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Covenant
01-10-2017, 12:26
Based on reviews I will probably buy an LG OLED B7. They started at £3000 but are now £1800. Are they likely to fall further in price-wait for the January sales?

Macca
01-10-2017, 14:17
They all come down in price when the new models come out. I bought one a couple of months ago for £600 as it was discontinued. LG 55'' 4K. The new model is £1700 or thereabouts. I think you'd have to be quite fussy about picture quality to spot the difference, and it saves over a grand.

By comparison the January sales only seem to be small discounts on the current models, and you have to wait until January.

The one I got wasn't on display, only the new models were on the shelves, but I asked and they had one in the back.

ianlenco
01-10-2017, 14:34
Back in May I bought an LG OLED 55B6 for £1499. That was last year's model but still superb - OLED screens are quite excellent. Incidentally, I bought it from John Lewis who price matched the same model from another on line retailer. Their service is excellent so always worth shopping around then trying them. At the time other retailers such as Currys were advertising the same model in their sales for £100 more. As Martin said, best to go looking when new models come out. In any case don't January sales start in November these days :eyebrows:

MikeMusic
01-10-2017, 16:04
I'd wait for January plus keep an eye on Richer Sounds offerings

walpurgis
01-10-2017, 16:13
I'd wait for January plus keep an eye on Richer Sounds offerings

Yeah. Tesco seem to do a TV clearout then too.

Audio Al
01-10-2017, 16:33
I was going to buy a LG oled tv , went 3 times to look at it and each time I went it looked unreal , sort of metallic looking and over sharp also over coulour saturated , Decided to stick with my 52" HD LG

JohnJo
01-10-2017, 17:25
Sometimes the best deals are during the run up to Christmas. They're often better than the January sale deals.

YNWaN
01-10-2017, 17:39
I would be careful when making judgements about a TVs picture quality at a retailers. My Sony has a number of viewing modes: if one picks the demonstration mode colours are very heavily saturated and the contrast is extreme - great for cartoons but rather exaggerated for real life.

Barry
01-10-2017, 17:43
I was going to buy a LG oled tv , went 3 times to look at it and each time I went it looked unreal , sort of metallic looking and over sharp also over coulour saturated , Decided to stick with my 52" HD LG

TVs are often set up by dealers and displayed to look 'impressive', rather than naturalistic. The source material used is also chosen to show up the ultra sharp detail (often CGI) with pyrotechnic displays.

I agree that there is something 'unreal' about the demonstrations. Were you able to adjust the settings towards your own taste?

Audio Al
01-10-2017, 18:09
Were you able to adjust the settings towards your own taste?

No

YNWaN
02-10-2017, 10:11
I was. My Sony has a number of base presentation settings that can then be altered to suit.

Marco
02-10-2017, 18:10
I would be careful when making judgements about a TVs picture quality at a retailers. My Sony has a number of viewing modes: if one picks the demonstration mode colours are very heavily saturated and the contrast is extreme - great for cartoons but rather exaggerated for real life.

Indeed, it's called 'shop mode', or something like that, and the colours look garish and overblown. Everything is pumped up to the max, to make the picture look 'impressive' to people who've got no idea what natural-looking colours are! :doh:

No, there's only one way you'll achieve having natural colours on TVs now, and that's to tune them yourself using the advanced colour settings.

I spent quite some time optimising the picture on our Sony that way, via watching a You Tube video, broadcast by a professional AV company showing how it was done, and the difference afterwards was frankly incredible!

Marco.

Manicatel
03-10-2017, 18:38
Most tv’s product lines are launched in about March/April of each year. Building up to this time, you’re likely to see price reductions of current models in preparation for the incoming new models.
From ‘black friday’ in November onwards, with Xmas sales, new year sales etc prices are keen.
As far as demo mode is concerned, yes ask the dealers to switch it off & watch a bit of regular tv to see what the screen looks like in real life, or have it hooked up to a blu ray player to watch a bit of a film you’re familiar with.

Minstrel SE
29-10-2017, 19:29
What are the cheaper 4K sets like now then? They seem to be getting quite cheap at the bottom end so my thinking is why spend £3000 when a £600 set would probably do a fair job.

