CRT Televisions

[Tim Turner]

Found a used Samsung 30" CRT TV (TX-S3079WH) for $450 locally. Was looking for opinions, pros and cons, or other comments on this unit or comparable units. I have never owned or even heard of CRT technology until now. I own an LCD TV and was wondering how it compares. Does the price sound reasonable?

 

[WXMotorSports DecalsPartsAccs]

We had a 37" Sony Vega Tube (CRT) TV. Bought it in 2000 for 1200.00. It worked fine except it seemed the picture took 10 seconds to fully come in when you first turned it on. We replaced it last year with a Plasma TV. I couldn't give the TV away. Ended up paying the delivery guys 25.00 to remove it. It was a lead brick. I think it weighed 200+ pounds.



The dump wanted to charge me 100.00.



I wouldn't buy it. Price of flat screens have come way down to that price range for a new one close too in size.

 

[Jeff C]

Cathode Ray Tube (old computer monitors and TVs).



I wouldn't waste my money. My roommate just got a 32" LCD for $700 new.



It won't be as sharp or as bright as an LCD, but the blacks will be a little better.

 

[TomT]

I have never owned or even heard of CRT technology until now.

Isn't that what we've been using for over 50 years?

 

[Jeff C]

lol, the **** "tube"

 

[Thomas Rogers]

STCTC, CRT, short for "Cathode Ray Tube" was the first TV tube standard. It is being phased out with LCD and Plasma. You probably never heard of CRT because it wasn't mentioned much until there were competing standards (just like you don't hear your car's engine referred to as the type IC...internal combustion, because there aren't many alternative standards to choose from). The LCD computer monitor was the first to displace CRT as a widespread standard, and that happened due to laptop needs, and goes back 10 or 15 years when it started to take off.



Anyway, $450 for a 30" screen CRT seems a little high to me.



TJR

 

[Greg Stuhlsatz]

Don't do it

 

[Tim Turner]

I read up on some online reviews and the biggest complaint was the weight. This unit in particular weighed about 130 pounds. I bought the 32" Vizio LCD for $550 in May and figured it was an upgrade compared to the Samsung CRT, but the LCD-like display caught my eye. Thanks for the advice.

 

[Dreman]

We don't spend much time in front of a tv, so we don't spend much money on them. The last one we bought was 4 years ago. We paid $200 for a new 27" CRT from WalMart to replace the 19" we had before that. When that goes we'll probably look for something in high-def with a digital tuner, whether it's CRT or LCD. The way things are going, though, there may not be many CRT's to choose from by then.

 

[TomT]

I'm about ready to pull the plug on this 32" LCD for the bedroom for $499. Reviews aren't bad. It's going to replace an old 20" CRT that's just to big and bulky. I can hang the LCD on the wall and it will be out of the way.

 

[Casey B]

I bought a 32" JVC CRT TV back in 1999 for $200. It still performs like new but is heavy and bulky. I wouldn't put that much into a CRT with the prices of LCD's and plasma these days. Spend a little more and be happy.

 

[Paul Maurer 2]

Too much $$$, too damn heavy, old tech.

 

[Wes Davis]

LOL I have a 35" Sony CRT came out right before the Wegas. My parents paid about $1200.00 for it new late 1990's. I believe it weighs more than my Sport Trac. Still a pretty nice tv though. Any body still using the large rear projection cabinet style tv's? The old 57" ones? Even better does anyone still have one of the old front projection tv's with the box in front of the screen that contains the red, green and blue projectors? Man in the 1980's those things were a SuperBowl dream.

 

[WXMotorSports DecalsPartsAccs]

52" Pioneer Elite...it's better than going to the movies! I don't have to listen to the idiot next to me have a conversation with his friend and other friend on the cell phone. Last time I saw a movie I told the guy to either be quiet or I'll remove him from the theatre.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Me, I have a 36" Sony Trinitron CRT-based TV that was pre-Wega. I paid $2400 for it if memory serves in '98.



In 2000 I got a 55" rear projection Mitsu which we still use in our home theater today as our HD. It's a great TV, only issue is it doesn't support HDMI. Still using the original bulb (knocks on wood). That one cost around $2K.



I just bought a used 28" CRT Magnovox TV for our master bedroom. Was only a couple of years old. Got it off Craigslist for $50.



Prices keep going down, quality keeps going up.



TJR

 

[Gary DiPietroSr]

I used to have a TV shop. Started in "69". As a TV repairman I wouldn't spend that much for a tube set. Go for an LCD.



Gary D.

 

[Rick Kent]

Gary D,



I have a 36" Proscan that I got around 93 or 94, paid as much for it as I recently paid for my 61" Samsung 1080p.



But anyway, the outer edges of the picture have become somewhat blurry. Is there anyway to correct the picture? Also, when you dispose of a CRT TV, where do you bring it (legally) so it can be recycled? Thanks, Fred.

 

[Gary DiPietroSr]

Fred, without seeing it in person, it's hard to tell. But if the picture is blurry around the edges, it might be a bad seal or glue between the safety glass and the front of the tube. If you can see the scanning lines in the center of the picture, ( while it's on), then the focus is correct. As far as disposal, we use to tap the very end of the neck of the CRT with a hammer to let air in to it, then break it all up, wearing safety glasses of course. Then off the the dump. The TV parts supplier used to take back the old CRT as a core when a new one was put in, but that stopped years ago as sets changed dramatically.



Gary D.

 

[TomT]

The disposal of CRT's has become a big problem in our country. Especially since nearly everyone is getting rid of their old CRT computer monitor in favor of lighter LCD's that take up much less space. I work at a university and we pay thousands of dollars a year to a recycling company to remove our old computer parts, the majority of it being CRT's. They do recycle much of the parts but there is still a whole lot that ends up in the landfill. I can't even imagine the waste generated just from universities and big business every year as they get rid of their old CRT's. Guess that's the downside of new technology.



Gary D. Many years ago I used to work for an electronic distributor and our main customers were tv shops. We used to sell a lot of picture tubes. (Of course that was back when the biggest was a 25"). There used to be tv shops all over the city but now it's hard to find one at all. With the way electronic prices have dropped over the years it seems most tv's are cheaper to replace rather then repair. It's part of the disposable society we live in.

 

[Gavin Allan]

Lots of lead in the CRT glass.



Good advice here: