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Thread: Recommendations for a New Television Set?

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    The User DemonDragonJ's Avatar
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    Default Recommendations for a New Television Set?

    My family still has a cathode-ray tube television in our house, as we simply have never purchased a new set, but my brother and I are considering purchasing a new television set for our parents as a Christmas gift this year. The new television in question shall obviously be an LCD-screen device, but I am not certain about the brand or model that we should purchase, as I am not familiar with the various brands and of televisions. That is rather ironic, as I am very familiar with the various brand and models of computer monitors, which are very similar to television sets (although I use my computer much more often that I use my television, so that may be the reason for which I have better knowledge of computer monitors than I do of television sets).

    I shall certainly be conducting my own research (i.e., checking the prices of television sets at various stores and vendors and reading reviews), but can anyone here make any recommendations for a new television set? I am seeking a model with a screen size between 30 inches and 40 inches and ideally, less than $400 in price, if that is possible. For the display type, I am seeking an LCD screen, as LED screens are still slightly too expensive presently, and plasma screens, from my research, are too inefficient in terms of power consumption and heat generation.

    What recommendations can anyone here make? I shall greatly appreciate any feedback that anyone here can offer, and I await your responses.
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    Its not cool till its watercooled. Fuganater's Avatar
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    Default Re: Recommendations for a New Television Set?

    I have a 37" Vizio 1080P and lots of ports on the back. Its a good brand if your looking to save some money. I also have a Phillips which is nice but more expensive.

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    baaah. billygoat333's Avatar
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    Default Re: Recommendations for a New Television Set?

    I also have the 37" Vizio TV. I am currently on it right now actually using it as a monitor lol. Vizio has never treated me wrong. Had a 32" 720p one too and it was great, just didn't need it anymore so I sold it.

    My parents have a Sony TV and I will say the picture quality on that TV is better than the Vizio I have, but they paid a lot more for it for a barely noticeable gain in image quality.
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    mentally overclocked Cale_Hagan's Avatar
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    Default Re: Recommendations for a New Television Set?

    vizio or samsung. samsung has the best picture... vizio is good to. i have a 55 inch vizio. go with led, not lcd.
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    Undead Pirate d_stilgar's Avatar
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    Default Re: Recommendations for a New Television Set?

    Panasonic has the best picture quality and some of the best factory calibration out there.

    My favorites, however, are Samsung TVs. The thin and clear bezels really make the difference for me there.

    Make sure, however, that no matter what TV you get, that it supports one to one pixel mapping. I have an LG, and it has a setting called "just scan" which makes the picture fit, but takes an overscanned image, then interpolates it back down to 1080p. For the most part it doesn't look that bad, but I can tell and it drives me nuts. There's no way to get 1:1 pixel mapping on it.

    I also wouldn't rule out plasma. Most of the regulation means that their power and heat has come down a lot. With a plasma you'll get the best picture quality and the best price. I was at walmart the other day and they had a 55" plasma for ~$600. I know that's out of your price range, but compared to LED-LCD and LCD panels of the same size, it's a lot cheaper.

    I'd also say to try and get as big as you can. If you can get to the 46-47" range, then I'd do it. Rarely do people think they went too big, but they often wish they went just a little bigger.

    So, looks like this is in your price range at walmart: http://www.walmart.com/ip/Philips-46...ished/20565701

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    Moderator TLHarrell's Avatar
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    Default Re: Recommendations for a New Television Set?

    Costco if you have a membership. 40" running around $350-400.
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    The User DemonDragonJ's Avatar
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    Default Re: Recommendations for a New Television Set?

    Quote Originally Posted by Cale_Hagan View Post
    vizio or samsung. samsung has the best picture... vizio is good to. i have a 55 inch vizio. go with led, not lcd.
    I do wish to purchase an LED television over and LCD television, but LED television sets are still slightly too expensive for me to afford at this point in time, so I shall need to settle for an LCD television, and even and LCD television shall be a major improvement over my current CRT television.

    I thank everyone for their input, and it seems that Sony, Samsung, and Vizio are some of the most appealing manufacturers for televisions, so I shall definitely focus on products manufactured by them in my search.
    "When the people fear the government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty." -Thomas Jefferson.

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    Default Re: Recommendations for a New Television Set?

    i have a vizio 26" just for my bedroom and i love the hell out of it compared to others i've seen.

    my recommendation to add to the others though would be to try out the menu settings and see which you like most.

    for example...picture display. on my vizio i four settings: normal, zoom, panaramic, and something else. they are easy to understand and change. however, on my parent's toshiba, they have 5 settings: 4:3, movie1, movie2, movie3, and something else. for some reason they are so annoying to me to change on that tv.

    but then again, you may be one of those people that just set it to fill the screen and don't worry about whether or not the picture is squashed and fat or if everyone is tall and skinny. to me that drive's me nuts though.

    why can't tv's just automatically change for the correct aspect ratio? it can't be that hard to do. my computer can do it and my little android mini pc i have hooked to my tv can do it. so why not just add that bit of programming to the processor already on the tv?

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    Custom Title Honors Snowman's Avatar
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    Default Re: Recommendations for a New Television Set?

    lg makes a great budget led. Also walmart is having a thanksgiving day deal on a name brand tv (cant remember at the minute) but it is like a 32 inch lcd for 138 dollars. If you are in line and they sell out the price is guaranteed and it will be delivered before christmas. Just an idea.
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    Yuk it up Monkey Boy! Airbozo's Avatar
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    Default Re: Recommendations for a New Television Set?

    FWIW:

    I have had several LCD TV's and so far I have been the most satisfied with Samsung. My Sony kept having issues (fixed several times under warranty) and I will never buy another LG product again (not specifically tv related, but the worst service I have ever had).

    Sony: tons of bad pixels on first unit, failed power supply (twice) on 2nd unit and the 3rd one kept loosing sync or something.

    Samsung: Bad PSU on 1st unit (fixed under warranty), no other problems.

    Toshiba: Good TV no problems (yet). ( Got a free Blueray player and other freebies)

    LG: TV would never find a signal on multiple devices and inputs.
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