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I'm buying an LCD television, any advice?

sirgrassalot

Domesticator of Cannabis
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Dr Dog said:
I have a Samsung 46 lcd, awesome set i love it

Samsung 46" LCD here too, I use a UHF antennae & pick up plenty of free HD stations. I have a 37" pip Dell LCD on my desk.
 
C

Classyathome

Sony kdl40xbr4 or kdl46xbr4.

40" to 46", 1080p, beautiful black and grey, 120hz motion. Get a PS3 for the Blu-ray player.

Beautiful...
 

Stoner4Life

Medicinal Advocate
ICMag Donor
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Been checking those Samsung prices and they sure are high right now....... I'll keep looking for the Series 6 although I'm more in the Series 5 price range I see so far.
 

HarryNugz

Active member
i'm on a 52" sony xbr4 as i type. had the 46" but the fan on them is noisy. returned it and got the 52 with no fans. the pics on here do look amazing on a large lcd! 1080i is for tv viewing, and 1080p is progressive and used for movies you watch. the tv auto selects by source input. demo with any movie with digital animation and also an action movie to check for trailing images. also view with no input like an unused hdmi and look for dead pixels and flashlighting.
the latter two tests are more for when your tv arrives if delivered.
 

RoastedO

Member
2 things I paid attention to when I decided to go with LCD. First was the refresh rate. At the time my Aquos had a 12ms refresh time which was decent. I do notice some pixelation (sp?) in some sports and other high action scenarios, but very little. The newer sets seem to have 8ms as the standard. The faster the better. 2nd check the dynamic and standard color contrast ratio. Some only have a ratio of 800:1 and 1000:1, which is good but no true HD in my opinion. I believe some Plazma TVs' have 1million:1 as an example. I went with Aquos from Sharp years ago and had to really shop em because some had only a 800:1 contrast ratio and I wanted 4000:1, even when the models looked identical. I believe the other day I noticed 1 saying 10,000:1 with a response time of 6ms. Also 2 HDMI port minimum, you'll find uses even if you don't yet :wink:...

All the best,
RO
 
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G

Guest

HarryNugz said:
and look for dead pixels
.

this is very important ,,get the supplier to install your tv and thouroughly check for dead pixels ,only sign for it when u have ,,read the small print on dead pixels its not nice and most companies will not replace for 1 dead pixel ,
 

ARTofMAKINGfire

Grinding extra.
Veteran
Stoner - I did some heavy research, but found that nothing really took the place of going to Best Buy and actually LOOKING at the TV's. Just don't bring any money or credit card because it's enticing. Anyway, I purchased my TV before Christmas at Best Buy. I was settling in on a Sony Bravia when the salesperson told me that Best Buy has to honor any competitors price if you bring in a flyer. Then he told me Circiut City was selling the 42" Toshiba Regza for $1199.00 but they sold out. But he told me if I went online and printed out the advertisement and brought it in, Best Buy would sell me the TV for Circuit City's price. The Regza was $1599.50 at Best Buy! I saved hundreds... And I have to say, the difference is almost unoticable and definatly worth the savings. Just IMO, if you're going to go with a higher end television, the Regza is a good value. Good luck.

Edit: I can browse on my 42" Regza via a HDMI hookup from my new laptop. It is SICK! The clarity on some pictures causes me to have to RIP the bong recklessly. The HDMI hookup also routes audio through your TV. A wireless mouse and keyboard and you're in internet heaven...
 
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3dDream

Matter that Appreciates Matter
Veteran
1 - Buy it online - best buy and such are pretty over priced but you can catch a good deal if the planets are aligned.

2 - Vizio and such have very cheap color components... there is a reason they are cheap

3 - On a 40" or less set 1080p becomes unnecessary since you will not be able to tell the difference unless your nickname is eagle-eyes.

