Suggestions for a new TV

Ravic

Ravic

Sic Semper Tyranitar
Adventurer
Joined
Feb 20, 2005
Messages
780
Location
Here
Nation Banner
Sandy
Main Job
DarkKnight-Male
Secondary Job
Paladin-Male
Server
Quetzalcoatl
Linkshell
Arcane Garden
I'm planning to get a new TV to replace my old set with the money I got from my tax return so I was looking for some input.

I'm not looking for anything huge, maybe 32"-40" in a price range of about $600-$1000, but I can go higher. Just something to improve on a 12+ year old 19" SDTV. Pretty much what I'm looking for is a decent TV to make my PS3 games look pretty.

Any info/suggestions would be appreciated.
 
I need the same help :p been looking to buy one with my tax refund as well, but I can't find any decent ones ; ;
 
Depends on what type of TV your looking for, plasma, LCD, DLP

You can always look on http://www.avsforum.com/ they review pretty much all tv's and have really good info.

If your looking for TV's in the 600-1,000 price range I would suggest DLP for now.
 
I just pulled the trigger on 2 Philips 47" 1080p LCD's. I am not the biggest fan of LCD but at a price of $750 a piece I became a fan. Sadly I just found this thread and that particular sell is over as of yesterday.

I recommend using www.slickdeals.net in combination with AVSFORUMS as recommended earlier.
 
Personally I'd stay away from plasmas. They seem to not be as vibrant and a few of my friends have had issues with images burning into their tvs. I don't know a whole lot about DLP but I have a 26" LCD and love it. From what I've seen Sony is a sick brand, samsung is good too. Best thing to do is watch sales and deals, but you should be able to get a good 1080p LCD in the 32-40 inch range for $1000.
 
Oh and make sure whatever you end up buying has built in digital tuner (ATSC receiver) for over the air hd broadcasts. The transition date is 2009. I'd imagine almost all newer televisions are good to go but you wouldn't want a bad surprise.
 
 
Actually, the 42" LG is only 1199, you have to click the link to see the reduced price. What's the model number of the 32" bravia?
 
As far as what I would suggest from a retail store:
Sony KDL32S3000, 32 inch 720p
Samsung LN32A450U, 32 inch 720p
Samsung LN32A550U, 32 inch 1080p

As for what I own,
37" JVC 1080p

All of them are *really* great buys for the money because of the quality of TV that you're getting from them. Also, if you go to your local electronics store about this time of the year, they should have a *ton* of clearance and open box items because this is the season for model turnover. I know my store has had 40 inch Sony tvs for 999.99 on occassion.
 
Last edited:
I would have to go home and look to see the model number. I don't see it listen anymore. I bought the 32in about 2 and a half years ago now and the 48in I just bought in December.
 
Yeah, bravia is just a technology in Sony TV's, it's in every TV they make nowadays, so it's meaningless for identification. I get annoyed by so many customers that think bravia is the model and get mad at me for not knowing the TV they're talking about.

I have one of these: Mitsubishi WD-65733 and I fucking love the thing. It's gigantic and looks amazing, it's the 2nd best part of my home theater setup.

I'd avoid plasma like the plague, they weight a ton, they put out huge amounts of heat, and suck up way more electricity than any other TV. They also still have shorter life spans and burn-in problems; but the technology is on the way out anyways.

I know at the store that I work at, we have some regular deals that are great buys. It'll come down to how big you want it, if you want flat panel/projection, resolution, any additional features, and the manufacturer. Sony's TV's look great, but you're going to pay several hundred extra for the honor of it saying Sony on the front compared to anyone else for the same TV.

Generally I try to run through some of these questions with my customers before I show them a TV, unless they already have some idea of what they want:

What kind of room are you going to put it in(bedroom, living room, kitchen, etc)?
how big is the room?
how is the room lit, how many lights are there and where will they be?
how far away are you going to be sitting?
do you want to put it on the wall, or are you going to have it sit on something?

Jereme said:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...=product&tab=2&id=1155069777368#productdetail

It is only 100 more then the LG 42" you were looking at. I personally own a 32 in 720p sony bravia and a 48in 1080p sony bravia. I am more then pleased with my purchases.
Click to expand...
Meh, $1700 for a 40" 2006 model TV is a little much, especially for a low end model. We were running a 52" 2007 LCD for $1799 this weekend(sale ends tonight, technically). We also ran a 57" DLP for $1299.
 
I don't even think I have the space to put that monster here lol.

