Investing in 40+ inch Flat Panel TV...Trying to gather information.

[chewie8008]

So i'm looking to get a Flat Panel TV at least 40 inches, but as close to 50 as I can afford

I went around to every major store in my area, Circuit City, Best Buy, Electronic Express, Target and Walmart browsing through every tv and writting down all sorts of info on select tvs.

I've read up a little on the differences between LCD and Plasma and am kinda leaning towads LCD. I'm not sure about brands, as I don't know how much trust I put in the durability of Sony vs Olevia or Sharp vs Toshiba...

I'm looking to spend right at $1200 out the door with a wall mount. I found a wall mount online that is "VESA" approved and it is about $65(I believe it comes with a free HDMI Cable)

I found several tvs i'm interested in and am not sure which route to take.

The main one I was looking at worries me because of brand name. It's a 47" Olevia LCD 1080p HDTV for $1299. However, I can sign up for the store's stupid little credit card and get 10% off making it $1169. So it would be just over $1200 for everything. But i'm wondering how good this brand is and mainly how realiable.
The picture was unbelievable in the store and it's perfect in size. But i'm not sure.

Also there was a 50" Samsung LCD 720p for $1199.99 without the 10% off, so I would really be a bit more over budget than I prefer. The problem with it is it's only 720p instead of the full 1080p. I'm not sure I can really tell a difference but think I might be able to under certain conditions(games, DVDs, shows etc).

Also found:

47" Westinghouse LCD 1080p $1099.99 (brand?)
42" Panasonic Plasma 720p $1099.00(size, 720p?)
50" Hitachi Plasma $1299.99(Price, brand?)
42" Olevia LCD 1080p - $949 - 10% (brand?, size)

I noticed a lot of glare on the plasmas in store, but also read that they perform better in the dark than LCDs(darker blacks). LCDs are usually lighter weight and consume less power... Plasma has better viewing angle, but not by much.... 176degrees vs 178degrees. LCD doesn't have screen burn, but hear it's not very common anymore to have burn-in on plasmas. Also I read that LCDs can have a blur effect, which I wasn't able to notice on any of the displays in any of the stores. That is determined by the refresh rate, but i'm not sure what would be considered a good refresh rate...?

Just not sure, a lot of money and I don't want to end up with a tv that dies out way before its time.
Any information, ideas, websites to purchase from? would all be great!

Thanks!!!

[rallynavvie]

I think I have that 47" Westinghouse 1080p LCD now. I used to have a Westinghouse 37" 1080p LCD. I don't like that the 47" has no DVI inputs like my old one did but it has tons of HDMI and you can use adapters to get DVI. It also has better "zoom" features where my previous didn't. Doesn't have PIP which is strange. Picture is great and I really prefer the anti-glare matte finish over the gloss displays because I can't always have it dark in there.

I got both of mine from Best Buy and I can't recommend enough the service plan. Not the replacement plan, get the long service plan. The panel on my old one went out after 1 year and that's how I ended up with this 47". As long as you have a bit of patience the BB service plan works great. Also any TVs over 27" automatically get in-home service so no trucking it back and forth to a service place.

[budz]

Take a look at the LCD Flat Panel Displays - AVS Forums.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=166

I researched there before I bought my 40 inch Sony LCD 40W3000 TV. I'd stay away from VIZIO sets. FYI every manufacturer has their quality control problems. Everyone's eyes are different so let your OWN EYES decide which set is best for you. Extended warranties according to consumers report isn't necessary BUT with my luck I'd have something go wrong therefore I bought my extended warranty thru Sony.com. I bought my set from Sears at last year's Black Friday sale.

Plasma's are nice but they eat a lot of electricity. Check their specs on the wattage it uses and you'll see it's higher than a LCD. I also have a Samsung 23 inch LCD which I bought from Best Buy. I paid $850.00 which included a 4 year extended warranty. Buy the set that suits your needs and what looks good to you as far as picture quality. In fact I think Sony used to get their panels from Samsung.

Too bad you're looking for a 40 inch because Panasonic has a sweet 37 inch LCD with their version of motion flow which is called, "Motion Focus Technology". You have your work cut out for you since there are so many sets to choose from. I'd stay within the range of brands like Sony, Samsung & Panasonic. Join the AVS Forums and take the time to read the different threads cause they have tons of them. Good Luck!

[Xylob the Destroyer]

grab the latest issue of Consumer Reports -- they've got an article just for you.
or even better, just plop yourself down in a chair at Barnes & Noble with the latest issue

[yoda313]

Here's another vote for Westinghouse. I have a 32" lcd 1080i set (1366x768 native). It has two hdmi inputs, 2 components and some analog inputs.

I like mine and I've had it since last fall with no complaints.

[lordsmurf]

Not on your list, but I cannot stress SONY as "the brand" to buy for an HDTV. Others are inferior (some moreso than others).

