'Smart' TV - benefits ?? 31 May 2014 at 9:14PM in Techie Stuff 20 replies 1.9K views

no1catman

Thinking of buying a new TV, Samsung seems the best picture quality - but undecided between 39" at £379 or 40" Smart TV at £399 .


What are the benefits of spending the extra £20.00 ? That is what does 'Smart' TV give me.


And, if its relevant - I'm on Virgin Media Cable TV.


LFttC

RobTang

Its nice not having a separate remote / device for iPlayer, itv player, 4od, Netflix, Lovefilm etc and direct streaming of video files off my NAS / PC.


The Samsung TVs also act as a miracast receiver so you can screen mirror anything supports it (higher end Samsung tablets, intel laptops etc)
It can also to the reverse for certain video sources: show what's on the TV on your phone/tablet

no1catman

Rob Tang:


I don't have a smart 'phone or tablet, and my (cable) PC is upstairs.

going_nowhere_fast

I'm no nothing about technology but when I was window shopping for a new tv I was told that a 40" tv of that price range would have very poor picture quality especially if it was meant to be a smart tv. I was told that it is best to spend that amount of money on a 38" tv or if you really want a 40" pay a couple of hundred extra to get a good quality picture.

Like I said I know nothing about tvs or technology in general but that was the advice I was given.

vacheron

One main reason for my Samsung smart TV's... Plex!.

Everything else I can take or leave as I have enough Computers and tablets around the house, however it is nice to be able to use a smartphone as a remote control and throw youtube videos from it to the big screen.

RumRat

£20? For so little, it's not even worth the dilemma. Go for the smart If you don't like it you can always return it.

I_have_spoken

That is what does 'Smart' TV give me.

http://www.which.co.uk/reviews/televisions/article/buying/what-is-smart-tv-

Samsung smart TVs offer apps from all the major UK catch-up TV services - BBC iPlayer, ITV Player, 4oD and Demand 5. You can also stream movies via Netflix and LoveFilm, or use social networking apps such as Facebook and Twitter. Alongside a good range of pre-loaded apps, Samsung TVs have an app store for you to download more.

You can usually browse the web on Samsung smart TVs, and some of the higher-end models have special remote controls with laptop-style trackpads for controlling the features. This is useful, as our testing has revealed that it can be tricky to do tasks with just a standard Samsung remote control.

penrhyn

Do you have Sky Virgin or YouView?

If so the case for a Smart TV is diminished. Smart TVs are usually abandoned by their manufacturers after a couple of years, i.e no more updates.

CuddlesTC

My smart tv really came into its own when my Tivo died - thanks to the catch-up apps I missed very few programmes in the week until the Tivo was replaced.

no1catman

CuddlesTC wrote: »

My smart tv really came into its own when my Tivo died - thanks to the catch-up apps I missed very few programmes in the week until the Tivo was replaced.

After talking to Virgin - that appears to be the catch! I don't have Tivo - in order to benefit from a Hd & especially a 'smart' TV I need a Tivo installed.
Which means, £50.00 installed and about another £5.00 a month for the 'package'.


Decisions, decisions!!

penrhyn

As an a example of Samsung failing to support 3 year old smart TVs, the Amazon Instant Video App and the Crackle App disappeared yesterday.

Waithing for the Amazon Fire Tv or maybe a Chromecast if the UK support improves.