Help needed with new TV purchase

[bryce]

I just bought a house, which means one thing of course - time to upgrade to a big screen HDTV. The only problem is that I know NOTHING about them. Anyone have any advice, knowledge, helpful links, yada they could slap up here? I'm looking to keep my cost to between 2k and 3k, in all likelihood.

As I understand it, there are three types? Plasma, LCD, and DLP Projection, is that right? Or have I already screwed that much up? Entirely possible. But what are the pros and cons of each type, whatever those types may be?

ANY info is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

[moriarty]

First couple of questions you have to ask yourself is, do you plan to hang it on a wall and how far will you be sitting from the screen?

If you want/need to hang it on a while you're looking at plasmas and paying a premium for a comparible unit. If you don't necessarily need that feature, I'd look at DLP's (make sure you don't see rainbows) and LCD's. You can hang some LCD's on the wall but at the size you're looking at that would be difficult.

For seating distance. At 8-10' you're probably looking at a 50"-56" optimal screen size. Further than 10' you can start looking at 60+. Less than 8', probably 40-43".

I'd also look primarily at 720p or 1080i sets and save a bit. Yeah, you can buy 1080p sets with more resolution but unless you're buying a fancy new HD player or using your tv to play PS3 exclusively then the 1080p markup isn't worth it (no televisions stations currently broadcast in 1080p, and theres a debate whether they will in the next 5-6 years).

And I'm sure Bee will pop in here and recommend you look at front projectors if you have a dark enough room. :)

[Bee]

:D Thank you for saving me the typing!

[Eaglesfan27]

I'll just pimp the Sony 50" SXRD. I recently bought the 60" model which is almost the same in features, and it is a terrific TV. It is a new technology that is rear projection based. I saw it recently on sale for 2799. Of course, it is fairly heavy (about 90 lbs) so it's not a good choice if you want to hang it on your wall.

[Greyroofoo]

just get a home cinema projecter

[mtolson]

I just bought a house, which means one thing of course - time to upgrade to a big screen HDTV. The only problem is that I know NOTHING about them. Anyone have any advice, knowledge, helpful links, yada they could slap up here? I'm looking to keep my cost to between 2k and 3k, in all likelihood.

As I understand it, there are three types? Plasma, LCD, and DLP Projection, is that right? Or have I already screwed that much up? Entirely possible. But what are the pros and cons of each type, whatever those types may be?

ANY info is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Congratulations, once you finally figure out what you want you will not believe the picture quality. I have a larger 65" rear projection set and a 50" DLP set. It will really balls down to personal preference as they all have advantages and dis-advantages. I will list just a little about each:

Plasma's
Pro
Super thin, can be hung from wall.
Very large sizes available

Cons
Costly
Can suffer from burn in if image left on screen. Very unlikely with newer technoligies or after 100 or so hours of use.

LCD
Pro
Super Thin, can be hung from wall
Run cooler and require less power than Plasma
No burn in

Cons
Not available in large sizes like DLP or Plasma
Costly

DLP
Pro
Larger in depth then plasma/lcd but not as large as older rear projects
Greater selection in 1080i or 1080p
Cheaper than plasma/lcd

Cons
Some people experience rainbow effects
Can't hang from wall


It really balls down to personal preference. Go to a store and look for yourself. Bestbuy and Circuit City don't often show very good picture quality in store so be aware. Some Bestbuy store have a Magnolia room that is a little better than stores without.

For me, in the basement I went with a 65" Mitsu. rear project. I wanted 1080i and could not afford the enormous cost of a Plasma that size. Size was not a big issue as my basement is huge. In my bedroom, I went with a 50" Samsung DLP. It's 1080p with technology to prevent burn in, plus I don't suffer from rainbow effects. Plasma was a option for the bedroom but the cost of my 1080p was about $1000 less than a Plasma that size. DLP are still thiner than a regular 32 inch TV so I wasn't to worried about size and had no desire to hang the TV.

Hope this helps.

[mtolson]

I just bought a house, which means one thing of course - time to upgrade to a big screen HDTV. The only problem is that I know NOTHING about them. Anyone have any advice, knowledge, helpful links, yada they could slap up here? I'm looking to keep my cost to between 2k and 3k, in all likelihood.

As I understand it, there are three types? Plasma, LCD, and DLP Projection, is that right? Or have I already screwed that much up? Entirely possible. But what are the pros and cons of each type, whatever those types may be?

ANY info is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Congratulations, once you finally figure out what you want you will not believe the picture quality. I have a larger 65" rear projection set and a 50" DLP set. It will really balls down to personal preference as they all have advantages and dis-advantages. I will list just a little about each:

Plasma's
Pro
Super thin, can be hung from wall.
Very large sizes available

Cons
Costly
Can suffer from burn in if image left on screen. Very unlikely with newer technoligies or after 100 or so hours of use.

LCD
Pro
Super Thin, can be hung from wall
Run cooler and require less power than Plasma
No burn in

Cons
Not available in large sizes like DLP or Plasma
Costly

DLP
Pro
Larger in depth then plasma/lcd but not as large as older rear projects
Greater selection in 1080i or 1080p
Cheaper than plasma/lcd

Cons
Some people experience rainbow effects
Can't hang from wall


It really balls down to personal preference. Go to a store and look for yourself. Bestbuy and Circuit City don't often show very good picture quality in store so be aware. Some Bestbuy store have a Magnolia room that is a little better than stores without.

