[JohnZ]

I and my most observant spiffy spouse have noticed that the Geek-Squad vehicles have been frequenting many Villages. We think folks have been upgrading their televisions to those way cool flat-panel high-definition jobs. Well, we're thinking about it. A few questions for the forum....1) if you've upgraded....what brand did you get....what size and how do you like it and 2) what did you do with your old tube?

[JohnN]

good thread to start since I'm in the market too,

small one (19-27" for a sitting area) to start, thinking LCD and likely a Sony Bravia.
But wondering if Samsung and LC and others aren't equally good at less cost.

[F16 1UB]

JZ,

https://www.talkofthevillages.com/sm...ic,1868.0.html

HD1080P, 42", Samsung. Old 15 year old 27" Magnavox worked perfect. Sold it for $25. Shop around. Prices are quite competitive. Think we paid around $1500 out the door. Then there's a HDMI cable you'll need. 30-50 bucks. Get the longer cable. 6-8 ft I think.


Also when we move we'll sell the other 2 tv's in the house. 52" projection big screen and another 27". Maybe $100 for big screen that's in the basement and $25 for other. I'll bet the big screen doesn't have 50 hours on it and the other is a bedroom tv with LMN burnt into the bottom right corner of the screen. Ladies know what I mean. I was prepared to give them away.

[schotzyb]

Got a 42" Phillips Ambilight LCD(has a light on each side of the TV on the back which is to make the picture constant in brightness regardless of the lighting in the room) Love it! Sold our 55 '' Mitsubishi Projection TV to a friend.

[zcaveman]

I bought a Sony Bravia 26" - space restriction. Love it . Just got HDTV and love the great picture but I have the closed caption on HDTV. It is unlike the CC on "normal" TV. It basically sucks.

As for the old one - 10 year old 36" RCA with a good picture but it was getting blurry to my aging eyes. I gave it to my lawn man. He came over and took it out the night before the new one arrived.

[punkpup]

How many of you have Plasma and how many have LCD. Both are referred to as "Flat Panel" TV's.

schotzyb - how does the ambilight feature on your Phillips LCD work. Is it one color? Does it change colors? Do you have the ability to change the color yourself? Can you adjust the brightness of the lights themselves?

[Lucko]

I've had several and shopped frequently for three years -- Pretty much, you get what you pay for, and for my money, the top of the line Sony is by far the best picture, especially when it upgrades regular input to 1080 lines. Not all Sony sets are alike--They make as many as five qualities in each screen size, for the best, look for the letters XBR in the model number and if you see numbers like 3000, 2500, 2200, 2000, they are cheaper and lack some features -- If you are still watching a tube set, almost anything will look better -- I feel LCD is the best long term value in format and service -- On big sets, consider the store insurance, it has broader coverage and often one service call is the price of the set -- Get on line, read reviews and choose a set that fits your viewing distance -- Always buy the best bed, shoes and televisions you can afford !!!

[zcaveman]

And do not depend on the clerks in the stores to be able to answer your questions. You can research from a to z on the computer and read all of the magazines and still be clueless. Friends that have these new screens might be the best source. Ask them to let you take a test run through their new TV - from non-HDTV to HDTV ( there is a difference). If you are a closed caption person - ask to see the CC on both non-HDTV and HDTV. Play with the remote and look at the options.

It is an expensive world out there and don't get something you will not be happy with.

[Lucko]

Oh yeah, the HDMI cable is great, but you can get them on-line under $12 instead of the $60 plus the chain stores want. Also, Plasma has a pretty picture, but it is at it's best the first day and then very slowly begins to darken over the years -- If you lose a pixel, it can't be repaired, and the factory says that 5 or 6 of those dark spots are not unusual-- blending pixels like some better sets do to cover these spots and to try to hide burn lines from unmoving images like stock tickers and games, or black bars on the side of regular pictures, are a little help -- also, Plasma uses more electricity both when on and off -- I'd rather have DLP then Plasma, but feel that LCD is better all around -- Nuf said --

[golfnut]

I have 2 flat panel TV's, one 26" and one 30", two different manufactuers, love 'em both and can't tell any difference in quality.

[Muncle]

FYI --
Plasma - Screen sizes range from 32 inches to 63 inches. Larger plasmas, like a 103 inch unit from Panasonic, are in production, but are still prohibitively expensive for consumer use.

LCD - Sizes range from 13 inches to 45 inches. As with plasma, there are larger LCD TVs made, like a 100 inch display recently released by LG, but they are not readily available or affordable at the consumer level

Plasma TVs are the current size champions, particularly when comparing TVs that consumers can easily purchase. LCDs are catching up in size with their developing technology, however, and may surpass Plasmas in the near future. This may be due to difficulties in producing glass large enough for larger plasmas.

Both LCD and plasma TVs will meet the brightness expectations of most consumers. However, in 'real world' situations with ambient light, LCD TVs will generally look a little brighter.

Plasma displays refresh and handle rapid movements in video about as well as CRT televisions.

LCD TVs were originally designed for data display, and not video. Therefore refresh rates had to be improved. LCD TVs with refresh rates below 16 ms or lower (5-15 ms) show very few noticeable artifacts. LCD TVs are now available with refresh rates as low as 5ms.
Slight edge to plasma technology
024

[schotzyb]

Punkpup,
As far as I can tell the only option you have on the lights are either they are on or they are off. They appear to be similar to a soft fluorescent light.

[JohnN]

Question - I can't seem to find much on PIP - Picture-in-a-Picture on the flat panel TV's.
Does that option exist, I hope so. Thanks

[l2ridehd]

I have 2. An LCD and a DLP. Both are Sony. The LCD is I think 45 inch and the DLP is 52 inch. Both are really good, but if I was buying another, I would actually go with the DLP. The quality is great and the cost is quite a lot lower. The biggest difference is that is not exactly a flat panel. It's about 10 to 12 inches thick at the back center. It is the Sony Vega and fits in a corner really well. Even when the sun shines through the window onto the screen it is still clear and bright. Most all of them work really well. Sony, Samsung, Mitsubishi, Phillips. See what you can get the best value on. Which one has features that you like best. Go to a high end store and check them all out, then do online research at CR, narrow it down to a couple, then go to costco and buy it.

[bestmickey]

I've only recently heard of DLP. Have I been under a rug, or is it new(er) technology? Will the "life" be comparable to LCD?