There are three constants in life: Death, taxes, and the fact that your TV could always be better.
Whether you desperately need an upgrade because a child accidentally knocked your old set over or you got one of those fancy new game consoles, you can always trade up. Even if you’re on the very bleeding edge of technological advancement, give it a few months. You can’t win the race against obsolescence.
The only problem is there are so so many new things you have to worry about when shopping for a new TV. If you're not in the know, it can get confusing and overwhelming fast. Allow me to walk you through some of the biggest bullet points to look for before you throw down hundreds or thousands of dollars.
Don’t even think about less than 4K/HDR
When recommending new TVs to people, there is one piece of advice I give before anything else: Do not bother with a TV that can’t reach a 4K resolution and display HDR.
For reference, 4K is a misleading marketing term for a super-sharp 2160p resolution that new video game consoles, like the PS5, and streaming hardware alike have begun to universally support. HDR, on the other hand, refers to a high dynamic range of colors that dramatically widens the gap between lights and darks, making movies, TV shows, and games that support it look better than ever.
The bad news for folks who want a new TV is that opting out of sets with 4K or HDR (most TVs that do one also do the other) will leave them with serious FOMO as more and more content is broadcast that way. The good news is that it’s getting pretty hard to find a TV larger than 40 inches or so that doesn’t support 4K and HDR, and they keep getting cheaper. For instance, I play video games and watch movies almost exclusively on a 43-inch TCL set that does both very well and costs less than $300.
There is one potential snag with HDR, though, which is that there are multiple types of HDR (for boring technical reasons). It’s basically just a distinction in the processing of colors that most normal people probably wouldn’t notice. The two most common standards by far are HDR10 and Dolby Vision, with the former being the more widespread of the two. Any TV with HDR will let you know which standard it supports on the box, and if you really want to know more about this, our friends at PCMag have you covered. As long as you have either HDR10 or Dolby Vision, you should be fine.
LCD vs. OLED
Unfortunately, there’s another important display difference to factor in when buying a new TV in 2022: LCD vs. OLED.
Most devices with screens of any kind for the past 15 to 20 years have operated on liquid crystal display (or LCD) technology. However, if you have extra cash to spend and want the best picture quality, look for a TV with an organic light-emitting diode (or OLED) display.
This is another thing that will be heavily advertised on the box, so don’t worry about any confusion here. All you really need to know is that LCD TVs use a backlight to illuminate each pixel, while the pixels in an OLED TV are independently lit. The end result is that OLED TVs almost always look better than their LCD counterparts, but they’re usually a good deal more expensive, too. For instance, something like this Sony 55-inch OLED TV will probably give you a stunning picture, but it’ll also run you more than $2,000.
Do not feel ashamed if you have to get an LCD set to save money. It’ll still look great, just not quite as great as something that costs way more.
HDMI 2.1 is a must for gamers
This last bit really only applies to gamers, so normal people can go ahead and stop reading now.
Both the PS5 and Xbox Series X support high frame rate options for certain games, meaning you can play at an inconceivably smooth 120 frames per second with the right hardware. That means you’ll need a TV with a 120Hz or higher (though most TVs now are either 60Hz or 120Hz) refresh rate.
That’s easy enough, as you can find out a TV’s refresh rate on the box or the manufacturer’s website in seconds. However, in order to enjoy 120 FPS gaming with something in the neighborhood of a 4K resolution, you need to make sure the TV has an HDMI 2.1 port. You’ll also need a special HDMI 2.1 cable.
Without getting too in the weeds with tech jargon, HDMI 2.1 provides enough power for a TV and a connected device to display high frame rates and high resolutions at the same time. This is sadly still not super commonplace in cheap TVs. If you want the best gaming experience possible, something like the LG OLED C1 will give you 4K, 120Hz, and an OLED display for around $1,300.
See? Buying a new TV doesn’t have to be that difficult. All you need to do is learn a few new tech terms and zero in on something that does everything you want without bankrupting you. Whether you plan on vibing out to the new season of Curb Your Enthusiasm or playing Halo Infinite for 16 hours a day, there’s surely something out there that fits your needs and budget.
