HD TVs

[GN]

Any advice on the flat screen TVs? LCDor plasma? Hz? We our looking at a 47" size. 1080p? Which brands are best? Who has the best deal? Thanks.

[skip68]

We have a Toshiba LCD.   I like it and seems to be good.  We have had it about 2 years now and no problems.      I was told that the plasma TV's can get an image burned in the screen and screw it up.       Like if you fell asleep watching a movie and it ends and is left on with a picture on the screen.      Plasma's also don't last as long.   This is what I was told when I was shopping.   

[captnsim]

Plasma burn is not as prevalent as some like to believe. Really bright images (static images that never move) can burn in though if left on for extended periods of time. And I mean BRIGHT images, not normal ones.
LCD's are a bit behind in color, reproduction of deep blacks, and wash out when viewed from the side. They are better in a bright rooms due to anti glare coatings on the screen and they use less power.
Longevity seems to be about the same as far as I can tell.
Most salesmen will push LCD's as most box stores stock LCD's as they are cheaper to build.
My 42 plasma is 5 years old and still works fine. Outperforms all my friends new LCD's and will be replaced with a larger plasma (old 32" tube TV in the bedroom is going bye bye) this year.
So I guess what I'm getting at is, really bright room = LCD...normal room, I'd go plasma.  


 

[Dans 68]

We have a Samsung Plasma 50". It is performing just fine. The burn in worry is not relevant anymore with the technology and features built-in to the HDTV's. As I recall the main difference between the two is that the Plamsa's use more energy but have deeper blacks (referring to color, that is) versus the LCD's. If you need the absolute best picture go plamsa. If you want a great picture but need lower energy usage then go LCD. Do an internet search on the differences/benefits. I think Samsung's are a good brand either way you go.  

Dan

[chargerboy69]

I just bought a new HDTV this week.  I have been looking and reading for a month.  I purchased a new Panasonic 50" Plasma and we love it.  You will have Plasma people and LCD people arguing the pros and cons of each.  I preferred the Plasma picture better myself.  In my opinion, the Plasma picture is far superior to the LCD.  Plus you can get the Plasmas for far less than a LCD.  As a side note, you do not get burn in the new Plasmas.  That was a problem a few years ago, but not today.  Here is the one I just purchased.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Panasonic+-+VIERA+/+50%22+Class+/+720p+/+600Hz+/+Plasma+HDTV/9219062.p?id=1218061797099&skuId=9219062


The reviews are great.  And the best part is, Dell has it on their website for $650.00, and Best Buy matched it.  I could not pass that deal up. 

[captnsim]

My biggest issues with TVs/Computer monitors is a apparent lack of standardised sizing of real things.
Seems every screen has it's own "view" of how things are, which is seldom how it really looks in person.

And don't get me started on a "widescreen" TV still giving you a dinky, big black bar on top and bottom picture. I mean come on...you buy a widescreen for a big "wide" picture right? Not a long, narrow, still small picture...  

[chargergirl]

Sanyo 50" Plasma with an amazing picture. You can also adjust the picture to make it wider even if the movie wants to be the narrow pic. There are settings for the pics on the remote pic 1-7 is what mine has and sometimes it won't go all the way out but it's better.

[Just 6T9 CHGR]

LED will be my next set.....

I have a Sony rear projection 42" and a Panasonic LCD in 32" both great sets.....

When the Sony craps out this Samsung 55" LED will be my next purchase.....hopefully by that time the price will come down some

http://www.samsung.com/us/consumer/tv-video/televisions/led-tv/UN55B8500XFXZA/index.idx?pagetype=prd_detail

[bull]

LEDs are the next big thing and the price reflects that but I was pretty impressed when I saw my first one at Costco the other day. Usually I can't tell the difference but that LED really popped. As far as LCD vs. plasma, I think it's pretty much a wash anymore for picture quality. A year or two ago I would swear that plasma looked better but today I can't tell the difference because they've done a lot of work to improve the weaknesses of both. Although I now think the weaknesses of the plasmas outweigh those of the LCDs (overall weight and power efficiency). Right now, all things considered, I think LCD 1080p is the way to go until the LED technology comes down in price. Sony is always good but because of the name they seem to be $800 more than all the other brands so I tend to avoid that name. I haven't read that they're $800 better than the other top brands and Sony TVs do break too. Also it's good to remember that some of the lesser brands like Acer and Vizio share many common componants with the big boys so I think it pretty much comes down to features and picture quality and where the decent sales are.

[green69rt]

Ok, I know there is a lot of opinion of what is best and what looks better.  Here's my two cents, get the size you want (bigger is better), but a name brand. After that just look to get the lowest price.  All these new screens are really good, once you get it home don't worry about refresh rate, back lighting etc., you'll be so pleased to have a nice large HD picture that the rest is icing on the cake.  A lot of the things that are advertised as an advantage between one model to the next are really fine points ( I mean really fine!!!), don't sweat em!!

[green69rt]

I forgot one thing. A lot of old stuff and some new stuff is not recorded in HD.  A picture may be shot with 720 lines, stored as 480 LPI and then transmitted as 1080I.  You still get great pictures but you aren't using the full capability of the 1080P screen so a lot of its potential is wasted.  It may come later but as of now you don't need 1080P.  Maybe blue ray will give you a better piture but the basic recording still doesn't use 1080 LPI technology.  You have to think about the whole picture making process.

Anyone else got any better info on the picture technology??

