Who knows about TV's?

[BigAls87Z28]

Plasma vs LCD vs LED
whos got the best quality, what should I be looking for, whos got teh best deals, etc etc.

[79CamaroDiva]

we bought a 34" vizio LCD for around $500. The quality is amazing, much better than I expected for an LCD with only 720p resolution, but I can't tell the difference, and it makes everything look incredible.

[SteveR]

whats your budget? How big?

[cdacda13]

Google search. There are tons and tons of articles on this subject. Do your research, keep an eye out for sales. Also, black friday is coming soon. If you can handle the craziness, go then.

That being said, a few questions to ponder.
Whats your budget?
What size are you looking for?
Intended use of TV?
Viewing angle and distance from seating?
How much do inputs matter?

My personal experience is, stay away from wal-mart brand plasmas. My sister has one, it looks terrible compared to my sony LCD. My dad also has an 'off' brand LCD, and its looks comparable to my sony, but still not as good.
we bought a 34" vizio LCD for around $500. The quality is amazing, much better than I expected for an LCD with only 720p resolution, but I can't tell the difference, and it makes everything look incredible.
Thats the one my sister has.

[79CamaroDiva]

Thats the one my sister has.

we didn't get it from wal-mart, i believe wal-mart gets the electronics from the bottom shelf, even if they're the same manufacturers. Bought the TV from BJs and it was the best looking in that size in the store.

[BigAls87Z28]

46" to 52". It will go into our living room which is pretty big. 25x22 sized room.
Budget is probably no more then 2k.
Im looking more for info. Whats good? What are some things I should be looking for?
Refresh rate? Contrast Ratio? Outside of resolution, what are some things I should be looking for that makes for a good TV?

[79CamaroDiva]

higher the contrast ratio, the better it is, lower (faster) refresh rate = better for gaming. thats about all i can tell ya. at that size you need 1080p as well. Sony Bravia TVs are very nice, check them out if they're within your price.

[slugger27nj]

We looked at a ton of TVs before we bought ours a few months ago, and definitely liked the LCDs best. Picked up a 1080p LG and couldn't be happier. I think the best picture quality out of all the ones we looked at though were the Samsungs, but they were a bit more than we wanted to spend. The LG's picture quality is up there with the Samsungs, but I think the Samsungs have a little better clarity at closer viewing distances.

[BigAls87Z28]

My girlfriend has a 37 inch Vizo and got it at Sears for cheaper then Costco (no discount) and it looks good when in HD mode.
Im not looking for the ulitmate set up on the block, I just want it to look good so I can watch sports, movies, and general TV.

[BigAls87Z28]

Im looking at the Samsung 46" TV A530.
Price seems to be even everywhere, including Sears so that means 200 bucks off the TV with discount. w00t!
I think we might be getting a TV today..

20,000:1 Dymamic Contrast ratio

[GP99GT]

well i just replied on your thread in the other forum but, now that youre being specific, check out the SHARP Aquos line of TVs...my cousin has a 42" wall mounted and its pretty ridiculous. samsung just came out with that A530 line too so they should be pretty nice, depending on price

[BigAls87Z28]

46 is the smallest we would go, everything else would be too small.

Im debating Plasma vs LCD. I have heard both sides of the coin. New Plasma tv's dont have the problems the older ones with bad tubes, etc etc, but I have heard that if you have some LCD problems, then the TV is shot where the Plasma you just replace the part.

[Tru2Chevy]

With that kind of price range, I would definitely go with Plasma over LCD. If you don't need something uber-thin to hang on the wall, look into DLPs as well.

I have a 42" DLP in my living room, and a 32" LCD for the bedroom, and the Toshiba DLP is leaps and bounds better than the Samsung LCD. My brother got a Panasonic 42" Plasma on Black Friday last year, and it looks nicer than either of mine. If I had the funds I would have gone plasma in a heartbeat.

Best thing to do is to take your time looking around and reading reviews. Don't base your purchase only on what you see in the store, you never know how long that floor model has been sitting there, how good of a signal it's getting, how many people have messed with every possible display setting imaginable, etc.

- Justin

[sweetbmxrider]

any contrast ratio over 1000:1 doesn't matter. that budget, i'd go plasma. do you have digital cable with HD programing? go 1080p

just walk into best buy looking for info and walk out with a sick tv

[BigAls87Z28]

Panisonic 46" 1080p Plasma

http://s7.sears.com/is/image/Sears/05775548000?qlt=90,0&resMode=sharp&op_usm=0.9,0.5,0,0

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_05775548000P?vName=Computers+%26+Ele ctronics&cName=Televisions&sName=Plasma+TVs

VS

Samsung 46" 1080p LCD TV

http://s7.sears.com/is/image/Sears/05771098000?qlt=90,0&resMode=sharp&op_usm=0.9,0.5,0,0

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_05771098000P?vName=Computers+%26+Ele ctronics&cName=Televisions&sName=LCD+TVs

[foff667]

I love my 52" HP 1080p plasma..I think I paid about $1000+tax about a year ago because it was a display model. I think the LCD's are supposed to last longer but the picture on this model was very good which is the reason I purchased it(along with the price obviously).

