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Flat Screen School me !

5K views 51 replies 21 participants last post by  2manymustangs 
#1 ·
I'm Pondering a Flat screen TV purchase and maybe take advantage of post xmas/pre Super bowl prices , I have an Internet Capable Sony Blue ray player and Older Sony Surround sound already my Family room is small and we set about 8 feet from the 36" analog Panasonic now which is pretty confortable Bujet is a concern but I also want "bang for buck" too !
 
#2 ·
After doing all of my studying on new tv's I ended up getting a Samsung 55". I went with a LED/LCD type screen. My room light level changes a lot and it was the best thing for me. Normally priced on line at 2400 Got it on sale for 1600.
 
#7 ·
Thanks so far trying to narrow a bit soooo ... LCD LED or Plasma ??? anyone
There is a LED, a LCD and LED/LCD. LED is just that. LCD is just that. LED/LCD has both in one. Works better in different lighting conditions. If I had a in home theater with controlled lighting and could keep it dark I would go Plasma.
 
#6 · (Edited)
I have had several samsung tvs, and many others including sony, i love the samsungs, i picked up a new 3d plasma for 599 on sale. Here is a link to best buy, the other thing to consider is do you want 3d since not all of them will do that, this one does for cheap!

I" target="_blank">Samsung - 51" Class / Plasma / 720p / 600Hz / 3D/ HDTV - PN51D490A1

I have several 1080 and 720 and im sure even with hd directv on a really good program you couldnt tell any difference ( I have tuned each of them with a dvd the video guys use on big productions, and i cant tell any difference between them )
I have led's as well i like them better but not enough to spend the extra, these plasma's have a bright clear picture and are killer for the price! just dont lay them down flat for more than a few minutes it will ruin them..

you might take a look at these if you go down to a store, but watch they have been on sale a lot for 600-700 each for the 51 and they have specials were they come with 4 3d glasses worth 120 as well..
 
#9 ·
We have a 55 plasma in family room & 32 led in bed room I think the led has a better picture both rooms have equal lighting. I did Costco. Purchased my moms & mother inlaws Walmart very good bang for the buck!

PS: the plasma puts off some heat!
 
#12 ·
I have a Samsung Plasma in a very bright room (8 windows and full sun in the morning). Mine has some sort of anti glare on the screen and I never need to close the blinds. I'm very happy with it. I just really like the Plasma for action movies and sports.
 
#14 ·
Rhonda and I spent a few hours yesterday in Best Buy, Sears and Costco , alls the BB folks wanted to do was switch me from Dish to direct and lost site of the fact I was there to look at TV's , Must say the Samsungs and Vizios were impressive (LEDs) Was laughing last nite cause my 10 year old Old school JVC 36" was actually looking bad by comparison to all we looked at, plus it takes a crane to lift it ! :) Still Unsure anyhow still on the hunt , everyone here is great when it comes to matter like this , places we went yesterday felt like a Frikken Used car lot Tom
 
#15 ·
Based on price alone, I havent found a better deal than Costco...

My personal fave is the LG and Samsung TVs, their picture is incredible... :))THumbsUp

Based on price I went with a Sony Brava 1080P LCD 60 Hz 52" and it has been flawless... These things generate ALOT of heat for sure...

I also have a 42" visio in my bedroom and both are about three years old with no issues with ALOT of use...
 
#18 ·
I am Sony fan and picked up a Sony bravia 3d led/LCD 55' 1080p 240hz TV last year and it has a awesome pic. Most TVs I have seen are only 120hz. I bought my TV at Costco for $1800. I also bought the hole 3d/blueray player with surround sound system. If I was to do it again all 120hz TV would not get a secound look.
 
#20 ·
Hey Tom,
I just went through the same thing as you myself and Best Buy was useless information wise but they are good on price, I ended up getting mine at a Pauls TV out here in So Cal for a singing price, same price was available at Costco. I found the plasma/lcd/led argument is one of preference. I prefer plasmas myself for these reasons:

1. 600 hz refresh rate, better for action movies and sports events
2. Contrast ration is quite a lot higher than lcd's can get
3. The blacks are blacker
4. Price

Reasons to get an LCD:

1. Use less power
2. Less worry of burning an image on screen
3. Better for varying light conditions and less glare

LED's"
1. They do look incredible when playing a blu ray but I have found when they are playing older dvd's or older tv programming the "motion" on the screen can look very odd and the colors make it almost look like a live recording, they are also way out of my price range so never considered it.

I ended up with the Panasonic Viera 1080p 600hz GT model, their top of the line, retail 1399 paid 700. Has a filter to reduce glare and a THX panel. It just looked nicer in comparison to other models. Sorry for being long winded but my 2 cents from my research.
-Tom
 
#23 ·
In regards to the glare, I have a six foot long window in the side of the room that start about three feet in front of the tv, another 3 feet to the side. I do get a bit of a glare sometimes but its not as bad as many other plasmas I have seen. This "GT" model has some fancy built in antiglare doo dad in the screen that is not in the lower two models of the same Panasonic Viera. From my local bar that has too many tvs and no 3 are the same, I can say that the LCD's do have the advantage in the antiglare category, but from my limited experience mine does quite a bit better in comparison. Since of course no windows are around in the stores to duplicate this problem, what I would do is hold a smart phone up in front of you with the display on and see how much it reflects off of the tv.
-Tom
 
#24 ·
In an effort to take this thread sideways :rolleyes: , IF you or anyone you know is junking a rear projection big screen and you can get your hands on the fresnel lense, you will have the most ultimate camping fire starter/water heater you have ever seen... My buddy gave me one to tinker around with...

