Televisions

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Char
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Televisions

#1 Post by Char »

We need a new tele and are totally bemused after going shopping for one today, so I'm hoping one of you clever people might be able to point us in the right direction.

What on earth is an android tv, I know I have an android tablet and phone, but why do I need that on a television.

Is there really any advantage in getting a tv with wifi - if I want to watch something on tele over the internet I usually just plug my hard drive into the tele.

What does 5K mean?

I'm not a technophobe obviously but an easy job of going to buy a new tele has turned into rather a complicated thought process and I'd be grateful for any help.
Many thanks

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Hotrodder
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#2 Post by Hotrodder »

It's all just technobabble, calculated to make the unwary think they need the latest, greatest, bells and whistles that their previous device doesn't have. Remember the big push for "HD ready" TVs? Pushing them at least two years before any HD broadcasts were even on the air. Curved screen? Another must have? 3D telly? Do you know anyone that fell for that nonsense?

Rather than jumping in blind and buying the most hyped feature that you may never use, try to research which late models have the best reviews for reliability and low power usage. Look also at how they sound. Most are so crap at producing decent sound that you'll need to pay several hundred on top for a "Sound Bar" to compensate. The downside of ever larger screens is that there is no room for decent integral speakers for the sound. This must be what they call progress. :lol: :lol:
On my headstone it will say: Please switch off mobile phones. I'm trying to get some sleep.

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RobertArthur
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#3 Post by RobertArthur »

Char, l'embarras du choix......First of all: I'm glad I don't have to explain the differences anymore between between PAL, SECAM and NTSC (Never The Same Colour) tv's. Big relief? No, although I used to repair tellies and video recorders (for friends, friends of friends, family members, neighbours) and sometimes go window shopping I find it rather difficult to appreciate all the extras in the plus 600 euro range. The more software, the more updates, we've seen it before. We bought a 'simple' Toshiba when the TNT coding system here in France changed to the second high definition version, exit our little TNT tuner box, why not buy a flatscreen with everything inside already. WiKi about this change: " Le 5 avril 2016, toute la TNT passe au MPEG-4, une norme de compression plus performante que le MPEG-2 encore utilisé pour les chaînes en définition standard. Ce changement permet de diffuser les 25 chaînes gratuites de la TNT en haute définition, contre seulement 10 jusque-là ."

The newest generation is a software based beast, see the modern car, and that's where an operating system as Android makes the task of the manufacturers easier: the OS is already available and you only (?) have to develop apps, with the help of our friend Google of course. Before presenting a few links, one thing comes to mind: our Toshiba still has a scart connection and of course several hdmi inputs. The scart (peritel) plug is only useful if you have an old video recorder or dvd player and will be hard to find in today's tv generation.

Other factors to consider: screen size, what used to be large 43- 47 inch - is now a minority in the showroom, sat tuner on board, sound quality, ease of use of the menu where sometimes once simple gestures are now hiding deep down in the settings, is it possible to receive the very high definition pictures where you live and from here others will surely add a whole lot of other considerations.

LInks:

Tom's guide.

The French tv market.

Hey Google

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#4 Post by Pachapapa »

3D telly? Do you know anyone that fell for that nonsense?

Yes me!
In 2010.

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RobertArthur
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#5 Post by RobertArthur »


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Hotrodder
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#6 Post by Hotrodder »

Pachapapa wrote: ↑Tue Dec 07, 2021 8:26 pm 3D telly? Do you know anyone that fell for that nonsense?

Yes me!
In 2010.
How's the therapy going?
On my headstone it will say: Please switch off mobile phones. I'm trying to get some sleep.

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RobertArthur
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#7 Post by RobertArthur »

Imagine, having spent a fortune on a 3-D tv, low on budget, and then an expensive therapy to perhaps make things worse?

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Char
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#8 Post by Char »

Thanks everyone more reading and thinking to do. Who'd have thought buying a tele would be so complicated. :lol:

Pachapapa
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#9 Post by Pachapapa »

On watching Avatar in 3D at a cinema in Leicester I immediately decided to go 3D but not with polarised lens which reduce the picture definition. Twelve years on I watch all sport, travel, scenery etc in 3D.
This evening the La Scala sets rendered well in 3D. The Dolby Digital + comes over fine on the Denon 5.1 system.
Not enough 4k material on TV to warrant changing to a 4k TV. Lots
3D BDs and Blu Ray 3D player.
Looking forward to F1 in 3D on Saturday.

Headers
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#10 Post by Headers »

Another important choice factor is the colour of the picture. Some of them are really harsh, others insipid. It’s worth going to look in a shop and compare them side by side. We actually bought online a Panasonic 55” internet connected telly in 2015 and yes it was 3D - end of model so very cheap! This replaced a massive Sony projected tv that we bought in 2006 - it takes up less space and uses way less power.
The 3D is quite good fun if you can find any films to watch on it.
The sound is ok but we also have a stand alone speaker system that is plugged into it for extra quality.
The software is difficult to use but we have an Amazon fire stick that plugs into one of the usb plugs(make sure you buy a tv with at least a couple of those on the back!)

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