Buying a TV in Ireland

You do not need a new TV to get free telly, to use a streaming stick, or to cancel the dodgy box. If the set on the wall works, keep it. This page is for when it doesn’t, or when the kids have been at it with a Lego brick.

What “Saorview Approved” means

Saorview is Ireland’s free digital TV service: RTÉ, Virgin Media, TG4 and the rest, through an aerial, with no subscription. To receive it a TV needs a digital tuner that understands the Irish signal (DVB-T with MPEG-4 video, if you want the letters).

Saorview Approved is the operator’s own certification. A model with the logo has been put through a test suite and is listed on the Saorview website. The list covers Samsung, LG, Sony, Panasonic, Philips, Toshiba, Sharp, Bush, Cello and a good few more, along with set-top boxes and combi boxes from Walker, Nordmende, Triax, Digihome and others.

In practice, nearly every TV on an Irish shop floor has a Saorview tuner. The logo matters more for:

• Sets bought outside Ireland, including the North and online from the UK or mainland Europe.
• Very cheap imports from marketplaces, where the tuner might be MPEG-2 only and you’ll get sound but no picture, or nothing at all.
• Second-hand sets from before about 2012, when Saorview launched.

Already have a telly and not sure? Does my TV have Saorview? walks through the menus.

Size: measure before you shop

The single most common TV mistake in Ireland is buying the size that fits the car. Two numbers matter: how far the couch is from the wall, and how wide the space is.

Those are rough, based on the common rule of thumb of sitting about one and a half times the screen’s diagonal away for 4K. If you want it exact, there’s a size-to-distance calculator on rtings.com (official source, opens in a new tab). Sit closer for films, further for the news. If in doubt, go one size down: a slightly small TV is forgotten in a week, a slightly big one looms forever.

The entry-level rule of thumb

For a 50 to 55 inch 4K set, a big brand’s entry-level model is where you stop getting meaningful improvements for normal telly and sport. Prices move every week, so compare the same model across a couple of Irish shops. Above that you’re paying for better contrast (OLED, mini-LED), better motion handling, and nicer sound. Those things are real. They’re also not what stops the match buffering, and they don’t add a single channel.

Spend more if:

• You watch a lot of films with the lights off (OLED earns its keep).
• The room is very bright and the set faces a window (brighter panels help).
• You care about sound and won’t buy a soundbar.

Stick with entry level if the TV mostly shows the news, the soaps, the GAA and the kids’ stuff. Put the difference towards an aerial or dish, which adds actual channels.

Words on the box you can ignore

• “Smart”: they’re all smart. The question is whether the apps are any good, and a stick fixes that for a fraction of the price.
• “8K”: no Irish broadcaster or streaming service sends 8K. Nothing to watch.
• “Motion rate 1200” and friends: made-up marketing numbers. The real refresh rate is 60 Hz or 120 Hz; 60 is fine for telly.
• “HDR” on a cheap set: the label costs nothing to print. Real HDR needs a bright panel; budget sets tick the box without the brightness.
• “Built-in Freeview”: that’s the UK service. A Freeview HD set usually picks up Saorview, but it hasn’t been tested for it, so check for the Saorview badge.

Words that do matter

• HDMI ports: three is comfortable. One for the stick, one for the Saorview or combi box if you use one, one spare.
• HDMI ARC or eARC: lets a soundbar work over one cable. Handy.
• Ethernet port: most sets have one. A cable beats wifi for the built-in apps.
• Panel type: OLED for dark rooms and films; LED, QLED or mini-LED for bright rooms and sport.
• Saorview Approved logo: see above.

Where to buy

The big Irish chains stock the same core models, and prices move week to week, so it pays to check two or three. We have no arrangement with any of them that changes what we recommend.

If you’d rather see the three price levels side by side, here they are, plus the one cable worth buying new if your streaming box or console is going into the TV.

Whatever you buy, the money-saving decision is what you feed it. Free channels through Saorview and free satellite cover most of the day. The finder sorts the rest, month by month, cheapest legal option first.