Hate my new 4K TV

[Pinkyblinder]

Last time I bought a TV was about 10 years ago. 26 inch Panasonic and it has fared well. Thought I'd better get on board with the new technology and have got a new 49 inch LG 4K LED TV.

After getting it a week ago I've just unboxed it and set it up.

But despite it being a Which recommended TV I am not that impressed with it. It is humongous for the room and despite spending hours adjusting the settings the picture doesn't seem much better than my Panasonic. Wish I could send it back.

Maybe it's me and I'm not smart enough to appreciate my smart TV. Also I'm paranoid about all the information it will collect about me!

I know that in the grand scheme of things this is trivial, but does anybody else feel sucked into getting the latest technology only to be quite disappointed?

[potatoscone]

Are you selecting the HD channels? I found when I got mine that the ordinary channels and the channel guide were worse picture than old TV, but watching the HD channel was definitely better. Unfortunately there often isn't an HD option :(

Give it time though, you will get used to it

[PersonaNonGarter]

I am not very pleased with my £1k iPhone. It is disappointing.

All part of life lessons I suppose but it is a bit shit. Could you eBay?

[Pinkyblinder]

I've just looked at a HD channel and it looks a bit better Potatoscone. Trouble is a lot of the channels I like don't have a HD. I think I will need to start watching more streaming services like Netflix to get the benefit. So more expense.

I'm so glad though that I didn't go big (for me) and get the 55 inch. It would have taken over the room even more than this one!

[Mercurial123]

But surely if the TV is too big that's your fault. There's a simple formula to calculate the ideal sized screen for the size of room.

[Pinkyblinder]

Use eBay PersonNonGarter!! Sorry, but I'm a paranoid technophobe remember. I don't sell or buy on EBay. I don't use Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram etc. I only buy stuff from Amazon using gift cards. I try to ensure only minimum information is out there about me.

I was victim of identity fraud many years ago, and now that online fraud is so much worse, I'm very very wary.

[Pinkyblinder]

I researched for weeks before getting the TV Mercurial123. Got the tape measure out and read all about optimal TV size dependant on distance between the viewer and the screen.

Apparently unlike the advice given years ago, nowadays you have to sit a lot closer to TV's to get the 'immersive' experience. According to the charts I should have got at least a 55 inch.

So the aesthetics or lack of them of having a ginormous TV in your lounge shouldn't stop you from enjoying the 'immersive experience!

[gluteustothemaximus]

There's no point buying a 4k TV if you don't have 4k running through it.

HD channels will only be in HD.

In order to view in 4k you will also need a set top box in 4k (don't think they exist) a 4k blu ray player AND all your blu rays in 4k.

It’s a swizz.

[gluteustothemaximus]

You can get the virgin set top box v6 which will allow you to stream in 4k. But then you need Netflix in 4k and only a handful of shows will be UHD. Plus you'd need a very juicy Internet package to cope with streaming 4k.

[LatteYumYum]

Mercurial123 ooh what's the formula?

[PatricksRum]

Mercurial123 ooh what's the formula?

Me too...

[SpoonBlender]

If you got it a week ago and it was an Internet purchase, you can cancel the sale in the mandatory 14 day cooling off period.

If you're going to keep it, go to www.rtings.com/tv and search yours out. Next to the review title tab is a "settings" tab which'll get you the best look you can have from that set.

[SpoonBlender]

gluteus Netflix, Amazon, Apple and the BBC all have 4k streams, as do others. Amazon and Apple have 4k settop boxes, the Firestick and AppleTV 4k. It's not a swizz, it's no different from when blurays took over from DVDs, or DVDs took over from VHS.

Size calibration thing here: www.rtings.com/tv/tools

It's not magic, just based on whether there's any point getting a 4k TV vs 1080: if you can't make out the pixels then get a 1080. Of course 4k TVs are barely any more than 1080s now, so...

[MissionItsPossible]

What the others said.
There’s really no point in buying a 4K TV if you don’t have the technology to get the most out of it. But you’ve bought it now. If you can’t take it back then just enjoy it - blu rays would love great on that size of a screen.

[whatswithtodaytoday]

Am I alone in not wanting to be immersed in my TV? I just want to watch it, not be inside it

OP, if you bought it a week ago you should surely be able to return it. Where did you buy it?

[Peacocking]

Give it a couple of weeks, and it won't feel any bigger than your last one. When I got a 42" many moons ago, I felt like my eyes weren't big enough to see the whole picture and it made me dizzy. Now I have a 65" and it doesn't feel like a big tv at all. Don't worry, it'll be fine and you'll enjoy it soon.

[WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll]

It is humongous for the room

Got the tape measure out and read all about optimal TV size dependant on distance between the viewer and the screen

But surely, if you were already happy with the size of your old one, you wouldn't need to worry about guides or measurements, would you? Wouldn't you just buy another of the same size? 49" isn't that much less than twice 26", meaning that the screen area is going to be getting on for four times the size.

I too don't want an 'immersive experience' in any way - I can see how this might be ideal in a cinema, where you've specifically set aside two hours to concentrate on a single experience, but in a multi-purpose home living room, with lots else going on, I just want to have it sitting in the corner and watch it when I want to.

Just because the manufacturers and 'experts' tell me I need a much bigger telly and to move all the armchairs closer to it, that doesn't change the dimensions and practicalities of my small living room.

It sounds like it's not the telly for you, OP, but unfortunately you're either going to have to put up with it anyway or accept quite a loss if you sell it, whichever method you choose; and then, next time (whether its a telly or anything else), decide what kind and sort you want and then look for reviews to find the best one within those parameters. Retailers are never going to tell you that something basic might be best for you, but it's your money and your choice. There are endless adverts on TV for new cars that I could/should buy, had I the financial wherewithal, but I haven't yet seen a single one to confirm my opinion that the 15yo car that I currently have is probably fine for what I need.

[daisychain01]

I would recommend you do not wait a day longer, take the goods back to the shop with the receipt and restored into their original packaging as soon as possible! Don't wait.

There are some useful tips and info in the CAB article (link below).

Just to be clear, there is no obligation on the shop to accept the goods back unless they are not fit for purpose. However you could argue that the TV is far too big for the size of your room and that you cannot ever get the 4K technology needed for the TV to work as it is designed and intended to do.

Stand your ground and try to get a refund, or a smaller size one (that might be a sweetener for the store. At least get a TV you know you can use and enjoy.)

www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/changed-your-mind/changing-your-mind-about-something-youve-bought/

[daisychain01]

Sorry I meant to say you'll never get the bandwidth sufficient to run the 4K TV in your home location.

[brizzledrizzle]

Is this for real?

[WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll]

Am I alone in not wanting to be immersed in my TV? I just want to watch it, not be inside it

I completely agree! I'm reminded of an old routine that Mark Watson did, about companies constantly urging you to upgrade. I liked his example analogy of being out, happily walking his dog, and being subjected to some magical forced-upgrade-fairy waving a wand and swapping it for a wolf!

[WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll]

Sorry, I didn't see that you'd only had it a week.

Do what daisychain01 suggests - if the salesperson insisted that it was a suitable size for your room, even after you'd (presumably) said that you'd hitherto been happy with a 26", then it must fall under the category of 'not as described' and/or 'not fit for purpose'.

Be prepared for them to scoff if you say you genuinely want to swap it for what they describe as a 'kid's bedroom' or 'caravan' TV - that's just them doing their job and they're still not the expert that you are on YOUR house and YOUR lifestyle.

[CanadianJohn]

I remember an ad for a massive HD TV "It's like having the Montreal Canadiens hockey team right in your living room!"

I can't think of anything I would hate more than having a hockey team in my living room. All sitting around sweating and drinking my beer, with their skates cutting holes in the carpet.

[Eponymous]

You need to make sure the upscaling settings are correct for what your watching. That should make older stuff look better. Is it also hdr? You can search out the Netflix content that is hdr/uhd.

It's may not be significantly better for a lot of old shows but for the shows that are uhd (4K) or HDR, the difference will be pretty good. What your paying for is the capability to watch those shows in all their detail.

Also do a search on how to best calibrate the settings for your particular (exact) type of tv. There are a bunch of forums out there where they will tell you exactly how to set it for your tv. Down to whether you have it in a bright room or a dark room.

[Banjax]

Did anyone else think the telly COST 4k? Thought this was a mega stealth boast!!

[BarbaraofSevillle]

If you bought it online just send it back and keep your old one or buy a smaller simpler new one. Buy the TV you want, not the one they want to sell you, that you're not interested in.

We have some sort of Smart TV but I'm not interested in 3D or 4k or fuck knows what else and I refuse to go any bigger than 42 inches.

If a car magazine recommended that you needed a Ferrari or some massive 4x4 thing when you're perfectly happy with your Honda Jazz, would you rush out to upgrade?