Should I get 55” 1080p or 4K TV

ACHiPo · « **Reply #20 on:** 30 Jun 2015, 12:48 am »

Quote from: brother love on 29 Jun 2015, 06:37 pm

If you are talking 55" display with 12 ft. viewing distance, then you could even get by with a 720p display.

You would have to sit 7.5 ft. away to start seeing benefits of 4k, & that's if you have 4k material ...

I think that's equivalent to saying there's no need for anything other than zipcord for speaker wire

I've been impressed with the 4k TVs I've seen even at >7.5 ft and <55"--very film-like and engaging. The reason I decided not to go that direction was lack of media and Sony was the only company making a player, but that may have changed in the last year.

I don't watch much TV, either, but every time I sit down to watch my 75" Samsung I think, "wow this is a really nice picture". I can't even remember the technology (LED side illuminated, I think), but it's not OLED and it's not 4k.

I decided several consumer electronics purchases ago to buy from Costco--their included 2 year concierge warranty over shadows the performance difference between brands and technologies to me (aka zipcord

)--having to go through vendors' service made me appreciate the value of making one call, having it answered after 2 rings by a person, and getting resolution in a few minutes instead of days.

James Romeyn · « **Reply #21 on:** 30 Jun 2015, 03:15 am »

My friend was talking about 4k displays, and said one in particular at Costco includes up-scale technology for all sources below 4k, and that it worked very well.

Is 1080P still the highest resolution for projectors? Regardless the resolution advantage, I doubt it would be enough to give up a retractable perforated screen in my dual use system (92" in my case). Ideally sited speakers and video display both occupy the exact same height relative to the viewer's head. This means anything other than a perforated screen has to compromise audio quality or viewing height (or both). I suppose it's less critical with mediocre audio supporting the display, but that's not the case here.

I have seen countless high end video displays at the wrong height, and/or speakers at the wrong height, or both. It's almost impossible to overstate how strong is my distaste for such set ups compared to perfect height for both the screen and speakers. Someone I'm related to mounted his flat panel display (about 55") within about a foot of his 8' ceiling, and it's truly pathetic.

IMO the entire format of center speakers with horizontal driver array was invented solely to satisfy the requirements of flat panel video displays. I'm pretty sure that all commercial theaters employ perforated screen, at least in the area where is the center/dialog speaker.

One thing about audio quality this high that occasionally distracts is hearing cuts where they edited a line in the middle of the dialog. I noticed it in a TV show the other day and at first I thought something was wrong, but then I rewound it and clear as day heard where they cut in a half-sentence.

brooklyn · « **Reply #22 on:** 30 Jun 2015, 05:50 am »

Thank you everyone for the much needed insight. I was thinking that a 4K TV might
not benefit me as some of you said with my viewing distance and the size of the screen.

What I don’t understand is, who will sit seven feet away from a 4K 70” TV? In most
living room environments, the TV and the seating area are usually on opposite walls.

I will give myself a couple more days to be sure but I’m leaning towards the Samsung
55” 1080P. When I factor in that I only watch Blu Ray movies a few times a week that
TV makes the most sense to me.

Peter J · « **Reply #23 on:** 30 Jun 2015, 04:02 pm »

Brooklyn, not sure which model you're looking at, but got this email promo today.

FWIW, I bought my last TV from Tiger Direct...no issues.

Heck, you could get two for your budget!

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=9696028&sku=UAM-102926930&SRCCODE=WEM4581BY&utm_source=EML&utm_medium=main&utm_campaign=WEM4581&cm_lm=1892c84a3b694b70134e78eb2ebb9eab

brother love · « **Reply #24 on:** 30 Jun 2015, 05:03 pm »

Quote from: ACHiPo on 30 Jun 2015, 12:48 am

I think that's equivalent to saying there's no need for anything other than zipcord for speaker wire

I've been impressed with the 4k TVs I've seen even at >7.5 ft and <55"--very film-like and engaging. The reason I decided not to go that direction was lack of media and Sony was the only company making a player, but that may have changed in the last year.

The question really is: Using the same media source can you tell a difference between 720p/ 1080p/ 4k for a 55" display at a 10- 12 ft. viewing distance ? I would argue that all (3) resolutions would look good at that distance, & that you couldn't tell the difference.

