11 Myths About Buying a New 4K TV

[Julio Franco]

If you've looked into purchasing a TV in recent years, you've been perhaps overwhelmed by the jargon and conflicting information. Indeed, there's a lot of misinformation out there, so to help you filter it out, we've debunked some commonly held beliefs about buying a TV.

Read the full article here.

https://www.techspot.com/article/1577-myths-about-tv-buying/

 

[alabama man]

No mention of inputlag.

"Contrast Ratio and Refresh Rate Are Important Specs"'

Refresh rate is important for gamers and with the new 60" "monitors" that have g-sync and 120Hz I bet others will use the panel or similar systems on their TV's soon (to me 60" monitor is TV, haven't used my current TV as "TV" in years) so it is and will be the most important spec for gamers. I agree that the manufacturers lie about the Hz but that's why you get the specs from a trusted source.

"It's Worth Paying More for a Smart TV"

If I could buy a "dumb" TV I would pay extra. The smart functions only slow the startup and make it vulnerable for viruses and government spying.

 

[Arris]

An important consideration is your internet connection. Is it unlimited use? You'll sure burn through data faster with 4k content as opposed to HD. And check the availability of 4K broadcast/ondemand content for the services you use, upscaling and make HD content look better but I encountered this lack of content and lower res content looking poor with Sony's first full HD tv and had to wait years for HD broadcast channels in the UK.

 

[VitalyT]

It's Worth Paying More for a Smart TV

You won't see a non-smart 4K TV in a shop today, so this point is a myth now.

 

[Badvok]

"All HDMI cables deliver the same information, so there's no point in buying expensive ones." - while it is true that there's no point buying expensive cables, you also shouldn't go for the cheapest as these often simply just don't work, fail quickly or are susceptible to interference causing issues with CEC or even blanking parts of the image.

 

[Badvok]

"Contrast Ratio and Refresh Rate Are Important Specs" - not a myth, they are. Although as you point out the manufacturers' claims need to be taken with a large dose of sodium-chloride. Best to look on good review sites to see what the actual values are.

 

[Badvok]

"Curved TVs Are Better" - not a myth, they are in certain situations, especially for solo viewing.

 

[fktech]

Bring back Plasma!

OLED (LG) is the next best thing.

 

[senketsu]

Thanks, great article. I don't own a tv, just Dell Ultrawide monitor. I'm looking at the moment, but the jargon is confusing and I want an HDR set. This article was helpful in that regard.
typo on #8 It says "Pricey HDMI Are Worth It" although the text and quote below make it plain that they are Not worth it.
I found online a local manufacturer and bought a HDMI 2.0 cable (about 10 ft.) with nice ends for $16 mailed to my apartment. I've had no problems with it and the company was very explicit about the specs which I greatly appreciated.

 

[senketsu]

"Curved TVs Are Better" - not a myth, they are in certain situations, especially for solo viewing.

from the article:
"However, as we've explained in the past, given the size of a television, there's a very small sweet spot in which one or two people can have this experience."

 

[Buhaj]

I'd take 100Hz refresh rate/<30ms input lag over Smart TV features any day.

 

[pencea]

I don't own a tv, just Dell Ultrawide monitor. I'm looking at the moment, but the jargon is confusing and I want an HDR set .

If you get the chance buy an OLED TV. I bought one for myself and have regretted one bit. One of the best purchase I ever did for my home entertainment setup. Pictures, contrast & colors from it is simply gorgeous. Makes every content enjoyable to watch, especially if the HDR content movies/games is mixed well.

 

[c7p89]

“ All HDMI cables deliver the same information”

This is not entirely true. Recently purchased a sound bar to go with my 4k tv and a $40 HDMI cable to connect the to. The cable was4K,HDR ready but the soundbar wouldn’t work turns out that the cable also has to be Ethernet compatible. Then you’ve got all the different spec from HDMI 1.0 to HDMI 2.0 and beyond to sort through.

 

[Jimster480]

An important consideration is your internet connection. Is it unlimited use? You'll sure burn through data faster with 4k content as opposed to HD. And check the availability of 4K broadcast/ondemand content for the services you use, upscaling and make HD content look better but I encountered this lack of content and lower res content looking poor with Sony's first full HD tv and had to wait years for HD broadcast channels in the UK.

The other issue you have is the connectivity of a TV to the internet.
Not all TV's have ethernet and some have only cheap 802.11N 2.4Ghz wireless which is typically incapable of providing enough bandwidth to reliably stream 4K without severe pre-buffering.

 

[Jimster480]

"Curved TVs Are Better" - not a myth, they are in certain situations, especially for solo viewing.

Only for solo viewing really.

 

[Jimster480]

Thanks, great article. I don't own a tv, just Dell Ultrawide monitor. I'm looking at the moment, but the jargon is confusing and I want an HDR set. This article was helpful in that regard.
typo on #8 It says "Pricey HDMI Are Worth It" although the text and quote below make it plain that they are Not worth it.
I found online a local manufacturer and bought a HDMI 2.0 cable (about 10 ft.) with nice ends for $16 mailed to my apartment. I've had no problems with it and the company was very explicit about the specs which I greatly appreciated.

Buy a sony x850D or better. Its a great HDR set that actually supports HDR in windows and in Netflix, Amazon and others.

 

[deandownunder]

It's Worth Paying More for a Smart TV

You won't see a non-smart 4K TV in a shop today, so this point is a myth now.

