HDTV purchase

[bigskiohio]

Re: HDTV purchase

i have a rear projection rca 52" wide screen , you have some glare but in a darkened room for movies the picture cant be beat but my next will be a tv for gaming which one i am not sure yet as you can read all sorts of info. LED or LCD?

 

[waterinthefuel]

Re: HDTV purchase

Yeah, don't avoid the plasmas.


My Sony Bravia lcd took a dump after 18 months.

That's funny because when I was doing research the Sony Bravia was on top as far as quality was concerned. My parents bought a Sony Bravia 52" two years ago, used for hours daily, and it works great. My aunt and uncle bought TWO of them about a year ago and they're both very happy with them. A local hair cut place, which is open 16 hours a day 6 days a week has two Bravias on full time in their waiting area. They've been there about 5 years and those TV's still are as pretty now as they day they put them in. Sony is about the best quality there is out there, followed closely in second by Panasonic. Vizio's are questionable, they were on the bottom of the list two years ago with very high rates of return but things could have changed.

I would definitely look into the Sony Bravia line of TV's. I know a lot of people who have them and never had a problem with them.

Oh, and whoever said the picture is better on a Plasma probably hasn't watched Planet Earth on a 52" 1080p LCD. My parents TV will BLOW YOU AWAY. I think picture quality is irrelevant now, they're both gorgeous. The LCD has no issues with glare AT ALL.

Edit: And for the record, I don't even own an HDTV. I just do research, read way too many reviews to count on all different brands and such, and read a lot of consumer reports reviews from years past to establish trends, etc. But I do not own one.

 

[skargo]

Re: HDTV purchase

i have a rear projection rca 52" wide screen , you have some glare but in a darkened room for movies the picture cant be beat but my next will be a tv for gaming which one i am not sure yet as you can read all sorts of info. LED or LCD?

LEDs are LCDs Just different backlighting. I love my LED I just bought.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: HDTV purchase

Unfortunately, because of the wisdom of the California government, plasmas(smaller than 58") may be a thing of the past anyway. Buy them now if you can. The question is, if they can't sell to California, will they stop making them altogether. California has 11% of the TV market.

Personally, they are both good. I have an LCD but would have no problem buying a plasma before they ban them.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,575555,00.html

 

[ondarvr]

Re: HDTV purchase

We need to stick to facts here. Isn't it funny that everyone recommends what they own, and bashes what they don't

Plasmas life is rated by it's half life, that's right, the plasma TV will keep dimming it's entire life. Some bigger plasmas use more energy than a refrigerator!


Not sure why you guys are pushing plasmas, besides the fact you cheaped out and bought one and want someone else to also make the wrong choice.

I highly recommend going to a real AV forum instead of a boat forum to get the real facts and have your questions answered. Most people have no clue about TVs.

http://www.avsforum.com/

You need to look into the facts more, 1080 is great, but its not really available right now unless you have it in house and your eye can't detect the difference once you move back from the screen, in a store at 3 feet its easily seen. What this adds up to is sales and marketing at the moment, a chance to up-sell the customer and make more money when they won't be able to really take advantage of the benefits

Plasma has proven to be very reliable and yes it will dim over time, but so far that has not been an issue in the industry.

The power consumption has been shown, do I need to list the month of the CR report for you? LED will be less, but over all this is another place where its more hype than benefit.

I was hoping the new 240 refresh rate was going to make a huge difference...did it help... yes....did it solve the problem ...no. Plasma is still much faster. When the motion blur is solved I would buy LCD without hesitation. This was my biggest concern when choosing which type to buy.

So much of what gets passed around as fact about each technology is sales HYPE and it just gets repeated enough times to become fact.

As I said if it wasn't for the refresh rate it wouldn't make a difference to me which type I had, it would still make a difference in which set or brand I purchased though.

What makes a bigger difference is if the person actually takes the time to adjust the set for the room its in. I would say that more often than not, when I go to someone's house to watch a game or movie, the set is adjusted so bad its hard to watch. These people have no idea which type they have and would be happy with either one, most of these people never even noticed the motion blur on the old 60 hz LCDs

This person asked about low cost and good picture, right now you can't beat a 50" plasma for that combination.

 

[skargo]

Re: HDTV purchase

You need to look into the facts more, 1080 is great, but its not really available right now unless you have it in house and your eye can't detect the difference once you move back from the screen, in a store at 3 feet its easily seen. What this adds up to is sales and marketing at the moment, a chance to up-sell the customer and make more money when they won't be able to really take advantage of the benefits
1080p is everywhere, BluRay players are dirt cheap, and more and more broadcasting is indeed done in it. Makes NO sense to buy old technology if you are in the market NOW. How is it marketing hype when the average consumer arms themselves before walking in the door, hell, I don't even talk to sales associates until my decision is made.
Plasma has proven to be very reliable and yes it will dim over time, but so far that has not been an issue in the industry.

The power consumption has been shown, do I need to list the month of the CR report for you? LED will be less, but over all this is another place where its more hype than benefit.
Yes you do...And it is NOT hype over benefit, you are substituting YOUR own lack of understanding, and opinion for fact.
I was hoping the new 240 refresh rate was going to make a huge difference...did it help... yes....did it solve the problem ...no. Plasma is still much faster. When the motion blur is solved I would buy LCD without hesitation. This was my biggest concern when choosing which type to buy.
Wrong, plasma is not "much faster" once again, your opinion is not fact.
So much of what gets passed around as fact about each technology is sales HYPE and it just gets repeated enough times to become fact.
Same goes for opinions being posted as fact.
As I said if it wasn't for the refresh rate it wouldn't make a difference to me which type I had, it would still make a difference in which set or brand I purchased though.

