Hey Guys,

I know most of you guys are very knowledgeable with computers so I though I would ask about Big Screens. I am buying a house and will need a new Big Screen and I have never purchased one before. I really dont know much about the newer tech with T.V. and want to do some homework before I go out and buy one. Can you guys give me some pointers of what I should look for in a new TV.

I have heard some bad things about Plasma, but dont know whats what. Please share what you all know on the topic.

I like that.


The bigger the better. Can't go wrong with projection sets.

I agree, but what type of bigger screens? From what I have read so far, it looks like the Rear Projection LCD's are the way to go. But wanted to hear some opinions of those that may have a better grasp on the newer TV's out there.

From my past investigations....DLP (samsung) are the best to buy. That is digital light processing. Plasma TV's are suppose to have a 5-10 yr life span, although from all my friends that have them, not one has had a problem as of yet.

Apparently the DLP have better clarity and have better life span. When I was in the process of buying a big screen, I went to all the stores and sat in their chairs and watched the screen. Make sure you get the surround sound.

I ended up buying a Sony 52 inch Wega...which has casters so it's easy to move. Although Samsung is the cream of the crop...I am extremely happy with my Sony and the great deal I got. Apparently you can purchase these for about $1400.00 now...which is a great price.

Here is a link on some things you should know, prior to purchasing your TV...Good luck

http://www.axiomaudio.com/10TVTips.html

Thanks for the info. I actually already read that article on the topic. From what I read in there, I thought it looks like the LCD is better than the DLP. It seems like when you look at in angle at the DLP, you lose some of the picture? Is that right? I will definately have to go look at all of them at the store, but thanks for the info.

It really is going to depend on what your budget and tastes are. Lets start with budget. How much are you looking to spend? Also, is space a factor? Is this going to be the "everyday" t.v. or one used mainly on movie night. If you are looking for purely a home theater setup you might even consider a front projector. There are tons of options but I would start with budget first, space second (what size is the room?), and preference third. I can get into detail about the differences in DLP and LCD if you like but lets start with budget and space. I myself own a plasma, rear projection LCD, and a home theater projector for a authentic "theater" feeling.

Junkie

I've had a 70" HDTV rear projection widescreen for a few years and I haven't had any problems with it at all. I believe it's Toshiba.

As far as projection tv's go, there are 3 basic technologies to consider. lcd, dlp, and jvc's d-ila. dlp reins supperior over lcd as at seems to get deeper blacks, i have a toshiba 52'' hm84 and have had it for about 3 years. the one downfall of a dlp is bulb life, of which it is roughly 12,000 hours, after which it must be replaced...now this is fine until your warranty runs out after 3-5 yrs depending on your plan, but after that the bulb unit is going to cost you anywhere from 2 to 400 $. The nice thing about being able to replace the bulb though is that atleast you dont have to scrap the tv like you would with a plasma. however the newer plasma tv's are boasting a 60,000 hour lifespan, and at say 12 hours a day(some peeps watch alot of tv ) that ends up being just under 4400 hours a year......so your plasma lifespan is roughly 15 years....

when i bought my dlp a couple years ago lifespan of plasma was only 30,000 hours which made me turn to the dlp, however i think if i was doing it today i would consider a plasma, after all in 15 years i'm sure there will be something far superior to the tv you buy today and you'll be quite ready for something new.

the other tv to consider are the new jvc's with d-ila technology which have a superior picture over the dlps, however i am unable to tell you the lifespan of these tv's as my research stopped there as they we're about 2,000 dollars more than the dlp's when i bought mine, which was over my budget. I'm sure they've come down in price quite a bit now and would definately be worth looking at if your thinking of a projection tv.

So... if it were me going out to buy a tv today, i gotta say i'd be seriously looking into a plasma tv...they take up way less room, get a great picture, and will last you atleast 15 years, at which time you should have enough saved up for whatever crazy technologically advanced tv they have out by then!

good luck shopping and never pay sticker price!!!

Ya know, the televisions have gotten so much better than they used to be. Bigger screens, clearer pics, even sound quality is far superior to what it was. The unfortunate side to all of this is the quality of the programming anymore is totally shit. I have the standard 180 channels and I only watch about 15 of them and half the time those 15 have crap on that no one wants to watch anyway. How many music stations on your TV does one person need? If it weren't for a growing DVD collection and a solid backup of VHS, and football season, I would put my set on the curb! And what is up with TNT and others running ONE movie like for a week straight, back to back. WTF? Lazy bastards can't change the reel once in a while? Yep, TV has definitely gone to Hell. Good thing I play alot of COD. LOL. Oh yeah, good luck with the shopping though!

