HDTV Questions and Answers Thread

[Blzer]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answer Thread

LOL it's not for my room. I don't even have a computer in my room. It's going to go in our "Entertainment room".

[Blzer]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answer Thread

Okay, so it's this HDTV, used specifically for watching sports, DVD's, and playing video games on... all for $400 (on a site that sells refurbished TV's).



I have the link to the refurbished site... but people have said in the past that the link doesn't work for them, but it works for me. Here you go:

http://www.electronicsnation.com/en/products/show_product/category/70

[JohnnytheSkin]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answer Thread

Sorry about the misconception. I've just been soured by other users on message boards. It's just hard for me to fathom some people buying extravagant TV's when they don't even have a family, good job, or a college education.

As for your Philips, the HDMI input is a VERY good thing to have. You only have one component input (or so the CC website says) so you'll probably want to invest in a switch box of some kind if you are planning on having game consoles hooked to it.

Since you are looking at a Philips authorized repair location, there should be no risk at all. I would be willing to wager that they do in fact offer a guarantee that it will work, so just be sure to test all the inputs and menu settings as soon as you get it home.

Good luck!

*Another thing to note is to disregard what some idiot reviewer says. He states that the "HDMI and component" share the same audio. Ignore him. HDMI carries it's own audio signal, along with the pure digital video. You don't have to worry about this.*

[Dealin Rams]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answer Thread

Does anyone know off-hand if the Sharp Aquos 32" and 37" lcd-flat panels, which are the two I'm primarily considering for a purchase during the next month, are 720p native?

I am getting an XBox 360 and Time Warner Digital Cable, so I heard that 720p native would be a good thing to have.

I know the Aquos models have a resolution of 1366x768 (or something like that) - does that mean they're 720p native?

Also, does anyone know of any reason why I shouldn't go with either of those Aquos models? I will be watching a lot of digital cable (lots of sports), dvds, and of course the 360 on whatever I buy.

[JohnnytheSkin]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answer Thread

Does anyone know off-hand if the Sharp Aquos 32" and 37" lcd-flat panels, which are the two I'm primarily considering for a purchase during the next month, are 720p native?

I am getting an XBox 360 and Time Warner Digital Cable, so I heard that 720p native would be a good thing to have.

I know the Aquos models have a resolution of 1366x768 (or something like that) - does that mean they're 720p native?

Also, does anyone know of any reason why I shouldn't go with either of those Aquos models? I will be watching a lot of digital cable (lots of sports), dvds, and of course the 360 on whatever I buy.

I don't think you'll have a problem setting it to 720p native. I think the extra pixels are just to deal with overscan issues (not to clear on this). If you connect your 360 via a VGA port (if it's available on those sets) I think you can set the resolution to your native 1366x768.

I would definately buy the TV, they are highly recommended across every forum and website.

[koolbubbaice]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answer Thread

Can someone help me? I know absolutely next to nothing about HDTV's and I'm looking to buy one. Here what I got so far.

I want a 60 inch at a reasonable price so the Best Buy guy suggested a 60 inch Sony Grand WEGA SXD High Definition TV. Its $4100 and its 1920x 1080.

Would this be good to play on with a 360/PS3. I was told it displays in 1080i and although its considered 1080p able... it won't broadcast in that so that made no sense to me.

Could someone help me?

Thanks.

It's considered by many to be the best RP HDTV on the market TV.. The TV scales all Signals to 1080p.. Theres just no input that supports 1080p.. So if you hooked up the SXRD to your PC you won't be able to get a 1080p resolution..

[koolbubbaice]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answer Thread

I live in an apartment with my wife, (newly married) we have limited space and I was looking into the hdtv market. However, I oly have room for around a 27 inch. My question is this still possible to enter the hdtv market with that size, and if so, is it still worth it?

Sony 27inch HDTV would be your best bet.. Yes it's worth it, but wide screen is always better..

[koolbubbaice]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answer Thread

The burn-in issue has been WAY overstated on several forums. You should not have any problem playing your Xbox or any game console on a rear projection CRT or Plasma if you follow a few basic, idiot-proof steps:

1)Do not leave your game or any program paused for several hours at a time. The static image can then "burn-in".

2)Do not leave your TV on one of the damn scrolling news channels (CNN, Fox News) for hours at a time.

3)Do not leave your TV on one of the stations with a station logo for hours at a time.

Turn your TV off in the above situations.

and most important...

4)TURN DOWN THE BRIGHTNESS AND CONTRAST IN YOUR USER PICTURE SETTINGS!!!!

The last thing is vital since every TV comes out of the box with very high brightness and contrast. The reason is that retailers need the picture to be visible with bright flourescent floor lighting.

Your best bet would be to purchase either the "Avia Guide to Home Theater" or "Digital Video Essentials" on DVD. These will both walk you through some proper picture calibration steps, which will help with setting the proper levels of brightness and contrast. Another option is to use one of the THX Optimizers on several DVD's (the Episode II Optimizer is generally considered accurate for regular TV and DVD viewing...others are catered to the specific movie).

It's really a simple fix, and you should still be able to get a great picture with brightness and contrast turned down. The major issue is for those with the two settings very high, where in those situations watching CSI (a dark show) with the CBS logo (which will stick out with high contrast whites) will cause the residual "burned in" image.

Good luck! And let us know how you like your TV.