From the list, Panasonic would be my choice. The others you need to really look at brightness, darkness and color. They usually fail on one or more counts.

Sony not only perfect those, but has motion and "clean-up" filters too, which entirely alters your viewing experience (in a positive way, to say the least!).

[Xylob the Destroyer]

yeah, you definitely get what you pay for. Even Consumer Reports love the $ony models. It seems you can't go wrong down that road.
I love my 36" $ony CRT, but holy crap it weighs a TON!

[rallynavvie]

Since mine is run through my PC about 90% of the time I guess I don't need fancy filters or anything as the driver has decent color management settings. When I got the new TV I could have gone with a smaller Sony or Samsung but since my video source is processed I felt I didn't need it. If you're watching OTA or cable directly to the TV then perhaps those extra features help.

[chewie8008]

Ok, thanks for the information and help guys. I decided and went and picked up a 47" Westinghouse LCD HDTV(with a 4 year in-home service warranty) yesterday from Best Buy. Interesting story though, they pretty much lied to our face and screwed us over.

We go in to buy a tv, we talk to what appears to be a manager or top sales associate of the store. He tells us some information and I mention that I was leaning towards the 47" Westinghouse. So he shows me that he has that exact model on open box for sale. So we go to look at it and before I could even ask him he tells me that the previous owner bought it and it wouldn't fit in his cabinet so he returned it(at the the time i'm thinking likely story). Said there was nothing wrong with it that's it. So then I was like well let me look around and we'll decide. So I go back to him a few minutes later and tell him we're ready. Well he was busy with another customer so he hooked me up with another associate that could assist me. We had decided just to get the brand new Westinghouse($150 price difference) just because I didn't want to risk any sorts of scratches or other problems. So I tell him which one and he proceeds to the back to see if it's in stock. Suprise suprise it's out of stock, and he continues to tell me that they have an open box model and then again without me even asking why it was returned he tells me that the only problem with it was that the previous customer bought it and it didn't fit in his cabinet, and that was it. So we think for a moment and we figure if we're getting the 4 year warranty anyways, then we really couldn't get screwed. So I tell him as long as there are no scratches on it we'll take it. Without even glancing at the tv(which was already packaged up) he says oh yeah, no scratches. I knew for sure he hadn't even looked at this tv and had no idea. Anyways, so we get the tv loaded and head(45 miles back home...we live in the country ). Pull the tv out and right away, no remote control, no instruction manuals nothing. Then while looking for the remote in the box we find a receipt. A receipt from Best Buy that the previous owner had left in the box(the one that "couldn't fit it in his cabinet"). The receipt was a return slip showing the date(June 2008), time, location and phone number of that exact store and below it stated "Reason for return: Blue Screen of Death, and out beside it in hand writing it says "inputs do not work". We were exteremly pissed. They straight lied to us, just to get rid of the tv. So we called them and talked to the store manager and he said he'll order us a "brand new" one and we can get it for the same price. But they won't ship it to us, which means we have to drive an additional 45 miles one way to return this scam tv and pick up what we should have been able to get in the first place.

It would have all been different if they had told us that was why it was returned, or maybe not even said anything at all, but we didn't even ask them why it had been returned. They came to us and told us(two different ppl) a complete lie in order to get their sales. That is why these dumb #$%^'s shouldn't be on commission. They should be shipping us the damn tv.

Anyways, just thought i'd tell my story and let you guys know I do appreciate the help. And at least we will be getting a "brand new" tv for the same price($1196, tax and all with the $145 4 year warranty), so it's better than nothing.

It just makes me wonder how many times that is the story told whenever they are trying to sell an open box big screen.

Thanks!

[Lucifers_Ghost]

How about that. Someone got screwed over by Best Buy.

What wonders never cease.

[chewie8008]

One thing i'm trying to figure out is, whenever I play Rockband for the Xbox360 I experiance the slightest bit of choppyness while the notes scroll up fast. Trying to figure out what smoothes it out. I read something about a calibration menu but am unable to locate it. I have it hooked up with HD cables the YBpr whatever cables. And it does it on all settings, 1080p, 1080i, 720p and 480. What causes this and is it possible to correct?

[rallynavvie]

Don't swap it, have it serviced. Tell him you paid for a service plan that states "in home service for TVs larger than 27 inches" and be done with it. Also what is a BSOD on an LCD TV? I wonder if the previous owner hooked it up to his computer and his PC took a dump and he thought the TV was responsible. Check it yourself and see if it works. But don't let them make you drive it back to them when you paid for in-home service.

