Out of the box, the picture modes are pretty good.
I’ve set up the below modes depending on what I’m doing:
ISF Bright: SDR video content
Game: SDR gaming
HDR Technicolor Expert: HDR video content
HDR Game: HDR gaming
Dolby Vision Cinema: Dolby Vision content
Mostly tuning my OLED light (only in SDR – leave the setting alone when using HDR or DV), turning Sharpness to zero, and turning off extraneous processing modes. The basics like Contrast, Brightness, Color, etc. are basically already set.
Looks like the fretting about missing out on HDMI 2.1 and VRR with the 2017 sets was misplaced. Image processing and HFR for broadcast/apps are the main changes for 2018, along with the obligatory voice controls.
I will be joining as an owner soon: Sony 65" A1E. I’m not really a big TV watcher, but I swore I’d buy an OLED TV when I can afford it, and here it is! My next 1st world problem is how to keep my fancy old AV receiver and all my legacy sources, while routing my HTPC into the TV for 4K signal.
Does the TV’s Netflix / Chromecast apps support 4K? HDR?
I finally got to see one of the LG OLEDs in person in a realistic setting at my friends’ house, instead of a display setting like Costco. The 55" C7 from 2017.
Very nice TV! Looked absolutely gorgeous. HDR didn’t make as big of an impression on me though as I thought it would. We tried Assassin’s Creed Origins on Xbox One X, and John Wick 2 from a UHD Blu-Ray. HDR was definitely enabled as the TV indicated as such and there was definitely a difference, but it just wasn’t as striking as I thought it might be.
4K is also nice, but that too wasn’t as huge of a jump as I expected from 1080p, especially after seeing so many Xbox One X games downscaled from 4K-ish resolutions to 1080p on my current Sony LCD.
So for now I think I’m happy to stick with my 1080p LCD. The OLED was certainly much better, but IMO not better enough to justify spending $1000-2000 and the hassle of selling my current LCD + setting up something new.
I decided to buy now to take advantage of boxing day pricing, and wanting the TV now instead of buying the 2018 model for full price in 3-6 months. I am taking a chance on missing some nice improvements (much better Android CPU, perhaps?).
There were 2 other reasons that aligned (wife approval & sudden money). I spent an hour trying to persuade my wife to the LG B7 or C7, but she really loves how the Sony looks, and its speaker tech. (I can’t believe I even tried.)
ACO gets a lot of buzz online for HDR but it’s not the title I would recommend. Try Witcher 3 or the latest Gears of War. If you remain unconvinced after that, ok.
Movie wise JW2 is about the worst HDR choice you could have made. Try Pacific Rim or Spiderman Homecoming.
Same, it’s obviously better but not enough to bother with yet. I am fine with sticking with my 1080p plasma, at least until variable frame rate HDMI TVs come out and are useable on a computer. Then I will probably go nuts and purchase multiple new OLED tvs for the family room, computer, etc.
I’ve seen other articles saying no manufacturer’s 2018 sets will have full HDMI 2.1, though they may have eARC and other ostensibly 2.1 features.
By all accounts it’s a great set, with better motion handling than the LGs (at least at launch, the latter has improved quite a lot with the recent firmware). Only downsides I’ve heard are Android TV vs WebOS, and the cost. On 4K apps, I don’t know for sure. Last I heard Google was keeping the HDR content for Chromecast, but I don’t know if that’s just the dongle. Help page here suggests so. Don’t see why you wouldn’t be able to do 4K HDR on the Netflix app. You certainly can with the LG sets.
Why do you say that? I’ve only seen it in SDR but I thought it was an amazing showcase for OLED, and there were plenty of specular highlights that would look good in HDR.
Congrats on the A1E - great TV! On the receiver - I wouldn’t recommend keeping an old receiver just for inputs (you can get $15 adapters if you need a composite or component in) if your receiver is too old to support Dolbyvision/HDR or even 4k. You can use the smart TV apps for 4k dolbyvision Netflix, but if you’re going to use the ARC connection to run sound through your receiver you will lose DV. (and potentially 4k if your receiver is old enough to not support it). Plus you will want to run your consoles through the receiver to use your sound system and you won’t get HDR through an old receiver.
You can get a very good receiver that supports all modern features (and has bluetooth, airplay, etc.) for $300 or even less, like the Wirecutter recommended Denon 730w
A minor disadvantage of going straight from CRT to OLED is that I miss out on the “oooh ahhh deep blacks” experience. I’m more like, yup, this is how it’s supposed to look.
LCD really messed up a generation or two of TV owners.
You must be a young guy. When I was younger I’d hear that sound. And some others. Usually a transformer kind of hum. The TV whistle. Fluorescent lights.
As I got older they went away. As you get older you can’t hear the upper frequencies anymore. Enjoy your annoying sound while you still can. :)