4 - check out DLP - color that does not fade over time, no dead pixels, better blacks.. etc
 

GET MO

Registered Med User
Veteran
wal-mart, panasonic 42 inch for 700-800. good t.v. used have the sanyo, like panasonic better.
 
G

Guest

wafflehouselove said:
buy the biggiest one you see, because just like a diamond the more you look at it the smaller it gets.

yes get a projector and u can adjust the size u watching as u age lol
 
Hey guys, its been a while since I've posted and I've upgraded! Here's what I'm sitting on now....

sharp 42" 1080p
bose acoustimass 10
denon avr 486
bose bookshelf speakers for 7 channel stereo
xbox 360
gamecube for the resident evil baby
high definition digital cable







 

Stoner4Life

Medicinal Advocate
ICMag Donor
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This is what I found as a fairly good deal so far.
Checking the specs you'll see the Contrast Ratio @
29,000:1, refresh rate 5ms for extremely pure black
and white screens and fast action as well. btw Philips
is a pioneer in electronic engineering not just a lightbulb
maker, they invented the CD system & all similar tech
there-after owing itself to their work.



42" Philips LCD Full HD 1080p HDTV $1,186.00
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen
Brightness: 500 cd/m2
Dynamic Screen Contrast: 29,000:1
Response Time (typical): 5 ms
Viewing Angle: 178º (H) / 178º (V)
Diagonal Screen Size: 42"
Panel Resolution: 1920 x 1080p
Picture Enhancement: 3/2 - 2/2 motion pull down, 3D Combfilter, Active Control + Light sensor, Dynamic contrast enhancement, Progressive Scan
Screen Format Adjustments: 4:3, Auto Format, Movie expand 14:9, Movie expand 16:9, Super Zoom, Widescreen, unscaled (1080p dot by dot)
Multimedia Connections: USB memory class device
Playback Formats: MP3, Slideshow files (.alb), JPEG Still pictures
Aerial Input: 75 ohm F-type
TV System: ATSC, NTSC
Video Playback: NTSC
Cable: Unscrambled Digital Cable -QAM
Tuner Bands: Hyperband, S-Channel, UHF, VHF
Computer Formats Refresh Rate: 640 x 480 60Hz, 800 x 600 60Hz, 1024 x 768 60Hz, 1280 x 768 60Hz, 1280 x 1024 60Hz, 1360 x 768 60Hz, 1920 x 1080i 60Hz, 1920 x 1080p 60Hz
Video Formats Refresh Rate: 480i 60Hz, 480p 60Hz, 720p 60Hz, 1080i 60Hz, 1080p 60Hz
Inputs/Outputs:

AV 1: Audio L/R in, YPbPr
AV 2: Audio L/R in, YPbPr
AV 3: CVBS in, S-Video in
HDMI 1: HDMI v1.3
HDMI 2: HDMI v1.3
HDMI 3: Analog audio L/R in, HDMI v1.3
HDMI-control (CEC features): One touch play, Power status, System info (menu language), System standby
Front / Side Connections: Audio L/R in, CVBS in, Headphone out, S-video in, USB, HDMI
Audio Output - Digital: Coaxial (cinch)
Audio:

Equalizer: 5-bands
Output Power (RMS): 25W
Sound Enhancement: Incredible Surround
Sound System: Dolby Digital (AC-3), BBE
Built-in Speakers: 4



Trying to buy a Series 6 Samsung will set me back appx.
$1,700 plus extended warranty, tax etc....... over 2G &
I can't justify that in my budget right now. If you have
any links to a better price on the Samsung I'd appreciate
your posting it here.......
 
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Stoner4Life

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ICMag Donor
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BUMP.......

any more advice or links out there?

