TV Ignorant...

Romero Zombie

Help me out here guys - I'm tv ignorant. Come tax return time, I've convinced the wife it's time for a new tv, but I don't know what to get. Right now we have a Sony 32', and I really want to go up to a 50' or 52' tv.

Only problem is, I don't know exactly what I'm looking for, and if I go to best buy, I'll end up getting hosed into getting something I really don't need. I will have about $1,500 to spend give or take a bit. I am not really that picky when it comes to picture clarity, as long as it works and I won't have to replace it in a few years I'm happy. Any suggestions on what I should look for? Or more importantly avoid?

matt has a problem

Pretty much any Samsung LCD tv in the 46-52" range should fit your budget. If you have a 360, PS3, Blu-Ray player, or high-def cable or satellite receiver, or are planning on getting them in the near future, go for 1080p resolution. Otherwise, 720p is more than enough for standard digital cable and satellite and regular DVDs.

Bryse Eayo

Uh how big is the room you're planning on putting it in?

Romero Zombie

I have about 13 feet from my couch to the wall where my tv will be.

YodaTuna

Romero Zombie wrote: »

Help me out here guys - I'm tv ignorant. Come tax return time, I've convinced the wife it's time for a new tv, but I don't know what to get. Right now we have a Sony 32', and I really want to go up to a 50' or 52' tv.

Only problem is, I don't know exactly what I'm looking for, and if I go to best buy, I'll end up getting hosed into getting something I really don't need. I will have about $1,500 to spend give or take a bit. I am not really that picky when it comes to picture clarity, as long as it works and I won't have to replace it in a few years I'm happy. Any suggestions on what I should look for? Or more importantly avoid?

I dunno how much LCDs have dropped in price, but if you're only going to have 1500 and you want a 50', you'll probably have to go with a DLP. The only drawback to a DLP over an LCD is that DLPs are not flat panel. Mine is about 15" deep. Also you'll have to change the bulb.

Keep in mind other expenses too, like new cables and a stand.

Fofamit

get something with a good contrast ratio and a response time and the quality it can do such as 1080p.

Contrast Ratio = the number of colors between black and white. Example: 3000:1 Contrast ratio = 3000 different shades of colors are visible on the screen. The higher the contrast ratio the crisper the image.

response time = well it's best to think of it kind of like a "frame rate", the higher the response time.. the worse the tv is. If you have a really high response time (like 12 ms) you're movies will have a ghosting effect in high speed motion. for a 50" tv that will be hard to find... I'd say try to stick around 8ms.

Resolution / Quality: so you heard off of this fancy stuff like 480p, 480i, 720p, 720i, 1080p, 1080i ... just know the P > i so 1080p > 1080i. I am pretty sure 720p = 1080i. The higher the number the better... but you really won't notice too much of a difference between 720p and 1080p. The higher the number the crisper the image.

Also, you can try to ask a sales rep about this stuff... but every time I went to ask, I always found out that I knew more about tvs than the people who work there! >_>; just look at the little tags with the price on them, they usually list the specs.