Help with buying a television. Please.

[scooper]

So the wife and I have after months of labor finished a large portion of our basement. The stairs split the finished portion in two and we've pegged a 12 X 16 side of it as a new family room and we'd like to buy a nice television. We're in no hurry. We don't need it until football season, but we're starting to do our homework.

Now I am technologically challenged and have never made a large electronics purchase save for a PC and I have some questions.

Quantity vs. Quality: Our initial thought was "big screen big screen big screen" until we got out into the marketplace and learned how many options there are. We are realistically not going to budget more than $2,000, less possibly and we will be financing this. So we wonder if the best bang for our buck is a larger screen rear projection HD ready type or should we tone it down on the size and buy something with a sharper image? Looking at some of the projections models, the pictures really aren't that bad. Certainly better than our current 27 inch non flatscreen TV in our living room.

Also, from experience, considering the room is 16 feet long, what size is too uncomfortably big, especially if the seating will be as close as 11-12 feet away?

Another question: Pretty much all larger models are now wide screen. We certainly rent our share of wide screen movies, but most TV programming is not wide screen. How is this effected? Does the picture of regular programming show OK usually on a wide screen or is it stretched some?

Keep in mind, at least initially, we won't be subscribing to any HD service from cable, but we want that to be an option down the line.

Knowing our budget, and our concerns, any recommendations? Pros and cons of the options out there? Any input will be appreciated.

[jbmagic]

Toshiba is the best brand for Television

[TazFTW]

Another question: Pretty much all larger models are now wide screen. We certainly rent our share of wide screen movies, but most TV programming is not wide screen. How is this effected? Does the picture of regular programming show OK usually on a wide screen or is it stretched some?

http://www.widescreen.org/widescreen_tv_qa.shtml

[cartman]

If you are looking for a big screen, then LCD rear projection or DLP will give you the most bang for the buck. If it is in the basement, then weight is definitely an issue. I'm not sure if you'd want to lug a 36 or 40 inch tube TV down the stairs.

As for 4:3 broadcasts on a 16:9 TV, most manufacturers have different stretch modes. Some of them are obvious, and others do a great job that makes it hard to tell. Or you can just leave the 4:3 as is and have black bars on the side.

In regards to the size of the room, it's the seating area that is key. For 11 to 12 feet away, anything in the 40 to 50 inch range will be fine.

As I mentioned when Flasch was looking, I have the Sony Grand Wega LCD rear projection set, and I've been very happy with it. DVDs, DirecTV, XBox, everything looks great run through it. And Sony is runnng the 18 months no payments no interest deal on TVs right now, so that might help out as well.

[Maple Leafs]

Originally Posted by scooper

Another question: Pretty much all larger models are now wide screen. We certainly rent our share of wide screen movies, but most TV programming is not wide screen. How is this effected? Does the picture of regular programming show OK usually on a wide screen or is it stretched some?

We've had a Hitachi 47' for about two months. I don't notice any issues with the stretching, but the picture quality of non-HD channels can be noticable on the larger screen. Once you go HD, you'll have trouble watching "regular" TV again.

[scooper]

Originally Posted by TazFTW

http://www.widescreen.org/widescreen_tv_qa.shtml

Thanks to everybody. This was a helpful link. Does anybody have any experience with "burn in?" As most of our viewing would probably include the bars, and I certainly will play video games on it.

[Franklinnoble]

Mitsubishi makes nice big-screens as well.

[scooper]

Thanks. Anybody know of any brands to stay away from?

[Maple Leafs]

Originally Posted by scooper

Thanks to everybody. This was a helpful link. Does anybody have any experience with "burn in?" As most of our viewing would probably include the bars, and I certainly will play video games on it.

It's preferable to watch the stretched view instead of always using bars, assuming it doesn't bother you. You also may have the option to use grey bars instead of black, which is better for avoiding burn-in.

Video games aren't as much an issue now as they used to be because they're designed with the risk of burn-in in mind. You just want to avoid pausing the game and leaving it like that for a while (easier to do than you'd think when something comes up unexpectedly.)

