TV experts please - best 50-55" LED?

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510 posts

Ultimate Geek

#564482 4-Jan-2012 21:32

mcmillgd: I won't touch LG out of principal since they were caught tampering with their fridges to make them appear more energy efficient than they actually are.

Tell me more. (Did they put an extra star on the stickers ;) )

"In the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years." -
-- Abraham lincoln

Hobchild

623 posts

Ultimate Geek

#564503 4-Jan-2012 22:39

I agree with the OP I personally think LED's look better. But it's just one of those personal preferences in the end isn't it much like saying PS3's are better than Xbox's, Android's better than iOS etc etc.

If I was you I'd get onto it before all the Xmas stock is sold. Use google as your aid for reviews and go from there. Also when shopping in stores it's a good idea to take something you know looks good to test the picture for yourself as their demo's can be misleading.

Jaxson

8042 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#564518 4-Jan-2012 23:10

Kcng: we preferred the slim LEDs and did think (from what we saw) the picture quality was better than plasma.

If that's what you think then go with that but don't read anything about panel performance after that. There's a blissful period when you think everything looks great before someone ruins the party and starts pointing out what to look for....

Personally I'm pro plasma as (in my humble opinion) all the pro's of LCD/LED appear to be based on non picture performance aspects. Examples are it's lighter, it's thinner, it uses less power etc etc. All the pro's of Plasma suit my requirements for a big panel that looks good when it's darker (as that's when I watch TV). Mines bolted to the wall, I'm happy with the look of it and I'm not that anal about it's additional power consumption as I know Plasmas are a varying power demand device, so you don't pay as much for darker scenes etc. Come winter it's another heater too by the way!

Only bonus feature I would look for is Skype capability, as it makes perfect sense to use the TV for video calls, given it's already centre stage in your living room. I have a computer/PS3 for most every other feature offered by newer TV's so I'm not interested in paying more for this.

Enjoy your new TV and the first week when it seems massive too.

Dunnersfella

4086 posts

Uber Geek

#564525 4-Jan-2012 23:25

Let's go back to the start here...
1: What will be watched on the TV the most? Sport? Movies? Shortland Street?
2: What is the lighting like in the room (Direct sunlight? Can you close your curtains?)
3: Do you turn the lights off to watch a movie in the dark (bowl of popcorn in your hands etc)?
4: Will you sit front on, or off to the side?
5: What will you plug into the TV (DVD / PS3 / Home Theatre etc?)
6: Will you be watching content off USB HDD's?

Get us some answers and we'll be able to help you and not just spout out the TV we bought / liked the look of when we walked into Dick Smith's last week...

Jaxson

8042 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#564529 4-Jan-2012 23:44

Dunnersfella: Let's go back to the start here...
1: What will be watched on the TV the most? Sport? Movies? Shortland Street?
2: What is the lighting like in the room (Direct sunlight? Can you close your curtains?)
3: Do you turn the lights off to watch a movie in the dark (bowl of popcorn in your hands etc)?
4: Will you sit front on, or off to the side?
5: What will you plug into the TV (DVD / PS3 / Home Theatre etc?)
6: Will you be watching content off USB HDD's?

Get us some answers and we'll be able to help you and not just spout out the TV we bought / liked the look of when we walked into Dick Smith's last week...

That's a mighty sensible approach there.....

Kcng

9 posts

Wannabe Geek

#564565 5-Jan-2012 06:06

More great advice thanks all!
Re. Questions...
1. Movies, general tv (yes shorty! Lol), a little sport
2. Lounge is open plan - very bright room with big ranch sliders and bifold doors. Could shut all curtains tho which we do anyway if sun is directly in our eyes
3. Not generally during the day - tend to watch movies with popcorn at night
4. Where the tv will be situated one couch will face straight towards the tv and one will be side on
5. At present we have a DVD and mysky plugged into tv. Also use a harddrive and media player plugged in for movies
6. Answered in above.

I think the model Lg we are looking at doesn't have Skype although we hardly ever use Skype anyway do probably wouldn't bother us too much. Lol agree with size looking massive - I'm sure after a 32" any 55 will look huge to start with.

Really appreciate all your advice, many thanks!

old3eyes

9120 posts

Uber Geek

Subscriber

#564573 5-Jan-2012 07:33

I just bought a 46" LED /LCD Sony at Xmas and the blacks are really good compared to my old traditional LCD. Even Sky SD looks reasonably good no macro blocking like the old one. Must have a good display engine.

I did look at a Panasonic plasma but for the same price the Sony was better bang for buck..

Regards,

Old3eyes

Tradepub

Free professional, reference and technical white papers (affiliate link).

semigeek

1606 posts

Uber Geek

#564578 5-Jan-2012 08:02

In the end, its really up to the users preference. Everyone has their own ideas of what looks good and what doesn't.
Take a favourite movie or something to the store when checking out different TV's so you can see what it will look like at home. Remembering though that display TV's normally are set up to look great.

If you have a Smiths City in your area, they are advertising this model for $1999 and is Cinema 3D etc. I nearly bought one of these the other day, but decided that my 42" will do for now.
http://www.smithscity.co.nz/item_page.php?itemId=319752

mcmillgd

50 posts

Geek

#564584 5-Jan-2012 08:20

So, here is some information on LG and their misleading fridges:
http://www.greenwala.com/channels/green-technology/blog/5540-Energy-Efficient-Cheat-Devices-Found-Inside-LG-Fridges
A bit off topic, but wmoore asked.

I was always looking to buy the 6600 from Samsung, I liked the really thin borders.
But after seeing the Panasonic GT50 I changed my mind. the GT50 has a thin border and the colours and contrast are far better than any other TV i've seen.
I don't have any sunlight in my hovel so can't tell how well the plasma will do in sunlight, according to the sales rep it fares far better than previous models.

Anyone else had trouble switching between analog and digital on a samsung tv?
I purchased a Samsung 32" LCD a year ago for an elderly Aunt. Ended up being returned because she kept on changing the channel to analog and couldn't get back to freeview.

Kcng

9 posts

Wannabe Geek

#564586 5-Jan-2012 08:24

No we don't have a smiths city (or even in Auckland - closest big city to us) which is a shame as this model is cheaper and looks to have better features!

Dunnersfella

4086 posts

Uber Geek

#564651 5-Jan-2012 10:11

The model listed at Smith's City is a little confusing... well, their inability to correctly list specs is!
100Hz on the TV, 120Hz on the info. Looks like they've cut and pasted the American specs?

Anyway...
That aside, any of LG's cinema 3d range 55LW4500 / 55LW5700 / 55LW6500 will be great options for you.
4500 series = 100Hz, no Smart TV
5700 series = 100Hz, Smart TV.
6500 series = 200Hz, Smart TV.
The matte finish IPS panel will give good off-axis viewing options for the person who sits to the side, the matte finish will provide good viewing in brightly lit rooms + the LED lighting will help to boot!
The IPS panel is vastly better than the crap 8-bit panels found on the front of the Sony's too.

Everything will plug in, they should have good media player support if you decide not to use yours, they're all ICF certified (something LG do through out most of their range?) and easy to calibrate in a hurry via the picture wizard.
The thing to check though...
Is backlight bleeding. It's why I asked the whole 'do you watch movies with the lights off' question.
Because that's when you see LED clouding / bleeding / torch lighting... or whatever you call it. To some people it's no big deal, to others, it's a deal breaker. Personally, I hate it and have a Panny plasma... but that's up to you.

I'd recommend a TH-P55GT30z as the other option.

fahrenheit

757 posts

Ultimate Geek

#564658 5-Jan-2012 10:26

mcmillgd:
But after seeing the Panasonic GT50 I changed my mind.

Careful, you're name dropping a model that hasn't released yet. A 50" GT30 is not a GT50.

GT50's are this years models.

mcmillgd

50 posts

Geek

#564673 5-Jan-2012 10:39

Yes, sorry I meant the P50GT30Z

Spyware

3762 posts

Uber Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#564674 5-Jan-2012 10:40

mcmillgd:
Anyone else had trouble switching between analog and digital on a samsung tv?
I purchased a Samsung 32" LCD a year ago for an elderly Aunt. Ended up being returned because she kept on changing the channel to analog and couldn't get back to freeview.

Absolutely none. No need to tune the analog channels at all and the channel list can be edited so that there are no analog channels visible or accessible at all. Maybe try pushing the MENU button and checking the settings next time.

Spark Max Fibre using Mikrotik CCR1009-8G-1S-1S+, CRS125-24G-1S, Unifi UAP, U6-Pro, UAP-AC-M-Pro, Apple TV 4K (2022), Apple TV 4K (2017), iPad Air 1st gen, iPad Air 4th gen, iPhone 13, SkyNZ3151 (the white box). If it doesn't move then it's data cabled.

Dunnersfella

4086 posts

Uber Geek

#564680 5-Jan-2012 10:47

When you tune a Samsung TV in, recent models have offered the choice to tune in analogue channels only, digital channels only... or both. Just re-tune the TV for her and select 'Digital only'.

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