first before anyone even thinks about R&D on the OLED side.

I honestly have not heard an explanation for why they are making these curved TVs. There must be some reason, legitimate or not.

Fedaykin98 wrote:

I honestly have not heard an explanation for why they are making these curved TVs. There must be some reason, legitimate or not.

I think Michael Bay said it best

Chairman_Mao wrote:
Fedaykin98 wrote:

I honestly have not heard an explanation for why they are making these curved TVs. There must be some reason, legitimate or not.

I think Michael Bay said it best

FSM, that made my day.

I decided to take a risk on the pentile layout of the 65" H5000 rather than struggle to find a reputable vendor that could sell me the F5300 in the same size for a higher price. Adventures in wall mounting begin next week.

Cathadan wrote:

I decided to take a risk on the pentile layout of the 65" H5000 rather than struggle to find a reputable vendor that could sell me the F5300 in the same size for a higher price. Adventures in wall mounting begin next week.

Nice! I love my Samsung Plasma (PN51E7000). I highly recommend the Disney Wow Blu-ray for a cheap, fun, effective way to calibrate the TV.