NEED Advice on Buying New TV - HDTV - Wide Screen?

[WDWorld2003]

We are looking into buying a TV for our basement and went into overload when we went out looking. We had no idea this would be soooo complicated!

It's hard to say how much this TV will be used.... our kids are teenagers and would like to have friends over and a place to themselves. Also, I'm sure my DH will watch football. I probably will not spend much time down there as it is a true basement - it's finished but I've never been fond of basements....

We were originally thinking of purchasing a 32" regular flat screen TV and were going to spend around $700-$800. Then we talked to a salesman who said we should go with a TV that was HDTV ready and widescreen....... This adds about $400-500 to the price. Then there's the new skinny DLP....

I'd appreciate any thoughts.... we are willing to spend $1,200-$1,400. We can hook up to an existing cable but to add a box to covert the signal to HD it would cost an additional $10.00/month. Thanks for any help!

 

[KM2004]

Sorry I can't help...but I can BUMP it for you

Personally, I have a 36 inch television without HDTV. I hear a ton of people rave about how great HDTV is and in hindsight, I wish I had paid a little more for HDTV.

I like high tech stuff though. If you don't feel it to be worth the price, then go with what you're comfortable with. Take a test run...really get the specs of what type of telelvision you're looking into and watch the television (stand infront of it for however long it takes you to like/dislike the television. Let the television, not the salesman, sell you). Make sure you ask what the general lifespan is on a specific brand of telelvision. Oh yeah, and size matters. The larger, the better (to me, anyway).

BUMP!

 

[ladydancer]

If your going to invest in a new TV you need to get HDTV. According to what I've heard all the programs on tv will be HD in a few years. Actually I think they were going to be by 2004 but are behind.

We bought one last year and paid $2,800. Little more than what I wanted to spend. If you don't you'll be having to buy another one in a few years. JMO

 

[DarrenSt]

Depending on the money you want to spend I would suggest the DLP from Pioneer or Samsung if not then look at an LCD from Sharp. Do not buy a plasma TV not worth the money they are throw away tv's. The gas in the plasma tv burns off every time you turn it on and use it you will get about 5-7 years max out of it and then you toss it out and buy a new TV.

 

[KM2004]

Originally posted by DarrenSt
Depending on the money you want to spend I would suggest the DLP from Pioneer or Samsung if not then look at an LCD from Sharp. Do not buy a plasma TV not worth the money they are throw away tv's. The gas in the plasma tv burns off every time you turn it on and use it you will get about 5-7 years max out of it and then you toss it out and buy a new TV.

I had no idea of the lifespan of plasma. Are the TV's you mentioned the same, quality wise, as plasma?

 

[DarrenSt]

Actually the DLP and LCD are as good if not better and if the bulb in a DLP burns out you buy a new bulb and the TV is as good as new. Also the LCD and DLP do not degrade from use like a plasma will. Even after ayear you will start to ntice with some plasma tv's the image quality is starting to degrade not good for the money you spend on them if you ask me. We love our DLP we got a 43" but I am looking at the 60 inch now LOL.

 

[vettechick99]

Definitely invest in HDTV. We have a Sony 52" that looks a lot like this 57". Its a widescreen hi-def with PIP. We finally got some hi-def channels and my fiance watches football on those. The picture is so amazing, it's like you are at the game. We paid just over $2,000 in Jan 2003, but this 57" is only $1,799. I've always been a Sony buyer (this was my second Sony big screen), the quality is outstanding. The TV will last you years and years.

His friends loved it so much, they each bought one.

 

[KM2004]

Originally posted by DarrenSt
Actually the DLP and LCD are as good if not better and if the bulb in a DLP burns out you buy a new bulb and the TV is as good as new. Also the LCD and DLP do not degrade from use like a plasma will. Even after ayear you will start to ntice with some plasma tv's the image quality is starting to degrade not good for the money you spend on them if you ask me. We love our DLP we got a 43" but I am looking at the 60 inch now LOL.

60 inches...sweet. Thanks for the advice!

 

[JKanownik]

We got a 32" Direct View Sanyo HDTV from Wal-Mart on clearance for $399. It was rated a Consumer Reports Best Buy at full retail ($700). The model number is DS32830H (note that WalMart.com replaced the "zero" with an "oh", so stores may have done the same). Our local store still has one display model, so I would call around and see if any around you still have one.

-Josh

 

[DarrenSt]

No problem Kevin also from knowing people inthe industry stay away from the Sony Grand Vega rear projection LCD TV they are having many problems with them and have had to repair almost every single one they sold at the best buy near my place so just a word of warning.

 

[RUDisney]

Originally posted by DarrenSt
Actually the DLP and LCD are as good if not better and if the bulb in a DLP burns out you buy a new bulb and the TV is as good as new. Also the LCD and DLP do not degrade from use like a plasma will. Even after ayear you will start to ntice with some plasma tv's the image quality is starting to degrade not good for the money you spend on them if you ask me. We love our DLP we got a 43" but I am looking at the 60 inch now LOL.

