New tv for around £300.. far too many.. making my head hurt

Thaifood · 31 Dec 2023 at 00:13

Evening all
Been looking around for a new TV and realise I know nothing about them..there are just way too many!! My present tv is 10 years old!!
I mean do I get a 2023 model or go for a a 2022 which has come down in price ? Brand, screen type etc..
Ideally I would like
42" or bigger
4k
Has Netflix, amazon prime, iplayer, free view, Disney, YouTube etc
I won't be playing any demanding games. Maybe eventually I will get a Nintendo switch or simular for the kids.
I have narrowed it down to 2 TV
Panasonic TX-43MX600B (2023) LED HDR 4K Ultra HD Smart TV, 43 inch with Freeview Play & Dolby Atmos, Black
And
LG UR78 43UR78006LK - 43'' Smart LED-LCD TV - 4K UHDTV.

Both are around £299.
Which would you suggest ?
Or feel free to point me to a better set.

Many thanks

radderfire · 31 Dec 2023 at 00:20

Both are good brands so I would say either. Personally I would stick with either Panasonic or LG. There's a list of TV brand websites here if you want to do further research.

Nugsy88 · 31 Dec 2023 at 07:38

Because you are relying on the TV for using the streaming services then I would definitely suggest LG as they are the best by a long way with there apps and UI smoothness

hornetstinger · 31 Dec 2023 at 09:31

Also get a sound system as flat panel are lousy in that department. At least a soundbar.

Simmz · 31 Dec 2023 at 10:00

Thaifood said:
Evening all
Been looking around for a new TV and realise I know nothing about them..there are just way too many!! My present tv is 10 years old!!
I mean do I get a 2023 model or go for a a 2022 which has come down in price ? Brand, screen type etc..
Ideally I would like
42" or bigger
4k
Has Netflix, amazon prime, iplayer, free view, Disney, YouTube etc
I won't be playing any demanding games. Maybe eventually I will get a Nintendo switch or simular for the kids.
I have narrowed it down to 2 TV
Panasonic TX-43MX600B (2023) LED HDR 4K Ultra HD Smart TV, 43 inch with Freeview Play & Dolby Atmos, Black
And
LG UR78 43UR78006LK - 43'' Smart LED-LCD TV - 4K UHDTV.

Both are around £299.
Which would you suggest ?
Or feel free to point me to a better set.

Many thanks

I'd spend a little bit extra and get the Panasonic TX-43MX800B. Can you fit a 50" at all?

Thaifood · 31 Dec 2023 at 10:02

Unfortunately no.. 50 is too big. My old one is 47" and already a tight fit for the space

Simmz · 31 Dec 2023 at 10:06

Thaifood said:
Unfortunately no.. 50 is too big. My old one is 47" and already a tight fit for the space

Well if you find one you like on the Panasonic site I can sort you 15% voucher off. The 43" MX800B is out of stock at moment though, unless you want to go for an OLED MZ800B at £679

Thaifood · 31 Dec 2023 at 10:11

Ha thanks. Very tempting but must kept to my budget! Or else I will never get to upgrade my gpu !!!

Simmz · 31 Dec 2023 at 10:25

Thaifood said:
Ha thanks. Very tempting but must kept to my budget! Or else I will never get to upgrade my gpu !!!

If the 800 comes back into stock would be £340. Can find out Tuesday if can hold off until then, otherwise the 600 model for £255 650 model £323.

Thaifood · 31 Dec 2023 at 11:31

The 800 does sound nice.. Will definitely wait until then. Thank you

TheVoice · 31 Dec 2023 at 12:03

Nugsy88 said:
Because you are relying on the TV for using the streaming services then I would definitely suggest LG as they are the best by a long way with there apps and UI smoothness

Agreed, I've got a 2017 LG OLED and it still gets app support and updates. I've no idea what platform Panasonic use now but I doubt it's nearly as well-supported as WebOS.

Doughnut007 · 31 Dec 2023 at 12:43

Don't forget you don't have to go the TV route. You can get a monitor and a smart TV box.
That way you don't have to worry about support etc as you just replace the box.

Thaifood · 31 Dec 2023 at 12:57

Never thought of that.. what would you considered then that is in the price range ?

Thaifood · 31 Dec 2023 at 12:59

But wouldn't a 43" monitor be way over my budget.. well the ones I can quickly find

TheVoice · 31 Dec 2023 at 13:22

Thaifood said:
But wouldn't a 43" monitor be way over my budget.. well the ones I can quickly find

At smaller sizes it's a decent suggestion but not at the size you're looking at. I'd rather use a monitor as a monitor and a TV as a TV anyway.

hornetstinger · 31 Dec 2023 at 13:35

Doughnut007 said:
Don't forget you don't have to go the TV route. You can get a monitor and a smart TV box.
That way you don't have to worry about support etc as you just replace the box.

You need a good off board scaler/deinterlacer if you get a monitor.

radderfire · 31 Dec 2023 at 15:44

Doughnut007 said:
Don't forget you don't have to go the TV route. You can get a monitor and a smart TV box.
That way you don't have to worry about support etc as you just replace the box.

I expect this could be done with a projector as well, but then you'd need to think about sound.

Gray2233 · 31 Dec 2023 at 15:46

Thaifood said:
Unfortunately no.. 50 is too big. My old one is 47" and already a tight fit for the space

How old is your 47"? I find that people often don't realise just how big older TV's were due to bezels etc. It's possible a current 50" will fit just fine depending.

lucid · 31 Dec 2023 at 18:35

Gray2233 said:
How old is your 47"? I find that people often don't realise just how big older TV's were due to bezels etc. It's possible a current 50" will fit just fine depending.

^ This.

If the old TV was something like an LG 47LM4600 (2013) then the screen width with the bezel is 42.9". That Pana MX600 but in 50" is just 44" wide. Much of the extra screen size is offset with the much thinner bezel. It's worth a look at the dimensions.

On a side not, personally I would avoid any of the cheaper 4K UHD LED TVs. They all suffer from limited brightness output, especially for HDR. That, combined with either poor blacks but good viewing angles of LG IPS panels, or better blacks but poor viewing angles of Panasonic VA panels makes OLED a seriously attractive option.

Thaifood · 31 Dec 2023 at 18:35

About 10 years ago. And bezel is about an inch either side