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Flat Panel TV
- Thread starter jimroth
- Start date
52", Plasma, Circuit City and I absolutely love it. The picture on the HD channels is fantastic.
Keep in mind though, that buying a HD TV is a lot like getting into reefing. The cheapest thing about it is buying the TV. In order to do it justice, you'll most likely need a new receiver and the right kind of cables. And those damn HMDI cables are ridiculously expensive. By the time we got the wall mount and all of the necessary equipment and cables we about doubled the price of the TV.
JME.
Keep in mind though, that buying a HD TV is a lot like getting into reefing. The cheapest thing about it is buying the TV. In order to do it justice, you'll most likely need a new receiver and the right kind of cables. And those damn HMDI cables are ridiculously expensive. By the time we got the wall mount and all of the necessary equipment and cables we about doubled the price of the TV.
JME.
52" Panasonic Rear projection LCD and it has a great picture too...Not as clear as a Plasma but pretty damn close. We got it @ Costco (with that fantastic return policy they used to have)
You can get really good quality HDMI cables from monoprice.com. They are just as good (or better) than Monster cables for a fraction of the cost. I've used them in the past and would use them again.
You can get really good quality HDMI cables from monoprice.com. They are just as good (or better) than Monster cables for a fraction of the cost. I've used them in the past and would use them again.
reefsandrotts
NJRC Member
46" Samsung LCD awsome picture bought at circuit city in Ledgewood.They are very easy to haggle down.I got the 5 year replacement warrenty 4 HDMI cables and a up-converting dvd player for around 2300.00 with zero percent financing.
Just remember if you go LCD you want the highest refresh value you can get.
Just remember if you go LCD you want the highest refresh value you can get.
I have a 50" plasma and the only reason I bought it, its because at the time there wasn't any LCD's that size. They are both good but with the plasma you will slowly start to see picture burn.... with a plasma TV you always have to keep worrying about not leaving something in pause for too long, is very bad for gaming and you can not use it as a media center with a PC because of the picture burn. This is my opinion, I was in Bestbuy the other day and I saw they have LDC TV's up 54" they are a little more expensive but worth the money.
I bought a 52" Samsung Plasma from Circuit City last month. I was going to buy it at Costco (free 90 day no questions asked return policy.) I had some time to kill one day, stopped in at Circuit City, spoke to the manager and he offered me a deal I couldn't refuse. Not only did he beat Costco's price (not by much tho) but also threw in the the wall mounts!
It just happened to be the last day of the month and I'm guess he needed to meet his quota... Lucky me huh?!? ;D
Like JohnS_323 said, the cheap part was the TV.. my monthly cable bill nearly doubled
It just happened to be the last day of the month and I'm guess he needed to meet his quota... Lucky me huh?!? ;D
Like JohnS_323 said, the cheap part was the TV.. my monthly cable bill nearly doubled
46" Mitsubishi LCD 120mhz refresh rate. Purchased it from P.C. Richards which beat both Best Buys and Circuit City. When you are going to buy, it matters where you are going to place the tv. If the room has alot of ambient light you may want to go with a LCD. The plasma sets have a issue with glare because of the glass screen.
Bob
Bob
46" Sony Bravia XBR3 purchased from PC Richards. Here's a link to the AVS forums. You will find a lot of feedback on different TV's. LCD and Plasma.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb
Bought a 37" or 39" (can't remember) Samsung LCD last year from Best Buy. Loving it, the sales man told me that with the plasma the pixels burn easily and it would be costly to replace the screen, don't know if it's true or not. I personally like the samsungs because their picture and color looks better than other brands. I went to delaware and bought it there, with money I saved on taxes went into the extended warranty.
I'm not sure that the pixel burn on plasma tv's is as much of a problem with new tv's as it was with earlier generation one's. I'm pretty sure they have the ability to "fix" themselves.
When we started shopping, I was completely committed to an LCD until I started doing some research. Without getting to techie, here is the reason I chose plasma: Plasma tv's are made up of a series of individual pixels, whose natural state (unpowered) is black. When the tv is turned on, a signal is sent to each pixel which changes the color of each one individually. This allows for a very quick response time and naturally dark contrast. Plasma tv's don't use a lot of power to get dark colors but need more power to get a pixel to white. An LCD is a series of bands that run across the screen with their natural states being white. When the tv is powered, the signal causes the bands to "twist" to create the different colors. This response time is a little slower than plasma. Also, since the natural state is white, the tv requires a lot more power to get to black and the contrast isn't quite as sharp.
The other thing I heard was that plasma was better for sporting events because the LCD's sometimes have trouble keeping up with the fast movements, especially if the teams are wearing dark colors. I've seen that in person, where a football team wearing red jerseys seem to be a bit of a blur with the color having to catch up to the players.
I forget what sites I saw all of this on, but I know I did a lot of reading and a number of places all said the same thing. I will say though that I'm no expert on the matter, and don't really know anything beyond what I read! Also, all of the differences are pretty subtle and each technology is very good otherwise they wouldn't be around anymore.
DLP wasn't really an option at the time, so I never researched that.