Thre seems to be quite a price range and Im not sure what extra processing and picture quality is offered at the higher prices

Manicatel
29-10-2017, 20:24
Looking at 55”screens as an example, an OLED from Panasonic is available now for £2k, LG at £1800, so no need to think about spending as much as £3k. Even the Sony A1 has come down a bit, although not as much as the Pana & LG.
OLED does look easily better than “just” 4K, though whether the price difference is justifiable or not is a personal judgement.
However, bearing in mind that hopefully any purchase should see you right for a good few years to come, if the budget can be stretched, for long term peace of mind, OLED would be my choice.
Black Friday & Xmas sales aren’t that far away & I’d guess prices may drop a bit more shortly. Plus there may be deals with Blu-ray players or discounted soundbars included. Even if you don’t want one, you could eBay it & effectively get another chunk off the purchase price.

Minstrel SE
29-10-2017, 20:55
Well as this page points out OLED has the edge but there seem to be reliability and high cost issues of production. Samsung have a no 1 market share and according to this they are not going OLED. Its probably not clear cut or all the manufacturers would be on the same bandwagon

http://lcdtvbuyingguide.com/4k-tv-reviews/oled-vs-4k.html

someone is offering QLED and I hope we are not having another format war and confusion. Anyway I just want a cheap telly :)

Macca
29-10-2017, 21:49
I'm happy with the LG I got bin end from Richer Sounds. £600 it is 55 inch and 4K. Not that I have any 4K available. Just normal HD. You can see people's individual skin pores. How good do you need TV to be? I wouldn't consider spending £2K on telly. Well, maybe I would, but only if I had a lot more disposable income.

Manicatel
29-10-2017, 23:23
Samsung hasn’t gone OLED because they didn’t want to pay LG a licence fee to use their tech, I guess. Not to say that they’re not currently developing their own OLED tech for future release though, possibly.
Their QLED from what I understand is just an evolution of their Quantam Dot tech, which prioritises brightness. To my mind, their brightness is way too forced & un-natural. There really isn’t any competition or “format war” QLED vs OLED, the picture quality from Sony/Pana/LG OLED easily betters QLED.

Covenant
25-11-2017, 16:01
Well, I took the plunge and got a LG B7 today. All the retailers dropped their prices to £1499 for Black Friday but my wife noticed Curry's had a 10 % off with a code. I had read bad things about their attitude to dealing with faults so didn't want to buy from them. I went in to Richer Sounds in Liverpool, not expecting them to match Curry's price but they did immediately without quibbling. Good service, pleasant and carried the box out to the car. So a TV that started at £3000 when it came out was purchased for £1359 with a 6 year guarantee.
Not going to open the box until just before Xmas so that all the favourites can be watched on the new big screen.

struth
25-11-2017, 16:03
maybe test it first just in case:) good discount

Minstrel SE
27-11-2017, 17:11
A good decision Covenant. I think I will be buying from Richer Sounds because I simply wont shop at Currys/PCW due to a past experience.

To be honest I find it hard to get excited about TVs because there are so many to choose from. I am just wonder what a £500 LG UHD will do for me. Ive seen them boxed up on sale.

I find out who mainly makes the factory screens then choose from the big players Samsung, LG Panasonic etc

I wonder what freeview SD and HD looks like on a 4K set. Ive still got a CRT in one room :)

bobvfr
27-11-2017, 17:30
The one thing I would suggest anyone thinking about a 4k UHD TV is HDR.

I bought my 65 inch top end Panasonic from a friend at a silly price, he paid over £3000 for it, it came down over time to £1500, I didn't pay half that price.

But it didn't come with HDR, luckily Panasonic released an upgrade via software. I wasn't expecting such a difference, but it truly does turn a top end telly into a superb TV.

Be aware of HDR.........

Covenant
27-11-2017, 19:05
maybe test it first just in case:) good discount
The family had a democratic vote without me and decided they wanted it NOW!
So much for the big Christmas treat. Anyway the picture is superb but the 4 minutes of UHD Blue Planet that is available on IPlayer is the best picture quality I have seen and I haven't had time to do the calibration yet, so could be even better.
One big nasty though. LG sets are not compatible with Talktalk set top boxes so two remotes are required. I am going to have a good moan about that because I was keen on one remote doing everything.

agk
27-11-2017, 19:08
When the one you've got breaks.

walpurgis
27-11-2017, 19:09
When the one you've got breaks.

:thumbsup:

Marco
27-11-2017, 20:57
Lol - you guys must be a barrel of laughs to live with! :D

Marco.

Gazjam
27-11-2017, 21:30
Bought a Sony OLED on (extended) Black Friday deal today.
Sony are doing a £500 cashback deal too so half a bag of sand off an already heavily discounted price.
Helped too my Son’s staff discount thrown into the mix too. :thumbsup:

Being delivered Monday, week off work...happy days.

