# Teach me like I'm 5: how to get the most out of my new TV **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 22, 2017, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teach-me-like-im-5-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-my-new-tv/796981 "2017-09-22T16:26:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![SamuelA](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@SamuelA](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SamuelA)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2017, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teach-me-like-im-5-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-my-new-tv/796981/21 "2017-09-24T15:27:13Z")
> [@MindsEye\_Watering](#): > > Sure it is, but it’s worth it if he really wants to “get the most out of his new TV.” They make pre-calibrated TVs, and there are online guides with instructions as to what a particular model should be set to. I don’t think the OP bought a $4k OLED with a $2k-$4k sound system, he probably got a $600 Visio or something. Not only is a lower quality set much less worth calibrating (you will not get as good a results as you would just returning it and getting a high quality set for the extra $400), but it probably blows the OP’s budget. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2017, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teach-me-like-im-5-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-my-new-tv/796981/22 "2017-09-24T15:58:03Z")
$500 Samsung at Costco. 50" which is just about as big as I can stand in our small living room. SamuelA, I’ll take a look at your link. Thanks for the suggestion. p.s. maybe my title should have been “how to get more out of my new TV.” ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2017, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teach-me-like-im-5-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-my-new-tv/796981/23 "2017-09-24T16:27:52Z")
> [@Slash1972](#): > > but usually you need an HD box from your cable company to receive HD signal. Not for any TV manufactured after March 1, 2007. So I think the OP is in the clear there! ---
**Author:** ![FordPrefect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e99b99/32.png) [@FordPrefect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordPrefect)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2017, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teach-me-like-im-5-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-my-new-tv/796981/24 "2017-09-24T21:36:06Z")
> [@SamuelA](#): > > Also, don’t forget to check these settings : > > TVs have a “sharpen” mode. It can exaggerate small details and insert extra lines that aren’t there. You may want to turn “sharpen” to zero or 50%, depending on the model of TV. Online guides will have instructions how to get the best picture quality for your specific TV. > > TVs tend to have their color and brightness set incorrectly (not to recognized standards) by default. This is so they appear ‘brighter’ and more colorful than competitor TVs in store displays, but it creates a picture that is incorrect and not what the authors of the TV programs were intending. You may need to turn your color and brightness settings back to correct, again, that will depend on your model of TV, check online guides. You can check the [www.rtings.com](http://www.rtings.com) review site, to see if your TV is there. Along with very comprehensive reviews they also provide seemingly easy to follow settings to get the best picture for the type of viewing you prefer and the environment the TV is in. I can’t say that the setting guides are perfect, but the past 2 or 3 days spent reading through the reviews has been the impetus I needed to pull the trigger on an early Xmas present, a 4K Vizio M65 is on it’s way to my house. It will replace an old plasma 720p for the next couple of years while I wait for OLED prices to drop 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teach-me-like-im-5-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-my-new-tv/796981/25 "2017-09-25T19:10:33Z")
After having used the digital HD cable service provided by Comcast, I have some complaints compared to the old non-HD (and I think non-digital) service. The picture is all adjusted, and it’s much better now (that “Movie” setting is very good, thanks **Jophiel**. 1. You can’t see the Program Guide without blanking out the entire program picture. Under the old service, the guide only ran across about 40% of the bottom, which was enough for 3 rows of guide info, and you could still see 60% of the program picture. Now there are 5 rows but it still only changes 3 rows at a time, and it takes up the whole screen 2. The Info button no longer shows the running time of movies (the actual length of the movie, not the time slot scheduled). Using that feature on a commercial station I could get a good estimate of how much of the time slot was going to be taken up with commercials. If it was over 25% I knew I would get too impatient and wouldn’t bother with that movie. (I’m not sure but I think the new service may include DVR so maybe I can put that to good use; never used one before.) 3. Even more trivial, there are a bunch of new channel numbers to learn, and they often don’t correspond to the order they were in under the old service. 4. There are a LOT of digital porn channels! Good grief! They expect someone to pay upwards of $13 or more for one porn feature when you can see more than you ever could want on the internet for free? HD porn is not worth it, at least not to me. Yes, I ignore them as I only found them by accident as I was scrolling through the seemingly endless digital channel list. I wish I could make them go away from the guide, if only to speed up my ability to browse. ---
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teach-me-like-im-5-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-my-new-tv/796981/26 "2017-09-25T19:53:48Z")
On your cable remote, just hit ‘Menu’ and it should let you set up one or more ‘Favorites’ channel lists so you don’t have to even see those ‘extra’ channels. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teach-me-like-im-5-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-my-new-tv/796981/27 "2017-09-25T20:13:31Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > After having used the digital HD cable service provided by Comcast, I have some complaints compared to the old non-HD (and I think non-digital) service. The picture is all adjusted, and it’s much better now (that “Movie” setting is very good, thanks **Jophiel**. > > 1. You can’t see the Program Guide without blanking out the entire program picture. Under the old service, the guide only ran across about 40% of the bottom, which was enough for 3 rows of guide info, and you could still see 60% of the program picture. Now there are 5 rows but it still only changes 3 rows at a time, and it takes up the whole screen > > 2. The Info button no longer shows the running time of movies (the actual length of the movie, not the time slot scheduled). Using that feature on a commercial station I could get a good estimate of how much of the time slot was going to be taken up with commercials. If it was over 25% I knew I would get too impatient and wouldn’t bother with that movie. (I’m not sure but I think the new service may include DVR so maybe I can put that to good use; never used one before.) I think this more has to do with Comcast, rather than anything regarding HD vs SD specifically. The guide appears the same to me whether or not I am watching on a HDTV or an older 4:3 TV, with most of the screen being taken up by the guide and a shrunken image shown in the upper right. You still see the whole picture, it’s just smaller. (This is with Optimum.) For #2, I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a guide list both the actual running time (1 hr, 58 mins) \*plus \*the time slot for the movie (2 hrs, 30 mins)! ---
**Author:** ![SamuelA](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@SamuelA](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SamuelA)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teach-me-like-im-5-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-my-new-tv/796981/28 "2017-09-25T21:25:00Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > After having used the digital HD cable service provided by Comcast, I have some complaints compared to the old non-HD (and I think non-digital) service. I recommend you try cord cutter services. You don’t have to cut it yet, just try out Netflix streaming. Try out Hulu. Try out HBO Go. All of them offer free trials and only charge $10-$15 for a month of access, and all of them offer painless cancellation on their website. Naturally, since they have to compete, they have basically none of the problems you complain about. Their interfaces are much faster, they have much more efficient listings of their programs, and so on. Try Stranger Things, that show rocks. Comcast is in a position where it gets paid either way. If you cancel cable, you still have to pay them for access. And Comcast benefits if it deliberately degrades your connection to Netflix or just offers a mediocre service. And, as you have seen, they also offer a mediocre service of their own that costs much more than the online competitors. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teach-me-like-im-5-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-my-new-tv/796981/29 "2017-09-25T22:34:49Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > After having used the digital HD cable service provided by Comcast, I have some complaints compared to the old non-HD (and I think non-digital) service. The picture is all adjusted, and it’s much better now (that “Movie” setting is very good, thanks **Jophiel**. > > 1. You can’t see the Program Guide without blanking out the entire program picture. Under the old service, the guide only ran across about 40% of the bottom, which was enough for 3 rows of guide info, and you could still see 60% of the program picture. Now there are 5 rows but it still only changes 3 rows at a time, and it takes up the whole screen > > 2. The Info button no longer shows the running time of movies (the actual length of the movie, not the time slot scheduled). Using that feature on a commercial station I could get a good estimate of how much of the time slot was going to be taken up with commercials. If it was over 25% I knew I would get too impatient and wouldn’t bother with that movie. (I’m not sure but I think the new service may include DVR so maybe I can put that to good use; never used one before.) > > 3. Even more trivial, there are a bunch of new channel numbers to learn, and they often don’t correspond to the order they were in under the old service. > > 4. There are a LOT of digital porn channels! Good grief! They expect someone to pay upwards of $13 or more for one porn feature when you can see more than you ever could want on the internet for free? HD porn is not worth it, at least not to me. Yes, I ignore them as I only found them by accident as I was scrolling through the seemingly endless digital channel list. I wish I could make them go away from the guide, if only to speed up my ability to browse. I got a new TV and comcast cable box this year and I hate their new UI. The old one was much better. Same for the remote. I don’t know if you can get the old one anymore, but you might ask. I did get a “new” remote for my old TV and it was terrible, so I took it back and got a new “old style like I had” remote. ---
**Author:** ![Arrendajo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Arrendajo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arrendajo)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2017, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teach-me-like-im-5-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-my-new-tv/796981/30 "2017-09-26T02:35:13Z")
Concerning streaming from a computer – my laptop has an HDMI out, and I just run an HDMI cable from the laptop to the TV. Use one of the accessory HDMI inputs on the TV (mine has 3) and select that input as the source. I think there’s a button on the remote that says “source.” Whatever appears on your laptop screen will now also appear on your TV. ---
**Author:** ![SamuelA](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@SamuelA](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SamuelA)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2017, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teach-me-like-im-5-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-my-new-tv/796981/31 "2017-09-26T04:57:35Z")
> [@Arrendajo](#): > > Concerning streaming from a computer – my laptop has an HDMI out, and I just run an HDMI cable from the laptop to the TV. Use one of the accessory HDMI inputs on the TV (mine has 3) and select that input as the source. I think there’s a button on the remote that says “source.” Whatever appears on your laptop screen will now also appear on your TV. Yep, but the newer TVs, you can just connect the ethernet port in the back to your router, and then the TV itself can connect to Netflix and so on. When people review TVs, they now have to consider the software quality of this setup and which streaming services are supported. Basically every ‘smart’ tv supports Netflix, but the other services are hit or miss. Or, alternately, there are dedicated streaming dongles you just plug in the HDMI port in the back, so you don’t have to tie up your laptop, and the dongles are usually inexpensive. ---
**Author:** ![Debillw3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3bc359/32.png) [@Debillw3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Debillw3)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2017, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teach-me-like-im-5-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-my-new-tv/796981/32 "2017-09-26T06:32:42Z")
Some smart TVs, depending on year & brand, also have native screen mirroring to laptops and smart phones. I’m not sure how great the connection is or how well it works for streaming, as I never use that feature, but I’ve seen it while playing around my TV’s settings. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2017, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teach-me-like-im-5-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-my-new-tv/796981/33 "2017-09-28T17:03:12Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > 1. There are a LOT of digital porn channels! Good grief! They expect someone to pay upwards of $13 or more for one porn feature when you can see more than you ever could want on the internet for free? HD porn is not worth it, at least not to me. Yes, I ignore them as I only found them by accident as I was scrolling through the seemingly endless digital channel list. I wish I could make them go away from the guide, if only to speed up my ability to browse. Even quicker than setting up a “favorite channels” list, IMHO: press the Menu button and look for something along the lines of “Parental Controls”. It’s fairly common to have an option in there to “Hide Adult Channels”. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/teach-me-like-im-5-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-my-new-tv/796981.md?page=1)