Ot: HD TV's

[JPagliai]

Regarding the DLP rainbow-effect mentioned earlier... you don't see that on the LED versions. If you decide to get the DLP, be sure to get the LED one. You won't be replacing bulbs every two years, it's more energy efficient, and you don't have the hotspots and rainbow-effect.

 

[mcliffy2]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12271594#post12271594 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Mojo Jojo
Phil - Anything under 50'' is not so HD. Most pictures under 50'' you will have a hard time deciding how good the picture is. No this does not come from my own estimate I subscribe to a lot of magazines and remember reading on a test done with different sizes a few months back.

Not sure where you get this? For plasmas, The 42" used to have a rectangular pixel so were not true HD in the 42 " size, but the difference was usually not detectable by the human eye at viewing distances over 8'. Which brings up a point on 1080p...depending on the size of tv, and your viewing distance, this difference may not be noticeable, so research before plunking down the extra 30-40% for a 1080p model.

 

[ppurcell]

Thanks for the great input. I've been by Tweeter a couple of times and looked at their HD TV's, unfortunately they keep the different types of set's in different parts of the store so it is hard to do a side by side comparison.

I saw the Pioneer Elite plasmas and while they are undeniably beautiful sets, they could make breakfast for me in the morning and wash my car and I'm still not getting a $4,000 TV. My budget is $1,500 and I'd like it if that included the stand and cables. While I really do wish to get a good set, I'm not caught up with the idea that I have to have the best set. I'll be happy if I get one that has good viewing characteristics without any seriously annoying behaviors (rainbow, screendoor, etc).

After I posted last night, I did find the 56" Samsung (which does have the LED light engine) on-line for $1,300 so I'm going to head over to BB later and check their inventory for close-outs and see if I can find one to look at.

I figure that once I get it home, I'm not going to be doing side-by-side comparisons with other TV's that cost four times as much and a good quality set will be just fine.

 

[Ryan009]

Definetly think twice about the DLP - but for a different reason than what's been mentioned.

The picture quality on DLP's can be very good. Is LCD, and especially high-end Plasma better? Sure they are, but they are also alot more money and unless you're really into picture quality, the DLP would probably be fine.

But, from someone who has or had DLP, LCD, and Plasma, I would never touch DLP again. All DLP sets, including the new LED ones, still use a color wheel to create the picture. This is a spinning wheel that will be on whenever the TV is on. As the bearings on these wheels begin to wear, they start to produce a high pitch whine. Sure it won't happen at first, but as time goes on, this will become more and more annoying.

Stay with the LCD or Plasma if you can - no moving parts!

 

[JPagliai]

Ah... go for the gusto! Get the 61"!

 

[ppurcell]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12273198#post12273198 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Ryan009
Definetly think twice about the DLP - but for a different reason than what's been mentioned.

But, from someone who has or had DLP, LCD, and Plasma, I would never touch DLP again. All DLP sets, including the new LED ones, still use a color wheel to create the picture. This is a spinning wheel that will be on whenever the TV is on. As the bearings on these wheels begin to wear, they start to produce a high pitch whine. Sure it won't happen at first, but as time goes on, this will become more and more annoying.

I would assume that the color wheel would be a serviceable part. I'd think that a couple of hundred dollars to replace worn bearings on a moving part in four or five years would be ok.

 

[pk1]

if your ever near lombard stop by, I'll show you a few minutes of Equator:Reefs of Riches on my panasonic 50 plasma from Costco. It has a beautiful picture.

 

[Toddrtrex]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12273321#post12273321 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by pk1
if your ever near lombard stop by, I'll show you a few minutes of Equator:Reefs of Riches on my panasonic 50 plasma from Costco. It has a beautiful picture.

And then you can bring it over to my place and can watch it on an LCD and see which you prefer.

 

[Ryan009]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12273275#post12273275 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ppurcell
I would assume that the color wheel would be a serviceable part. I'd think that a couple of hundred dollars to replace worn bearings on a moving part in four or five years would be ok.

Mine was about $300 bucks after 3 years. Major cost? No, but especially if TV only cost about $1200 in the first place, putting 25% of the purchase price back into a 3 year old TV can smart a little.

It's just an FYI though, the picture is very nice and they do meet a good price point.

 

[ppurcell]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12273445#post12273445 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Ryan009
Mine was about $300 bucks after 3 years. Major cost? No, but especially if TV only cost about $1200 in the first place, putting 25% of the purchase price back into a 3 year old TV can smart a little.

It's just an FYI though, the picture is very nice and they do meet a good price point.

I agree that paying 25% of the original purchase price after a few years does stink, but not as much as paying $1,000-$3,000 more up front so I can avoid paying $300 in a few years.

 

[drparker]

"After I posted last night, I did find the 56" Samsung (which does have the LED light engine) on-line for $1,300 so I'm going to head over to BB later and check their inventory for close-outs and see if I can find one to look at. "

I've always been able to get a better deal at a local smaller dealer than a big chain. If you don't mind the drive try ABT Electronics.

