How far have TVs moved on in 4 years?

[Gone a bit AMG]

Long story short.

I’ve been offered an entry level Samsung 65 inch tv to replace my poorly 2017 tv.

Models are KS8000 and the new one is AU8000. I paid 2k for the first tv and the new one retails at 849. The reviews are not fabulous and the main viewing will be sport from the new TV.

A don’t know whether to just take the exchange or ask for a cash offer? Any thoughts appreciated.

[CharlesElliott]

I bought a £2,000 TV in 2018 and then a £1700 OLED TV in 2021. The OLED is a noticeable difference.

What you are being offered doesn't sound like a great deal, but if the technolgy is similar between the two then the picture will probably also be similar.

[Defcon5]

The KS8000 was one of their top models on launch. The AU8000 is budget, not even a QLED set.

[Gone a bit AMG]

That’s what I’m thinking thanks Gents.

My guarantee offers a larger refund in cash so that’s the option

[Defcon5]

QE65Q85T for 900 here

https://www.beyondtelevision.co.uk/samsung-qe65q85...

Much better set for that price

[Lucid_AV]

Gone a bit AMG said:

Long story short.

I’ve been offered an entry level Samsung 65 inch tv to replace my poorly 2017 tv.

Models are KS8000 and the new one is AU8000.

Someone is trying to lift your leg. It could be a genuine mistake. Insurers aren't always experts on TV tech, so they either might have looked and seen 8000 in both model numbers and then made an assumption. That, or someone at one of their suppliers has said it's an equivalent because they don't know their backside from their elbow.

rtings.com has good reviews on both models

Your old KS8000: https://www.rtings.com/tv/reviews/samsung/ks8000

The proposed AU8000: https://www.rtings.com/tv/reviews/samsung/au8000

Your old TV had:
- a better panel 100/120Hz refresh versus 50/60Hz
- true 10-bit panel versus the 8-bit + dodgy colour interpolation that is FRC (8 + 2FRC)
- better colour; a bigger colour range thanks to the 10-bit panel
- substantially brighter light output in both SDR and HDR modes
- edge lit + local dimming - okay, both sets are edge lit rather than full array, but the new set doesn't even have any dimming features at all. That's really poor
- great blacks versus backlight bleed along the bottom edge of the picture on the new set
- better motion processing (thanks to the better panel)

These are just the headline features. There's probably far more bad news if I was to dig further.

The only two features that stand out as being better on the later model are eARC support and HDR10+. Everything else I've looked at on the AU8000 is worse than the K8000. That's not surprising though. As you already know, the AU8000 is a very basic model compared to the premium range KS8000 you bought.