Big, cheap TVs--help me get a good'un

[squib 1112]

Not big TV watchers. Go weeks without turning it on. But watch lots of football and a few movies. Everything is streamed on Prime, Netflix--and we get TV through Youtube TV.  Currently using a FireTV Cube to connect. 

Woke up this morning to tons of emails about cheap TVs. 

• TCL 70" Class - S470G Series - 4K UHD LED LCD TV at Costco for $449

• LG 70" Class 4K UHD 2160P webOS Smart TV - 70UQ7070ZUD at Walmart for $498

Is there anything I should be look for/cautious about? Any better rec?

Thanks in advance. 

[Texzilla58 4683]

I have TCL for my bedroom / non main TVs. I would look at the TCL 65Q5 series at best but for $399. Gets you a qled panel, 120hz refresh, better color gamut and brightness. I put a 55 in one bedroom and the 65Q7 in the master which adds local dimming and other stuff.

[52-80 18962]

4 hours ago, squib said:

Not big TV watchers. Go weeks without turning it on. But watch lots of football and a few movies. Everything is streamed on Prime, Netflix--and we get TV through Youtube TV.  Currently using a FireTV Cube to connect.

Is there anything I should be look for/cautious about? Any better rec?

For a super casual TV watcher, all new 4K TVs are going to be "good".

There are 2.5 reasons for not wanting to get the ultra-cheapest TVs:

(1) when watching very dark scenes, the cheap TV might show things as bright gray (rather than dark black), or show banding and other artifacts.  That might be annoying to some.  for 95% of TV watching which is bright and colorful sports and normal programming, it's not noticeable.

(2) the app and menu and navigation is slow because they use the cheapest computer processors.  this doesnt matter when you use an external stick like FireTV

(2.5) they dont have enough HDMI ports for all your devices.

[Gil Bang 25504]

I have TCLs and I like them a lot.  Great value.

[Buzzrock 14775]

I have a five year old 65” TCL 4K that I have fought and fought with to try and get a good picture. I think I might have bought the ultra-cheap model though because their better models do get good reviews. Support was really good when I had an early issue with it too, they sent someone out to replace the whole thing.

Just don’t get the cheapest one they make.

[ROFL BOX 6620]

Suggestions for an outdoor TV? Build a wooden case for it with a fabric flap over the front?

My concern is humidity & of course a case & canvas-y flap will assist in dust mitigation.

Would be under cover (metal carport), still thinking humidity is an issue.

Hoping to get a pawn shop 50" or more.

[chikin23 384]

Suggestions for an outdoor TV? Build a wooden case for it with a fabric flap over the front?

My concern is humidity & of course a case & canvas-y flap will assist in dust mitigation.

Would be under cover (metal carport), still thinking humidity is an issue.

Hoping to get a pawn shop 50" or more.

I’ve had one outside for 5ish years. I wrap it in a tarp and secure it with bungee cords and haven’t had any issues with it.

[Bevo 13417]

1 hour ago, ROFL BOX said:

Suggestions for an outdoor TV? Build a wooden case for it with a fabric flap over the front?

My concern is humidity & of course a case & canvas-y flap will assist in dust mitigation.

Would be under cover (metal carport), still thinking humidity is an issue.

Hoping to get a pawn shop 50" or more.

If you remember my covered porch in back, the TV there is still working and it has been out there in the cabinet for about 5 years. I haven't had any problems, but I suspect I will due to spiders (webs) and mud daubers (dirt) in the cabinet.

[Nice Guy Eddie 13267]

Also take into account the audio of the cheaper TVs. Many have really poor speakers, and frankly everyone should be using a sound bar at a minimum.

A quality sound bar will do a good job of separating music/noise from voices. You won't need to blast the audio or use closed captions to understand what the characters are saying. Anyway, I would think about audio requirements (ARC, eARC, Dolby Atmos, etc.) before deciding on a TV. You want the TV to be able to output whatever your sound bar requires or allows.

 

[Bevo 13417]

2 hours ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

Also take into account the audio of the cheaper TVs. Many have really poor speakers, and frankly everyone should be using a sound bar at a minimum.

A quality sound bar will do a good job of separating music/noise from voices. You won't need to blast the audio or use closed captions to understand what the characters are saying. Anyway, I would think about audio requirements (ARC, eARC, Dolby Atmos, etc.) before deciding on a TV. You want the TV to be able to output whatever your sound bar requires or allows.

 

Yeah, I have one of those as well. I also have a Denon with some outdoor Klipsch speakers.

I don't use my outdoor TV that much. It's Texas so I spend a whole lot more time in the pool listening to music.

[Buzzrock 14775]

I’ve had an old Samsung HD LCD on the screen porch for probably 10 years. Still going strong (Atlanta so temps range from teens to over 100 most years, plus humidity and epic pollen). I don’t cover it.

