Is 4K HDR HDTV Now Mainstream TV Tech?

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LoneRanger

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Browsing the market for a new TV again. Mainly because my venerable old Hitachi 51F59 made in 2005 only does 1080i or 720p and I believe it is hamstringing my new PlayStation VR headset. I believe the PS4 can only process/send a single signal type to both the TV and the VR headset's OLED 5" screen simultaneously. The OLED in the VR headset is 1080p HDR capable but since the TV maxes at 720p or 1080i the headset is being ran at whichever of those resolutions instead of it's full rated 1080p HDR. So the solution will be to upgrade my TV to modern day, LoL. The old Hitachi has been in service since April 2006, guess I got my money's worth (paid $899 back then). Not seeking the drop dead be$t 4K HDR $et out there, and not even planning to stream 4K content but makes sense if buying now, to go for 4K instead of a 1080p only set. I like Vizio, seems like a solid entry level brand. Fiancee has a 43" non-smart Vizio 1080p LED that has been rock solid and the picture quality and color fidelity is really good. Hoping to spend under $500.
 
For TVs over a certain size it does appear so... We bought a LG OLED recently and its amazing when watching 4k content (limited). Otherwise OTA or STB stuff is generally just good, though the OLED does do blacks very well. We upgraded our Netflix to UHD subscription which allows 4k streaming and the content is really good and totally worth the extra $4 a month.
 
Cool. Also, forgot to mention the screen size I'm looking at will probably be 55"
 
Yes, 4K and HDR are both mainstream tech. Since Vizio took the tuners out of their televisions, they've been off my list of recommendations. A television without a tuner is a huge step in the wrong direction. The TCL P-series is the best buy in televisions right now. $650 nets you 4K, HDR, a proper tuner, Roku software, and 55 inches. A little over your budget, but it punches way above its weight class. Just to make things confusing, TCL renames the P-series to 6-series (or P6-series) for 2018. They're all good, but you can probably find the 2017 models at a slight discount now. The only thing people scoff at is the size. The typical retort is that they can get a 65" [insert whatever brand here] for less. Choose quantity over quality if you'd like, but you're buying an inferior television.
 
https://www.costco.com/Philips-50%22-Class-(49.5%22-Diag.)-4K-Ultra-HD-LED-LCD-TV.product.100375313.html Waaaaay under 500. I have a 9 year old "ultimate dust bunny", my wife wants a new one that we will never watch. I was surprised how cheap they are. Apparently smart TVs are the thing, not just 4K. I hate an idea of something listening to what I say and do so that it can shove things in my face I don't want to buy or see.
 
4K is "mainstream", with caveats that it takes more bandwidth to stream, not everyone provides content in 4K, media with 4K tends to be more expensive and requires a different player, etc. Some media can be "upscaled" to 4K, FWIW - depending upon if you're a connoisseur or not, this may be an acceptable path or not. 4K looks great. I kept a CRT TV for the limited viewing we did until about two years ago when we got 4K. 720 and 1080 were not compelling to me. Sure, they could look decent if everything was perfect, but other elements I guess have improved as part of the 4K enablers. One of the things I hated most was jitter and pixelation, especially with movement, and especially when a "not as good" source came in. Looked terrible - might as well just watch on a CRT. I assume that the higher computing and video requirments for 4K helped to self correct and resolve a lot of that. I wouldn't buy a TV if it wasn't 4K, personally. And as 4K rolls out further, that will become more of the necessity/norm Id think...
 
just wait- a new breakthru will be in the market in 1 year. TV industry has been doing that since the 50s, - in 60s "black shadow mask was the big deal, its an advertising and tech update thing. same with word processing programs, an update every year , they move stuff around. tvs to me have looked great for 10 years
 
