[Aroy]

Originally Posted by u_chill

Thanks Backseatdriver, your points are helpful. Let me explain: My requirement is no more than 32 inches, and no less than 26 inches. The TV has always been a non-priority device in this family, however I could do well with a computer that can stream video over wi-fi into my living room. It is important that this "screen" doubles up for internet surfing, and reading large amounts of text. I am not quite sure if a standard 32 inch LCD/LED TV can achieve that, though it may present video in high quality.
In comes the new 27 inch Apple Cinema display, which meets all criteria, but a) is tad expensive for the screen size b) lacks standard input ports....I want to integrate with a Windows based HTPC and standard STB. Samsung sells some large SyncMaster screens, though obtaining one over 23 inches may take some effort. Next is what?

If you can do with a smaller screen - 23", try LG Monitor+TV LG 23 Inch LCD Flatron Monitor ? Model LG M237WA with All sorts of I/O for <15K. It is full HD 1080p, 1920x1080 and not 1920x1200. This is an excellent monitor and a good TV. Of course nothing can beat a dedicated 24"/30" monitor in clarity, response and resolution. Larger monitors have a resolution of 2560x1900 Shop By Design. If you use DTH for TV then most of the higher end LCD monitors can take the component out of the DTH box.

WiFi speed is limited and it is difficult to stream 1080p, but at or below 720p you can do it. Note that some of the HD movies in .mkv format require a lot of processing power and may stutter on a slower processor.

[rbp]

I am looking at buying a plasma and have zeroed in on Panny 42V20, I have been quoted a price of 64K, panasonic also gifts a Benetton sun glass and a watch[this is the Diwali offer from Panny] by the panny brandshop in kormangala. Any idea about the best price for this particular model?

[n_aditya]

Time for us to get a new TV so was looking up the Sony 42 inch LCD TV.

I want to go for one with a 42inch screen. Some questions I have:

1. LCD or Plasma? I have got contrasting opinions so totally confused.

2. Which brand? Sony comes first to mind but have heard horror stories of the unit conking off and costing a bomb to repair after warranty. Fortunately my Sony HT has no such issues since i bought it 3-4 years back.

3. I will connect my Sony HT to the lcd/plasma so will need HD ready TV.

Will be used for watching dvd movies, usual soaps via a satellite connection/cable, etc.

Anything else i have missed out? please help. I dont want to rush this but hope to buy during Diwali so i can squeeze out a good deal.

[Rocky_Balboa]

Originally Posted by n_aditya

Time for us to get a new TV so was looking up the Sony 42 inch LCD TV.

I want to go for one with a 42inch screen. Some questions I have:

1. LCD or Plasma? I have got contrasting opinions so totally confused.

Plasma only if You can arrest sources of reflection in the TV room. Windows and Lights contribute to a greater reflection on the Plasma screens. Not sure of the latest ones, but am told this is their generic behaviour.

You should have atleast twice the screen size, as the viewing distance. 40"+ means about 8 feet viewing distance.

Originally Posted by n_aditya

2. Which brand? Sony comes first to mind but have heard horror stories of the unit conking off and costing a bomb to repair after warranty. Fortunately my Sony HT has no such issues since i bought it 3-4 years back.

Samsung is also a very good player in LCDs.

Originally Posted by n_aditya

Will be used for watching dvd movies, usual soaps via a satellite connection/cable, etc.

Anything else i have missed out? please help. I dont want to rush this but hope to buy during Diwali so i can squeeze out a good deal.

I have the same requirements and waiting for Diwali to see if anyone does a good offer on Samsung 5 and/or 6 series LCDs.

[f1fan]

Originally Posted by Rocky_Balboa

You should have atleast twice the screen size, as the viewing distance. 40"+ means about 8 feet viewing distance.

Samsung is also a very good player in LCDs.


I have the same requirements and waiting for Diwali to see if anyone does a good offer on Samsung 5 and/or 6 series LCDs.

When I bought my Samsung 40 inch LCD, I was told that the viewing distance should be atleast 12 feet. I believe 8 would be too less.

[Rocky_Balboa]

Originally Posted by f1fan

When I bought my Samsung 40 inch LCD, I was told that the viewing distance should be atleast 12 feet. I believe 8 would be too less.

Yeah, there are multiple opinions (some recommending 10 feet, some 8 feet etc) from different distance calculators and left me confused as well.

When I watched the Samsung 40" at Croma, the HD content was crystal clear from less than 4 feet. I didnt have any discomfort from that distance, but maybe because I spent less than 10 mins in front of the TV. Maybe viewing the SD content will reveal much on this.

Have You tried viewing SD content from less than 10 feet f1fan?

[djjebs]

Any reviews on the LG LED TV (32LE5500) Does anybody own one? Hows the clarity. It can also be connected to the "internet". I have 2 models in mind either the LG LED TV (32LE5500) or Samsung LCD TV (LA32650)

FYI: Both these models can be connected to the internet.

Which one do you suggest? Want to pick up this weekend.

[NetfreakBombay]

Originally Posted by n_aditya

1. LCD or Plasma? I have got contrasting opinions so totally confused.

2. Which brand? Sony comes first to mind but have heard horror stories of the unit conking off and costing a bomb to repair after warranty.

1. Plasma is "enthusiast" technology. You get a much bigger screen for the same amount. Perfect for watching movies.

However, you need to handle it with some care, otherwise you risk damaging it.

2. Buy ANY brand but Sony. Now, Sony does not offer extended warranty and has horrible rates for spares.

I would advice LG or Panasonic. Both offer 3 years warranty.
Keep in mind that, replacing a LCD (plain or LED)/ Plasma panel costs same as buying a new TV.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by djjebs

Any reviews on the LG LED TV (32LE5500) Does anybody own one? Hows the clarity. It can also be connected to the "internet". I have 2 models in mind either the LG LED TV (32LE5500) or Samsung LCD TV (LA32650)

FYI: Both these models can be connected to the internet.

Which one do you suggest? Want to pick up this weekend.

Desist from buying a TV with "frills". The company will charge any where from 6K to 20K for all the connectivity, internet and other goodies, and the provision will never match those of PC connected to internet.

Get a base TV which has good picture and HDMI ports, and connect to internet via a PC, bought from money saved (well almost).

Regarding size, I have a 47" LG which is excellent for HD at 10'-12'. My normal TV is 21" which is OK at 6'. My 24" monitors are good till 3'. If your TV is in bedroom, the normal position is at the foot, which is at least 7'-8', so any size upto 50" is OK, beyond that it may be too wide.

[djjebs]

@Aroy - Appreciate your feedback. I do understand that the provision provided will not match that of a PC. What caught my eye was both these TV's are of the same cost, almost same specs. What do you suggest a LCD or LED? The picture clarity is almost the same as well. Need a 32" because its for my bedroom which is small.

Somehow inclined towards the LED. Any thoughts?

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by djjebs

@Aroy - Appreciate your feedback. I do understand that the provision provided will not match that of a PC. What caught my eye was both these TV's are of the same cost, almost same specs. What do you suggest a LCD or LED? The picture clarity is almost the same as well. Need a 32" because its for my bedroom which is small.

Somehow inclined towards the LED. Any thoughts?

Both are LCD panels. The difference is that LED ones use LED as back light, so are more uniform and can be selectively controlled to give true black. LED should also last longer than the traditional back light, hence slower dimming of the picture.

If your room is really small, try a 24" monitor or a 23" LG Monitor/TV. These will give better HD performance, and if your watching distance is shorter, will not matter. If you are used to a normal 21" or 25" TV, then these monitors present superior picture.

There was a time when the TV were cheaper than monitors, but the trend is slowly reversing and you get 20" to 23" monitors much cheaper than the corresponding TV.

[KALINGA]

Recently i bought a SAMSUNG LCD . It has only 1 yr warrenty.
Is SAMSUNG offering extended warrenty / AMC etc??

[f1fan]

Originally Posted by Rocky_Balboa

Yeah, there are multiple opinions (some recommending 10 feet, some 8 feet etc) from different distance calculators and left me confused as well.

When I watched the Samsung 40" at Croma, the HD content was crystal clear from less than 4 feet. I didnt have any discomfort from that distance, but maybe because I spent less than 10 mins in front of the TV. Maybe viewing the SD content will reveal much on this.

Have You tried viewing SD content from less than 10 feet f1fan?

Watching HD is okay from 4 feet (but I still feel that 4 feet is too less from straining an eye perspective)
The problem comes with watching cable TV from that distance. Even though I have Tata sky at home, I noticed that picture clarity is better from 10+ feet bcos you see a lot more pixelization from 4 feet.
Hope this info helps.

Cheers

[im_srini]

Originally Posted by im_srini

What's with 1-year-8-months & Sony TVs ? I bought an X-series 40" LCD TV (KLV40X450A) on the very last day of 2008. The magazine reviews were great & the TV was even better in real life. Despite costing 1.6L I bought it, for the picture quality was top-notch. It didn't disappoint at home & performed flawlessly - for all of 20 months.

This episode finally came to a conclusion yesterday ! And it took Sony-Service only 7 weeks to fix it ! A full 3 weeks after I'd raised the original complaint on 23rd August the service guys returned with what they thought was the issue - a faulty "I/O Board". A worrying thing was that the service folks were completely unfamiliar with the insides of the TV - many a time stopping to figure out how to get off a component.

Long story short, to everybody's immense disappointment it turned out that the "I/O Board" wasn't the problem. So, off they went - to order the next component in line ! I got the distinct impression that, much like T.A.S.S., they were diagnosing the issue in a trial-&-error manner. In the meantime, I'd sent a rather wordy email to Sony-India. Probably due to it, but most likely not, the pair were back in just a week with the next component in line.

Same routine again, a lot of fumbling at the back of the TV to get things off ! This time however, a glimmer of hope - the lines disappeared. To me it seemed they were more happy with the turn of events than me ! Anyway, everybody's joy was short-lived - the TV shut itself off after 30 seconds, the only indication of an issue being the status light blinking 9 times (the meaning of which the Service guys did not know).

I'd finally had had enough of their shenanigans & firmly told them to take the TV to their service center, figure out the issue, & fix it once & for all - this was 2 weekends ago... After a couple of un-kept promises, some verbal sparring, even slight threats, the TV was finally delivered home yesterday - covered in a layer of dust. What were they doing with it ? Or rather, weren't ?!? Cleaned it, connected everything back up & turned it on - finally, after 7 weeks, my TV was back in all its glory.

Turns out that the second replacement board that they had brought was itself faulty !?! The board is called FBA-GA-V3 & has all the digital inputs like HDMI & PC. Surprising that it was the reason for the issue considering the vertical snow was only on analog inputs (composite & component). Any pretense that this TV is an Indianized version was washed off by the box in which the board came - it was clearly marked the board was for a KDL-40XBR4R TV - maybe this is why Sony TVs are having so many issues - they're not designed for our kind of conditions (?). Cost of the board & service charges came to 26.2K. I could've bought a Nano for what this TV's cost me so far

First order of business was of course to finish a level of Halo:Reach ! Later the same day I caught the 'Matrix' on the WB channel. The opening scene, at night, with Carrie-Anne Moss in black leather, savoring the subtle details the TV dishes out - I almost forgave Sony... Anyway, I'm glad this thing is finally over - Sony-Service gets a thumbs-down from me, the TV still gets a thumbs-up (the thing is gorgeous, really !)...

P.S. - I still think I'm having more fun with this baby than if I'd gone & bought a Nano...

[BaCkSeAtDrIVeR]

Typically, when we watch something, we say "ti is so clear from even X feet away".

While speaking of HDTVs, why is every body is saying "HD content is clear even as close as X feet"??