Any advice please on buying a projection TV

[sammi]

We're seriously considering the purchase of a projection television (particularily a Panasonic).

Have any of you DIS'ers got one and if so. any advice on what to look for,which brand to buy, how big etc? We have looked at the newer "wide screen" TV's but we really don't care for them.

Thanks in advance for any advice you can share!

 

[Dan Murphy]

We purchased a Sony XBR 53" rear projection a few years ago. I was in the process of redoing the all the A/V equipment and settled on Sony as the brand of choice for us. Redid it all....tv, DVD, VCR, receiver/tuner, satellite, even casette tape. Only non Sony was Bose, for the sound system. Sony has a great name, great product, never heard anyone who really had a problem of consequence with Sony, we liked the features and by staying within a single brand, the 'logic of design' concepts were similar throughout. Panasonic certainly is a good brand also.

This link may help some.

http://www.howstuffworks.com/projection-tv.htm

 

[dizneenut]

We bought a 53" Sony rear projection TV 2 years ago. Like Dan, my DH switched everything to Sony. (We also have Bose speakers, Dan! LOL My DH said you are a genius! )

 

[sammi]

Great information Dan and dizneenut! Thanks so much for your help and Dan I'm heading over to that site right now!

Sony seems like the TV of choice so far!

Oops one more question please:Is it safe to play video games such as X-Box games on this type of TV? I've heard varying reports on this.

 

[dizneenut]

We have hooked up the kids Game Cube to the big TV and have never had any problems.

 

[Tina]

You may want to try this site for specific info:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/

There is a board there specifically for rear projection tvs. Good luck.

 

[sammi]

I would think the X-box would be similar to the Game Cube too. Thanks for helping me out dizneenut.

Tina I'm off to that message board.......great site. Thanks so much.

 

[RUDisney]

We have a 46" RCA rear projection that we bought about 7-8 years ago. It is still working great. Last year, we bout a 43" Hitachi wide screen for the basement. We love the wide screen for playing DVDs, but regular TV can be somewhat distorted if the transmission of the program is not sent in widescreen format. You get used to it, though.

My advice is: buy the biggest you can afford to buy. When we got the first big TV, I thought it was too big... now it's not big enough. I wanted a 55", but my DH thought it was too big for the space. I still think he was wrong.

We have a TEAC surround sound in the family room with the RCA TV and an Onkyo in the basement. The Bose speakers are outside for use with the hot tub.

 

[Dan Murphy]

A size calculator

 

[sammi]

We've also seen some pretty good prices for the RCA tv's too.And yes I would like a huge TV as it would go in our family room which is about 27'x22' so the room is there for a big one.

Dan I've bookmarked that site and will get DH to take a look tonight............thanks friends!

 

[Towncrier]

If you end up with a rear projection set that has picture tubes and if you are planning to keep the set for any length of time, I would suggest that you seriously consider purchasing a service contract for the set. All it takes is a single service call to make the plan pay for itself. I have owned two Pioneer projection sets. The first one was damaged in a thunderstorm. It cost hundreds to repair. When the red picture tube went out, I threw the set away. It was going to cost close to $500 to replace a single picture tube, and if the red one was dead, chances are that green and blue were not long for this world. My 2nd set was a floor model, so Best Buy threw in the first 3 year service contract. Good thing too, because it needed to be serviced a couple of times. Both were expensive repairs that were completely covered. When the contract expired, I re-upped for another 3 years (about $10 per month). It turns out that one of the repairs done in the first 3 years was slightly botched and resulted in yet another round of repairs on the set. I am currently waiting for a convergence board for the set after having the high voltage section replaced.

So in summary, a projection TV can be an expensive beast to own, and having a service contract can in many cases lessen that burden.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[Tina]

Great link, Dan. DH and I have been contemplating what size screen to buy for our to-be-built media room in the basement. I want the Sony 65" and he thinks its too big. Now I can't wait to show him your link!! It looks like I'll be winning this battle.

 

[Carl]

You should at least look at the new HD sets. I mean look at one which is hooked up and working in HD. You will be amazed at the difference in HD from regular TV. Then, after you have looked at it, decide if you still want the old type Big Screen. The problem is that these TVs last a long time, and you may find yourself wondering in a few years why you don't have an HD TV and yet the one you have is going to last many more years. We have a 55" HD TV. It is the 16X9 (widscreen format) as all HD programs are broadcast in that format. It is true that viewing a non widescreen picture on it is not the best.

 

[Kelsie]

Make sure you ask the question about your video game. Some games can burn images into your screen on rear projection TV's.

We love ours

 

[sammi]

Wow great help here............thanks kindly. You've all given me some great tips.

Carl I'm not too keen on the wide screen sets.......actually DH and I hate when you rent a DVD and it's wide screen. We actually fell for the big screen in Cypress Pointe Resort, where we stay when at WDW as they have a huge 51 inch screen and it really makes you feel like you're "right there".

Kelsie,yes we will ask for sure about the burning from video games.

Towncrier that was another thing we were thinking about..........does everyone else think that the extended warranty is a good thing to purchase. I know we've bought extended warranties on most of our electronics, including our digital camera and PC. I wonder what the charge will be for something like that seeing it's so expensive to begin with?

Boy.... lots of things to think about!

 

[Towncrier]

Generally, I think that extended warrenties are a major ripoff. Most electronics are disposible and are obsolete by the time that they break. However, a projection set is a big investment and (as I stated earlier) deserves extended protection.

In light of my recent automobile problems, I'm beginning to think that extended automobile warrenties aren't a bad idea either (since cars aren't disposible either).

 

[Muushka]

Have you considered waiting for a plasma TV to come down in price??

I was whinning about our itty-bitty 26" TV that is 24 feet away from the couch (can you imagine????). I did some research on TVs, starting with the projection TVs. What I found out was that the plasma is coming down in price (finally) and would be a lot nicer (being only 3" thin instead of 3' thick) than the projection. At the time (about 6 weeks ago) you could get a 42" Hitachi for $4200.00.

Since then, Gateway has come out with a low end one (42") for $3000. They will all probably come down more in price pretty soon.

Plasma TVs have an awesome picture (but they are wide screen).