New TV

[passinginterest]

Just moving into new house. Looking to upgrade my old 21" BlackDiamond TV to something a little bigger and fancier. Might as well go flat panel HD LCD like all the cool kids, just wondering what sort of spec to look out for. Not looking for something massive, probably somewhere between the 26" and 32", would rather buy a smaller one with better quality picture, than a huge one that'll give me a headache after 20 minutes.

[paul_oshea]

cheap is not good in this case. THe quality of picture can be immense for an extra £150.

[paudie]

I got a 26" TV recently as I got sick of not being able to see the scores in matches on RTE.

However on both RTE and now TV3 pretty large chunks of the screen are still missing at the side. I've tried changing the screen ratio etc but it doesn't seem to help.
Obviously the TV staions and the TV makers are in cahoots to force everybody to buy more expensive equipment!

I'd advise getting a 32" screen TBH.

[anto1208]

Input is whats important not screen size if you have normal digital/analog signal stay away from the HD LCD's / Plasma's. They are made for HD TV i dont know why people buy them with out HD TV ( prob just coz they look cool ) .Its like having a F1 car and putting green deisel in it !!

The bigger the screen the better i say never get less than 32" you will destroy your eyes looking at a small screen . Sony bravia are the best but expensive the cheap ones stay away from your best off with a LG Samsung they make the best mid priced flat screens 32" will cost 800-1200 or you could just get an "old fashioned" tv 32" for about 400-600. Picture quality will be far better it will last longer and give you less problems and doesnt cost as much to run as the flat screens.

But if you are set on a Flat screen the plasma's are better for matches as they refresh quicker and are smoother the LCD's are better for films as they are brighter and sharper , You will see things liek 520i , 720i, 1080i, 1080p
This is the number of pixles across the screen 1080p is the best but 1080i is nearly as good . There is no point going below that .

But again if you dont have HDTV input the picture quality will be poor matches will be barely watchable as they cant handle the colours and speed of the game so the tv blurs it to compensate

[endabob1]

I have a Toshiba 32" LCD and heartily recomend them. I also like the Phillips TV's and would avoid LG like the plauge and the cheaper Sonys are basically rebranded LG's.

[passinginterest]

I have a Toshiba 32" LCD and heartily recommend them. I also like the Phillips TV's and would avoid LG like the plague and the cheaper Sonys are basically re branded LG's.

Have to say the more I look at TVs the more confused I'm getting. I want to go for an LCD because my sitting room is pretty small and I'll have the xbox 360 for the HD experience. I've only standard NTL digital, but, I assume they'll introduce some sort of HD box in the near future.

The range of TVs available is incredible even form individual manufacturers, for example on komplett.ie they have about 4 Sony bravia 32" models which range in price from 750 to over 1,000. The differences are not all that clear. I'm OK with paying a bit extra for good quality, but, I don't want to get ripped off either.

I'd be wary of plasma, I believe they use an awful lot of energy and they only seem to start at 50" which would look ridiculous in the room.

[endabob1]

unless you live in a mansion do not get anything bigger than 36" it will look rediculous and you won't get a decent viewing picture from where ever you sit

[anto1208]

360 Perfect ! you will love the 360 on a HDTV really makes it . 32" will be fine dont worry about the size of the room ive a 42" in my games room which is 6ftX6ft ( converted box bedroom ) ive put down 7-8 hours sessiosn on the 360 and it barely felt like i was watching a tv . I get sore eyes watching normal tv's after about an hour or so. with the tv input you have id say stay within 32"- 38" dont spend over 1200 euro .

Go into currys or dixons where they have 15 -20 tvs all showing the same thign and you will get an idea of what the pic quality is like ( it will be digital signal not HD they will be showing so thats what your tv will be like ) they tend to show cartoons or music vids as they are flat screen friendly. If you watch a lot of footy id get a plasma if not either will do both are good. I prefere the plasma's as the blacks are better for gaming LCD's tend to have really dark grey rather than true black, but the 360 has a settign to turn on an aide for true black.

[Dricky]

Hold off on a LCD, They will come down in price now that Sony have launched the OLED, Samsung and Toshiba are to follow suit. The won't be massive screens in December Launch but look how fast the LCD has change.

They state it will use 50% less power but will be over the 1k price tag.

If you have time and want to see what is in the pipeline try
http://www.oled-display.info/

If you want to wait for these then just go to Power City and buy a Beko W/S for about €250 and.