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FlaFFy_91

Premium Member

Registered: 30th Sep 08
Location: Formby, Merseyside
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 13:11

im after a tv for the girlfriend for xmas
shes after a 40" smart tv

as with most things i don't have a clue what im looking at so im after some suggestions
needs to be a smart tv
close to 40"
and around £400

anything to look out for?
or just some tv suggestions would be awesome
thanks guys

evilrob

Premium Member

Registered: 16th Mar 12
Location: Your mum's house
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 13:19

Tesco Direct are punting out a 40" Samsung LED 3D TV for £449 with an Xbox 360.

http://www.tesco.com/direct/special-offer/buy-samsung-40-40eh6030-1080p-full-hd-led-tv-get-xbox-360-250gb-console-free/promo22480061.promo

The telly itself isn't a Smart TV, but an Xbox 360 will give you all the benefits of a Smart TV and a bunch of other stuff as well, like games, internets, films on demand etc.

FlaFFy_91

Premium Member

Registered: 30th Sep 08
Location: Formby, Merseyside
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 13:37

That means id have a Xbox in the girlfriends house........... I think that could be awesome

[Edited on 10-11-2013 by FlaFFy_91]

evilrob

Premium Member

Registered: 16th Mar 12
Location: Your mum's house
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 13:45

Even the best Smart TV can't compete with the multimedia offerings of an Xbox.

I can't think of a downside here. Unless the telly itself is shit - which a quick look at the reviews suggests it isn't.

John

Member

Registered: 30th Jun 03
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 13:55

An xbox360 is a bit of a rubbish substitute for having it all built into the TV.

Cavey

Member

Registered: 11th Nov 02
Location: Derby
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 14:01

quote:
Originally posted by John
An xbox360 is a bit of a rubbish substitute for having it all built into the TV.

Now if it was a ps3 for free that'd be a different matter...

FlaFFy_91

Premium Member

Registered: 30th Sep 08
Location: Formby, Merseyside
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 14:02

quote:
Originally posted by John
An xbox360 is a bit of a rubbish substitute for having it all built into the TV.

Not entirely.
As it means I have a Xbox at my girlfriends.

evilrob

Premium Member

Registered: 16th Mar 12
Location: Your mum's house
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 14:07

If you're more of a Playstation guy, sell the Xbox and buy a Playstation - will still give you more functionality than the best Smart TV.

(as it happens, I'm actually in the market for an Xbox 360)

evilrob

Premium Member

Registered: 16th Mar 12
Location: Your mum's house
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 14:23

quote:
Originally posted by John
An xbox360 is a bit of a rubbish substitute for having it all built into the TV.

I disagree entirely - an Xbox (or Playstation) can clearly offer far more functionality than a Smart TV, and with a much more intuitive user interface.

Even in 2013 - with the exception of Samsung whose latest efforts are actually alright - as a rule, Smart TV user interfaces are horrendous.

John

Member

Registered: 30th Jun 03
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 14:39

But then you've got another box, another remote, needs to switch on. Being built into the TV is better for someone who wants a 'smart TV'. If a 360 is useful to him then it may very well be the best option.

John

Member

Registered: 30th Jun 03
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 14:39

Agree about Samsung new interface, got a 2013 TV here and it's loads better than my 2011 one.

FlaFFy_91

Premium Member

Registered: 30th Sep 08
Location: Formby, Merseyside
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 14:43

quote:
Originally posted by John
Agree about Samsung new interface, got a 2013 TV here and it's loads better than my 2011 one.

When I say smart tv... I mean one that's got internet and Netflix and that on it....

Is there a samsung for about £400 with that on it then?

John

Member

Registered: 30th Jun 03
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 14:49

£400 pushing it for 40", think you'd have to spend another £100 unless you find a good deal.

sc0ott

Member

Registered: 16th Feb 09
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 15:06

Currys have some decent 40" teles for under 500.

Heres a nice 42" LG for just over 400.
http://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/tv-dvd-blu-ray/televisions/large-screen-tvs-32-and-over/lg-42ln575v-smart-42-led-tv-21342715-pdt.html

Or you could increase your budget by a bit more and go for this?
http://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/tv-dvd-blu-ray/televisions/large-screen-tvs-32-and-over/samsung-ue85s9stxxu-smart-3d-4k-ultra-hd-85-led-tv-21485731-pdt.html

evilrob

Premium Member

Registered: 16th Mar 12
Location: Your mum's house
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 15:28

quote:
Originally posted by John
£400 pushing it for 40", think you'd have to spend another £100 unless you find a good deal.

This, frankly.

I'd prioritise picture quality over gimmicks - in my opinion, built-in 'Smart' stuff just isn't up to scratch yet. Unless you want to spend a lot of money on one of the latest Samsungs which are the least worst.

