Some friends want to upgrade and asked me for advise.
It turns out I don't know much about TV's anymore, so i need some help.
Their email:
"I'm not sure. I've been carrying around a little slip of paper from measurements I took of our the TV opening on our cabinet last year: The diagonal measurements is 4'. It's 3'2" wide by 2' 6 high. Currently we have a TV that is 27" at the diagonal. So when I look in the paper and compare prices, I don't even know what size I'm looking for. I was going to take my little piece of paper and visit some stores but haven't yet. Based on what I just told you, what is the biggest screen I should try for to fit the alloted space?
I'm thinking we want HD. We've been cautioned about not going plasma. So any guidance you could give would be helpful.
I don't want to have to take out a loan (so to speak--) but also would like a good TV that would take us into retirement! So, your thoughts? "
Price range would help.
Who uses a cabinet anymore? Hang the dang flat screen on the wall and park a bike in the extra floorspace.
They do :)
Id say $1500 or less with bias toward less ;D
whats your viewing distance and HD source?
I think they got the Dish network, and I'd say about 10-12 feet. They're also big on Net Flix so DVD would be the other source
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8804109&type=product&id=1206141944402 (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8804109&type=product&id=1206141944402)
Not sure if it will fit, but my parents just got the 32 inch version, and it looks tits.
edit: also note, with best buy you can haggle
we got our 37 insigina for $550 otd it was listed at $620 pre tax.
Well, I had to find out, all about, what all these new connections do. (they largely eliminate the need for a tuner to connect all the components) But I would recommend getting a set with 2 or more HDMI connections. One cable does Digital sound & Video. See what kind of DVD player & whatever else they have to make sure it's all going to work. It seemed complicated to me at first but it's not that bad.
You have quite a bit to choose from with a $1500 budget. A couple of buddies of mine have a 46" and a 50" Samsung DLP tv (both in 1080p) that look pretty friggin brilliant. I think the 46" ended up being around 13 or 14 hundred bucks, but don't know how much the 50 was (this was a few years ago as well. I don't know what the pricing on them is now). Like I said, the pic on the DLP was really nice but it had a horrible viewing angle, so if you're going to have any seating off at a weird angle, you'll probably want to go with LCD. Size is gonna be a factor too. I think DLP tvs only go down to 40" or so, no smaller. It sounds like "your friend" (if that is his real name) has around a 48" diagonal aperture in which to put the tv, but that size also varies a bit per manufacturer. The measurement on a TV is supposed to be the diagonal size of the viewing portion, but that doesn't take into account the bevels or the TV stand (i.e.- take a tape measure to the store with you). If they're looking at a smaller tv (32" +) an LCD would probably fit quite well but because of the wide screen design you'll have to stick with a 40" or less. Break out that tape and git to measurin!
BTW - you don't want to get me started on which brand to buy.
Don't forget the set has to fit in the cabinet. . .
I forgot to add that COSTCO has a really good return policy, so you might want to take a gander in there.
Get a 720 Plasma
1080 is worthless considering all HD feeds are in 720 format
the best thing to do is for them to know the actual measurements for the cabinet. 27 diagonal on a "traditional" tv does not translate to roughly the same dimensions for a flat screen that may measure 27 in diagonally. the tv length and width proportions are different.
Also, you/he is not taking into account the outer dimensions of the tv. the screen could be 27 in for 2 flat screen tv but the outside borders could be different so that overall, one tv is longer than the other.
With the constraints you give, I think the best thing for your friend to do is find out the maximum length/measure (which he has done) of his cabinet and go to best buy or what ever equivalent and measure up the outside dimensions to determine rather or not the tv would fit.
In your friends case, I dont think it is so much the quality of the tv but rather the tv would fit inside the cabinet.
EDIT: make sure that he knows in Feb, the signal changes so tell him to go with an lcd. The bad thing about the new TV's and his old cabinet is that you get a "smaller" .
tell them to hold off till Monday...the fed will be offering up subprime loans on first time HiDef tv buyers
[laugh]
Im waiting till black friday.
