need advice on buying a flat panel television

[Thor Von Clemson]

I need some advice. My wife and I are looking at getting a small but nice tv for our upstairs living room. We are looking for a flat panel hdtv with a good picture without having to spend more than $1100. I am thinking somewhere around 32-37" would land us in that range. Either an LCD or Plasma would be fine as long as the picture is nice, its a flat panel, the tv is reliable, it has HD capabilities, etc. I'd rather have a nicer picture than a bigger screen, though a combination of both would be nice...

Can any of you recommend anything based on what we are looking for or give me any advice? It will be going on a stand at first and once our basement is finish, I'll most likely get some kind of swinging door cabinet for it or get one of those motorized lift-type cabinet deals that the tv goes in and out of. Either way, the idea is to conceal it and keep it upstairs when the basement is finished because we will have our home theater downstairs.

I've heard Panasonic, Samsung, and Pioneer make good flat panel tv's, though I have yet to find a Pioneer that fits what we are looking for.

Finally, we are going to be buying it from a local retail store. Any tips on good ones to go to? Would buying over the internet be better in any way? We'd really like to be able to see the picture before buying it. I suppose I could always travel to Best Buy or something, find a tv that works, and try to find a lower price online. I've found that Ultimate Electronics has better pricing than Best Buy.

Thanks

[emperor_black]

I got my EMPREX 32" LCD tv for $500 (after tax) on black friday. WOOT! I would always get a LCD over plasma. my friend bought a plasma and had several complaints. With my tv, the complaints are minor...like the remote control does not work if you aim it at an angle, the speakers are not loud enough and small stuff like that. Another brand is Olevia. They all fit well within your budget. I dont recommend buying over the internet. My tv looks like a heaven-sent on the internet.

[Venomboy]

Prices have dropped for flat panel tvs. Plasma or LCD? Kahler or Floyd? You'll find compelling arguments for each one. This one has deeper blacks. This one has a wider viewing angle. This one is hot. Etc.

Check the Consumer Reports website. They just did a huge flat panel review. You might have to pay to access the site though.

Most HDTVs over the last few years were 720 resolution. New ones are 1080. Some people say you can't tell the difference. I plan to buy a 42-46 HDTV and will get a 1080 because it's the latest standard and enventually stuff will be broadcast and sold in 1080. I'm not planning to buy for another 1-3 years so I might change my mind in that time.

[rjohnstone]

HDTV's have always been 720i/720p/1080i.
1080p is the standard for full HDTV.

You cannot receive a 1080p, or even true 1080i for that matter, signal from cable or satellite TV. You can only get it from an over the air antenna.

Cable TV and Satellite TV (DirecTV, Dish, etc.) have to compress the signal due to bandwidth limitations. You get the HD format, but not the full quality of an uncompressed HDTV signal.

EDTV's (extended definition) were the ones that were locked in at 720p.

As stated, hit Consumer Reports. Everyone has their favorites, but look at the facts as far as quality goes.
Plasma and DLP offer great picture quality, but they also get hotter than hell. If you lose a fan, you are screwed.
LCD panels have improved to the point that most can't tell the difference between a high end LCD and a Plasma screen.

[Cleveland Metal]

I'm curious when the Organic (OLE) stuff will be around.

[Joe_Steeler]

Same shit as amps.....
Tubes rule!!!!
Fuck Solid State!!

[AlexL]

HDTV's have always been 720i/720p/1080i.
1080p is the standard for full HDTV.

You cannot receive a 1080p, or even true 1080i for that matter, signal from cable or satellite TV. You can only get it from an over the air antenna.

EDTV's (extended definition) were the ones that were locked in at 720p.

A few corrections:

There is no such format as 720i.

1080p is not "the standard" for HDTV. 720p and 1080i are the most popular ATSC-sanctioned standard for HDTV. 1080p is a relatively new format, utilized with playback devices, and not as part of the broadcast standard.

EDTV is not 720p; 720p is HDTV. EDTV was a term used for technologies that provided better than broadcast, but less that HDTV resolutions. One example is a DVD player that offers progressive outputs (which is 480p).


- E.

[fatmotti]

current darling of the best bang for buck crowd.... also makes a killer PC monitor...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16889234001

best buy sometimes carries this model too.... although If I were going to order it online I'd probably get it from somewhere else cause neweggs tv return policy sucks

[vwall]

For quality- my choice is Samsung....

[442w30]

Samsung 40" LCD 720p/1080i $999

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2987589&Tab=2&NoMapp=0

[Flametop]

"the tv is reliable"...

I'm sorry, unless you mean "will last around 3-5 years", this is something that will probably remain on your "wish list".

For the most part, the TV electronics manufacturing these days has a stage four case of FMIC Jackson/Charvel disease.

[VitaminG]

81-94cm is "small"? I know they get a lot bigger these days, but that still seems a pretty big screen to me.

my "big" tv in the lounge room is an old 67cm CRT. the little tv in the bedroom is 51cm and is fine for watching at the foot of the bed.

[Cleveland Metal]

Centimeters? CRT? hehe...

[MountainDog]

For your budget and size, LCD is what you'd be getting as plasmas (and DLPs) start at 42" and go up.

One of the specs to look for is "contrast ratio". If you go to a store and see like 32" LCDs grouped together, you'll see pricing $699, $799, $999, $1099 and for the most part (other than brand name), the cheaper ones have lower contrast ratios.

In the two links above, the Newegg/Westinghouse 37" $999 has contrast ratio of 1000:1. The Tigerdirect/Samsung 40" $999 has contrast ratio of 3000:1

So if you find two TVs with same price and same other features, go with the one that has a better (ie higher number) contrast ratio (the Samsung above would be the better choice for example at same price).

My girlfriend just got this for her daughter at BestBuy, excellent TV and picture:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8246891&type=product&productCategoryId=pcmcat95100050022&id=1168045340036

[daisp]

I bought an HP..not really known for TV's, but a great 42 inch plasma...get plasma if you are a gamer or watch in dimly lit areas..better picture. LCD if you are in a bright room.