Buying a HDTV for gaming and movies. Need advice...

[ahmadka]

Hi guys! Well I am thinking of buying a new HDTV, primarily for gaming, and watching HD movies..The size range I'm considering is around 37" ~ 42", .. I cant afford anything bigger ...

So basically I have a few questions for you guys...if you could just help me out here....

1) Considering the fact that I will be using this HDTV for gaming, are there any 'special features' I should look out for in a HDTV ?? Features that can enhance my gaming experience ?

2) For the indicated size range (37" ~ 42") I am not sure if a Full HD 1080p is really recommendable or not...because many people claim that in this size range, it is hard to notice any difference between 1366x768 and 1920x1080 (although I personally think I probably will be able to notice the difference )..

3) In addition to the above question...If I get a Full HD 1080p LCD, it will most probably be a Philips one, because thats all I can afford...So is it better to go for a Philips 42" Full HD 1080p LCD, or a non-Full HD LCD, from a more respectable company such as Sony or Samsung ?

4) Is it better to get a slightly bigger LCD, with 'average' specifications, or a slightly smaller LCD, with somewhat 'better' specifications (contast ratio, etc..)?

5) I have seen some HDTV's being listed as 'Analogue' .. (specifically some Sony HDTVs) ?!? Why is this ? Aren't all HDTV's digital ?

I am very confused about all this, since this is my first shot at HDTVs.... If someone can help me out with the above issues, I will be very grateful ! ...Thanks people ..

 

[erwos]

You need to give us an actual price range. I can find you a 32" HDTV that's going to cost more than some 42" ones.

Also, you may want to consider DLPs, and not just LCDs.

Oh, and my usual advice: stop saying "Full HD". It makes you sound like a Sony marketing drone. If you mean 1080p, just say that.

 

[AstroManLuca]

For gaming, 1080p really doesn't help much at all, since there are very few games (even on the PS3) that are actually rendered at 1080p. Most are 720p or below. For Blu-Ray movies, it should help some. If you have a computer hooked up, it should help quite a bit.

I agree there are a ton of choices out there. So many that it's hard to narrow it down much at all. I would suggest hanging out at some bargain hunters' websites like Slickdeals and just searching the forums for recent HDTV threads. Then if a great deal comes out, go for it.

When I was looking for my HDTV a while ago I had really no idea what I wanted or could afford, and I was faced with the same situation as you are now. I didn't know whether to get a larger off-brand model or a smaller one from a known and trusted brand. I actually ended up getting a smaller one from an off-brand . A deal came along for a 32" Westinghouse for $435 with free shipping so I bought it. It was half the price of many of the TVs I was considering, and I'm very happy with it so far. Other TVs may have provided slightly better image quality, but I doubt they'd be better enough to justify several hundred dollars extra.

 

[ahmadka]

Thanx for the response guys....The thing is that I am from Pakistan, and the HDTV's available in the US are mainly for that market...The ones available here are different builds...Also, prices here at my end are much higher, i.e. I would be paying about 60% more than what you guys would be paying for the same HDTV...so these regional differences make the situation all the more difficult for me....Anyways, the Philips monitor I am talking about is this one:

http://www.consumer.philips.co...n-flat-TV+42PFL7482-98

Have a look at the specs and tell if its any good...

I saw a live demo of this Philips HDTV at the shop... it was running a test HD video,....the display looked *very* good to me... the same video was running on this Philips HDTV, and on a Sony 40" V Series non-Full HD HDTV....the Philips display looked significantly better I think..

 

[AstroManLuca]

Wow, well that complicates things. I have no idea what's available in Pakistan, but is it safe to assume that, despite the higher prices, all the TVs are basically the same price relative to one another? That is, a Sony and a Samsung that cost the same in the U.S. will cost the same in Pakistan?

What has really complicated things in the U.S. is the presence of budget brands that may have slightly lower quality but are available at a much lower price. A Sony TV equivalent to the Westinghouse one I bought would have cost nearly twice as much, and while it would have probably looked better, I doubt it would look twice as good.

Again, I don't know the situation in Pakistan. What are your options? Do you only have TVs from the larger companies like Samsung, LG/Philips, Sony, and so on? Or do you have your own set of off brands? If you don't have the choice of a budget model then it should be easier - pretty much all those large brands are at least pretty good, so I'd go for the largest one you can afford, and I'd pick size over quality myself since the quality on all of them should be pretty good.

 

[ahmadka]

Well Sony is the dominant player here..a lot of their HDTVs are available, which are ridiculously *very* expensive...apart from them, there are some available from Samsung and Philips...there are some available from LG, and Panasonic, but only a few..None of these are really set off brands, cuz nobody buys those here, out of the fear that they might be of sub-standard quality ....