OK, give me some TV suggestions

[Mr Peabody]

I'm looking for a TV for my bedroom. I have 37" wide space to work with. So I'm looking for a 26 to 32" widescreen. The TV must have Cable Card capability. I've mostly seen LCD's with big price tags. Well, cheaper than a year ago but still pretty high for the bedroom.

The Toshiba's look to fit the bill. I'm wondering if anyone has seen the new Samsung's LCD that boast 3,000 to 1 contrast ratio and if it is noticeably better than the competition who seem to have a rating at 1k to 1. Also, I don't see too many tube sets in this size anymore, are tubes on the way out?

I have done very limited in store looking so far. I thought I'd post and see if you all might have anything I haven't thought of or ran across yet.

Thanks

[EdwardGein]

Anything under 32" is too small. In fact I wouldn't get anything less then 34". Remember a 26" widescreen is roughly the screen size of a 21" 4:3 TV Panasonics 34" Widescreen 34WX-15 if you can still find one

[paul_pci]

Don't know what your budget is, but Panasonic just came out with their new plasmas, boasting a 10k:1 contrast ratio. I was checking one out that was on display at CC yesterday and it looked nice. If you got the money, I'd try and squeeze their 37" into your space. Otherwise, I saw plenty of LCDs between 30"-37" for under 2k.

[edtyct]

Hi Mr. P,

Tubes are definitely on their way out. Many mainstream ones have already dropped out, relegating at least a bit of the market to the vultures. Any Sony recommendations around here tend to get raised eyebrows and sneers, but the XBR CRTs have terrific pictures, if you can get around the bulk. They are definitely signature statements at Sony, but I'm sure that at this point, they're resting on their laurels; R&D is most likely finished in this all but dead technology.

One word of caution about LCDs, if you aren't already aware, these inflated contrast numbers, like Samsungs. are intentionally flattering to the makers, much in the way that power numbers are in audio. They should be taken with a grain of salt. They represent the difference between a full screen at its brightest, which can be blinding on LCDs, and one at its darkest, which can be considerably short of true black in a dim room. Nonetheless, the numbers can go through the roof on this score. More meaningful contrast measures are taken from a checkerboard configuration of dark and light squares on a screen to determine how well a panel can hold "black" when it has to compete with (edit: "with" instead of "without," duh) something bright close by--usually considerably worse, a contrast ratio in the low hundreds rather than thousands. This doesn't mean that the panel can't look reasonably good, but it does mean that the panel with the highest "full on-full off" number is by no means assured of winning the picture-quality sweepstakes.

As LCDs have become bigger, plasmas have retreated from the 30 to 40" models of a couple of years ago. But still, when considering price as well as real-world contrast, a Panasonic plasma has a lot to offer if you can find one small enough for your space. I wouldn't rule out LCD either. Sony, Sharp, and Panasonic make some good ones. Good luck.

Ed

[swicken]

I'm looking for a TV for my bedroom. I have 37" wide space to work with. So I'm looking for a 26 to 32" widescreen. The TV must have Cable Card capability. I've mostly seen LCD's with big price tags. Well, cheaper than a year ago but still pretty high for the bedroom.

The Toshiba's look to fit the bill. I'm wondering if anyone has seen the new Samsung's LCD that boast 3,000 to 1 contrast ratio and if it is noticeably better than the competition who seem to have a rating at 1k to 1. Also, I don't see too many tube sets in this size anymore, are tubes on the way out?

I have done very limited in store looking so far. I thought I'd post and see if you all might have anything I haven't thought of or ran across yet.

Thanks


Samsungs claims of 3000:1 contrast ratio are absolute crap, we used to carry them at the store I work at (mainly because people constantly asked if we carry samsung) but sitting next to our sony/panasonics they looked like garbage.

If you really want LCD, sharp makes good ones, and the Sony XBR series are really nice.

Seriously though, samsung really does suck.

[AVMASTER]

I'm looking for a TV for my bedroom. I have 37" wide space to work with. So I'm looking for a 26 to 32" widescreen. The TV must have Cable Card capability. I've mostly seen LCD's with big price tags. Well, cheaper than a year ago but still pretty high for the bedroom.

The Toshiba's look to fit the bill. I'm wondering if anyone has seen the new Samsung's LCD that boast 3,000 to 1 contrast ratio and if it is noticeably better than the competition who seem to have a rating at 1k to 1. Also, I don't see too many tube sets in this size anymore, are tubes on the way out?

I have done very limited in store looking so far. I thought I'd post and see if you all might have anything I haven't thought of or ran across yet.

Thanks
what's the budget??????

[HT BUFF]

Check out www.onecall.com , they have them all!!!

[Mr Peabody]

I've done a little looking around. The Toshiba in the store comparably looked pretty bad, that was disappointing. The Samsung looked pretty good but they are out because they opted not to offer the CableCard feature. I have stayed away from Sharp since I bought one of their TV's in the 80's and it turned out to be junk but their LCD was impressive looking. The Sony was also good but I can't see paying $400.00 more than everything else because it says Sony on the cabinet. Several recommendations for Panasonic but most stores have them displayed looking very dark in the picture. I haven't played with any picture settings. I have RP and have to have a fairly bright picture and good contrast. The Toshiba was bright but looked washed out compared to Samsung and Sharp.

I'm leaning toward the Sharp. I read a bad review on Crutchfield about the Sharp but then I wondered why the guy just didn't exchange it. They offer 30 day return. Any opinions on the current Sharp LCD's, should I give them another chance?

Well, on the budget, I was hoping to stay under $1,500.00. The more under the better but I also don't believe in buying something just for a cheap price, it has to do the job.

[EdwardGein]

If its one there, check out any HDTV your interested in on the reviews on CircuitCity.com. There are usually alot of reviews on each item posted & if something is overwhelmingly positive or overwhelmingly indifferent or negative, I'd weigh that into any considerations. I find the reviews on Amazon.com alot more inconsistant & unreliable.

[topspeed]

The best LCD I've seen is Sony's Bravia (nee XBR) line. Just got the 40" for my dad and the picture is quite nice although it still doesn't present blacks or ED as well as the Pio or Panny plasmas. Sharp's Aquos line is considered excellent as well.

The Sony XBR CRT's are easily the best picture you can get, period. Better than LCD, DLP, Plasma, or LCoS. Best blacks, best with ed, best contrast, best colors. They're huge, heavy, and it's a dead technology, but when they are dialed in...ooh baby!

Good luck and let us know what you get.

PS. If you hurry, maybe Edtyct will let you get in line for the Spyder :).