Make sure you understand the manufactures warranty around dead and hot pixels and then tie this with the dealers return policy. Push anything you get hard the first week to see if it develops any issues.

Just like reef tanks go as big as you can afford. What seems huge to begin with gets smaller quickly.

 

[Volcano1]

I got a 50" pioneer plasma last year. Did alot of research on the net and viewing in stores. The AVS forum is a good resource and the have sponsers who do have realy good prices and excellent customer service.
That being said I choose plasma as my choice for the best picture.
IMO picture quality was
1. Pioneer elite
2. pioneer kuro lineup
3. panasonic
4. samsung
Didn't go any further down the line than that.
I did end up with a 720 p set, and it looked better than other manufactures 1080 p set's.
If you choose 2,3,4 I think you would be happy.They may extend your budget a little.HTH

 

[JPagliai]

The Samsung DLP/LED doesn't have a colorwheel or DLP bulbs. It uses red/green/blue LED lights in a large panel. I got mine from Circuit City back in November. I don't usually get the extended warranty, but I did this time only because it covered a single replacement of the LED panel. I would imagine that if that thing ever needed to be replaced, it would be very expensive.

 

[SlowCobra]

I think you would be more than happy with a 720p TV. Comparing TV's on Sunday I determined that the best bang for the buck was the LG 50" plasma $1399 at Best Buy. It also comes with free installation/setup should you choose that. If not well it still gets sold that way so the TV price is actually $1199 and if nothing else you save on tax.

I have spent weeks looking at/comparing different LCD/Plasma TV's and I honestly can not justify the $1000-3000+ price difference for a 1080p. If you are a Blue Ray disc fanatic and absolutely must see the most minute of details then you want a 1080p. If you can live without seeing the most detailed blackhead(s) on your favorite actor/actresses face, 720p will be more than sufficient to meet your needs.

 

[hebygb]

I have a 52" Toshiba rear projection, a Fujitsu 42" plasma, and a Samsung LCD. The projector has become my sons game box... The plasma is in the kitchen, the LCD is in the bedroom. The plasma was great... yes was... it has died. I will be replacing it with an LCD for 2 reasons. 1. weight.... the plasma was like hanging a Honda Civic on the wall. 2. The fact that it is in the kitchen means semi casual viewing... news, weather, talk shows, sports... I will go for the Vizio at Costco, unless I can find an amazing deal on another Samsung.

 

[ppurcell]

I went to Best Buy during lunch and looked at the 56" Samsung DLP. The resolution and color intensity are not quite as sharp and bright as the LCD panels, but it does have a very nice picture. I compared the over the air 720 signal verses a BluRay DVD and found both to be acceptable. Obviously, the $4,000 TV looks quite a bit nicer than the $1,300 TV, but the Samsung is very nice especially compared to my 12 year old 35" Mitsubishi tube TV.

I'll make a trip over to Costco later and see if I can find a deal on the Vizio that can trump the $1,300 Samsung DLP.

 

[glassbox-design]

Phil,

Look into Amazon...free white glove shipping and no tax. With the money we saved we went with a nicer model.

 

[JPagliai]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12275853#post12275853 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ppurcell
I went to Best Buy during lunch and looked at the 56" Samsung DLP. The resolution and color intensity are not quite as sharp and bright as the LCD panels, but it does have a very nice picture. I compared the over the air 720 signal verses a BluRay DVD and found both to be acceptable. Obviously, the $4,000 TV looks quite a bit nicer than the $1,300 TV, but the Samsung is very nice especially compared to my 12 year old 35" Mitsubishi tube TV.

I'll make a trip over to Costco later and see if I can find a deal on the Vizio that can trump the $1,300 Samsung DLP.

No matter what you get, it's going to look better at home than it does in the store. The signals in the stores are split so many times to hook up all those TVs that it really affects the image quality.

 

[adamjr]

I'd avoid LG products like the plague unless you are buying a third party warranty. They are extremely rigid in their warranty policy.

Mom had an LG dryer. Warranty was to expire in a week. It stopped heating. She called LG about warranty service. They gave her a repair center number to call. The repair center took her information and made an appointment to come out. They quoted her a price. She said "It's under warranty, I made the appointment through LG.

LG said "sorry your warranty is expired."

Mom said "I made an appointment with you prior to the warranty expiring."

LG replied "Sorry, the service call occurred after the expiration of the warranty."

I will remind you all, ONE DAY after the warranty expired. And the appointment was made prior to the expiration. She went up three levels and wrote a letter to the US corporate office. Received a letter back from corporate stating "thanks for being a valued LG customer. Unfortuantely your machine was serviced following the expiration of your warranty. We hope you will find satisfying products from LG in the future."

I'll never buy an LG product and I'll tell anyone considering one about my mothers experience.

 

[SlowCobra]

Many people view purchasing the extended warranty from Best Buy or other Electronics stores as throwing your money away. To me it is like auto insurance, sure sucks to keep paying on it and never get a return on that "investment". However it sure is nice to have when something does go wrong.