Buying a Flat Panel Display (LCD/Plasma/LED etc)

[jassi]

Originally Posted by vvrchandra

Jassi, Are you using your mobile for posting since you are on travel?

well its office travel, so yeah i do have laptop and hotel internet. These last few posts are using cell phone though

[etch]

Originally Posted by jassi

@selective - I am not sure what you saw at the panny stores, however as per my experience, having used a sony bravia and panny 42pv80h, the plasmas are much better at handling regular cable/dth signals. The only thing that comes close to plasmas are the Sony bravia SXRDs.
However at the shops they split signals between 10 tvs using really long cables and hence the quality is bad irrespective of plasma or lcd.
I am currently on travel, but I am sure in the meanwhile you can find one of the many recent pv80 buyers to help you with a visit
As starscream said, full hd doesn't really matter at 42".

@etch - Also for lcds the contrast ratios are nothing but dynamic contrast ratio. You need to check the panels contrast ratio and I can guarantee you it will be no where close to the plasmas. LCDs have still not reached the black levels on plasmas. However if i ever get back to LCDs, i am sure it is going to be sony and not samsung. the panel is the same, but the bravia engine on the sony is much better in color reproduction!!

jassi i agree LCD's are no where close to plasmas and it would have been better to get a plasma but the stores i went to and the dealer i have been buying lot of goods from didnt keep plasmas anymore so i was a little skeptical as to after sales service for plasma. and it would have been cheaper for me to buy a plasma for 46' than a LCD as bigger sizes plasmas are cheaper than LCD's. Uptil now i have just used sony products i have a sony 35' inch tv also but the only reason i went for samsung as of now was cause of the price. sony bravia was very expensive for the same size. and in the end i just baught the tv for regular viewing not for watchin movies or anything as i have a home theatre system with projector in a seperate room for movies and watching formula one races when people come over.

[etch]

Originally Posted by StarScream

etch, Im glad you're happy with your purchase. At the end of the day that's what matters. BTW contrast ratio is a pretty meaningless benchmark. It's like PMPO in music systems - each manufacturer puts his own and the numbers are not stricitly comparable between different makes.
I'm one of those `brand conscious' people who bought a Sony Bravia last year. The toss up was between a Samsung Bordeaux and the Sony. The reason I went for the latter was because of its significantly better sound quality. The Samsung was quite anemic and tinny sounding. Perhaps they've improved!

hey StarScream like you said at the end of the day what matters is that you should be happy with your purchase. Like i mentioned in the post below i just bought the TV for regular daily viewin as i have a sony 35' and also a home theatre system with projector. The sound quality of my sony whch is like 7-8years old is much better than the samsung. And even the contrast ratios wont make a difference when you watch the programs at home. Only when you have a tv to compare at the side with a better contrast ratio or make will u actually find out the difference.

[madbullram]

hey guys, I thinking of buying an LCD for my bedroom. Its a 10X12, and the TV would be mounted at 10 feet distance, with head board coming in, practical viewing distance would be 9 feet.

What would be recommended size. Viewing would be for DTH and DVDs.

[Pankaj_Ahlawat]

Originally Posted by jassi

@selective - I am not sure what you saw at the panny stores, however as per my experience, having used a sony bravia and panny 42pv80h, the plasmas are much better at handling regular cable/dth signals. The only thing that comes close to plasmas are the Sony bravia SXRDs.
However at the shops they split signals between 10 tvs using really long cables and hence the quality is bad irrespective of plasma or lcd.
I am currently on travel, but I am sure in the meanwhile you can find one of the many recent pv80 buyers to help you with a visit
As starscream said, full hd doesn't really matter at 42".

@etch - Also for lcds the contrast ratios are nothing but dynamic contrast ratio. You need to check the panels contrast ratio and I can guarantee you it will be no where close to the plasmas. LCDs have still not reached the black levels on plasmas. However if i ever get back to LCDs, i am sure it is going to be sony and not samsung. the panel is the same, but the bravia engine on the sony is much better in color reproduction!!

After 2 yrs of rigrous research and chaising the war between lcd and plasma .. iam finally settling for pannny PV8H (1080p)upscaling for standard def!! 20000:1 actual contrast (1million:1 dynamic)
the retail price in del is 69000 MRP and I bargained it to 53k..and guess what dealer is considerate on giving it up for 50 k . so next week iam going for it, and so is my frnd so 2 tvs at a lakh.
i already have 1600wattRMS (16500W PMPO) sony 6.2 Mu.Te.Ki sys and XBOX 360 .
So its gonna complete my home theatre .

