[refugee]

Hello, I'm interested in buying a new 32" CRT and I'm interested if Phillips offers best TV's?

Or are new Toshibas and Sony's with Picture Power better?

And also, do do best CRT's offer better picture then most LCD's?

Thank you all in advance.

I appologize on my English...

[Maxi_TK96]

LCDs have advanced a lot recently and the technology is starting to become stable. Especially black level (contrast) has been improving and view angle has also gotten better. This being said there are also a lot of cheap models out there which have poor black level & view angle - don't buy these. Also I have seen some reports where LCDs have problems with moving picture meaning the movement is not smooth but jerky.

CRTs still have their usual problems which mainly involve the picture tube meaning problems with geometry and dark blotches (or vertial lines) in the picture.

If I had to buy a TV right now I'd go either LCD or plasma but both require a pre-checkup in order to verify that the picture quality is acceptable.

As far as PixelPlus2 goes....well you like it or you don't. I personally like it but some don't. Instead of focusing on picture processing technology just look at the overall picture quality: if the overall picture quality is good then don't worry too much about how it is being done.

[refugee]

Wow, that was nice reply. Thank you Maxi.

I will wait a little until Christmas hoping that prices will fall.

And if you can tell me, if only Phillips suffer from this picture processing or sony with picture power and toshiba also?

And I forgot to ask if LCD's are good for console games also?
I think i will be buying PS3 next year.

[azzy129]

My own advice would be to steer away from LCD's at the moment, that's my opinion anyway. If it's picture quality you're after (as with me) your 2 options are CRT and Plasma. I have just received delivery of a philips 32" with pixel plus 2 feature (see the other thread re. philips 32 pw9570). I found pixel plus to be a really unique feature which gives depth and higher resolution to the overall picture especially the fore ground of the picture giving the impression of the image coming out of the screen at you. To give you an idea of picture quality on Lcd set's, if you have broadband internet connection on your PC and have a flat panel monitor, run a movie/video clip for example a news clip on the BBC news website. I find the quality of that similiar to the picture quality of lcd sets, from what I have seen of them on display in places like Currys and comet. My previous set was a toshiba 29" 4:3, so this new philips is like from a Vauxhall Astra to a BMW 3 series/Mercedes C class.

Hi refugee,

I bought a Philips 36PW9618 last year with 1.5 Pixel Plus and have been overjoyed with this set. The Pixel Plus 2 should be even better. Nice to "see" Maxi (who also bought the same set but has since upgraded to a plasma). His advice is sound. I am buying an LCD for my kitchen (also Philips) but for my main set I still like the CRT. I have seen some stunning Plasmas in the showrooms but some friends have been disappointed with them once they were installed.

Hi azza,

I'm so pleased you are delighted with your Pixel Plus 2 new tv. You are so right about the "image coming out of the screen at you". Although I had had a top of the range tv before I found the picture on the Philips mesmerising. I still do, and watch far too much television as a result! I love the car comparison!

[MartinImber]

I dislike Pixel Plus so make sure you audition TVs properly

[per-Sony-fied]

I second that Imber. Although I still think it has many advantages and picture depth is it's main number 1 advantage easily the best out there along with Loewe whom also utilise the Philips tube.

The reason I dislike is, the way it can falsify skin tones making them rather plastic looking and lacking detail. I don't know why it happens to skin tones as just about everything else looks good to me.

[azzy129]

Hi, I just watched the "Ali" film on channel 4 on my new 32 pw9570 with the Pixel Plus2 feature ON, and it was amazing. Total clarity, excellent PQ and I find you concentrate more on the film storyline as you are paying so much attention to the fine detail on the screen that you don't normally see on regular TV sets.
What get's me is that all these people who make a fuss about the new HD technology in plasma's... what's the point? If you connect a PP2 set to a digital receiver and watch a film with PP2 on (as I did) the PQ is probably the same IMO I find it very hard to believe that the PQ could be more clearer than that, and don't forget with HD you have to wait atleast 6 months minimum and you need a Sky HD receiver box which means more dosh (both for purchase of box and monthly subscription).

[Kalos Geros]

One comment on LCDs...if you evaluate the picture quality by antenna or composite feed, as shops usually connext those (even from an RF distribution box ), you're bound to be put off by LCD. These feeds suffer from composite ghosting, color cross talk and fuzziness due to very, very low quality of the signal enhanced by LCD's processing in an attempt to remove composite artifacts...RGB, component or DVI from a DVD or even better, a HD source can make a world of difference, but unfortunatelly, the salesmen seem to be bent on diverting you from buying anything at the end

If crap comes in, crap comes out - it's simple as that...the real problem with LCD's is that they are too small for the price, with lower brightness and contrast that plasma...