New Telly

[HasBean]

My missus has decided that we need to replace our old, slightly knackered, telly with something more up to date which is fine by me if she's paying
Thing is I know bu**er all about them We think we want a 42" job but at this point onwards I'm lost. Don't know the difference between plasma & LCD, HD or HD Ready ??
HD of some description I presume as we're going to get the Sky+ HD box (so I've been told) but if anyone has any pointers as what to look for I'd be eternally gratefull
(As you well know if the telly's not quite right it will be my fault and I will suffer as a result.)

Thanks in advance,
Paul

 

[TechnicAl]

I go the the shop........get all the advice and decide on what you want.........go home and buy it off the net

 

[tigler]

Go for LCD , they use less power and are longer lasting. Look for the highest contrast ratio , that goes a long way to defining how good the picture is. Get a set with 100HZ. All tv's are HD ready now. Look for as many scart sockets as possible. Look for USB sockets and freeview.
The latest sets have LCD backlight too , this is good.
I would say LG and Samsung are the best overall.

 

[the snooper]

the most up to date technology are the led backlight lcd screens

 

[pedrobedro]

Get something to suit the size of your room, my mate bought a 42" and it's way too big, you'd need to sit 2 metres further away to watch it comfortably. It's like being in the film.

 

[Bsmith]

I have been told that plasma is better than LCD if there are kids around or anything thats going to knock or bump the screen, same with mobile phones etc. A knock I'm told can shatter something behind the LCD screen and it will appear like a broken glass crack on the screen.

 

[the snooper]

i wouldnt get a plasma on the basis
i was reading an extended guarantee document for a tv the type where you pay extra
and for a plasma it was only about half the time of an lcd for the same cost.
that tells me the plasma is more likely to go wrong.
the last time i visited comet there was only a few plasma the rest were lcd that must also tell us something.

 

[Bsmith]

i wouldnt get a plasma on the basis
i was reading an extended guarantee document for a tv the type where you pay extra
and for a plasma it was only about half the time of an lcd for the same cost.
that tells me the plasma is more likely to go wrong.
the last time i visited comet there was only a few plasma the rest were lcd that must also tell us something.

Wow! There we go then. Ty Paul. What a great place the forum is for picking up info.

 

[the snooper]

just been on this web site and and a years cover for an lcd is £59 a plasma £109

 

[Robotstar5]

Find a specialist shop who will tell you what size/type of screen will suit your room size, they may not have the huge selection the electrical giants have but do have a lot more technical knowledge than the average "floorwalker".
I got my TV from one of the specialists and it was cheaper with better back-up than the "giants"!

 

[Alex.]

My ideal TV - LCD, LED backlight, 1080p, sized so it doesn't overwhelm me.

If you're putting it on the wall, don't hang it much above your (sitting) eye level or you'll get a sore neck.

Try John Lewis if there's one near you as they have a good range of kit and seem to know more than the yoofs at Comet and Dixons.

 

[clem dog]

I would be inclined towards a plasma TV as the colours would seem, dont know how to put this, not so garish. Blacks will be blacker and whites crisper.

Older plasma were not so good because they were a little duller but then so were lcd. The extended cover is more expensive for plasma screens because they will loose some brightness with viewing whereas LCD will not. this has been addressed by the manufacturers and is now at a competitive level with the lifespan of an LCD

If its going to be used during the day or in a bright room then maybe lcd is the way, providing you go for a high contrast



Unless you want larger than 42 inch an hd ready 720p will sufice as its only above this size that you see the resolution suffer badly. Less than 42 can result in blueray and HD sources looking almost animated in 1080p format.

I have experience of both LCD and plasma and would deffo choose plasma any day

Just my opinion.

Clem

Edit If its to be used for lots of gaming, plasma can suffer from screen burn although newer TVs again are not so prone.

 

[HasBean]

Thanks guys I now have something to go on. Funnily I was erring towards Samsung & LG and it turns out that the people that put my satellite in also sell Samsung tellys so I might wander in during the week waving some readies and see what they can come up with.
Thaks again.

Paul

 

[restorer]

I have a LG lCD 32" flat screen, It's ok, but I still think the worst CRT is better than the best TFT when it comes to picture handling and quality. The bigger the flat screen the more you'll notice blurring on fast moving objects.

 

[tigler]

Blurring is less of an issue with the 100HZ sets.

 

[Debs.]

Unlike for most things in the rest of my life, I have a painfully short attention span for television: 45-60 minutes of something interesting (i.e: a documentary) is about all I can ever stand watching, but as I never watch any movies, I`m afraid the dash for 'HD' has left me far-behind.

I have a 'very-cheap' LCD Tv. and on many evenings, I feel like throwing a housebrick through that; such is the banality on offer.

 

[tigler]

Agreed. All things petrol head , tech , mech , space , docus , motorsport aside , TV is a cultural and intellectual black hole. The only other thing I need one for is XBOX 360 !!
Halo , Forza , PGR , Moto GP anyone ?

 

[Hitch]

Unlike for most things in the rest of my life, I have a painfully short attention span for television: 45-60 minutes of something interesting (i.e: a documentary) is about all I can ever stand watching, but as I never watch any movies, I`m afraid the dash for 'HD' has left me far-behind.

I have a 'very-cheap' LCD Tv. and on many evenings, I feel like throwing a housebrick through that; such is the banality on offer.

Same here Debs, average of 30 mins a day. Somedays, notihing.
As for films, i cant sit and watch a film, it has to be very gripping to keep me interested


A lot of the stores will pricematch.

 

[Robotstar5]

As for films, i cant sit and watch a film, it has to be very gripping to keep me interested

Now I'd rather watch a film on TV than at the cinema, at least I can pause it to get a drink, I think this is due to today's films being 2½ hours or so instead of the 90 minute ones I used to go and watch.

 

[richy_B]

If you are thinking of buying from Curry's (probably the same for similar stores) read the small print on the extended cover agreement before you buy. Check how long they give themselves to repair or replace in event of a breakdown.