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Originally posted by PowerSurge:

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Originally posted by bobtheelf:
TCL 6 series or LG 7 series. Don't buy a Samsung. Their picture is great, but they don't hold up.

I’ve got one Samsung that’s 11 years old (55”) and the other (46”) is 8. Both have been trouble-free.

In my store we have 7 40" Samsungs. One the LCD is out of place, one has mottled backlighting, one has a dark spot growing from the top.

Both 75" TVs have bright spots forming where the backlight apertures are sticking open - the same problem that one of my employees has with his 55" Samsung.

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Originally posted by RogueJSK:

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Originally posted by armedprof:
I have a Vizio M65 and a 42 inch TCL
I think the Vizio has a better picture.

Apples to oranges.

Like every TV company, TCL produces various "tiers" of TVs. If you're comparing a higher tier Vizio model to a lower tier TCL model, naturally the Vizio should look better.

TCL's 3- and 4-series don't have the same level of picture quality as their 5-, 6-, or especially 8-series. And their highest tier 6- and 8- series aren't even offered below 55 inches, so your TCL isn't one of those. The "best" it could be is a 5-series, or it could be a lower-tier 3- or 4-series. (Or potentially even something else, depending on how old it is.)

Whereas your M-series is one of Vizio's higher tiers.

Plus, your 65" Vizio is a solid 54% larger than your 42" TCL, which contributes further to the comparison disparity.

I think there is a 55" 6 series TCL television for 2019.

https://www.tclusa.com/ca/prod...roku-smart-tv-55r625

We all wish OLED would get cheaper, but not yet. They are subject to burn-in though, so some users should beware.

Heres a decent source on understanding the terminology and what it really means.

OLED, QLED, LED, LCD, ETC...

LED vs LCD Digital Trends Link

There are several things to consider, and if you're going from Plasma to an LED, you might want to really look at the screens, have them play sports or action movies if you like those, some processors are slower and you'll see blurry images in some areas of the screen where motion is present.

Costco and Sams Club are probably your best bet for finding a good set at a decent price, you'll probably find better models at a Best Buy as well as the mid to low tier priced units.

Since the newer TV's have thinner cases, both width of the side bars on the screen area and depth of the tv you should check measurement of where the TV is going, a new 55 will be a smaller TV overall than a 10 year old plasma tv, so you might be able to put a 58 or 60 inch in the same space.

Also consider the sound, if you drove sound from the TV itself your old set may have had speakers on the front, that's no longer done.

Speakers are now mounted in the bottom of the tv to allow a smaller footprint around the screen, thus the sound is pushed down, not out, some find the sound quality lacking and having to push the volume up very high to hear.

A decent sound bar solves this if you don't have a dedicated surround system...

Here's an excellent site that performs comparisons and runs TV's through industry standard testing:

https://www.rtings.com/

Hey guys,

Thank you all for the very helpful information. Here's the update: I got one!

My son and I went to Best Buy yesterday since they had the best selection of the ones I was interested in on display to check out. We looked at the TCL 55R625, the Samsungs, the LGs, and the Sonys. QLED, OLED, etc. We spoke with a very helpful young man who seemed well-versed in the technology. We went through every detail. My son was getting a bit annoyed at how long it was taking .

We ended up taking home a Sony XBR55X950G for $1099. This is the latest Sony model in this price point. The motion processing and color realism is what sold me over the TCL. We got it home last night, set it up, set all the advanced picture setting to exactly what CNET recommends in their calibration.

And I was NOT pleased with the picture at all. HD Comcast picture quality was poor, Blu-ray DVDs and 4K YouTube videos had very poor black/shadow details, and there was a lot of light blooming. And the overall picture just seemed a bit "off" to me. I was not impressed at all. These were the exact problems that the CNET review had pointed out.

So today I decided to go back to Best Buy and get the TCL to try and compare. We got there and spoke to another very helpful and knowledgeable gentleman. Both he and the other guy said that coming from a plasma that I would not be happy with the TCL. Then the guy tells me about this other, slightly older, Sony model. The XBR55X900F.

