Advice on buying new TV please - what features Not to get.

What I found difficult at first is having to use an iPhone to log on to the tv for certain channels. Only the once ,admittedly, but it was nice in the old days when you could just switch them on and off, no problems

SueDonim

Don’t buy an LG would be my main advice! I have one and it’s devilishly difficult to use. I’ve now bought a Firestick to simplify using it. If it wasn’t for the fact it’s pretty new, I’d replace it. I hear good things about Samsungs but have no personal experience of them.

We do have an LG as we particularly wanted a smaller TV and got exactly what we needed from Richer Sounds. We had previously used a Firestick on an older TV but find the new smart TV is easy to use - though it might take a little getting used to.

We were in a similar quandary a couple of years ago and looked at the Which reports. They recommended Richer Sounds as a retailer, we'd used them before over the years but forgotten all about them. Their prices are reasonable, they don't try to push products on you that are more complicated than you need, and they're happy to take as long as necessary to sort out exactly what you need - and what you don't!

Don’t buy an LG would be my main advice! I have one and it’s devilishly difficult to use. I’ve now bought a Firestick to simplify using it. If it wasn’t for the fact it’s pretty new, I’d replace it. I hear good things about Samsungs but have no personal experience of them.

We have a Samsung,too. We had a Sony before that.and that was fine but only lasted 10 years and then ‘died’. We also have a TCL , smaller one in the family room. They are both good. At our beach house we have a very, very ancient tv from Aldi which never goes wrong, cost almost nothing and has a good picture. The Samsung is the newest one and is good so far, 65 inch . Easy enough when we got used to it, different from the Sony though.

I am assuming that what you have at the moment is not a smart TV in the sense that it has internet connectivity, that you are watching and recording programmes via a Sky box.

If that is the case, the first thing you have to understand is that smart TVs do not have recording capability. Everything you watch will either be live TV or streamed recordings via the internet. For the latter you need apps. These are either free to air, BBC iPlayer, Channel 4, U etc or you pay a monthly subscription, Now, Netflix, Disney, Apple etc

If you want to record from free to air channels you will need a recording device such as a Humax or Manhattan box which you connect to your TV aerial and connect the box to the TV.

Whether you will need a sound bar will depend on the quality of the sound from the TVs own receivers. Because smart TVs are thin there is little room for decent speakers so they can sound tinny but the technology is improving so try out the set before thinking you have to buy a sound bar.

I doubt any smart TV is going to last 16 years. The average lifespan is expected to be 7-10 as the LEDs (light-emitting diodes) in the screen will eventually fail. Also, after a while, just as happens now, manufacturers stop issuing software updates just as they do with computers.

I would decide on an overall budget and go from there because unless someone is a real tech-head there isn’t that much difference between one set and another. I’m still getting good use from the 32” HD Samsung I bought six years ago for £250.

Which magazine best deals.

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Don’t forget Black Friday is approaching so there will be further good offers to come.

Ours is Samsung and easy to navigate. Yes think about a soundbar as our hearing gets more reduced as we get older. Hubby and I both have at least one hearing aid and I’m thinking of the soundbar route now.

I have a Samsung thirty two inch smart tv, I have found it brilliant. I don’t understand why a much larger screen is needed.

We have a Samsung and the sound isn't great, we had to buy a sound bar which improves it somewhat, although I now have hearing aids.
I would go into a shop and ask advice there are so many different features now. A friend recently bought a tv twice the cost of ours and the picture quality is fabulous compared to ours. It seems you get what you pay for.

If you’re able to visit a store you can discuss your needs, budget etc.
We would buy something like that from our local Stellisons/ Euronics store. They deliver and install. The assistants in John Lewis and Curry’s are usually very helpful too.

I am on my second Samsung smart tv and find it easy to navigate and had no problems with either of them.