HDTVs!

[MisterBob]

Ok, looking to buy one for my apartment. Lets say the absolute price cap is $2000, any suggestions?

[Epical]

Size?

[Jefe]

Check out High Def Forums if you haven't, you'll find the most comprehensive tech talk this side of the intrawebs: http://www.highdefforum.com/

[Penthesilea]

Plasma
incredible color
excellent response times
weight
energy consumption
glare

LCD
Longevity
No glare
bad response times
not as sharp color (though the samsung 6 and 7 series are great tvs)

My personal preference is Plasma, and I'd suggest probably a PZ80u. I'd suggest getting a job at a box store, work for a month til your discount gets activated and save about 1600$ like I did on my Pioneer Elite.

[Sigi]

Well, Koji is raving about his Samsung 40" LCD (7x series, 1080p, 120Hz refresh rate, ~1600.00), where I'm quite satisfied with the Dynex (lolBestBuy storebrand, 1080p, 60Hz, ~1200.00 with lolWarranty) 42" LCD.

(Both are under 2k, have good pictures,etc)

Your best bet is to go to multiple stores and see what's available, how they perform, how you enjoy the colors/picture of the TV.

Also see if the store has a way to show the TV off in different lighting setups. For instance, LCD TVs and Plasma TVs may have issues in a brightly lit area (like say a Florida room with about 12' of southern facing windows), or the depths of a basement entertainment room. CRT HDTVs are cheaper for the real estate, but have higher energy draw requirements, and need LOTS of room. Projection TVs have huge screens, but the bulbs are stinking expensive. Projectors require multiple things and again, have issues with bulbs going bad. Forum checking and consumer reports help, however it will come down to personal preference in the end (The Samsungs I saw had poor hues and didn't really perform as well as the Dynex in bright light.)

[levish]

+1 on plasma prefrence for home theater

[Xanthe]

I'll second the Samsung 7 series. I have the 52" and it's awesome.

[BarthelloSylph]

I've heard bad things about Plasma and video game systems - are those rumors true?

[Neosutra]

I've heard bad things about Plasma and video game systems - are those rumors true?

Newer plasmas dont suffer the refresh time and earlier problems that older ones do.

I got a 52'' 1080p samsung ultra sharp plasma for alot less than I was expecting and its been nothing but awesome.

Dont buy an LCD, they are obselete, regardless of what the clerk tells you.

[Cephius]

I've had a Pioneer Plasma 42" TV for about a year now, and it's been nothing but great for me. No burn in issues, no refresh rate or dead pixel problems, nothing. I game on it constantly (own 360/ps3/wii) and I've had no problems. Picture is excellent.

I don't think LCDs are "obsolete" or anything like that, but I do love the picture that Plasmas give you. I'm sure some will disagree. Best thing to do IMO is go to a store and compare models and types and see which one you like. It's more personal preference than anything else.

[BarthelloSylph]

I heard that there was a risk of damage to the Plasma from systems - is that true?

And I do agree Plasmas are better, but they don't make them small or cheap, which is why I will probably get a LCD.

[Cephius]

The only issue I ever heard of from gaming was the risk of burn in. This is mostly an obsolete warning though because

1) Plasma technology has advanced so that burn-in risk isn't as high as it used to be

2) The only games that would burn-in are games with stationary backgrounds or characters, meaning stuff from the NES or SNES era. Newer games obviously have dynamic enviornments and thus lower risk for causing burn in.

I'm not aware of any other issues gaming could cause.

[BarthelloSylph]

Thanks Ceph - that makes a lot of sense.

Now if they could only make smaller more affordable plasmas

[Penthesilea]

Give up your weekends for a month and get a job at BB. I got a 3500$ 50" Pioneer Elite for 1900$ with employee discount.

They had a panasonic 65" plasma for 8,999.99 and employees paid 3.5k.

[Epical]

I personally have a Sharp Aquos 42" LCD (64U series) and I love it.

[Isiolia]

I'm quite happy with my 40" Samsung LCD. Not to say there isn't better out there, but it's not disappointed.

[Tyche]

Newer plasma's have an anti-glare film too that lessens the glare in well lit rooms. Nothing wrong with a plasma at all. I wouldn't make the claim that LCD's are obsolete, because that's certainly not the case. I have one and it's great. Only reason I didn't get a Plasma is because of the huge bay window in my living room that sucks light.

Edit: Also have an Aquos 64u unit. Great TV.

[JasoNintendo]

One thing to add, plasma TVs are annoying to move from place to place as you're meant to keep them upright at all times due to how the screen works. Move it around much and you'll get funny colors in parts of the screen. That being said, I have an LG 42 inch plasma and it's been fine for ps3/360/Wii/desktop monitor and has nothing burned in even from massive sessions on WoW [The UI stays burned in for like 2 minutes after closing WoW but nothing permanent in a year of owning one]. I'd suggest looking at different makes/models on newegg.com, they can also provide you with decent deals and you can find ones with features you'd like in your TV such as picture-in-picture.

[Stromgarde]

I have a Sharp LC-37GP1U LCD (37", 1080p), looks great and zero problems, lots of inputs and no discernible lag. Ultimately, the best thing you can do is go around, see these things in person, troll around the internet for reviews to find out if problems crop up down the line, and once you've narrowed it down to something that fulfills your requirements, look at price range. Worked well enough for me :D

[Amele]

Plasma
incredible color
excellent response times
weight
energy consumption
glare

LCD
Longevity
No glare
bad response times
not as sharp color (though the samsung 6 and 7 series are great tvs)

My personal preference is Plasma, and I'd suggest probably a PZ80u. I'd suggest getting a job at a box store, work for a month til your discount gets activated and save about 1600$ like I did on my Pioneer Elite.

similar to how burn-in is no longer an issue on Plasma that aren't super-cheap, Response times are no longer an issue on anything that isn't super-cheap LCD.

I actually own one of each, because they're good for different things.

I tend to recommend LCD for anything under 50" or anything that you're planning to put in a bright room, or an area with lots of natural light.(windows etc) good LCDs have better Brightness and Better Black-levels, which translates to better image in lit areas. or anywhere where you'll have people gathered around the screen rather than just in front of it.

I use a 47" Westinghouse for gaming or party uses and general video watching on the main floor, where people will tend to see the screen at a variety of angles and there's more ambient light.


Plasma is good for dark rooms and larger screen sizes, which makes it ideal for a home-theater setup. these are a little harder to move but the color quality is great (really good for movies) although in a well-lit room the black level may leave a little to be desired. If most of your gaming isn't party-style or you like to play in dark rooms, then a Plasma makes a good gaming TV too.

I use a 65" Panasonic in the basement with the rest of the home theater setup, where only a few people will be viewing at a time (always from the front) and I can better control the light level.