I am finely in the market for HiDef LCD.

[StanleyMuso]

Around 40 to 45 inches. I have looked at most of the likely culprits, including Sony, Philips, LG, Samsung and others.

On the whole, Samsung and LG are less pricy than other brands, but their pqs seem more or less as good as the others, at least in those overlit stores.

Are there any quality or longevity issues with these two brands? I am a family man with a limited budget so it would be great to spend a little less but not compromise on quality.

I would be really grateful for any advice.

PS The reason I'm going for LCD rather than plasma is because my teanage kids often leave Play Station images frozen on screen, despite my constant nagging, and I'm afraid of burnt in images with plasma.

[superpanavision70mm]

What is your price range? Are you willing to get a better TV, but less inches or would you rather have a ok TV, but larger? What are the more important features to you? THis would be helpful in order to best locate something that works for you.

[ToddL]

Good plasmas have protection against burn in now. It is pretty fool-proof. You should also be considering room conditions.
The way tv's are set up in big box stores are all a little questionable. This is something to consider. Look closely.
You should really look at Sharp in this as well. They make 3 different models in each of these sizes. They cover seperate price and quality ranges.

[StanleyMuso]

I have not set an absolute price range, but quality is much more important than extreme size. I want to get something which will support the fullest high definition resolutions. Saying that, I still want a decent sized screen. I figure that in our family room, its probably not much point in going over 50 inches. Our typical viewing distance is no more than about 16 feet most of the time, and sometimes closer - there is room to move the seats closer or further away depending on needs, eg number of guests.

Since I like to own good quality products but don't have the income to keep upgrading, I prefer to save up a little longer and get something which will keep me satisfied for years to come and won't be obsolete 6 months after I buy it. So far, I have managed to buy all my gear when stores have offered substantial discounts, so once I manage to narrow my choice, I can wait patiently for the screen I want to come on special. Its a matter of narrowing the choices down to a manageable number and then keeping an eye out.

Toddl - I have not ruled plasmas out completely, and will consider one if the right one comes along at a good price.

Couple more questions:
(1) Are the range of sizes I'm considering the right size for my viewing distance?, ie anything between 40 and 50 inches?
(2) One wall of my family room is all glass, so it is impossible to keep all light out during the day. Is one technology better than the other for daylight viewing?

Thanks in advance

Stanley

[edtyct]

Hi Stanley,

To put part of your situation into perspective, at a distance of 16 feet, the minumum screen size necessary to maintain the resolution of the display is about 65". The minimum distance from the screen necessary to show the panel's resolution but still keep the screen elements invisible is about half that distance. The problem is that LCDs don't get that big, and if they did, any pretense of being thrifty will go out that big picture window of yours. If your seating distance of 16' is nonnegotiable, at least part of the time, and you want to maximize visible resolution while staying financially solvent, a large RPTV may be your best bet. Plasmas are also a possibility at that size, but cost again might be prohibitive.

Your other contraint is ambient light from the large window. You can always block it temporarily, but assuming that you can't or don't want to, LCD is the technology that stands up best to room light. In fact, LCDs often do their best work under those conditions, which camouflage their usual inability to show dark images convincingly when a room is dim. But, again, see the above paragraph.

One other option that fits some of your profile is a front projection system. I won't go into much detail about it at this point, but you lose plug n' play capability when you go this route. You'll need to mount the projector from the ceiling or somewhere closer to the ground in the center of the room; you'll need to hang some type of screen; and you'll need to control for light at any time of day. If you have kids, or any other household members, who just want to press a button and watch something without too much fanfare, the front projection system could be a hindrance. I suspect that proponents will dispute this point. More power to them.

So much for scratching the surface of the relevant issues. We can go deeper and whittle down some of the options in this thread as you continue to ponder your preferences.