When I looked at plasma displays in the brick & mortar stores, I took a tape measure & set the viewing distance to match my Den set-up, adjusted display settings off torch mode to more natural settings, then compared different resolutions/ display sizes.

Here is an article by Carlton Bale re: does 4k resolution matter: http://carltonbale.com/does-4k-resolution-matter/

brooklyn · « **Reply #25 on:** 30 Jun 2015, 05:19 pm »

Quote from: Peter J on 30 Jun 2015, 04:02 pm

Brooklyn, not sure which model you're looking at, but got this email promo today.

FWIW, I bought my last TV from Tiger Direct...no issues.

Heck, you could get two for your budget!

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=9696028&sku=UAM-102926930&SRCCODE=WEM4581BY&utm_source=EML&utm_medium=main&utm_campaign=WEM4581&cm_lm=1892c84a3b694b70134e78eb2ebb9eab

Thank you Peter, the price at Best Buy is the same as Tiger Direct.
I was at Best Buy earlier and I left there still not being 100% sure..

brooklyn · « **Reply #26 on:** 30 Jun 2015, 05:50 pm »

Quote from: brother love on 30 Jun 2015, 05:03 pm

The question really is: Using the same media source can you tell a difference between 720p/ 1080p/ 4k for a 55" display at a 10- 12 ft. viewing distance ? I would argue that all (3) resolutions would look good at that distance, & that you couldn't tell the difference.

When I looked at plasma displays in the brick & mortar stores, I took a tape measure & set the viewing distance to match my Den set-up, adjusted display settings off torch mode to more natural settings, then compared different resolutions/ display sizes.

Here is an article by Carlton Bale re: does 4k resolution matter: http://carltonbale.com/does-4k-resolution-matter/

Hi BL, I was at Best Buy earlier today to look at the Samsung 55” 1080p on sale for $699.99. The salesman went through the trouble of hooking up two TV’s side by side, a 55” 1080p and a 60” 4k playing out of the same DVD Player. Both TV’s were Samsung. The 4K TV upscaled the signal from the DVD player while the 1080p didn’t. I could barely notice any difference from the distance I would be watching in my living room at 12 feet…

That said, I definitely noticed some difference with the 4K 55” playing 4K content at 12 feet. The colors were a little more vivid and the picture was slightly sharper, it was noticeable to me but the difference wasn't huge. The question is, do I want to spend the additional money and future proof my investment or live with the 1080p which is really not bad at all.. I certainly could live with it for the next five years.... Oh the pain of it all…. LOL

steve f · « **Reply #27 on:** 30 Jun 2015, 06:45 pm »

I have a 4K TV. It might be a bit better than 1080p but unless you get a great deal, I question its value. It will blow away the basic TVs, but the quality units are pretty close. When 4K material is available, then it will be worth it.

Tyson · « **Reply #28 on:** 30 Jun 2015, 06:50 pm »

I'd get the 1080p because it's cheaper and a mature technology, which means there aren't going to be any massive improvements to the 1080p technology within the next year or 2.

4k on the other hand is more expensive because it's new. But it will also go through several technological improvements over the next couple of years, as all technology does. I'd wait for those improvements to happen and for the prices to drop a bit before investing.

zybar · « **Reply #29 on:** 30 Jun 2015, 08:58 pm »

Quote from: Tyson on 30 Jun 2015, 06:50 pm

I'd get the 1080p because it's cheaper and a mature technology, which means there aren't going to be any massive improvements to the 1080p technology within the next year or 2.

4k on the other hand is more expensive because it's new. But it will also go through several technological improvements over the next couple of years, as all technology does. I'd wait for those improvements to happen and for the prices to drop a bit before investing.

Well said Tyson.

I can still remember the early days of plasma and pj's in which it would cost $5-12k to get 720p displays.

George

LadyDog · « **Reply #30 on:** 30 Jun 2015, 09:37 pm »

I'll agree with the masses here, stick with 1080. Not that you want to mess with, but I'd also throw out the idea of a projector. For $1,200 you can get yourself a sweet little setup. Much nicer experience imo.