Marco
27-11-2017, 22:32
Nice one, mate. Hope you have lots of fun with it and enjoy your holiday :cool:

Marco.

brian2957
27-11-2017, 22:37
I'll be over to see it soon mate :)

Clive197
28-11-2017, 01:04
No, there's only one way you'll achieve having natural colours on TVs now, and that's to tune them yourself using the advanced colour settings.

I spent quite some time optimising the picture on our Sony that way, via watching a You Tube video, broadcast by a professional AV company showing how it was done, and the difference afterwards was frankly incredible!

Marco.

That exactly what I did with my LG55B7. Superb picture and with the very recent firmware update, there is nothing to come close. Whatever you do, don’t leave the settings on any standard setting, use the advanced picture mode.

Current price seems to be about £1499 and I’m led to understand that they are becoming as rare as hens teeth.

Marco
28-11-2017, 01:08
That exactly what I did with my LG55B7. Superb picture and with the very recent firmware update, there is nothing to come close. Whatever you do, don’t leave the settings on any standard setting, use the advanced picture mode.


It just makes sense, Clive. Why spend big bucks on a top-notch TV and not get the absolute most out of it? Would anyone here do the same with their hi-fi system? No. Well, the same applies with your TV! ;)

And I care about picture quality, just as much as I do about sound quality. Bottom line: if you're going to do a job in the first place, then do it RIGHT :)

Marco.

WAD62
28-11-2017, 14:59
The one thing I would suggest anyone thinking about a 4k UHD TV is HDR.

I bought my 65 inch top end Panasonic from a friend at a silly price, he paid over £3000 for it, it came down over time to £1500, I didn't pay half that price.

But it didn't come with HDR, luckily Panasonic released an upgrade via software. I wasn't expecting such a difference, but it truly does turn a top end telly into a superb TV.

Be aware of HDR.........

Cheers for the nod! :cool:

I've just updated the firmware on my Panasonic TX-55CX802 to provide HDR capability on the HDMI inputs...

What HDR content are you watching? presumably one requires an HDR source for this to work

Covenant
28-11-2017, 19:34
That exactly what I did with my LG55B7. Superb picture and with the very recent firmware update, there is nothing to come close. Whatever you do, don’t leave the settings on any standard setting, use the advanced picture mode.

Current price seems to be about £1499 and I’m led to understand that they are becoming as rare as hens teeth.

Could you do a link to the video you used Clive?

bobvfr
29-11-2017, 00:57
What HDR content are you watching? presumably one requires an HDR source for this to work

Have to admit I assumed it wasn't just for the HDMI inputs so I was watching stuff from Netflix using the app on the TV, I am planning to upgrade my Xbox One to the Xbox One X in the next couple of weeks, this is a 4k setup with HDR.

I had watched a couple of those Moving Art films when I got the Panasonic and as far as I am concerned they look much better since the upgrade.

Happy to be proved wrong though.

Covenant
29-11-2017, 08:53
Cheers for the nod! :cool:

I've just updated the firmware on my Panasonic TX-55CX802 to provide HDR capability on the HDMI inputs...

What HDR content are you watching? presumably one requires an HDR source for this to work

In essence-better pixels in your TV Will. Have a read of this:
http://www.techradar.com/news/television/hdr-welcome-to-the-next-big-shift-in-home-entertainment-1280990

Clive197
29-11-2017, 10:38
Could you do a link to the video you used Clive?

Hi
I would love to but I can’t seem to find a way of doing that from You Tube on my iPad. I searched for HDTV LG 55 professional review and a number of clips came up, so that’s probably a good place to start. I remember trawling through a number of clips. WARNING, avoid the American who suggests using the Vivid setting, he’s a numpty.

Marco
29-11-2017, 11:19
Not sure if this is the right TV (Clive would need to stipulate the model number of his), but it's an example of the type of TV concerned, and from the same company I used to optimise the colour settings on my Sony:

Tm215skvZtk

Marco.

bobvfr
29-11-2017, 11:29
In essence-better pixels in your TV Will. Have a read of this:
http://www.techradar.com/news/television/hdr-welcome-to-the-next-big-shift-in-home-entertainment-1280990

I know what HDR is ;-) what I was saying was that the Panasonic 802's didn't have HDR capability before the upgrade, although I don't have an HDR source to plug into an HDMI slot, that watching 4k using the built in Netflix app has to my eyes improved substantially, given all of Netflix's offerings are HDR encoded, I have assumed that HDR has kicked in for this as well as for the HDMI slots.

