LCD or PLASMA 1080p--How to Find the HZ--MY HEAD IS SPINNING!!!

[princess crazy]

Everyone has been so helpful here with their input on the best prices for BF deals on TV's but I am so confused and don't know which TV is best for what

We are wanting a 40-42" TV for watching movies and playing the Wii in a basement. I don't know the difference btw Plasma/LCD and which one would be best for our needs.

Have read that we should be looking for 120 Hz instead of 60 Hz but half of the TV's listed don't even show what the Hz is. Where do I find that info??

Our other criteria is we are hoping to get one of these for not much over $500 or right at $500.
We really don't want to spend more than that so I have been trying to look at all the TV's in the BF ADs that are 40-42" 1080p and my head is swimming with what would be a basic set that would fufill our needs---We don't need all the bells and whistles---we just want it to be a good set for watching movies and Wii gaming.

In particular I am very interested in the 42" LCD at Meijer's for BF which is a doorbuster--the good thing is the price is good at only $499.99 but I don't know if it would be good for movies and Wii. If anyone here knows if this set would be good for us I would love to know---It is a Sylvania if that matters and seems to be one of the best deals so far.

Also, would it really be a big deal with the Wii if we found one that was only 780p?? Our seating is only 4-5 ft from the TV but I've been reading about lag time for gaming and that 1080p is way better----WE are not TV experts--would we really notice that much of a difference btw the two??

This one really has me---always before in buying a TV we just went with the set that we thought looked the best and had the features we wanted but there are so many options now I don't know what to do

LCD--PLASMA--1080p--780p and what are the HZ--Please Help Thanks

[JB2K]

I can help -- a little -- but, it may require some homework on your part.

Discounters such as Walmart and Target have zero in-store materials telling you the hertz on their TV's (more often than not, most of the ones priced under $1000 at the discount stores tend to be 60 hz).

That said, if it's really important to you, write-down the model number next time you're at the store, and come home and do some research at the manufacturer's website.

OTOH, if you go to specialty stores such as Best Buy, the folks there should be able to answer nearly any question you have about their TVs. Same goes for Costco, too.

As for the difference, here's what you need to know:

720p - best used on TV screens 32" and below (TV's you may use in the bedroom, or any other small room)

1080p - current top of the line (for TV's great than 32" and used in a living room/family room setting).

As for the hertz, it largely depends on how you use your TV. If you watch a lot of shows/movies with a lot of fast action, sports, or using a PS3/XBox360 you will most likely want to start at 120 hz. If you don't watch any of this or play games, 60 hz. will work for you, just fine.

LCD or Plasma?? Both are good, though Plasma is falling out of fashion due to the fact that it sucks-up more electricity than LCD. Also, Plasma TVs are more expensive to repair, if necessary...

Hope this helps...

[elgerber]

I can tell you, from many recent shopping trips. If the sign or the box do not readily have the HZ listed boldly, it's a 60. The 1080 with the 120 are always marked that way, so you can easily spot it.

[princess crazy]

Thanks JB2K and elgerber

As far as the HZ being listed on the boxes I don't know because I've just been trying to research these online so I know whether or not I am going to brave the BF madness. There in lies the problem on most of the lists it doesn't give the Hz level and even trying to do a google search on a particular model doesn't really show anything either.

I guess I'll just assume the Meijers Sylvania 42" door buster is only a 60Hz for that price ----if anyone knows any different I would love to know.

Is there anyone out there who can tell me if I got the Meijers Sylvania 42" 1080p and it was a 60 Hz---what would it not do so well if we wanted it for game play and movies-------Are you saying that the fast scenes would freeze on this TV??? Or would we really notice any difference if we are not really Tv buffs and can't tell the difference btw more expensive setsthan others.

This is coming from a family that doesn't have any flat screens except a 19'' and we used to even play our Wii games on a regular box tv and never had any problems-----Are the new LCD's that much different than the old TV's as far as supporting gaming and movies??

