Your 2015 4k predictions....

[ADWyatt]

If I seem to be changing my mind constantly on 4k, it's because this new display medium seems to have been built on a technological swamp, where the ground is anything but firm.

I first rejected 4k because it appeared to be little better than 1080p plasma, especially as delivered by top-of-the-line Panasonic units. I then tried to embrace it, as calibrated 4k TV's in Best Buy and Sears showed a very impressive picture indeed. As noted, I planned on a May 2015 purchase.

But it seems as if 4k news is changing almost daily. If indeed it is true that Sony will be committing very little money to 4k Blu-ray disc development, that might very well spell the end for a player that I had hoped would make up the vast majority of 4k content.

Broadcasters aren't going to be presenting their programs in 4k for a very long time into the future, and I believe streaming services are going to offer only limited content for a very high price. In short, as of the date of this post, it appears that developers didn't just put the cart before the horse, they decided to leave the horse out of the equation altogether.

All of which now has me shifting my attention in another direction. When I recently visited my local Sears store, they had a 65" Samsung 4k TV set up, and the demo clips were of course quite impressive. But only about five feet away was a 75" Samsung 240Hz 1080p TV which was playing the latest Hobbit movie with the soap opera effect turned on. (Many people just hate this look, but I rather like it.) The 4k provided a better picture, naturally, but the 1080p set wasn't bad. As a matter of fact, it wasn't bad at all.

If I bought the 65" version of that 1080p Samsung model for my living room, and shifted my 58" Panasonic 3D plasma into a game room to be used just for the X-Box One, I think I could live with that. I would need a separate room for using the Kinnect, which means I'd have to have another TV, so why not just use the Panny, especially since I wouldn't get peanuts on the dollar for it anyway?

Of course, there's a fly in the ointment. The new Samsung would give me the soap opera picture I like, but I wonder how its overall display quality would compare to that of a four-year-old high-end Panasonic plasma. I'm a little uneasy with that thought.

By the time you read this, I don't doubt that something else will have changed in the 4k world to upset the apple cart, but I certainly would like to have opinions on my thinking here. I very much value the intelligent and perceptive responses of the members of this forum, and your suggestions and opinions carry a great deal of weight with me.

[Blu-Dog]

Originally Posted by ADWyatt

By the time you read this, I don't doubt that something else will have changed in the 4k world to upset the apple cart, but I certainly would like to have opinions on my thinking here. I very much value the intelligent and perceptive responses of the members of this forum, and your suggestions and opinions carry a great deal of weight with me.

I'm in the same boat you are, and I think that unless you're going 84" or larger, there is no reason to replace a television, partly for the reasons you mention above.

Manufacturers want too much money for a market moving this rapidly. This isn't something as easily re-bought as a small computer - it usually requires incredible capital outlay, and it's changing faster than PC's, even.

I'm putting the brakes on this thing until they come up with some unified technology, and drop the Wizard of Oz ad campaign.

[Dragun]

Originally Posted by Blu-Dog

Manufacturers want too much money for a market moving this rapidly. This isn't something as easily re-bought as a small computer - it usually requires incredible capital outlay, and it's changing faster than PC's, even.

People tend to keep their TVs for a long time, and by the time their current set craps out, they'll buy what's available. They won't buy a new set because of some new feature, if their current set is working fine. If they buy a 4KTV, it won't be because they want 4K so much that they upgrade. It'll be because they need a new TV and 4K's the only thing available, or because 4KTVs aren't much more expensive than 1080 TVs.

My prediction for 2015 is that 4K content will be a niche product for some movies and episodic shows, but that 1080 will still be dominant. Whoever is unable to see much difference between DVD and HD (or sees it and doesn't care) will see even less of a difference between HD and 4K.