AntSports Steve said:
Saw HDTV at a friends house last month with my wife, and she was so impressed, she wants to get one. So, when the HDTV big screens go onsale for football season, I'm going to get one.
The DLP ones seem to give you the most bang for your buck. Has anyone done any research and purchased one themselves?
The best place to research this is at
www.avsforum.com in the rear projection television forum (RPTV). I bought a HD television for the superbowl last year. I researched for a loooong time before I finally bought one.
The same thing I got of course!
Avoid plasma!
What should I be aware of?
The differences in the technology.
CRT (tube bigscreen) has arguably the best picture. You do not have to worry about dead or stuck pixels or "rainbows". They weigh a ton and are difficult to move. CRT's do a better job showing detail in dark scenes or on dark objects. CRT's are subject to something called "burn in". If you something is left in the same position on the screen for a long time the image can be "burned in" the screen. (Like a fox news logo). You have probably seen this effect at ATM machines where you can still see wording in the screen that isn't currently being displayed.
LCD: If you examine an LCD in the store up close you will see the "screen door effect". The pixels that comprise the display have thin boarders that seperate them. You shouldn't see the screen door effect from a proper viewing distance. LCD sets can also get "stuck" or "dead" pixels. If you have had a laptop or flatscreen computer monitor you are probably already looking at one. The pixels are tiny and it is not usually noticeable unless you actively search the screen. LCD's have gotten better on black levels and detail in dark scenes but in my opinion they are behind DLP which is behind CRT. Rear projectection LCD sets are light. LCD is immune to burn in.
DLP: DLP's also do not have as good of black levels as a CRT HD set but are usually better then LCD's. The big drawback to DLP's are "rainbows". A small percentage of the population can see "rainbows" behind fast moving objects on DLP screens. You may not see the rainbows in the store or for a month or two after you buy the set. Rear projection DLP sets are light. There are variations on DLP such as JVC has a type called Dila (something like that). DLP is immune to burn in. In my opinion DLP has a somewhat "fuzzy" or "soft" picture and the details aren't as sharp.
Plasma: Flat screen. Over the life of the set, the phosphurs in the screen that generate the image loose their luminence. The set will gradually get dimmer and dimmer. Also, Plasmas are subject to "burn in".
LCD Flat screen: expensive! Can get stuck or dead pixels.
You probably do not want a TV with a built in HD tuner. If you use satellite or plan on using Tivo you will not use the built in HD tuner in the television and it's a waste of money.
Get the largest TV you can!
Most of the big screen HDTV's are 720p and not 1080. The television will seemlessly scale the image to it's native resolution. 1080 big screens are just now starting to get into the market place and they cost big bucks. Avoid "enhanced" or EDTV's. These look like HD sets and the salesman may tell you it's HD but it's not.
Personally, I chose a Panasonic 60" PT-60LC14 (50" version too) rear projection LCD television because of outstanding reviews and numerous favorable reports from owners on avsforums.com. It was down to the panny and a similar 60" Sony LCD (kdf-60xs). The panasonic had more inputs including an RGB input (which the sony lacked) so Half Life 2 looks pretty amazing. After the research, the Panny was the hands down winner. Panasonic generally has very highly rated HD sets.
I have the Sony 60" HDTV (KDF-60XS955) and would recommend it BIG TIME! Be careful with the DLPs the screen door effect is annoying during sporting events. A couple of years ago the DLPs were much better than the LCDs, but these newer Sony LCDs are much better than any DLP out there in many people’s opinion. If the cost is too much Costco and Sams Club are selling the 50” version of the Sony LCD w/stand for $2,300.00 and you are going to have to roll a High Def Tivo along with that!
LCD televisions have screen door effect, not DLP's. And, all the HD Tivo's currently available are junk. I would avoid all the current HD Tivo boxes and wait for the next round from the manufacturers.
