Can I just buy a TV and plug it in and watch it just like that?

[JandLandG]

Ok, daft question...

Haven't bought a telly for 15 years...not that keen on owing a new one tbh, but son wants, so...

These days, can I just research what would work for me, order it, plug it in and off I go?

There are no aerials any more are there?

So some kind of internal thing somehow receives the stations and I watch?

Or is it all done through the internet?

My mum's telly somehow has you tube and I player on it...is that because its connect to the wifi?

I've tried to search this up, but I think it's such a daft question it isn't answered properly!

Any assistance/knowledge gratefully received ...

more good info...thank you all...

Personally, I would always go for a Samsung, although I think LG are pretty good too. Good luck!

Roku TVs are also really good. Same price as the hisense upthread

So, that was quick.

Thanks so much again for all your thoughts here - except for one grumpypops, ofc 😝

I went to Curry's, saw the cheap one that I looked at (above) and had a chat with the fellas there.

They didn't really try to upsell me and told me that HiSense were cheaper just bc no one knew who they were. Quite a nice customer experience tbh with a couple of tech nerds.

I wasn't really intending to buy, but I thought, sod it.

226 of your earth pounds later and I've got a nice telly in the corner.

226?!?!?

As ppl have said, Freely seems to be the thing that gets you normal live TV like I would often watch without an aerial or dish. But I soon had Iplayer on, BBC Sounds , You tube etc...dead easy.

So, I was thinking...this 43 inch telly costs 226, yet the MacBookAir that I bought last year (that I don't particularly like but the kids at uni both wanted/have one and was peer pressured) cost 1K

Aren't they both the same thing? Both connected to the internet.

Why is my nice big (for me) telly a fifth of the price of a MBA?

By that reckoning, decent lap-tops should be about 50 quid when scaled down in size compared to my telly.

Answers on a postcard, please...but all in all, happy with ppl's advice here and happy (6 hours in) with my new telly. Thank you all.

The first I've bought since 2010. Get me!

It's an interesting comparison, but a MacBook Air (MBA) contains quite different hardware, IP, licensing and includes a lot of additional services and support for the life of the product.

There's also huge competition for making TVs, but only one company making MBAs, so are able to determine the price within the limits of what the market will stand.

It's also worth noting that many TVs display advertising as part of their operating system, and sell your viewing data to third parties which must help reduce the cost to some degree.

What does this mean "you get what you pay for"? I have a £500 Philips tv. Sound is a bit shit like most tvs and I plug an external speaker in. I use it to watch tv. What would a £1,000 tv give me that my £500 tv doesn't?

The features I would expect if I spent more, would include.

Larger screen, (maybe thiner, "more stylish")
Greater dynamic range and higher resolution
Better sound
Faster and more intuitive interface
Bluetooth connected remote
Multiple remotes
1Gbit Ethernet connection
Better connectivity (E.G. Airplay, Chrome cast)
More HDMI connections
Ability to record (by adding a drive)
Satelite connections E.G. Freesat

Of course these features may not be of interest to you.

Thanks for your thoughts, but am still genuinely stumped.

As you say, the "MacBook Air (MBA) contains quite different hardware, IP, licensing and includes a lot of additional services and support for the life of the product."

Typing on my MBA now...it has a keyboard and my telly doesn't, but as far as my user experience goes, that's genuinely about it. I'm not about to write an e mail on the telly or make some notes, but for 800 quid difference....ridiculous .

Plenty more good-enough lap-tops on the market ofc...and I can't understand for the life of me why ppl want to own iPhones.

They're another grand a pop, aren't they? Plus they deliberately slow them down after a while so you have to buy a new one.

Appalling the way marketing, selling, etc is so aggressive.

And tbh, I hate the way they push things at you on these new tvs ...even on iplayer. So needy and aggressive. Invasive.

Just part of the way we've let society develop, sadly.

And no Teletext on this new telly, sadly - aaah, those were the days!

Good explanation - thank you. And tbh, the tech fellas in the shop struggled a bit to explain...

But, yep...most of these features are not particularly of interest to most people who overspend on tvs/phones etc, I'd say...

People who watch old 4:3 shows on 16:9 aspect ratio....I mean...you do know ppl's heads are oval, don't you?!!?

If you are thinking of buying soon, they did mention in Curry's that the new models for this year will come out soon - they are usually priced 15/20 pc higher than they will eventually cost , so don't bother with them unless you are keen to be an early adopter.

I don't know why anyone would be, tbh, but there we go.

The list that I quoted upthread from the Independent seems a decent guide for the moment - different price points depending on what you're after.

But, tbh, when you go into the shop, there are literally millions of tellies playing the same thing - it's a daunting choice, so deffo do a bit of research first...they'll also price match if you can find it cheaper elsewhere, plus they even gave me another 15% off in store...dunno why, maybe because I was humming and aaah-ing.

Either way. a fairly pain-free experience - and I'm amazed that I now own a shiny new telly for so little money. Might watch a film on it tonight...