Please Help/advice !! Buying a LCD-HDTV tonight.

[shvartsies]

yes it does have a hard drive (which is fully upgradable with any 2.5" SATA drive, which currently go up to 250GB) and yes you can play divx thanks to a recent firmware update

i have my entire collection of music and movies saved onto my 160GB hard drive, really is convenient
also, if you have a PSP, you can use that as a sort of remote. you can turn on your PS3 with your PSP ANYWHERE in the world and access your media. (lets say your at a friends house and you wanna show him a video thats on your ps3, you can do so on your PSP using remote play)

 

[skiesforme]

yes it does have a hard drive (which is fully upgradable with any 2.5" SATA drive, which currently go up to 250GB) and yes you can play divx thanks to a recent firmware update

i have my entire collection of music and movies saved onto my 160GB hard drive, really is convenient
also, if you have a PSP, you can use that as a sort of remote. you can turn on your PS3 with your PSP ANYWHERE in the world and access your media. (lets say your at a friends house and you wanna show him a video thats on your ps3, you can do so on your PSP using remote play)

Remote play, divX, Linux, Internet....
This is crazy stuff !!
Update : amazon refunded $469 to my credit card this morning.
So I started looking for good deals on PS3 since the morning. I ocassionally play games on the ps2 and have a hand picked collection of ps2 games which I would like to play on the ps3 as well. I read somewhere that ps3 40 gb cannot play ps2 games - this would be a disaster for me. Moreover, I don't want to spend more than $400. This is my newest dilemma...

 

[shvartsies]

Unfortunately, the 40GB ps3 is not backwards compatible.

Let me give you a bit of history
The PS2s processor was known as "the emotion engine"
It was also in the 60GB and 20GB PS3s, in order to be fully backwards compatible. However, after these models were discontinued, sony stopped putting in the emotion engine to save money. Backwards compatibility (on the 80GB model) is performed using emulation software, and not 100% of ps2 games work

While its not $400, this is still a great deal:
June 12, Sony is releasing an 80GB PS3, with a copy of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (Metal Gear Solid 3 in my opinion is the best game ever made), and a new dualshock 3 controller (the previous controllers are known as the Sixaxis, and dont support vibration, while the DS3 does)

This will run you $500. Im going to give my old 80GB to a friend, and get this for myself, its a great deal.


one more thing, i recently learned that you can use the PS3 as a DVR using linux

 

[MG165]

Hepl in buying an LCD

I read with great interest the thread. I just ordered Fios and I have to finaly jump and by my screen. I have a big south facing picture widow behind the couch. My research tells me I need an LCD due to the lighting, 52" screen will be perfect and with the motion thing for movies and action and most important, a matte screen. I believe the Sharp, sony, and Toshiba have a matte screen. I cannot find a list of all that do. Then of course there is the matter of banding on the Sharp.
Can anyone advise, the more I find out, the more confused I get.

 

[MG165]

Need advise on buying an LCD HELP PLEASE

I read with great interest the thread. I just ordered Fios and I have to finaly jump and by my screen. I have a big south facing picture widow behind the couch. My research tells me I need an LCD due to the lighting, 52" screen will be perfect and with the motion thing for movies and action and most important, a matte screen. I believe the Sharp, sony, and Toshiba have a matte screen. I cannot find a list of all that do. Then of course there is the matter of banding on the Sharp.
Can anyone advise, the more I find out, the more confused I get.

 

[skye12]

I personally have a Sony XBR4 purchased in Sept 07. Whatever you get,
make sure its a 1080p and has 120hz motion technology.
Currently these features are ONLY in the top tier models of all the
manufacturers.

These Sony pictures are second to none, although Samsungs and Sharps
are good too.

 

[shvartsies]

My personal two favorite are Samsung and Sony.

If you have the money get a Sony Bravia KDLXBR4 or XBR5
however, im not sure if these are matte or not. I know the XBR4's bezel is, howver the xbr5's isnt. They both have 120HZ tech, Cross Media Bar interface (top notch), and are simply some of the best TVs on the market

I have a 46" Samsung 4669f and i love it, one of da best, especially in bang for da buck terms IMHO. however, i am pretty sure that there is no 52" model

I would not recommend a Sharp or Toshiba.

