Posted on 12/31/2006 4:45:17 AM PST by Las Vegas Dave
Some of you may have purchased HDTV's over the Christmas break.
Please share your comments on your quest for HDTV.
I was very interested in the Panny 42in plasma, but deceided on the LCD.
Interested in HDTV?
Please FReepmail me if you would like your name added to the HDTV ping list.
The pinged subjects will be those of HDTV technology, satellite/cable HD, OTA (over the air with standard UHF/VHF,yagi, and UHF antennas) HD reception. Broadcast specials and any and all subjects relating to HD
Lasvegasdave
I bought a 32" LCD-HDTV (ILO) and had to upgrade my DirecTV receiver and dish. The Receiver was an additional $100. but the dish was free. However, contrary to what the sales clerk said, there will be a $10.00 per month additional charge to DirecTV (the first four months are free). The receiver comes with the basic setup - but suggest that in order to obtain optimum reception you should purchase an HDMI cable. There are only a few HDTV stations available. More to come in a few months.
After hooking up the HDMI cable, I found it made a buzzing sound every time I changed channels. I called tech support at DT and they said that there is a glitch in the compatibility of some new TV's and new receivers (now they tell me after I spent $31. on the HDMI cable) ~ and that there is very little perceptible difference between "component" reception at highest resolution and HDMI reception. (More info they failed to know about when I purchased HDTV).
Bottom line, the picture is a big improvement over the old analog TV and there is a difference between true HD broadcast and analog. I'm not sorry I bought it, but it was more involved than I thought it would be.
There are two standard resolutions of high definition - 720 and 1080. The 1080 is a higher resolution by about 15 - 20% but most live sports events are shot in 720. Most people will not notice much difference between 720 and 1080 at the normal distances they will sit away from the TV.
Another choice to make is whether to buy an HD-DVD player or a Sony "Blu-Ray" disc player. Movies are now being manufactured as high definition discs in both formats but the two formats are not compatible. Both players will play standard DVD's you already have.
In many ways, this is the same kind of format battle we saw between VHS and Beta Max that took place at the beginning of video cassettes. Somebody is going to win. Right now, the HD-DVD players are about half the price of a Sony player. There are also some feature differences.
I think you made a wise choice.
I like the picture on the LCDs better than the plasmas. IMHO it's sharper. Maybe not quite as bright but sharper, easier on the eyes.
10 Years ago I bought a Toshiba 36" CRT with 800 lines of resolution that upconverts signals using artificial intelligence, or so I remember from Best Buy. ($2000) Anyway, this picture is glorious and everything I watch is like HDTV 720p. I use digital cable, but not the extra HDTV service. DVDs look good, too. Should I upgrade?
Congratulations! Nice looking set. Keep us posted on what you think about it. Are you wall mounting? Happy New Year.
No. the TV must fit in the $3.5k entertaimment center's maximum opening of 40.5 inches (with doors removed).
I'm still shopping. I really like the picture on the Sony Bravia XBR (40"), but I hate the bright frame. Anything more than 40" is a waste in my space (I have a TV room). I have a large Sony CRT TV that is 12 years old and working fine. I am reluctant to pull the trigger on the Bravia because I just know 12 more months will bring improvements in price and functionality of HD.
But I really would like HD now.
HDTV is great. Bigger is better (IMO), depends on how much one wants to spend on a new TV. All broadcast TV will be digital in 2009, so you have some time to make a deceision.
Digital signals are very good, no snow, no ghosting, either you receive the signal or you don't. Fringe area reception will need a larger outdoor antenna if for OTA reception.
(antennaweb.org will show you what OverTheAir TV signals are available in your area.)
>>>There's also DLP (in addition to Plasma and LCD).
DLP exhibits trailing of high motion elements in a scene - kinf of like having "mouse trails" activated on your computer.
SONY's are great but consider looking at the online reviews and also Consumer Reports before making your purchase;
http://www.lcdtvbuyingguide.com/
http://www.plasmatvbuyingguide.com/
Very good info here..
www.hdguru.com
The 787 received high marks from Consumer Reports, a 63 out of 44-77 spread with the lowest TV getting a 44 and the highest (JVC LT-40FN97)a 77.
I bought a Sony CRT in '04...and I love it.But there's not much decent programming to be found.Discovery HD can be good and National Geographic HD can be good when they not showing stuff about dogs.Other than those channels,PBS (sometimes) and the NFL (my Patriots look great in HD) it a vast wasteland,IMO.....(network sitcoms,reality shows,dramas are cr*p).
"Mouse trails" are more common on LCD displays, especially older ones. It was a serious problem for game play on computers.
Both LCD and DLP displays have their advantages and disadvantages.
http://chooseyourtv.com/projectordlpvslcd.html
thanks for the ping
The 40” LCD is nice (or 42” or even 47”) because they’re somewhat manageable – 40” particularly.
When you get into the large plasmas you can have your hands full unless you have help.
I helped a guy put a 58” plasma up on a display stand. F-ing thing weighs about 175 pounds and is about the outer limit of what two people can put up on a 5’ display stand.
63” Toshiba plasma went up on the shelf with a forklift. Box says 245 pounds net weight and I was wondering how they were going to handle that because I had my fill with the 58”.
50” set is a monster – until you set it up next to the 63” set. That's when it looks puny...