Well it has for me, and even my wife stopped what she was doing in the kitchen to watch as she thought the improvement was noticeable.

WAD62
29-11-2017, 12:28
I know what HDR is ;-) what I was saying was that the Panasonic 802's didn't have HDR capability before the upgrade, although I don't have an HDR source to plug into an HDMI slot, that watching 4k using the built in Netflix app has to my eyes improved substantially, given all of Netflix's offerings are HDR encoded, I have assumed that HDR has kicked in for this as well as for the HDMI slots.

Well it has for me, and even my wife stopped what she was doing in the kitchen to watch as she thought the improvement was noticeable.

Cheers for the feedback, so you recon that HDR is being invoked automatically by the Netflix stream...I couldn't see anywhere to switch it on/off other than on an HDMI channel

I've not used Netflix, presumably there's no option to select HDR or not, is the content clearly marked as HDR or not?

Now I've upgraded my 802 to be HDR capable, presumably there's no way of doing an A/B comparison on Netflix...

EDIT; I think I've found the answer...from https://help.netflix.com/en/node/42384

If you have an HDR capable TV and the 4 Screen Netflix streaming plan, available titles will display an HDR logo next to their description: .

If you have a Dolby Vision capable TV and the 4 Screen Netflix streaming plan, available titles will display the Dolby Vision logo next to their description: . On Cast TVs, you will see a similar Dolby Vision logo on the loading screen: .

Not all titles are available in Dolby Vision or HDR.

bobvfr
29-11-2017, 13:53
Just checked, not seeing an HDR logo, just Ultra HD 4k.

However I have just put on the Moving art episode one of series one, all I can say is it's stunning and far better than when I first got the TV and the only change that I know I have made is the HDR upgrade. I am 100% sure something has improved........

Thanks for the info though.

I am planning to have my Xbox One X for next weekend the XBX is listed in those Netflix pages and will report back when I see the HDR logo. I will also pop out and get a 4k HDR Blue-ray film and test that for when the XBX is installed.

Clive197
29-11-2017, 13:54
not sure if this is the right tv (clive would need to stipulate the model number of his), but it's an example of the type of tv concerned, and from the same company i used to optimise the colour settings on my sony:

tm215skvztk

marco.

lg55b7 oled

Marco
29-11-2017, 15:37
Couldn't find the B7, but here's the B6, the controls on which I'd imagine are very similar:

HXwFi3E1K0g

Hopefully, Jerry will find that useful.

Marco.

Covenant
29-11-2017, 15:40
Thanks Marco,
That one you linked to is not exactly the same as it is not an Oled so the menu is slightly different. The AV forums have a wealth of knowledge though, so I bet, with a bit of searching I will find what I want.

Marco
29-11-2017, 15:51
Do you mean the video in my previous post (#42), Jerry? It says B6 OLED on it - or do you that mean your TV isn't an OLED :)

Marco.

Covenant
29-11-2017, 16:41
Do you mean the video in my previous post (#42), Jerry? It says B6 OLED on it - or do you that mean your TV isn't an OLED :)

Marco.

Oooh no-I was referring to your post 37.
The B6 will be very similar to mine
Many Thanks

Marco
29-11-2017, 17:23
Cool. Let us know how you get on :cool:

Marco.

Covenant
01-12-2017, 08:55
Cool. Let us know how you get on :cool:

Marco.

In the end I went with this video for calibration:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hlF8ByW-Rg
There is a very detailed adjustment of the white balance that takes ages to do but is worth the effort. The picture is first class.
Next thing to do is replace the cheap coax cable and even cheaper un-screened coax socket with decent ones. After Xmas I might ditch the Talktalk set top box and replace it with a better
recorder as the TT is not compatible with the LG remote.

Clive197
01-12-2017, 10:25
In the end I went with this video for calibration:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hlF8ByW-Rg
There is a very detailed adjustment of the white balance that takes ages to do but is worth the effort. The picture is first class.
Next thing to do is replace the cheap coax cable and even cheaper un-screened coax socket with decent ones. After Xmas I might ditch the Talktalk set top box and replace it with a better
recorder as the TT is not compatible with the LG remote.

Hadn’t seen that. I have now checked it out and agree that it is excellent. I’ve checked against my existing calibration and found it to be exceptionally close.

Minstrel SE
10-01-2018, 15:19
Im reading that burn in is happenning with OLEDS and will affect them all to some degree.

Ive got to do some more research on this as I get the feeling they are selling us stuff that hasnt been fully thought through especially with the amount of screen logos. You cant call them advancements if Im looking at a case of screen burn.

