What to look for in a television?

[Lillymon]

We are getting two new televisions soon, and I've managed to hammer home the point that high definition is the future so both are going to be 'HD Ready'. They're also going to be 32 inch units, because we decided that was a reasonable size.

But aside from that, I'm not exactly sure what I should be looking for.

For the one I want in my room, I've decided going any further without surround sound would be unacceptable, so I want that. But do I actually need Dolby Digital? I'd also like PC input very much. The one downstairs won't need those two, but HDMI will be essential on both (I don't have to like HDCP, but I do have to accept it eventually).

But despite knowing what I want here, I'm not exactly sure which brand and which model to go for to get the best balance of value, quality, and features. That's why I'm asking here, in the hope I can make the best choice from day one on these two purchases.
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[Richter X]

http://www.avsforum.com/AVS Forum</a>

They can help you better than I can.

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[puzzl]

>

Well, i can only speak from personal experience. I have a Westinghouse 42" and a 22" monitor, and they're both fantastic. They won't be winning any quality awards, sure, but they've still got really good picture quality and for the price, it's an even better deal, I think. Their 32s have PC inputs and HDMI, so you're set there.

A friend of mine has a westy 32, and it's a great performer, especially with the xbox 360 hooked up to it. As far as i'm aware though, I don't know where to get these online apart from Best Buy, which sucks.

If you're willing to step it up on the price/performance a bit, then take a nice long look at Sharp. They make some great sets. Most people will probably tell you to go 'samsung/sony' or whatever brand has the most popular name, but seriously, check out sharp if you're wanting something a bit higher end than a westy.


As far as surround sound support goes, well, it's a moot point, since most TVs only have L/R speakers on them anyway. To take full advantage of it, you actually need a separate receiver+speaker setup. Otherwise the TV takes the surround sound and outputs it as stereo.



Checking AVSForum would proabably be the best though. <img src=smilies/magbiggrin.gif>
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[Essee]

I agree with the recommendation of Sharp in regards to picture/colour quality, but I would also like to add that Philips seems to have FANTASTIC sound quality compared to other TV sets, including at least a few sets with simulated surround sound... At least, I think it's simulated, but from how well it works (I've had to do a double-take when I've heard some sound effects while watching TV, and it's been pretty excellent to game on) I can't REALLY be sure. <img src=smilies/magbiggrin.gif> I only mention this because I went TV shopping with my mother a year or two back, and we were looking more for sound quality than anything else. We went through a Best Buy's TV aisle just listening to the sound, and the Philips units really stood out. They also have extremely good colour quality, close to Sharp's; what sold my mom on the set we got from them is that blacks actually look black on their sets, something many companies gloss over. The image quality itself is also pretty high, even on their CRTs. At any rate, I would say that Philips TVs are also reasonably priced, but I'll admit a bit of ignorance regarding that, since at the time we got that TV we weren't too interested in moving to HD. <img src=smilies/erm.gif>

So, that's my two cents. Philips or Sharp, I would say, and I think Sony would be in third place, since they certainly do monitors right.
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[SounDemon]

But seriously, Dolby Digital is the best way to experience surround sound, because it will actually have some semblance of directive, instead of being 5 speakers blasting the same thing.
Also, 1080p support should be considered as well.
Last but not least, if you don't want to waste money on Blu-Ray yet, get one of those DVD players that have the ability to upscale to DVDs; otherwise it looks like someone rubbed cat shit on the screen.

SounDemon out.
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[The 9th Sage]

> get one of those DVD players that have the
> ability to upscale to DVDs; otherwise it looks like someone
> rubbed cat shit on the screen.

That depends on the TV. My DVD player (480p) looks astounding on my new TV, but then I think my TV upscales the images itself. By the way, I bought a moderately priced Olevia TV set. It's not top of the line and it has a few flaws, but the picture is pretty good, and it has upgradeable firmware via USB (of all things). You can't really beat the price of it.

I'm pretty picky about TVs and all my A/V equipment, and while I realize the picture probably *COULD* be better on a higher priced TV, I'm still pretty statisfied. The company seems to have a pretty good track record too.
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[Kijutsu]

http://www.abesofmaine.com/item=SHLC32D62U~item.htmhttp://www.abesofmaine.com/item=SHLC32D62U~item.htm</A>
$915.xx, Free Shipping and Free HDMI Cable if you call in your order.

Item #: SHLC32D62U
Manufacturer Part #: LC32D62U
SHARP LC-32D62U 32" 16:9 HD 1080p HD 10000:1 LCD TV

No *TRUE* PC input, but just get yourself a DVI->HDMI cable from newegg and it'll do great. I just bought one about a month ago and I have had ZERO problems with it. A most excellent TV for the price.
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[Lillymon]

> No *TRUE* PC input, but just get yourself a DVI->HDMI cable
> from newegg and it'll do great. I just bought one about a
> month ago and I have had ZERO problems with it. A most
> excellent TV for the price.

Sounds great, but it only does me any good if I can get one here in England. I also don't see any SCART sockets in the specs I've seen for this, which is a worry given that we have a grand total of seven pieces of electronics all using SCART connectors right now. I'm sure I could migrate some of those over to other connectors, but the all important Sky Digiboxes don't seem to come with provisions for any other sort of connection (unless we go HD, and fuck £10 a month for eight extra channels).
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[Kijutsu]

> Sounds great, but it only does me any good if I can get one
> here in England. [...] but the all important Sky
> Digiboxes don't seem to come with provisions for any other
> sort of connection (unless we go HD, and fuck £10 a month
> for eight extra channels).

oh shite. wasn't aware you were in england.

likely toasts your ability to even plug the thing in without a convertor.

sorry. :/

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