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In the market for my first HDTV, any thoughts/advice?


Note: This thread is 5849 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

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Posted
So the title says it all really, I don't know much about what to look for, how to compare, what name brands are good what's bad etc. Other than p over i, 1080 over 720, what should I be looking for or avoiding? LCD, LED-LCD, Plasma, which is best?

My wife and I are looking to spend between $800-$1000, FYI.

Thanks for any help you can give!

|Callaway X460 draw-biased Driver|Taylormade Burner 3W|Adams Golf Idea A7 19° Hybrid|Adams Golf Idea Pro Gold 23° hybrid|King Cobra Baffler 29° hybrid|Taylormade Burner 6i|Adams Idea Tech A4OS 7i|Mizuno MP32 8i|Pro Select Blaze II 9i|Callaway Golf Forged Chrome 48° PW|Oncourse Target Series...


Posted

For that price, you're looking at a 46" LCD or a 50" plasma. But, the information you're looking for will be beyond the scope of this site. There are just too many variables. Start by googling "plasma vs lcd". Then, when you've narrowed it down, sites like CNET will have articles and rankings on just about any TV you can imagine. For even more information than you can possibly want, you can go to AVSForum and read opinions from people that are obsessed with this stuff (kind of like SandTrap is for golfers x 1000). Just know that TVs you see in stores are under different lighting conditions than your house and may not have been calibrated to look the best. Good luck... this can be a 1 hour or 1+ month/year decision process.


Posted
Aww Pshaw. Give your wife the money and tell her to bring back something good. It's relatively difficult to buy a bad HDTV. At my house we have 3 40" LCD units., Magnavox, Polaroid and Sanyo. They look great and for over two years have been trouble free. We also have a 65" rear projector LCD Mitsubishi, That thing is a pig, great picture but the bulbs blow and cooling sensors have failed at least twice in 5 years. The extended warranty saved our butts a couple times so far... Up until I let her buy these units I had stuck to Sony and would go back in a second. I'd do it simply because having all units the same make allows easier remote programming. Enjoy and make a good choice of the cable service you get. Nowadays TV viewing is like computers. the hardware is a commodity but the content needs to be right for you to be happy. Oh one more thing don't laugh if you notice your wife watching only low def channels for months after you get the new set. Some people simply dont understand what HD is about.

It ain't bragging if you can do it.
 
Taylor Made Burner '09 8.5* UST Pro Force V2, Mizuno F-60 3 wood UST Pro Force V2, Mizuno MP-68 3-PW  S300, Bobby Jones Wedges S and L, Nike Ignite 001, Leupold GX-II


Posted
the information you're looking for will be beyond the scope of this site.

Truth. If you really want to research this, read posts on this site until you can't stand it anymore-

http://www.hometheaterforum.com/forum/ One piece of advice I'll give you is do not skimp on the processor. I've got a 52" LCD with only a 60hz processor, and while it looks okay with still or slow moving images when something moves a little bit too fast it loses resolution pretty badly. Panning backgrounds get blocky and occasionally move in little jumps, footballs being thrown turn into little brown and white smears. When I bought it I didn't think it would be worth the extra few hundred bucks to get the model with the 120hz chip, and I was wrong.

Posted
I ruled out plasma due to the high ambiant light levels and glare that exhist in my den. We like bright sunlight in our rooms and dont want to compromise that.

That being said...I passed on some unreal deals on larger plasma tv sets. It hurt to do so.

I've always wanted a Sony so I gave them a hard look. We zeroed in on a 52" Sony Bravia 120 hz and been highly pleased with it. The Sony operating system enhances the image quality of images less than 1080p...and brings them up to a close quality....1080i. It also adjusts continuously for ambiant lighting levels.

It's been a perfect fit for us. I've been very pleased with all the Sony gear we have (HD tv, PS3, PSP, 2 recievers, dvd player)

Buy as big as you can and spring for a BluRay player also. Make sure you are getting HD cable or direct tv.