13.3inch laptop and a 32/37inch LCD HDTV!!!!!!!!!
There is nothing wrong with Plasma, they have one of the best pictures on the market if you stick with the bigger brands names such as Panasonic or Pioneer.
But the thing to allow with putting any TV in a cabinet, you have to allow room for cooling air to flow into and out of the cabinet, both LCD and Plasma can generate some serious heat when they are running (don't fall for salesman bullshit when they say LCD runs cooler than Plasma's, They can generate a lot of heat, put your hand behind them and feel the heat rising off the top of the panels/cooling vents/cooling fans)
even in a cooler climate, lock a flat panel in a cabinet with very little air flow, and it will die very quickly (and no warranty coverage because of over heating)
You said 3'2" wide or 38", based on your measurements you will probably be able to fit a 37" LCD which are around 36" wide. anything bigger won't fit. smaller and you'll be seeing too much space around it.
i always like to shop www.tigerdirect.com because they have such a wide variety from lowend to highend manufacturers. even if you don't buy from them, they have tons of specs to included the actual width not just diagonal screen size.
as far as which to buy. this is how i rate factors for a new tv.
1. LCD vs Plasma - plasma doesn't handle moving well, tends to burn in with repeated viewing of one channel (ever seen a plasma with CNN scrolls burned in) but has better black and slightly better pictures. LCD is my choice, i move a lot, i don't watch too much tv but the kids play games and tend to stay on one screen alot. plus if you upgrade, it can be a killer computer moniter later [thumbsup]
2. Resolution - 1080p vs 1080i. go with 1080p because you will always kick yourself when you buy that blu-ray player and don't have the best resolution (even if you don't have plans for the player now, you will eventually get one when they come down to 100 bucks)
3. Contrast Ratio - important for what room you are placing the tv. more light in the room the higher ratio you want to ensure your screen colors don't wash out. this is where plasma has an advantage.
4. response time - really an issue with computer/game playing, but if too slow can produce a mild ghosting on fast action movies.
5. Connections - not so important anymore since most systems have at least one HMDI input which from what i think i know, is the only way to get true 1080p viewing
6. price - i know i know should be higher, but in reality you are on a ducati board, we all have expensive tastes.
7. design - do they have black components for audio/dvd or silver faces. you want something that doesn't clash with your stuff. if in a cabinet think about black since the black frame will tend to disappear that way.
8. name brand - yes an issue sometimes but there are only about 5 manufacturers of LCD screens, everyone else's are rebranded.
9. warranty - find out the manufacturers warranty on defective/stuck pixels. a cheaper manufacturer will want more bad pixels before they refund/replace. surprisingly HP screwed me over on this with my last computer display. a BRIGHT green pixel right in the middle of the screen [bang] and they won't do crap til i have 5.
sorry so long. video is my field and i get to shop with your tax payer money, so i make informed decisions.
caveat: anyone that disagrees with my thoughts please be nice, and if i made a mistake realize i haven't ridden my bike in 3 weeks and i'm stressssssed [bang]
Quote from: MendoDave on September 18, 2008, 02:31:28 PM
I forgot to add that COSTCO has a really good return policy, so you might want to take a gander in there.
policy changed two years ago.
I have a Vizio VX42L LCD 1080p HDMI blah blah blah that we really enjoy.
Unfortunately, it measures 40 1/2 x 29 1/2, so 2 1/2" too big for their console. However, I believe that they also make a 40" model, which should fit fine.
most 40" won't work but this one may since it has the small frame
as it says though it's designed for 37" LCD spacing.
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3478788&csid=ITD&body=MAIN#detailspecs
^
That doesn't look half bad. Link emailed, thanks!
glad i could help.
