Which tv would you get?

[dave10a]

Buy the LCD that provides the best black and ability to see detail in shadows. I think they call it contrast ratio. Beware that the stores will generally use the mfg. settings which tend to be too saturated to look good in store lighting. In any event it is hard to hide a TV that does poorly showing detain in dark shadows. I have found that Samsung and Sony do the best in Contrast ratio in a real environment. In general you get what you pay for. Sony does charge for its name more than Samsung does. Samsung uses it own glass while Sony will purchase others glass and use it own electronics. Philips is a major stock holder in Samsung and markets other well known brands. Some Philips/Magnavox have a good contrast ratio as well. Toshiba is decent in some models.
It is a zoo, so go by what you see in the contrast ratio in dark or black background. Maybe compare them to a plasma which has better contrast ration in most cases. Unfortunately plasma tv eats a lot more electricity. You can't hid a pig--sort of speak. Oh yeas, watch the motion blur which is non existent in 120 hz tvs but the cost goes up. LCD response time comes at a price.

 

[CowboyDren]

OMG that's an awesome price. Doesn't Walmart do price guaranties?

 

[EatMyVolts]

My Vizio has been trouble free and has a picture that made my yuppie scum brother (with the fancy Sony) turn green with envy.

Is there a COSTCO anywhere near you? You have to look out for WalMart. And not just for political/sociological reasons. When I bought my Vizio from COSTCO, WalMart had one that looked the same and had almost the same model number (different suffix) for the same price but was a WalMart special with lesser specs and some features left out.

 

[Pen15head]

here is a great article on on william wang, the owner and creater of vizeo. guy had a hand in the making of gateways lcd tv's and then ran off to start his own company.

http://www.inc.com/magazine/20070601/hidi-wang.html

btw, i do not have one bad thing to say about vizeo tv's, and seems like consumer reports really gives them great reviews too.

 

[getstuff4less]

OMG that's an awesome price. Doesn't Walmart do price guaranties?

Yes, but only if the same model is on sale. If you want that TV return the one you have (if you are within the return period). If you want any sale items your best bet is to buy them now then do a return/rebuy on Sat. this is YMMV, but guarantees you have it and you avoid crowds.

http://www.walmart.com/Sharp-52-LCD-HDTV-LC52SB57UN/ip/11070378

 

[CowboyDren]

btw, i do not have one bad thing to say about vizeo tv's, and seems like consumer reports really gives them great reviews too.

HDGURU.Com Your New Disposable Flat Panel HDTV
HDGURU.Com Disposable HDTVs-Vizio Responds

Consumer Reports carries as much weight in TV selection as asking the kid at the gas station telling you what kind of car you should buy. They can tell you what brand lasts the longest, and they might be able to tell you if there's only a 50/50 chance of a model surviving because it had been on the market for a year before they reviewed it, but the TV market is far too broad and far too fast-moving for an old-school print rag to keep track in a meaningful way. Stick with CNet for initial quality reports.

 

[navychop]

CowboyDren's post just above is great.

Vizio used to be really poor. They've come a long way, and you should have no trepidation in buying that name.

You wanted to know which brand to avoid. I suggest avoiding Philips, regardless of who owns that brand for TVs. This week. Be cautious about Sharp, they've had a reputation for banding issues, perhaps since fixed. FWIW, I own a Sharp in my RV, mostly because it had great viewing angles from side to side and below. And no banding issues.

Ignore Consumer's Reports. They've always been a joke for electronics.

I have a 61" HDTV in my living room at 12' and a 52" in my bedroom at considerable less. I've reviewed the three major viewing angle guides. Don't sweat them. The chances are very strong you'll never think you bought "too big." But you may well think you bought too small.

My bedroom TV is a [ame]Samsung[/ame]. Interesting to note that they've produced at least two model generations since, but this one is still selling strong- and the price is way higher than what I paid.

When buying, Amazon is your friend. In a B&M, you can see what the frame looks like, etc. Then shake off the semi-clueless sales boys and go buy online.

Final analysis: You'll almost certainly be quite happy with whatever you buy.

 

[Bogy]

Final analysis: You'll almost certainly be quite happy with whatever you buy.

Which is what I was trying to say earlier, and of course got criticized for.

 

[priester68]

Thanks for all the info. In my room viewing side angles will be pretty important. All seats are at least 10' away from tv so i think a 52" will work.

 

[Awohar]

I've test-driven thousands of TVs. My heart is set on Samsung. However, don't buy any tv, even Samsung, from Wal-Mart. While you may be buying a nationally recognized brand there, they are usually not the exact same model as you would find at a place like Ultimate, etc. It'll appear to be the same TV but the model number is slightly different because Wal-Mart dictates the manufacturer have an exceptionally low price point to carry their product line. This often means that the exact model on sale at Wal-Mart was built with substandard parts and manufacturing from places like China, etc.

 

[CowboyDren]

At 10', if viewing angle is important, I'd still strongly recommend looking at the 720p plasmas. They don't have the glare issues that they used to have, nor the burn in problems, nor the power consumption problems that they used to have.

From 10' away, you aren't going to see the difference between a 720p display and a 1080p display, unless your eyes are considerably sharper than the rest of the general population. Plasmas are still unbeaten in black level production, viewing angle, and motion resolution. If you're watching movies or sports, a plasma is still the way to go. When the action on the screen really heats up, a typical 1080p plasma only resolves about 800 lines per frame. 120Hz LCDs often only resolve 500-600, while 60Hz plasmas often don't resolve more than 300 lines. In other words, a 720p 96/72Hz plasma is still going to resolve as much picture as a 120Hz 1080p LCD that costs 50% more money up front.

The $800 Panasonic TC-P50X1 (50") costs $55 per year if operated 8 hours per day in California. The $1200 Sony KDL-46W5100 (46") costs $24; the 52" will cost more upfront and per hour of use. Yes, that's more than double the power consumption, but you have to remember that it's something like $2.50 per month.

Their Achilles Heel is still very bright rooms, but if you're not trying to watch TV in a southern room with a glass wall, a Plasma often does the trick, and you have money left over for a Blu-ray player and/or or a starter sound system.

 

[CowboyDren]

I've test-driven thousands of TVs. My heart is set on Samsung. However, don't buy any tv, even Samsung, from Wal-Mart. While you may be buying a nationally recognized brand there, they are usually not the exact same model as you would find at a place like Ultimate, etc.

This is less and less true all the time. Aside from Tier-2 brands that you just can't get anywhere else, all of the Tier-1 stuff at Walmart is readily available, including Samsung, Sony, and Panasonic TVs. Check their web site and cross-reference the model numbers. I've been unable to find the Sharps that they sell elsewhere, and you simply can't buy Sanyo in the US if it's not from Walmart, so what you say holds some truth, but it's not like it used to be.

Even Best Buy does this, though, with the Samsung UNxxB7100 series LED-backlit TVs; identical in spec to the B7000 except for gray instead of red ToC accents, and usually $200 cheaper than the B7000.

 

[Awohar]

This is less and less true all the time. Aside from Tier-2 brands that you just can't get anywhere else, all of the Tier-1 stuff at Walmart is readily available, including Samsung, Sony, and Panasonic TVs. Check their web site and cross-reference the model numbers. I've been unable to find the Sharps that they sell elsewhere, and you simply can't buy Sanyo in the US if it's not from Walmart, so what you say holds some truth, but it's not like it used to be.

Even Best Buy does this, though, with the Samsung UNxxB7100 series LED-backlit TVs; identical in spec to the B7000 except for gray instead of red ToC accents, and usually $200 cheaper than the B7000.

You'll have to pardon my ignorance. Since discovering the use of such practices, I've not bought any big ticket items from Wal-Mart in a real long time. I remember when they use to tout all the time about how carrying a certain product had created x number of jobs here in the USA. Those signs are long gone now, along with the memory of Sam Walton as far as the company is concerned.

 

[Dirtydan]

I have an HP 42" plasma rated at 60,000 hrs., nice tv, I would suggest for the OP to look for a plasma, of if you want an LCD get one with full array LED back lighting. I am looking at an LG 46" for $1400 and something, so a larger one would be beyond his price range, also Sharp has a good LED full array for a little less.
Dan

 

[Bogy]

This is less and less true all the time. Aside from Tier-2 brands that you just can't get anywhere else, all of the Tier-1 stuff at Walmart is readily available, including Samsung, Sony, and Panasonic TVs. Check their web site and cross-reference the model numbers. I've been unable to find the Sharps that they sell elsewhere, and you simply can't buy Sanyo in the US if it's not from Walmart, so what you say holds some truth, but it's not like it used to be.

Even Best Buy does this, though, with the Samsung UNxxB7100 series LED-backlit TVs; identical in spec to the B7000 except for gray instead of red ToC accents, and usually $200 cheaper than the B7000.

You guys are missing one huge reason for the different models that can only be bought at Wal-Mart/Best Buy/Sears/Etc. Absolutely nothing may be different between the model you buy from any other store, except the model # is just a digit or two different. This is so that if you ask if they do price matching, it doesn't apply, because its a "different model".

 

[MikeInAlaska]

Target shows such dismal pictures on their TVs that they really look terrible. Among the worst was the Panasonic 1080P 50" plasmas, which looked simply awful. Eventually they had them marked to $850 to get rid of them.

 

[bsk116]

Target shows such dismal pictures on their TVs that they really look terrible. Among the worst was the Panasonic 1080P 50" plasmas, which looked simply awful. Eventually they had them marked to $850 to get rid of them.

I'm not a Target fan boy by any means but the displays in your store could be set up wrong or the Panny set might be the last TV in a long line of split cables which can have a huge impact in signal/picture quality.

 

[navychop]

Oh yes, C-B-D- reminded me: NEVER buy a Sanyo.

 

[CowboyDren]

Oh yes, C-B-D- reminded me: NEVER buy a Sanyo.

That was a hard lesson to learn. Sanyo CRTs have always been very rugged and reliable, but I wouldn't trust one of their FPDs as far as I could throw it.

 

[garyak]

I waited and saved my money to buy the samsung 6000 series 55in. led. All my football buddies have an assortment of the other brands. After monday night football and bluray movie nights at my house they all want one. The picture is fantastic.