What makes a bigger difference is if the person actually takes the time to adjust the set for the room its in. I would say that more often than not, when I go to someone's house to watch a game or movie, the set is adjusted so bad its hard to watch. These people have no idea which type they have and would be happy with either one, most of these people never even noticed the motion blur on the old 60 hz LCDs
I agree, the first thing I do with my sets is use my calibration DVD.

This person asked about low cost and good picture, right now you can't beat a 50" plasma for that combination.
This person ALSO said initially Plasma was not an option

I just stated my opinions, based on facts from much research and checking out AV forums, not boating forums

 

[bigskiohio]

Re: HDTV purchase

you need 1080 p or i for big tvs for smaller 720p is good.

 

[Nandy]

Re: HDTV purchase

This is starting to get a little personal so as the OP I'm going to ask for a break from the most passionate contributors. This should not be a contest. I did my research before posting in here and read many videophiles reviews. My main goal was to find a source of reasonably priced sellers. I knew they will be input of what technology is better but that is not the scope of this thread.
There are many reasons plasma is going down in price. Is the "older" technology, many manufacturers have announced that they will no longer build plasma tv and good salesman pitch.
In other hands, I'm not going to pay much for a difference I can't tell no matter how big has it been writing on paper.
Let's go back on "where to buy I" rather than "what to buy"
Thanks!

 

[ezmobee]

Re: HDTV purchase

I had a great experience price/shipping/service-wise with TigerDirect.

 

[skargo]

Re: HDTV purchase

I support my local businesses when possible, the one I use mostly will match big box stores, and can match most online places. Plus, besides supporting the local guy, it is easier IF returns or service is needed.

Maybe check with your local guy first?

Sorry if I was one of those passionate guys, I over-research every thing I purchase. :redface:

 

[bruceb58]

Re: HDTV purchase

My GF bought her 58" Panasonic plasma from http://www.bhphotovideo.com/

An excellent TV by the way.

I bought my LCD years ago from
http://www.abesofmaine.com/?l=CJ&KBID=CJ

Start with www.pricegrabber.com

I also always monitor http://www.spoofee.com/

I am sure it is out of most people's price range but my sister bought a Sony 65" LCD model kdl65w5100. It is easily the most awesome TV I have ever seen. $4500 though!!

 

[bruceb58]

Re: HDTV purchase

When I was shopping for TVs with my GF, I thought the Plasma vs LCD 120Hz might be an issue. What I have found is that the compression artifacts of watching sports on TV overshadow the response time of the TVs. I actually switched away fro ATT UVerse and back to DishNetwork for that very reason. So...depending on what your broadcast service is, this may not be an issue.

 

[rjlipscomb]

Re: HDTV purchase

Not sure why you guys are pushing plasmas, besides the fact you cheaped out and bought one and want someone else to also make the wrong choice.

Sorry once again skargo, I'm not pushing anything, probably like most of the other posts here. I have 2 plasmas, both look great to me. The contrast is better than my LCD. As previously said, there are pros and cons. The manufacturer's follow the industry trends and keep putting out better products to address the consumer concerns, great for us ! I bought the LCD because of my cross lighting concerns and extended game playing. I actually like the 360 on the plasma better. Back to the point, we all have different opinions, different economic situations, different uses/locations/viewing distances/lighting issues/etc... We're just discussing what we have and what we like. We are also suggesting open discourse, discussion and reviews.

 

[rjlipscomb]

Re: HDTV purchase

This is starting to get a little personal so as the OP ...
Let's go back on "where to buy I" rather than "what to buy"

Opps, sorry, didn't get this far before my last post.

As part of my research before buying, I visit the local big box and specialty stores looking for advice and seeing the screen in person. As much as I want the salesperson's input, I don't really want to listen to a sales pitch. I know, confusing. My wife refuses to go with me. I have found Best Buy as having the better products at the lower "retail" price. If I get home and don't like it, it goes back. That's why Costco works well for me. The extra warranty helps Costco, but... sometimes they don't carry the latest/best products. I find everyday, that I act more and more like an old person. I like the personal contact over the impersonal online purchases. Especially for the big stuff. Good luck.

 

[paulspaddle]

Re: HDTV purchase

X2 Costco.

BTW - when you purchase...please update this...inquiring minds need to know....thanks!

 

[bruceb58]

Re: HDTV purchase

Costco had the set my GF bought but at a $300 premium. When you took into account the 9.75% sales tax we have, the decision to buy online was easy.

Regarding warranty and the advantage of shopping Costco, my parents had a problem with a Samsung plasma...they called up Samsung and a repair person was out within 2 days replacing a bad capacitor that blew. Would rather do that than bring the whole thing back to Costco.

I bought an LCD big screen for my vacation house a couple years ago from Costco. They had an excellent price back then. Sure seems like their prices are not as goos as they used to be though. Gone are the days that Costco always had the best prices.

 

[JustJason]

Re: HDTV purchase

9.75% sales tax?????

Holy cow!

I live in MA on the boarder of NH. MA sales tax got raised to 6.25 last year. NH has always, and will always, be 0.

Where do you think all us northern, Masser's shop

 

[bruceb58]

Re: HDTV purchase

That's why my location lists me as living in the" Peoples Republic of California".

 

[JustJason]

Re: HDTV purchase

I don't get it, is it just a California thing that an east coast guy wouldn't understand?

 

[skargo]

Re: HDTV purchase

MD seems California-ish in their laws. We just had our sales tax jacked to 6%. DE has no sales tax. Sounds like a similar situation.