2022 Gift Guide: TVs & Monitors
Look, TV deals are always FLOODED on Black Friday and the rest of the holiday season. Generally, we recommend waiting until January & February just before the Super Bowl as the flagship TV models are at their cheapest (and coming off CES with new model launches around the corner). Black Friday TVs tend to be specific models that cut some corners to get those dirt cheap deals. That’s not to say you can’t get a solid deal on a quality TV, but keep that in mind if you’re looking for an OLED with HDR & HDMI 2.1 for the true high refresh rates.
Otherwise, if the cheapest TV possible is what you’re looking for, Amazon has TVs as low as $79 and steep discounts on OLEDs.
As far as monitors go, it’ll all depend on the use case, gaming, general use, or production (video, photo, graphic design).
Mini-LED
Hisense U8H 55” ULED 4K - $799 Amazon SOLD OUT (Price increase)
This TV deal, in our opinion, is hands down the best of the season. Mini-LED brings near indistinguishable from OLED blacks with the added bonus of being able to get brighter and therefore improve contrast. Hisense has made strides over the last few years to use quality panels. AND this includes 2! HDMI 2.1 inputs for that 4k @ true 120 hz as well as VRR for the gamers with a PS5 or Xbox Series X. Movies will look great, sports will look great, if you need a TV upgrade at the best price to performance ratio, this is the one without breaking the bank on a larger OLEDs. The one downside is the processor which can struggle with upscaling and streaming apps, but that can be easily remedied with a Google or Apple TV.
Samsung QN90B 55” QLED 4K - $1,297 Amazon
You’re going to pay more of a premium but this comes with more bells & whistles, a better processor, and a slighter better image quality than the Hisense. 4x HDMI 2.1 ports is twice as many as well, so you shouldn’t struggle deciding which device gets the high end input. I will note that you CAN get an OLED at this price point but if you happen to have a very bright living room, this TV will be easier to view.
OLED
LG C1 55” OLED - $1,279 Amazon ($1,039 for 48”)
This is the cheapest this flagship OLED has ever been. While mini-LED is looking to bring a similar image quality, the LG C1 lineup is still one of the highest rated consumer OLED television. I personally have the 65” and the image quality is incredible. 2x HDMI 2.1, incredible VRR implementation, great contrast, this is a winner. AND, you can get the 48” for $1,000.
Monitors
Dell Curved Gaming 1440p 165hz - $288 Amazon
ASUS ProArt 32” 4K - $592 Amazon - Great for production and MacBook Pro users.
LG UltraGear 48” OLED - $899 Amazon - There aren’t a ton of OLED monitors and this one is interesting, but if you’re in a smaller space and don’t need a bigger TV, this is an nice dual purpose monitor. TV needs AND great gaming monitor.
LG 27UK650-W 4K - $296 Amazon - Good workstation 4K monitor to upgrade your office.
Lots of general use monitors if you just need something for your office, as low as $74.