*Scotty* · « **Reply #31 on:** 30 Jun 2015, 11:06 pm »

Speaking for myself, I purchased a 55in Samsung thinking that would be large enough. When movies are watched that have been shot at or above 2.25 to 1 aspect ratio more than 20% of the total screen area is lost to black bars above and below the movie image a much larger screen such as a 70 or 80in, means that the image height is closer to that of the 16:9 aspect ratio as seen on my 55in. screen.
Hopefully the next set will be a 70or 80 inch OLED that is flat instead curved and will actually show a true black and have the contrast ratios seen on CRT and plasma sets.
Scotty

ACHiPo · « **Reply #32 on:** 1 Jul 2015, 01:23 am »

Quote from: brother love on 30 Jun 2015, 05:03 pm

The question really is: Using the same media source can you tell a difference between 720p/ 1080p/ 4k for a 55" display at a 10- 12 ft. viewing distance ? I would argue that all (3) resolutions would look good at that distance, & that you couldn't tell the difference.

When I looked at plasma displays in the brick & mortar stores, I took a tape measure & set the viewing distance to match my Den set-up, adjusted display settings off torch mode to more natural settings, then compared different resolutions/ display sizes.

Here is an article by Carlton Bale re: does 4k resolution matter: http://carltonbale.com/does-4k-resolution-matter/

I could clearly see the difference at Magnolia between 4k and 1080p on 55" TVs at about 8'. That being said, I still ended up buying a 75" 1080p and am very happy with it.

brooklyn · « **Reply #33 on:** 1 Jul 2015, 03:28 pm »

Well…. I’ve pretty much decided a 55” 1080p TV would suit my needs. Some people mentioned
a larger screen size and I would love to get one but a 55 will give me 15 more diagonal inches
then I have now and I just don’t have the room in my apartment for anything larger. Unless a
better deal comes my way, I’m hoping to pick up a 55" Samsung 1080P this week before the
holiday..

I do appreciate all the help from everyone that responded, it helped me sort things out.

Mike B. · « **Reply #34 on:** 1 Jul 2015, 03:36 pm »

The problem I see is the availability of 4K material to watch. The American broadcast standard is 720p - 1080i. That will not change. Huge investment to change. Another question is can the store a 4K movie on a disc?

brooklyn · « **Reply #35 on:** 2 Jul 2015, 05:19 pm »

I know… pictures or it didn’t happen… Samsung 55” 1080p. I popped in Iron Man on Blu Ray
to see how it it looked, the picture quality is excellent…. 55” was definitely the right size for
my space but it does make the old TV stand look small..

Thanks everyones for helping me with my purchase. Let the movie watching begin.

brother love · « **Reply #36 on:** 2 Jul 2015, 05:54 pm »

Congrats on the new display brooklyn. It looks nice.

Don't know if you ever frequent the Audio/Video Science Forum, but you can often get some good info from ISF calibrators/ individuals getting sets calibrated for recommended settings for your specific display:

http://www.avsforum.com/forum/166-lcd-flat-panel-displays/

brooklyn · « **Reply #37 on:** 2 Jul 2015, 09:09 pm »

Thank for the web site BL, it should come in handy… While I was setting up the new TV, I was
actually thinking about calibration. I use to have a setup DVD that I bought many years ago for
TV and surround sound but it became outdated for the newer TV’s, I might invest in another one…..
Tonight, I’m going to Red Box.

JLM · « **Reply #38 on:** 3 Jul 2015, 01:07 am »

Tons of rumors (urban legends) that trying to compare TV's at a big box is pointless due to:

1.) Where's the signal from (cable, satellite, amplified)?

2.) How strong/clear is the signal (compared to what you have at home)?

3.) Is each TV fed the exact same signal (impossible)?

4.) Has each TV settings been optimized (or messed with)?

5.) Which TV/brand does the store make the most profit from (Yes Virginia always follow the money)?

Probably best just to rely on professional review/comparisons.

bladesmith · « **Reply #39 on:** 3 Jul 2015, 01:16 am »

I bought a new Sony 60" hd lcd less than a year ago. I am now working with them on a replacement tv. It has a black blotch in the lower left hand corner, about the size of a soccer ball.

I thought buying Sony was a sure thing. But times have changed.

V....