 

[MG165]

Still one more question

The most important thing is the matte screen. Not the bezel. Is there a list of ones that have matte?

 

[MG165]

Still need help

I kind of agree about the Sharp and Toshiba. What I've read says no also.

 

[skiesforme]

Unfortunately, the 40GB ps3 is not backwards compatible.
<snip>..
While its not $400, this is still a great deal:
June 12, Sony is releasing an 80GB PS3, with a copy of Metal Gear Solid 4: <snip>

So after all this meaningful discussion, I have decided to wait for the June release.
Thanks a ton !

 

[skiesforme]

Summary..

I read with great interest the thread. I just ordered Fios and I have to finaly jump and by my screen. I have a big south facing picture widow behind the couch. My research tells me I need an LCD due to the lighting, 52" screen will be perfect and with the motion thing for movies and action and most important, a matte screen. I believe the Sharp, sony, and Toshiba have a matte screen. I cannot find a list of all that do. Then of course there is the matter of banding on the Sharp.
Can anyone advise, the more I find out, the more confused I get.

Yeah, thanks to all the great guys in here, I could make the right decision in my purchase. These guys rock !!
After lots of discussions with all the guys here, visits to the local Best Buy and Circuit City, I had made up my mind to go for the 4665F since the 4069F was out of my budget (which later increased based on greed )
So, the 1st question to ask is how much is your budget. If you are looking for a sharp great display, my advice would be a Samsung and definitely not a Sharp or Toshiba. I saw them all in the stores and the 4066F stood out stunning ! The Sony KDL series is great as well, but to my personal viewing pleasure, the Samsung appealed more. Again, this can vary from person to person.

I personally have a Sony XBR4 purchased in Sept 07. Whatever you get,
make sure its a 1080p and has 120hz motion technology.
Currently these features are ONLY in the top tier models of all the
manufacturers. These Sony pictures are second to none, although Samsungs and Sharps are good too.

This again is based on your budget - whether you want to pay a huge premium for 120 Hz. I have read multiple forums about the 120 Hz displays throwing out fake animation like frames to cut out motion blur. It looks a bit artificial to many people. Honestly, this is what i have heard but did not get a chance to experience myself. You might want to see it yourself and decide whether 120 Hz is worth the $500-800 extra.

My personal two favorite are Samsung and Sony. If you have the money get a Sony Bravia KDLXBR4 or XBR5
however, im not sure if these are matte or not. I know the XBR4's bezel is, howver the xbr5's isnt. They both have 120HZ tech, Cross Media Bar interface (top notch), and are simply some of the best TVs on the market
I have a 46" Samsung 4669f and i love it, one of da best, especially in bang for da buck terms IMHO. however, i am pretty sure that there is no 52" model. I would not recommend a Sharp or Toshiba.

69F displays are great ! I have seen these myself but the 65F is worth every penny and won't cost you a fortune.

The most important thing is the matte screen. Not the bezel. Is there a list of ones that have matte?

Samsung 46A550 has a matte-glossy display. Its 75% matte-25% glossy I would say. Cuts out the glare ands has rich color depth like glossy displays.

I kind of agree about the Sharp and Toshiba. What I've read says no also.

+1 on this again.

So, as you might have seen in the posts, I am really really happy with my Samsung 46A550 from Amazon (costed me $1275 at the end of it all with 4 refunds - see previous posts)


More to read from avsforum: LN4665F or LN46A550
This one's really good - Official Samsung LNxxA550 Owner's thread

 

[shvartsies]

yes the MGS4 PS3 bundle is great, it also includes a $55 dualshock 3 controller (currently not included with any PS3) which supports vibration in games

Yes the 4069f is expensive now due to demand, you used to be able to get a 40" 4069f for $1440.