Personally either or will due so I would just leave it up to the name & the cost and make sure you check out the picture quality as well as some leave much to be desired.

[Tru2Chevy]

Al, my brother has the 42" Panasonic Viera, and it's excellent. Definitely looks like a good choice.

- Justin

[bcgetfresh]

Plasma is better picture than LCD because the colors are more vibrant. LCD's last longer. Whatever you do make sure its HDMI so you get the highest quality picture. There is a seller on ebay located in Toms River that has great prices. Ebay name is lsidistributors. You can find awesome deals on open box tv's. I got my 42" pioneer plasma tv from them about a year and a half ago for $800 when it retailed for $3k and it is still working perfect. I would stick to major brands Pioneer, LG, Sony, Samsung.

[cdacda13]

Look into the Sharp series of TVs. Quite a beautiful picture.

[JL8Jeff]

Do a search on the energy consumption of these newer tv's. Some of them really use a lot of power but I never bothered to read that article and can't remember where I saw it. I'm still using my 1989 25" RCA but plan to upgrade within the next 6 months so do the research and then report back so we are all better educated! :nod:

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[sweetbmxrider]

Do a search on the energy consumption of these newer tv's. Some of them really use a lot of power but I never bothered to read that article and can't remember where I saw it. I'm still using my 1989 25" RCA but plan to upgrade within the next 6 months so do the research and then report back so we are all better educated! :nod:

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considering tv is switching from analog to digital broadcast, that would be a wise investment before February 09 :lol:

[Tru2Chevy]

Do a search on the energy consumption of these newer tv's. Some of them really use a lot of power but I never bothered to read that article and can't remember where I saw it. I'm still using my 1989 25" RCA but plan to upgrade within the next 6 months so do the research and then report back so we are all better educated! :nod:

Yes, many of them do use a lot of power.

considering tv is switching from analog to digital broadcast, that would be a wise investment before February 09 :lol:

Nothing wrong with the TV he's using as long as it's hooked up to cable. No need to have a new TV, just a TV that is capable of getting signal from something other than rabbit ears.

- Justin

[sweetbmxrider]

Nothing wrong with the TV he's using as long as it's hooked up to cable. No need to have a new TV, just a TV that is capable of getting signal from something other than rabbit ears.

- Justin

really? i thought you would need a converter box of some sort. my mistake

[Knipps]

really? i thought you would need a converter box of some sort. my mistake

converter box is only for those still using tin foil

[sweetbmxrider]

ahhhhh thanks for the enlightenment

http://www.waynewhitecoop.com/system/images/Light%20Bulb.jpg

[JerzLT1]

<< Bestbuy home theater supervisor
Plasmas generally have better black lvls then LCDs and are slightly better for sports and fast motion but because they have glass screens have glare issues and have image retention issues, LCDs have no image retention issues and no glare (unless your looking at samsung TVs) and with 120Hz frame rate are nearly as good as plasmas for fast motion. if you want a good deal i would look at the samsung LN46A650 or the LN46A750

P.S. unless your buying a Bluray player, whether you get 1080p or 720p, when your watching comcast, Direct TV, or Fios, your seeing 720p. Fios currently has the bandwith to transfer a 1080p signal but no one is filming 1080p (HBO doesnt broadcast it either even if its a movie thats on bluray). If you local bestbuy has a LN46A750 pick it up this week on sale for 2099 i think its 200 buck off and the same price as the A650.

As far as energy consumption goes, i would have the TV calibrated. TVs are set from the manufacturer to be displayed under fluorescent lighting (blue lvls are bumped way up, and red and green have to work more to compensate) your backlight is also turned way up because the lights are white. this makes the TV run hotter and obviously take more energy. with the calibration you can look at around 20% longer life for the TV and a much more realistic picture.

also make sure you get the proper cables and a surge protector with a power conditioner, both of those this will help you get the most out of what ever tv you want.

[rscamaro73]

Now just go to circuit city, listen to their spiel, and then you have heard it from all corners. That's be enough to make a decision.

I hope you have been taking notes ;)

Anyhows....

I'm going to hope this post lasts a while. Who knows, maybe I'll one day be able to afford a new TV of sorts and have some reference material to look at....


BTW - there's other places to check like Tiger Direct for their prices, as well as Amazon and Yahoo.....:idea: