TV gurus, any reason to buy an HD set right now?

[spidey07]

Originally posted by: nakedfrog
No, no, I meant I was going to wait in the bushes outside his house, then clonk him on the head when he opens the door, and steal his TV

heh, it'll be super easy too with the walkout basement...just roll 'er out.

julesmaximus, do head over to avsforums to check a potential TV out. There is no perfect display. I'd personally not look for the biggest bargain either and spend the money on a quality display that is a current model. Getting a previous model might have some shortcomings in terms of digital 1080p inputs. also it never hurts to look at the TV and adjust the color/brightness/contrast to your liking.

 

[jpeyton]

I have a Panny 56" DLP and I couldn't be happier.

Watching NFL in SD is like smearing Vaseline on my eyeballs.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Originally posted by: jpeyton
I have a Panny 56" DLP and I couldn't be happier.

Watching NFL in SD is like smearing Vaseline on my eyeballs.

Nice!!! See that's what I'm looking for! I want to walk into a store and have them say, "Watching NFL on this set is like smearing Vaseline on your eyeballs!!!" Hell yeah!!! That's what I'm talking about! :laugh:

Seriously though, I guess I'll have to check out some of the AV forums for a bit.

Thanks for all the input. :thumbsup:

 

[spacejamz]

Originally posted by: Bashbelly
Costco has the Panasonic 50" Plasma TV for ~$2700. It's only 720p/1080i, but I dont care it looks awesome and its not super expensive. Gonna go for it next week .

unless you really need plasma, the Toshiba 62HM116 is a 62" 1080P set for $2499 and comes with the stand...you won't be disappointed...

 

[Cutterhead]

I got my first HD set a few months ago, a Samsung 56" 720p DLP, and I have been very pleased. There are a good number of HD channels available on Comcast, and they have already added more since I got the tv, and plan on adding more all the time. I was also surprised that my cable bill is virtually the same as it was without the HD content.

A few years ago may have been a bit early to adopt, but I think the time is now [finally] ripe for HD. Go for it!

 

[MrBond]

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
Okay, went and looked at more and found a nice Mistubishi DLP set for $3499. It's a 62" and it's their diamond series. Very nice picture. I guess this set sold for over $5k last year. I'm thinking a 50" 4:3 to a 62" 16:9 would be a nice upgrade and widescreen movies will look...well, like movies!

I've looked at some AV forums but it's like they all speak a different language in there. :laugh:

Doesn't an upgrade from a 50 to 62" 4:3 TV gives you more screen space than an upgrade from a 50" 4:3 to a 62" 16:9? I thought I was reading somewhere that the aspect ratio throws things off. Still, I'd definatly go widescreen (do they even make 4:3 HDTV's that big?) and it's still going to be noticible upgrade.

I was looking around Directv's website the other day, am I correct in thinking you have to buy the NFL Sunday Ticket Superfan package to get the games in HD, or is that not right?

Like everyone else said, watching football in HD is AMAZING. I finish my Masters degree next May and I'm hoping I find a job easily because I want to buy a gigantic HDTV before the 2007 NFL season kicks off.

 

[jpeyton]

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
Okay, went and looked at more and found a nice Mistubishi DLP set for $3499. It's a 62" and it's their diamond series. Very nice picture. I guess this set sold for over $5k last year. I'm thinking a 50" 4:3 to a 62" 16:9 would be a nice upgrade and widescreen movies will look...well, like movies!

I've looked at some AV forums but it's like they all speak a different language in there. :laugh:

Not worth the money. If you're looking at DLPs, you shouldn't be paying more than $2500 for any 62" 1080P set (I can find them on sale weekly for closer to $2k). If you are, you're not shopping around enough.

Now if you decide to step up to something like a Sony SXRD set, that might command the extra money (same with a JVC HD-ILA). If you want a flat panel, my two sub-$2k recommendations are the 47" Westinghouse 1080P LCD, or Visio's 50" 720P Plasma.

 

[mallik]

Originally posted by: JackBurton
Just get this set and you should be good for a long time. Remember, quality over quantity.

That looks nice, but what does it mean when they say it doesn't come with any tuners? How does that make it different from other TV's?

 

[spidey07]

Originally posted by: mallik

Originally posted by: JackBurton
Just get this set and you should be good for a long time. Remember, quality over quantity.

That looks nice, but what does it mean when they say it doesn't come with any tuners? How does that make it different from other TV's?

It doesn't have a tuner. Any high end display doesn't need a tuner. my 42" elite display doesn't have a tuner.

If you get somewhat serious into video your TV becomes just a display. Meaning it doesn't need to have a tuner or the ability to change channels. It displays what you tell it to and you use other sources to feed it video - like a set top box (from cable or satellite), a dvd player, a game console, a HTPC, etc.

It acts like a monitor. In a nutshell.

-edit- what I mean to say is it can't "tune" any TV channels. a normal TV you can plug into your cable or an antenna and have TV. Can't do that with TVs without a tuner. Imagine a stereo that doesn't have an AM/FM tuner. It just plays music that you input into it.

 

[MrBond]

Originally posted by: mallik

Originally posted by: JackBurton
Just get this set and you should be good for a long time. Remember, quality over quantity.

That looks nice, but what does it mean when they say it doesn't come with any tuners? How does that make it different from other TV's?

Without a tuner, it's just like your computer monitor. It can't tune TV signals by itself, but if you run a TV signal to it from something else (like a Tivo or a cable box), then it will display it.

If you were going to use it with an OTA antenna, you'd have to buy a digital tuner box, which is about $100 I think.

 

[mallik]

I see, thanks for the clarification. So basically the only use for the built-in tuner is for OTA HD signals? Any other form of HD comes through a set-top box right? So monitors like this don't come with a remote or anything, it's just the screen?

 

[CTrain]

Originally posted by: spacejamz

Originally posted by: Bashbelly
Costco has the Panasonic 50" Plasma TV for ~$2700. It's only 720p/1080i, but I dont care it looks awesome and its not super expensive. Gonna go for it next week .

unless you really need plasma, the Toshiba 62HM116 is a 62" 1080P set for $2499 and comes with the stand...you won't be disappointed...

We have to stop meeting like this.
Yeah I told my friend who bought the Toshiba the same time you did to get his $300 back.

Anyway, the one you see at Frys is last year model, the HM195.
You can actually find it alot cheaper than $1799+tax on the net.
I believe you can get it under $1600 shipped but then again, you dealing with online stuff.

I would go to Costco and find something there.
Peace of mind buying from Costco.
I think the 50" Vizio for $1899 is a great deal.
If you're looking for something bigger, Costco have a few projections to choose from.