TVs made for outdoors are hideously expensive.

[immamac 41336]

1 hour ago, Buzzrock said:

I’ve had an old Samsung HD LCD on the screen porch for probably 10 years. Still going strong (Atlanta so temps range from teens to over 100 most years, plus humidity and epic pollen). I don’t cover it.

TVs made for outdoors are hideously expensive.

They are also substantially brighter. 

[tx 3 putt 74760]

Walmart had a 55 inch vizio for $300. Damn good picture for the sugar bowl

[thunderlounge 7581]

Noticed earlier that Best Buy had 7 or 8 different 85” for under $900. That’s just crazy, low end model or not.

 

[Dahobbs 17088]

On 12/29/2023 at 9:00 AM, squib said:

Not big TV watchers. Go weeks without turning it on. But watch lots of football and a few movies. Everything is streamed on Prime, Netflix--and we get TV through Youtube TV.  Currently using a FireTV Cube to connect. 

Woke up this morning to tons of emails about cheap TVs. 

• TCL 70" Class - S470G Series - 4K UHD LED LCD TV at Costco for $449

• LG 70" Class 4K UHD 2160P webOS Smart TV - 70UQ7070ZUD at Walmart for $498

Is there anything I should be look for/cautious about? Any better rec?

Thanks in advance. 

Go to rtings.com and look at the budget recommendations for the size you want. Easy peasy. 

[Dahobbs 17088]

On 1/4/2024 at 8:58 AM, ROFL BOX said:

Suggestions for an outdoor TV? Build a wooden case for it with a fabric flap over the front?

My concern is humidity & of course a case & canvas-y flap will assist in dust mitigation.

Would be under cover (metal carport), still thinking humidity is an issue.

Hoping to get a pawn shop 50" or more.

I had a 65 inch Vizio on my covered patio. I didn't put any cover on it or do anything to care for it. It worked great until the end of last summer when it developed a line and then eventually refuses to power on. I had it out there for 6 years, in the humidity of Houston, and including the great freeze. That's about the life I expect for a TV anyway before it needs to be replaced with something better. So, if it is in a covered space and protected from direct rain, I don't think you really need to do anything. By a cheapish set and replace as needed. 

[rage-a-holic 4237]

8 hours ago, Dahobbs said:

I had a 65 inch Vizio on my covered patio. I didn't put any cover on it or do anything to care for it. It worked great until the end of last summer when it developed a line and then eventually refuses to power on. I had it out there for 6 years, in the humidity of Houston, and including the great freeze. That's about the life I expect for a TV anyway before it needs to be replaced with something better. So, if it is in a covered space and protected from direct rain, I don't think you really need to do anything. By a cheapish set and replace as needed. 

This only works with a "standard" pool. Try it with a saltwater pool. That shit destroys anything and everything within 50 feet. I've gone through 8 patio TVs since 2016.

[Dahobbs 17088]

4 minutes ago, rage-a-holic said:

This only works with a "standard" pool. Try it with a saltwater pool. That shit destroys anything and everything within 50 feet. I've gone through 8 patio TVs since 2016.

I have a saltwater pool. But is also covered most of the time (the pool), so maybe that prevents any issues. Frankly, I'm surprised the low salt levels would cause an issue that far away. 

[rage-a-holic 4237]

24 minutes ago, Dahobbs said:

I have a saltwater pool. But is also covered most of the time (the pool), so maybe that prevents any issues. Frankly, I'm surprised the low salt levels would cause an issue that far away. 

Anything metal in my backyard that's not aluminum looks like its been rotting on a beach for years. I had a TV die out there after 6 months once, took it apart for kicks and almost every connector/resistor was rusted to shit.

Mine is never covered, 28k gallons.

Edited January 11 by rage-a-holic

[ChickenSandwich 9749]

On 1/11/2024 at 9:01 AM, Dahobbs said:

Go to rtings.com and look at the budget recommendations for the size you want. Easy peasy. 

when looking at cheap TVs, the biggest differentiator will be the upscaling.  How it handles non 4K content.  If you stream sports on YTTV (1080i/p, 720p ) etc some TVs are unwatchable over 65 inches due to their upscaling tech or lack of 

 

Our TV Picture Quality Tests: Upscaling: Sharpness Processing - RTINGS.com

[ChickenSandwich 9749]

Ex. This budget 85inch gets great reviews. Buddy bought and sent back because Sunday ticket was unwatchable on YTTV. looked like 480

*Swapped for LG OLED and problem solved 
 

TCL 85-Inch QM8 QLED 4K Smart Mini LED TV with Google (85QM850G, 2023 Model) Dolby Vision, Atmos, HDR Ultra, Game Accelerator up to 240Hz, Voice Remote, Works Alexa, Streaming Television https://a.co/d/9oCQyE1

Edited January 13 by ChickenSandwich