For me, in the basement I went with a 65" Mitsu. rear project. I wanted 1080i and could not afford the enormous cost of a Plasma that size. Size was not a big issue as my basement is huge. In my bedroom, I went with a 50" Samsung DLP. It's 1080p with technology to prevent burn in, plus I don't suffer from rainbow effects. Plasma was a option for the bedroom but the cost of my 1080p was about $1000 less than a Plasma that size. DLP are still thiner than a regular 32 inch TV so I wasn't to worried about size and had no desire to hang the TV.

Hope this helps.

[mtolson]

I just bought a house, which means one thing of course - time to upgrade to a big screen HDTV. The only problem is that I know NOTHING about them. Anyone have any advice, knowledge, helpful links, yada they could slap up here? I'm looking to keep my cost to between 2k and 3k, in all likelihood.

As I understand it, there are three types? Plasma, LCD, and DLP Projection, is that right? Or have I already screwed that much up? Entirely possible. But what are the pros and cons of each type, whatever those types may be?

ANY info is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Congratulations, once you finally figure out what you want you will not believe the picture quality. I have a larger 65" rear projection set and a 50" DLP set. It will really balls down to personal preference as they all have advantages and dis-advantages. I will list just a little about each:

Plasma's
Pro
Super thin, can be hung from wall.
Very large sizes available

Cons
Costly
Can suffer from burn in if image left on screen. Very unlikely with newer technoligies or after 100 or so hours of use.

LCD
Pro
Super Thin, can be hung from wall
Run cooler and require less power than Plasma
No burn in

Cons
Not available in large sizes like DLP or Plasma
Costly

DLP
Pro
Larger in depth then plasma/lcd but not as large as older rear projects
Greater selection in 1080i or 1080p
Cheaper than plasma/lcd

Cons
Some people experience rainbow effects
Can't hang from wall


It really balls down to personal preference. Go to a store and look for yourself. Bestbuy and Circuit City don't often show very good picture quality in store so be aware. Some Bestbuy store have a Magnolia room that is a little better than stores without.

For me, in the basement I went with a 65" Mitsu. rear project. I wanted 1080i and could not afford the enormous cost of a Plasma that size. Size was not a big issue as my basement is huge. In my bedroom, I went with a 50" Samsung DLP. It's 1080p with technology to prevent burn in, plus I don't suffer from rainbow effects. Plasma was a option for the bedroom but the cost of my 1080p was about $1000 less than a Plasma that size. DLP are still thiner than a regular 32 inch TV so I wasn't to worried about size and had no desire to hang the TV.

Hope this helps.

[WVUFAN]

Does anyone have a setup like this one (I'm thinking of buying it, and would be interested to know if this would be worthwhile)

http://www.amazon.com/Optoma-H31-Home-Theater-Projector/dp/B0007CGXWA/

[mtolson]

Does anyone have a setup like this one (I'm thinking of buying it, and would be interested to know if this would be worthwhile)

http://www.amazon.com/Optoma-H31-Home-Theater-Projector/dp/B0007CGXWA/

480p is DVD or EDTV quality. Projectors can be excellant investments but if you are looking for HD this will not cut it. I would look for something at least 720p if you are interested in HD.

[WVUFAN]

480p is DVD or EDTV quality. Projectors can be excellant investments but if you are looking for HD this will not cut it. I would look for something at least 720p if you are interested in HD.

Ok, that's cool. Real quick question: Under the technical details it says for this item:

HDTV: 720p, 1080i, SDTV (480i), EDTV (480p), 576i/p

What does that mean if it's only 480p?

[Bee]

A good friend of mine owns that projector and it is pretty nice and a great price (yes my projector love has rubbed off on my friends). Basically what the 480p means is that it will take a HD image and scale it down. Unlike a standard tv, it can accept a HD image. It's also noticeably better resolution than regular SDTV, but you lose some resolution compared to a true HD projector. Personally, I think the jump from SDTV to EDTV is much more visually noticeable than the jump from EDTV to HDTV. The nice thing about the Optoma H31 is it has great contrast and black levels which go a long way in making up for the lower resolution. A lot of people just look at the resolution, but that doesn't tell the whole story. The quality of the image depends on other factors as well. Resolution is important, but it's far from being the only factor. If I were going to spend less than a grand on a projector, I'd get the H31 or one of the similar models (Infocus 4805 or the Optoma H27).

Seeing it in action, it's not really that much of a drop off from a true HD projector and some people won't be able to tell the difference unless you have it side by side with a HD image. Some of my other friends couldn't tell the difference between my AE900 (a 720p projector) and the H31 when we went over and played some games on the H31. I could tell the difference and a couple other guys could but the image was still pretty sweet. I know seeing his XBOX 360 hooked up to the H31 is what really prompted me to buy an XBOX 360.

You'd need to probably at least double that price to get a good 720p projector. If the money isn't an issue, I'd do that otherwise I see nothing wrong with getting a quality 480p projector especially at that price. Nothing like watching football at 100"+ baby!

Oh yeah, like I've said before light control is important for a projector (Basements are great but my second projector is on the first floor and a heavy curtain that I can close over the window and recessed lights on a dimmer switch does a great job). Bulb replacement is something else to keep in mind when buying a projector.