He said that he's had a lot of people have the exact same criticism of the 950G and that a lot of people like the 900F a lot more. So I compared them side to side watching a 4K demo. We agreed, the 900F was a lot better. So I bought it and brought it home.

I set up the 900F the same way using the CNET recommended advanced settings. Wow what a difference! This TV is VERY impressive. A night and day difference compared to the 950G. HD cable TV channels like Fox News looks good (that's the only thing that the plasma did better), HD NFL football tonight looks awesome, Netflix HD Avengers Infinity War looks incredible, and 4K Ultra HD videos on YouTube looks mindblowing! I am very impressed with this TV. None of the issues with the 950G exist in the 900F. It's awesome. I like it better than my plasma. And the 900F was $50 less than the 950G.

I have it in a cabinet so there's very little light hitting the screen, even during the day so the picture is amazing. The side angle viewing is MUCH better than the 950G but obviously not as good as my plasma or an OLED. One other thing I noticed... when I set this up I changed my audio cables around such that instead of the Comcast box and Blu-ray audio going directly to my receiver via optical cables, I'm simply using the optical output from the TV directly into the receiver. To me, the sound is a lot richer and authentic this way. No idea why, but its a nice added bonus, plus I don't need to switch audio sources when I watch a Blu-ray.

My son and I are gonna go watch the whole Mandalorian season on Disney+ now and see it compares. I'm sure it'll be great. Once side note... my son is an electrical engineering major in college and was heavily suggesting I go with the Sony over the TCL. I was hesitant due to the higher price over the TCL and given that I wasn't happy with the first. He talked processing power and all that. When I finally decided on the Sony, he was very happy pulled a "You're never gonna regret this, Ray!" out of his butt. I laughed. Good times with my son.

Anyway, just wanted to give you all an update. I can heartily recommend the Sony XBR55X900F to anyone coming from a plasma or just wants a great TV that's a step above the lower priced TVs. Here's the link to the CNET calibration settings for the 900F I used.

Thanks again for the help.

Chris

thanks for the update,
its appreciated

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Originally posted by Chris17404:
Then the guy tells me about this other, slightly older, Sony model. The XBR55X900F.

I have one of those as well. Bought it last year. Great picture and you'll be able to use Kodi.

TV’s have gotten very cheap. I paid $2700 in 2003 for a commercial ED (480p) Panny plasma that was built like a tank. Today, many 65” LED’s are selling for <$500.

That said, TV’s have gotten CHEAP. One is hard-pressed to find true 120hz LED screens today. OLED is an expensive option that evolved to achieve the black levels of plasmas - ie it is originally intended to address an LED criticism and the pricing has been slow to mature.

The TCL gets good reviews but mostly due to the Roku and I’d rather have a separate ROKU device (vs integration within TV). For PQ in a 55”, I’m leaning toward the Vizio M8 or step up to the Sony 900, Sammy Q7 or any leftover LG B8’s - ie stay at $500’ish for the Vizio or go to $1000’ish for the others. Neither choice really excites me, which explains why I’m still using the inexpensive Sammy 720p plasma that replaced my old Panny for a mere $250-300.

I’ll probably get the Vizio. I don’t think the other 3 would be enough of an upgrade to justify the higher price.

Sony is generally a good choice. A little pricier, but you get what you pay for.

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Originally posted by Chris17404:
Sony XBR55X950G vs XBR55X900F.
Chris

Been shopping myself. When I asked about the difference between the 55" 900G and the 65" 950G, my NOT so helpful Best Buy guy said "Oh, that's just the size difference.". Right away I knew I was on my own. Ended up leaving with the TCL 65R625. Liked that it has Roku whereas the Bravia or Samsung Q60 don't.


Rick

Glad to hear you found something you like. The Sony 900f is the best bang for the buck I have seen this year for a high quality set.

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XBR55X900F.

I had not idea CNET gave recommended setting for TVs!
I am still running 2 42" Panasonic Plasmas.
Not only the deepest blacks but widest viewing angle.
OLED pricing today is at the same price I bought the plasma new. People are so used to looking at small screens they have no idea how crappy their TVs look at home.