I guess I am really trying to justify the good price deal on the TV at Meijers but it wouldn't be that great of a deal if it affected the movies we watched and games we played so greatly that we couldn't play them like we do now. Sorry I guess I just don't get what the big difference is in the newer tv's---used to be a TV was a TV---I guess not anymore!

[buzz5985]

Another consideration - is how much light you have in the room with the TV. That is why we went with an LCD. We have 5 windows in the room with the TV. LCD you can see the screen even with sunshine on it. Plasma would wash out.

I was told - you want to watch football, or any sport for that matter - go Plasma. The action does seem "faster".

On our LCD DS plays Xbox live and has no problems with lag - that I know of. I'm sure I would have heard about it - he just turned into a whiney 13 yo. LOL I have a Wii too and don't notice any lag.

Janis

[CarolinaMomOf3boys]

we just purchased the 53 inch Sony at walmart, they have a rollback, its an LCD for $1148...HH Gregg has some good prices right now, too

[Blue.Fairy2]

year before last Walmart had a 26" LCD Tv 720/60 for $249 (may not be a good price now but was great then)anyway we snapped it up for DS bedroom so he could play the Wii in there. He has no lag and the TV is great for playing the Wii. As far as Sports he does not watch much TV in there but it is set up on the Sat so I will check it out for you.

He does watch movies and I have not noticed any lag on this TV.

I am taking it this is not your main TV?

[princess crazy]

Thanks again everyone!

buzz5985--What size LCD do you have and is it 1080p? Also do you know what the Hz level is on it?? Have been reading that with the larger LCD's you need the 1080p with the bigger hertz but not on the smaller ones.

Blue.Fairy2--Can you tell me what brand your TV is? Like I told buzz--I had read that it doesn't affect the smaller Tv's as far as lag time but with the larger sets---which I'm assuming this is being a 42"---that you need 1080p and 120HZ. I would really love to get this one and not worry about lag time but if we are spending that much I don't want to get it if it is going to be real noticable. This is not now our main tv---it will be in the basement but it could become more used than the one in our living room after we get it because that one is only a 27"---we've never had anything this large before so it could become our main tv if everyone likes watching the bigger set better. It would also definitely be the only tv the Wii would be played on and that is one of my concerns.

If anyone here has a 40" or larger LCD that is lower than 1080p and 120Hz and you have had a good experience with watching movies and no significant lag time for Wii gaming I would love to hear what brand you have

[yevrus]

Although I only have a 32" Samsung 1080p connected to my Wii, I want to suggest to you to take a look at these two units:

Olevia 2 Series 242T 42" LCD TV - $499.00

Panasonic VIERA TC-P42X1 42" Plasma TV - $599.00

Both televisions have a LCD TV ratings of 82 and 86 respectively which are quite good enough. Panasonic may cost a hundred bucks more but I feel it is the better one between the two.

Hope this helps.

[SandrA9810]

avoid plasma if you're going to be gaming on it. LCD is best for gaming, less likely to have the picture burned onto the tv. A lot of games have set backgrounds, with little movement within, so the background can easily get burned into the tv while playing... and that wouldn't be so cool. Plus you'll save more energy with LCD which will make up in the prices.

Target has an Apex 40" 1080p for $449 on BF. Not a big of a brand as others, but watching it in store, the picture seemed to be brighter than the samsung sitting right next to it.
That's how we picked out our last tv (just a flat screen tube). We went from electronic dept to electronic store. I finally saw a tv at Best Buy and said "that's the one I want". Had to wait 2 weeks for a store over an hour away to finally get a shipment of them in after the holidays... but I still love it and think it's a great tv. It's a 24" insignia.
Look at specs all you want, but you might want to head into the stores and stare at the TV's for a little while to see which one has the best picture.

[SalandJeff]

My sis has a 42" Panasonic plasma. It is 720/60 mz. The picture is great and she also has a Wii on this TV. No problems using/viewing the Wii. She has a had it for a few years. At the time, Panasonics were rated very well.