If it's really that important, you can supplement 'smart' stuff later with something like a:

Now TV box (£9.99 but limited to mostly Sky services with a bit of BBC iPlayer and Spotify thrown in, most of which require a £4.99+ a month subscription):
http://www.nowtv.com

Roku LT (£40 essentially the same as a Now TV box but without the Sky tie-in so you can use Netflix and other competing services as well all the Now TV stuff if you want to):
http://www.roku.com/uk/what-is-roku

Google TV Chromecast thingy (£40 on Amazon - YouTube, Netflix, no BBC iPlayer yet except via Chrome on an Android device/tablet/PC/Mac using the "cast" plugin to stream stuff from another device straight to the telly):
http://www.google.com/intl/en-GB/chrome/devices/chromecast

Apple TV (£99 - YouTube, Netflix, no BBC iPlayer but tonnes of films/TV shows to rent/buy via iTunes store):
http://store.apple.com/uk/ipod/ipod-accessories/apple-tv

Then upgrade the external box as better things become available.

LG offered their previous-generation Smart TV interface in an external box to make any 'dumb' TV 'smart' for a while:

LG ST600 (read the reviews - slow, laggy interface, not user-friendly; pretty much par for the course for Smart TV interfaces):
http://www.lg.com/us/tv-accessories/lg-ST600-smart-tv-upgrader

It is worth noting that web browsing on any Smart TV is a waste of time, and you'll almost always find yourself reaching for your smartphone, tablet or laptop.

None of these solutions is as good as a console for media consumption.

[Edited on 10-11-2013 by evilrob]

BarnshaW

Member

Registered: 25th Oct 06
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 15:35

the LG LN575 is a good shout, recently got a 42LN575 for my bedroom, its very very good for its price.

FlaFFy_91

Premium Member

Registered: 30th Sep 08
Location: Formby, Merseyside
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 16:27

It's just what she wants.
Basically wants a good tv with Netflix and all that on it.
So most of you would say get a good tv then get a separate smart box or something?

Cavey

Member

Registered: 11th Nov 02
Location: Derby
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 16:31

That would be my opinion on it.

I've got a ps3 and nowtv box. You can hack the nowtv box to stream stuff from a PC too.

Think robs offer was spot on really, and as you said. Gets an Xbox at her house then too.

evilrob

Premium Member

Registered: 16th Mar 12
Location: Your mum's house
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 17:16

quote:
Originally posted by FlaFFy_91
It's just what she wants.
Basically wants a good tv with Netflix and all that on it.

Not going to happen for £400.

The cheapest Smart TV with acceptable user interface is the LG 42LN578V (a model up from the one mentioned above). It has the "Magic Motion" remote, which makes it much easier to live with, but it's £450 and even then not going to be as good as the Xbox deal for the same money:
http://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/tv-dvd-blu-ray/televisions/large-screen-tvs-32-and-over/lg-42ln578v-smart-42-led-tv-21324853-pdt.html

Here's a demo of the user interface:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oa78HiSZN8E

You can buy the Magic Remote separately for the 42LN575 mentioned previously, but it's about £30.

[Edited on 10-11-2013 by evilrob]

evilrob

Premium Member

Registered: 16th Mar 12
Location: Your mum's house
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 17:29

Walt Mossberg's take on Smart TV (admittedly from last year, but reviewing Samsung's latest generation Smart TV software):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_g_0VAxz40&feature=youtu.be&t=3m05s

(I've started it at the bit relevant to this conversation, but worth watching the whole thing)

I think the best thing to do might be to nip to Currys and have a go on a few and decide for yourself whether you can live with built-in Smart TV.

If having all-in-one is critical, as long as you're aware that it's a compromise and will be (more) unreliable than a more powerful external box, I'd be looking at Samsung first, which in my opinion is the least worst Smart TV software, and if you can't find one on budget, LG is a reasonable second best and will do the job as long as you get the newest one with the magic remote.

[Edited on 10-11-2013 by evilrob]

BarnshaW

Member

Registered: 25th Oct 06
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 19:04

you can use a smart phone as magic remote, dont need a magic remote.

sc0ott

Member

Registered: 16th Feb 09
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 19:12

Do you get any games with the xbox?

Personally i would go for the smart lg tv. I recently bought the 47la860w and it looks amazing and has some good features. Every flat screen tv i see now with a thick bezel looks dated.

Xbox 360s with games and extra accessories can be picked up for pennies off gumtree. Theyll be even cheaper when everyone decides to sell after the xbox one is released.

evilrob

Premium Member

Registered: 16th Mar 12
Location: Your mum's house
User status: Offline

10th Nov 13 at 19:26