We also bought a surround system at the same time. Outstanding viewing of sporting events. My son and I are thouroughly enjoying the NBA playoffs. Can't wait for NCAA football!!!!
909D Comp 9.5* (house MATRIX OZIK XCON-6)
Burner Superfast 3 & 5 woods (house MATRIX OZIK XCON-4.8)
G15 Hybrid 23* (AWT shaft)
G5 5 iron-PW-46*, UW-50*, SW-54 & LW-58 (AWT shaft)
Studio Select Newport 2 Mid SlantGrips: PING cords & Golf Pride New Decade Multi-Coumpound Bag: C-130...

Posted
If you're in the market for a new TV, just go LED or OLED. The newest technology...but if you WON'T be gaming on the TV, then can I suggest
http://www.samsung.com/us/consumer/t...etail&tab;=spec
My boy picked this up a few months ago and it's GORGEOUS.
600hz sub refresh rate = stunning smoothness...incredible blacks 3 mil to 1 dynamic ratio. it's just an all around great TV for watching movies, sports, etc.

BUT if you plan on gaming on the TV, then go with a 240 ref. aquos or samsung... I'm still on my 52" aquos lc52d92u TV from 2007 and I couldn't be happier with it...BUT i'm looking into going plasma in that room since it's primarily used for movies and TV
DJ Yoshi
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Posted

Thanks for the tips and advice everyone! So we priced several units at several stores, and ended up witha 46" Toshiba 1080p 120Hz set, got the satellite update to HD signal, the HD cord for the Wii, and everything looks awesome! I even talked my wife into upgrading to the package that includes the golf channel. WOOT!

Buy as big as you can and spring for a BluRay player also. Make sure you are getting HD cable or direct tv.

As luck would have it, my brother in law was over last night, and told his sis (my wife) that DVD watching won't be so good without a BluRay, which she promptly ordered online!! Had it been me suggesting it, probably would have gone the other way. Double win! What a great weekend, it was my birthday too!

|Callaway X460 draw-biased Driver|Taylormade Burner 3W|Adams Golf Idea A7 19° Hybrid|Adams Golf Idea Pro Gold 23° hybrid|King Cobra Baffler 29° hybrid|Taylormade Burner 6i|Adams Idea Tech A4OS 7i|Mizuno MP32 8i|Pro Select Blaze II 9i|Callaway Golf Forged Chrome 48° PW|Oncourse Target Series...


Posted

Cool. Glad everything worked out for you. The HD golf is gonna make you an advocate for the whole project!!!

Of course watching chick-flicks with your wife will be the true cost.

Here's a iPhone pic of my set. Tiger is walking to his hooked tee shot on the first tee at the Masters.

909D Comp 9.5* (house MATRIX OZIK XCON-6)
Burner Superfast 3 & 5 woods (house MATRIX OZIK XCON-4.8)
G15 Hybrid 23* (AWT shaft)
G5 5 iron-PW-46*, UW-50*, SW-54 & LW-58 (AWT shaft)
Studio Select Newport 2 Mid SlantGrips: PING cords & Golf Pride New Decade Multi-Coumpound Bag: C-130...

Posted
Stay away from dlp!!!

In my Nike Sport Cart Bag:
Driver: Burner SUPERFAST TP 10.5*
3 Wood Burner SUPERFAST
5 Wood SQ Dymo
Irons(4-GW) SZ Vokey Oil Can 56* 64* TP WedgePutter Oz Mallet 6Ball: ProV1x


Posted
Sony and Panasonic would be the only 2 brands I would consider. IMO, they have the best picture quality.

Whats in my :sunmountain: C-130 cart bag?

Woods: :mizuno: JPX 850 9.5*, :mizuno: JPX 850 15*, :mizuno: JPX-850 19*, :mizuno: JPX Fli-Hi #4, :mizuno: JPX 800 Pro 5-PW, :mizuno: MP T-4 50-06, 54-09 58-10, :cleveland: Smart Square Blade and :bridgestone: B330-S


Posted
^^^^^

I would add Samsung to your list as top picture quality. But really any of them are pretty good.

Note: This thread is 5849 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

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