Television tech talk.

[swee'pea99]

Just heard Auntie beeb is putting the whole of Blue Planet II in 4K on iPlayer as soon as the series ends this Sunday. It was bind-moggling enough as it was, 4K should be astonishing.

 

[marzjennings]

Ha ha - I have a 3D TV, but I have never even bothered taking the special glasses out of their box!

I toyed with getting a 4k TV 2.5 years ago when I bought the current set but decided that I would 'make do' with HD for the time being and upgrade to 4k (+HDR?) at a later date if finances permitted it.

I would be interested in a 4k TV for use as a computer monitor actually. I have some music software which is a real pixel-hog. At the moment, I have to overlay numerous windows and switch between them, and also do a lot of scrolling. A huge 4k TV would be great for that application!

My computer monitor at my old job was a 47" 4K Samsung curved screen, fantastic thing. I'm trying to convince IT at my new job to buy a similar screen.

 

[NorthernDave]

Just heard Auntie beeb is putting the whole of Blue Planet II in 4K on iPlayer as soon as the series ends this Sunday. It was bind-moggling enough as it was, 4K should be astonishing.

There is a teaser trailer for it in 4K on the iPlayer now, and you're right it's awesome.

 

[Tenacious Sloth]

We rarely bother with the HD TV, we find the normal TV good enough.

I know. Just have to look at your Avatar.



Graham

 

[Electric_Andy]

My tuppence worth if it helps: We have had 5 TVs in the last 8 years (some replaced due to damage). We found that our old LG was ok but basic. The older Panasonics are fairly sturdy but the picture isn't great (especially deep blacks). We did have a new LG 3 years ago but it went wrong of it's own accord, so we've been put off. We now have a Samsung and it's brilliant in every way.

I would recommend a 4k Samsung, in your chosen size, for as much as you can afford. Smart TVs are good, but as others have said you are paying more for that to be built in and there may well be software or hardware issues. My friend has this, and finds that the apps are really slow. Much better to plug in a dedicated smart TV box if that's what you want.

Just be weary of any branded TV that seems to be a bargain - even the big names like Samsung and Panasonic are now putting out mediocre TVs and using their brand name to make it look top quality, when in fact it's just an entry level TV made with cheaper parts with a fancy label stuck on.

 

[potsy]

Are you blind? Not sure why anybody would want such an oversized monstrosity in their living room. Just sayin.....

 

[DaveReading]

My sister and brother-in-law (my other sister's husband) don't even bother watching the HD TV channels when they have perfectly good HD TVs and HD signal sources. It really irritates me. I told them that it is like them hiding my reading glasses when I want to read some small print. I can do it, but what I am looking at is a bit blurred when it doesn't have to be. They just shrug their shoulders and carry on.

I frequently find myself switching over to HD when SWMBO has it on SD (even for Blue Planet).

Hang the expense, I say.

 

[NorthernDave]

Having a HD (or 4K) TV and then watching stuff in SD is like going for a ride on your bike and not using the big chain ring.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

I know. Just have to look at your Avatar.



Graham

???

 

[potsy]

I don't get why people watch SD if they have access to HD, so much better.

I am a late convert to it having got one recently, 55" eyeball buster, I can finally see the telly

 

[MontyVeda]

Having a HD (or 4K) TV and then watching stuff in SD is like going for a ride on your bike and not using the big chain ring.

The what?

 

[ColinJ]

I frequently find myself switching over to HD when SWMBO has it on SD (even for Blue Planet).

I just found out that my stepdaughter is another in the "Can't tell the difference/don't care about the difference" camp.

I don't get why people watch SD if they have access to HD, so much better.

I am a late convert to it having got one recently, 55" eyeball buster, I can finally see the telly

My stepdaughter pointed out that if you watch in HD you can see all the blemishes on the faces of celebs so perhaps the 'smoothing effect' of SD makes them look better!

I did a drizzly 100 km ride the other day and the effect of condensation on the lenses of my cycling glasses was a bit like watching TV in SD. I could still see where I was going, but everything looked a bit blurred. After stopping to wipe the lenses, I saw the world in 'HD' again.

It would be like opting to listen to music on a phone when you could listen to it on a good hifi system ... why would you choose to do that?

 

[potsy]

I just found out that my stepdaughter is another "Can't tell the difference/don't care about the difference

My stepdaughter pointed out that if you watch in HD you can see all the blemishes on the faces of celebs so perhaps the 'smoothing effect' of SD makes them look better!

I did a drizzly 100 km ride the other day and the effect of condensation on the lenses of my cycling glasses was a bit like watching TV in SD. I could still see where I was going, but everything looked a bit blurred. After stopping to wipe the lenses, I saw the world in 'HD' again.

It would be like opting to listen to music on a phone when you could listen to it on a good hifi system ... why would you choose to do that?

I was going to mention being able to see the actor's wrinkles, but decided better of it

 

[Tenacious Sloth]

???

low resolution

 

[Milzy]

The only decent Samsungs are the true QLED ones starting at £1500. After 2 hours talking to a tech geek the LG’s have really upped their game in all areas. Mines a lovely aluminium frame. The picture is as good as sets which cost hundreds more. The software is amazing, magic pointing remote is immense. Only idiots can’t get used to it.
I have the sandstorm HD 2.0 hdmi leads which are £80 each. Got a special deal on them. Also Samsung and LG’s will give you every channel in the world for free without a box if you know what you’re doing