When we started shopping, I was completely committed to an LCD until I started doing some research. Without getting to techie, here is the reason I chose plasma: Plasma tv's are made up of a series of individual pixels, whose natural state (unpowered) is black. When the tv is turned on, a signal is sent to each pixel which changes the color of each one individually. This allows for a very quick response time and naturally dark contrast. Plasma tv's don't use a lot of power to get dark colors but need more power to get a pixel to white. An LCD is a series of bands that run across the screen with their natural states being white. When the tv is powered, the signal causes the bands to "twist" to create the different colors. This response time is a little slower than plasma. Also, since the natural state is white, the tv requires a lot more power to get to black and the contrast isn't quite as sharp.
The other thing I heard was that plasma was better for sporting events because the LCD's sometimes have trouble keeping up with the fast movements, especially if the teams are wearing dark colors. I've seen that in person, where a football team wearing red jerseys seem to be a bit of a blur with the color having to catch up to the players.
I forget what sites I saw all of this on, but I know I did a lot of reading and a number of places all said the same thing. I will say though that I'm no expert on the matter, and don't really know anything beyond what I read! Also, all of the differences are pretty subtle and each technology is very good otherwise they wouldn't be around anymore.
DLP wasn't really an option at the time, so I never researched that.
We have a 60 inch 1080P mitsubishi DLP and Sony 42 inch LCD and we did have a plasma. The plasma threw out to much heat and it kept shutting off all the time. So with the heat from the tank and the tv our living room was to hot. Our new tv is also 3D ready so we are looking forward to seeing how that is going to be. Also the DLP weigh considerably less then the LCD's and Plasmas
We went 65" Mitsu 1080p DLP. Keep in mind that not everything will be broadcasted in P.. that's usually a bluray or gaming thing (which, as said before, dlp is great for gaming). It was the best option for our room. Holds of glare better then the "true flat panels" and we didn't need to hang it on a wall. Also, I saw no reason to buy a LCD or PLASMA with the prices of DLP's about half or more of what the others go for... when that does happen, Like Jim said, LCD and plasma will probably take over.
I bought a 42" LG 1080p LCD TV from my work (Best Buy)
Its awesome, if your looking into a TV and live near Deptford come into my work, and I'll help you out.
If your looking for HDMI cables, order them either online or go to Comcast because Comcast gives HDMI cables for free, tell them you have a HD DVR box and never got an HDMI cable, I got two free that way. Some people say certain HDMI cables are better then others but I have a bunch and used alot of different types and personally i really can't tell much of a difference. I have seen pretty bad cables, but i wouldn't recommend them to you so..
You are getting ripped off if you buy HDMI cables from a retail store, I mean I get HDMI cables for like 20$ with my discount. While your paying 90+... To be honest, your getting ripped off if you buy anything from any retail store.
Have you picked out what type of TV you wanted? Cause each type of HD TV is for different use.
If your looking for LCD, I'd suggest Samsung, LG, Sony, Sharp is ok, (My brother has a Sharp and you have to do research on the model number because his TV he has wasn't made by sharp but by a random brand that makes Best Buy's own Brand labels like Dynex or Insignia.
I know about plasma but not alot, But from what I remember off top hand, If your looking for Plasma, I'd suggest Pioneer Elite (what I'm buying my parents before I quit, haha), Panasonic, With plasma when your buying it, turn it off and look to see how many reflections you see in the glare, the less the better, Pioneer Elites only have one panel, I believe LG is the same way.
Its awesome, if your looking into a TV and live near Deptford come into my work, and I'll help you out.
If your looking for HDMI cables, order them either online or go to Comcast because Comcast gives HDMI cables for free, tell them you have a HD DVR box and never got an HDMI cable, I got two free that way. Some people say certain HDMI cables are better then others but I have a bunch and used alot of different types and personally i really can't tell much of a difference. I have seen pretty bad cables, but i wouldn't recommend them to you so..
You are getting ripped off if you buy HDMI cables from a retail store, I mean I get HDMI cables for like 20$ with my discount. While your paying 90+... To be honest, your getting ripped off if you buy anything from any retail store.
Have you picked out what type of TV you wanted? Cause each type of HD TV is for different use.
If your looking for LCD, I'd suggest Samsung, LG, Sony, Sharp is ok, (My brother has a Sharp and you have to do research on the model number because his TV he has wasn't made by sharp but by a random brand that makes Best Buy's own Brand labels like Dynex or Insignia.
I know about plasma but not alot, But from what I remember off top hand, If your looking for Plasma, I'd suggest Pioneer Elite (what I'm buying my parents before I quit, haha), Panasonic, With plasma when your buying it, turn it off and look to see how many reflections you see in the glare, the less the better, Pioneer Elites only have one panel, I believe LG is the same way.
Little more,
If your looking for gaming stick with LCD, look for something that can contain high black levels because alot of LCD's lack that.
Plasma is going to have higher quality but its not for gaming, unless you buy the higher-end models because they have something in the panel where like a group of 4 crystals move around and rotate to keep the screen form getting burns, (Sorry! I don't remember what its called) Plasma is personally better for movies, its going to give you higher black levels
I honestly don't know really anything with DLP.
Other people may have other opinions though.
If your looking for gaming stick with LCD, look for something that can contain high black levels because alot of LCD's lack that.
Plasma is going to have higher quality but its not for gaming, unless you buy the higher-end models because they have something in the panel where like a group of 4 crystals move around and rotate to keep the screen form getting burns, (Sorry! I don't remember what its called) Plasma is personally better for movies, its going to give you higher black levels
I honestly don't know really anything with DLP.
Other people may have other opinions though.