Sharp and Toshiba= a no no

Samsung and Sony = best IMHO. The only sonys that really stands over most samsungs though is the xbr4/xbr5 models

the glossy/matte screen is really cool! Your TV does have great blacks, with a 30000:1 dynamic contrast. my 4669f has 20000:1, though still more than most

Cheers! I'm extremely glad to have helped a friend spend his money wisely
You wont be disappointed with your tv or ps3, thats a promise im willing to make

hey! when you get metal gear solid PM me your PSN(playstation network, equivelant to xbox live) ID.

 

[skiesforme]

yes the MGS4 PS3 bundle is great, it also includes a $55 dualshock 3 controller (currently not included with any PS3) which supports vibration in games. Yes the 4069f is expensive now due to demand, you used to be able to get a 40" 4069f for $1440. Sharp and Toshiba= a no no.
Samsung and Sony = best IMHO. The only sonys that really stands over most samsungs though is the xbr4/xbr5 models
the glossy/matte screen is really cool! Your TV does have great blacks, with a 30000:1 dynamic contrast. my 4669f has 20000:1, though still more than most. Cheers! I'm extremely glad to have helped a friend spend his money wisely. You wont be disappointed with your tv or ps3, thats a promise im willing to make.
hey! when you get metal gear solid PM me your PSN(playstation network, equivelant to xbox live) ID.

Hey Rob !
I came to know that the newer bundle of PS3 with DS3 controller's and GT 5 prologue is available for preorder in Costco. Those would ship out on Apr 16. Just wondering is this the newer PS3 (expected June 12th)? Meanwhile, I negotiated $300 for a sealed/unopened 40GB PS3 (from amazon.com). In two minds if I should go ahead with this deal or wait for the new PS3 and get a 60 GB fully equipped (with emotion engine) model.

About the online gaming part, lets see how it goes from here. I don't get much time from my schedule these days.
I didn't even get time to explore all the settings on the 46A550 or calibrate it yet.

 

[skiesforme]

Samsung LN46A550 snaps.

The most important thing is the matte screen. Not the bezel. Is there a list of ones that have matte?

Ok, so I decided to get you some snaps
Have a good look. The flash from the camera (from about 7 ft away) gets diffused on the screen. No glare. Blacks are great with dynamic 30000:1 contrast.

Snap 1: TV Off - Overall look. Piano black bezel.
Snap 2: TV On - In the dark. Macbook Pro connected by DVI/HDMI 1080p. I tried to include all colors in the pics along with a bit of text.
Snap 3: TV On - Flash from the camera diffuses on the screen. Its a matte screen with a very slight smoothening polish.

Please note that although I have tried to take good quality snaps, there would definitely be quality degradation because I compressed the jpegs to upload them here.
And yeah, those are the Z-5500 satellites.
Hope this helps !

 

[shvartsies]

Hey Rob !
I came to know that the newer bundle of PS3 with DS3 controller's and GT 5 prologue is available for preorder in Costco. Those would ship out on Apr 16. Just wondering is this the newer PS3 (expected June 12th)? Meanwhile, I negotiated $300 for a sealed/unopened 40GB PS3 (from amazon.com). In two minds if I should go ahead with this deal or wait for the new PS3 and get a 60 GB fully equipped (with emotion engine) model.

About the online gaming part, lets see how it goes from here. I don't get much time from my schedule these days.
I didn't even get time to explore all the settings on the 46A550 or calibrate it yet.

that is a really good bundle, but it is a 40GB, and as you probably know, cant play PS2 games, if you are fine with this and would rather an extra controller and blu-ray remote with GT5: prologue over 80GB and MGS4 then go ahead.
If the MGS4 bundle didn't exist, I would say this is the best bundle, and IMO it isnt only because MGS4 is really, that amazing.

Haha yes but once you get time the online gaming really is a huge component of ps3 gaming, its also free. It adds great value to games instead of a lone single-player mode that doesn't last very long to begin with.

the $300 40GB is also very good, if you don't need any of that extra stuff and you're really just trying to save as much money as possible.

and the 60GB is discontinued, good luck finding one anywhere besides ebay/craigslist/a friend. sorry bud, but if you want BC, you need the 80GB's emulation.

glad to help.

