Buying a TV

scully91

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I have just bought a Sony KLV23LM1S as my first LCD or Plasma TV and to say im over the moon is an understatement. The sound is beautiful and of course the picture is just soooo different. By the way im just a regular guy who know nothing about TVs etc but i am impressed. The mrs now wants one for downstairs and i spotted a 42 inch Sony tv with an in built stand thingy (not sure if lcd or plasma) in the shop i got the 23inch from (sorry i dont know the name of the model) and it was about £4000 but i reckon on it being nearer 3 on the net. Anyway we want to buy a BIIIIIG Tv for downstairs but we have been told that plasma ones go wrong and only last for a short time as this is likely to be on for quite a few hours a day. Is this correct?
I suppose we wanna pay £3000 and for personal reasons we really need to get a tv fairly soon (dont ask ;-)) and i presume that Sony are a very very good make???
Can anybody help with my queries please and point us in the right direction as we want to buy a good one but want newer technology not old? Thankyou.
 
My comments:

• Yes, it is correct that Plasmas have a limited life. Plasma technology is rather different to it's closest alternative, LCD. Plasma screens are generally given a "life" of 25,000 to 30,000 hours. So let's say it's 30,000. You have your TV on for 15 hours a day. That's 2000 days, about 6 years. After these 6 years, the screen would have reached 50% it's original brightness. This is regarded as the end of it's "life".
By comparison, modern LCDs have lives of around 50,000 - 60,000 hours.

• Don't be so eager to assume Sony is the best make. They of course are a very good and reliable manufacturer, and have many loyal fans, but you can get better (or as good at least) for a cheaper price. If you ask me their pricetags flatter their product quality these days. My last Sony TV (CRT) lasted just 5 years.

If you are worried about the life of Plasma, but deperately need a flat TV, go for LCD. Unfortunatly the nature of LCDs makes them more expensive at larger sizes. above sizes of around 32" the price of LCD overtakes the price of plasma, and pulls away fast until it hits the ceiling. Have a good browse around these forums for ideas on what model you should be going for. There is good advice here.

• Of course you are right about online prices being cheaper. I saw a TV in Argos for £2400 that can be had for £1300 online if you only google it, and click on one of the kelkoo / pricegrabber / dealtime links.
 
Hey thanks for such an indepth reply. I would of course like to see what others think too but any suggestions for an LCD tv of good quality of around 42inch??
 
Have a look at a Toshiba 37WL56 for less than half of what you are willing to pay. (Of course it is 5" smaller- but still big)
 
Samsung 40" -£1800 ish. Only one tuner, whereas the 32" has dual tuners for PAP/PIP/etc.
Alternatively there's always Sharp's Titanium with iDTV (Freeview) at £4500, or whatever online stores charge for them - haven't bothered checking pricerunner or dealtime.
Loewe only have 37's - Spheros R37 masterpiece or just the 'regular' Spheros 37, or Xelos 37 - not sure of prices.
Sony do 42" LCDs - depending on model, £2500-£3500 ish. New ones coming soon, although not sure if a new 42" is included or not.
Think that's it, unless B&O have something.
 
Ozzpot said:
My comments:

• Yes, it is correct that Plasmas have a limited life. Plasma technology is rather different to it's closest alternative, LCD. Plasma screens are generally given a "life" of 25,000 to 30,000 hours. So let's say it's 30,000.

Certainly true of the older plasmas but I believe the newer models are quoted as up to 60,000 hours by most manufacturers

See;

http://www.panasonic.co.jp/global/pdp/qa.html
 
Yep, current Plasma technology is at that sort of level - has been for the past couple of years as well, IIRC.
 
Come on people. I need a bit more help lol. Sony 42 inch LCDs? What do ya reckon??
 
Why not? Or, like I said, blow the budget on a 45" Sharp!!
 
scully91 said:
Come on people. I need a bit more help lol. Sony 42 inch LCDs?

Why not?! (as in, Go for it.)


scully91 said:
What do ya reckon?

Or blow the budget on a Sharp 45" (in for a penny, in for a pound, or rather 4,500 of them.)

Does that help clarify my reply?
 
No. Not at all.
Why are you saying i should buy the Sharp 45inch you mentioned?
 
Am I speaking in swahili?
Did you not ask for suggestions of large LCD TVs?

Anyway we want to buy a BIIIIIG Tv for downstairs......

Does the 45" Sharp not fit that definition?

I would of course like to see what others think too but any suggestions for an LCD tv of good quality of around 42inch??

I can't break it down any further.
 
No your not speaking in Swalhili but i think you may be foreign to the UK and are not grasping what i am asking.
I asked for help regarding an lcd tv around 42 inch. You have suggested the 45inch Sharp to me and i am asking WHY you think i should choose that model. What makes it better than the others in order for you to suggest it to me.
Can anybody else help here? Or maybe the member has mentioned a tv but cannot, for some reason, tell me anything good about it?

Somebody mentioned something about new Sonys coming out. Anybody know anymore about these please?
 
Not foreign at all, but your truncated replies made it sound like you were.
Anyhow, I mentioned the 45" Sharp as I thought you were looking for suggestions. I've not seen one in the flesh (who has?) but I doubt it's a terrible TV given the quality of their more affordable sized ones.
It was also me aho mentioned about new Sony's coming soon, but unsure if the current 42" was included as models being superseeded.
Try the Sony thread to get some info - seems there's quite a bit of steam building as everyone waits for word and actual specs, etc.
I have seen the 37" Loewe Xelos/Spheros (didn't pay too much attention) and the image in-store was very nice indeed. Big money, but nice PQ. Uses a Sharp panel, actually, Sharp owns 30% of Loewe now, so again I would expect the 45"er to be an excellent unit if you have the room for it and sit the recommended distance away from it.
I hope that helps, but if not, then sorry.
 
At the risk of causing a storm, I've never seen an LCD over 30" that compares to a good plasma. I recently was in the Sony centre in NY, where they have almost every model on display showing HDTV pictures (we are so behind in europe!) and the plasmas were way better. LCDs are just a bit washed out, too bright, contrast is really noticeably worse.

The life thing is a non-issue. Plasmas are usually now rated longer the LCDs. In LCDs, it it generally the backlight which fades and then dies. This can be seen on laptops a few years old which are noticably duller. On Plasma the issue is different, the gas thats used to make the plasma slowly degrades. Again the light fades, but in modern plasma this can be after 10 years. My plasma is over 3 years old now, and it runs over 6 hours a day (my kids watch for 2-4 - shame, and we watch in the evening for 2), it is also just on when no one is watching. I can tell you in the 3-4 years I have had it, it still looks exactly the same as when I bought it.
 
"""Why are you saying i should buy the Sharp 45inch you mentioned?"""

Not sure how that is truncated or in Swalhili but i think we will beg to differ. Seems a perfectly simple question to me mate?
 
What is HDTV ready then? Should i choose a set with this????
 
"HDTV ready" is a 'UK concept' term which assumes having a bundle of functionality within the TV:

1. TV has HDMI input
2. Digital video in (HDMI or DVI) can be fully unencrypted using the HDCP protocol (planned to be used by Sky)
3. Panel can display 1080i and 720p

There are some screens on sale that have a subset of the above (e.g. HDTV and 1080i/720p display, but can not decode HDCP).

However you must have all of these to be designated as 'HDTV' ready. There is a logo usualy stuck somewhere onto the TV or box.

Note that there are other HDTV standards, such as 1080p, which are not included in "HDTV Ready" but might be useful in the future as definitions increase.

Its a bit of a minefield. Its a bit like computers. you can wait forever to buy .....
If I was buying anything over 27" inch at the moment, I would probably want an HDTV ready logo. Although there are some tempting TVs around the £1,000 mark which don't, but do have HDTV. An important question is:
1. Should I get everything now, and pay £2000+
2. Should I get bare min. HDTV now for £1000, and in the future with buy a new TV (when HDTV ready goes down £1000+), or just get a keene convertor: http://www.keene.co.uk/cgi-bin/bigcodesearch.pl?DVIFIX

as they say. You pays your money and takes your choice !
 
The Loewe Spheros 37 is the best LCD panel that I've seen from any manufacturer - regardless of being plasma or LCD. The picture quality is stunning, with none of the foibles of other LCD's - for no more than £5,800 - and is HD ready.

This model is upgradeable with all sorts of goodies - like home automation, home cinema, hard disk recorder and enhanced pc connectivity, for example. Look at HomeCinema Choice for 'gold standard' reviews.

Updated model is arriving this Autumn, however. The Loewe Xelos is cheaper but nowhere near as good as the Spheros. This is B&O quality at a fraction of B&O prices.
 
Where do i find prices for the Spheros. Im struggling ;-))
 
The life thing is a non-issue. Plasmas are usually now rated longer the LCDs. In LCDs, it it generally the backlight which fades and then dies. This can be seen on laptops a few years old which are noticably duller.
What?

I understand that plasmas have improved, but are you serious that they're rated longer than LCDs?

Also, I'm stroking my chin at your theory of the backlight fading. I heard it was either working or completely missing in action.
 
Ok people. I have narrowed it down best i can.

Tv MUST be a minimum 42 inch
MUST be HD ready with HDMI inputs
Must be 16:9
Can be either LCD or PLASMA
Can be ANY make but must be good and look nice.

There is a new Sony out this month. kde-v42a1o(0)u (not sure if its a o or a 0) which replaced the kde-p42xsi(1) if that helps anyone.

Anyway those are the criteria. Money is no object. Well below £4000 really. I believe plasma is just as good as LCD nowadays.
Ok, what tvs should i be looking at please?
 
Scully - In terms of value for money, buy a Plasma if you want a 42in set.

The Panasonic 42PV500, Hitachi 42pd7200 and Pioneer PDP435XDE (43in) are the three best HD screens for the 42in market at the moment. There is a Pioneer 436 arriving soon, which will probably be better than these three. The 7200 is the cheapest at £2000 (e.g. Richer Sounds).
 

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