HD flat panel televisions (small)

[imageWIS]

Just tell us how much you want to spend and what you are looking for and will give our opinions as to what we think the best set is for the specified amount.

Jon.

 

[romafan]

$600 - 800; something around 30". should be flat (no deep tube). is this at all realistic for a 'good' tv?

 

[HomerJ]

Originally Posted by romafan

$600 - 800; something around 30". should be flat (no deep tube). is this at all realistic for a 'good' tv?

How about this 32" LCD for $550.
http://www.amazon.com/Westinghouse-L.../dp/B0007XQ2LG

 

[romafan]

Originally Posted by HomerJ

How about this 32" LCD for $550.
http://www.amazon.com/Westinghouse-L.../dp/B0007XQ2LG

Thnx Homey. Good price, but reviews didn't look so good....

 

[HomerJ]

It got 4.5 stars which is good. 20 and 9 reviewers out of 34 gave it 5 or 4 stars respectively. 2 reviewers gave it 1 star for breaking right after the 1 year warranty. Take home message might be to spring for the extended warranty.. Here's another Westinghouse, 37" for $512 shipped that is getting much love over at slickdeals. But it's a refurb, some mixed reviews on the refurb condition. Hard to beat that price, it may come back in stock. http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthr...highlight=hdtv Or if you have a Sam's club or CostCo you could get something there. I don't know about CostCo but Sam's carries Vizio which should fit your needs. Plus you get the great return policy in case.

 

[djmano]

westinghouse and vizio are known as the two 'budget' flat panel brands that are halfway decent. they have very good features and PQ for the price.

 

[dkzzzz]

I would buy LCD computer screen at this price.
You can watch TV or you can browse the web and watch Netflix instantly, etc.
If you are willing to spend upwards of 800.00 it is worth to kill 2 birds with one stone.

If you decide to buy TV-only buy something from top of the line manufacturer. I would recommend LCD in this small size 30".
Certainly buy somehting with very high reviews for it's picture quality becasue you going to watch this TV from relatively close disatnce and any imperfections of the technology would be evident on a cheap screens.
Do not stretch your budget to buy 1080P screens. In this size and at this point in time it is not worth to spend extra on 1080P resolution, unless you are early adopter of Blue-ray DVD format.
TV-cable broadcasts are so horrible in it's resolution and so compressed that 1080P is de-facto unavailable.

 

[romafan]

Originally Posted by dkzzzz

I would buy LCD computer screen at this price.
You can watch TV or you can browse the web and watch Netflix instantly, etc.
If you are willing to spend upwards of 800.00 it is worth to kill 2 birds with one stone.

If you decide to buy TV-only buy something from top of the line manufacturer. I would recommend LCD in this small size 30".
Certainly buy somehting with very high reviews for it's picture quality becasue you going to watch this TV from relatively close disatnce and any imperfections of the technology would be evident on a cheap screens.
Do not stretch your budget to buy 1080P screens. In this size and at this point in time it is not worth to spend extra on 1080P resolution, unless you are early adopter of Blue-ray DVD format.
TV-cable broadcasts are so horrible in it's resolution and so compressed that 1080P is de-facto unavailable.

I thought 30" was big.....

Hey - Here's a question: Can LCD flat screen TV's get reception w/o a cable hookup? Our old set has 'rabbit ears', and being on a high floor we get good reception of the basic free channels (CBS, NBC, ABC, three locals & PBS) even though we don't have cable. Looking at all the new flat screen LCDs I don't see any rabbit ears. Will we need to get cabel in order to watch the thing?

 

[HomerJ]

Doesn't your apartment building have an antenna on the roof? That should pick up signals a lot better than rabbit ears but I don't see why you can't hook up an antenna.

Like I said, if the TV has an HD tuner it should also pick up free local HD channels over the air by antenna.

