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In The Market For My FIRST HDTV. Help!

newyorksole

newyorksole

macrumors 603
Original poster
I've held out long enough, but this SDTV won't last much longer. I was kind of waiting to see if Apple would actually release their own television, but I'm not worried about that.

I want something to mount on the wall. Preferably like 42". Willing to spend a few hundred dollars. Maybe like $800 max. I've seen Samsung TVs with great quality as well as Vizio. Don't want a "Smart TV" or a 3D TV.

What would you guys recommend?

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i have a panny and its OK except in daylight

panny, LG, samsung or vizio smart TV that's LED backlit and at least 120Hz should be OK.

if you have time warner cable at home then samsung has their app built into the TV. at this point there is little difference between the brands. except if you go to walmart, their TV's have the cheapest panels
 
Are you keeping that stand? If so, you'd only be able to fit a 32" TV or so. I don't have any recommendations, but I will suggest going to a BestBuy or Target and playing around with the display models.

Aside from checking out the picture, do the following.

1. Try to listen to the built in speakers to see how loud the speakers get, as well as how low the volume can be set. I have a kitchen TV (Toshiba 26") that is too loud, even on the lowest volume setting.

2. Time how long it takes from the moment you turn it on, until you have a picture on the screen. The Toshy mentioned in point 1 takes a full 13 seconds to go from off to on. It's very annoying, especially when it "crashes" on start-up and I have to turn it off/on again. Seriously, this TV "crashes" and it won't display anything and the input buttons don't work. Just a black screen.

3. Look for a TV with at least 3 HDMI ports.

ft
 
ftaok said:
Are you keeping that stand? If so, you'd only be able to fit a 32" TV or so. I don't have any recommendations, but I will suggest going to a BestBuy or Target and playing around with the display models.

Aside from checking out the picture, do the following.

1. Try to listen to the built in speakers to see how loud the speakers get, as well as how low the volume can be set. I have a kitchen TV (Toshiba 26") that is too loud, even on the lowest volume setting.

2. Time how long it takes from the moment you turn it on, until you have a picture on the screen. The Toshy mentioned in point 1 takes a full 13 seconds to go from off to on. It's very annoying, especially when it "crashes" on start-up and I have to turn it off/on again. Seriously, this TV "crashes" and it won't display anything and the input buttons don't work. Just a black screen.

3. Look for a TV with at least 3 HDMI ports.

ft
Click to expand...

its 2014
you have to update TV's with new firmware
 
alent1234 said:
its 2014
you have to update TV's with new firmware
Click to expand...

Never thought about that. This TV has USB, so maybe there's an update.

ADDED - Apparently there's a new firmware update. Problem is that it's an EXE file. Gotta break out a windows machine 🙁
 
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my panny you need an sd card to update it
someone i know has an LG and the smart TV part updates by itself when you turn it on
 
newyorksole said:
I've held out long enough, but this SDTV won't last much longer. I was kind of waiting to see if Apple would actually release their own television, but I'm not worried about that.

I want something to mount on the wall. Preferably like 42". Willing to spend a few hundred dollars. Maybe like $800 max. I've seen Samsung TVs with great quality as well as Vizio. Don't want a "Smart TV" or a 3D TV.

What would you guys recommend?
Click to expand...


Try something like this LG 42" - It's the 42LN5400. It's gonna be plenty bright for days like in your images where sunlight will be streaming into the room. It respects your budget, coming in at $499.99, gives you a solid picture, without forcing Smart or 3D features down your throat. Check it out here, and read the reviews:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/42-class-41-9-10-diag--led-1080p-120hz-hdtv/7608104.p?id=1218854267550&skuId=7608104&st=categoryid$abcat0101001&cp=1&lp=1

Normally, I'd tend to recommend a plasma display for pq reasons, but noone makes a good 1080p one these days.
 
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As long as you get the features you want/need along with one of the main brand names, you should be fine. Highly recommend LCD rather than plasma, however. Plasma TVs burn a lot of power, get warmer and are probably less reliable than LCD/LED models.

I ended up getting a 46 inch Samsung about 3 years ago and have been delighted with it. But honestly couldn't tell much difference between it and comparable models from Sony, Panasonic, Hatachi, etc. etc.
 
colodane said:
As long as you get the features you want/need along with one of the main brand names, you should be fine. Highly recommend LCD rather than plasma, however. Plasma TVs burn a lot of power, get warmer and are probably less reliable than LCD/LED models.

I ended up getting a 46 inch Samsung about 3 years ago and have been delighted with it. But honestly couldn't tell much difference between it and comparable models from Sony, Panasonic, Hatachi, etc. etc.
Click to expand...

I'll take exception to your comments. Depending on the model, either LCD or plasma can suck. If someone is into blu ray, has the right set up, a decent plasma is a superior choice. For regular TV watching and occasional blu ray or DVD watching, LCD is more than fine. The main advantage of LCD is when rooms are brightly lit as plasma screens will seem dimmer. Newer plasma don't consume nearly as much electricity as plasma screens from years ago. For 1080p play, plasmas have always rated higher in reviews than LCDs. This is not my words but professionals from a myriad of reviews.

