TV Shopping « Columbus Underground Messageboard

Columbus Underground Messageboard » General Columbus Discussion » Everyday Chit Chat

TV Shopping

[26 posts] [15 contributors]

Topic Rating:

(Total Ratings: )
Rate this topic:

Started 1 year ago by Snarf
Latest reply from lifeliberty

Tags:

12 Next »

Snarf
Dystopia
Login to Send PM

I just spend the last few weeks doing research on buying a new tv and never thought to ask here.

I've went ahead and made a purchase but thought a discussion on the subject might be beneficial?

There are so many new models out, 3D, LED, newer thinner Plasma's. My research told me that LCD's are on the way out while LED's and Plasma's will take over. Other research said the opposite, that Plasma's were on their way out. We're a few years away from glasses-less 3D sets, etc.

What are the best brands? Panasonic holds down the plasma market apparently. Samsung I thought were among the most cosmetically appealing if care what a tv looks like when it's off (I do.)

LG is a cut above Sharp? I've always thought Sony were the nicest of all, but they are priced accordingly.

I wanted to share that I ended up buying a Sony LED and if anyone was in the market right now they've got the absolute best financing deal I've seen anywhere, 0% for 48mo on $999+.

Had I not gone Sony I'd have gone after the Samsung LED.

Anyone care to share any relevant experience or helpful info?

Posted 1 year ago #
drew

Login to Send PM

FWIW, have had a Samsung LED for about 3 years, and it's been flawless. Between that and a Samsung monitor that has lived forever, I have pretty good feelings towards the brand.

The only brand I can definitively dismiss is Philips -had a 42"LED and it was garbage, as was their customer service. Died within a couple of days of the warranty expiring.

Posted 1 year ago #
cc

Login to Send PM

Was looking for a tv awhile ago and from my research a lot had to do with the LCD panel type. I had heard that IPS was the best followed by PVA. LED will be replacing cfl as the method of backlighting these panels, it is considered more even, slimmer and longer lasting. LCD is the type of screen panel while LED/CFL are ways to light them up from behind.

Lcd panels: IPS > PVA
Backlighting: LED > CFL
energy efficiency: LCD with LED > LCD with CFL > Plasma

I have heard that Panasonic (IPS) and LG (which has a panel lottery of PVA and IPS) are the front runners. I don't really know too much about Sony, but I have never heard anyone complain except for the price.

As for Plasma, I have always seen them as having the most bang for the buck for a very large screen, but I think I would rather get an energy efficient LED.

Posted 1 year ago #
sixby9is42

Login to Send PM

I got a Panasonic LCD 3+ years ago, still works fine today. In my mind, Panasonic = quality. Every single Panasonic product I have is still working fine, including a 16 year old boombox. If I wanted to get another TV today, I would go with Panasonic, Sony or Samsung. LG might be good, but I haven't heard enough about them.

Posted 1 year ago #
Twixlen
Westgate, Columbus
Login to Send PM

I'm surprised that no one's mentioned Toshiba. I am a TV luddite (still have a 27" tube monster, which I can't justfy ditching until the effer dies), but have been continually "shopping" for TV's for years. In all my reading (and through friends' experiences), it seems that Toshiba has some clout, too.

The energy efficiency angle shouldn't be easily dismissed. LCD & Plasma uses a noticeably larger amount of electricity than old school tube TV's because there are so many components that pull from the grid, even when the TV is off. LED made a decent improvement on this. It's one of those things where one TV won't necessarily make a huge impact, but if you're a 3+ TV household, and suddenly switch them all out, you'll notice.

My fave CNET articles on the subject (yes, I can be an efficiency nerd) -

http://reviews.cnet.com/green-tech/tv-power-efficiency/

http://reviews.cnet.com/green-tech/tv-consumption-chart/

Posted 1 year ago #
Snarf
Dystopia
Login to Send PM

Panasonic is a high quality brand. Strangely I've heard they make car batteries that are among the best you can buy.

One comparison on Plasma v LED, I was given OSU football as an example where the salesman was telling me that the red on the jerseys on Plasma is a much more natural red vs the LED tv's had a almost neon looking red.

Another conflict was 55 or 60 inch, ended up staying with the 55 thinking 60 was maybe too much even for the large room.

Having the internet built into tv's I wasn't sure about at first but after seeing it at a friends I was sold. To be able to stream Pandora on tv with the remote to thumbs up/down, search, etc was all way more convenient I thought than hooking up my MacBook to the tv like I do now.

Toshiba had a really good deal on their 55" LED built in internet for $1500 at Best Buy but I'm not sure where Toshiba ranks - I think they're along the lines with Sharp.

I remember when I had a 36" Sony Wega flat screen tube on the custom stand and thought that was the end all of tv's.

Beyond glasses less 3D and LED innovations, any idea where things will then go?

Posted 1 year ago #
Twixlen
Westgate, Columbus
Login to Send PM

I don't know if I'll ever have the space to put a 55" TV - I used to place Starsky & Hutch on a friend's 55" and would get carsick. This is sad, I know. It also means that 3D and I will never be friends.

As far as innovation, I'd like to see genuine internet, not just "internet ready" on a TV. Split screen technology, with the TV show/movie/whatever running on one half & browser on the other. Or, simply so that any online content (Amazon, Netflix, Pandora, iTunes, whathaveyou) could be so seemless as to be cable. I'd like that. Oh, and built-in crazy-huge memory, so no need for separate DVR box.

Posted 1 year ago #
cc

Login to Send PM

The future will probably be OLED TV's which do not require a backlight. They will less than 3mm thick and can be hung like a poster.

