Our new home has a larger living room than the last one, where we sat about 6.5' away from our little 32" Samsung LCD TV. The primary seating position is now about 12" away. I'm looking at a TV around 50" in size. 4k is not a must, and I'm not worried about the quality of built-in apps/streaming. I want good gaming performance with good color and contrast. I'd rather have a flat than curved screen, as well. Limit $1000.

Any thoughts on brands to focus on or omit from my list?