It really wont matter in the original poster's case as there are not much to be had for plasmas in that size (they are usually 46" and larger). Given the size requirements, LCD would be the only viable option for size and budget.

A good place for the original poster to find out information would be something like AVS Forum site and pose the question there. They are as opinionated as people here but luckily many will provide data and have some experiences to share that is relevant with respect to objective rather than subjective.
 
Mike82 said:
Bad advice, imo. I'd much rather have a good 42 inch than a mediocre 50 inch, for example.
Click to expand...

Agreed. I got a 42" Samsung for the bedroom last year. Nice model. It is 3D which I didn't want, but you have to turn the 2D on and where the glasses (which I really hate). But because I wanted a smart TV I had no choice. Paid around £750 for it as I recall and am very happy with it. All three TV's in my house are wall mounted, but this one is so much thinner than the ones I bought a few years ago.
 
colodane said:
Plasma TVs burn a lot of power, get warmer and are probably less reliable than LCD/LED models.
Click to expand...

A little FUD there. All modern PDPs are Energy Star compliant. They have energy saving modes that allow this. Warmth? Yes, they produce some warmth, but they hardly could be said to be hot, nor would it be a reason to steer someone away from a PDP. Probably less reliable? No. Actually, plasma display technology is more mature than LCD or LCD-LED displays. They were first developed in the 1960's, and are only now being phased out by HDTV manufacturers because they can't make the margins on them that they can on newer display techs - OLED, UHD, etc.
 
Yes, all current models should be Energy Star compliant. However, this spec addresses mainly the power usage in "standby" modes, not in operating modes.

Another downside of plasma TVs is that many of them are very poor with regard to RF emissions. This will not be a concern to most buyers, but it is a HUGE consideration for others. If you like to listen to AM or shortwave radio at home, an operating plasma TV can be a big problem.

Case in point: I am a ham operator and need to receive very weak signals over the HF range. My Samsung LCD TV in the same room is no problem at all. However, plasma TVs in houses a half block or more away completely wipe out the HF spectrum.
 
I'd agree that the smart TVs are overkill for lots of people.

They sell the HDTVs in class of size, I'd go for 42-45 size. You might take a look at Consumer Reports for thoughts on TVs.

I'm looking to upgrade my current 32" 720p Samsung and will probably go for a 47" 1080 LG.

If you skip smart TV you can find something in the 400 range I think.
 
One thing to remember is that even if you don't care for the features of a "Smart TV," these models are often more expensive for a reason more than just the Smart Hub. Think of the Smart features as a bonus. These units generally have a better quality panel as well.

I bought a 55" Samsung in August 2012. I was going to buy one that was about $1100 based on reviews online, but I ended up going with a $1900 model that I got a killer price on because looking at the two side-by-side, the Smart TV clearly had better picture quality.

Just my two cents.
 
colodane said:
As long as you get the features you want/need along with one of the main brand names, you should be fine. Highly recommend LCD rather than plasma, however. Plasma TVs burn a lot of power, get warmer and are probably less reliable than LCD/LED models.
Click to expand...
I'd recommend the opposite for image quality reasons. They don't consume as much power as you're indicating. They aren't any less reliable. That's all very outdated info. They do produce heat but that's an odd reason to dismiss them unless one intends to stand within a few inches of the TV and expects not feel any heat at all.

Panasonic is getting out of the plasma TV market so now's the time to get one if you want one.
 
takeshi74 said:
I'd recommend the opposite for image quality reasons. They don't consume as much power as you're indicating. They aren't any less reliable. That's all very outdated info. They do produce heat but that's an odd reason to dismiss them unless one intends to stand within a few inches of the TV and expects not feel any heat at all.

Panasonic is getting out of the plasma TV market so now's the time to get one if you want one.
Click to expand...

Couldn't agree more. I just bought a new Panasonic plasma because my previous one was six years old and I really didn't want to end up with a LCD/LED when it broke down. OLED is awesome, but prices will remain very high for another three or four years at least.
 
dgalvan123 said:
Just read this and now I want a Panasonic ST60.
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-33199_...rs-now-is-the-time-to-buy-a-panasonic-plasma/

Unfortunately, I also resolved that my next would be a 4K set, especially now after CES has pretty much confirmed that the prices are going to keep coming down.

As far as I know there won't be an affordable 4K plasma for a long time, if at all.
Click to expand...

I'm skipping 4K - 2160p - and waiting for 8K - 4320p! Seriously, alot of the growing pains for 4K distribution, content, HDMI standards, the Rec 2020 standard, are going to be creating a lot of confusion for folks, as manufacturers are rolling out these new sets and features in a piecemeal fashion. By the time 8K comes around, these problems will have been largely solved. The biggest hurdles I see are two fold - getting broadcasters to upgrade to 2160p when none of them are doing 1080p now, and home internet bandwidth. It's got to get faster, and more reliable before 2160p in the home makes sense, much less 4320p!
 
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