Okay, love my plasma and love Costco (God bless them!) People warn you off about plasmas because they have a limited life span, but frankly your parents will get bored with it before they ever use it to the point that they have to get a new one. The quality is freakin' amazing and the price points have come way down.
plasmas are great looking tv's but you have to be careful what else you use them for. and if they like to watch a static station like cnn with the news crawl on the bottom, plasmas are not so great. trust me i am not banging on plasma. as a professional, if i were to have an unlimited budget, i would go with the huge pioneer 60" plasmas that are like 6 grand. but i would baby them unless i could replace them often. i move a lot and lcd are more rugged and lcd dont get burnin like plasma.
Lets get the facts straight with Plasma, I have worked in the Television Industry for 6 years. (I have only just recently moved to run the photo lab in the same store, but I still get dragged down to sell TV's every now and then)
And I am a qualified Tech, I used to repair this stuff for a living.
* Burn in.
On new Generation panels now is very difficult to do (read: almost impossible for the average home user) to burn in a panel you would have to leave a static high, contrast image on a new generation panel for days before hurting them.
Older generation panels it was very easy because of the higher voltages, different gas and phosphor mix, and the panels higher operating Temps. Most people see burn in on old panels in displays, TV stations that have done thousands of hours of work and are old generation panels and assume they are all like that.
I use a playstation 3 for Movies/games and Cable TV on my older plasma (2 Generation old Panasonic), never seen a mark, I've dozed off for hours and left a still image on the screen for hours at a time, still no problems.
So what this means that for the home user, Burn in is really not worth worrying about, it is a non issue.
*Longevity
Plasma's for the last 4 to 5 years are rated for 60000 hours plus of life, The new Panasonics are rated for a staggering 100000 hours of life!!, the average LCD back light is rated for 60000 hours, A tube TV is rated for 30000 hours and a CRT rear Projection TV is rated for 15000 hours, but lets put that into perspective..
Use your TV for 8 hours a day every day of the TV's life
15000 hours = 5 years
30000 hours = 10 years
60000 hours = 20 years
100000 hours = 34 years
So what does this mean for the home user, Well, your TV might have to be buried with you when you check out!
I have panels I placed in a local hotel's Reception area 3 years ago, they run 24 hours a day (That means over 26000 hours non stop!!) and they still look very good, no burn in, and a nice clean bright picture.
*Contrast Ratio
It is a useless ratio, companies use different ways to measure it, and quite a few fudge the figures to get the figures they want, I advise customers to ignore it. Panasonic admitted this year they marked there new plasma's with the Million to one ratio just to piss off the Koreans (LG/Samsung) who always claim stupid ratio's on very average panels.
*Response time
Another useless figure, companies use all sorts of tricks to claim some amazing speed, if you avoid the no name brands they now are all pretty good.
Point of Interest, Plasma is much faster than the fastest LCD, so if you love your sport, you will get less motion blur on a Plasma.
LCD is measured in Milliseconds response time, Plasma is Tenths of a millisecond.
There is a lot of Misinformation on Plasma's and most of it comes from the early lives of plasma's, and yes I love plasma's but I do own a couple of LCD's, but for the main room, it's plasma all the way. LCD has it's place, but for Sport Movies and watching TV, Plasma is still the superior picture.
Sorry Raux, not trying to bash your information buddy, it's just your information is now a little outdated. :)
no really thanks for the updates. and yes it's been about 3 years since i've researched purchases for those categories.
like i said if i had a choice, i'd get the pioneer plasmas. but i don't have 6 grand for the Elite 60" [thumbsup]
Not that I'm an expert or even really know what I'm talking about, but I have a 42" Sony Bravia LCD and it's awesome. Great picture and it's the perfect size. Also, remember that it's easy to get frustrated when you are in the store and trying to compare the picture quality of 30 different TV's all next to each other. Once you pick one and get it home you'll think it's amazing.
+1 on the HDMI cable, without it there's no use even watching anything in HD
I just got a Sony KDL32XBR:
http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10551&storeId=10151&langId=-1&productId=8198552921665378963
The cabinet that it is in is 33" x 24" (inside dimensons.) Paid under $1k.
Very happy with it.
Nice TV! [thumbsup]