Planning to replace my television...

Thread Starter

Externet

Joined Nov 29, 2005
2,202
But do not know all the modern stuff...

My main concern is it must have
- ethernet RJ45 jack
- web browser
- Upgradeable firmware
- ~ 43 inch
- <$300
+ any suggested candidates and features from you. (Have a 2009 Samsung now, but am not comfortable with it)

Questions :
Is this animal a "Roku TV" or need to buy that gadget + suscribe? ----> https://www.bestbuy.com/site/lg-43-...4k-uhd-smart-webos-tv/6501937.p?skuId=6501937

If there is a built-in web browser; is Roku needed ? Never used such Roku.

Are favorite internet TV websites able to be saved in some folder for instant recall or have to be searched for every time ?

Am looking at that tv because TCL, Onn, Hisense... brands may not have a decent web browser. Is that right ?
 

SamR

Joined Mar 19, 2019
5,031
We have a Samsung. It is connected to the net (in addition to sat tv) so it has access to both Amazon Prime Video and Netflix (among others). It uses a "Fire Stick" whatever that is. I don't watch TV but my wife and son do. One thing I would look for would be Ultra HD ability. I'd also preview them in a showroom for clarity and density. Connectivity, connectivity, connectivity! The more the merrier!
 

dendad

Joined Feb 20, 2016
4,452
I would go with a dumb TV if you can get one, with no network connection, and use an external network box. That way you can have better choice of connectivity. In my experience, the 'smarts" in a smart TV are pretty dumb. And you have a greater choice of the smart stuff if it is external to the TV.
 

MisterBill2

Joined Jan 23, 2018
18,176
My shopping for a TV was a rather negative experience. I asked about "quality" and the guy started telling me about all of the features. So I explained that I wanted to know how long it would keep working properly and he started to describe all of their service contract plans. I excused myself and left.
I realize that current consumer electronic products are mostly not built to be repairable, although I have repaired a few in the past.
Definitely learning about the product is the way to go.

I was given a "smart box" that would make a regular TV be able to see the smart TV programming. I read all of the instructions and discovered that a lot of that stuff is not free. The demand was that to make it work I had to give them my credit card information. I still have that "smart TV" box, opened but unused. Anybody interested? Just pay for shipping to you.
 

MrSalts

Joined Apr 2, 2020
2,767
I was going to tell you to get a Dumb TV with some external boxes but, all the external boxes drove my wife crazy so she stopped watching Netflix and Prime and Apple+. Get a smart TV that can be controlled with one remote - easily. It may not be the "best" but at least it will get used and enjoyed by all family members if it is easy to learn.
 

SamR

Joined Mar 19, 2019
5,031
Smart's definition seems to change rapidly and if you don't want to change TV's to keep up with it, seems to make sense to keep the "smart" external as upgrading it would be far cheaper than buying a new TV every time "smart" changes. I would go for Ultra HD and the Samsungs seem to have a bit of longevity. I think ours is going on ~10 years now. Roku seems to have come and gone? Oh yeah, I got lucky, when our Sony CRT finally gave up the ghost our youngest son was in High School and working part time for Circuit City so no gobbledygook salesman to deal with. I'd go for the "How does it look and sound" shopping experience.
 
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MrSalts

Joined Apr 2, 2020
2,767
I still have and regularly use my 2008 42" Samsung HD TV.
My other TV is a 55" 4K Samsung that is flawless.

The issue with some low price TVs is the blurriness or jerkiness of slow processors when watching sports or action movies. These slow processors cannot handle when the entire image changes width each frame. Grass on the football field just becomes a green mass, the spinning football becomes a brown blob streaking across the screen. A hockey puck becomes invisible. HD TV is the greatest improvement to watching Hockey but only if you have a good cable system, good cable box and good TV with modern hardware. Don't cheap out on a TV if you enjoy sports or action movies.
 

Reloadron

Joined Jan 15, 2015
7,501
Been using a Sony Bravia which has to be over 15 ~ 18 years old. Never a problem with it so I can't justify getting a new set. It's pre smart so since the wife uses Amazon Prime I just added an Amazon Firestick. It's a 50" and we have a 32" Smart Panasonic in the bedroom which has always worked fine, maybe 7 or 8 years old. I guess when the time comes I'll just shop from scratch the way I did with the Sony. As to ROKU my read is some sets have it and for some sets you add the box. Amazon and Best Buy seem to have the ROKU bases covered but I have no clue as to smaller screen?

