Davethehiker Loc: South West Pennsylvania

I have an old DLP HDTV (about 61 inch) that I bought in the fall of 2005. It's served me well and I'm second lamp. Now I'm reading about 4K UHD. I own a Sony A99II that is touted as having 4K video capability, but have not bothered to use it yet. (I'm really not into video.) I do all my image processing on my trusty old MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Late 2013) screen and it looks good to me. I'm thinking of replacing my 2005 HDTV because I moved to a new house and sometimes the bright light from big widows washes out the image on the screen. Maybe a newer brighter TV will help? It there currently any 4K UHD content to watch?

I know that currently my photos look better on my Retina computer screen than they do on my current TV. Will my camera images look better if I buy a 4K UHD TV?

My son tells me that he loves his 3D HDTV with active glasses. I see that last years Sony 4K UHD models include a 3D model but cost about twice as much as this years models that do not include 3D, with the same sized 65 inch screen.

Do you have any advice? So much to learn!

Thanks for reading.

dangriss Loc: Fresno, CA

Dave,
I bought a new Samsung about a year ago, to replace and old rear-projection HDTV I had had for probably 12 to 15 years. The Samsung incorporated some sort of coating, to reduce reflections, that worked wonders.

As for content, I use Netflix, they have quite a bit. Amazon Prime Video also has some, but I haven't yet figured out how to access it. I don't believe anyone is broadcasting UHD over the air, but some cable and satellite providers do, if you have the right box at home.

You can also download some content to a flash drive, and play through the USB port. Or, buy a 4K blu-ray player for somewhere around $400.

Also, some TVs are listed as "Monitors". No tuner, so you must have cable of some sort.

Good luck on your purchase.

Davethehiker Loc: South West Pennsylvania

Thanks. I'm currently using "Direct TV" a satellite dish receiver but I think it's too expensive. I also have cable TV that provides 10Mbps download speeds. The cable system had problems staying up for the past few years so I needed the dish because it WAS more reliable. Recently the cable company seems to have got it's act together it is now reliable. I plan to drop my subscription to the dish at the same time I buy the new 4K TV.

BebuLamar

My images look great on my 4K TV.

Davethehiker Loc: South West Pennsylvania

Good to know, but what type of computer screen are you comparing it to?

and what the heck is that image in your' avatar? It looks like knob on an old Minolta camera?

blue-ultra Loc: New Hampshire

4K UHD TV is not broadcasted yet. As Dan said several cable providers do have 4K. Netflix has a volume of 4K movies you can access either through your cable provider or Direct TV or even your internet. Be sure to have a wireless modem that offers a different output for streaming video. I have DSL at my home and use a high end modem that boost the speed and offers streaming video and I watch 4 k movies on Netflix without any problems.

You will also see a big difference in your photos when you use the new TV as a monitor.

Most TV's being offered today are LED models. They are very good , but not as good as the LCD or Plasma models. However there is a difference in cost. As they say nothing for nothing..

Enjoy your new TV when you get it. But do try to keep it away from direct light as that will impact your viewing quality...

BTW I spent 40 years in the TV business just as a reference for you!

Bob

Davethehiker Loc: South West Pennsylvania

Thank you so much for all the good information. I also appreciate that you explained you qualifications. I have been thinking of hanging some curtains on the window where the sunlight beats on my TV.

Leitz Loc: Solms

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burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

4K sets are becoming the norm, and the price has fallen significantly this past year. It's a "you might as well" feature, now. 3D is all but dead. 4K CONTENT is available for some shows in some markets and via some services, but is far from universal. I think it will take three to five years before 4K will be very common.

The main advantage of 4K is to be able to get very close to a screen without seeing the pixels. The normal viewing range for any image is one to 1.5 times the diagonal dimension of that image. Within that area, an HDTV image looks its best. You can cut that distance in half with 4K. But then, most folks will think they're too close, and back up!

4K as a capture medium is a whole different thing. Of course, you can record in 4K for 4K display. But if you plan to release video in HD (1080P @ 60 fps, etc.), then recording in 4K lets you CROP during editing. You can zoom in, you can use SOFTWARE image stabilization to great effect, etc. You can even simulate a two camera job by cropping the same scene during some clips, but not cropping it during others.

High end work is now done with 8K cameras, so producers can reap those same benefits for feature films projected in 4K at theaters.

shelty Loc: Medford, OR

After you've had a 4K you'll never want to go back. That's all I can say.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

I replaced a 10 year old Panasonic 42" HD TV last fall with a 55" Samsung UHD TV. It was about $950. Regardless of the specifications and technicalities, the acid test was passed when my DW exclaimed that, "Even watching the news is so much better!". We don't have cable or satellite. We use an antenna for locals. We do record and watch PBS series like Masterpiece Theater. We rent the occasional BD from Redbox. We can watch some Amazon content in 4K, but the choices are not very interesting to us. The new TV is simply brighter, more colorful and clearer. For that, it was worth the $950.

That said, my interest was in fact the 4K capability. My personal photography and videography now have 4 times as many pixels to look at. It makes a pleasant difference. I can shoot raw and, using Lightroom, export JPEGs at 3840x2160. I shoot video and use Premiere Elements. It will render 4K video files directly from RAW stills for a "slideshow".

A significant bonus is how easy the new TV will display photos and videos. It has USB ports. Copy a video file or high quality JPEGs to a cheap thumb drive, plug it in and control the show with the TV's remote. With a cheap SD card reader, I can plug in the SD card directly from my camera. There is no need for, or confusion from, a media player, DVD player or BD player.

In fact, it was the playability of my own stuff that drove the purchase. I took a thumb drive with my photos and videos to the TV store (Costco) and plugged it in to various TVs. I liked the Samsung interface best. Based on price, I picked a middle model.

melismus Loc: Chesapeake Bay Country

It is an exposure meter, calibrated in EV units.

ballsafire Loc: Lafayette, Louisiana

Just to let you know -- I have a Sony TV with 3D but I don't use the 3D and never will for i've had my fill in the 1950's (I think) with three D and the plastic glasses. My advice is to buy a TV without 3D! There is plenty of time to let the 4K UHD TV evolve. And , yes, keep direct sunlight away from your TV screen! I have aways loved Sony products but lately I'm not so sure - hope that new TV without 3D is worthwhile (I think Sony seen it's mistake).

Davethehiker Loc: South West Pennsylvania

That would have been my second guess. When I was a boy I had a Weston light meter. Tells you how old I am.

OMG, I just did an internet search and found the exact light meter I used when I was a boy.

Note: The ISO/ASA only when up to 1600. No one back then could imagine anything faster!

Kissel vonKeister Loc: Georgia

My understanding is that some events like Sunday football and major events like Hillary being sworn in as president are broadcast in 4K by the local stations that support it. We have a Samsung 4K and the Super Bowl image resolution was stunning.