Buying advive for a noob to LCD

zombie67

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Hi folks,

Just signed up especially to ask for a bit of buying advice, as you all seem so clued up on things.

I am about to take back my faulty JVC 28" CRT to Tesco and get back £200 as its still in warranty.

I want to buy an LCD TV but there are two stipulations (sorry to be awkward right from the start). I want to buy from Richer Sounds, as I have always been impressed by them and they are the best electrical retailer in the area. Secondly, I am on a tight budget.

From checking out RS, I have come down to a choice between two models:

the LG 26LC2R currently priced at £299.95 or
the Hitachi 37LD8500 currently priced at £399.95 (bit of a stretch but just in price range).

I will be using the following with it:
Standard Sky Box (no intention to upgrade for a long while - budget again)
LG RH177 DVD Recorder
Xbox 360

Will be viewing/playing from just over 10 feet away.

So, any thoughts should I take the easier cash option of the LG but drop 2" or put the extra £100 in for the increase to 37".

This TV will proabably have to last me about 1.5 to 2 years till I have saved up for a much bigger screen.

Thanks in advance for any advice.:)
 
The hitachi 37" is a very good choice!!!Do you accept any other retailer?
 
The hitachi 37" is a very good choice!!!Do you accept any other retailer?

I much prefer Richer Sounds. I have used them on a number of occasions over the years and always found the very helpful and not just with sales, after sales and faults have been dealt with in the same manner.

Of course, If you should be able to point me into the direction of a good & cheap retailer I may be up for it;):).

I will say though from a few bad experiences of my family & friends I am put-off Online only retailers.
 
I searched and couldnt find any other good tv at this budget!!You can order the hitachi.To get a better tv you need to stretch to 450£ ro buy Samsung LE-32R87!!!
 
I searched and couldnt find any other good tv at this budget!!You can order the hitachi.To get a better tv you need to stretch to 450£ ro buy Samsung LE-32R87!!!

Thanks for the advice. As I said the extra £100 is a bit of a stretch and have to persuade GF we can do it.

But as budget restrictions go, you think the Hitachi 37LD8500 is the way to go?

Thanks again for your help, btw.
 
You cant find anything better than the hitachi!!
 
37" advisable for 10ft viewing. I wouldn't go smaller than 32"...

Having said that, if u were happy with 28" CRT, then a 26" LCD will have v similar viewable area.... remember CRT's used to quote the "tube size" and not the actual screen size, so a 28" CRT probably has about 26.5-27" viewable area.

I'm drawing a bit of a blank on the £400 budget, sorry....

Only suggestion I would have is to have a look at the LG 32LC56 - not sure about RS, but EmpireDirect are quoting £430 (or £465 incl delivery and a 3 year guarantee).

Have a good look at the Hitachi - it really sounds like a great price for a 37", so could be great value - or maybe they've priced it like that because of serious flaws (?). Either way, have a look at JohnLewis or somewhere that you can view it properly (not sure about your's, but the RS that I go to doesn't have much viewing area).
 
37" advisable for 10ft viewing. I wouldn't go smaller than 32"...

Having said that, if u were happy with 28" CRT, then a 26" LCD will have v similar viewable area.... remember CRT's used to quote the "tube size" and not the actual screen size, so a 28" CRT probably has about 26.5-27" viewable area.

I'm drawing a bit of a blank on the £400 budget, sorry....

Only suggestion I would have is to have a look at the LG 32LC56 - not sure about RS, but EmpireDirect are quoting £430 (or £465 incl delivery and a 3 year guarantee).

Have a good look at the Hitachi - it really sounds like a great price for a 37", so could be great value - or maybe they've priced it like that because of serious flaws (?). Either way, have a look at JohnLewis or somewhere that you can view it properly (not sure about your's, but the RS that I go to doesn't have much viewing area).

Thanks, lostbok. I think I am gonna go for the Hitachi.

Originally, I would have had a much bigger budget but a couple of unforeseen events has knocked me down to £400. I had wanted to go for something above 42", so I with the Hitachi I will not be far off the mark. Looking forward to playing "Dead Rising" on a large HD screen.:clap:

Richer Sounds over 5 year Panel Protection with the TV for a total of £439.90. Do you think its worth it? Anybody had any experience of the Panel Protection service?