As long as 1.) you crank your contract way, way down as soon as you get the TV out of the box, and 2.) you don't leave anything paused on screen, and 3.) you don't spend all day watching a channel with a ticker (CNN) or a persistent logo (lots of kids channels), you really shouldn't have anything to worry about.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by scooper

and I certainly will play video games on it.

Well, if you've got an Xbox make sure you get the Advanced A/V pack and tell your Xbox that you've got an HD 16:9 TV. That will help tremendously.

[judicial clerk]

I hate to sound like a party pooper, scooper (hey!), but I do not think you should finance the purchase of a TV.

Of course, this comes from a guy worth more dead than alive.

[scooper]

Originally Posted by judicial clerk

I hate to sound like a party pooper, scooper (hey!), but I do not think you should finance the purchase of a TV.

Of course, this comes from a guy worth more dead than alive.

Well, with feeding a third mouth and having just spent a bit on building materials, we don't have $2,000 to plunk down at one time on anything. However, we would have no trouble spreading those payments with no interest over 18 months.

[moriarty]

Originally Posted by cartman

If you are looking for a big screen, then LCD rear projection or DLP will give you the most bang for the buck. If it is in the basement, then weight is definitely an issue. I'm not sure if you'd want to lug a 36 or 40 inch tube TV down the stairs.

As for 4:3 broadcasts on a 16:9 TV, most manufacturers have different stretch modes. Some of them are obvious, and others do a great job that makes it hard to tell. Or you can just leave the 4:3 as is and have black bars on the side.

In regards to the size of the room, it's the seating area that is key. For 11 to 12 feet away, anything in the 40 to 50 inch range will be fine.

As I mentioned when Flasch was looking, I have the Sony Grand Wega LCD rear projection set, and I've been very happy with it. DVDs, DirecTV, XBox, everything looks great run through it. And Sony is runnng the 18 months no payments no interest deal on TVs right now, so that might help out as well.

What Cartman said ^^ ... except that you probably wont' find a 50" LCD/DLP in your price range (and at 11-12' I think you want a 50" set). In this price range your looking at one of the older rear projection models ... but since this is considered old technology, there are some great deals.

IMHO - the stretch modes are annoying, but it's still worth getting the widescreen (16:9) for movies and as more and more HD programming becomes available. I prefer to watch non-HD TV in 4:3 with the black bars down the side. But be warned ... watching non-HDTV on any wide screen looks sorta crappy (go to best buy or a store and tell them to show you the TV on regular TV - non-HD, non-DVD loop to get an idea). Anytime you take a low resolution picture and blow it up, you'll see all the defects you missed when it was at 27", it's just the way it is.

Like someone mentioned above, you probably won't have any issues with burn-in as long as you turn town the brightness settings on your tv. Alot of them come with presets that you can lower (most of the time in the store they have them cranked to their highest setting to catch your eye, so check it when you get it home). Avoid long sessions on channels with logos in the corner (CNN, MSNBC, etc...) and video games with static images (like health indicators) and you'll be fine.

edit: see the thread Flasch started, JD51posted a link to a television set in your price range.

[judicial clerk]

Well, with feeding a third mouth and having just spent a bit on building materials, we don't have $2,000 to plunk down at one time on anything. However, we would have no trouble spreading those payments with no interest over 18 months.

You could always continue to use the 27" set you have now and save up the $2K. (Somewhere in orange County, my buddies from college just winced in pain and they don't know why.)

But the 18 months interest free financing is also a good way to go so I will shut up and quit raining on your parade. I am just jealous because your setup will be awesome when you are ddone.

[scooper]

Originally Posted by judicial clerk

You could always continue to use the 27" set you have now and save up the $2K. (Somewhere in orange County, my buddies from college just winced in pain and they don't know why.)

But the 18 months interest free financing is also a good way to go so I will shut up and quit raining on your parade. I am just jealous because your setup will be awesome when you are ddone.

Well, the 27 inch stays in our first floor living room. We probably won't buy until well into the summer, so we can have some saved, just not the full $2,000.

Don't worry about raining on my parade. I'm just thrilled the project is finished (try any major home renovation project with a newborn in the house and both spouses working full time) and now I'm ready to furnish it. The plan is to have it ready to go by football season.