[budz]

I didn't wanna mention this but I'm gonna since chewie8008 had a shit experience with BEST BUY. I hate to tell you this but.....WESTINGHOUSE is the one brand that BEST BUY has the most returns for defects. When I was researching LCD TV's I spoke to a friend who worked at BEST BUY (who formerly worked at COMPUSA but went to work for BB when they opened up their 1st store here in Hawaii). He told me the WESTINGHOUSE LCD's are the most returned out of all the brands they sell and suggested I not even consider looking at that brand.

IMHO I'd just ask for a full refund and buy another more reliable brand like SAMSUNG, SONY or PANASONIC. Just my 2 cents!

[rallynavvie]

What does it matter when you pay for a service plan and can "upgrade" your TV later when it goes out? I'm almost enjoying the seemingly planned obsolescence of my Westinghouse products. Besides I could have traded in for a Samsung but I hate gloss screens. Maybe next time I have to replace it.

[yoda313]

One thing i'm trying to figure out is, whenever I play Rockband for the Xbox360 I experiance the slightest bit of choppyness while the notes scroll up fast. Trying to figure out what smoothes it out. I read something about a calibration menu but am unable to locate it

There is a calibration setting just like in guitar hero. I don't remember where it is off hand. Try in the options or settings menu. It will be called calibrations.

[chewie8008]

Yeah, I probably could have got them to come here and repair it, but it's actually working fine. I'm thinking the guy before just was an idiot and had it hooked up wrong. However, I am still pissed that they lied outright about it and were fine with screwing a customer. So this way I get a brand new one for an open box price. We've been using the one we got for now, we're picking up the new one tomorrow. Wish I would have known about the 'crappiness' of this brand before I bought it, but like rallynavvie said, since I have the repair service, I don't have to worry about too much. Hopefully it'll work good for a while and then maybe get upgraded later. Regardless, this one seems to be fine so far I just need to figure out all the settings on it.

About Rockband, I have already previously calibrated the game several times and don't think that's the issue. What is weird about it is that it only does it sometimes. It was running smoothly earlier today. All my other games seem to work fine.

Now i'm trying to figure out how to adjust some of the settings. I have my DVD Player hooked up with the Ybpr wires(or whatever they're called) and when I first turn on the DVD player it says 480i on the top of the screen. I'm not sure how to change it. There is no option to change the resolution on the tv. Aren't those Ybpr cables able to display up to 1080p(which the tv supports)? I went into the settings on my DVD player(that isn't blu-ray or HD) but it should be able to display above 480i, shouldn't it? It looks ok, but my xbox 360 is hooked up with the same type cables and i'm able to play it on 1080p no problem...

[rallynavvie]

IIRC component only supports 1080i because it isn't HDCP capable (not to mention it's analog).

[chewie8008]

Not sure what IIRC or HDCP stands for...?

[yoda313]

hdcp is high definition copy protection - I'm pretty sure. Point is think of it like css for high def - it's a protection scheme. Both devices must recognize it before it will allow full high def to be passed on.

Don't know what iirc is.

[gadgetguy]

If I Remember Correctly (or If I Recall Correctly)

[yoda313]

If I Remember Correctly (or If I Recall Correctly)

Ahh instant messaging speak, that's why I didn't know it. I know some of the basics like afaik, wtf, and a few others but that eluded me. Thanks gadgetguy for enlightening us

[chewie8008]

So i'm trying to decide if it's worth getting an upconverting DVD player. My current Sanyo POS only puts out 480i. I found a Samsung that upconverts to 1080i for about $89. Would it be worth it?

[budz]

Get a SONY Upconverting dvd player. Don't buy your HDMI cable from BEST BUY since it's a rip off. Buy it from www.monoprice.com.

HDMI cable $3.19 from monoprice.com:
http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10240&cs_id=1024007&p_id=...seq=1&format=2

Sony Upconverting dvd player, $79.99 at BEST BUY:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8731241&type=product&id=1201307506837

[chewie8008]

What about a 6ft cable? I would feel safer with that much length as i'm not sure how much I may need in the future...

I was looking at this 24awg 6ft piece for $9.50. I heard that the longer the wire the bigger the wire you need?

Here is what I was looking at...

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10240&cs_id=1024004&p_id=...seq=1&format=2

Thanks!

[budz]

What about a 6ft cable? I would feel safer with that much length as i'm not sure how much I may need in the future...

I was looking at this 24awg 6ft piece for $9.50. I heard that the longer the wire the bigger the wire you need?

Here is what I was looking at...

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10240&cs_id=1024004&p_id=...seq=1&format=2

Thanks!

Are you needing a HDMI cable for IN-WALL installation? If not then just get this one:

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10240&cs_id=1024008&p_id=...seq=1&format=2

It's a 6 foot HDMI cable 28awg for only $4.19. I've ordered these for friends and relatives and I also use it myself.

[chewie8008]

Oh, yeah those look better.

Thanks for your help!

[budz]

your welx! Did you decide on a HDMI upconverting dvd player yet?