Thinking about getting a 60" for football season

[IHateMyJob2004]

Should I expect good deals as week 1 of football season approaches?

Also, what should I get? I am thinking of getting a 55" or 60" TV and am leaning towards 60".

I have to see what inputs I need. I think I need two composite and 3 HDMI connections but I have to go home and count tonight. I saw that this can be a limiting factor on what I buy since many cheap TVs have only 2 HDMI inputs.

I want to keep this under $1K but will go up to $1500. I have no interest in 3D TVs. Should I consider a 4K TV?




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Anandtech Administrator
KeithTalent

 

[smitbret]

Should I expect good deals as week 1 of football season approaches?

Also, what should I get? I am thinking of getting a 55" or 60" TV and am leaning towards 60".

I have to see what inputs I need. I think I need two composite and 3 HDMI connections but I have to go home and count tonight. I saw that this can be a limiting factor on what I buy since many cheap TVs have only 2 HDMI inputs.

I want to keep this under $1K but will go up to $1500. I have no interest in 3D TVs. Should I consider a 4K TV?

If your main purpose is to watch broadcast sports and it will be in a light controlled environment, then get the biggest Plasma that you can afford. Nothing will contribute to your enjoyment more than the size of the screen. 1080p isn't even a necessity since there are a total of 0 sports broadcasts in 1080p. ESPN, Fox & ABC all broadcast in 720p, CBS and NBC 1080i and I am not sure what the regional sports networks do (probably 1080i). No matter how much filtering is done, LED/LCD still does not handle fast motion as well as Plasma.

If you are in a high glare situation, then just get the biggest LCD/LED you can afford with at least 120Hz. The 240Hz really won't make much difference. Plasma TVs can be very reflective of ambient light.

I haven't priced Plasma lately but they have traditionally been a better bang for your buck solution, too. Panasonic has stopped production and Samsung is leaving the market soon so they are going to start being in short supply. The LG plasmas still don't seem to be quite as good as Panasonic and Samsung but I'm sure there's a couple of good values there, too. In reality, it's tough to make a bad plasma.

I wouldn't worry about 3D or 4K right now. 3D is virtually dead and that fad has pretty much passed. If you want 4K content you'll pretty much have to create your own. It's a few years away.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

I asked to have thread moved to proper forum.

It is for football in part. But my real reason for the buy is because I want a PS4 and my current plasma is 720p. What should I get if gaming is a concern? I'd still think that Plasma is the way to go for gaming.

 

[smitbret]

I asked to have thread moved to proper forum.

It is for football in part. But my real reason for the buy is because I want a PS4 and my current plasma is 720p. What should I get if gaming is a concern? I'd still think that Plasma is the way to go for gaming.

I would imagine that the same advantages that plasma has with motion in film would carry over to gaming but I am not schooled on the video game side of things. I do know that image retention used to be a problem with plasma and video games but those days have since passed.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Ya, I read up on TVs and genreall,y plasmas are better for gaming. Less motion blur (ghosting).

The thing is, I think LCDs and LEDs have caught in regards to motion blur. And at the same time, I think the plasma burn in issue is a thing of the past.

 

[gorcorps]

Do NOT buy a 4k TV right now. Current broadcasts aren't all even at 1080p yet, and there's a huge price premium on those for little gain right now.

I replaced a Panasonic 42" plasma with a Samsung 55" LED (6300 model) and I'm pretty happy with it. Best Buy has this one on sale: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/samsung-...007&st=samsung 60"&cp=1&lp=1

Only downside would be it only has one composite. I think you might find that'll be a common issue though, as composite has been on the way out for a while.

 

[Raincity]

Your going to have a hard time with the connectivity that you require. It may be a better idea to budget out for a AVR to handle the video switching or buy some composite to HDMI converters from Monoprice. This is the best your going to get for under 1K on the LCD side http://www.vizio.com/tvs/eseries/e600ib3.html. If you want to go the plasma route here you go http://www.samsung.com/us/video/tvs/PN60F5300BFXZA

I have the PN60F300 and I think its the best 60" TV out there right now under two grand. If your planning to buy at Best Buy. Stop by the post office and grab a change of address packet. Inside will be a %10 off coupon that will work on both sets. There should be a decent sale this week for Labor day also.

 

[smitbret]

Ya, I read up on TVs and genreall,y plasmas are better for gaming. Less motion blur (ghosting).

The thing is, I think LCDs and LEDs have caught in regards to motion blur. And at the same time, I think the plasma burn in issue is a thing of the past.

While they may have caught up, they still have to distort the image to do so. That's what causes that weird, overly smooth, soap opera look when the TVs are set to 120Hz/240Hz. The technology is just different.

LED/LCD is brighter.
Plasma uses more electricity and runs hotter (but this is another place where they have gotten a lot better)
Plasma has glare issues if you can't control ambient light, but so will an LCD/LED with a really glossy screen. That's one way they compensate for inferior contrast on the cheaper LCD/LED panels.
A cheap plasma will have a better picture than a cheap LCD/LED
A middle tier plasma will usually still have better quality than a very good quality LED/LCD
The best local-dimming LED panels are finally comparable to a good plasma. Edge-Lit LED is just for keeping the TV thin and really produces an inferior image to even a basic LCD set.

