Need a new TV for the living room. Currently have a 55in Samsung DLP (oops) that is getting long in the tooth.
I haven’t researched TVs since we bought this one over 10 years ago.
Is LED the way to go?
Do I need 4k?
I will get something that has wifi built in.
What else do I need to know?
55 inch is probably the max for the wall that I will hang it on.
We aren’t gamers and watch an occasional movie. TV is on a lot, but not always watched.
Is LED the way to go? Yes
Do I need 4k?** No**
I will get something that has wifi built in. To save a few bucks you could just get something like Apple TV or a BluRay with wifi built in.
What else do I need to know? Nothing. Go look at TVs and pick the one in your price range that has the nicest picture.
55 inch is probably the max for the walll that I will hang it on.
We aren’t games and watch an occassional movie. TV is on a lot, but not always watched.
We aren’t gamers and watch an occasional movie. TV is on a lot, but not always watched.
If you don’t game, don’t watch a lot of movies, and only occasionally actually watch the TV, then you might consider just getting the cheapest thing in decent quality you can find. No need for special features, ultra super Hd picture, internet connectivity, etc. Check online for the best deals right now on 55" TVs and get whatever is cheapest from a reputable brand.
Need a new TV for the living room. Currently have a 55in Samsung DLP (oops) that is getting long in the tooth.
I haven’t researched TVs since we bought this one over 10 years ago.
Is LED the way to go?
Do I need 4k?
I will get something that has wifi built in.
What else do I need to know?
55 inch is probably the max for the wall that I will hang it on.
We aren’t gamers and watch an occasional movie. TV is on a lot, but not always watched.
I agree with what slowguy said. If you only watch movies occasionally and are not gamers, you really do not need all the bells and whistles. I normally advise people to get the most you can get for the price b/c things get obsolete so quickly. I have held off on 4k b/c they are too expensive and there is little 4k content, even though a lot of people are saying to go 4k if you need a new tv b/c that will be the standard soon. Well, I broke down yesterday and bought a Sony Bravia 55in 4k. I bought it b/c Best Buy dropped the price from $3,000 to $1400. That is a very reasonable price for a quality 4k. But, again, like slowguy said, you do not seem to need all the bells and whistles.
Here is another thing to consider regarding wifi – how is your tv set up? In our living room, everything runs through a receiver, which is connected to surround sound. Also, we have an Apple TV hooked up. So, why do I need wifi? I don’t. I use Apple TV for that. Also, if you run Netflix, etc. from the tv, the tv must have an audio out line to get the sound to go through the surround sound system. Even then, the sound is usually not as good as running it through the Apple TV.
Honestly, I would look at a 720p in LED or even plasma and spend as little as possible. Wait, I take that back. Great Panasonic smart tv at Best Buy for $599. Pretty killer deal.
But, if you want to save $100, this is likely all you need for $479: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/lg-55-class-54-5-8-diag--led-1080p-hdtv/9200105.p?id=1219398344416&skuId=9200105
Thanks for the info.
I’m looking to run something as simple as possible. We have surround sound in the house and a receiver that probably also needs replacing/upgrading. But if I can get a TV with decent audio quality (I realize this is a subjective thing), then I’ll kill the receiver idea.
With respect to Apple TV, I’d rather have things integrated. What does Apple TV give me that a wifi / smart TV doesn’t?
We will watch Netflix on the TV (we used to run it through our Wii on our TV, but the Wii crapped out and the kids haven’t been begging for a new system yet).
I’d like to stay around $1,000 for the TV.
What does Apple TV give me that a wifi / smart TV doesn’t?
If you are an Apple fanboi, it gives you ease of compatibility, but, that’s about it. Using airplay, I can “throw” virtually anything from my iPhone/iPad/Mac right to the tv via Apple TV. But, I have a Samsung smart tv in my home office and, from a substance standpoint, there really isn’t anything else that Apple TV would give me. I don’t have a cable box on the Samsung, but, I have Time Warner cable and I was able to load the Time Warner Cable App on the Samsung, which allows me to watch all the channels (including the premium channels), in HD, on the Samsung w/o paying for an additional cable box. That is nice. I also use Netflix and Amazon Prime on the Samsung.
Given your needs/wants I would go with a smart tv. I would look at the $599 one I linked.
VIZIO E420i-BO 42-inch 1080p 120Hz Smart LED TV$298.00Shop NowDetails
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If you have a 55", I assume you want to stick with that size. Go for 1080p and 120hz. Frankly, higher than that seems strange to me. The picture looks weird when movement becomes too smooth.
Get LED and personally I would get a Sony, Samsung, LG… Or another brand if you like being brand loyal
Apple TV works well, frankly the smart tv features are kinda a pain on my Samsung and I prefer the Apple TV.
What does Apple TV give me that a wifi / smart TV doesn’t?
So far, I haven’t tried out any Smart TVs where the interface was particularly user friendly. Those companies primarily make good TVs. Apple makes good user interface, and the Apple TV is a breeze. I can play any media on my iPad, phone, or computer on my TV, or even double my computer desktop to my TV. You can access all the same stuff like Netflix or HBO Go. You can play iPhone games on your TV, use your phone as a remote, use it for streaming radio through iTunes radio or Pandora, stream all your digital music from your computer to your sound system, etc. Some of this, obviously, assumes you use other Apple products. If not, then you still might consider something other than just the smart TV, like a Roku.
Just got the Vizio 4k smart 65" for $1499 at best buy. Only had it a few days but I like it a lot so far.
Very few channels are offered in 4k but Netflix is and you can see the difference.
Setup was simple and wireless connection was fast.
Read this before you buy a smart TV:
If your Costco memeber, they extend the warranty another year (2yr) then your Amex adds one more yr (3yr) then they sell an extended warranty far far cheaper than onyone else I think thats a 2 or 3 yr additional takes you up to 6yrs. And the prices on tv’s are competitive. Cool thing if you do buy it elsewhere, you can still buy the low cost extended warranty at costco.
The future in display technology for TV is an OLED display.
Really only 1 option right now since Sony and Panasonic have put plans on the back burner for them. Samsung and LG have them out, but the initial screens were 10K.
Now, LG has a 55" OLED at Best Buy for $3,500. Absolutely awesome picture with an infinite contrast ration with super deep blacks. Any videophile will tell you that matters more then
“resolution”. There are OLED 4K TVs as well, but lets just assume you would rather have a new car instead right now 
I’m hanging on to my Panny Plasma as long (until the 4K OLED sets get below about 4-5K as my price point) as I can since I need the extreme viewing angles that you can get from Plasma (and OLED). Too bad they stopped making them, and the occasional left overs you can find online are going for MORE then new. I also have a Vizio LED in a kitchen and bedroom and a Sony Bravio. They all pale in comparison to a high contrast plasma or OLED.
OLED, in my opinion, offers a noticeably better image. I saw one of these recently in a BestBuy and was blown away:
http://www.digitaltrends.com/hands-on-videos/lg-55inch-oled/
Also, the curve is not a gimmick. I actually really like it.
Depends on your budget, viewing distance, etc. I spent a ton of time on avsforum.com and finally went with the Sony KDL-65w850a and is nothing short of spectacular. It’s last years model and is smart tv with 3d…the 3d is great but we rarely use it…mainly sports, movies and netflix. Avsforum.com is great.
I just bought a 55" Samsung smart TV, 120 hz.
It will be delivered next week so I don’t konw yet what the UI is like on the smart TV part. I don’t have cable so I will definitely connect to the interwebs.