Televisions

[Denny Crane]

ALWAYS REMEMBER that when you go to the store, they will have adjusted the settings on all the TVs to really pop out the colors. When you get home, you will want to change the settings; it won't look right under normal conditions, under normal lighting. There are about 60 or 70 different settings to adjust. There are sites like CNET that will recommend certain settings for a particular TV to make it look the best.

The funny thing is at Best Buy, the Vieras all looked like shit and I almost bought a similar Samsung model. I don't think I'd have been unhappy with either choice, but given all the reviews I had read about the Viera, I went on faith in the purchase. If all I relied on was how the picture looked, I'd have told people the TV didn't have a good picture at all.

Rear projections do get you a bigger picture for a lower price. There's a reason.

 

[Dumpy]

The funny thing is at Best Buy, the Vieras all looked like shit and I almost bought a similar Samsung model. I don't think I'd have been unhappy with either choice, but given all the reviews I had read about the Viera, I went on faith in the purchase. If all I relied on was how the picture looked, I'd have told people the TV didn't have a good picture at all.

Rear projections do get you a bigger picture for a lower price. There's a reason.

sure, they are based on older, cheaper technology, and lack a "cool" factor. Pricing theory would suggest that newer technology be introduced at a high price, to take advantage of the market segment that will buy it any any cost because it is new.

Anyway, there's no need for this to devolve into a mud-slinging contest between Denny and myself on whether rear projection or plasma is best. The question is what is best for KC. Go to the library and get a hold of the March 2008 Consumer Reports; they have an entire section on TVs and it is pretty good, and may help you. They go through the preferences you might have to choose one technology over another. They also say "consider a 1080p TV first, but don't rule out 720p sets." . . . and that "if price is not an issue, we'd recommend a high-scoring 1080p set over a comparable 720p set. But don't asume that all 1080p sets are superior to 720p models; resolution alone doesn't determine picture quality. Some of the top-rated TVs in our Ratings are 720p sets. Also, with typical HD programming, picture quality of a good 720p set can be almost indistinguishable from a 1080p set's, especially if it's smaller than 50 inches."

 

[Dumpy]

The funny thing is at Best Buy, the Vieras all looked like shit and I almost bought a similar Samsung model. I don't think I'd have been unhappy with either choice, but given all the reviews I had read about the Viera, I went on faith in the purchase. If all I relied on was how the picture looked, I'd have told people the TV didn't have a good picture at all.

Rear projections do get you a bigger picture for a lower price. There's a reason.

incidentally, I chose my TV solely based on the consumer reports and CNET reviews (and consumer reviews, which of course you have to take with a grain of salt, but they can flag potential problems or defects).

 

[bbwMax]

Oh yeah, the 1080p version can be used as a very nice computer monitor if you have a good enough graphics card. 1920x1080 resolution.

That may also give you an idea of how close you can sit to it.

Yeh my TV is also my Computer. I rag that thing to shit lol. TV obviously with Freeview channels, Then my Xbox, Then my PC, then my Snes when i want to Ghetto it up

I paid £400 for mine. Well i paid £200 and my mum paid the other half as a reward. I love it just the right size for my room and brilliant quality. Do you have any consoles or Blu-ray players etc. If so this is a perfect TV.

Link

Obviously that is British pricing and such but i reckon you could pick up a similar model for about $500.

 

[Kid Chocolate]

In regards to the HDMI, I have already thought about that, and would be plugging the cable box and PS3 into it, so I'd want one with at least 2 inputs.