I dont know that much about TVs except that at my dads house we have a 50 inch plasma mounted on the wall. The reason i posted was to just say, get a harmony remote, they may seem expensive but they are so awesome. Who needs to use 5 remotes to turn on surround sound (a must), dvd player (or other players, whatever floats your boat), and all that other good stuff, including the tv. The harmony is just 1 remote made to turn all of it on at once and if the is a problem, hit help! Well thats why i posted, just to get a harmony remote. Enjoy your new house and congrats on getting it!

Hey Junkie,

Thanks for the post. I think My budget is going to be between 2-3k. Maybe a little more if its a great deal/price on the unit. This will be my main television in my living room. We watch tv in our bedroom at night, but the weekends will be on this tv. The room is a decent sized room. I would say about 26 x 20. I would like to know more about the differences between LCD and DLP. I do know I dont want a problem seeing the tv from an angle like I have seen on some.

IF you are REALLY concerned with being able to see from an angle any rear projection system is going to likely fall beneath your standard. While they are much better than years past they still do have a pretty narrow field of view(w/o degredation). Obviously it's up to you how much of this is tolerable etc. That is one of the advantages Plasma has over projection. Another question I forgot is "What will be the video source?" Will it be HDTV? DVD's? Standard Def? For the sake of my carpal tunnel I will post a link about DLP vs LCD instead of trying to explain all of it. http://www.projectorcentral.com/lcd_dlp_update7.htm In my oppinion it boils down to LCD gives better color saturation while sacrificing contrast (the difference between black and BLACK). DLP has better contrast but sacrifices color saturation. You can read more in the article. Don't forget to spend about 1/3 of your budget on the sound. People tend to neglect this but it makes a world of difference. Perhaps as much or more than screen size. I havent looked at t.v.'s in about a year (since I bought my plasma) so I'm a little out of touch about what model is best at what price but I'd be happy to see what I can find.

Junkie

Well, I have Direct TV Satellite. I will also be watching dvd's on it. I already have Cerwin Vega Speakers (usd900 new) Pioneer Receiver (usd450 new) for my stereo and will be connecting the TV to this. I thought that the Rear Projection tv's were good for viewing at an angle?

LOL, mine actually looks sharper at a 45 or less degree angle. Kinda weird.

Rear projection sets have a limited viewing area. The optimum place is at eye level directly in front. Anywhere else and you begin to loose quality. The typical range is about 150 degrees. Like I said it is a matter of what is tolerable to you and by no means am I putting these down. You can get a quality set no doubt. One thing to consider when you go to see these sets is to see what it looks like with a lower quality signal i.e. cable or satellite. Most likely they are going to show you DVD's or HDTV. Of course that will look great. The true test is how does it look with everyday signals? I'll try to post more info later especially if you have more questions. No matter what YOU decide is best there will always be someone who claims "X" is better, cheaper, faster, can beat up your daddy etc. If you stick to a name brand and check out reviews etc online you probably arent going to buy a lemon. As with everything electronic you will find a better deal the day after you buy it. No doubt.

Junkie




This is exactly what I'm talking about. It's a range meaning it's good straight on but the farther to the side you get the worse it gets. It's always going to depend on what's tolerable to you.



Junkie

TV's SUCK!

we just went through this 4 months ago....

we wanted a flat screen tv.... so we started looking first the cost... under 2k.... we dont have alot of room (small apt) so the max we could go was low 50's or 40's if they had them. so... first the flat screens DLP all seemed to get pixlish and black wasnt black. then came another type that was flat, still black wasnt "black, and the pictures were not that great, lil blurry, lil distortion, lil quirks that would piss me off....

rear projection is DEAD, and so far I hear that there is 2 types (from best buy sales rep) eventually one will become dominant like beta and VHS. so we gave up looking for a good price and quality...

then I seen a philps 37 widescreen projection HD tv. $800 25% off

had a great picture, cheap, HD, flatscreen....
till they figure out what tv is going to be "the tv" ill watch it on this "out of date" b4 I bought it tv!

All I know is I watched the world cup on one of those projectors in High Def.


Dude....


DUDE.

Get that nothing!

one that projects it on the wall?

No, thats not what projection tv's are anymore DG.

actually there are projectors for the wall... I have a nice one that keeps me from going to the theater where you get hit with milkduds and have to listen to stupid ppl etc. If you have the space I HIGHLY recommend these. It's not ecomomical to use as your everyday t.v. (unless you are loaded) but it's awesome for watching movies, big games, etc. The bulbs for mine are @400-500 and last 2-3k hours. You should see PS2 on this thing. Racing games are awesome and football becomes life size (almost). As for the different technologies both are probably here to stay. I wouldnt worry about that aspect of it so much.

Junkie

Junkie