Full HD or 4K, which do you prefer for movies?

  • This message board permanently closed on June 30th, 2020 at 4PM EDT and is no longer accepting new members.

Which do you like better for movies, Full HD or 4K?

  • Full HD

    Votes: 1 25.0%
  • 4K

    Votes: 3 75.0%

  • Total voters
    4

Gerald

Well-Known Member
Sep 8, 2011
2,201
7,168
The Netherlands
I want to get a 4K television also but then one must get a 4K blueray player to go along with it......... It gets pricey keeping up with the Joneses.

You can buy a Playstation 4 PRO. It plays 4K blu-rays as well as games.
The games look amazing, even when you don't have a 4K tv. I can't use it now because of the HDCP problem, but even on a HD Ready tv it's just fantastic. I was blown away by it. I was not so sure if I wanted to keep on gaming, because I felt I sort of had played all the kinds of games I wanted to play and there was not much new. But the difference in image makes the games so much better looking, that it's a whole new world. I've played the last Tomb Raider and Uncharted and both felt bigger than any of the ones before. The landscapes look breathtaking - I can only describe it as 'everything feels bigger'. Uncharted: A Thief's End especially felt like you are the main character in the biggest blockbuster adventure ever.
 

ghost19

"Have I run too far to get home?"
Sep 25, 2011
8,926
56,578
51
Arkansas
I don't think you can buy Roku tv's here. But is it different from a smart tv? Most tv's are smart tv's here now, which means they can be directly connected to internet.

Another thing: do you also notice a difference in image quality on a 4K tv if the programme you're watching is not 4K? Does it do a kind of upscaling of non-4K content?
Ok sorry about that, forgot you weren't state side here sir. Yes, it's a smart TV with the Roku streaming device built in. It does connect to the internet. I can tell somewhat, and it depends on the programming, if it's regular HD or 4K. Shows that are filmed in 4K, such as Stranger Things on Netflix, seem to "pop" on the TV better than regular HD programming, I don't think any of the 1080p shows are upscaled by the 4K TV, but they do look a bit better due to the higher refresh rate on the 4k TV.
 

ghost19

"Have I run too far to get home?"
Sep 25, 2011
8,926
56,578
51
Arkansas
You can buy a Playstation 4 PRO. It plays 4K blu-rays as well as games.
The games look amazing, even when you don't have a 4K tv. I can't use it now because of the HDCP problem, but even on a HD Ready tv it's just fantastic. I was blown away by it. I was not so sure if I wanted to keep on gaming, because I felt I sort of had played all the kinds of games I wanted to play and there was not much new. But the difference in image makes the games so much better looking, that it's a whole new world. I've played the last Tomb Raider and Uncharted and both felt bigger than any of the ones before. The landscapes look breathtaking - I can only describe it as 'everything feels bigger'. Uncharted: A Thief's End especially felt like you are the main character in the biggest blockbuster adventure ever.
Xbox One games look truly stunning on the Ultra HD TV. My son is a full time gamer and he has made several remarks about how much better his games look on his new TV. We just got it for him a few weeks ago for his birthday. His previous TV was an LED 40-inch regular HD TV.
 

Gerald

Well-Known Member
Sep 8, 2011
2,201
7,168
The Netherlands
Xbox One games look truly stunning on the Ultra HD TV. My son is a full time gamer and he has made several remarks about how much better his games look on his new TV. We just got it for him a few weeks ago for his birthday. His previous TV was an LED 40-inch regular HD TV.

I didn't expect they would look so good on a tv that's not 4K. I hardly can imagine them looking even better on 4K.

It's also not something that wears off after awhile or you get used to. The whole games through I was blown away. The downside of the PRO is that the games take a lot of storage, much more than on PS3. I had loads and loads of games installed on PS3, but it's much more limited on PRO. I'm not sure if it's because of PRO or that it's the same with the regular PS4.
 

