What kind of TV should i get? (1 Viewer)

[keith2045]

I'm looking for a new TV, i currently have a 42 inch plasma (see this thread https://forum.team-mediaportal.com/sale-63/selling-my-tv-50423/). I'm looking for about the same size, 40-50 inch for preferably $600-$700, but i can see myself spending $800-$900. It needs to support 720p (in 1280x720 resolution) and or 1080p. What kind should i get? LCD, plasma, or DLP? I did a quick browse and found that most DLP TVs are expensive, and i found a 42inch LCD for $600 (full 1080p support). I dont have a problem with Plasma and already have a 26in LCD, but would like to do my homework this time before i purchase one

Thoughts??

 

[etheesdad]

personally I think Full HD is the only way to go (1920x1080, or otherwise known as 1080p) the reason being that that is the way the technology is going. If you get a lower resolution tv you will not get the detail level in current DVD upscaling technology, or in blu-ray - which is the way everythings going now.

Also consider a screen with a decent contrast ratio. This is what determines the quality of the blacks and the whites on the screen. 30000:1 is a good benchmark. The contrast ratio makes a huge difference to the realism of the picture quality. There are still models on the markey with 10000:1 and theres a discernable difference between.

The best thing to do would be to go to a tv retailler and see how the different models compare. Its hard to tell the quality of a tv without other screens nearby to make an objective comparison of how good it is (or not).

I found watching animated pixar-style stuff on the demo models showed up the color quality (had a chat with the sales person about this - he explained that the cgi animation maxes out the color range which is why they use it do demo their tv's), and that it was also useful to then have a look at some 'reality' scenes to get a sense of how they looked in the various models .

I also found that watching scrolling credits (white text on black) was a good way to distinguish the quality of LCD's, which are prone to stagger. Seeing this compared on the various screens helped us find one with smooth scrolling (many tv's show up how jerky the picture can be when watching white on black credits - believe it or not)

Its a very personal thing, but everything will be blu-ray in the not-too-distant and it would be a shame to have to upgrade again to be able to run them in full detail.

Just my 5c worth. Good luck with it....

 

[zicoz]

It's also hard to see the quality of the TV in a shop due to it often beeing a large room with "different" lighting then a livingroom, and also the shops normally just throws the screens from the box up on the wall without optimizing the settings. Atleast that's the situation in Norway, they might be better in USA tough.

My progress for buying a new TV is this:

1. Think about what the lighting situation in the room is. LCDs are usually better for bright rooms with alot of windows.
2. Read magazines and online-magazines where they are reviewd to see what they say.
3. Read forums such as Avsforum.com to see what the videophile man in the street sais
4. Then go to the shop with a list of 2-3 models and see what you can get the best prize for and how you like their design in real life.

I don't feel comfortable making any suggestions because you might have different model names on the same TV over there , but making a decision based on how the pictures looks in the store alone might not be the best idea.

And also don't just look at the 720p/1080p marks, a 720p can have a better picture then a 1080p screen especially in the lower price ranges.

But start out with the magazines, there are probably alot of them with pre-xmas buyers guides out there.

 

[revs]

I suggest that you google any TV before buying and read all the reviews. The try and find forum threads on the TV, and see what owners say - try the AVSForum ( http://www.avsforum.com )for detailed discussion

 

[hjbaard]

Many TV's have picture enhancers, but do you really need them? Because when you hook up the htpc the the tv using HDMI, DVI or VGA (D-SUB), the video card is handling the picture quality, or am I wrong here?

 

[etheesdad]

as I understand it HDMI or DVI will give you better picture quality than VGA

 

[zicoz]

Well it all depends, some TVs only support 1:1 pixelmapping over VGA and you might have to an overscanning tool on the HTPC to get it right with HDMI and this could lead to a poorer quality. But the best would be a TV that supports 1:1 over HDMI.

So remember to check for this when buying.

 

[hjbaard]

But what about picture enhancers and the image processor of the tv. Are they useful when connection to a HTPC?

 

[zicoz]

It all comes down to what TV it is I belive, but if you follow reviews then you figure out what TV has the best picture anyways.

 

[hjbaard]

The TV I am interested in is the Panasonic TH-46PZ85
Panasonic - ideas for life - Specification

Would this one be ok?