[roscoeiii]

LG OLED sale has them as low as 1799!

[mcgsxr]

Guess I'll get my videophile card burned......

I think you're fairly safe around here if you're more focused on the audio!

Seriously - I own 3 Panny plasma's.  An old 720p 42.  A 1080p 60 (ST I think).  A 1080p 55 (VT for sure).

They all are great for what they do well - nice pic if you can control the ambient light.

I could replace all with anything on the market today and not care much.  As long as I can watch what I want, I am not big into picture quality.

I use the 60 for most of my "serious" viewing as it is in the HT in the basement.  The VT has the best pic, but is on the main floor in our open concept kitchen/family room area.

I can state emphatically that for 90% of the viewing on that level I could swap the old 42 for it and not care - other than the smaller panel.

One of them will die soon no doubt (I repaired the VT55 last year) and when it does I will juggle them - assuming the oldest dies first (42) I would move the 55 to the bedroom, the 60 to the family room and see if I can swing a PJ for the basement.  Or just buy a 60-65 Vizio at Costco.

[Big Red Machine]

I will say that the Sony with the full backlighting shames the Samsung SUHD TV I own. Both crystal clear on 4K content but the Sony just does everything better. I'm glad I went for the Sony this time around for my little makeshift theater system in the basement. And all you guys were correct, go big or go home on the screen size. Wish I could afford the 85 inch versions, maybe next time!

[Art_Chicago]

Just my 2 cents: I have installed a Sony projector with a 110" screen in the basement , and while it does not have a 4K capability, the full HD picture quality is breathtaking! I was skeptical about the projectors  before, but now I wonder why i did not switch earlier...

[jarcher]

Great cheap projectors are actually probably the most interesting thing in the home theater display arena. After going to projectors about 6 years ago I wouldn't want to watch a movie any other way.

With flat panels these days it seems more about how many useless apps and crap they can shove in. Though I will say I was blown away by Sonys High dynamic range master drive demo at 2016 CES.  Not what's in their 2016 sets now - but the skunk works thing for the future. Actual real life levels of dynamic range and particularly brightness, even if OLED still does black levels better.

[Bob in St. Louis]

I vote for PJ. 

[chip]

Good notes here -
I am also looking to jump up in size from my current 55" Sony EX500 LCD.

1. Budget
$1200 max less is better


2. Seating distance
Roughly 9’

3. Size/placement limitations
Looking at a 65”/70” to replace my current Sony 55” LCD

4. Uses and sources
OTA HDTV - TV Shows/Sports
HTPC playback - moving to the shield for playback soon from Plex.
Netflix Playback


So from rtings.com Best 65 Inch TV - $1,000 to $1,500 they list the following -

Vizio M65-D0 -

Samsung UN65KU6300 -

Sony XBR65X750D -

Also saw a Refurb VIZIO M65-C1 65-Inch which is last years model.

Thoughts.....

[ctviggen]

When you are looking at these, are they all 4K TVs?

[Todd Willhoit]

LG OLED sale has them as low as 1799!

I saw that.  It is now back up to $1,997.  A little pricey even at $1,700, but a fantastic picture.

I will say that the Sony with the full backlighting..

Which model?

At today's prices & tech I wonder if there are really any truly bad deals on Tvs anymore?

I wonder that too, but it appears that my eyes/brain may be more sensitive to motion than for most people.  On material with fast action, usually football, I can see adjacent frames in areas of the screen with fast motion.  I don't really know how to explain it.  I don't believe it is motion blur, as I see crisp images.


PLOT TWIST:  WHAT WOULD YOU DO??

Samsung has offered two options:
1) Exchange for a factory refurbished UN55KS9000FXZA with a 90 day warranty for a $150 fee
or
2) Pro-rated buyback for $712.49

I was already investigating the Samsung UN55KS9000FXZA ($1,500 on Amazon) and the Best Buy salesperson pointed out the discounted LG OLED55B6P ($2,000 on Amazon).  Although I am not a videophile, I doubt the Samsung will get close to the black levels of the plasma, but I could be wrong.  Does anyone have experience with these or something else comparable to the old plasma?  What would you do?

[Doublej]

Take the money.

[jarcher]

Take the money.

Yup - and get the LG B series deal & be happy knowing you have the best!

[Bob2]

TV deals are something you want to research well before pulling the trigger.
I picked up a new Sony 4K in August and the black Friday and cyber monday sale price now is $500 more than what I paid for the same set.
Projector is a great way to go if you can. Worth the price many times over.

Take the money!

[Big Red Machine]

Which model?