It's DEFINATELY worth it to enter the HDTV market. If your aren't looking at a super budget HDTV, I would suggest the Sharp Aquous LCD sets. For about $1200, you can get a 26" widescreen which is absolutely gorgeous (three hundred more for a 32"). These sets are the top of the line for flat panel LCD's.

Another option are the Samsung Dynaflat screens. These are also 16:9 and are much more affordable...plus you get the benefits of the CRT black levels (just don't expect mind blowing HDTV images).



The SXRD's are the one of the most highly rated sets on the market now. They are one of the few that can do 1080p. The problem, as you mentioned, is that nothing is broadcast in 1080p. The most peformance-wise you can expect is for the TV to scale all of your 1080i HD broadcasts to 1080p (which will be an improvement).

For PS3, since it's rumored that it will display native 1080p images (and Blu-Ray DVD's), the set is ideal, though a native 720p set will still display PS3 and Blu-Ray (and 720p is the native resolution for Xbox 360).

My suggestion would be to wait at least a year, when the cost should drop at least $500. If you are looking at a TV, and it's affordable to go 1080p, do it. Just don't expect a lot of support broadcast and resolution wise for a very long time. Hell, only a third of all TV's in the country are HD now, and most are the scaled 1080i CRT's. Even with Blu-Ray and HD-DVD, I imagine that most will only output 720p and 1080i (and each player will probably have it's own native resolution output).

If you want a TV now, you can't go wrong buying a native 720p DLP or LCD for $2500 and getting a nice upconverting DVD player or sound system for the same cost as your 1080p set (if not a larger set).

Another option are the Samsung Dynaflat screens. These are also 16:9 and are much more affordable...plus you get the benefits of the CRT black levels (just don't expect mind blowing HDTV images).

CRTs PQ are still tops that no LCD display can touch..

[koolbubbaice]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answer Thread

I don't think you'll have a problem setting it to 720p native. I think the extra pixels are just to deal with overscan issues (not to clear on this). If you connect your 360 via a VGA port (if it's available on those sets) I think you can set the resolution to your native 1366x768.

I would definately buy the TV, they are highly recommended across every forum and website.

The resolutions over VGA are:

Computer resolutions.

800X600
1024X768
1280X768
1360X768
1280X1024

HD resolutions.

Component:
720p
1080i

[Unoriginal Name]

Inline Signal Amplifier

Has anyone tried using something like this?

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103913&cp=2032057.2032187.2032189.2032207&pg=3&numProdsPerPage=20&parentPage=family

I just bought a new television over the weekend. I am only using standard cable right now and I'm just trying to get myself a better picture for the time being until I get digital cable. Anyone have success in a similar situation? If so what did you use?

Thanks.

[Dame]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answer Thread

can someone give me a link to tell me whats better plasma or lcd or can someone just tell me i can look back all these pages and search dont help at all with this subject thanks in advance

[mjb2124]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answer Thread

can someone give me a link to tell me whats better plasma or lcd or can someone just tell me i can look back all these pages and search dont help at all with this subject thanks in advance

That's pretty open-ended.

Depends on the TV, personal preference on how they look to you, what it'll be mainly used for etc...

My opinion is that it's whatever TV looks best to you upon researching them at stores. I know that's not the answer you're looking for, but IMO it's the way to go. It took me almost 8 months of research (reading about them, seeing them at stores etc..) before I made the decision that a Samsung DLP was the best picture for what I wanted.

[Dame]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answer Thread

That's pretty open-ended.

Depends on the TV, personal preference on how they look to you, what it'll be mainly used for etc...

My opinion is that it's whatever TV looks best to you upon researching them at stores. I know that's not the answer you're looking for, but IMO it's the way to go. It took me almost 8 months of research (reading about them, seeing them at stores etc..) before I made the decision that a Samsung DLP was the best picture for what I wanted.

Thanks i was doing that i've been doing that dor awhile it just seems like as soon as i like something i start hearing negative about it but thanks for the help

[Dealin Rams]

32" and 37" Sharp Aquos Models

So, as I mentioned before, I've narrowed my search down to a Sharp Aquos 32" or 37". I'm hoping someone familiar with this line can help me though; it seems like right now there's one consensus 32" model (the LC-32DA5U) that everyone likes. But, I would like to go 37" if I can raise a bit more cash. Problem is, there are about 3 or 4 different Aquos models that are 37". Can anyone tell me what the differences are, and which one is the one to get if I'm able to go 37"?

[JohnnytheSkin]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answer Thread

Thanks i was doing that i've been doing that dor awhile it just seems like as soon as i like something i start hearing negative about it but thanks for the help

That's the problem with the whole research process. Everyone is going to have their own opinion about a technology or make/model. It gets almost as bad as the fanboy-ism for the gaming consoles.

I say educate yourself about the pros/cons of each technology (CNET has a good run down of the four main types: CRT, Plasma, LCD, DLP) and just mess around in the stores. Hopefully you have a specialty shop like Ultimate Electronics/Soundtrack or some smaller store that will allow you to play a DVD or game in store. That way you can check for rainbows on DLP's, the screen door effect for LCD, etc. Be sure to drop both brightness and contrast down to the mid-point while viewing in store as well, since those settings are always unnaturally high.

We'll offer advice, and hopefully you see that most of the guys here have their favorites, yet tend to stay away from the poo-pooing of another's choice. Good luck!