And just when you think you have it all sorted, they will drop 8k screens into the shops.
It's already out there in limited form. I beleive 4 and 8k were developed at the same time. Seems they are holding back 8k so that people end up buying one, and then the other.

Oh Holy Hell, I hadn't even thought I'd upgrade to 4K for a while, and now 4K Supreme and 8K, WTF

From another thread but may interest you all.

http://i.rtings.com/images/optimal-v...graph-size.png

yep, its getting out of hand now

remember when we had decades of little or no change to TV and VHS technology and now every second month theres a new platform brought out

It's not necessarily a bad thing though, in fact I would argue the onward march of technology can have plenty of positives too. You have to remember, the only pressure to upgrade is the pressure you put on yourself to do so. Nothing is being made obsolete, our current 'normal' HD (and even HD ready) televisions will still work in the 4k world (just not at 4k obviously) as 4k HDMI2 connections can just as easily output regular 720P/1080P as well.

Furthermore, every time a new standard comes out be it TV, games consoles, sound systems etc the older standards fall in price so those who just want a cheap but respectable set up can get one for less.

To the OP I would say try not to worry too much about the sets poor handling of SD, aside from turning off unnecessary picture 'enhancement' features there is little else to be done. I have a cheapish LG 47" full HD set, which also isn't great with SD material though it's not too bad.

I don't think any HD or UHD TV can make SD material especially Freeview look all that great. I think rather than worrying you bought the wrong TV, the better option is to try and feed the TV a good source to begin with so it doesn't have to do so much scaling.

For example try to use blurays instead of DVD and depending on how important live TV is to you consider the merits of either satellite or cable (as these carry FAR more HD services than Freeview) or instead a Netflix/Amazon Instant Video or Now TV subscription. these are a lot cheaper and no long term commitment, while still streaming in HD but need reasonably fast internet connections.

Of course all these things have a associated cost but your TV (and eyes) will thank you for it and you are ultimately making much better use of all that available resolution on your TV as it seems a bit of a waste to buy a, even budget, 4k set just to watch SD material on...

Yes I agree,waiting to see TVs in the showrooms with the Ultra HD Premium logo on them before I replace my set.

Also sadly it looks like other than the main channels SD Freeview picture quality could get worse.
http://www.a516digital.com/2016/04/r...w-picture.html

Going back to the original question, at a typical viewing distance of 10ft/3m, a 55 inch screen size is far too large for SD. A lot of broadcast SD and poorly mastered DVDs, of which there are far too many around, will look soft and edgy, especially archive material. BBC SD may look sort of passable but that is mostly available in HD at much higher quality anyway. Some upmarket TVs have picture processing that may help but that is all. You will need to stick to HD and Blu Ray in future.

I bought the 43" version of this Philips Ultra-HD TV from Argos (43put4900) and it arrived earlier today. Worked out at under £258 delivered after allowing for free £10 voucher and Quidco discount.

Not that impressed with picture quality - especially on Freeview SD channels. They look worse than on my ancient Toshiba HD TV (although it was only 37" so maybe the smaller screen size is a factor.) Even the HD Freeview channels look sharper on my old TV.

I have a problem with the TV's sound via headphones - there's a horrible intrusive buzzing noise no matter what set of headphones I plug into the back of the TV. I prefer listening to TV via the headphones to avoid annoying my neighbours. There was never any buzzing issue when I used headphones on my old TV.

Anyone with this TV (Philips PUT4900 range) having a similar issue when listening thru' headphones?

The only good thing that can be said of the TPV Philips TVs is that they have much better quality power supplies than the Vestel sets that most of the other formerly-decent brands like Hitachi and JVC are now reselling.

In reliability terms it's all about the PSU (and its effect on sensitive components like the backlight regulation). Panels and main boards are much of a muchness, and you won't find much else in a modern TV. The Vestels are junk in this regard.