Bring back the CRT is what I say :D

Macca
10-01-2018, 18:25
.

Bring back the CRT is what I say :D

No thanks much prefer my 55'' LED to my old CRT tellys. I remember my old man getting a 26'' telly in about 1980 and we all marvelled at the size of the screen. Now it is 2018 and there are few promises realised from the 1960s and 1970s science fiction, which is disappointing, but affordable, massive hi-def screens are one of them.

Marco
11-01-2018, 11:38
No thanks much prefer my 55'' LED to my old CRT tellys. I remember my old man getting a 26'' telly in about 1980 and we all marvelled at the size of the screen. Now it is 2018 and there are few promises realised from the 1960s and 1970s science fiction, which is disappointing, but affordable, massive hi-def screens are one of them.

Yeah, defo. Don't get me wrong, some of the best CRTs from back in the day, particularly Sony Trinitrons, were truly excellent and had very nice natural colours, and up until digital flat-screen technology had properly matured, I'd have taken one of those against some of the early examples of flat screens, as to my eyes the picture on the latter always looked rather 'forced' and unnatural in comparison.

However, that's no longer the case, and the latest (and best) OLED/HDR 4K TVs now take things to a whole new level, in terms of colour resolution and clarity, almost to the extent that with the best 4K Blu-Rays, and live UHD broadcasts (such as from the BBC), you don't feel as if the image you're looking at is on a screen, but rather genuinely lifelike, such is its almost tangible 'reach out and touch it' nature!

*BUT*, in order to experience that, and what these TVs are truly capable of, they MUST be properly calibrated, as outlined above (otherwise you're just pissing in the wind), so diligence here will pay significant dividends! :cool:

Marco.

Covenant
11-01-2018, 14:34
Yeah, defo. Don't get me wrong, some of the best CRTs from back in the day, particularly Sony Trinitrons, were truly excellent and had very nice natural colours, and up until digital flat-screen technology had properly matured, I'd have taken one of those against some of the early examples of flat screens, as to my eyes the picture on the latter always looked rather 'forced' and unnatural in comparison.

However, that's no longer the case, and the latest (and best) OLED/HDR 4K TVs now take things to a whole new level, in terms of colour resolution and clarity, almost to the extent that with the best 4K Blu-Rays, and live UHD broadcasts (such as from the BBC), you don't feel as if the image you're looking at is on a screen, but rather genuinely lifelike, such is its almost tangible 'reach out and touch it' nature!

*BUT*, in order to experience that, and what these TVs are truly capable of, they MUST be properly calibrated, as outlined above (otherwise you're just pissing in the wind), so diligence here will pay significant dividends! :cool:

Marco.

+1

With regard to the burn in issue, I have not seen the slightest hint of this problem and the TV got some heavy use over xmas/new year. I think there is a way of sorting it in the menu if it does become a problem.
I wouldn't go back to a CRT or even my old Pioneer Plasma, good as it was.

Minstrel SE
17-01-2018, 17:03
Yes things have come on and Im only half joking. Some of those early LEDs were shocking with standard definition though. Compared with a CRT they were just bad and Ive seen some shocking pictures that people thought were acceptable because they had an invite to the flat screen party.

Things have moved on and I thought that Turtle, Eagle, Cheetah programme looked amazing in high def. I am looking forward to 4K but have been holding off as I like to keep behind so I dont waste money :)

tapid
17-01-2018, 17:54
Yes things have come on and Im only half joking. Some of those early LEDs were shocking with standard definition though. Compared with a CRT they were just bad and Ive seen some shocking pictures that people thought were acceptable because they had an invite to the flat screen party.

Things have moved on and I thought that Turtle, Eagle, Cheetah programme looked amazing in high def. I am looking forward to 4K but have been holding off as I like to keep behind so I dont waste money :)
Yep, bought a Samsung 5 years ago lovely picture on HD but truly awful on SD, since improved by adding a bt box ( euro sport etc). Really agree about these modern HD pictures Marco, watched some snooker on you tube the
other day somebody had put up, hd 50 fps or something looked simply amazing on my new Apple 4k retina screen. Same result mind Ronnie O still knocked all the balls in !. Now just need to find some money for 4k HDR ?

Covenant
17-01-2018, 19:23
One thing that I have only just realised is that LG keep on tweaking the firmware, making tiny improvements to the picture quality. Makes me want to stick with them.
They just need to make my Talktalk box compatible with their remote and I will be happy.