Gerald

Well-Known Member
Sep 8, 2011
2,201
7,168
The Netherlands
Ok sorry about that, forgot you weren't state side here sir. Yes, it's a smart TV with the Roku streaming device built in. It does connect to the internet. I can tell somewhat, and it depends on the programming, if it's regular HD or 4K. Shows that are filmed in 4K, such as Stranger Things on Netflix, seem to "pop" on the TV better than regular HD programming, I don't think any of the 1080p shows are upscaled by the 4K TV, but they do look a bit better due to the higher refresh rate on the 4k TV.

It's too bad there are so few tv's here with a higher refresh rate than 50 herz, most are not even 60.
 

ghost19

"Have I run too far to get home?"
Sep 25, 2011
8,926
56,578
51
Arkansas
It's too bad there are so few tv's here with a higher refresh rate than 50 herz, most are not even 60.
60Hz was the standard for a long time. I first noticed the shortfalls of 60Hz refresh rate watching college and NFL football. The quick changes between camera angles during the plays would snow out if they changed angles too quickly. I've noticed that doesn't happen on the 120Hz setting. It's pretty much seamless from one camera angle to the next.
 

kingricefan

All-being, keeper of Space, Time & Dimension.
Jul 11, 2006
30,011
127,446
Spokane, WA
The image is definetely better, but sound is often the problem. Because the tv's are so flat there is very little room for good speakers. I always watch tv with headphones on, it's much better than the speakers.
So then one must purchase a 'sound bar' to get theater quality sound. It just keeps getting more and more expensive. I have a stereo receiver/speakers/bass output hooked up to my dvd/bluray players. It's so old it still has the round plug in type of wiring so it can't be hooked up to the TV because that's much newer and you have to have the computer type hook ups for that. So, the theater sound is only for when I watch movies on dvd or bluray.
 

fljoe0

Cantre Member
Apr 5, 2008
15,859
71,642
62
120 miles S of the Pancake/Waffle line
Apparently it's like what bluray is to dvd- the picture quality and sound is way better.

I have my TV and 4k blu-ray player hooked up to my Klipsch speaker system.

th



When I play the 4k discs, it shakes the foundation. :)
 

Gerald

Well-Known Member
Sep 8, 2011
2,201
7,168
The Netherlands
60Hz was the standard for a long time. I first noticed the shortfalls of 60Hz refresh rate watching college and NFL football. The quick changes between camera angles during the plays would snow out if they changed angles too quickly. I've noticed that doesn't happen on the 120Hz setting. It's pretty much seamless from one camera angle to the next.

I think 100 Herz is the highest here, I can't find any of 120. The incoming signal on a tv is usually 50 Herz.

I can't find any of 39/40 inch though with 100 Herz. It's either from 43 inch on, or a lot smaller than 39/40. I don't want to go smaller than what I have now (37 inch), but 43 inch seems like a lot, especially when you use it as a computer screen. 37 inch is pretty ideal for me. I wonder why they don't make them anymore of that size.
 

Gerald

Well-Known Member
Sep 8, 2011
2,201
7,168
The Netherlands
I wonder if it's harmful for LED tv's to play consoles on it that were made before LED existed. I can't use the PS3 or 4 right now, but my PS2 still worked despite the HDCP block. It still worked perfectly even being not used for many years, but would it be bad for a new tv to use such an old console on it.
On LCD I always used it. It didn't give perfect image, but it was good enough for me to play many games on it.

I've been replaying Project Zero 3 (aka Fatal Frame) and could never beat the end boss in the past but finally managed it. Although this game is rather repetitive (you wake up and go to sleep to the same two locations all the way through), and can be confusing, I LOVE the atmosphere. It takes place in a kind of old Japanese haunted house/temple, and the ghosts are very well done and have distinctive personalities. Also you're 'shooting' with a camera instead of a gun, which is a nice change, although with the faster ghosts (which can come from all sides) it can be difficult, because you have to constantly run away to get some distance between you and the ghost(s) and then turn around and have to kinda guess whereabout they will be.
This game also has the most scary audio-design of any game that I know. Everything has a kind of dreamy feel, even when you're awake. The voices are so well done, when a ghost attacks you it gives me physical chills each time (especially early on), and I basically have that with no other film or game I can think of.
 

