Moving to Europe from the US and could use some help with TVs

kutyafal

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Just when I though I was done TV shopping...

I'll be moving to Switzerland in August and was wondering if anybody has been over in the general area (Germany/France/Italy) who could give me a few tips on picking a display (Plasma or LCD). I've been trying the Visio 47" LCD but it's not working out so I don't want to take it over there.

In general I'm more interested in getting a plasma display but don't know much about what, where (good stores), what signal sources are available (cable or sat), anything else...

So if anybody here knows anything or know any European discount stores in that area that would be great!

Thanks!
 
Main brands are your best (and safest) bet. So, the likes of Pioneer/Panasonic/Loewe/Sony/JVC.
The former two for Plasma, the latter three for LCD.
Once you get to your region in Switzerland, I'm sure the locals will be only to helpful to point you in the right direction.
If this is work related, colleagues and management will be equally able to suggest some places to check out.
 
Switzerland & discount aren't two words that get used in conjunction very often, you're probably better off driving into Germany to pick one up :) Having said that, I guess Switzerland isn't in the EU is it? So you'd still have to sneak it past customs.
 
Switzerland & discount aren't two words that get used in conjunction very often, you're probably better off driving into Germany to pick one up :) Having said that, I guess Switzerland isn't in the EU is it? So you'd still have to sneak it past customs.

No, Switzerland is not in the European Union although its nationals belong to the European Economic Area, or something like that :rolleyes: So no firm idea of what the situation is if you buy outside of Switzerland and then bring it in.

Though surely if taxes are to be paid you buy tax-free outside of Switzerland & then you pay the relevant tax when you bring it into the country..... just a thought.
 
Thanks for the info so far. Yeah, I don't know a whole lot just yet about what I'll find there but I was wondering about one thing. If I'd bring a TV from the US as part of the move, wouldn't that work as a monitor when hooked up to a DVB-T box or such? Aren't most of these modern panels dual voltage? Let's say I work that part out what other issues would there be (connectors, 50/60hz)?

It looks like we'll be there for several years so maybe it's just better to get something there...

I'd just hate to spend $3000-$4000 for something that I won't be able to keep. Although, that would probably be the same in the US anyways. In 5-10 years I'd be ready for an upgrade... ;)

Oh, and the programming. What do I need in Europe to be able to watch some US shows?

Btw, I had a 50" Panny plasma for a short while and I loved the picture. Only problem was that I needed to use the built-in QAM tuner but it was terrible. I like the Visio LCD quite a bit also but I watch a lot of stuff in the dark and it's bad for that. I'm placing my hopes in the new Panny LCDs but I haven't seen one in person yet.
 
Oh, and the programming. What do I need in Europe to be able to watch some US shows?


A fast internet connection and access to lots of torrent sites and newsgroups. Best to download it all.
 
Congratulations on your move to Europe!

I'd probably try and get something here in Switzerland. From what I've seen PAL to NTSC converters don't work very well.

The prices here are actually really good (for Europe). For example, a Pioneer PDP-507XD is less than CHF4000 ( $3300 or GBP1650 ) . Check out www.hawk.ch or www.toppreise.ch

The big electronical discount chain is media markt - www.mediamarkt.ch

I don't see any reason why a TV you buy here won't work back in the States. Almost all TVs here are sold with NTSC and PAL tuners.

In Switzerland for broadcast TV you have the options of Cable ( http://www.cablecom.ch/en/index.htm ) , TV over IP (broadband) http://www.tv.bluewin.ch or satellite ( see www.broadcast.ch for details ) .
( for the German only sites check out http://www.google.com/language_tools )

I hope this helps.
 
I used to live in Zurich and agree with what RonCH says. Electrical goods aren't that expensive in Switzerland (cars are relatively cheap also!)
Just to add one more option - you can always get UK Sky satelite TV , lots of US shows. I'm sure that someone in Switzerland will be able to supply receiver and card;)
 
You guys are fantastic! :thumbsup:

First of all thanks for the mods to let this thread to go even this far. I realized it's a bit of a strech as far as the topic goes... :) But...

The fact is that I need some advice in more ways then one and some of you brought up cars... I need help with that too.

So, I don't want to waste any more bandwith in this thread but would those of you who can help mind PM-ing me so we can talk there?

I also want to know about forums (in English for now) for European cars, and other audio/video sites, shopping sites (is Amazon.co.uk any good), life there, etc... You get the point.

Also how about return policies for electronics?

By the way I'll be living in Geneva.

So, anyways, I hope you can help privately so we don't clog up the traffic here.

Thanks!!! :smashin:
 
You'll be dealing with Amazon.de for sales to Switzerland, IIRC.
Car forums - which type? Biggest one is pistonheads.com, with plenty of others for specific marques.
This is the main AV forum for UK/Europe (English speaking anyway).
 
Join www.tyresmoke.net for Audi, Porsche and BMW stuff, one of the Mods lives in Geneva too.

My cousin lives in Geneva and has Sky, his address is registered over here, so that link is well useful in case anything ever happens. :smashin:
 

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