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Which Lcd Tv To Buy
kerjak1
21-08-2008
Hi,

Looking for some advice on above please as I know very little about TV's.

Going to purchase 46" or 47" 1080p LCD TV. Hopefully for under a £1000.

I have a Wii/Virgin Cable and might purchase a Blu Ray player/Cinema Surround to compliment TV and might want to plug my laptop into it also. So unsure how many HDMI inputs I need.

Also, I believe Blu Ray is kinda overtaking HD DVD is this correct?

Have been researching online for quite a while but I'm no further forward and totally confused on what to buy.

Any advice much appreciated.

Cheers.
:manson:
21-08-2008
Get a Panasonic.

The other makes don't come close.
samtman
21-08-2008
HD-DVD is finished so you could get cheap HD films now. The biggest battle is trying to get people to go from DVD to BLU Ray which is not doing as well as they thought but that will change over time. I think the best makes of TV are samsung and sony but toshiba is ok too.

To future proof it you would probably want 2 HDMI port but at this time not many people will use both. I do but thats for my PS3 & Xbox 360.

Also 1080p is more expensive than 720p/1080i sets so you many struggle to get one that size and a top end make for under £1000 but I have seen odd ones in the past for around that price.

Finally a lot of people don't realise that the standard sky/virgin box is not a great picture on a HD TV as it shows up all the flaws. Within months you will be after a HD box.
Orbitalzone
21-08-2008
Originally Posted by :manson::
“Get a Panasonic.

The other makes don't come close. ”

well except perhaps Sony but that's all down to personal opinion and my opinion was that the Sony W4000 was a bit better.

Many rate the latest V or W series Sony's

But do check out Panasonics also which are generally very good too.
:manson:
21-08-2008
Originally Posted by Orbitalzone:
“well except perhaps Sony but that's all down to personal opinion and my opinion was that the Sony W4000 was a bit better.

Many rate the latest V or W series Sony's

But do check out Panasonics also which are generally very good too.”

My opinion and my far more knowledgeable expert friend's opinion is that Sony is overpriced tat.
Nigel Goodwin
22-08-2008
Originally Posted by :manson::
“My opinion and my far more knowledgeable expert friend's opinion is that Sony is overpriced tat.”

Fortunately most of the trade and the buying public disagree with you and your friend!
carefree cook
22-08-2008
Originally Posted by :manson::
“My opinion and my far more knowledgeable expert friend's opinion is that Sony is overpriced tat.”

Well your friend obviously isnt that knowledgable if he says that. I have been selling televisions for many years and i can assure you Sony is not tat.
Orbitalzone
22-08-2008
Originally Posted by :manson::
“My opinion and my far more knowledgeable expert friend's opinion is that Sony is overpriced tat.”

Yes, as I said before... it's an opinion.........opinions are not facts.

If you care to quantify your statement it might be more useful than just saying Sony is overpriced tat.
sancheeez
22-08-2008
Originally Posted by :manson::
“Get a Panasonic.

The other makes don't come close. ”

So as well as your groundless dismissal of Sony TV's .... you'd also dismiss the Pioneer Kuro range then? Even though they're widely regarded as the best Plasma's on the market?

Riiiiiight ......
kerjak1
22-08-2008
Originally Posted by samtman:
“HD-DVD is finished so you could get cheap HD films now. The biggest battle is trying to get people to go from DVD to BLU Ray which is not doing as well as they thought but that will change over time. I think the best makes of TV are samsung and sony but toshiba is ok too.

To future proof it you would probably want 2 HDMI port but at this time not many people will use both. I do but thats for my PS3 & Xbox 360.

Also 1080p is more expensive than 720p/1080i sets so you many struggle to get one that size and a top end make for under £1000 but I have seen odd ones in the past for around that price.

Finally a lot of people don't realise that the standard sky/virgin box is not a great picture on a HD TV as it shows up all the flaws. Within months you will be after a HD box.”


samtman, thanks for advice. What's an HD box and what does it do?

Cheers.
sancheeez
23-08-2008
Originally Posted by kerjak1:
“What's an HD box and what does it do?”

Sky HD box.

Pretty much Sky+ but with HD channels (and you get new ones as they pop up). About a dozen FTA (Free To Air) HD channels and there are subscription HD movie and sports channels.

Plus HDMI and upscaled output.

Theres a dedicated Sky+ forum on here (and also one on AVForums) if you want read up more about it.

It broadcasts in 1080i by the way so a full HD TV (as in 1080p/24/50) isn't essential. Looks damn good on my 720p set ....
Steve AWOL
27-08-2008
If you don't want to shell out quite so much for Sky HD then I would highly recommend upgrading your cable to Virgin V+ before getting such a large Full HD LCD. As, assuming you've got a CRT at the moment, you might be in for an unpleasant surprise watching Standard Definition 576 line TV blown up to fill a Full HD 1080 LCD

More info about V+ upscaling abilities here:
http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/s...d.php?t=881646

You'll also probably want to get a component cable for your Wii, if you haven't already, to plug it into a HDTV.
http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/s...d.php?t=643498

As Satman said, the most popular models (like the Sony W4000 and Samsung A656) are more like £1200 but I've seen the Sony 46D3500 for under a grand. You might also want to look at the Panasonic plasmas if you're only going to be using the laptop occasionally.
It's only me
27-08-2008
Originally Posted by Steve AWOL:
“If you don't want to shell out quite so much for Sky HD then I would highly recommend upgrading your cable to Virgin V+ before getting such a large Full HD LCD. As, assuming you've got a CRT at the moment, you might be in for an unpleasant surprise watching Standard Definition 576 line TV blown up to fill a Full HD 1080 LCD

More info about V+ upscaling abilities here:
http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/s...d.php?t=881646

You'll also probably want to get a component cable for your Wii, if you haven't already, to plug it into a HDTV.
http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/s...d.php?t=643498

As Satman said, the most popular models (like the Sony W4000 and Samsung A656) are more like £1200 but I've seen the Sony 46D3500 for under a grand. You might also want to look at the Panasonic plasmas if you're only going to be using the laptop occasionally.”

Sony KDL40-W4000U £999 in John Lewis(that what I paid for mine and about 2 weeks ago they where also giving a sony blu-ray player for free with the tv
RobAnt
29-08-2008
Quote:
“The biggest battle is trying to get people to go from DVD to BLU Ray which is not doing as well as they thought”

I wonder why - couldn't be the £10 to £15 price differential, could it?

I have both HD-DVD and Blu-ray titles and have hired more from local Blockbusters.


Frankly, some of the titles put on to Blu-Ray simply aren't that much better than DVD, exposing the quality of the film used, displaying high levels of noise, and poor resolution - especially if your player/TV upscales.

Mind you, my local cinema isn't much better - Plymouth's Vue Cinema. Nice big screens and audio systems, lousy picture quality, poorly focused and dirt on the screens.
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