Thanks for your time folks. It really helps being able to get a bit of feedback from punters rather than retailers.
 
If you can give 440£ buy the extended warranty!!But personally I dont like 5year warranty!!If your tv is faulty it will show it within 1-2years!!
 
Thanks again CG, I'll see what the GF thinks.
 
440 inc 5 yrs warranty sounds great... not seen/heard much on the RS PProtection... search around AVForums though!

Don't get hooked into payign over the odds for more than a 3 yr warranty - after3 yrs the technology will have moved on so much, that it won't be worth replacing the old screen.
 
440 inc 5 yrs warranty sounds great... not seen/heard much on the RS PProtection... search around AVForums though!

Don't get hooked into payign over the odds for more than a 3 yr warranty - after3 yrs the technology will have moved on so much, that it won't be worth replacing the old screen.

Does seem pretty good and by the way, if any body is thinking it I don't work for RS:D, I've just had very good service in the past.

They basically charge 10% of the cost of the machine for 5 years cover. For any TV's 32" and above they have "at home" warranty.

The 5 year includes:

Full parts and labour cover
If your unit goes wrong we'll fix it. No quibbles and no fuss.

Pick up and drop off at your home
Carting a screen around can be a tricky business. To save you any unnecessary hassle, should your screen need repairing, we'll pick it up from your home and return it as soon as it's ready. (LCD under 32" return to store)

Like for like machine replacement if unit is unrepairable
If, for any reason, we are unable to repair your unit, we'll replace it. Naturally, models do change so, while we can't guarantee that it will be the same model, we do guarantee that it will have equivalent specifications.

45 Day Cooling Off Period
If you're not happy with our Panel Protection package just ask for a full refund - no questions asked. After 45 days, providing no claim has been made, you can also terminate the agreement and receive a pro-rata refund.

We're confident our extended guarantee is the best value package available. It is less than a quarter of the price of those sold by some of our competitors and, when compared with the cost of replacing the screen, we're sure you'll agree, our cover is sensational value for money. For full details please ask a member of staff.

Excludes:

* Dead pixels within manufacturers tolerances
* Screen burn
* Accidental damage and misuse
* Commercial use on commercial premises


I'll check out the Forums to see if I can get any info on their 5 year.
 
10% seems pretty fair... I've seen some charge about £250 for a £900 TV!!

And these are usually the type of comapnies where you're nto THAT sure they'll still be trading in 5yrs... :)
 
The panel protection for 5 years sounds good, but what about the rest of the set if that goes wrong?
 
Been speaking to Richer Sounds staff in Preston today, the 5 year panel protection covers the whole TV.
 
Been speaking to Richer Sounds staff in Preston today, the 5 year panel protection covers the whole TV.

Excellent!! It seems like a very good deal compared to a lot of retailers out there.

cheers for info, ronnyb
 
Well, thought I'd report back today as you all kind enough to try and help me.

Contacted RS today and the company has sold out of the Hitachi, it seem to have been popular.

My girlfriend was really into the idea of getting a new TV, so we popped to Richer Sounds to see what they had and well our budget grew a hell of a lot than I originally stated so....

..we went for the Samsung LE37S86 £799.95 with 5 year at home Panel Protection for £79.95.

Looking at what our local RS had in stock the Samsung was by far the best picture.

Set it up and we love it, still have to do a bit of tweaking but we watched Batman Begins tonight and it looked great.

I set up my Xbox 360 through the components and with the Game Mode setting on Dead Rising looked utterly amazing (and I could read the on-screen text at last, no missing those rescue missions now). I then stuck in Bioshock which my GF was kind enough to treat me to and WOW!!!

So thanks for the help guys and I hope you like our final choice. If not, please be kind when you tell us why not.;).



BTW...I know from looking tonight it is cheaper online but as I posted before I really didn't want to go through an online only shop and also with RS the warranty is an at home service.
 
You could get the better Samsung LE-37R87 from John Lewis for 599£ incl.5years warranty.Anyway.......
 

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