[skip68]

I forgot one thing. A lot of old stuff and some new stuff is not recorded in HD.  A picture may be shot with 720 lines, stored as 480 LPI and then transmitted as 1080I.  You still get great pictures but you aren't using the full capability of the 1080P screen so a lot of its potential is wasted.  It may come later but as of now you don't need 1080P.  Maybe blue ray will give you a better piture but the basic recording still doesn't use 1080 LPI technology.  You have to think about the whole picture making process.

Anyone else got any better info on the picture technology??

Good point.   

[bull]

I forgot one thing. A lot of old stuff and some new stuff is not recorded in HD.  A picture may be shot with 720 lines, stored as 480 LPI and then transmitted as 1080I.  You still get great pictures but you aren't using the full capability of the 1080P screen so a lot of its potential is wasted.  It may come later but as of now you don't need 1080P.  Maybe blue ray will give you a better piture but the basic recording still doesn't use 1080 LPI technology.  You have to think about the whole picture making process.
Anyone else got any better info on the picture technology??

While it's true that most DVDs and television programs do not yet broadcast in 1080p some of them do and it's a matter of time before they all get there but in the meantime the 1080p sets will "dumb-down" to whatever resolution they're receiving. How long before they all get to 1080p? Who knows? I think for most people the 1080p technology falls into the "better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it" category. But then some of these TVs don't even last a year so it's often moot. And I don't know how the whole video game issue plays into the resolution ratings so that might be something to take into account when buying a TV if you're a gamer. What kind of annoys me is that TVs are now following the technological path created by computers, video games, cell phones, etc., in that they are all but obsolete as soon as you walk out of Best Buy with them so the whole consumerism mentality is a big part of it too. The new stuff costs four times as much and lasts 1/10th as long as the old stuff did. You can find B&W TVs from 1957 that still work but a $2,500 Sony HDTV might only last 18 months before crashing. And don't forget that they're starting to push 3D technology now and you'll have to buy a 3D capable HDTV eventually if you want to see 3D movies.

EDIT** I just read a piece that says virtually NOTHING and NOBODY broadcasts in 1080p yet so ignore that first sentence up there until like 2017.

[MoparManJim]

Okay, I been trying to follow this, but have afew questions here sense we're on the HD thing. What is the differences between 1080I and 1080P? what does the  I and P stand for?

[bull]

Okay, I been trying to follow this, but have afew questions here sense we're on the HD thing. What is the differences between 1080I and 1080P? what does the  I and P stand for?

It has to do with how often the picture refreshes itself. P=progressive scan and I=interlaced scan. IIRC the P models refresh each line in a single pass while the I models refresh every other line in a single pass. Supposedly this makes it so the 1080p models can keep up with the action better, like sports or fast-paced movies.

[MoparManJim]

Okay, I been trying to follow this, but have afew questions here sense we're on the HD thing. What is the differences between 1080I and 1080P? what does the  I and P stand for?

It has to do with how often the picture refreshes itself. P=progressive scan and I=interlaced scan. IIRC the P models refresh each line in a single pass while the I models refresh every other line in a single pass. Supposedly this makes it so the 1080p models can keep up with the action better, like sports or fast-paced movies.

Thank you sir for the answer on that  , I been wondering about that for awhile now.

[bull]

Here's a more professional explanation I just found: http://reviews.cnet.com/1080i-vs-1080p-hdtv/

[green69rt]

I think all the previous notes says it better than I can.  Bottom line... get the cheapest 1080P in a good brand as you can.  Get one HDMI input at a minimum so you can hook up better DVD players later.  Otherwise you probably don't need to spend a lot of money on all the "latest" technology.  I would bet that you will be really pleased to get a low end Sony 1080P screen as opposed to their high-end and save a bunch of bucks in the process (find one on sale, probably older technology by a few months but still a great picture.)  5 (or 10) years from now you can upgrade if needed.  Look at the Crutchfield site to see some specs but they are not the cheapest, just a fair source of info if you ignore the hype.

What do I have?  I have a 34inch Sony CRT HD TV with 1080i (probably one of the last that was made.)  I also have a 46 inch Sharp LCD 1080P.  Each is viewed from about 8 feet away.  I honestly can't tell the difference in the picture between them.  Even our little 19 inch Sharp EDTV (720P) in the kitchen is great.  Of all my tvs I like the Sony the best (personal preference.)

PS. biggest problem I found with new TV's is the speakers suck.  They're tiny and have little power.  I think the manufacturers assume you will be using a AV system.  Good luck.

[c00nhunterjoe]

samsung and sony have the best quality tv's

the only way you can tell the difference between 1080 and 720 is to have teh exact same model is 720 and 1080 right next to each other and compare them using hdmi cable's and an hd program- otherwise they look the same. 

my samsung 50 inch 720p looks 100 times crsiper then a vizio 1080p does. tv brand and manufacture plays a HUGE difference in what you get.


i prefer plasma. they got a bad rep early on but they last the same amount as lcd's and have a faster refresh rate and are better for video game and sports-ie, anything you have on the screen with faster motion. the lcd's will blurr the image while a plasma remains crisp and clear. the plasma's have a much deeper contrast ratio, the overal color spectrum is far superior with a plasma.

best buy had a really good deal going on right now for my tv, a samsung 50 inch plasma in 720p wiht a 1000 watt home theatre system including a hd dvd converter, 799 for everything.i cant find it on their site, i am assuming the sale is over