Ed

[StanleyMuso]

You have given me much to think about and consider. Guess I'm still used to the old CRTs, and anything I get to replace my old Philips will be large in comparison. Obviously my thinking was being limited by what I'm used to. It just did not occur to me that I could go as big as you suggest in the space I have. Of course, the bigger the better for a cinametic experience, but although I'm prepared to put off a purchase to save up for a quality product, I'm still only a family man with limited finances. So, as you say, a really large LCD is out of the question. For practical reasons, such as not being able to screen out all light and the fact that kids have to be able to switch their shows on when we're not around, also precludes a front projector.

I had not considered RPTVs because I heard stories about their unreliability, the expense of replacing backlights, and sometimes even difficulties in finding replacement backlights. I realize that there are several competing RPTV technologies out there now - guess I'll have to do some more homework.

Seating position is flexible - it is a large family room and we often move things around to suit circumstances, such as parties, etc. I have often pulled up my chair closer to the TV when watching a letterboxed DVD because it was too small for me to see details.

[edtyct]

Stanley,

Just to put a cap on this phase of the issue, nothing about video technology isn't compromised. If you end up buying a display that's smaller or different from what you originally imagined for financial and/or other practical reasons, you won't be the first, and you need not have sold yourself short. I don't know where it says that RPTVs are less reliable than direct view sets. I've owned four RPTVs that lived as long as I could stand having them; two of my direct views blew tubes before I was done with them; and my plasma literally exploded within two years. Some RPTVs have better track records than others, but what else is new? If you'll be waiting to collect a little money and do a little research before making a final decision, by that time more LEDs might have started to replace the usual lamps in some of the rear projectors, and they will last longer. But even if you pull the trigger sooner than that, you can always find out what lamps seem most volatile and avoid them.

Ed

[StanleyMuso]

Stanley,

If you'll be waiting to collect a little money and do a little research before making a final decision, by that time more LEDs might have started to replace the usual lamps in some of the rear projectors, and they will last longer. But even if you pull the trigger sooner than that, you can always find out what lamps seem most volatile and avoid them.

Ed

Any idea when models with LEDs are likely to start coming to market?

[edtyct]

Somewhere among my effects, I have release dates for the first wave, if they aren't out there already. Unless someone else beats me to it, I'll post something by the end of the day. If I recall correctly, DLPs from Samsung might be first out of the gate. I'll check.

Ed

[StanleyMuso]

Somewhere among my effects, I have release dates for the first wave, if they aren't out there already. Unless someone else beats me to it, I'll post something by the end of the day. If I recall correctly, DLPs from Samsung might be first out of the gate. I'll check.

Ed

Always grateful for advice from those in the know.

[StanleyMuso]

First LED-based DLPs from Samsung Expected in July
First LED-based DLPs from Samsung Expected in July
Developer of the LED technology receives $38 million in funding

The ship date was originally slated for May. Now the Boston Globe reports that the first LED-based rear-projection DLPs won't go into production until June, and won't ship til July.

AVS veterans can jump right to the thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=671250&page=1&pp=30&highlight=S5679W)on the new Samsung HL-S5679W TVs.

For everyone else: Samsung is set to roll out a new batch 56-inch DLP high-def TVs without traditional lamps. These rear-pros will be powered by an array of light-emitting diodes (LEDs), specially treated to be brighten up a TV.

The problem with today's lamps is that they eventually burn out, and they're not cheap to replace. Plus, they dim over time. The LED chips for the new Samsung TVs, created by a company called Luminus Devices, evidently eliminate such problems.

For starters, the LEDs should be good for about 20,000 hours.

The Boston Globe quotes Samsung's Dan Schinasi as saying, ''You would see much, much purer color imagery. The reds would really pop, the blues would be much, much more pure. Even the average person would be able to discern the difference."

The LEDs add about $700 to the cost of the Samsung TVs, which are expected to retail for about $4,200 (up from the originally projected $4,000).

[edtyct]

Sorry, Stanley, I forgot. But you got the info, anyway. Other companies and other technologies are also turning selectively to LED.