Wrong. Aldi sell a big screen 65inch non smart 4k tv for under $700

 

[QuantumPhysics]

It's been my experience that modern LCD LED TV's will easily pass 100,000 hours (over 8 years).
Some brands are prone to failure (all this stuff is made in China basically). I don't think you need a warranty, but peace of mind having one can't be discounted. I usually get one if it isn't too expensive.

I like Vizio - personally. I have bought a 42 inch, a 50" and an 80". So far, no problems. My 50" is a great bedroom TV and my 80 is great in the living room. Personally, I couldn't see going lower than 70" if you have a big room for a lot of people.

As for 4K TV, they are basically the standard now till the industry tries to force us into 8K or whatever. Most equipment is running 1080p so there's no rush. In 2 years 4K will be even cheaper.

 

[treetops]

The main problem is lack of content...

 

[dogofwars]

It's been my experience that modern LCD LED TV's will easily pass 100,000 hours (over 8 years).
Some brands are prone to failure (all this stuff is made in China basically). I don't think you need a warranty, but peace of mind having one can't be discounted. I usually get one if it isn't too expensive.

I like Vizio - personally. I have bought a 42 inch, a 50" and an 80". So far, no problems. My 50" is a great bedroom TV and my 80 is great in the living room. Personally, I couldn't see going lower than 70" if you have a big room for a lot of people.

As for 4K TV, they are basically the standard now till the industry tries to force us into 8K or whatever. Most equipment is running 1080p so there's no rush. In 2 years 4K will be even cheaper.

I would not say 4K are standard since they offer a lot of 1080p but it is certainly going that way. I guess it depend where you are coming from. I must say the price of 4K is a lot cheaper than when I bought my last 1080p LED TV like 2-3 time cheaper. The thing is that damn thing is not dying lol

 

[ZackL04]

It's Worth Paying More for a Smart TV

You won't see a non-smart 4K TV in a shop today, so this point is a myth now.

More like a legend

 

[tipstir]

Well I am not sold on 4K and to me it just a waste of money. If you can find a non-4K HDTV you can enjoy your set some top end models of non-4K were just as good. As for extended warranty you really don't need if you but a well known brand SONY etc.. Walmart warranty on HDTV is very cheap and if they can't fix the set they give you a brand new one. I still opt out of these warranties I don't buy any not even for my MUV. HDR sounds no different than Dynamic Contrast vs 2 - 4000:1 Contrast ratio and 10000:1 Dynamic Contrast. I use to install Rear/Front Projection TVs align the color gun. To me best picture counts but today HDTV etc.. I don't even touch the color settings. My SONY is using Factory Settings the Picture A1. Some new sets have have darker shades yeah, LED back light makes blacks too light. So what do you need 4K where were it's all 1080i OTA.

As for HDTV lasting yeah they can hold up none of my HDTV no matter who has made them as failed yet. SONY LCD HDTV is top choice. I have a Toshiba LED HDTV few Elements, 10000:1 Contrast Ratio but I always buy glossy panel and not matted ones.

 

[Joe Blow]

The question I have is, do these televisions have the camera installed behind the screen, in a position you can't tape over?

 

[Adhmuz]

"It's Worth Paying More for a Smart TV"

If I could buy a "dumb" TV I would pay extra. The smart functions only slow the startup and make it vulnerable for viruses and government spying.

That's the myth, that smart TVs are worth buying, not that it's worth the extra price to have the "features" of said ability. Personally I would also prefer to not have the "smart" functionality because after a few years the software will no longer get updates and the apps stop working. As an example I have a 47" LG 240 Hz smart TV and the Netflix app no longer gets updates and Netflix won't allow it to connect to their servers any more so it is as good as useless, I had to build a HTPC for that TV to make up for LGs short comings...

"All HDMI cables deliver the same information, so there's no point in buying expensive ones." - while it is true that there's no point buying expensive cables, you also shouldn't go for the cheapest as these often simply just don't work, fail quickly or are susceptible to interference causing issues with CEC or even blanking parts of the image.

I've never had a HDMI cable fail on me or cause any sort of problem, regardless of the price. You are aware that even those "high end" cables don't cost much more to produce than the bargain bin ones. If you've ever worked at an electronics store for the most part the "cost" for the expensive cables and the cheap cables are rather close. The reason for the mark up is an easy source of revenue, making a 300-500% profit on an item is too hard to turn down, and it allows you to bundle them as a gimmicky way to make the customer fell like they're getting a deal.

The question I have is, do these televisions have the camera installed behind the screen, in a position you can't tape over?

What camera are you referring to exactly? The one not mentioned anywhere in this article or the conspiracy theory you have keeping you up at night?

 

[vimann]

“ All HDMI cables deliver the same information”
This is not entirely true. Recently purchased a sound bar to go with my 4k tv and a $40 HDMI cable to connect the to. The cable was4K,HDR ready but the soundbar wouldn’t work turns out that the cable also has to be Ethernet compatible. Then you’ve got all the different spec from HDMI 1.0 to HDMI 2.0 and beyond to sort through.

While it may not have been very specific, I think the article refers to expensive HDMI cables, like when choosing between an average black cable vs. a brand-name colored sleeved gold-plated one. They'll both do the same job.
HDMI2.0 confused a lot of people, but it pertains to the equipment you have, not the cables themselves. For 4K 60fps, 3D, bells and whistles just get a cable rated High Speed with Ethernet and you're good to go.