[Delmar]

I am currently in the process of trying to find a 37' TV set that is particularly good for football, documentaries & period dramas.
I am not techie at all so recently I visited about 8 different places in the Newcastle area just to talk to salespeople and understand how it all works. Comet were very good but the short warranty goes against them. I liked Bainbridge's a lot as well (John Lewis), they took time to explain everything, etc. but I was very disappointed with Richer Sounds, they really made no effort at all. So, I'll probably buy it from John Lewis and am looking at what they've got at the moment. I noticed this interesting offer on a Toshiba:

Buy Toshiba 37XV635DB LCD HD Ready 1080p Digital TV, 37 Inch and DR-19DT DVD Recorder/Digital Receiver online at JohnLewis.com

I wanted to know a few things about the above package from neutral experts like yourselves (not from a salesperson!):

- is is worth shelling out an extra £150 for a TV with a 100 Hz frame rate? (can you really tell the difference compared to a TV with a standard frame rate of 50 Hz? -what does it mean plainly speaking?)

- is the Toshiba DVD recorder sold with the Toshiba in the offer (link) any good?

- have they both got a separate tuner so I can watch one channel and record another one?

Any help greatly appreciated.

[rewerb]

Or try the Panasonic P37X10. Great for footie and films.
Buy Panasonic Viera TX-P37X10B Plasma HD Ready Digital Television, 37 Inch online at JohnLewis.com

[blaster9999]

Originally Posted by Delmar

I am currently in the process of trying to find a 37' TV set that is particularly good for football, documentaries & period dramas.
I am not techie at all so recently I visited about 8 different places in the Newcastle area just to talk to salespeople and understand how it all works. Comet were very good but the short warranty goes against them. I liked Bainbridge's a lot as well (John Lewis), they took time to explain everything, etc. but I was very disappointed with Richer Sounds, they really made no effort at all. So, I'll probably buy it from John Lewis and am looking at what they've got at the moment. I noticed this interesting offer on a Toshiba:

Buy Toshiba 37XV635DB LCD HD Ready 1080p Digital TV, 37 Inch and DR-19DT DVD Recorder/Digital Receiver online at JohnLewis.com

I wanted to know a few things about the above package from neutral experts like yourselves (not from a salesperson!):

- is is worth shelling out an extra £150 for a TV with a 100 Hz frame rate? (can you really tell the difference compared to a TV with a standard frame rate of 50 Hz? -what does it mean plainly speaking?)

- is the Toshiba DVD recorder sold with the Toshiba in the offer (link) any good?

- have they both got a separate tuner so I can watch one channel and record another one?

Any help greatly appreciated.

Not sure of the dvd recorder, but yes it will work as you describe.

I've the 42" version of this tv, good set. As for 100hz I do notice the difference. Also consider your viewing distance when deciding a set. (plenty of charts floating around these forums)
As for John Lewis you get the benfit their 5 year warrenty on the set dn' forget their price promise

[Delmar]

Thanks for that.

Thanks Rewerb, I had not spotted the Panasonic at JL, might consider it now. 2 questions:

- is Plasma better for sport? (I don't do any gaming)

- does it matter that the contrast ratio is 20,000:1 on this Panasonic as opposed to 50,000:1 on the Toshiba? (model mentioned in my OP).
I mean, something has to give here, I have £550 tops to spend on a set, so for me who is buying it primarily for football + films, is it better to buy a TV with a 100Hz rate but 20,000:1 ratio OR a TV with with a 50,000:1 ratio but with only a 50Hz rate?

Blaster, I wish I could get a 42' but room too small. The JL PM price promise, is it still "local" (less than 8 miles) or national now? I'm going to try to PM this Panasonic against the JL price, should be possible. Does Dixon's count as it is online?

[vickster]

Yes, plasma is generally better for sport

I have the previous gen Panasonic and it is very good for sport, especially HD

Don't worry about contrast ratios, all manufacturers measure differently. Plasma picture is softer and more natural, hence better for normal TV

JL won't PM against Dixons as they are online only (only PM against bricks and mortar shops - mixed experiences ref distance for PM, you can only ask). Needs to be the same model and also in stock and on display in the match store

[Delmar]

Thanks Vickster.

OK, so I'll priviledge the higher Frame rate then. It is not just for football obviously, but if the Contrast Ratio is less important than the Frame rate, and since you say that Plasma is better for normal TV anyway, I might as well buy the Panasonic plasma. Why do most pple seem to buy/prefer LCD then?