You can get a good 60" Samsung plasma for $750 at Costco. That would be my starting point and work through some of the better Vizio, Panasonic, Sharp & Samsung TVs.

http://www.cnet.com/topics/tvs/prod...1&filter=television-diagonal-size_59-and-over

 

[EyesOfTheWorld]

I have to see what inputs I need. I think I need two composite and 3 HDMI connections but I have to go home and count tonight. I saw that this can be a limiting factor on what I buy since many cheap TVs have only 2 HDMI inputs.

Just curious, what kinds of inputs do you need supported?

 

[s44]

Vizio M65i-B2. 65" local dimming for $1500. (Or the 60" for $1150.)

While they may have caught up, they still have to distort the image to do so. That's what causes that weird, overly smooth, soap opera look when the TVs are set to 120Hz/240Hz.

Wrong. You're describing the frame interpolation you can enable on fast refresh LCD sets. It depends on but is not part of the actual fast refresh itself.

 

[Anubis]

tad over your budget if you need it now
http://www.vizio.com/tvs/mseries/m602ib3.html

 

[MongGrel]

I still just want a nice 100" minimum Projector these days, 4K seems a bit of a earlier thing myself as they don't broadcast in it.

They wife is still nerfing me on that one, I'll get one someday soon.

 

[Capt Caveman]

I got a LG 60" Plasma from Microcenter a few months ago for $599. Great bang for the buck. You need to calibrate it but the picture is great and it looks great with sporting events.

I don't know if Microcenter is still selling them at this price anymore but I know Fry's is selling it for $749 but has sold it for as low as $599. They also have sold the 3D version for $699. Check Slickdeals.

http://www.frys.com/product/8129765?...e:082214+disc:

edit - The 3D version is on sale at Dell for $750 but also includes a $250 Dell Gift Card - http://slickdeals.net/f/7157600-60-...-for-750-250-egift-card-free-shipping-at-dell

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Actually, I think my component based device is now gone. I think I use component now for my cable box because I already use all the HDMI slots on my TV for other devices. but I could change that. Composite is used by the Wii and an old VCR. Yes .. the VCR is still used by my kids on occasion.

I need to review my current components to see what I actually need for inputs.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Hinted to my wife that I intended on getting a new TV this weekend. Surprisingly she doesn't seem to mind. I think we did kind of agree on this though because of the following ...

We just bought new "living room" furniture that she wanted. Living room is code for the room we never go in. And I drove about 800 miles to get a sectional that my inlaws own but don't use ... that she wanted. And I have to get a 13x24 carpet and move that.

Now that I basically have the green light ..... I am pondering if I should go 55" to save some money. I also intend on getting a PS4.

And I actually looked today ...
REQUIRED TV INPUTS:
2 - composite (RCA) .... Old VCR and Wii
1 - component (RGB) (Cable box does this and S-video .... might need to go talk to cable company about this)
3 - HDMI (XBox 360, Blue Ray, PS4)

Kinda sucks. Atleast I don't need to support RF I guess. I checked ... the kids still watch our old VHS tapes. It would probably just be cheaper if I bought a new VCR with HDMI out. Or had Comcast to a box swap.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Well, if I go Plasma .... I have to go Samsung. Which means I go 51", 60" or 64". No 555" plasmas. So I would be getting a 60" and probably be getting a Samsung.

For labor day though ..... only the cheapest plasmas are on sale.

 

[Raincity]

The Samsung 5300 series only has 2 HDMI ports. I would convert the VHS tapes to digital then dump them. You can serve them up with Plex and a Roku box. Swap out the cable box for something modern. Dump the Wii composite and replace with a component cable. This HDMI switch is good for the money http://www.amazon.com/Kinivo-501BN-P...ds=hdmi+switch You can Velcro it to the back of the set and forget about it. The auto sensing on the switch works good that you wont need to use the remote.

 

[Slappy00]

I Have the costco Samsung plasma (60") and I love it.

Previously, I tried the Costco 55" JVC LCD (great panel but had some bleeding (edgelit)) and a 50" Samsung (great colors, no bleeding, but the refresh rate was atrocious and faces would look like they are melting if they are in a black background)

THe 60" plasma did the trick. Excellent blacks, no blurring, fast response, perfect uniform picture, and surprisingly bright (in "movie" mode).

Naturally, I have heavy curtains in the room to block out a lot of the light, but I came up on CRT TVs and what not, so while you deal with glare, I was born in it, shaped by it.... No big deal to me

 

[RossMAN]

http://slickdeals.net/f/7166784-son...rnet-tv-kdl-55w802a-for-850-ac-sony-store?v=1

http://slickdeals.net/f/7157610-60-...tv-350-dell-egift-card-1198-free-shipping?v=1

 

[purbeast0]

if it were me, i'd definitely buy a plasma while you still can.

 

[Raincity]

if it were me, i'd definitely buy a plasma while you still can.

LG just made the announcement that they are pulling out of the plasma business also. Grab them will you can.

 

[smitbret]

LG just made the announcement that they are pulling out of the plasma business also. Grab them will you can.

I hadn't heard that, yet. Damn it.

Guess plasma is officially dead, although I think there was little doubt once Samsung announced they were pulling out.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

I want a plasma but can't find a model with 3+ HDMI inputs anywhere.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Sony W700B series at 55" for $999. Basically the 2D version of the W800B which is $1499.

Which is awesome because i have no interest in a 3D TV.

 

[Raincity]

I want a plasma but can't find a model with 3+ HDMI inputs anywhere.

Just add a HDMI switch, Problem solved.