If you're going for the 60 inch set, may I recommend the Samsung? The picture quality is amazing on it. I bought the 61" Samsung for DH for our 10th anniversary this year. I have a 15" Sharp LCD in the kitchen and we have a 43" Hitachi DLP in the basement.

Best part about our newest TV is that even though it is so big, it weighs only 70 pounds. It's easy for the two of us to move, if necessary.

 

[jennyl772003]

We have the 52'' version vettechick99 has pictured. We love it. If you don't want to spend the $ right now for the HD service, you can just keep your regular service for now. It will still get the regular channels. But this way, you have the option of going to HD service in the future. More and more channels are programming in HD, and the difference is really astounding.

Just think sports, the Sopranos, and lots of sitcoms all in HD.

 

[DarrenSt]

We have the Samsung currently and would likeley get the Samsung again.

 

[MosMom]

If you are going to spend THAT much money on a TV like that, I would suggest putting it in an obscure part of the house and threatening people with their lives if they touch it!

TV's like that are reserved for only the finest quality films...like say...home movies.

 

[gallaj0]

We also just picked up a HDTV, a 55 (?) inch Samsung DLP. It's a great TV, but right now we're a little close to it, we are still remodeling the basement for it.

You can get a TV that's too big, or rather, to big for how close you sit to it. ALL tv sizes have a recommended distance you sit from it for best picture; too close and the picture will look bad to you, too far away and it will lose definition.

I recommend you check out some charts and reviews from cnet.com, they explain a lot of things very well, and have reviews from both professionals and owners.

 

[DarrenSt]

http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htforum/index.php

Here is a home theatre link you may enjoy looking at it deals with TV's good and bad.

 

[Growin'upDisney]

We have a Mitsubishi 65" widescreen. - YES IT's HUGE. It stands about 5' tall. But we love it!!

I am another fan of HDTV. DH and I love sports and nothing beats watching the game in hi-def. The extra money a month is really worth it if the TV is going to be used for hi-def programming like sports, or prime-time shows - most dramas (CSI, ER, Las Vages) are broadcast in HD. More and more progamming is being added all the time.

You want to make sure the set has an HD receiver built-in and is not just HD capable. I believe every TV set over 32" made from last year on is HD capable but those that are not built-in require a separate receiver.

 

[puffkin]

We have a Sony 42" Wide Screen HDTV and it is really nice. Good clear picture from all angles. Since you are putting the TV in your basement where there shouldn't be a lot of natural light I would go with a projection TV. You get a lot more screen for the money and movies and things broadcast in HDTV look great. The only way I wouldn't recommend a projection TV is if you have a lot of natural light (interferes with picture) or if you will have to sit real close to the TV or on an angle. You can get some really nice models in the 50-55" range for close to $1500.

 

[notyetretired]

Big screen HDTV's are nice, and for what it's worth I'm a DLP fan who just bought a Samsung HLP5085W (the one with the pedestal that they advertised during the olympics). But for $1200-1400 your expectations of a 32" CRT set are spot-on.

Believe it or not, a CRT still gives you as good or better picture than ANY of the new techs, including DLP, LCD, LCoS, or plasma. If it's a rear-projetion CRT then you may have maintenance issues, but the old stand-by direct-view picture tube is alive and well. It's a bit bigger and heavier than its counterparts, and once you get over about 40" the new techs gain an advantage, but in your price range and size range a direct-view CRT is your best bet.

The whole HDTV issue is also more complicated than it needs to be. Again, if your screen is under about 40", you won't get a big benefit from HDTV. But you WILL benefit from DTV. They are NOT the same thing. HDTV is High-Definition Television, and has resolutions (lines per screen) of either 720p or 1080i. DTV, or digital television, has resolution of 480p, which is the same as most DVD's today.

The "p" stands for progressive scan, which basically means the whole screen is updated at once, as opposed to "interlaced", where only half the screen (every other line) is updated on each pass. Current analog TV's are all 480i, where only 240 lines are updated on each pass. So with DTV (sometimes called ATSC, EDTV or 480p) there's really a big difference over analog (sometimes called SDTV, NTSC, or 480i).

Definitely get a digital-ready set that can process progressive-scan. You won't regret it, and even though it'll be a few years before ALL broadcast stations are digital, and even if you still get analog cable or satellite service, any DVD you watch will look 10 times better.

The other consideration is aspect ratio. Most TV's today are 4:3, which is what most folks are used to. Bigger screens, especially HDTV's, generally come in 16:9 wide-screen (think "letterbox"). If you watch lots of wide-screen movies, go wide-screen. If you watch mostly regular-formatted TV shows, then you'll be wasting 25% of your screen space by buying a wide-screen TV. So the choice there depends mainly on your viewing habits.

I hope you find some of this useful, even though I may have rambled a bit into overly technical mumbo-jumbo, and I also sincerely hope you enjoy your new TV. You should have no trouble finding an EDTV-capable 32-36" CRT in your price range.

 

[WDWorld2003]

Thanks everyone! Wow - great information!!!!!

... Another ? - do we need to have the tuner built in? We are confused on this, also. At Best Buy and Circuit City they suggested you did not need it and it does cost a bit more. Any advantages or disadvantages?