Posted 1 year ago #
Walker
The KLD / Downtown
Login to Send PM

Thanks for starting this thread. We haven't really started looking into this yet, but plan on upgrading our TV (which sounds pretty similar to Twixlen's 27" tube monster) and making a dedicated space for it in the middle of some built in bookshelves on the wall. I'm thinking a 55" would be nice, but probably a bit overwhelming.

Insane how much prices have fallen in the past 3 years. Maybe by the time we're ready to upgrade they'll be paying people to take 55" LCDs out of the store. ;)

Posted 1 year ago #
Tenzo
Chicago Lakeshore
Login to Send PM

Plasma TVs may look more natural initially.
However the older ones (not sure if this is still an issue) actually fade over time. A 5 year old plasma looks washed out.

That and the incredible amount of juice required to run a plasma.

Posted 1 year ago #
Snarf
Dystopia
Login to Send PM

Yeah I guess the Plasma's have gone from a life expectancy of around 30k hours to about 100k hours these days.

Posted 1 year ago #
bastardsuperstar
ゴジラ
Login to Send PM

i do a TON of tv and home-theater-rig research constantly, i spend way too much time on the audio-visual science site & forums, and the most important thing you can remember when throwing down real money on a tv is this: there are only two brands to really consider: panasonic and samsung. everything else is a lesser product. this is not a bias, it's fact. even my beloved sony, who as a corporation must own a good part of my soul, can't compete and charge far more than either panny or samsung. i can't remember life before my samsung plasma.

Posted 1 year ago #
Snarf
Dystopia
Login to Send PM

It's my understanding that Panasonic has kind of stepped out of the LCD market in favor of dominating plasmas. I love my Samsung Plasma, it's going up to my man cave as my new gaming and theatre display.

Posted 1 year ago #
2thDoc
Downtown
Login to Send PM

I have owned 2 large plasmas over the past 5 years. First was top of the line Panasonic with a great picture. It weighed 130+ lbs, was about 5 inches thick and I mounted it. (That was fun). When I sold my house, the prospective buyer wanted it included. I used this as an excuse to buy another TV, so I wasn't too upset. Shopped around, watched friends' TV's which were mostly LED/LCD's and decided to buy another plasma. Samsung the second time around. Thinner, lighter, more energy efficient, amazing picture.

Is it just me or does anyone else out there have a problem watching the new LED's with 120-240 Hz? There seems to be some weird motion jittery-ness that throws me off. Kind of like watching really high quality home movies. I think it has something to do with the artificial contrast (making blacks blacker) or the slower Hz (Plasmas are 600) but I am not sure.

I get all electronics/appliances at HH Gregg. They are commission so willing to deal.

Posted 1 year ago #
Campbell

Login to Send PM

I am in the market for a new TV as well, and have been tirelessly researching the different points that have been brought up in this thread. superstar is absolutely correct (based on the info i've gotten on the AVS forums)- it comes down to Samsung or Panasonic. I am leaning toward the new 2011 64" samsung plasma, as it beats the top of the line 65" panasonic (think it's model VT30 possibly?) by almost $1000 in price. Anyone know specifically what makes the Panasonic cost so much more if it's only 1" bigger?

Posted 1 year ago #
JoeMitchell

Login to Send PM

samsung pn58c650

you can thank me later

Posted 1 year ago #
misskitty
Columbus
Login to Send PM

2thDoc wrote >>
Is it just me or does anyone else out there have a problem watching the new LED's with 120-240 Hz? There seems to be some weird motion jittery-ness that throws me off. Kind of like watching really high quality home movies. I think it has something to do with the artificial contrast (making blacks blacker) or the slower Hz (Plasmas are 600) but I am not sure.

Man I am so glad to hear someone say that because I was starting to feel crazy. We just got a LED and itÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s a 120 , with internet built in which is fantastic by the way.
Anyway I kept thinking while watching movies that it seemed so like cheesy or filmed on a good home camera and not all movies are like this but a lot are.

I also have a plasma that my boyfriend got me for Christmas one year itÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s a 54 inch and itÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s effin heavy I would say about 120lbs. Plus when itÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s on for a while it gets hot and I donÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t mean warm to the touch.

Posted 1 year ago #
Cookie
Flyntonville
Login to Send PM

misskitty wrote >>
Plus when itÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s on for a while it gets hot and I donÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t mean warm to the touch.

Do you mean sexy?

Posted 1 year ago #
Coy
Discovery District
Login to Send PM

In the market in the next week or so for a new TV. I'm a big fan of Sony (I still have a 19in Trinitron that I got in College over 5 years ago and it still has a great picture...), but see that a lot of folks are saying that Samsung and Panasonic are the way to go.
before I go checking these out, where are the best places to find the deals?
I don't want to just default to Best Buy or (gasp!) Walmart, if I don't have to....

I should say that we don't watch o ton of TV and aren't looking to break the bank.
Probably sticking to around 32in...

Posted 12 months ago #
Snarf
Dystopia
Login to Send PM

Sony still has 48 month 0% on $999+ through 6/8/11.

They also have some sweet sales going on too.

http://www.sonystyle.com

Also, if you're in the market for an audio upgrade or change.. I moved my surround setup to my man cave and got this Sony Soundbar and Subwoofer with Bluray reciever thingy and am extremely pleased with it's sound and the way it works with the Sony tv. Sounds damn good.

http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10551&storeId=10151&langId=-1&productId=8198552921666265659

Posted 12 months ago #