[jassi]

congrats with the pv8h pankaj. Be it gaming, regular cable/hathway/etc or dvd movies, thats one choice you want be disappointed with, not at that price point cheers:

[matrix_ren]

Originally Posted by madbullram

hey guys, I thinking of buying an LCD for my bedroom. Its a 10X12, and the TV would be mounted at 10 feet distance, with head board coming in, practical viewing distance would be 9 feet.

What would be recommended size. Viewing would be for DTH and DVDs.

Anything between the sony 37" to a 40" should suffice..

[im_srini]

Hi guys, was planning to get a KLV-46W400A this month.

For the plasma lobbyists, full-HD is important to me & although I'd like to get a Pio plasma, they're simply too expensive (was quoted upwards of 4 lakhs for the 508 full-HD).

The W-series Sony's have received very good reviews on "What Hi-Fi" & seemed the best choice - I was planning to get one this month. However, Sony's now come up with a 200 Hz LCD, the Z4500, & the 9.9mm thick ZX1. Something very attractive about the ZX1 is that it has a seperate media receiver which connects to the TV wirelessly - the interior decorating types would love this as this essentially eliminates a lot of the composite & HDMI wiring clutter. Launch dates are end of this year or early next year.

Are these LCDs worth the wait ? Should I cool my heels for a few more months & just get the B&W 685s that I'd been saving up for ?

[jassi]

Originally Posted by matrix_ren

Anything between the sony 37" to a 40" should suffice..

why just sony ?? any vendor 37" to 42" should suffice
@maadbullram - you have a lot of choice between plasmas and lcds - also full hd is not really needed for 42" or lower

viewing distance calc
Viewing Distance Calculator

[madbullram]

As I am gunning for Both Bedroom and Living, was thinking of 46 Plasma in Living, how will a 26 LCD the bedroom? Is it too small?

[Mission_Safari]

Originally Posted by madbullram

As I am gunning for Both Bedroom and Living, was thinking of 46 Plasma in Living, how will a 26 LCD the bedroom? Is it too small?

IMO 26" or 32" should do for a bedroom with a viewing distance of 9ft.

46" for the living room? What is the viewing distance you are looking at?

[jassi]

Originally Posted by madbullram

As I am gunning for Both Bedroom and Living, was thinking of 46 Plasma in Living, how will a 26 LCD the bedroom? Is it too small?

yep 26" to 32" should be fine for bedroom of 9ft i checked in the calculator linkie too and it seems a small lcd would do fine. I would say stick to 32" as you have some good models in that category to choose from

[vasudeva]

Originally Posted by Mission_Safari

IMO 26" or 32" should do for a bedroom with a viewing distance of 9ft.

46" for the living room? What is the viewing distance you are looking at?

I have a42 inch plasma at a viewing distance of 9.5 feet and I strongly feel that at least a 40 inch TV should be taken. I find it great and my only regret is that if only the viewing dist. had been 12 feet, I could have gone for a 50. For 9-10 feet, go for 40 inch and nothing less. You will regret forever a 32 inch or 37 inch.

[jassi]

Originally Posted by vasudeva

I have a42 inch plasma at a viewing distance of 9.5 feet and I strongly feel that at least a 40 inch TV should be taken. I find it great and my only regret is that if only the viewing dist. had been 12 feet, I could have gone for a 50. For 9-10 feet, go for 40 inch and nothing less. You will regret forever a 32 inch or 37 inch.

well i am at a viewing distance of 9ft and use the panny 42" pv80d plasma in my room. Quite comfortable for movies, gaming, tv, et al
I didn't want to comment on my situation as an example earlier as people would say its too large, but frankly i am quite comfy with it

[im_srini]

Originally Posted by madbullram

As I am gunning for Both Bedroom and Living, was thinking of 46 Plasma in Living, how will a 26 LCD the bedroom? Is it too small?

Hi, the default size for PC flat-panel monitors is approaching 24", & these have a viewing distance of ~2.5 feet.

With a 26" LCD & 9' viewing distance you would probably have to peer a lot - while it could be good for gaming where you tend to place yourself closer to the monitor, for movies & stuff, I think 26" would be too small.

Go for a minimum size of 37" & a recommended size of 40" (or higher).