In the era of OLEDs, does it make any sense to buy LED TV?

[matbhuvi]

The number of threads/posts on failure of LED/OLED panels makes me wonder what kind of a budget I should spend on when I have to eventually move on from my plasma. (how iI wish I chanced upon a NOS stock of identical plasma to replace my aging one!).

I am wary of spending in the vicinity of a couple of lacs for something that might last only 4-5 years. Gone are the days (90s and 00s) when we could buy a TV and it went on and on for 10-15 years without a hitch. And then there’s also the faster obsolescence due to the constantly evolving smartness of TVs. I won’t be surprised to see todays’s best OLEDs being replaced by AI-driven OLED (or any other display tech that supersedes it) TVs in a couple of years. Imagine telling your TV to concoct a film for yourself given a rough outline, direction style and favourite actors.

Considering both these factors, I am inclined to get myself something under a lac, but with the smartness of the day built in and decent picture quality. Sony Bravia LEDs for example. With the readiness that it’d have to be replaced in the near future. Not necessarily by a TV, but perhaps by a projector or even Smart glasses, as they mature.

There are people who spend more than a lakh on mobile phone every 2 years. 5 years seem to be good number for a TV imo. And yes it is a depreciating asset like a car. It all boils down to whether you are passionate about it or not. I have friends who have spent close to 15L on their audio system and spent 1L on their 65" TV.

 

[hifimaddy]

Last week I brought a used Samsung LED TV to use as a PC monitor. It works fine. Although it's 7-8 years old, it still produces decent images. But the latest OLEDs are getting more issues than LEDS, from my observations.

 

[sachinchavan 15865]

There are people who spend more than a lakh on mobile phone every 2 years. 5 years seem to be good number for a TV imo. And yes it is a depreciating asset like a car. It all boils down to whether you are passionate about it or not. I have friends who have spent close to 15L on their audio system and spent 1L on their 65" TV.

My post was sharing my personal perspective and thoughts for my own future TV purchase. It’s not intended as a commentary on anyone else.

As for mobile vs TV, some like me would be ok spending more on a mobile than a TV as it provides us much more utility. When I upgrade my iPhone Pro Max eventually (most likely when Apple Intelligence gets launched in India), I shall look at the top of line iPhone at that time. While a TV is essentially for personal & family entertainment, a mobile is also a much more versatile tool with professional utility.

 

[DB1989]

I have just seen a Demo on OLED TV which I would like to share here. I have also seen it in my old LCD TV, but still the clarity is super, very much enjoyable. Imagine just how beautiful it would be if one watches it in real OLED TV

Video credit: Oled Demo

I'm watching it on both my LG G1 OLED and my Sony X9500G and the scenes with black or dark backgrounds look better on my OLED whereas the ones with bright highlights and very few dark spots/scenes look far better on the LED. It depends on the living situation (bright room) and the content being consumed. For now, OLEDs are more accurate at the cost of luminosity - it all depends on which metric or attribute any given person prefers.

Demos may be misleading in determining which one is a better fit for you.

To elucidate, check out this demo - it looks so lacklustre on my OLED but absolutely stunning on the LED. The problem lies with cheap LED panels which cannot muster enough luminisence or don't have adequate dimming zones

 

[Passive_audio_enthusiast]

There are people who spend more than a lakh on mobile phone every 2 years. 5 years seem to be good number for a TV imo. And yes it is a depreciating asset like a car. It all boils down to whether you are passionate about it or not. I have friends who have spent close to 15L on their audio system and spent 1L on their 65" TV.

5 years is a good number of years for any tech gadget in terms of reliability nowadays. Even if it survives this mark, we will feel it outdated already and with tvs the size standard and tech standards vs the price changes drastically in 5 years. I bought a 55 oled in 2017 and got the exact same amount I bought a 77 inch oled(old one was a B series and the new one a G Series) last month. Although it went past the 5 year mark I mentioned for me, after the 3-4 mark I felt it suddenly became outdated in terms of size. 65 became the new standard in between and seems like 77 and 83 are the new normal.

 

[sbg]

8 years completed last month (i.e could be 20000+ hrs when last checked )- lg 65" led. Still do not feel this is outdated yet.
The bonus is the protective film on bezel is still there like new .
Have seen OLEDs - it did not sway my mind to upgrade.

In my personal opinion, if the tv usage is very minimal, getting any led tv too should get the job done. It can grow on you over time and this would hardly make any difference later on.

 

[sbg]

8 years completed last month (i.e could be 20000+ hrs when last checked )- lg 65" led. Still do not feel this is outdated yet.
The bonus is the protective film on bezel is still there like new .
Have seen OLEDs - it did not sway my mind to upgrade.

In my personal opinion, if the tv usage is very minimal, getting any led tv too should get the job done. It can grow on you over time and this would hardly make any difference later on.

20153 hrs now.

 

[rpanand25]

This Diwali I was thinking of new TV and looked at both Samsung 65 inch QN 90D (Mini LED) and S90 D (QD OLED) side by side for about an hour. Surprisingly they were being offered at 1.4 L before hard bargaining. I didnot find the OLED to be radically better and in some scenarios the Mini LED was ahead even in normal scenes. No doubt OLED has its own advantages. As per recent news Samsung is going to outsource its mini Led panels from TCL etc and focus on Micro LEDs development and production. The picture quality gap with OLEDs may narrow down further with mini LEDs when they become commercially viable. Just like mini LEDS have caught up in the last couple of years, the micro LEDs may also may make it to home TVs in not so long future. At present LEDs in the Mini LEDs avatar have come a long way. My neighbour has a 15 years old Samsung LED TV which is still going strong and is fine for them. Maybe companies built better those days without focussing on dimished longevity. It depends on what is your requirement and how particular you are about picture quality.