<p>Ready to join the rest of the world in purchasing a flat screen TV. We’ve been doing some research and of course thinking of the commercial where the little girl shouts, “You bought the wrong TV!” as it is unloaded from the truck. It’s hard to keep up with the changes but do love the falling prices. I guess the big question is plasma vs HD, I think? What’s the difference? Should we care? Any thoughts on manufacturers? Tech savvy friends have suggested Samsung and Panasonic but others may have stepped up. Thanks for any help as we get in line early Friday morning or late Thursday night.</p>
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I think you mean plasma vs. lcd.</p>
<p>Pretty much every TV is full HD (high def) these days 1920 x 1080 pixels, although older models might have less.</p>
<p>Personally I find that plasmas have a deeper, richer picture, but it just a personal preference.</p>
<p>What size are you looking for?</p>
<p>There are 2 basic technologies for flat screen TVs: LCD versus Plasma. HD refers to the resolution: initial HD (High Definition) sets had a vertical resolution (or number of pixels/lines) of 720, newer sets have 1080. Consumer reports has a good discussion (don’t know if this is behind their paywall):</p>
<p>[TV</a> guide from Consumer Reports](<a href=“http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/electronics-computers/tvs-services/tvs/tv-buying-advice/tv-getting-started/tv-getting-started.htm]TV”>Best TV Buying Guide - Consumer Reports)</p>
<p>We have a ~5 year old Panasonic plasma 50" which we’ve been happy with. It is only 720 - today I’m sure we’d get 1080.</p>
<p>Backlit LED LCD, preferrably with 4 colors, for richer picture quality, but for me, 3 is perfectly OK. We have a Samsung TV and are happy with it. Plasma TVs have great picture quality, but they are super heavy compared to LCDs.</p>
<p>You might want to check Costco’s black Friday deals on LCD TVs.</p>
<p>Plasma TVs have a slightly better picture but the cost to replace the lamp iin them is much higher than the LCD.</p>
<p>We have a Panasonic plasma that’s actually “ED” as opposed to “HD.” I have trouble telling the difference. If your eyes are as old as mine, you might save some bucks by buying one of the remaining 720 TVs as opposed to 1080.</p>
<p>My understanding is also that plasma TVs are better if you are viewing at an angle. So depending on where you are putting the TV and how many people will be watching it at once, this may make a difference. Walk to the side in the store and see what happens to the picture.</p>
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Plasmas don’t have a lamp. And you don’t have to recharge the plasma either.</p>
<p>The old rap on plasmas was that they would “burn in” images if you left them on too long. I can report that this hasn’t happened with ours. Nothing else has gone wrong with it, either. I would say we’ve had it for about 8 years.</p>
<p>We have Vizios LCDs from Costco and are quite happy. Replaced lousy 3yo Panasonic DLP set.</p>
<p>plasma screens are no longer being produced. Look for LCDs that have the features/ price you want. The newest ones with a higher “refresh” rate - 240 MHZ vrs 120MHZ, mean that fast action scenes will be “less blurry” and less pix-elated . Costco is a great place to buy them once you have narrowed down your search. Or Amazon- NO TAX[ yet] Costco’s 2 year warranty beats any other store.</p>
<p>I think plasma TVs are still being produced, although some companies (I think Vizio and LG) have dropped them.</p>
<p>Another vote for Costco. We have a Sony we bought from there as well as a Westinghouse (?) - both have performed wonderfully. I like to go to Costco where they are all set up and are turned on, look at the photo quality right there - that helps me make my decision. </p>
<p>Is there a link to the Black Friday deals Costco will have on TV’s???</p>
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This is not true, although it is true that most growth is on the LCD side. </p>
<p>Worldwide shipment of plasma screens was something like 4.1 million units in Q3 this year. That’s not going away any time soon.</p>
<p>Consumer Reports says that the one thing that they most often hear as a complaint is “I should’ve gotten a bigger set.” So go as big as your budget and room size allow.</p>
<p>Look at a deal site (I like slickdeals) to find the best deal possible for the size of screen you want. You might not have to get up early for a doorbuster. </p>
<p>LED uses the least energy, if that’s important to you. </p>
<p>Budget a little money for a few add-ons. We wall-mounted our set, both for earthquake safety issues and to make it that much harder to steal if a burglar breaks in (good deals on mounts at monoprice). Your old DVD player will work, but you could upgrade to a Blu-Ray player (old DVDs work on that). If you stream Netflix or Hulu or Amazon on Demand, you can look for a TV that will directly provide streaming, or get a Blu-Ray player that will stream, or use a Roku box (or a game console). Or you can hook up your computer. You might also need some HD cables (far cheaper at monoprice than at somewhere like Best Buy). Finally, if you get your broadcast channels by antenna, get a more compact antenna (monoprice again!) because the rabbit ears don’t work esthetically.</p>
<p>Edited to add: here’s a sample deal that just moved onto slickdeal’s front page for a 55" LG for $775. <a href=“http://slickdeals.net/permadeal/63048/ebay.com-55-lg-55lv4400-120hz-ledlcd-hdtv[/url]”>http://slickdeals.net/permadeal/63048/ebay.com-55-lg-55lv4400-120hz-ledlcd-hdtv</a></p>
<p>Costco TV deals are usually not included in their black Friday flyer. A couple of years ago we walked into the store and saw people loading flat screens on their carts. We laughed until we saw the price… DH said, “We need a bigger cart”. The price was much lower than anything advertised elsewhere. And even a year later, what we paid for that TV was still considered a real steal.</p>
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Agree, cables are a total rip-off at Best Buy (and most places I think).</p>
<p>I got a 6’ HDMI cable on eBay for about $1.50, BestBuy wanted $30 for the same cable.</p>
<p>I have a 50" plasma, when I am watching football and movies I wish I had a bigger screen, but at the time anything over 50" was <em>really</em> expensive. For regular TV shows, 50" is adequate.</p>
<p>For what I paid for my 50" a few years ago, I could now get a 64" or 65" set.</p>
<p>What’s the difference between an LED and an LCD tv? We are thinking of getting a new one to replace our 7 yr old DLP tv.</p>
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Older LCD tvs are backlight by a fluorescent light bulb.</p>
<p>Newer LCD tvs are backlight by LED lights, hence the term “LED LCD”.</p>
<p>The LEDs provide brighter, more even lighting, and use less energy. LED-lit tvs are more technically advanced as well because they are the newest models.</p>
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A key point - an “LED TV” isn’t an LED TV. It’s actually an LCD display backlit by LEDs rather than a fluorescent lamp as ‘notrichenough’ indicated. If you’re getting an LCD tv then get one of the ‘edge LED’ type ones since they’re brighter and more uniform in the brightness across the entire screen - something that can be a problem with some of the LCD displays that have a single fluorescent light source. </p>
<p>They’re actually working on true LED TVs but they’re nowhere ready for commercial production yet.</p>
<p>I have an older Plasma - a Hitachi 55". It still works great after all these years. If I was to buy a replacement today I’d check the edge LED backlit LCD TVs but I wouldn’t discount the plasmas either. It’s really all about how it looks rather than whatever the underlying technology is.</p>
<p>I agree with the other poster - go bigger if you can. The 55" is a pretty good size but whenever I replace it I’ll look for even bigger. A caution though - usually the very edge of the technology, like the largest size, come with a pretty steep price hit so backing off a notch usually yields a better deal.</p>
<p>Let the shopping begin. Thanks for all of the great information!</p>