Xbr75x940D

[Folsom]

Are you sure you don't want a 100" Sony? They're only  $57,999 more from the 65".

[ctviggen]

Personally, since I'm always behind the bleeding edge of tech, I'd pay the $150 and get the refurb.  Then hopefully that will last long enough for some clarity in the TV market:  4k?  OLED? Curved or flat? Etc.?  I still have plasma TVs, which no one really makes anymore.  And we have one TV in our house (but two in our in-law apartment).  But I can control the lights by asking Alexa to turn them on or off, so I guess I'm not completely behind in tech, though I am about to buy a refurb receiver that's the "old" model -- but receivers and their constantly evolving tech are another thread.

[Don_S]

How much history does OLED have?  My Sharp LED will be 10 years old in February. It still works great but I am watching new offerings and trying to stay educated for that fateful day.  What I don't want is a TV that won't last.  I am not sure I want to be on the cutting edge. I certainly don't need to be there. I particularly like the new edgeless TVs.  But a little too pricey right now.

On buying--I have read that Black Friday is not guaranteed to be the best day to purchase some things like TVs.  Other holidays, Super Bowl specials, and model changes can offer equally good or better pricing. CES is a month away.  I am curious what that will bring in the way of new models.

[Philistine]

I've got a couple of Panasonic plasma's (55" and 45") and an Epson projector with a 92" screen - this is my second projector.  Projector prices have gone down exponentially, along with the fan noise, the picture quality and the capacity to perform in daylight have improved exponentially also.  There must be a screen size at which projectors become more cost effective - at current prices I would go for a TV below 65" and a projector for anything larger.

[jarcher]

How much history does OLED have?  My Sharp LED will be 10 years old in February. It still works great but I am watching new offerings and trying to stay educated for that fateful day.  What I don't want is a TV that won't last.  I am not sure I want to be on the cutting edge. I certainly don't need to be there. I particularly like the new edgeless TVs.  But a little too pricey right now.

On buying--I have read that Black Friday is not guaranteed to be the best day to purchase some things like TVs.  Other holidays, Super Bowl specials, and model changes can offer equally good or better pricing. CES is a month away.  I am curious what that will bring in the way of new models.

LG OLED tech is mature.  Eventually Samsung will come out with their own - I'd guess next year. 

At under $2K for an entry level LG OLED "B" series, I'd say you don't have that much to lose.  Playing the whole price waiting game I personally think is pointless.  It will ALWAYS be cheaper sometime down the road.  Buy when you need / want it & be happy.

I don't think TV operating life is as long as it use to be, and frankly I think that's just because the selling cost are constantly plummeting and the margins are ever more razor thin. I don't think anyone expects anyone to keep a TV any longer beyond 5 years, so why build to a higher standard? Sadly I think this is starting to happen even w/ substantially higher capital expenses : e.g. cars.

What seems to fail as much or more often on modern TV's is HDMI inputs or even entire boards vs even the panels themselves.  I seem to hear a bit more about Samsung failures lately than other major brands, but this is not based on a big enough sample to be "scientific".

[ctviggen]

If the choice is between spending $150 to get what you have now, or to spend $1800 to get something possibly better, my choice is the former and not the latter.  Personally, I am unimpressed by most TVs, but I also have a relatively small TV that I watch from far away. I am also never on the cutting edge, for instance, I think 3-D is BS. And I wouldn't put too much into 4K unless you have a large screen or watch TV from close. Now, if you have a dedicated home theater room where you can watch a big screen, that might be a different story.

[mcgsxr]

Fascinating comment about cars - it may finally drive me (hee hee) to lease!  Not likely, but if used cars start failing at massive rates it might.

As for TV, I am not a fan of chasing fads.  I do own a 3D capable TV (Panny VT55) but that was free.

When my brother was recently TV shopping we had a similar discussion.  I recommended a 70 inch non 4K.  It would have saved around $500 vs the 4K unit.  My rationale was the lack of 4K content at the time.  He decided to pop for it, as he expects more 4K content soon.

I will always buy the TV that fits, for the $ I want to spend, and take the tech available at that price.  I just don't care enough about TV watching - when I bought my first HD panel, I bought the 720P vs the more expensive 1080p units at the time.  I did not see 1080p showing up via broadcast TV anytime soon at that time.

Agree that movies/dedicated HT might make a difference - though when I was kitting out my finished HT, I went with a 1K 60 inch Plasma (Panny ST60 at the time) based on price and my experience to date with their panels.

You cannot lose - there are great pictures out there at many sizes and resolution options.