Gerald

Well-Known Member
Sep 8, 2011
2,201
7,168
The Netherlands
Just got my tv yesterday. The image is very nice for Playstation and watching television. I had just watched The Amazing Spider-man (2012) on my previous tv and didn't find The Lizard so impressive looking, but certainly when you see more details on something like that it looks much better.

One thing I wondered though. The surface is reflective, when there is a lot of light in your room and the image is dark, you can kind of see yourself. This wasn't the case with my LCD.
Is this unique to QLED/4K or do all LED tv's have that?
 

ghost19

"Have I run too far to get home?"
Sep 25, 2011
8,926
56,578
51
Arkansas
Just got my tv yesterday. The image is very nice for Playstation and watching television. I had just watched The Amazing Spider-man (2012) on my previous tv and didn't find The Lizard so impressive looking, but certainly when you see more details on something like that it looks much better.

One thing I wondered though. The surface is reflective, when there is a lot of light in your room and the image is dark, you can kind of see yourself. This wasn't the case with my LCD.
Is this unique to QLED/4K or do all LED tv's have that?
I'd try adjusting the contrast ratio. Sometimes, at certain times of the day, mainly in the evening the sun shining thru my blinds in my living room causes a bit of glare on my TV, but I normally don't notice any other type of glare or reflection. I keep my living room pretty dark for the most part.
 

Gerald

Well-Known Member
Sep 8, 2011
2,201
7,168
The Netherlands
I'd try adjusting the contrast ratio. Sometimes, at certain times of the day, mainly in the evening the sun shining thru my blinds in my living room causes a bit of glare on my TV, but I normally don't notice any other type of glare or reflection. I keep my living room pretty dark for the most part.

The contrast is set on 50 at default, which is the highest. Would it need to be lower?

I have fairly thick curtains, but full sun on my room during the day. But basically also I can see it a little bit at night, but there is a lamp behind me, so placing that elsewhere might help.
 

ghost19

"Have I run too far to get home?"
Sep 25, 2011
8,926
56,578
51
Arkansas
The contrast is set on 50 at default, which is the highest. Would it need to be lower?

I have fairly thick curtains, but full sun on my room during the day. But basically also I can see it a little bit at night, but there is a lamp behind me, so placing that elsewhere might help.
A lamp will definitely cast a bit of a glare. It's a concentrated small source of light so lamps tend to reflect on any type of surface that will reflect. I keep my contrast pretty low and I have mine set to dynamic contrast so it usually will adjust to whatever type of program I'm watching, movies, sports, etc.
 

Gerald

Well-Known Member
Sep 8, 2011
2,201
7,168
The Netherlands
A lamp will definitely cast a bit of a glare. It's a concentrated small source of light so lamps tend to reflect on any type of surface that will reflect. I keep my contrast pretty low and I have mine set to dynamic contrast so it usually will adjust to whatever type of program I'm watching, movies, sports, etc.

But it's more than a glare, it is an actual reflection. Like on tv's when they had a tube, before there were flatscreen tv's.
 

ghost19

"Have I run too far to get home?"
Sep 25, 2011
8,926
56,578
51
Arkansas
But it's more than a glare, it is an actual reflection. Like on tv's when they had a tube, before there were flatscreen tv's.
Not sure you can completely eliminate that. Might try angling your television differently where the light doesn't catch it as much. Also play around with the brightness and contrast. Most of the 4k TVs come with settings like "Theater" "Sports", or "Nighttime Viewing", etc for pre-set display settings. You might try switching thru some of those and see if it has less reflection.