About Contrast ratios, I remember hearing someone (who seemed knowledgeable) about 1 year ago, say that it was very hard to tell the difference from contrast ratios on a normal TV (not HD) between 15,000/20,000:1 and 30,000:1. Not sure if it's true. It is certainly very hard to tell the difference in shops as the feed is often HD (e.g Sky)

I've just checked the Panasonic on the RS website and they sell this Panasonic for £499 (it's £549 with JL). Seems like a good set for approx. £500, so I'll probably go for it.

About 6 months ago, I asked JL to PM a TV against the RS price, there was a £150 difference but they added the delivery price (£70), I checked (they have a leaflet, called "our price commitment") and yes, it does say that they (I quote) "take additional charges into account such as fitting and delivery". I'll ask again, especially as I wouldn't mind buying a Panasonic DVD recorder (this one Buy Panasonic DMR-EZ48VEB-K VCR/DVD Freeview Recorder/Digital Receiver online at JohnLewis.com

it's £219 with RS, against £279 with JL, so I'll probably ask them to PM both together, not sure what they'll say, they're not too pleasant to deal with at Bainbridge's (Newcastle JL)

[blaster9999]

Originally Posted by Delmar

Thanks Vickster.

OK, so I'll priviledge the higher Frame rate then. It is not just for football obviously, but if the Contrast Ratio is less important than the Frame rate, and since you say that Plasma is better for normal TV anyway, I might as well buy the Panasonic plasma. Why do most pple seem to buy/prefer LCD then?

About Contrast ratios, I remember hearing someone (who seemed knowledgeable) about 1 year ago, say that it was very hard to tell the difference from contrast ratios on a normal TV (not HD) between 15,000/20,000:1 and 30,000:1. Not sure if it's true. It is certainly very hard to tell the difference in shops as the feed is often HD (e.g Sky)

I've just checked the Panasonic on the RS website and they sell this Panasonic for £499 (it's £549 with JL). Seems like a good set for approx. £500, so I'll probably go for it.

About 6 months ago, I asked JL to PM a TV against the RS price, there was a £150 difference but they added the delivery price (£70), I checked (they have a leaflet, called "our price commitment") and yes, it does say that they (I quote) "take additional charges into account such as fitting and delivery". I'll ask again, especially as I wouldn't mind buying a Panasonic DVD recorder (this one Buy Panasonic DMR-EZ48VEB-K VCR/DVD Freeview Recorder/Digital Receiver online at JohnLewis.com

it's £219 with RS, against £279 with JL, so I'll probably ask them to PM both together, not sure what they'll say, they're not too pleasant to deal with at Bainbridge's (Newcastle JL)

As for plasma/ lcd, ?I could cope out and blame marketing

Really it comes done to your individual needs and what you like.
Cheaper plasmas tend to have image retention and therefore screen burns issues (partic lg and samsung). If you are a gamer or intend to use your tv with a pc (as I am now), cheaper plasmas are still very much a no no. If its just for gen tv use, plasma may be fine. The only think I will say about the tosh is that the off air freeview because of the resolution plus tech Tosh use means for a pretty good pq.
Best thing is to go down there and play with them. Find the one that suits you best. At this price point any tv will prob be a compromise, don't automatically accept one brand will be better than another at everything

[Bibby_83]

Hi,
On the 100Hz issue - apparently this increases the so-called motion resolution to a level comparable with a current Plasma model, however it achieves this though adding extra frames in between the original ones. I do think 100Hz sets are slightly smoother and might well show less of the judder effect on films but in all honesty I'm happy with a regular 50/60Hz LCD TV in these respects. I don't know if motion blurring would be an issue since I don't really see it but obviously the faster the motion is the more likely you will see something change.

Motion is a difficult subject though, and there are different ways to measure it based on lines retained and carried (onto the next frame). Given the complexity of it, I would have to take any claims with some scepticism.

[Delmar]

OK, thanks Bibby and Blaster, I'll have another look at both the Toshiba & the Panasonic and then see which one is best. Just noticed thought that the Panasonic is out of stock at JL

[Richer Sounds]

Originally Posted by Delmar

...but I was very disappointed with Richer Sounds, they really made no effort at all.

Hi Delmar,

I was sorry to read that you were disappointed with the service you received on your recent visit to our store.

Obviously this is something I’d like to investigate to enable me to try and put things right. So that I may do this please would you contact me with some further information about your visit and who served you etc?

Meanwhile, if you are still in the market for a new TV then please let me know and I’ll be more than happy to do my best to help.

Many thanks,

John Clayton

[ESA2]

Originally Posted by Richer Sounds

Hi Delmar,

I was sorry to read that you were disappointed with the service you received on your recent visit to our store.