There are a lot of good, cheap TV's, but be careful. We purchased a 2013 Samsung 7-series LED LCD 60" 1080p that still looks amazing (8-series is the latest and greatest, but costs a lot more!) It looks better than many new, cheaper 4K TV's, IMO. My dad has a lower-tier, newer Samsung 4K TV and he was really impressed with how good our TV looked a couple of weeks ago, when he was up visiting. I've seen his, and while it does look nice, it's not really that much better, especially considering they watch mostly HD, not UHD. I'm not sure how much he paid for his, but I paid two grand for ours (on sale @ NEX, if you can believe it), and I'm hoping it will last us 10+ years. Do some research and definitely check out some friend's TV's. The tech in TV varies wildly, so that a higher-end 4K TV with true HDR will look objectively much better than the cheapest 4K TV that is also labeled as offering HDR. Finally, each TV is tunable, and will result in a much different look than what you might see on, say, display models, which I've noticed are typically in "presentation [or display] mode". // If I needed a new TV today, it would be a 4K TV. Unless research dictated going with something cheaper, I'd imagine that I'd follow similar logic as previously and purchase a 60-65" OLED 4K with true HDR (LG or Samsung, likely).
 
Originally Posted By: LoneRanger
I like Vizio, seems like a solid entry level brand. Fiancee has a 43" non-smart Vizio 1080p LED that has been rock solid and the picture quality and color fidelity is really good.
Did a bunch of research and bought the same TV - $240 at local Walmart (D43n, 43" full-array LED). With a basic calibration, and feeding the highest quality possible, it looks great. Just a few years ago this would have been a top-tier ($$$) model!
 
I bought a 50” Vizio 4K at Walmart around Thanksgiving and paid much less than $500. It’s where the technology is headed so why not? For these old eyes anything that is sharper is a blessing.
 
I'm pretty sure that Consumer Reports just rated TVs, worth looking at them before buying if you can find a copy or know somebody with a subscription who can show you the online material. They definitely point out some high priced sets with all the bling that don't actually look that good. I bought a 55" 4K set about a year ago and the price was reasonable. I'm sure there are sets that look better and a lot of people need more than 2 HDMI ports, but it's fine for us.
 
2006, yup, your ready for a new 4k. As another has posted here, I am anti Vizio now, really cheap that they do not include TV tuners in some of their sets now. My best signal (other then the bluray player) by far comes through our attic TV antenna for all the local major networks, then comes streaming which is still acceptable. The draw for us would be an upstreaming 4K ultra dvd player (we rent a lot of redbox) on a larger 65/70 inch TV, we currently have a 58 1080p.
 
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I bought a 4K w/HDR smart 55" for $449 and I think it's an awesome TV. Also bought a 39" 1080p smart TV for $199 for the bedroom which also looks great It's nuts what you can get these days for under $500. Got both of mine at Best Buy who seem to have the best selection and prices on TVs when I was shopping around. IMO, if you're going to buy a new TV just spring for a smart 4K with HDR and it will take you many years into the future.
 
Originally Posted By: MrHorspwer
Since Vizio took the tuners out of their televisions, they've been off my list of recommendations. A television without a tuner is a huge step in the wrong direction.
Wait, what? Have to have a QAM tuner in the TV since I use an OTA antenna to get local channels in HD. Onboard tuner is a must for me. When did Vizio start doing such a cheap [censored] thing?
 
Originally Posted By: LoneRanger
Originally Posted By: MrHorspwer
Since Vizio took the tuners out of their televisions, they've been off my list of recommendations. A television without a tuner is a huge step in the wrong direction.
Wait, what? Have to have a QAM tuner in the TV since I use an OTA antenna to get local channels in HD. Onboard tuner is a must for me. When did Vizio start doing such a cheap [censored] thing?
They took the tuner out of some models, not all. Mostly higher end units - if you're using it in a home theater, typically the built in tuner will never be used as most would prefer a DVR. I know I've never used it, I have an OTA antenna and it goes into a DVR.
 
4K HDR might be the new buzzphrase with the TV makers yes - but until content catches up, it's not really mainstream and not everyone has Netflix/Amazon Prime Video/Hulu or Dish/DirecTV. I've seen 4K at work on a new Samsung 9 series, and Fry's had a 1st gen Sony Bravia 4K on display back in 2013/14. They look sharp but I think there's a limit to what the human eye can see.
 
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