TV Shopping

Kinja'd!!! "Snuze: Needs another Swede" (markg)
07/23/2015 at 09:48 • Filed to: None

Kinja'd!!!2 Kinja'd!!! 7

I imagine most of us on here have this similar problem in our families - since we’re inclined with mechanical and technical things, we constantly get turned to for advice, even if it’s outside of our sphere of knowledge.

My aunt just moved into a massive new house and she wants a new TV. The living room in this place is huge - I went over and took some measurements based on where the furniture was at and where she wanted it to be view-able from and I think she needs something 65”+.

We went shopping 2 weeks ago and she settled on a 70” Sharp Aquos Quattron at Best Buy. For the next 2 weeks Best Buy has given her the runaround saying they can’t get it, then they could, then they would have to ship it from a different store, etc. Long and short is, they don’t have it.

I think that model is being phased out - in fact I think all the 60”+ HDTVs are being phased out in favor of the 4K sets. I’m not totally sold on 4K yet - no one is broadcasting in it, and there’s no physical medium that supports it (i.e. Bluray). My aunt feels the same way, she thinks its a feature she doesn’t need or want. I really don’t know, haven’t researched it too far, so if I’m way off base on 4K, please, take me to school and give me knowledge.

I have a friend that used to sell TVs at Best Buy and always steered me towards Samsung or LG as top brands. He’s been out of the game for 5 years now so I’m not sure if they are still good. Does anyone here stay current on this type of thing? Could you make some TV recommendations? As far as budget, I think she’d like to be around $1600 give or take a bit.

Kinja'd!!!

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DISCUSSION (7)


Kinja'd!!! nFamousCJ - Keeper of Stringbean, Gengars and a Deezul > Snuze: Needs another Swede
07/23/2015 at 09:56

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I went plasma Samsung, 52” and paid nearly half of what I would have paid had I gone LED. It looks amazing and the blacks are super dark.

Something to consider.

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Also I fucking hate this troll. But I like their cars and work they do.


Kinja'd!!! Nibbles > Snuze: Needs another Swede
07/23/2015 at 10:05

Kinja'd!!!0

Most 4k TVs upscale and the difference is definitely noticeable especially in the size you’re looking at. Netflix, YouTube, Hulu and others have adopted 4k (UHD-1) and broadcasts are slowly going that way as well. Blu-Ray has adopted it as well and will be producing 4K discs later this year. Think of it like when HDTV itself came out.

That being said, VISIO makes one hell of a TV for a great price. They’re on par with Samsung and nearly as crisp as LG. Plasmas (as CJ recommended below) are great - I have one myself - but they put out a lot of heat and are incredibly heavy vs LCD/LED. Those cons are tradeoffs with the plasma’s much better contrast, response time and pixel clarity.


Kinja'd!!! Rico > Snuze: Needs another Swede
07/23/2015 at 10:12

Kinja'd!!!0

Samsung, LG, Sony are still top players in the game. Sharp is good but I am NOT a fan of Quattron because of the yellow tint/hue it artificially adds. Vizio is a great bargain brand but at that size I wouldn’t recommend them, their video processing hardware leaves a lot to be desired but their sets are feature rich and unless she’s a video phile she won’t notice.

You are right about 4K, to me it is currently useless and likely will be for another 5 years. Upscaling to 4K is also not great. As far as the model being discontinued, that might be the case. New models of HDTV’s are introduced every March/April, if this TV was a left over 2014 model chances are it will be hard to find.


Kinja'd!!! Stapleface-Now Hyphenated! > Snuze: Needs another Swede
07/23/2015 at 10:12

Kinja'd!!!0

Samsung and LG both do make good sets. The Sharp Aquos line is really good too. But, if Best Buy can’t get it, that really doesn’t help you much. I’ve also had good success with Sony, but you tend to pay a premium for them. A good budget company is Vizio. I’ve had a Vizio 42” Plasma for 8 years now, and it’s still chugging along just fine. The picture on the Sony looks a little better, to me, buy it’s also 5 years newer. I’ve attached a snip from Consumer Reports and their ratings on TVs. Maybe it’ll help steer her in the right direction.

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Kinja'd!!! boxrocket > Snuze: Needs another Swede
07/23/2015 at 10:15

Kinja'd!!!0

Stick with Sharp. I went through this dame dilemma earlier this year with my next door neighbor, and the Aquos is the best overall for picture quality (especially picture quality, IMHO), reliability/longevity, value for the money, and sound. They got a 70” unit and it’s awesome, such that I’ve been gradually trying to convince my wife we need a bigger TV in our living room when we replace the wedding-present Dynex that currently resides there.

Check out other electronics stores if you want local options, as well as TigerDirect, Amazon/Woot, MicroCenter, Fry’s, Staples, etc. Even local appliance stores sell them, amd usually throw in complimentary installation to entice you away from the big box stores.

Make sure to compare the current year model numbers as well, to make sure you’re not getting an older model, or one specially made with end-of-run parts and fewer features - TVs made for Black Friday and Cyber Monday are notorious for having outdated components, cheaper screens and backlight systems, maybe only 2 HDMI ports compared to the usual 4+, etc., for example.


Kinja'd!!! misfitmascots > Snuze: Needs another Swede
07/23/2015 at 10:44

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If it was my money, I’d go 4K. Netflix and I think directv are already doing it. And 4K blu rays will be out in the next 3-4 months so why not get a TV that will be future proof at least for a couple years.


Kinja'd!!! Rico > nFamousCJ - Keeper of Stringbean, Gengars and a Deezul
07/23/2015 at 10:55

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I want to love plasma, when I used to work at Best Buy in high school we had Pioneer plasmas and those were to die for. But my hang up with plasmas after they phased out the Pioneers was the dithering. My eyes are super sensitive to it and the Pioneers barely had any while all the rest of the brands had it bad enough it was distracting.