[scantaman]

Hi guys
Im looking for a 32" LCD Tv for my bedroom, for a budget of around £450 max.(currently no tele in bedroom)

I will mainly be using it to play my PS3 and also watch a few Blueray Dvds, and sometimes watch SD tele.

50% PS3
25% Blueray
25% SD tele

Not too fussed if itis 1080 or not as it wont make much difference...from what ive read.

I've gone through the forum and read alot of good reviews and have been pondering over the following few Tvs....

LG 32LG3000 - £350 with five years guarantee at richer sounds

LG 32LG5700 - its 1080p and seen it on Dixons for £420

Sony Bravia KDL32S5500 - Part of the new Sony lineup, £450 on Amazon, also with free three years warranty(all Sony Bravias 26" and above come with free three years warranty if you buy between Arpil 09 until Sep 09)

At the beginning i really wanted to get the LG 32LG5700 but soon realising it being 1080 didnt make much difference, i opted to go for the LG 32LG3000.

Now ive seen the Sony i've heard its the best for playing PS3? Can someone give a little more information about this?

The others who didnt make the list
the Panasonic TX-32LXD85 was on my list as i saw this on Tesco direct for £417....however out of stock and i doubt they'll have anymore in.(cannot find it anywhere under £450)
Had a look at the Plasma LG32PG6000 but would prefer a LCD for gaming.
Also had a look at the Samsung LE32A457 but ive seen a demo and not too keen on the sound.
Please feel free to give me some information on the Plasma LG32PG6000 & Samsung LE32A457 if you think they should be in the list...!


I would appreciate any information & advice to help with my decision...!!!

Cheers

[ziffius]

The sound on the 32A457 probably isn't as good as on the others. But none of them have great sound, the speakers have been compromised to reduce the size frame around the TV.

Personally, I would still choose the A457 over the LG3000 if your local Richersounds has stock as it's £330 including the 5 year warrenty. If the one you've seen on display had 10000:1 contrast on the front sticker as on the website, then the one you should receive should be an improved S-PVA 30000:1 one.

[Monarch]

I have a 32PG6000 and it beats all of those on your list (can't say for the Sony but it probably will!) but for extensive gaming sessions I wouldn't recommend it because of IR concerns, that looks like it would cause a problem as well because there isn't a lot of SD TV use in comparison to gaming. If you had gaming sessions regularly lasting longer than 2 hours then I wouldn't recommend it.

The LG3000 is the best entry level model I've seen but I personally think that the 6000 is better - 32lg6000- LG Scarlet 32 inch LCD TV with Integrated Freeview, XD Engine, 4x HDMi and USB 2.0*LCD TV UK*LG*32lg6000*LCD TV UK I would recommend that over the 5700 too. They are good TVs but the black levels aren't the best, I would recommend the new 32LH5000 when it comes out, the new LGs will be worth a look if the improvement is anything like that in their plasma department.

I can't comment on the Sonys but they are normally quite good for gaming, however there are some possible issues with backlight bleed and ghosting, although I don't know how serious that problem is on the S5500, it's deffinitely worth looking at though, but wait for some reviews from gamers first. If it's good then it will probably beat the LGs for gaming, past Sonys (apart from the top spec ones) though have had motion and colour issues which come up on SD, if the S5500 is the same then that would be something to be wary of

[stewart661]

the sony is probly the best match for you ps3 but ive heard alot about the bleeding too. and for that id proply stay well clear.

the samsung i dont know. its a really good tv, but not the best for value.

My opinion would be the lg 5700 i hear from someone thats its being reduced soon.... around £399. in quite a large retailer..

maybe that would temp your hand. Thats my winner.

[Monarch]

I would suggest the LG6000 over the 5700, the SD TV looks better, 1080p makes no difference at all unless you get really close so there's no point in getting it. I would strongly suggest waiting for the new ones though, largely because of the promise of improved blacks.

The 32LH5000 will probably be the one for you (I don't think it's out yet) - LG 32LH5000 : LG UK

The 32LH7000 is around but over budget - 32LH7000- LG 32 inch HD Ready 1080p LCD TV with Trumotion 100Hz, Built in bluetooth and 4 x HDMI and USB*LCD TV UK*LG*32LH7000*LCD TV UK

and so is the 32LH4000 (the 5000 is in the middle) - Lg 32" | LCD Televisions 32LH4000

[scantaman]

hi guys, thanks for the quick replys!

Im aware of the bleeding & ghosting on the Sonys, however im hoping they should have improved on this on the new lineup? Can anyone tell me what the Sony S550 replaces?

any of the above problems with the samsung or LG?

would you guys say its worth it paying more for an extended warranty?(like i would be for sony s550, as i'll take it to £450 max budget)

Any idea when the new LG32LH5000 will be out?

As i understand alot of new models are coming out right now..would it be worth it buying a tele in april or wait after easter until may?

thanks

[ziffius]

The 32S5500 is the replacement for the 32V4000/ 32V4500.

Samsung's tend to have less clouding than the Sony's, but it's normally the Sony 40"+ that most often have the clouding issues. All I can say is my Samsung 32" A456 has 0 clouding/ backlight bleed even if I crank the backlight upto the maximum and have dynamic contrast off.

