Which TV brand for a good app ecosystem?

ianp5a

ianp5a

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I'm going to buy a large TV soon, but I don't know anything about the various app ecosystems, and usability of the main brands like Sony, Samsung, Philips and LG.
Presumably they have a different choice of apps?
Some things might be possible with one and not another?
Are any better than all the others?
Are there any pitfalls or things to avoid?
Or am I better off ignoring what's in the TV and stick to an external internet box like my Amazon Fire TV.

thanks

A TV recently:
tv+2.jpg
 
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It's a personal choice - I nearly went for a Sony, but although the picture quality was good, they seem to be having some issues with the interface - lots of issues with the upgrade to Freeview play - removing the satellite function the TV had for one, the TV shutting itself down and re-booting etc, they will sort it out, but frustrating none the less...I didn't like the Samsung picture and didn't want a curved TV...

I've decided not to be bothered about what the TV's will do app wise, I'm looking for the fire stick etc as either these will be updated or are a relatively small cost to buy a new improved version...
 
Mines a Sammy, picture is fine to my eye, good app selection but it doesn't get used much apart from netflix and amazon prime. Had a Sony previously mainly for the good picture but they can be funny with apps, nothing whatsoever to do with them having their own offerings of course..
 
I think the Samsung TV's have the widest range of on demand services, but since buying one just a few weeks ago i have found that I almost always use some sort of media box (in my case an Apple TV) meaning the actual options offered by the TV are rather underused.
 
Getting an LG means if you use Now TV you don't need another device
 
For what it's worth, on the Which? list of Best Buy TVs an amazing 15 out of the top 18 are Samsung, and mainly large screen such as 48, 50 or 55. That's not specifically based on apps though.
 
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I find them highly compromised. I don't get why manufacturers bother. Boxes like the fire tv, Apple TV etc provide a much much better experience.

I would not let it come anywhere close to a decision maker over image quality.
 
I have a Samsung, brilliant picture but definitely not got a wide range of apps!
 
Thanks everyone. It sounds like things haven't improved much. Hardware manufacturers, including camera makers, still can't do software. I'll stick with my external box.

Now I have to decide if future proofing with a 4k TV for not much more than a 1080 TV is worth it.
 
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I wouldn't bother with 4K if it isn't HDR (it most likely won't be)

Not enough 4K content, browse AVForums for good TV recommendations - I have a last of the line Panasonic Plasma, picture is stunning. I'd suggest pushing for an OLED TV if you can afford it, 1080p or 4K will look much better than any red LCD!
 
The smart functions on my TV have never been used waste of money if you have a fire stick or something similar like mentioned above. In fact I don't need any features you pay extra for. I'm buying a 40in bare bones Samsung today for the bedroom. No 3d, no smart, no 4k, no fast refresher rate.. Only £219.

As mentioned above plasma beats led/LCD hands down. Oled is the future if you're willing to pay the price tag.
 
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rjbell said:
The smart functions on my TV have never been used waste of money if you have a fire stick or something similar like mentioned above. In fact I don't need any features you pay extra for. I'm buying a 40in bare bones Samsung today for the bedroom. No 3d, no smart, no 4k, no fast refresher rate.. Only £219.

As mentioned above plasma beats led/LCD hands down. Oled is the future if you're willing to pay the price tag.
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Plasma? Didn't the manufacturers stop making plasma televisions years ago?
 
Ricardodaforce said:
Plasma? Didn't the manufacturers stop making plasma televisions years ago?
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Not that long ago Samsung still made them in 2014, but sadly they are no more. I was just agreeing harrybeee not suggesting buy one. We are stuck with LED/LCD until prices come down on oled.
 
The other thing to take into account is the number of HDMI sockets as in my case (I have 4) they soon become full, Sky, DVD/Blu-Ray Player, Apple TV & Amazon Box.
 
Paul W. H said:
The other thing to take into account is the number of HDMI sockets as in my case (I have 4) they soon become full, Sky, DVD/Blu-Ray Player, Apple TV & Amazon Box.
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I have Sky, AppleTV, Amazon Fire, Wii U, BluRay etc...yet only use one HDMI port ;) I let my AV Amp switch it. To me I don't see the point of a nice big screen TV to not accompany it with the sound it deserves...
 
I went through the whole new TV process recently, and while the forums were full of people saying that the Sony's were riddled with problems, my local dealer, who I've trusted in the past and who was also cheaper than anywhere else said buy Sony, which I did. I went for a 4K set as it was only slightly more than the next one down, and as our last TV lasted (and is still going strong) for about ten years I figured that there may be a lot more content before we replace it !
We've had no problems what so ever, and the guys who came to install it said that while they were happy to come back if ever there were any problems, they had not been called back once. One had the same set himself.
They did acknowledge that there had been issues in the early days, but it would seem that for some time now things are better.
 
Smart tv's ,4k tv's are overrated IMO . My daughter has a Samsung 55" 4k HD smart tv ,on the other hand i have a cheapo blaupunkt 42 HD tv along with the Roku 3 . Not a big difference in picture quality to be honest ,but the Roku 3 is so much quicker at downloading than my daughters £1,000 smart 4k HD tv. The quality of picture using the Roku 3 is excellent . Tv companies have really latched on to the people who want the latest (not better) Tv's .

JMO of course :)
 
I have a LG 43UF770V, great TV and the apps have rendered the nowtv and fire stick useless. Just one remote for them all
 
ianp5a what is your budget?
I would suggest going to a richer sounds store if you have one near, they are great for giving demos. My closes store has a fake living room, you can request any TV you want to be setuo, bring your own blurays etc to test and normally give you all the time you want to test any features. Well recommended and they'll throw in a 5 or 6 year warranty which is always reassuring!
 
robmac said:
samsung all day long
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Samsung are a dominant player in so many markets. So I'm trying to give the others a chance. But still might crumble and get a Samsung if the deal is unbeatable.
Harrybeeee said:
ianp5a what is your budget?
I would suggest going to a richer sounds store if you have one near, they are great for giving demos. My closes store has a fake living room, you can request any TV you want to be setuo, bring your own blurays etc to test and normally give you all the time you want to test any features. Well recommended and they'll throw in a 5 or 6 year warranty which is always reassuring!
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About 700€. There is no Richer Sounds near me. A store near me has a 4K 48" Samsung for 699€. And plenty of 1080 screens for the same price.
I'm not expecting to use 4K right away. I'm just trying to avoid something that will need upgrading too soon. I think I'll wait and see how quickly HDR comes along. I'm not in a hurry.
 
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Another thing to be aware of is, HD Ready (Variable Resolutions but not Full HD) & Full HD (1920x1080).

If you want the best Full HD is the way to go unless you require 4k (3840 x 2160)
 
Yes. When 1080 HD production started, the price was too high for mass uptake. So an in-between format became necessary to bridge the gap. Only then was the term 'Full' HD necessary. Sadly, people who didn't pay attention to the actual resolution, were suckered by the price, and unclear terminology, into getting something less, that they thought was this 'HD' thing they'd heard about, that's all the rage. Many still have them today.
 
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If you don't want Samsung I would Panasonic. Blow the budget and go for a Panasonic oled. ;)

Jokes aside my dad had the panasonic TX-50CS520B for Christmas lovely picture and unusually good sound for a entry level TV. Great price at £470 or the 40ins for £360.

Word of warning a cheap 4k will probably have a 3th party Chinese panel in them and not made by the manufacturer. So it maybe only a bit more money but could well be a worse panel. Like with cameras I would rather a 10mp Nikon than a 20mp Casio.
 
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ianp5a said:
Yes. When 1080 HD production started, the price was too high for mass uptake. So an in-between format became necessary to bridge the gap. Only then was the term 'Full' HD necessary. Sadly, people who didn't pay attention to the actual resolution, were suckered by the price, and unclear terminology, into getting something less, that they thought was this 'HD' thing they'd heard about, that's all the rage. Many still have them today.
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Sadly people are still being "Suckered" today, Curry's and other retailers are still selling HD Ready TV's now with the added twist of Freeview/Freeview HD
 
Depending on your viewing distance it really doesn't have to be that bad. My former Pioneer plasma was only 1024x768 in rectangular pixels and HD ready. Yet when sat at the proper viewing distance of about 12 foot it still blows many full HD panels away.

As per usual there is a lot more to it the some pixels.
 
Just noticed in samsungs website they still advertising a Plasma. I would imagine they're just selling of the last of them. I'm tempted.
 
Is there any disadvantage of getting a TV with 3D capability. Like if I had a choice of with 3D, or without 3D for a similar price? I presume 3D causes is no loss of quality?
 
Forget 3D it is/was a fad and adds to the price of your tv unnecessarily.
 
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