Recommend a good priced telly

[Cernunnos]

Looking round for one of these new fangled wide screened tellys in the 37" to 42" range.

From what I've been led to believe the better the contrast ratio the better, but that the electronic engine in the telly also has a lot to do with it, so I've been told.

So here is the challenge... I don't really want to spend much more than £400 & something quid, (certainly no more than £500) but want quality that I'll apreciate from both Sky, Freeview & my new Samsung DVD recorder with 1080 upscalling, which is my new toy so to speak.

So any suggestions, so Far I seem to have seen Samsung Toshiba & LG Tellys that I like, but need to make a final desision.

Oh & what are the Pro's & con's between LCD & Plasma, as opinion seems to keep changing as to which is flavour of the month. Seems to me Plasma is likely to get damaged too easily, but as I'm no expert only able to go by what I'ved picked up, other opinions & experience will be welcome as I try & narrow down the seach for a suitably well priced New TV

 

[medwayjon]

Plasma is a better picture however life expentancy is allegedly shorter.

I remember when the first plasmas were £15,000, I sold a couple of them in fact, scary.

Plasma for me to be honest as picture quality is paramount for that sort of money.

Samsung are excellent, as are toshiba. However in my eyes you can get no better than Sony unless you can afford to spend bang & olufsen type money.

 

[theeaglehunter]

I can't see you getting a 1080p television above 37" in size from one of the big names for below £500. Something like this should fit your criteria I think: http://www.currys.co.uk:80/martprd/store...gory_oid=-34810 It is a decent manufacturer with the required 1080p capability, it also has a decent contrast ratio and looks good in the flesh, is 32" not enough?

If not try this and sacrifice the picture quality for a larger screen, if you have a dated tv as it is (sounds like you haven't yet got an lcd/plasma) you will still see an improvement in picture definition. http://www.currys.co.uk:80/martprd/store...gory_oid=-34810

 

[HTL]

PANASONIC!!!! Every time for quality. Best place to buy is Richer Sounds, by far the most clued up sales people and best service.

http://www.richersounds.com/splashpage.php

This one would be ace

http://www.richersounds.com/showproduct.php?cda=showproduct&pid=PANA-TX37LZD800

 

[HTL]

Samsung are excellent, as are toshiba. However in my eyes you can get no better than Sony unless you can afford to spend bang & olufsen type money.

Samsung make the screens for SONY, Not good! very unreliable and not great picture quality.

Bang & Oulfsen are awesome but stupid money for what they produce.

 

[Cernunnos]

Our current television is 32" widescreen, but still has a standard tube. be it of the flatscreen variety. Picture is reasonable, but not as good as some of the televisions I've seen recently

Thing is because its a few years old it doesn't have the all important HDMI lead that seems to be the important factor in getting the most out of my new DVD/Hard Disk recorder.

replacing 32" for 32" also seems a bit of a waste to me, especially seeing as I love watching movies & if Blue Ray disks continue to get cheaper I will certainly be in the market for one, though my new Upscalling DVD recorder certainly seems to be a bit of a stop gap up-until then.

Cheers for the links...

Have seen the 10,000/1 Samsung you are on about & its not bad, though the 15,000/1 version seemed to have a fractionally better picture.

I've also heard that LG screens come out of the same factory as Sony & from what I've so far seen in the various shops I've been in, the LG does seem to have a good picture... The Irony is The Sony ones I've seen I've generally not been that impressed with... Perhaps its me wanting more bang for my bucks.

Panasonic seems to me to offer the best picture quality in the shops I've been in next to Samsung & Toshiba, but a bit beyond what I'm prepared to pay.

 

[Cernunnos]

PANASONIC!!!! Every time for quality. Best place to buy is Richer Sounds, by far the most clued up sales people and best service.

http://www.richersounds.com/splashpage.php

This one would be ace

http://www.richersounds.com/showproduct.php?cda=showproduct&pid=PANA-TX37LZD800

Notice in the specs the 200 hz reference... Must say I've been impressed by every 100hz telly I've seen even when they had a standard tube. Probably worth the extra, but not sure if I'd want to put the best part of £800 on the cc...

Good call though.

 

[HTL]

Dont take the picture you see in the shops as the quality, they have all the colour settings etc up high to make them all look good. I can not stress how much better Richer Sounds are compared to Currey's etc.

I have a 32 inch LCD Hi Def Panasonic and I reckon that's all you will ever need. Went a bit crazy when I started my new job and spent 2k on a TV, amp, CD player, wires and two speakers.

 

[Cernunnos]

lol...

I really do fancy 37", especially being a movie nut something in me always is wanting that cinima feel. I'll admit when we first got the 32" it seemed big, but now, seems minutte. Its odd when I remember thinking at one time a 20" screen was big, but of course that was before widescreen television.

Yeah I know what you mean about not expecting what you see in the shop...Irony is that our local comet actually dexplained what sort of signal was going through what telly... And the local Currys seems to send any sort of signal through, judging by the grainy picture on most of the units they have.

