1080p vs 720p on a 32" LCD

[jtusa]

Will I notice a difference on screen that size? Just wondering if it's worth the extra money. Xbox 360 will be the primary source, maybe a bluray player eventually.

 

[Cheesetogo]

It really depends on how close you're sitting. On my 30" Dell, I can tell the difference easily, but I sit about 2 ft from it. If you're going to be 10 ft away in an armchair, you probably won't notice the difference.

 

[smitbret]

Unless you're sitting within 36 inches or using it as a computer monitor, it makes ZERO difference.

 

[jtusa]

Unless you're sitting within 36 inches or using it as a computer monitor, it makes ZERO difference.

That's kind of what I was thinking. It'll be in a smaller room, but I won't be computer monitor close.

 

[zerocool84]

 

[velillen]

If xbox is your primary usage i would go for 720p. Most games are 720p with even newer ones like halo reach supposedly being 720p (from what i found in ~2 minutes of searching).

Why not look at the price of a 32" 1080p, which is actually kind of hard to find in a tv, and apply it towards a bigger 720p? A 32" LCD runs around 350, but for 1080p in 32" your looking at ~450-500. At that range you can find 42" Plasma/LCD's 720p. Just a thought

 

[s44]

Computer monitor: 1080p.
Far away where you should really have a 40-50": 720p. Or just get one of those (some crazy deals now).

 

[jtusa]

If xbox is your primary usage i would go for 720p. Most games are 720p with even newer ones like halo reach supposedly being 720p (from what i found in ~2 minutes of searching).

Why not look at the price of a 32" 1080p, which is actually kind of hard to find in a tv, and apply it towards a bigger 720p? A 32" LCD runs around 350, but for 1080p in 32" your looking at ~450-500. At that range you can find 42" Plasma/LCD's 720p. Just a thought

Was poking around Best Buy yesterday and saw a 42" Samsung plasma for $500. I think that's going to be the new TV. Looked pretty damn good, even on the shitty Best Buy video feed.

 

[velillen]

Was poking around Best Buy yesterday and saw a 42" Samsung plasma for $500. I think that's going to be the new TV. Looked pretty damn good, even on the shitty Best Buy video feed.

i know exactly which one your talking about! I was debating that Samsung and the Panasonic 42" plasma (which was $530). That particular Samsung does seem to have a "buzzing" with some sets. Its hit or miss if you get a buzzer or not but just a thing to know. You can return for different ones but seems some people have to try 2 or 3 tvs while other get a "winner" right away.

Either way out of the box my Panny was just meh. Go to avsforums though and find the thread for that tv and use one of the posted calibration settings and it looked 100 times better.

 

[0roo0roo]

waste of effort to 1080p a 32" unless the price is the same it doesn't matter.
32" from non monitor distance as said is too small to make it matter
bluray is a waste, 12" tall is all u get from 2.35 aspect ratio on a 32" screen. from couch distance its a strip of nothin

 

[borisvodofsky]

SINCE porn is now available in 1080p.. I'd highly recommend 1080p.

 

[kalrith]

Was poking around Best Buy yesterday and saw a 42" Samsung plasma for $500. I think that's going to be the new TV. Looked pretty damn good, even on the shitty Best Buy video feed.

Good choice. I have a 32" 1080p LCD as my computer monitor and sit about 3' away from it. That's about the only situation that you'd need 1080p on a screen that small.

I have some friends who bought a 32" 1080p TV and sit 10 feet from it. For the same price they could've bought a 42" 720p plasma and had a much better picture.

 

[pcguru78]

I snagged a 32in vizio 1080p lcd for 398 bucks at walmart and use it for a monitor. I love it dearly.

 

[jtusa]

i know exactly which one your talking about! I was debating that Samsung and the Panasonic 42" plasma (which was $530). That particular Samsung does seem to have a "buzzing" with some sets. Its hit or miss if you get a buzzer or not but just a thing to know. You can return for different ones but seems some people have to try 2 or 3 tvs while other get a "winner" right away.

Either way out of the box my Panny was just meh. Go to avsforums though and find the thread for that tv and use one of the posted calibration settings and it looked 100 times better.

I picked it up Sunday. So far so good. I haven't calibrated it yet, but it looks pretty damn good for a $500 42" set. Picture is pretty sharp, colors aren't the best I'v seen in a plasma, a little washed out, but might be because it's still on default settings. I'll update when I get all the settings tweaked. All things considered though, this TV is a great bargain.

 

[kalrith]

At the very least, put it in cinema or movie mode. You could also find some more-detailed settings in the owners' thread for the TV on avsforum.

 

[velillen]

I picked it up Sunday. So far so good. I haven't calibrated it yet, but it looks pretty damn good for a $500 42" set. Picture is pretty sharp, colors aren't the best I'v seen in a plasma, a little washed out, but might be because it's still on default settings. I'll update when I get all the settings tweaked. All things considered though, this TV is a great bargain.

yeah just head to avsforums...heck heres the thread for your samsung

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1231674&page=31

Change to one of those users custom settings and you will be way more amazed...i know i was with my panny.

 

[0roo0roo]

Good choice. I have a 32" 1080p LCD as my computer monitor and sit about 3' away from it. That's about the only situation that you'd need 1080p on a screen that small.

I have some friends who bought a 32" 1080p TV and sit 10 feet from it. For the same price they could've bought a 42" 720p plasma and had a much better picture.

yea 1080p is no point on smaller screens at couch distance. on those screens they are only for monitor distance practically, very few optimal situations possible.
http://myhometheater.homestead.com/viewingdistancecalculator.html
1080p distance thx recommended distance for 42" is a mere 5 feet.
go beyond and you just can't see the detail, size matters more than resolution in most normal room situations until you get past 50+ inches. even a 55" 720p plasma would be fine at 10 foot. its just so far back.

 

[CSMR]

I think it's significant, but 720p is still good.

But an important point is that a lot of 720p screens aren't 720p and don't accept input at native resolution. Often they are 768p screens. Now 720p upsampled to 768p is significantly worse than 720p. Therefore I'd get 1080p to be sure of a proper connection at native resolution.

 

[Gibson486]

Was poking around Best Buy yesterday and saw a 42" Samsung plasma for $500. I think that's going to be the new TV. Looked pretty damn good, even on the shitty Best Buy video feed.

Samsung C450?

I bought that TV a month ago. I like it better than my 46" Sony z5100. If you want it cheaper, you could always buy the C430. It's the same TV, with 1 less HDMI input and no TOC (TOC is useless). The 42 Inch Insignia Plasma that they sell is actually a re badged C430.