And it I may answer those questions:

Bajaratt said:
1) What kind of room are you going to put it in(bedroom, living room, kitchen, etc)?
2) how big is the room?
3) how is the room lit, how many lights are there and where will they be?
4) how far away are you going to be sitting?
5) do you want to put it on the wall, or are you going to have it sit on something?
Click to expand...

1) The TV will be going into my bedroom

2) The room isn't all that big, like 13'x11', with the room set up lengthwise.

3) The room is lit by one light in the center of the ceiling, or by the light coming through 2 windows during the day (usually with the blinds drawn).

4) Either sitting against my bed or on it most of the time unless I'm wearing my headset so I'm constrained by the length of the cord, so a little over 9 feet most of the time but maybe 6 feet playing CoD4.

5) The TV will be put on a stand. Also of note the stand says it has a 60 lb weight limit, though most of the TV's I've seen in the sizes I'm looking at are in the 40-50 lb area.

Knowing that, are there any suggestions you would make?
 
40 inches is pretty much the max size you'd want in a bedroom, and then only if you have a big bedroom. If you're going to be that close, a 32-37" TV would probably work better. Under 40" very few manufacturer's bother making their TV's 1080p, since you can't really tell much of a difference and they're priced around the range of a 40" TV.

Sharp and LG are the only ones I'm aware of that makes a 1080p under 40", but if you're willing to go with a 720p, Samsung and Sony are both really nice. Samsung's have a glossy screen, so they have much more glare to deal with, but Sony's don't have as big of a problem; the sharp's are also really good TV's.

You should be able to get a 37 inch 720p for under $1000 for a good TV, especially if you catch it on sale. As for models, Samsung's new line just came out a few weeks ago, the A4xx or A5xx series are both good lines. For Sony, their lines go XBR > W > V > S, from top line to lowest; and the 3000 models were the 2007 versions, the 2006 models were the 2500's(haven't gotten the 2008's in yet, so I don't know what they're called), for the XBR series it was the XBR4. I don't remember the Sharp lines offhand, so I can't recommend a specific TV. LG's are ok, Toshiba's are good; but I don't know as much about those brands. We were running a 32" Emprex on sale for $400, low enough that I was considering getting one even though Emprex is a crappy brand; but I'd just spent a lot on a new receiver, so I didn't get it.

One thing you can do is go to a store and check out what they have and see what you like. If you can, try to find out the models of the TV's you're interested in and look them up online for some reviews or specs.
 
Last edited:
Baj, just to update you a bit, Samsung's new 5 Series has a 32 inch 1080p for around 999.99 at most stores. I didn't even know about it till last week. Also, Sony's new line coming out (available on www.sonystyle.com already) has 1080p in 32 and 37 inchers. Which is funny to me because in my research they scoffed at Sharp for making a 32 inch 1080p.
 
I knew about the Samsung's TV, but not the price for it; I just haven't been over to the TV's that small as much as the larger ones. The Sony I didn't know about, I haven't looked into any of the new models that are coming out yet.
 
Last edited:
Well, I think I've narrowed it down to these options.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...=product&tab=2&id=1186005983963#productdetail

These two are the same except for the contrast ratio and one has S-video input.
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...=product&tab=2&id=1202648987833#productdetail
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...=product&tab=2&id=1202648740213#productdetail

Same with these two.
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...=product&tab=2&id=1205537541287#productdetail
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...=product&tab=2&id=1205537541358#productdetail

http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Sams...08216/catOid/-12867/rpem/ccd/productDetail.do

Now, the one thing that I'm not completely sure of is how much the contrast ratio comes into play. For the 2 that are in pairs, the contrast is 8000:1 or 10,000:1 (connecting via HDMI so the S-video port is moot). From what I've looked up, the difference would only be perceptible if my room was completely dark, which it wouldn't be, so I shouldn't stress this too much.

So assuming I take out the higher contrast ones of the pairs, it looks like it basically comes to a matter of size VS. price (though the Sony appeared to have a lower ratio than either of the Samsung's). So if anyone more well versed could weight in I think all that's left is a trip to the store.
 
Last edited:
I'd go ahead and get the bigger TV. The differences in the contrast ratio aren't that big, so I'd just grab the LN37A330. I'd also recommend not buying immediately, but shopping around and maybe waiting for a sale; since you could save some money and maybe even get the better TV for a good price.
 
Panasonic makes great Plasmas. Check out their Viera models. Sony is has some nice LCD's, but they tend to be more expensive.
 
Plasmas suck though, and you can't get them smaller than a 40 inch.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top