 

[Brian SD]

Originally Posted by romafan

I thought 30" was big..... Hey - Here's a question: Can LCD flat screen TV's get reception w/o a cable hookup? Our old set has 'rabbit ears', and being on a high floor we get good reception of the basic free channels (CBS, NBC, ABC, three locals & PBS) even though we don't have cable. Looking at all the new flat screen LCDs I don't see any rabbit ears. Will we need to get cabel in order to watch the thing?
If you buy a computer monitor as dkzzz suggests, you won't get a TV tuner, which is required to watch the free TV channels (it's basically some hardware inside the TV that gives it the ability to change channels). Computer monitors can display the same image as TVs (and usually at a higher resolution), so bang-for-your-buck wise, a monitor is going to get you much better picture quality per dollar, however one of the main reasons they're cheaper is because they do not have TV tuners. 99% of the time you do not need cable to get the free channels, but you do need a cable outlet in your home. If your house has a cable outlet, you can get the free channels through a coaxial cable (a very cheap, almost-free analog cable that goes from the outlet in your wall to your TV) without cable TV service. Cable outlets usually look like silver cylindrical shapes with grooves on the side not unlike a bolt so look around the walls for these. Honestly dude I can't believe your TV has rabbit ears, and further I can't believe that you actually got reception. I thought we're past the date the government decided that there would be no more TV broadcast through that means. Isn't that frequency being sold off?

Also, I do think 30" is a pretty big TV so you're not alone there, but regardless, 30" is not nearly the level that you'll begin to see a difference between the higher resolutions. I think if you can find a pretty good deal on a 1080i TV, you should spring for that. 1080p really requires something 50" or above to notice so don't stretch your budget thinking it'll be worth it in the long run. My father started a business installing home theatre equipment and high-end A/V stuff to rich people and businesses. I should print out some of the stuff you say because he'd get a kick out of it. "Looking at all the new flat screen LCDs I don't see any rabbit ears."

No offense it's just funny to hear that. Also, you know LCD flat screens are hardly "new," right?

 

[romafan]

Dude, I'm here to amuse.

Didn't check today, but Bob the Builder came in loud and clear yesterday morning. Thnx for tip re coaxil. Apartment does have cable outlet. Our Tinitron is (I'm guessing) 15 years old. The rabbit ears are more like a 'v' shaped antenna that 'plugs' in the top of the set. Each side of the 'v' extends up, like a walkie talkie antenna....

I know, my parents have had a flatscreen for probably 6 or 7 years, and they are generally behind the times....

Originally Posted by Brian SD

If you buy a computer monitor as dkzzz suggests, you won't get a TV tuner, which is required to watch the free TV channels (it's basically some hardware inside the TV that gives it the ability to change channels). Computer monitors can display the same image as TVs (and usually at a higher resolution), so bang-for-your-buck wise, a monitor is going to get you much better picture quality per dollar, however one of the main reasons they're cheaper is because they do not have TV tuners.

99% of the time you do not need cable to get the free channels, but you do need a cable outlet in your home. If your house has a cable outlet, you can get the free channels through a coaxial cable (a very cheap, almost-free analog cable that goes from the outlet in your wall to your TV) without cable TV service. Cable outlets usually look like silver cylindrical shapes with grooves on the side not unlike a bolt so look around the walls for these.

Honestly dude I can't believe your TV has rabbit ears, and further I can't believe that you actually got reception. I thought we're past the date the government decided that there would be no more TV broadcast through that means. Isn't that frequency being sold off?

Also, I do think 30" is a pretty big TV so you're not alone there, but regardless, 30" is not nearly the level that you'll begin to see a difference between the higher resolutions. I think if you can find a pretty good deal on a 1080i TV, you should spring for that. 1080p really requires something 50" or above to notice so don't stretch your budget thinking it'll be worth it in the long run.

My father started a business installing home theatre equipment and high-end A/V stuff to rich people and businesses. I should print out some of the stuff you say because he'd get a kick out of it. "Looking at all the new flat screen LCDs I don't see any rabbit ears."

No offense it's just funny to hear that. Also, you know LCD flat screens are hardly "new," right?