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Help MartyMcFly3 find a TV

MartyMcFly3

MartyMcFly3

Lifer
Hey everyone,

Looking for a new TV to occupy a 17X13 room. I am wanting to spend around 1200-1400. The TV will be used mainly for DVDs (not Blu-Ray), playing Xbox 360 and, of course, watching television. I was thinking LCD but am not 100% sold on it. Been doing some research on my own but I am most definitely a n00b when it comes to televisions/home theaters. Any guidance would be greatly appreciated. 🙂

Thanks!
 
Will there be controlled ambient light? Is bigger always better? Will you be watching movies a few times a week, as opposed to leaving the boob tube on reality TV for days at a time?

If so, consider rear projection.

Do you want the absolute best picture quality, the darkest blacks, the thinnest footprint? Can you keep ambient light to a minimum? Are you willing to deal with the potential for screen burn-in or high heat output?

If so, consider a plasma.

If else, consider an LCD - an option mercifully free of expensive bulbs, screen glare, burn-in, high heat output, large footprint, and other annoyances. It's by no means perfect - an LCD screen is almost always much smaller than a similarly priced RPTV and the color quality is usually not quite as good as a similarly priced plasma - but there are no major flaws, either.

Regardless of what you get, I strongly recommend paying that little bit extra for a big name TV from Samsung, LG, Sony, or the like. While small-brand TVs can offer very good value, be prepared for a nightmare if something does, in fact, go wrong.
 
As far as how far away I'll be sitting, I don't know yet. Haven't moved into the house. The dimensions I gave were for the room the TV would go in. Bigger would be better, and like I said the TV would primarily be used for watching movies and a little bit of Xbox 360. Not going to leave the TV on for days at a time. I browsed some LCDs today and found a Mitsubishi LT-46148 (46") $1299, an LG 52LG50 (52") $1499, and a Toshiba 52XV645U (52") $1499. Doesn't necessarily mean I'd buy these but those are just the ones that got my attention enough to jot them down. I just wanted to see if there were others that were better.
 
The 52XV6450 does not seem to exist, but the LG 52LG50 looks to be pretty good. If at all possible, bring your XB360 and/or a blu-ray player to the store and ask to demo the TV, preferably after recalibrating the TV away from whatever wonky settings they use for demos.
 
Sorry that should be Toshiba 52XV645U. Can't read my own handwriting. Like I said, I was just wondering if there were beter TVs for better deals out there.
 
Although I am sure you will be happy with whatever you choose, I think in your price range you will get a better quality image with a plasma TV. Especially if you have light control in the room. No matter what you end up getting, pick up a calibration DVD and adjust the set properly. Check out Panasonic and Samsung.

Another thing to consider would be a projector. Have you considered that? There is a big downside in that for best quality you want all ambient lighting turned off. However, you can't beat a front projector for size/price.

-KeithP
 
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