I found a few Samsungs in Wal-Mart yesterday, priced better than
I'd found online btw. One LCD was a 720p and had the most brilliant
picture of the bunch, leaves me confused a bit. I can't spend any
more than about $1,400 on the set as w/tax, extended warranty,
cables, etc I'll be close to the 2K I didn't want to spend.
 

dbuzz

Active member
Veteran
slickdeals.net

i haven't been checking lately, but if you browse it regularly you can scoop a deal. check the forums for tv deals, and coupons. i'd go with a nice 720p.

theres also some tricks you can use at best buy. talk the managers into giving you a "package discount". let them sell you a high end surge protector, cables, warranty, and service plan. they will mark the tv down. get em as low as you can. buy it all and wait a couple days, then take everything back but the tv. don't let them tell you to call an 800# to refund the warranty. they may try that one but policy is to return it to the store in the first 30 days. they might put up a fight on this and threaten to increase the cost of the tv but hold your ground. if their corporate got wind of them working deals to raise accessory and warranty numbers they would be fired. threaten a phone call to higher management. for smoother returns take it back to another best buy. :headbange
 

Stoner4Life

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OK,
after looking at several stores I've realized a thing or two. My eyes are not able to tell the difference between 720p & 1080p at all. I don't use my distance glasses to watch TV with now & so it just doesn't push me into that 1080p price range now.

I do ZERO gaming and so I 120Hz & a very fast Contrast Ratio is also a bit less necessary than I thought before, a decent Contrast Ratio is needed though to keep the black scenes graphics more easily viewable.

As I'm doing no gaming & don't have to worry about burn in I can likely go with a plasma set if I decide. They are sharper in image because they've a faster screen refresh speed. I can find a 50" or 52" plasma for less than $1,000 which means the 3 yr extended warranty will cost only $80.00 instead of $200.00 for all sets above $1,000.00 retail, so that's another $120 back in my sock drawer.......

btw, the 3 yr extended warranty (Wal-Mart & Sam's Club and they both stand by their return/refund policies) promises 100% replacement if the set cannot be repaired in my home, no pro-rating my time of ownership. Being as I watch alot of TV I figure if there's going to be issues with my set they'll manifest before the entire 4 yrs is up. Plus within 4 yrs I'm sure to be looking at my next set with a better budget at that time.


Any thoughts on these newer ideas.......

I'll just be watching TV and running my DVDs,
clarity is an issue I'll read about before buying
any model TV & speed is secondary to me now.
Computer hookups seem available on most sets.
I'm thinking I can top out around $1,300 total &
not near that $2,000 I've been dreading.......

Bigger (47") 720p LCD or 50"-52" Plasmas?

Pros & Cons anyone?
 

sirgrassalot

Domesticator of Cannabis
Veteran
My Sammy LN-T4661F has a no glare screen - I can't stand glare & or reflection on the screen. Looks like you're watching through glass.
 
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Verite

My little pony.. my little pony
Veteran
Dont be fooled by 'dynamic' contrast as it really means nothing. Actual contrast is the true factor you want to compare with. If it were me I would get a nice inexpensive temporary TV and wait to save my money for the new technology coming out soon.

The new technology coming up is going to make any and every current TV out there look like shit in comparison. Were talking 1-2ms refresh rates and a native contrast ratios of 100,000 to 1.
 

Stoner4Life

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ICMag Donor
Veteran
Verite said:
Dont be fooled by 'dynamic' contrast as it really means nothing. Actual contrast is the true factor you want to compare with. If it were me I would get a nice inexpensive temporary TV and wait to save my money for the new technology coming out soon.

The new technology coming up is going to make any and every current TV out there look like shit in comparison. Were talking 1-2ms refresh rates and a native contrast ratios of 100,000 to 1.
I've seen that the Dynamic contrast is a 5 to 1 ratio in regards to its own 'actual contrast' so that set I have noted above has appx 6000:1 actual contrast, again that is only what I've surmised by comparing other sets labeled that same way. Notice the 5ms Response Time? Pretty quick imo.

The set I buy today will have to live a few yrs before I spring for a new set, and I couldn't afford to buy any new technology right now.
 
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