I wonder how many people are still (like me) watching old style 4:3 CRT receivers? I haven't upgraded to LCD / PLASMA and have no current plans to do so. I have 3 reasons why.

First, why buy a PLASMA or LCD screen when I have yet to see one as good as my old Sony Trinitron tube set? If one exists please tell me what it is. The manufacturers have still not sorted out the smudge effect on moving objects.

Second, there aren't many free HD channels at present (I refuse to pay Sky) and I don't rent DVDs, so what would I watch on it?

Third, I'm not very inspired by the quality (lack of) in most modern programmes, much of what what I watch was recorded years ago, well before HD.

So let's see how many people like me are waiting for things to improve.

From what you say, I would agree that in your case, you'd be mad to splash out on HD at present.

While I agree with you completely about LCD and plasma and I've not even seen any HD demos where the quality is good enough to upgrade ,I have CRT also but I have had widescreen for almost a decade.

Unless you are watching tapes your 4:3 set will always result in lost image whether you watch analogue or digital.

Seems to be on-going developments in the CRT markets available in other countries e.g. a whole host of slim fit CRT TVs.

Very disappointed with LCD displays, anyone know where I could get one of the SAMSUNG or TOSHIBA slim fit CRT HDTVs in the UK?

Is there a conspiracy amongst manufacturers / suppliers in the UK to deny us these products!!??

CRT rules!

I've been a Sony Trinitron fan for many a long year, but my main TV died this year and I decided, after spending about a month looking at lots of new flat panels, to go for Sony Bravia LCD.

I now have a Bravia in the living room with a Sky TvLink to my Trinitron in the bedroom.

Mike, I would agree that there's no need to upgrade yet. However, if your Trinitron dies don't be too worried.

At first look I decided all LCDs were awful, but really I was standing way too close to them. Once I'd measured my viewing distance, I started to breathe a sigh of relief when I went back for a second look.

With SD broadcasts there are points to be scored on both sides. My Bravia does what it says on the tin "colour like no other", my Trinitron doesn't come close in that respect. Whilst overall I'm very pleased with the Bravia I still prefer to watch football on the Trinitron. The Bravia suffers from the "swarm of bees" effect around a player when running.

At the end of the day, the pictures on both TVs are very good, but very, very different. In my opinion, current Sony Bravias have a very good SD performance and by the time you need to consider getting one, they'll be even better.

So there are a few people like me!

Interesting point about widescreen, I never upgraded. I do have digital, an ancient Sky receiver from a cancelled subscription and also freeview. Both are set to 4:3 "pan & scan" which cuts off the sides of the picture and it fills the screen. I don't miss what I can't see.

With a bit of luck I'll get 5 more years from my existing kit, maybe then there will be better products in the shops and better programmes to watch on them.

If you're happy with your purchase then you have made a good choice.

If my old Sony dies, I didn't mentionthat I have a 25" Panasonic gathering dust. It still works (I turn it on once every few weeks). I probably won't win the prize for the last working CRT in Britain!

While all those more bothered about how nice their slim tv looks than the picture quality buy the lcd and plasma sets you can pick yourself up a crt widescreen bargain.

As all the mainstream channels on Sky are in 16:9 you are missing image.
Channels used to cater for 4:3 but I often see programmes now where the titles and captions will disappear off the sides.

And apart from vintage tv shows all dvd's are in widescreen.

There's no need to compromise quality and get reasonably up to date.

Until we have a full HD tv service from the main 5 channels (which we may possibly have within 12 months) lcd and plasma are best left on the shelf.

No conspiracy, just that HD CRT sets are fairly crap, most manufacturers don't consider them worth selling. Samsung sold a few in the UK, but soon scrapped the idea!.

The better LCD and Plasma's tend to out perform the best CRT's - but cheap LCD and Plasma are asolutely rubbish.