HOWEVER, if you want a game to really show off your HDTV and PS3, GT5 is DEfINITELY THE GAME TO DO IT.
the visuals are INCREDIBLE, when i saw screenshots off the game next to real life ones, at first i thought some of the game's shots were the real ones.

step under photorealistic, i would say.

 

[skiesforme]

<snip>
...
Haha yes but once you get time the online gaming really is a huge component of ps3 gaming, its also free. It adds great value to games instead of a lone single-player mode that doesn't last very long to begin with. The $300 40GB is also very good, if you don't need any of that extra stuff and you're really just trying to save as much money as possible.
and the 60GB is discontinued, good luck finding one anywhere besides ebay/craigslist/a friend. sorry bud, but if you want BC, you need the 80GB's emulation.
glad to help.
HOWEVER, if you want a game to really show off your HDTV and PS3, GT5 is DEfINITELY THE GAME TO DO IT.
the visuals are INCREDIBLE, when i saw screenshots off the game next to real life ones, at first i thought some of the game's shots were the real ones.

step under photorealistic, i would say.

Dude, you are making it so tempting for me to shell out another 600$.
I am in talks with another colleague to get the 60GB one for $550 (negotiating ... should come down to $525 at least)
So I am on the last phase of brainstorming. $300 for an unused 40 GB PS3 as available on Amazon. Or the 60 GB one (unused) for $525.
One thought thats coming to my mind after I saw some PS3 games in action.. I might never go back to PS2 games and need Backward compatibility.
by the way, what's your place of choice to get the new bundle ? Amazon / Costco or someplace else. Let me know. Any updates on the release date yet ?

P.S: I am big fan of racing games... so GT 5 sounds yum !!

 

[tivoli2]

To summarize my experience till now:-
* Very Happy with DVI-HDMI quality from MBP
* Very disappointed with Component output from DVD player
* DVR output over component is acceptable

I have owned an LNT5265F for about a year now, and it is a great TV. If you enjoy your new Samsung even half as much as I enjoy mine, you'll be a happy owner. I was very fond of my old Toshiba DVD player, and was disappointed beyond words at the absolute horribleness of the picture when I hooked up to our new TV via component. JPEG artifacts were simply overpowering. So, I picked up a trim little Sony upconverting DVD player with HDMI and an inexpensive HDMI cable (all told less than $130) and boom. Movie Watching Wonderfulness. Granted, my Toshiba was about eight years old, so I needed a new DVD player anyway. Needless to say, I'm far from shocked to hear you were disappointed with your picture from your DVD player. Upconverting players are less than half the price of my eight-year old Toshiba, so for an inexpensive solution (outside of investing in Blu Ray), upconverting is the way to go.

Happy watching!

(Couple other things to keep in mind: contrast ratios on LCDs advertised in the multiple thousands are nearly always dynamic contrast ratios, where the TV adjusts itself as it goes to create the appearance of a higher contrast ratio than it would otherwise have, and this usually causes other undesirable side effects. (I have anything labeled "dynamic" turned off...) There's also a bit of hocus-pocus with response times as well... measuring in inconsistent ways & other such nonsense... just things to keep in mind to filter out the hooey.)

 

[nidserz]

I too am in the market for an LCD... My budget is pretty tight as I am a student and don't want to ask too much from my parents:

In the $1000-1200 range

Anybody know how the Samsung LNT4061 is?
It is equipped with 1080p which is what I am looking for. I like Samsung and feel Sony is a little overpriced although I know the XBR series is great (have 2 in the family). I looked at the LN40A450 but wasn't too impressed. However, the LN40A550 looks great but a little pricey. I am not in a rush so I might wait to see if anything happens on the price for the LN40A550.

Thanks!

Oh, and thanks for the info on the PS3. I think I might just take my brother's 60gb and let him buy the new 80gb this summer.

Thanks again guys!

 

[skiesforme]

I have owned an LNT5265F for about a year now, and it is a great TV. If you enjoy your new Samsung even half as much as I enjoy mine, you'll be a happy owner. I was very fond of my old Toshiba DVD player, and was disappointed beyond words at the absolute horribleness of the picture when I hooked up to our new TV via component. JPEG artifacts were simply overpowering. So, I picked up a trim little Sony upconverting DVD player with HDMI and an inexpensive HDMI cable (all told less than $130) and boom. Movie Watching Wonderfulness.