Obviously this is something I’d like to investigate to enable me to try and put things right. So that I may do this please would you contact me with some further information about your visit and who served you etc?

Meanwhile, if you are still in the market for a new TV then please let me know and I’ll be more than happy to do my best to help.

Many thanks,

John Clayton

Good stuff john. i had a rather awful time trying to get service in Currys when i was shopping about for a TV. made a complaint but to be honest they couldnt give a monkeys so good to see that some companies still value their customer relations

[AFC69]

I ordered the same Toshiba TV from John lewis last week, when they price matched Crampton and Moore's figure of £529, then added £35 delivery, so total of £564, and they were advertising it for £749 plus free DVD player as you said.

Won't get the free DVD player, but still happy with the price, and hopefuly will be even happier when it arrives on wednsday afternoon.

I did a lot of research, and came to the conclusion that for me, the Tosh was best of a good bunch.

[jonhatto]

I also went for this Toshiba from John Lewis, price matched for £599 against sound and vision. Seems like a great LCD at the moment, can't fault it.
Jon

[owen1978]

Originally Posted by AFC69

I ordered the same Toshiba TV from John lewis last week, when they price matched Crampton and Moore's figure of £529, then added £35 delivery, so total of £564, and they were advertising it for £749 plus free DVD player as you said.

Won't get the free DVD player, but still happy with the price, and hopefuly will be even happier when it arrives on wednsday afternoon.

I did a lot of research, and came to the conclusion that for me, the Tosh was best of a good bunch.

Got my price match from JL today!

[Delmar]

Thanks John for your reply, much appreciated, but I'll leave it at that. Actually, I went back to Comet (near my home) to have a look at their selection, and I found the staff pretty damn uninterested!

JL have lowered their package offer for the Toshiba 37' XV635DB + Toshiba DVD recorder DR19DT, now £679, which looks like a very good deal.

Trouble is, in the meantime, some forum users have advised me to go for the Panasonic P37X10 (at about £500-£550), as it has a 100Hz frame rate, better for sport.

I noticed that the Toshiba also has a 100Hz, and full HD.

I've seen both in action, but with HD feed and it is very hard to see the difference. I really could not tell. I won't have HD for a long while though, as I do not have SKY and I imagine it'll be a long time before there are HD programmes on terrestrial TV.

So, which one should I go for, the JL package at £679 (I need a new DVD recorder), or the Panasonic at £499 (at JL)? I mean, which one is best?

[vickster]

The Panasonic will have a more natural picture, better blacks, likely better motion handling but it's up to you as the price with the DVD recorder is very similar

HD TV isn't 1080p anyhow, only blu-ray is and the Panasonic plasmas handle BR very well

[Delmar]

Thanks. Indeed the reviews on Amazon are all 5 stars for the Panny.
I thought the colours were a bit pale today (went to see it again in a Comet store), could it have been the settings?

Is there a big difference between standard HD and Full HD? (how long do you reckon before we get standard TV progs in HD? more or less than 3.5 years? -I will not be updating to FREESAT)

[vickster]

Plasma tends to look dimmer in shops due to the harsh flourescent lighting (and the fact LCDs are displayed using an over vibrant shop mode to compensate for this). I have never had any problem with the colours on my plasma, lovely and natural for TV and films (I don't play games so cannot comment on this, more bright cartoony colours might be just the ticket).

There are already HD programmes, but these are 1080i not 1080p and from what I have read on here, it will be a very long time until 1080p TV (if ever).

Only Blu-ray and some games are 1080p

[Delmar]

Thanks Vicks, that's reassuring. The Panasonic plasma set was next to a set priced at approx. £785 but I can't remember what make it was or whether it was plasma or LCD (they were both 37' though -all the 37' were together) and the contrast in colour was sharp, the Panasonic was much paler, so much so that I asked a shop salesman why, etc. he just said that the picture on the £785 had been "boosted" but I should not worry about it, he certainly did not push me to buy the more expensive set, in fact, he was not one bit interested and before I could ask him anything else, he'd gone!

Terrestrial progs in HD? (which ones?)

Does 1080i = 1024 x 768 in resolution?

[vickster]

No HD programmes through Freeview yet - can get some on Freesat (need a Freesat tuner and satellite dish), on Virgin+ there are a few (e.g. BBC HD, ESPN HD if you have the sports package like I do) and then plenty through Sky HD

I am not too good on the jargon but if you search on 720p/1080i/1080p you'll find the techie answer somewhere I think 1080i is 720p interlaced or something

[Delmar]

OK, thanks for the info.