Not with standard definition material they dont ---not by a long way

I bought a slim fit HD crt from comet (samsung), took it back within a week and got a LCD

All the design effort is now going into plasmas and LCDs. This doesn't mean that plasmas/LCDs are technically superior in terms of PQ (they aren't) but it does mean that the better TVs are now flat panels (try and buy a good CRT).

This is purely because they don't consider them worth the effort (nobody buys them) of manufacture, technically CRT would still be superior except for reasons of fashion.

TVC manufacturers are not there to provide the best PQ they are there to provide what will sell, this is flat panels despite CRT still being technically superior in terms of PQ. I have a 50" plasma because that's what I feel is best now, a 50" HD CRT would be better PQ if it was available and I could afford the space behind the TV.

I've still got a 4:3 CRT JVC set. I've had it for about 8 years, bought it second hand from my then flatmate for £100 and only had one minor repair in the meantime.

The picture's good and when watching 16:9 the image is big enough for my needs.

I work in TV and am used to watching broadcast quality CRT monitors. I certainly don't want to lose CRT at home if I can help it (and as my set is on a unit in the corner a flat set won't quite fit as well!)

Still using a VHS recorder too!

You need to check out better quality flat sceens!

Agreed. My sony lcd has a superb picture. alot better than my old CRT.

I replaced my 4:3 CRT earlier this year. I decided there was now enough widescreen material to justify a 16:9 set. Bought a 32" Toshiba CRT off eBay for £67 from someone who'd just bought an LCD. Nothing wrong with the CRT, brilliant picture.

Maybe just upgrade to a widescreen CRT then?

Currently have a 28" Sony CRT (4:3), about 9 or 10 years old. No plans to upgrade until it goes bang...

When the time comes I expect I will go for a Sony or Samsung LCD.

I replaced the VHS video with a LiteOn DVD / HDD recorder almost 2 years ago and don't miss tapes at all!

I still have an 8 year old 28" widescreen Toshiba which continues to give a good picture. I particularly like the set because it has its own inbuilt Dolby Digital 5.1 decoder which works well with DVD's. New TV's no longer seem to have this facility and instead rely on audio trickery to achieve a psuedo surround effect. I once had a JVC TV that did the psuedo thing and it was never very convincing. So to move to a modern TV I would have the additional cost of needing an AV amp or receiver, plus a full set of speakers; and where the hell do you put a centre speaker with your fancy LCD or plasma? It would look like someone had left a brick in front of the telly!

I keep an interested eye on the steady progress of LCD/plasma TV's, but until my existing set goes phut, I'm certainly not considering changing anytime soon.

Geoff

Well I still watch a lot of TV on a (4:3 CRT) portable in my 'study'. It's conveniently next to the PC and allows me to 'watch and post' simultaneously. With certain content on some Freeview channels e.g. sport on ITV4 it's preferable to a full-size set of whatever type.

For my main set, I did switch to widescreen around the turn of the century but, with no plans to go HD, I'm sticking with CRT.

I tend to be relaxed about new technology. I believe that the right time to switch will present itself. Only with DVD did I jump in near the start when there was just a single rack of discs in Tower Records. Audio-wise I stuck with MiniDisc until quite recently when my portable player finally died...despite all the advantages of compressed digital formats.

This is true. My 42" Pioneer plasma is a much better set then my old sony CRT. Both SD and HD are better.

There are many who claim this but those of us who are fussy about picture quality and have auditioned countless flat panel sets from £10000 downwards know the truth.

As Bobcar says ,the pix on flat panels are NOT better compared to CRT.

The only reason must be because your old crt was a poor one

Even those pro flat panel users will agree that viewing distance is of paramount importance and you need to sit further away from a flat panel if your sd material is not going to look substandard

I have been very wary of new technology ever since I bought a Grundig V2000 in the early 1980s - appalling reliability and this system died shortly afterwards. I wonder how many people are scrapping perfectly good CRT receivers and buying LCD or Plasma "to keep up with the Jones''" ie fashion. I realise I will have to update eventually but on my terms and when I am ready.

It will also be a long time before I upgrade to "Vista"!

I think my bravia is a better picture than my trinitron .