Xbox Series S/X: Thread 02

[nonny]

I got the chimney breast cut into a entrainment area. So bricks remain either side with the gap in-between fitted with nice big pieces of wood as shelving. Bottom line is, I have room for a 40 inch, maybe a couple in more if future TV has less frame than my current TV (40 inch bravia which has 1 inch frame around the screen). So yeah, I've limited myself a bit

I'm happy with that size TV though, so if anyone sees anything let me know. I really don't want to spend over 500.

I think at that size you're fairly limited for 4K options that are HDMI 2.1 compliant.

As dataDave mentions the LG OLED smallest model is 48"... And the smallest models on the Samsung and Sony LED and QLED are generally 55".

[hudson]

Are regular LED no good then? What are the specs I really should make sure I get? Please excuse my lack of knowledge on TVs. So things like 120hz refresh support, HDR... What else?

[wakka]

Normal LCD/LED is totally fine. OLED has richer colours and true blacks, but with a budget of £500 an OLED is out of price range anyway (the entry level OLEDs are usually around £1k at a minimum).

However - I think with a max size of 40 - 42” inches and budget of £500, there isn’t currently a TV with 120hz compatibility. So you’ll have to forego that. But you can easily find a TV with 4K and HDR that fits that size/price criteria. The 43” Samsung TU8000 is about £380, for example, and has 4K HDR.

[hudson]

If I was to get a a budget 4K/HDR TV will I still see the benefit coming off 1080p?

[Neon Ignition]

The safe answer is it depends on viewing distance and user. I'm never not amazed by how many say they can barely tell the difference, to me it's night and day and that's sat both close and far from 4K screens. Don't forget to check latency, you want to make sure your TV has a good response time. HDR should be easier than when I had to research for mine a few years back, 10-bit is what you need. 120hz don't worry about too much if you find something that hits all the other metrics, there's going to be very little support outside of the early cross-gen games and indie stuff.

[nonny]

Rtings.com is your friend.


You might be worth sifting over older models in that price range because you might get more for your budget and honestly hdmi 2.1 is out at that price range anyway.

[wakka]

The only prob with Rtings is it’s very US-centric and so some of the models on there - e.g. Vizio ones - aren’t available here. Likewise, we get TVs the US doesn’t, like Panasonic’s entire lineup. It’s a good resource though, with that caveat in mind.

I would recommend HDTVTest on YouTube. U.K. based and really know their stuff - but a one man operation so they don’t review everything, and do mostly tend to focus on the higher end. A good resource to bear in mind though.

EDIT: As for the question regarding whether you will see the difference, I recommend you go to a shop and, if you can, plug in your Series S and try it out from the distance you’ll be viewing it at at home. People’s impressions really vary. Alternatively, make sure you’re able to easily return any TV you do buy easily and at no cost, just in case you’re not happy.

[dazza_cole]

How big a deal is HDMI 2.1 likely to be in reality? I’m looking at a high end Sony panel and it doesn’t support it, whereas the next model down does. But are we really going to need it? I’m not planning on going 8K anytime soon, and is there really going to be a lot of content that will benefit from 4K@120?

[Brad]

If I was to get a a budget 4K/HDR TV will I still see the benefit coming off 1080p?

My 4K HDR LG 55” isn’t as good as my ancient 63” Samsung plasma 1080p set but the picture clearly has more pixels because I can’t see them

[nonny]

How big a deal is HDMI 2.1 likely to be in reality? I’m looking at a high end Sony panel and it doesn’t support it, whereas the next model down does. But are we really going to need it? I’m not planning on going 8K anytime soon, and is there really going to be a lot of content that will benefit from 4K@120?

Yeah you're looking at the same models as me... the XH900 has it and the better model XH950 doesn't... however, the firmware to enable it isn't even out yet but hopefully Sony sort this out before the consoles hit.

HDMI 2.1 just enables a series of features that need the higher bandwidth throughput of the new standard.

This includes VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) that is capable of up to 4K120, where basically its matching the refresh of the TV to the console to prevent screen tearing... ALLM (Automatic Low Latency Mode) which detects the device being connected and automatically switches the settings to give the best latency response.

Without these features you're still going to get a great experience with the new consoles, but some of the higher end features will be missing. There is quite a bit of content coming on the Series X at 4K120 but I will stick my neck out and say even on HDMI 2.0 which tops out at 4K60 it's still going to be nice enough.

As for Rtings. Yes they are US which is annoying but from a gamer perspective they do seem to go into a lot of details about the core modes and I just find their layout and information easy to do comparisons with across different TVs. So it's useful but keep in mind that TCL and Vizio for instance aren't going to be available in the UK.

[cutmymilk]

Vizio is a ****ty supermarket brand isn't it? Like Alba.

[nonny]

Vizio is a ****ty supermarket brand isn't it? Like Alba.

Not in the US... Same as TCL, they release absolute garbage models over here but in the US they are specced out really nicely. At the beginning of the year TCL stated they'd be releasing models similar to their US line-up here and in Europe and then with the pandemic I think that's all gone silent.

[wakka]

How big a deal is HDMI 2.1 likely to be in reality? I’m looking at a high end Sony panel and it doesn’t support it, whereas the next model down does. But are we really going to need it? I’m not planning on going 8K anytime soon, and is there really going to be a lot of content that will benefit from 4K@120?

No one knows for sure, but there are games that are already announced as supporting it, like Falconeer. I think it's a pretty safe bet that it won't be supported by many (or any) games that are really pushing the machine, and is more likely to be incorporated into less demanding indie stuff.

VRR will be supported by a lot more games, but it only operates between about 45 and 60fps. Anything above or below that it doesn't apply (at least on current sets). I might have that range slightly wrong but it's around that.

I wouldn't put it above pure picture quality as a priority.

[MartyG]

Without these features you're still going to get a great experience with the new consoles, but some of the higher end features will be missing. There is quite a bit of content coming on the Series X at 4K120 but I will stick my neck out and say even on HDMI 2.0 which tops out at 4K60 it's still going to be nice enough.

It's a case of future proofing yourself a little bit - whilst they might not be an issue now, that might change in two or three years. So it's a case of how long you intend to keep the TV for and how willing you are to sacrifice the ability to do 4K120 with VRR without buying a new set. VRR is a good feature to allow uncapped framerates whilst avoiding tearing (which I personally hate), if I was buying a new main TV and spending a good amount of cash on it, VRR would be a key feature I'd want included.

[hudson]

Jeez. Buying a TV seems like a daunting task nowadays. I need to have a lab coat on to shop for one Are Sony and MS educating us enough?