New2Me said:
Most 720p TV's do 1080i too, so there really won't be much difference unless you have a Bluray player. I would recommend a plasma, if you watch fast action sports, as LCDs tend to ghost fast movements. LCDs also have trouble doing black, plasma does not. Check the requirements on returns for dead pixels on an LCD, too. One dead (or bright pixel) in the middle of the screen can be so annoying that it ruins the enjoyment of the program. LCDs use a florescent backlight, and usually have a mat finish screen to avoid reflections of room lights/objects, plasmas can have problems with that, as they usually have gloss screens. The newer LCD are advertised as LED TV, which simply means that they replaced the single light source with multiple LEDs, to try and improve the black level, and to increase the light life. IMHO they certainly are not worth the premium pricing they want now.
True Organic LED (OLED) technology is the next technology, and it should be worth the money(after its been out for a few years!)
I would really, really recommend trying out the REMOTE for each model that you are considering, as that is what you'll spend the most time with. If it has so many little buttons that you can't figure it out, you probably won't like it as well. A universal remote will make it easier to use with a DVD or VCR, some do cable boxes too.
A handy feature that some Panasonic's have is SD card input, so if you (or your guests) have a digital camera that uses SD cards, you can pop the card in and look at the pictures.
I would also take a look at
http://www.newegg.com, if you have seen a model at a local store that you like to compare prices to. If Newegg has it with free shipping, they might be cheaper, otherwise, the local markets are hard to beat at this time of year.
Good Luck and Best Wishes!
Oh Yes :!: That is so very important. My husband hates some of the remotes and always complains about them. I got him a high end programable remote but he hates that too.
Great, informative post. I was going to stay out of this discussion as I have a big Samsung 72" rear projection, 1080p and a Sony LCD XBR-5 (I think uses the LED lights). We've had big screens for years and got one of the first rear projection High Def. The major problem with that one, which we replaced with the Samsung, was that the "lights' were not user replaceable and cost (I can't really remember correctly) probably $100 each. The Samsung lights are very accessible and easily user replaceable but had, at the time we got it, a little less than 2 yr. ago, the best reviews on longevity of lights. It, also, had some features, built in, for future additions like 3-D. As our old one, about 5-7 yrs old, went out and we had warranty on it, from having one issue for the same problem three times, we got some warranty rebate. But Best Buy didn't have the Samsung so we used that for the Sony LCD XBR-5 42". BTW...... I did lots of research for a couple of months.
Number one was we wanted (needed) at least 60" because that's what we've had for forever in our living room. We sit about 14 ft from screen in recliners (a word about TV height - when you do most of your viewing from a recliner, having the TV up higher is better). One of the main issues I was concerned about was burn in. DH sometimes leaves the picture on pause for way too long. The old big screen
did have burn in and it
didn't go away. The other issue was reflection. Both of those things led me away from Plasma. Also, at the time, if there were any plasmas (or LCDs) at 60" or more they were way out of our range money wise.
This may be the important part. While waiting for our 72" rear projection, ordered on Internet, to arrive, we used the Sony LCD 42", purchased with warranty money at Best Buy, in the place the 72" was going to be located. We were
STUNNED and realized that with the clarity, and resolution on the 42" we didn't really HAVE TO HAVE the 72". We wanted bigger size anyway, and the Samsung has fabulous clarity and resolution but the LCD was outstanding. We kept measuring the LCD just to make sure it wasn't bigger than 42". :lol: As you increase the size of screen the picture becomes less detailed because you have to spread the pixels out more. So once you go from one size range to another, the resolution becomes less
or more important. For instance the detail on 1080i (over the air or cable or satellite -except Dish does have a few channels at 1080p) picture vs 1080p (Blueray)
is a bit noticeable on our rear projection Samsung 72". On the LCD 42" Sony it is virtually undetectable. On our Samsung, though, low broadcast, signal, feed, etc., are pretty bad. Low resolution feed is better on the LCD.
720p or 1080i is going to knock your socks off if you haven't had High Definition as will viewing football games and many other things on new rear projection, plasma, and rear projection.
DH and I usually spend hours going in to stores looking at and comparing TVs before we purchase and do lots of research before and after visits to stores.
Oh, yes, about dead pixels on LCD. Make sure you get,
in writing, the sellers policy about dead pixels, i.e., that even one dead pixel can be cause for return. I've had several high resolution Samsung computer monitors over the years (have three now at my computer station). Also, have three old LCDs, purchased as refurbished, when LCDs came down to a somewhat reasonable price but still out of range for most users (two of them have TVs built in and can receive any kind of input and have remotes -we use them in smaller bedrooms and one for camera security monitor. The two smaller ones are 720i, larger is 1080i but the smaller ones, 15", look better) Any way, one of the refurbished ones does have one dead pixel and it is noticeable. I have an old, going dead, Samsung CRT monitor that had very high resolution that I used mainly for photos. So I leaned towards Samsung for years. But............ there are a lot of good deals for good TVs.
Warranty - Some people don't "believe" in them. You just have to weigh cost and benefits. I I remember correctly. We took out a 3 yr warranty beyond the mfg. warranty on our old Hi Def Big Screen. We then renewed the policy. We had about 6-7 service calls on it over the years, all paid by warranty co. After the third call requiring fixing, for the same issue, we were entitled to a reimbursement BUT only if the three calls were made during the last renewal period. Any calls made during the warranty before we renewed didn't count for the three required services. Our warranty reimbursement was close to $2000 on a $5000 TV. We were beyond the warranty period but the issue started while in warranty. I think we probably paid, over time, about that amount of money for the warranty BUT none of the service calls cost anything. I do think the new TVs should have better track record than our old one and the prices on TVs are much more reasonable now. When you renew a policy period the policy stars out fresh, i.e., any issues you've had service calls on prior to the renew doesn't count towards replacement or reimbursement on most or all policies. So my advice for anyone getting an extended warranty beyond mfg. warranty is to get the longest one you can get.
The prices have come down so much that you can find a great TV for much less than $1000 especially if you stay at 720p and a TV that is not too large. Last year or the year before (probably, as that's when I and a couple of friends were looking at TVs) Costco was offering great deals on purchase of two TVs. I would, though, go up to 1080i, if the price difference isn't too much. Research, research, go see, go see. You can't alway count on reports from friends. It's best to compare several. Also, while in the store ask a sales person what kind of signal is feeding individual TVs. Sometimes, also, the TVs that are on display aren't adjusted to optimum. Ask plenty of questions and take lots of time to view the TVs in store.
Oh, I forgot one other thing that can be inportant. TVs will have a spec on angles of view. This varies in importance for individual users. DH sits directly in front of the rear projection Samsung 72", about 14 ft away, my recliner loveseat is viewing at a slight angle. No difference. The sofa is further away with viewing angle much greater. Hardly any difference. The TV is angled out a bit from wall so I get a better view, at computer station, which is about 70 degrees and 25 ft from TV. A few nights ago I discovered I could see the football game while in the hot tub (wireless speaker out there), about 60-70 ft away at 70 degrees. So do take a look from the sides also. Also, if you will be elevating the TV, scrunch down to view them. :lol: When we were looking, I sat on the floor, like kids do, in front of a bunch of TVs.
gg=alice
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