You know if you look at a 1080/120 it may look better than a 720/60, especially if comparing them side by side. But IMO, you need to look at what you want to use it for and what you want to spend. If you look at the picture and are happy with it, I would not be obsessed with the 1080 vs. 720 and 120 vs. 60. I think it is more important to get a brand that has been rated well. You don't want it to die in 2 years.

[Golf4food]

If you watch movies and intend to get a Bluray player (which I highly, highly recommend if you have an HDTV) then you'll want 1080p.

For the Wii it doesn't matter because the Wii is not HD and can only go up to 480p even with the "HD Wii cables" (buy them from Monoprice.com, by the way, for like $6 - don't spend $20 on a set from a big store with the Nintendo name on them). While the Wii certainly does look better with the "HD cables", it is still only 480p, and true HD needs to be up over 720p or 1080p. DVDs are 480p, btw. To get true high def you need either an over the air/cable/satellite HD signal (often 1080i) or a blue ray player and a bluray disk (true 1080p).

120hz is most certainly better than 60hz for sports, action movies, and gaming. 120hz is the new standard and there are new models with 240hz (though very expensive). 60hz is going away. If you are investing in a set you intend to keep for a while I strongly suggest you go with 120hz.

Plasmas only come in 42" or larger - they are not made smaller than that. Plasma eats a lot more energy and gets hotter. They don't have the same burn in problems they had early on, but are still major energy hogs. If you are getting under 42" you will have to get an LCD, 42" or above you have the option (I lean towards LCD, personally).

And speaking of Monoprice.com, go ahead and order yourself a few HDMI cables from them - like $3 each - and go ahead and have them on hand for when you do get your new TV so you can laugh in the face of the salesman who tries to sell you the $100 Monster HDMI cable with your TV. Biggest rip off in electronics right now are HDMI cables. No excuse. Ignore their crap, tell them no, and take your TV home and plug it in with your $3 cable that is just as good and use the other $97 to put towards a Bluray player.

We have an LG model 37LH40 which is a 37" 120hz 1080p model. Love it. Wish our entertainment center was bigger so we could have gotten a larger screen. If you are looking for a 42" or larger and plan to keep it for a while then you really, truly should consider full 1080p and 120hz, even if it costs a little bit more.

The difference is well worth it. Then get a Bluray player and surround sound system and never pay for a movie ticket again.

[Melmac]

2 years ago we got a 46" Samsung LCD 1080p 60Hz TV on warranty exchange. At the time, the 120Hz were just being released and were twice the price so we went for the best 60Hz they had at the time.

I have heard people say that at 60Hz you get a lot of "lag" and "streaking" when watching fast-paced sports (football, etc) and playing video games. I have only noticed this on our TV once - it was while watching baseball on a Fox Sports Net channel (terrible feed from the station) and you could see a "tail" on the baseball when it was pitched. That is the only time. I try not to even watch that specific channel because the picture is so grainy - again, fault with the broadcasting station, not the TV. We have high def satellite, a Blu-Ray player, Wii (with component cables) and a PS2. We have never seen lag on the gaming systems. The Wii picture looks great, even without high def. Blu-Ray is unbelievable.

I also agree with Golf4food - order all of your cables from Monoprice and save a load of money and use it to buy a Blu-Ray player. If you like movies, this is the best thing ever invented for a 1080p TV.

Just my opinion from someone with a 60Hz TV. Good luck!

[3boymthr]

Just one thing I can think to add.

When looking for a TV make sure to get one with a "matte" screen as opposed to a "gloss" screen if you have a lot of light in the room. The gloss screens look better when the TV is off but have a lot of reflection issues if there is a lot of light coming into the room. This applies to both LCD and plasma. We ended up going with a slightly less expensive TV with a few less input jacks than we wanted because of the gloss finish on the TV we really wanted.

[Golf4food]

One more thing: make sure the TV has at least 2 or 3 HMDI input jacks at minimum, plus compontent cable jack (the one with five RCA looking jacks in a row) for your Wii. If you have a Bluray and a Cable/Satellite box you'll need at least one HDMI port for both of those so you'll need at least two at minimum, more if you can connect a PS3 or similar to it, etc.