Opinions on Smart TVs

Nelski

Looking for some thoughts....good bad or indifferent on Smart TVs. Replacing a very chunky tv circa 2000 :eek: and am in two minds whether its worth going Smart

I love the look of them but thats cos im a girl I use the internet loads and do like a bit of gadgetry. Bit in love with the samsung smart atm but not sure if its going to be worth it

Opinions appreciated please

Jammyb

I don't think you can actually buy a TV (unless it's smaller than 32") that DOESN'T have smart capabilities.

By that I mean. An Ethernet connection.

At its most basic "smartness" you'll have a basic Internet browser with a clunky UI and a pain to type web addresses let alone write a status update on Facebook with. and most likely YouTube access.

After that its BBC Iplayer and the rest of the basic ondemand/VOD

buying a TV comes down to 3 simple rules.

1. The size you want equates to how much you pay. For instance a 42" shouldn't be more than £420. A 50", £500. Obviously if you want LED. You pay a little more.

2. Ignore the "oh no plasmas don't last long." if they didn't they wouldnt still be selling. Don't go any bigger than 37" in LCD. After that. Go plasma. If you want it slimmer than anorexic. Buy LED. But don't buy LED less than 40". Waste of money.

3. Finally. 3D. It's becomin harder to find 50" that doesn't have 3D in it. (which in turn raises the price) if you want 3D. Any smaller than 40" and further than 6ft from your seat is a waste of time!


But best advice is to go look at TVs. Not just the picture quality. But also the frame/thickness style of the telly.

The most gorgeous one I fitted recently was a 50" LED Samsung smart TV. Thin and light and frame no wider than my pinky. (girlie hands )

So light it twists too! Gorgeous picture with it too.

Compared to an LG of same size and I know which one i'd rather have!

[sat on sofa watching a movie on my Samsung 50" wall mounted and 6ft from my face] but not LED its plasma and none of that 3D tripe either!

Love it!

SaLoGo

Don't bother!!! I wanted a smart TV and my OH and I got a bargain with a Sony Bravia a year ago... have only ever used the smart functions once to stream a LoveFilm film, but the BB connection was too slow for it (even with 30mb from Virgin!). As for the other bits on there... Facebook is too much faffing about, much easier on the laptop or ipad.
I don't know... maybe I just need a lesson in using it!!

LucianH

I too was uncertain about SMART TV benefits but since buying a Samsung 7000 series 46" a few months ago I'm both impressed with the features but also unimpressed with some of the implementations.

For my set-up, I've used a wired connection to my broadband router but the WiFi option for the 7000 series will no doubt work just as well. I also have a Panasonic Blu Ray player also wired to the router. And I've installed Servio DNLA server on my PC.

Quick assessment from my perspective:

Good:
- BBC iPlayer is brilliant (would be even better if I had better broadband speed!)
- Lovefilm application is also brilliant
- The ability to connect a USB external hard disk drive to the TV to provide timeshift function and video recorder function is an extremely useful feature
- Playing youtube videos is good but the search function is clunky
- Can play video and audio files from PC (but see cons)

Cons:
- The player controls for playing video files from the PC are very poor (can't fast forward or re-wind). I use the Panasonic BluRay player for this - the controls are far better.

Nelski

Thanks everyone

This is the one I am in love with which doesn't fit with the 40 £400 rule but I am balancing that with the fact I paid 600 quid for my very ugly tv in 2000

Samsung

Im thinking now it probably is a whim but on the other hand I dont know what else to consider.

nearlyrich

I did a lot of research recently including a day at the gadget show ( I was there for work anyway) and we recently bought a Panasonic Viera Smart 3D TV. I'm not into films not bothered about 3D love the hd channels.

Nice to watch catch up TV on demand...

LucianH

Nelski wrote: »

Thanks everyone

This is the one I am in love with which doesn't fit with the 40 £400 rule but I am balancing that with the fact I paid 600 quid for my very ugly tv in 2000

Samsung

Im thinking now it probably is a whim but on the other hand I dont know what else to consider.

You'll get a better deal through Richer Sounds. If you've got one close to you you can ring up and reserve.

Jammyb

Nelski wrote: »

Thanks everyone

This is the one I am in love with which doesn't fit with the 40 £400 rule but I am balancing that with the fact I paid 600 quid for my very ugly tv in 2000



Im thinking now it probably is a whim but on the other hand I dont know what else to consider.

That doesn't line up with the 40" £400 rule as its LED and 3D!

And that's the telly i fitted! Thin and lovely!

Also don't bother using wifi to try and stream video content. Even with direct line of sight and no walls. It's absolutely pants wirelessly. And that's ANY smart TV.

and lastly DLNA. !!!! to use, only good for music and pictures. Amount of people who've wasted hours of their lives trying to stream video through DLNA. Buy a media player! DLNA and Android OS both made by 3 preschoolers and a bag of crayons.

Spank

This doesn't have anything to do with the OP's question, but I'd just like to say that my Sony Bravia streams fine through the WIFI dongle on my Orange 6mb BB.

Jammyb

Yeh but what's REW/FF and jumping back and forth like?

Buffer much? Doesn't when wired. It's like watching locally attached media. Smooooth

boxst

I quite like the features of the new 'Smart TV' I bought: iPlayer, Lovefilm, will stream most formats of movie from network attached storage (NAS).

Having said that, underneath the TV is a jailbroken Apple TV which does all of that plus 1Channel and IceFilms to stream TV...