Flat-Screen TV Prices Finally Come Down

AP ^ | 08/15/05 | GREG SANDOVAL

[libstripper]

Oh, so true. About 6 months ago I got a 73" Mitsubishi HD CRT TV. It's great. Only problem is there's not enough HD programing yet. National Geographic Channel also needs to go HD. Of the HD channels, the most spectacular is the Doscovery HD channel. I wait for it to get dark at night, turn off all the lights, and i'ts just like being at Glacier or Denali national park.

[Prime Choice]

It is better to ask forgiveness than permission.

True, true...but it's going to be a cold winter and the heating bills last year were absurd enough.   `:o)

[gesully]

I bought a Sharp Aquos 42-inch LCD set. It is completely HD ready and the picture is incredible! I use a Dish Network HD DVR receiver and also got a Panasonic upscaling DVD player.
I will say that buying a HDTV is ten time more complicated than buying a regular television set. There is so much to consider.

[Prime Choice]

Funny thing is, I wanted to go for the 50", but my wife talked me into getting the bigger one.

How funny! My wife is that way with computers. I was going to get a 2.2 GHz Celeron system with a CD/RW and a vanilla graphics card a few months ago and the wife pitched a 3.06 GHz Pentium with DVD+/-RW/CD-RW with 2 GBs of RAM and a Radeon AGP graphics card...plus a 19" flatscreen monitor.

Did I mention how much I love my wife? :oD

She wasn't able to convince me to go all out and get the 70", though.

Whoa. I can't wrap my brain around having a TV that big. Whew!

[diamond6]

Try www.epinion.com (or epinions.com) can't remember which.

I use this site all the time.

[Nov3]

I'm in the market for a flat panel this year but it's very frustrating.

Screw the flat panel. Get a projector if you have a room you can darken. The experience CANNOT be compared. The Flat Panel is a BOX. The projector is just plain cool.

[Voltage]

I am waiting until Fox News is in HDTV! And then the only advantage would be to see Ann Coulter.

[ghost of quidam]

Then when I visit the store to eyeball these things, the clerks, even at high end stores turn out to be bigger idiots than me.

LOL I've been thinkin' HD flat screen wall-mounted for a while, will wait after Christmas.

My last big electronics purchase was a digital video camera. Did about 3-4 hours research online and in magazines before visiting Best Buy, Circuit City etc. to
actually see/hold a few. Found ALL the sales people knew less than I did, and all tried to steer me to higher priced models with features I didn't need. Completely worthless help, and scads of them ( have you seen how many pimply-faced teenagers there are running around Best Buy??!!) plus a lower price, even with shipping, led me to buy online, as I'll always do from now on.

[Bella_Bru]

as soaring demand for the two leading flat-panel technologies, plasma and liquid crystal display, or LCD, attracts a host of new competitors.

According to Leo Laport (or whatever his name is) and Consumer Reports, plasma fades and looks awful after about 5 years. Anyone know for sure?

[metesky]

Try downloading Symantec's products.

So I'm not alone here, eh?
:O(

[Xenophon450]

Here you go http://www.plasmatvbuyingguide.com/plasmatv/plasmatv-lifespan.html

[Stone Mountain]

Right, why take the mirror off the ceiling before you have to? :)

My mirror has a little label on it that warns that objects may be larger than they appear... (apologies to Gary Shandling)

[MikefromOhio]

So, is it true plasma TVs only last a couple years (or, at least, very few hours when compared to CRTs and/or LCDs)?

Plasma screens have this nasty tendency to overheat....

I like my Sony WEGA LCD screen though :)

[AFreeBird]

So, is it true plasma TVs only last a couple years (or, at least, very few hours when compared to CRTs and/or LCDs)?

Basically, yes. They'll lose up to 50% of their brightness.

I'm not surprised prices are coming down for flat panels. Manufacturing competition has heated up. There is also new technology in the wings.

SED (surface-conduction electron-emitter display)

SED is basically CRT technology in a thin, flat panel, scalable to just about any size you'd want, and uses a third less of the power a plasma system uses. Toshiba and Canon formed a joint venture to manufacture the technology.

A 50inch 1080p set is supposed to make its debut this fall.

Expect it to be pricey though.

[hope]

LOL! I know we went through all that bs to watch Fox News.

[ChuckHam]

The Sony LCDs are nice. I was either going to buy the Sony LCD or the Samsung DLP 50". Both had great pictures, but my research showed the DLP is better in bright rooms and my living room is bright. Got the Samsung 5067W DLP. The picture quality is awesome. It pairs nicely with my Directv sat system, can't wait till football gets here. The NFL Sunday ticket with super fan add-on gives me over 100 HD games this season!!

[MikefromOhio]

LOL

well mine is down in the basement and virtually all the light down there is artificial...

SuperFan is a GREAT idea by DirecTV....

[isom35]

mmmm......the foxnews babes in hd.....

[pbear8]

We have a Sony Wega 27 inch flat screen CRT which has a beautiful picture, especially with DVDs. If your picture is really squished check your settings because you might have the ultra squish (my term) setting turned on so you have less picture (but great quality) with DVDs.