Larger flat screen tv w/HD

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Jeffrey Travis

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Just moved into a new house and it is time to purchase a larger tv w/HD.



Looking for suggestions and/or ones to stay away from.



See my other OT post on matresses as well, have to score one as well.
 
Depends on what you want. LCD, plasma or projection.

The price of TV's have come down abot 2/3rds in price over the last year.

Decide what style and size you want first then go from there.



CC has some good deals on Sony projections right now.
 
Thing to keep in mind is Pioneer, Samsung, Sharp, Toshiba, and Sony build the lenses for most if not all HDTV's. These brands are excellent. I would stick with one of these. I have a 32 Samsung LCD for my gaming TV and its nice. I have a Sony theater wide projection in the family room.



Consider the room you have for a projection. They take up more space than an LCD/Plasma. If you room can fit it, I would choose a projection over an LCD. Also depends on the room size. Stay away from DLP TV's.
 
Travis,,,,,,,,if you go LCD, look into the Sharp Aquos models,,,,,,,,,,these are impressive in any size and have a good reputation/track record. I got a 32" a while ago and am very impressed with the picture/HD quality. Gaming is great also. Hope this helps,,,,,,,,,,Mark
 
Consider the room you have for a projection. They take up more space than an LCD/Plasma. If you room can fit it, I would choose a projection over an LCD. Also depends on the room size. Stay away from DLP TV's
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Right now, the majority of projection HDTVs are DLP. DLP is a proven technology and has been around much longer that LCD and Plasma. There are some LCD projection HDTVs and they may be growing in popularity.



What is the problem with DLP from your perspective?



Travis,,,,,,,,if you go LCD, look into the Sharp Aquos models,,,,,,,,,,these are impressive in any size and have a good reputation/track record. I got a 32" a while ago and am very impressed with the picture/HD quality. Gaming is great also. Hope this helps,,,,,,,,,,Mark
Click to expand...



My parents just had their 32" LCD Aquos replaced, it was a little over a year old. The LCD screen failed. Good thing they had the extended warranty. Sharp replaced it with the current model.
 
Stay away from DLP TV's.
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You can stay away from them, more for the rest of us. I love my 50" Toshiba DLP. It's been flawless and the HD pictures from DirecTV, HD-DVD, and Blu-Ray are amazing to say the least. Yeah, I may have to replace the bulb every 2-3 years, but for the Toshiba, it's only about $150 vs $400 for other models.



Most DLPs are relatively thin too, compared to CRT. You can get a much bigger DLP TV for the price of a smaller LCD or Plasma, and a properly calibrated DLP will look almost as good as a properly calibrated Plasma, good enough for most people not to be able to tell the difference.
 
I install these for a living. We like the Pioneer Elite plasma or the Sharp or Sony LCD. From all the ones we have done, these have the best picture. I don't like the Panasonic or Gateway plasma. We have installed a few drop screens with projectors too, but you need a dark room. They still don't look that good to me yet. They do have the wow factor that people want.



Gary D.
 
You should check out Vizio. They are built here in the states. They can be found a Costco,Circuit city just to name a couple stores. Excellent sound and picture quality especially for the price point. Reliability is also very good as well.



Also, make sure it is digital. In 2009 all analog TV broadcasts will end.
 
I have a 56" Samsung HD-ILA. It is based on DLP technology and supposedly the next best thing. I love it.



One of the main issues I have seen with HD TVs, regardless of type, LCD, DLP, Plasma, is the picture quality of analog signals, which is still the majority of the channels out there. I personally think the Samsung quality of non HD pictures is better than the others. Just one more thing to consider and depends really on what you watch the most of. Much of my viewing is non HD channels.



If you like to listen with the volume low, say in a bedroom, DLPs can have a lot of background noise from the fan(s). Don't know about the other engines.



grump
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Grumpy,



Grumpy,



I hear you on the analog channels



But I have to give this friendly advice to everyone considering getting a large, digital TV:



If a majority (and I mean an overwhelming majority) of the content you are going to watch on your largeHDTV isn't either DVD (even standard def), or HD in nature, then don't waste your money.



OTA analog and analog stations from your cable system aren't typically worth watching on a large screen, period. If that's mostly what you plan to watch then save your money and forego the large, HD tv for now.



Now, if you want to watch analog on smaller HD TVs (37 inches and below) and at further viewing distances, then okay. Such sized HD TVs have gone down and the cost is moreso justified.



I read a survey that only 40% of the HD TVs sold the past few years are being used by people to view ANY HD content (at least one channel). That means 60% are all stuck on standard def, no doubt analog sourced....that's just crazy, IMHO.



TJR
 
That sucks!



We have DirecTV HD and locals, Xbox 360 w/ HD-DVD and a PS3 for Blu-Ray. Discovery Theater HD is simply amazing.



My dad got a plasma for Xmas last year. They don't have DirecTV HD or anything else HD...
 
TJR--Do you know what portion of prime time shows on the main 4 OTA networks are now being broadcast in HD? I know that all four networks broadcast digitally in our area, and they broadcast in HD when its available to them--but I don't know how frequent that is. Is this info readily available somewhere?



I know we also have one station broadcasting their local news telecasts in HD. Have been for over a year now--I'm surprised none of the others have followed suit yet.
 
Yeah - what TJR said.



Bill V, that all varies by location. Here in San Antonio, I would say the big four broadcast 75% OTA HD. That is a WAG but when I view the on screen guide (I use DirecTV) it shows the same non HD and the HD channels together, or one after the other in the grid. So basically you haev two lines with the same programming. But the HD channel has "HD" after the show title. So I'm guessing 75%.



I should have said most of my primetime viewing is non HD. Weekends are speed channel and whatever the NASCAR race is on. Every channel that shows NASCAR races live does so in HD. :wub: And I watch a lot of DVDs. Even non HD DVDs are better on a digital tele.



grump
 
BillV, it all depends on the market and your method for getting a signal.



I can tell you that in the Philadelphia area and with Comcast cable all the major networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, CW) are broadcasting in HD during prime-time.



Between the major broadcasters, the boutique channels (like Discovery HD, TNT), ESPN, and the premium channels (HBO, Starz), I pretty much ONLY watch HD at this point.



And, with an HD DVR, I am watching LESS TV, but BETTER TV.



TJR
 

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