[drgnfly]

I've bought Samsung TVs in the past and walked away with a bitter experience with them. Not only TV's but also Out-of-the-box HT systems. In terms of quality, I feel as Samsung still has a way to go against the likes of SONY and Sharp on the LCDs. I also know for a fact that Sharp's quality control on their LCD panels is much more rigorous than Samsungs. I would consider the other brands as you mentioned, and if you really must go on the price point, I would opt for the LG's. LG must be doign something right when most of Koreans in Korea opt for an LG TV.

just my 2 cents.

[StanleyMuso]

I've bought Samsung TVs in the past and walked away with a bitter experience with them. Not only TV's but also Out-of-the-box HT systems. In terms of quality, I feel as Samsung still has a way to go against the likes of SONY and Sharp on the LCDs. I also know for a fact that Sharp's quality control on their LCD panels is much more rigorous than Samsungs. I would consider the other brands as you mentioned, and if you really must go on the price point, I would opt for the LG's. LG must be doign something right when most of Koreans in Korea opt for an LG TV.

just my 2 cents.

That's exactly the type of feedback I was hoping for. It is so hard to work out what is good quality or not from just looking, talking to salesmen or reading reviews. They will often go into immediate performance issues, but rarely discuss quality and durability issues. Only people who have owned the equipment for a while can provide a good advice.

[drgnfly]

That's exactly the type of feedback I was hoping for. It is so hard to work out what is good quality or not from just looking, talking to salesmen or reading reviews. They will often go into immediate performance issues, but rarely discuss quality and durability issues. Only people who have owned the equipment for a while can provide a good advice.


Not a problem. I myself am in the market for a new LCD. I'm currently looking at Sony, LG and Sharp (leaning towards Sharp).

Good luck. and let us know what you decide on.

[edtyct]

Well, no one or two individuals' experience is an accurate indication of quality control in general either. I think you have to do a lot of research to find out how well a company's line of products is holding up, whether it has particular weak spots that tend to fail over time. Sometimes certain components will exhibit a trend, but it will be diffuse enough to escape detection by everyone except technicians. I could tell you stories. But even so, the odds of someone getting a lemon may still be slim. Sometimes searching AVS forums for a display will give an indication of what to expect. For example, the Sony DVP-NS975V DVD player, one of the first HDMI upconverters, garnered some very good reviews when it came out (despite a confusion between color spaces under certain conditions), but the long AVS thread on it revealed a couple of serious problems that affected many people, though you'd never have known about them if you'd asked one or two scattered owners who managed to escape them or who had later firmware versions that fixed them.

For two more cents, I don't think that Samsung's LCD picture quality is up to Sony's or Sharp's, and Sony's higher-end models perform noticeably better than its lower end without being much more expensive. One obscure brand that might be worth a look is Westinghouse. The company offers a few models, from a flat-out, simple monitor to a full-featured display. From what I've heard, the picture quality, including black level, is surprisingly good, and so is the price. I believe that Home Theater magazine recently gave one of these LCDs a favorable review. I'm afraid that I don't know much about LGs.

[PAT.P]

Not a problem. I myself am in the market for a new LCD. I'm currently looking at Sony, LG and Sharp (leaning towards Sharp).

Good luck. and let us know what you decide on.I went with the 20" Sharp for the bedroom ,last year model .This years model are WOW need one for the living room like the LC65D90U but $$$ just have to wait.:ihih:

[StanleyMuso]

I went with the 20" Sharp for the bedroom ,last year model .This years model are WOW need one for the living room like the LC65D90U but $$$ just have to wait.:ihih:

Just have to keep on saving for a while longer. The upside - gives me more time to research. So far, I have been impressed by Sharp, Sony and Philips. Haven't had the chance to check out the Westinghouse mentioned by Ed.

[PAT.P]

Just have to keep on saving for a while longer. The upside - gives me more time to research. So far, I have been impressed by Sharp, Sony and Philips. Haven't had the chance to check out the Westinghouse mentioned by Ed.Always the old $$$$$ issues and priority:incazzato: Here more reseach for you Prima LCD www.primaamerica.com :cornut: