On today’s episode of You Asked: How to protect your OLED TV from sunlight, troubleshoot HDMI connection problems, and how to play your old VHS tapes on a brand new 4K TV.
How to protect an OLED TV from direct sunlight
@mr.propre1731 asks: Hello, thank you for your videos, they are really informative. I’m looking for a television and ended up with two variants: Samsung S90F and LG B5. Since S90 is a bit too much for me, I chose B5. Then a guy in a store said that OLEDs suffer greatly in direct sunlight. Since I have two large windows in my room and direct sunlight all day from sunrise to sunset, I have a question. How can I protect a new TV from fading and burning out? Or should I look for a mini LED instead?
This is a good question and something that many people think about when placing a TV in the living room or near windows.
Many different experiences are shared on the Internet, but in summary we can say: Yes, OLED panels and direct sunlight are a bad mix. Honestly, any TV and direct sunlight is a bad mix.
Even with the blinds down, some sunlight penetration can leave an outline on the screen. In many cases, a pixel refresh has helped fix the problem, but repeated exposure to sunlight will almost certainly shorten the TV’s lifespan.
With Mini LED TVs, you avoid some of the problems associated with the organic material in OLED panels, but direct sunlight still adds extra heat. Heat and electronics are never a good mix.
The best solution here is curtains. Keep as much direct light away from the TV as possible. If you reduce the light in the room, you may not need to run the TV at maximum brightness to compete with the sun. Lower brightness reduces the strain on OLED pixels and, on mini-LED TVs, reduces strain on the backlight, which can become weaker over time.
It’s also a good idea to familiarize yourself with the OLED care features built into the TV. Pixel cleaning, screen shifting, and logo brightness adjustment are just some of the tools designed to keep OLED panels looking fresh.
Playing VHS tapes on a modern 4K TV
@beverleysimmons7885 asks: I haven’t had a TV in over 25 years. I want it to be mounted on the wall and provide an exceptional image. Cables must run through the wall, not down. 65 inches Do any of these allow you to connect old VHS children’s films? (Grandson).
This is a fantastic idea. As a parent, the idea of children experiencing VHS, both good and bad, is really appealing. It’s also very timely given the current state of streaming and physical media.
For this to work, you need a composite AV to HDMI converter. This allows you to send the video and audio signal from a VCR to a modern television.
HDMI didn’t exist in the VCR era, so there are no VCRs with HDMI outputs like modern Blu-ray players or game consoles. Even DVD/VCR combo devices with HDMI usually only support HDMI for the DVD side. The VCR side still relies on composite outputs: yellow for video, red and white for left and right audio.
LG is a great TV choice, especially because of the upscaling feature. However, there are limited options when it comes to converting 480 or 720 resolution VHS content to 4K. Still, it’s worth a try.
With the current entertainment media landscape, constant takeovers and streaming platforms controlling more and more content, physical media feels increasingly vulnerable. Being tied to subscriptions forever is not an attractive future. That’s why setting this up for the grandchildren is a great idea.
HDMI control issues on LG TVs and Denon receivers
Jim Shank asks: I have an LG 4K TV and a Denon 5.1 receiver. I use the TV remote to control both the TV and the receiver. Before a recent LG system upgrade – although I don’t know if that accounts for it – I was able to turn the TV and receiver on and off at the same time using the TV’s remote, but now the receiver won’t turn on or off unless I use the receiver’s remote. I can only adjust the volume with the TV remote control. By the way, I also have a Fire TV Cube connected to the television, whose remote control switches the two devices on and off. Of course I would prefer to just use a remote control though. Any suggestions?
The first thing you should check is the HDMI settings for external devices. Depending on your TV model, look for something like “External Devices” in the “General Settings” menu. In the HDMI settings you may see Simplink, the LG name for HDMI CEC. Make sure this is checked.
There may also be universal control settings. There, select the input to which the receiver is connected and select “Manage settings”. This can reveal additional options. Some TVs also have standby or power on settings that affect device control.
If that doesn’t work, the next step is a complete power cycle.
Turn off everything: TV, receiver, audio devices and Fire TV Cube. Unplug all devices from the wall so that there is no power at all. Wait at least 10 seconds. Then reconnect everything. Turn on the TV first and then the external devices. Double check the HDMI settings to make sure everything is configured correctly.
This process resets the HDMI handshake between devices and often restores full remote control functionality.