Ron
 

MaxHeadRoom

Joined Jul 18, 2013
28,619
Now the main makes are also split along the new two main technologies of OLED & QLED.
For display electronics, I have always gone with Samsung, due to the reliability factor.
This time I went with Sony.
A lot of Internet content available.
Automatic software upgrades occur when available.
 

Ya’akov

Joined Jan 27, 2019
9,072
We use Samsung TVs with Apple TVs connected. The Samsung native apps work but we usually use the Apple TV since it has everything and is connected to our Apple accounts. We live in the Apple ecosystem so for us, this is an excellent arrangement. If you are not already using Apple’s products and services, I am really not sure if an Apple TV is a good thing. There is also the advantage of the integration of HomeKit for HA and Siri which provides voice control and makes operating the TV very easy.

The Samsung native apps do work well enough to be usable and they are available for all the services you might want. I can’t really comment on the particular TV to buy, all of ours are large ones because of the rooms they are in, but if there is a Samsung in your price-size range, I don’t think you will be disapppointed.
 

MisterBill2

Joined Jan 23, 2018
18,176
I am impressed with the comments about Samesong. Years ago my wife bought a samesong VCR, with warbely sound. Had to exchange it twice to get one that had stable sound on playback. So that put them off the list for a long time.

The interesting thing is the smart TV must have an adequate internet connection for all the programming that is not over the air or via cable. So there is a basic cost that nobody mentions.
Another caution is to be sure that whatever you buy has the controls on the set, and not only on the remote. Consider that TV remote controls seem to be made with the very poorest quality PCB available, so the remote is subject to failure even from normal use and handling. And when the battery runs down or leaks you are not watching anything any more.
 

Ya’akov

Joined Jan 27, 2019
9,072
The interesting thing is the smart TV must have an adequate internet connection for all the programming that is not over the air or via cable. So there is a basic cost that nobody mentions.
Another caution is to be sure that whatever you buy has the controls on the set, and not only on the remote. Consider that TV remote controls seem to be made with the very poorest quality PCB available, so the remote is subject to failure even from normal use and handling. And when the battery runs down or leaks you are not watching anything any more.
I find it unlikely that I am rare in not having cable at all but having a good broadband connection. I don't miss cable, and I can get any of the content I might want via the 'net for less than the cable cost. I also have an antenna on the TV (flat, hidden behind) should there ever be a need for OTA reception.

I don't know of any TVs that don't have controls on the back though I have to say I haven't seen any recently with the controls on the front. Of course, a replacement remote is very easy to get, you don't have to source the OEM version with all of the universal remotes on the market.

The Samsung remotes are very well made, and the one in the living room still has the batteries that were provided by Samsung—four years ago. I suspect that things have moved on since you last had to pay close attention to TV offerings.
 

MrSalts

Joined Apr 2, 2020
2,767
Consider that TV remote
You need to reconsider how critical loss of a remote control is. First, I have dropped my Samsung remote on the hard floor, spilled on it and crushed it in my recliner. The Samsung is still going strong on the 2008 version TV as well as the more recent 4K TV from Samsung.
Second, if my remote dies, there are plenty of universal remotes available and even programmable remotes - simply enter the TVs make and model number on a website, plug the remote into a laptop with a usb cable and you have a perfect set of buttons to control the TV

finally, there are plenty of TVs damaged everyday by a two-year-old with a bat or golf club or errant ball. Many of those poor owners of broken TVs attempt to recover some of their loss by selling the perfectly good remote on sites like eBay. For $10-20, you can find a perfect replacement for nearly any remote.
...seem to be made with the very poorest quality PCB available
I'd like to see some photos of these "very poorest quality PCBs available". I just haven't seen this to be true in Samsung remotes. The buttons work forever and even a corroded battery doesn't bother the battery contacts (no weakness or corrosion).
 

Audioguru again

Joined Oct 21, 2019
6,674
I have a 3 years old 55" SMART TV that is 4K UHD when watching 4K streaming shows from wifi. Ordinary cable TV channels are all ordinary HD that is also extremely clear.

I also have an old 43" hand-me-down HD TV that shows ordinary HD TV channels extremely clearly. It shows internet streaming from a Google Chromecast thingy.

TVs 30 years ago showed old scanning lines. I remember when color TV was introduced. De-scrambling pay-TV was easy and fun.
 
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