(Couple other things to keep in mind: contrast ratios on LCDs advertised in the multiple thousands are nearly always dynamic contrast ratios, where the TV adjusts itself as it goes to create the appearance of a higher contrast ratio than it would otherwise have, and this usually causes other undesirable side effects.

Thanks for the great advice !
My DVD player - Philips DVP5140 cannot upconvert neither does it have a HDMI cable. So it throws out 720p(perhaps) video over component and the quality is definitely far from good. So nowadays I have my DVD played on my Macbook Pro which spits out 1080p over HDMI. Looks far better !

I too am in the market for an LCD... My budget is pretty tight as I am a student and don't want to ask too much from my parents: In the $1000-1200 range. Anybody know how the Samsung LNT4061 is? It is equipped with 1080p which is what I am looking for. I like Samsung and feel Sony is a little overpriced although I know the XBR series is great (have 2 in the family). I looked at the LN40A450 but wasn't too impressed. However, the LN40A550 looks great but a little pricey. I am not in a rush so I might wait to see if anything happens on the price for the LN40A550.
Thanks! Oh, and thanks for the info on the PS3. I think I might just take my brother's 60gb and let him buy the new 80gb this summer.
Thanks again guys!

I was in the same mindset and similar budget till I saw the models, read reviews and thought about my satisfaction in the long run. I had the 4061F as my 1st choice based on a $1200 budget, 4065F which is a GREAT tv for $1499 (Best Buy, Amazon should be cheaper and w/o Tax). The on the last phase of my decision process I jumped the budget by $600 and screen size by 6" to get the 46A550. But if you read through my posts on this thread you would realize that I ended up paying only $1275 for the TV.
I wish you the same luck although I think by now the price has settled and hovers around $1550. The 40A550 is there for $1149 on Amazon (Choose amazon from sellers)
Think about it... $200 more... Or if you really want to stop the brainstorming and the waiting game, close your eyes and go for the 4065F. When I went to BestBuy, the 4065F was my 1st choice !
But things happen you know... and an appraisal/raise helps a lot !

P.S: One good advice to ANYONE who reads this - http://www.priceprotectr.com/ is the tool to get you refunds on the Amazon 30 day price protection guarantee. Buy from amazon, you save taxes and shipping, you get white glove delivery and of course you get price protection and refunds almost guaranteed for a new and hot item with price fluctuations.

 

[nidserz]

I was in the same mindset and similar budget till I saw the models, read reviews and thought about my satisfaction in the long run. I had the 4061F as my 1st choice based on a $1200 budget, 4065F which is a GREAT tv for $1499 (Best Buy, Amazon should be cheaper and w/o Tax). The on the last phase of my decision process I jumped the budget by $600 and screen size by 6" to get the 46A550. But if you read through my posts on this thread you would realize that I ended up paying only $1275 for the TV.
I wish you the same luck although I think by now the price has settled and hovers around $1550. The 40A550 is there for $1149 on Amazon (Choose amazon from sellers)
Think about it... $200 more... Or if you really want to stop the brainstorming and the waiting game, close your eyes and go for the 4065F. When I went to BestBuy, the 4065F was my 1st choice !
But things happen you know... and an appraisal/raise helps a lot !

P.S: One good advice to ANYONE who reads this - http://www.priceprotectr.com/ is the tool to get you refunds on the Amazon 30 day price protection guarantee. Buy from amazon, you save taxes and shipping, you get white glove delivery and of course you get price protection and refunds almost guaranteed for a new and hot item with price fluctuations.

Thanks for the info. But unfortunately in Canada we don't have the luxuries of Amazon. I will most likely be picking it up from FS as I can get a good deal most of the time. My Budget is really tight again cuz I am a student and taxes are huge here (14%) so it drives the prices up like maddd as it is! Plus getting a stand and I am going to add a PS3 so it seems to add up quite quickly.
I will be keeping an eye out on the prices of the tvs you mentioned as I am in no rush.
Thanks again!