The cable thing is crazy. The Movie Studios helped design the cables (HDMI) for DRM. I would like to avoid the HDMI route, I saw a HDMI to DVI cable at Micro Center a while back. Any thoughts?
The best thing to watch are sports, concerts or nature shows in HD...once you go to HD, you can never go back.
Read an article a few weeks back that HDTVs, plasmas and LCDs will drop prices again by up to 40% by summer. I can wait.
Is 1080p worth holding out for? Costco now has a Aquous 52" 1080p LCD for $3300, more than twice what the Visio 46" 1080i/720p LCD. How does a flat panel with 720,768 et al, vertical pixels display a 1080i picture, isn't it missing nearly 300 lines? What about DLP?
Thanks for the thread, pls put me on your ping list.
Since when? I own both a Samsung CRT HDTV 32" and a Toshiba DLP Big Screen DLP. Of the two I use the Toshiba more due to the picture quality.
Further, any sort of trailing / ghosting would be most noticibible when using my XBX 360 and I assure you that Gears of War looks solid.
I'd understand ghosting on a plasma but DLP?
Can you explain?
I expect more HD will be coming at both DISH and DIRECT TV in the near future.
Agreed.The NFL in HD is amazing.And some of the stuff they show on Discovery HD is breathtaking.And,IMO,CRT is *the* way to go...although they're being phased out.I have the Sony 34XBR960 which is widely believed to give the best PQ ever for home TV.The only disadvantages are that it weighs a ton and it's only 34".
I have been playing with the idea of getting Comcast digital cable. I'm paying $100 a month for cable & Internet now, why would I want pay $45 more a month for only 7 to 9 digital channels? Someone please convince me!
Correction: 7 to 9 HD digital channels.
I bought a 40 in SONY Bravia, directly from SONY, based on Consumer Reports ratings.
It's awesome.
I've had HD for three years delivered via cable. The HD is great, but there are too few programs broadcast in HD to buy HD just for the HD. Non-HD digital channels deliver much better signal quality than analog channels, and there are numerous digital channels.
Please put me on your list.
COSTCO changed the return policy on TV's to six months, (was unlimited). (VIZIO has high returns - I read earlied today.)
Right now, ZERO 1080P broadcast are out there, and probably will not be for a very long time, (has something to due with available bandwidth) only SONY's Blu-Ray DVD @ $1000, the other (posibly Samsung?) is about $500. Like VHS and Betamax they are not compatable.
720P vrs 1080i are about the same to the human eye until you go to a 50 in and above screen, (as I recall from one of the HD web sites I frequent).
Hmmmm...I've read that the PQ with both Dish and Direct TV leave something to be desired.I've got Comcast and pay a fortune for it but the PQ I get on my Sony XBR960 is breathtaking.
I can't wait for Verizon cable to come to my town.I've read that the PQ equals anything else out there and that it's far cheaper than cable...and they offer lightening fast internet.
During setup, I noticed that "Energy Star" sticker, so I went Hmmm, and checked the website for our electric utility. Sure enough, it qualified for a $100 rebate - which I received a couple of weeks later.
I prefer DISH, I believe we have about 25 or 30 HD stations, and do not subscribe to HBO/Showtime etc., we never watch them enough to justify an extra $10/mth charge for each.
I have Comcast too. With phone, internet, HD and DVR, my monthly bill is $180.00. We have something like 10 Mbps down here, but I can't wait for FiOS so Comcast has some competition.
GOOD FIND!
IMO...HD via DirecTV is not the best option.
The Picture Quality is not the best and you need to purchase the box (which may be obsolete in a year).
With cable you rent the box and can replace it whenever you want. Plus the HD signal is typically better than Directv.
I've had both...prefer cable today. Will probably look at Verizon Fiber Optic when it becomes available in my area in the next 12 months or so.
I have a 5 year old 51" Sony RPTV in the family room and a 1 year old 27" Westinghouse LCD in the bedroom. About to buy a Sony 32" LCD for the new kitchen.
In my opinion...LCD's are getting better every few months and are now the leading HDTV technology.
Best place to get info on the various types of HDTV's
is the AVS forum...
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/
Tons of great info from people who are totally immersed in HDTV.
As someone else said...once you watch a HD Football game on a large screen...you will never go back!
I saw that one at Costco, I think. Amazing picture, 1080p.
Yes, in my opinion. Circuit City has them all lined up on one wall. Must be 40 of them. It's the one my eyes enjoyed the most. I am sure other people see some other one as the one they like best.
My, how far we've come from the old black and white console I bought when I first married so many years ago.
http://hdtvguru.com/
is a good source also
Cablevision brodcasts NFL and NCAA HD in 1080i - it's amazing.
Funny story - the delivery guy recommended I hang onto the box in case I decided to return it. So I did.....for two days.
bttt
His wife complains about the distorted picture on the local channels, but my brother insists on having full screen so as not to "burn" the edges of the 4:3 aspect into the screen.
We got the Panasonic plasma 42 and absolutely love it! Never saw a better picture. The only downside is a faint hum when the tv is off, apparently a cooling fan.
Another great resource is www.avsforum.com
I've had my 50" plasma just over a year now. The price on my set has dropped from around 2400 when I bought it to around 1800 now, but I have no regrets.
I had Time Warner's HD service for the first year and just changed this month to DirectTV. The HD content and quality is about the same, but the SD quality is much better on the dish.
Forget CR for HDTV purchase.
For people who know what ther're talking about go to CNET.com.
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