I know a mate at work had dreadful problems with the quality of his picture until they replaced it with a newer unit & standard ariel pictures were much better.

 

[big_russ]

My dad bought a 32 Sony Bravia the weekend before xmas, absolutely c%£p picture and it kept turning itself to standby. Took it back and got a Panasonic instead (£100 cheaper in the sale) and it is superb. Big up for Comet as they didnt bat an eyelid when i took it back, just said go and find yourself something else (Sony were sold out in the sale).

 

[theeaglehunter]

Having looked at the website HTL posted this could suit your needs 100%, and is an absolute bargain- to the extent where I may consider one.

http://www.richersounds.com/showproduct.php?cda=showproduct&pid=LG-37LG6000

 

[Leftie]

Got myself (ok HID) new LG 32" 7000 full spec 1080P, Freeview, 100Hz refresh, etc at Currys on Boxing day for £349 (£250 off). Absolutely great.

If you can run to it and want Freesat built in, go for Panasonic TX37LZD81 or similar. Currently about £650 in Richer sounds but you may find it cheaper elsewhere. If you have already got, or are willing to spend another £80/£100 for a dish and connection, you can then get the BBC and ITV HD transmissions. Of course the alternative is to get a cheaper tele and a Freesat box.

I'm told ( ) that some rather sneaky people sign up to Sky's trial service where they install dish and cable for around £75/£80 and you get a month or two of their programmes foc. These people then decide that they don't want the Sky service and are then left with a perfectly servicable dish and a spare box ......

 

[Herbie]

I dont watch that much TV so Im happy to keep going with this one till its legs fall off.

 

[MVP]

Most modern tvs are geared up for hi def viewing so many look [****] in standard definition! from my experience get either Samsung or panasonic. DO NOT GET A SONY ..THEY ARE SHITE they are ok in hi def but piss poor in standard def they look like chicken soup!

I know samsung used to use the same panels as sony but not sure now .!

I have 2 modern 40 inch samsung lcds and they are mustard !

Plasmas do have a shorter life span but they should last you ten years unless you watch tv 15 hours a day! which is unlikely! Modern plasma tvs last even longer! tho they can suffer from screen burn! IE televison X logo in the top right corner will stay they when you change channel!

Plasmas are not recomended for Xbox/playstations etc....

modern Lcds are just as good picture wise now, as long as you get a decent one


for 400-500 quid your looking at a 32-37 lcd or 42 inch plasma you can get nice tellys for that sort of money!

ignore contrast ratio and all that.. most modern tvs are all similar spec and its all personal choice, plus other factors are to consider like brightness and actual quality of parts used!! just like anything!!

Also be warned.... for example go into comet or currys and all the LG TVS look the bollox ..because they make more money LG's, so they set them up to highest settings.

Try and narrow it down to samsung, panasonic, and you should be ok!


DO NOT rely on magazine reviews such as what hifi !!!!!!!!!!!!!

they talk [****] some stuff they dont even review they just say they have ! I know for a fact! What hi fi is a bit like todays golfer!! taylormade and ping wins everything!!!
taylormade=sony(junk)=

Good luck mate

 

[Yidio]

I've recently bought a 42" LG LCD Full HDTV for just over 500 notes. It looks the absolute bo**ocks with SkyHD running through it,especially the sport & movies.

They use the same panels as Samsung & it is the dogs. Thoroughly recommended.

 

[Andy]

MVP Do you have a sony?

Sony are far from shite, piss pooor in Std Def as you say. I have a the KDF_50E2010 50" rear proj Sony and you cannot fault the picture in SD or HD.

Also have Sony KDL-26v4000 for the bedroom and it's also the dogs nuts.

Plus ignore the guys who write the technology mags, what info do you have to hand to back up your claim? I'm interested.

Andy.

 

[Cernunnos]

Cheers chaps & thanks MVP great concice summing up. Its all either confirming things or making things clearer as to what direction to go in.

 

[HTL]

http://www.hyperfi.co.uk/default.aspx?CategoryId=203

Could always try Hyper Fi if you are looking for a bargain, they do all end of line stuff but are good to deal with.

 

[Smiffy]

I've had three LCD's over the years..started off with a Samsung 32" was very good but fancied something a bit bigger. Then went to a JVC 37" but for some reason I didn't like it so ended up with what I have now....Samsung 40". Looks really smart in "piano black" (matches the ps3, speakers and amp) should I change again I will always check out Samsung first. Having said that, shortly after I bought my latest one I looked at a Sony 40" in comparison in our local Comet (went in there to buy an mp3 player not to change the telly again!) and was very impressed with the picture quality of it.
My Samsung is superb with anything Hi-Def pumped through it, but like most other LCD's is not so hot on SD stuff. I don't sit too close to it so it doesn't bother me too much though!
Rob

 

[SS2]

http://www.hyperfi.co.uk/default.aspx?CategoryId=203

Could always try Hyper Fi if you are looking for a bargain, they do all end of line stuff but are good to deal with.

Wow, they have some fantastic prices on some pretty high end gear