5yr warrenties are well worth it. The best place to buy from is John Lewis as they include a free 5 year warrenty with all their TVs, they will also price match Currys/ Comet etc.

In my view the LG's aren't worth bothering with. The have some of the worst black depth/ shadow detail of all the TV's and at the same time wildly exaggerate the contrast ratio more than Sony/ Panasonic/ Samsung/ Toshiba. This was commented in quite a few 2008 model reviews, and again seems to be effecting the 2009 models.

some familiar weaknesses with black level and viewing angles together with a curious audio sync issue

2009 32LH4000 review:
http://www.trustedreviews.com/tvs/re...32in-LCD-TV/p3

[wokeye]

Get the Samsung, great value and as mentioned it now has a higher contrast ratio. Also a lot of positive independant reviews, which seem to be lacking with LG's. I have the LE32A456 (457 is the same tv) and I also have an older budget 37" Samsung, really happy with both. I just took the risk buying blind due to living in a town that only has Curry's and Comet to audition tv's which is pretty useless. So just went off positive online reviews for both sets. If you can audition tv's do it by all means, something I never had chance to do. Both of my tv's were said to have average sound in independant reviews, but I think it's fine for what I need.

[Monarch]

I think the poor black levels on the LGs are way overstated, they're not the best but they're not as bad as some make out because they're just reproducing the words of those who notice when the audio drops a few Hz below where it should be. The Samsungs do have better blacks but I noticed that last years LGs had better colours (which seemed off on the Samsungs) and motion (the Samsungs didn't suffer much in HD but when watching SD there was quite bad blurring on all but the higher spec sets). I'm certain that the LH5000 will be better than the 4 series Samsung of 2008. Wait for some more reviews of the newer sets before making a decision

[ziffius]

Originally Posted by Monarch08

I think the poor black levels on the LGs are way overstated, they're not the best but they're not as bad as some make out because they're just reproducing the words of those who notice when the audio drops a few Hz below where it should be. The Samsungs do have better blacks but I noticed that last years LGs had better colours (which seemed off on the Samsungs) and motion (the Samsungs didn't suffer much in HD but when watching SD there was quite bad blurring on all but the higher spec sets). I'm certain that the LH5000 will be better than the 4 series Samsung of 2008. Wait for some more reviews of the newer sets before making a decision

There are many many LG reviews that complain about the black depth/ contrast.

The LH5000 is competing with the W5500 and B650, not the A456. Both the W5500 and B650 have been getting very good reviews. The LH4000 is going up against the B550 and V5500, the B550 should do well and the V5550 is getting good reviews.

[Monarch]

Originally Posted by ziffius

There are many many LG reviews that complain about the black depth/ contrast.

The LH5000 is competing with the W5500 and B650, not the A456. Both the W5500 and B650 have been getting very good reviews. The LH4000 is going up against the B550 and V5500, the B550 should do well and the V5550 is getting good reviews.

The black levels on the LGs aren't the best but it's exaggerated by experts in my opinion because of their 'expert eye' which takes some things out of proportion at times. And if the OP can afford better than the Samsung 4 series then the OP should get better. The LH7000 is competing with the W5500 and B650 on price, in fact it's cheaper, the LH5000 is probably going to be around the V5500 in price

[ziffius]

If these TVs were really that good, they wouldn't need to undercut their prices so much in order to sell them would they?

[Monarch]

Originally Posted by ziffius

If these TVs were really that good, they wouldn't need to undercut their prices so much in order to sell them would they?

You're just taking everything I say out of context and then exaggerate it! You always have done and it's not clever

There is better if the money is there. And one of LGs key motives as a company is to sell quality at an affordable price instead of charging the kind of money that Sony and Samsung do for their higher end models. The lower end Sonys and Samsungs compete with the mid range LGs and, where the Sonys and Samsungs may have their pros, they are market fillers and aren't even nearly as good as the higher end models because they're only there to get a little bit more money, LG actually develop sets for this market with the intention of providing a relatively decent TV, they can't give the best because otherwise they would cost more, but they can provide better than what's already on the market at that price

[II D2 II]

personally i would say to get the 457, i bought it on saturday, and i am soo happy with it, i play my PS3 on it, and my xbox360 on it, its perfect, sound is good, everything is good.

the thing with posting on here is you listen to someone elses view on something, you should just go off of your own but with the knowledge of the tv's from someone else, and you will like any TV you buy, but i do recommenned the samsung lol :P

[Monarch]

Originally Posted by II D2 II

the thing with posting on here is you listen to someone elses view on something, you should just go off of your own but with the knowledge of the tv's from someone else, and you will like any TV you buy, but i do recommenned the samsung lol :P

That's right, I had so many 'pro 4+5 series' Samsung messages when I was searching for TVs because they fit into my relatively small budget, I know quite a few people with Samsungs and I went to their houses and had a look and the 6 series and above was good but over my budget. The 4+5 series was, in my opinion, not great. It was better when gaming because the problems with motion went and the colour accuracy became less important (and improved) but when watching TV and movies there were motion problems and the colours were a bit off, even though the blacks were quite good, and no end of tweaking settings would fix it completely so in the end I discarded them. And before it's mentioned some of these were with the new panels (which are an improvement over the old one).