Even up here in the frozen north, with a dry piece of pine 2x4 the wood almost spontaniously combusts when you get the focus of the sun just right on the wood, I cant even imagine what it will do in summer with a more direct sunlight... :))THumbsUp
 
#25 ·
Interesting....every tv I own is a pos dinosaur. I have one rear projection sony. And I have a somewhat new sony(model 5200 i think) And I was told it was/is a combo of rear projection and lcd.....the f'n bulb is about 300 bucks and it goes out once a year. In case I decide to play mcgyver....which tv do I sacrifice? :happy:
 
#28 · (Edited)
I have been watching this thread and am interested as wish best option for a 32" or 37" for a Monitor and would appreciate any and all opinions and brands.

Have a Super 2012.:))THumbsUp
Get a TV, as big as your budget will allow... You wont regret... :D

Run an HD antenna/coax in so you can watch the old movies or weather (when you get tired of reading on here) on all of the new digital channels that SOOOO MANY folks don't know about... :thumb:

Samsung/LG if your going smaller for a monitor, anything, even the cheapest 720's out there for a puter monitor are a quantum leap ahead of where we were 5-7 yrs ago... As soon as you start cruising the TVs at Costco you will see what we are talking about on the Samsung/LGs
 
#33 ·
OK so I got this 46 "bad boy up and running BUT the DVD's and Bluerays look killer so does streaming TV from my DSL , regular Dish Net Satellite TV ,not so much.... some tv eg commercials are really good , but peoples faces for example look fuzzy , at this point I'm chalking it up to NOT currently having an HD reciever? Josh and I have been researching this and finding this may be a common complainT ? anyone ?
 
#34 ·
Yep hd would make a huge difference, plus dish doesnt have many hd channels, Directv is much much better..dish says they have more but most are repeats or are channels that have one show on a month..my parents have dish:duh: I would get a good powered digital antenna, i get way better picture on the local channels off antenna than dish
 
#35 ·
Hey Tom,
Yeah, an HD receiver will make a huge difference. I am not overly techie but I know that made a huge difference on my end, I think the problem occurs with stuff looking fuzzy and such because the box is trying to convert the image to an HD tv when its an old style signal. The other main thing I swear by is everything going through HDMI cables. Component cables (the red green and blue) cannot do 1080p, i think only 720i so blu ray and HD television not as good as they can be. At least with HDMI cables the cheap ones are exactly the same picture quality as expensive ones. Its a digital signal so it either gets there or doesn't. Component cables benefit from being top quality since they conduct the signal like speaker wires where the materials, insulation, etc make a difference. So to sum up again, get an HD box, and make sure that, your bluray/dvd, are connected with the HDMI cables and you will get the best picture possible.
-Tom
 
#38 ·
I want to get a 32" Flat Screen for a PC Monitor. Good/ Bad. idea? Led/Plasma? Thanks in advance.
My son has his laptop hooked up to our 52" TV all the time to watch his youtube work, movies, netflicks and playing around online with his friends when they are visiting, using a wireless mouse... It looks great...
 
#50 · (Edited)
Thanks to that 2mm fella....now I need a new tv. :)grn Would cosco be a decent place to look? Just to be sure....neither a lcd or led have a projection lamp to replace right?:)Unsure
View attachment 145086
:D Have you torched up anything with your fresnel lense yet??? :D

I know that you can calculate BTUs once you can generate steam with pressure and temp... I think... It will be interesting to see how many BTUs this thing will generate...

OR a Micheal Faraday / ammonia absorption cooling system set up... :)devil

I hope you have as good of luck with your Visio as we have had with our bedroom TV ( Visio 42" LCD)
 
#40 ·
I wanted the 9000 series Samsung (55") Led Lcd for the past year or more.

They discontinued it, but they are available on line for delivery only.
BUT, after reading reviews for days on end, I changed my mind. (It has dropped from $3K + to barely $2K)

We just picked up the 51" Samsung Plasma for about $600.00 at BB, no 3D or Internet, but I don't care about that.
We also have a 42" Samsung LCD and I sort of like the LCD better. It seems more "crisp"?

I am having regrets over not snatching up a 9000 instead of the Plasma, but Deb says I'm just spoiled....

Tom, the addition of a HD box ALONE brought even our non HD TV's to life. You will not believe the difference with the new box, at least with the DTV set up.
(Friends don't let friends watch Dish network!!):wink2::wink2:
 
#45 ·
Tom, the addition of a HD box ALONE brought even our non HD TV's to life. You will not believe the difference with the new box, at least with the DTV set up.
(Friends don't let friends watch Dish network!!):wink2::wink2:
Soooooooo I call Dish net yesterday and speak to Hadji somewhere along the way I got out of him that I could get "free" HD equiptment but the conversation went down hill when I held his feet to the fire on some of the contractural "fine points" and he hung up on me , going back on the phone today to seek out someone who speaks ENGLISH ! :duh:
 
#42 ·
Is plasma a bad idea if you have kids that game alot? My bro is in the market for a tv for his place at the lake. He drains his water and turns the heat off for a month or two in the winter....can freezing hurt any or all of em?:hmmm:
 
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