Another vote for Samsung and LG. Can't go wrong with either. Although the Sony's are very nice too... Just kinda pricey.
As far as smart TVs go, they aren't all very "smart." Most have a shitty processor in them, resulting in erratic behavior and constant buffering of video streaming services like Netflix. This is most likely what is causing most of Phil's irritation with his TV's. My Samsung is the same way.... Try to run Netflix or Hulu through the built in TV app and it is garbage. But run it through my Roku stick, which has a quad core processor, and everything is flawless. Moral of my story is, don't get too hung up on it being a smart TV. If you want to stream, get a dedicated streaming accessory like Roku or Firestick.