I can accept that some people like them, preference will make anyone like anything, some people think that supermarket branded TVs are as good as Pioneer plasmas (as rare as that may be) but you can never know which TV is best for you unless you get them all in your home, which you can't do. The closest you can get is trying to get a decent view in stores and getting other people's opinions on here

[limegreenzx]

Originally Posted by II D2 II

personally i would say to get the 457, i bought it on saturday, and i am soo happy with it, i play my PS3 on it, and my xbox360 on it, its perfect, sound is good, everything is good.

the thing with posting on here is you listen to someone elses view on something, you should just go off of your own but with the knowledge of the tv's from someone else, and you will like any TV you buy, but i do recommenned the samsung lol :P

+1 on the LE32A457 if you get a S-PVA 30,000:1 panel version. Sound quality is poor when compared to a standard 32" CRT.

[scantaman]

thanks for all the feedback!
It seems from the response that the samsung seems to be the top contender, followed by the LG3000 however few mixed reviews on this tele.
I may as well disregard the LG5700 as it doesnt seem to be worth the money for £420.

I have seen on richersounds website the Samsung LE32A457 for £300(plus £30 for 5yrs warranty). I've also noticed the Samsung LE32B450 for £380 ...can anyone tell me if its worth the £80 difference?

I liked the Sony32S5500 - the replacement for Sony32V4000/32V4500 simply because i heard it may be the best to play my PS3 on...however personally do you think the £120 difference is worth it over the Samsung LE32A457?

thanks

[ziffius]

Originally Posted by scantaman

thanks for all the feedback!
It seems from the response that the samsung seems to be the top contender, followed by the LG3000 however few mixed reviews on this tele.
I may as well disregard the LG5700 as it doesnt seem to be worth the money for £420.

I have seen on richersounds website the Samsung LE32A457 for £300(plus £30 for 5yrs warranty). I've also noticed the Samsung LE32B450 for £380 ...can anyone tell me if its worth the £80 difference?

I liked the Sony32S5500 - the replacement for Sony32V4000/32V4500 simply because i heard it may be the best to play my PS3 on...however personally do you think the £120 difference is worth it over the Samsung LE32A457?

thanks

Maybe you could take your PS3 down to Richersounds? that way atleast you will you'll be hapy with the TV. I know John Lewis won't have a problem with it. Many of the A456/A457 demo units have been sitting there all year, so will probably be 10000:1, where it's the S-PVA 30000:1 that people are getting.

My local Currys have a 2/3 S-PVA A456's on display, but these have been put out later for demoing the PS3/ XBOX 360's.

The Sony should have better input lag and sound, but you need to wait for owners opinions really.

[ChrisGgr]

the 32A457(the S-PVA) is definitely a much better choice than the basic LG 3000/5700,these two have poor black levels and arent up on par with the competition,although value for money is its basic advantage.You can also opt for the replacement of 32A457 the 32B450 model.The 32S5500 might be an excellent choice as well,but there are no owners yet,neither have I had the chance to see it yet

[scantaman]

Hi all
Just ordered the Panasonic TX-32LXD85 from tesco direct for £417 as its back in stock!
Picking it up on thursday at store, thanks guys for all your help!

[vickster]

Good choice

[Monarch]

Originally Posted by vickster

Good choice

probably the best choice

[scantaman]

hey just to let you know if you are interested in getting the panasonic from tesco direct....there is a £8 discount code;
Promotional Code: XXYFMP use this to drop the price down to £409(plus £5 delivery if not collecting instore)

[DejaVoodoo]

Opinions on the KDL32S5500?

[Monarch]

Originally Posted by DejaVoodoo

Opinions on the KDL32S5500?

it's alright, I don't think much of it but considering the price it's ok, I'd rather get one of the Samsungs, Panasonics or LGs at the same price though (personally)

[ChrisGgr]

Originally Posted by DejaVoodoo

Opinions on the KDL32S5500?

better than all at the price range,except for the good panasonics(eg X15 range).clearly ahead of 32LH2000 and slightly better than 32B450 on the whole.

[kauka187]

Ive been searching as well for a 32" and have done the rounds searching for the best one.

Im getting the samsung LE32B450.

This review is the one that sold me on it

Samsung LE32B450 / LE32B450C / LE32B450C4W Review

For ps3 gaming it seems to have the least amount of input lag that they tested.

[scatterbug]

Originally Posted by kauka187

Ive been searching as well for a 32" and have done the rounds searching for the best one.

Im getting the samsung LE32B450.

This review is the one that sold me on it

Samsung LE32B450 / LE32B450C / LE32B450C4W Review

For ps3 gaming it seems to have the least amount of input lag that they tested.

That review also convinced me but try as I might, I cannot tally what they write with the (unacceptable) picture I see. A lot of people have asked for the settings used in the test so I guess others are having issues too. Unfortunately, the reviewers haven't done so.

Edit: it appears the B450 can use one of four different panels, so the HDTVTest review could be completely misleading (as I suspect with my set).