Need help buying a new TV.

March 22, 2011

Well, I'm not, but I've been tasked with helping my sister shop for one. She wants a 32" screen that's 1080p-capable. I confess I'm not very studied in this area, so does anyone have any suggestions on brands/models? Thanks in advance.

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honestgamer - March 22, 2011 (01:38 PM)
Before you give your sister any advice, make sure that she knows she'll screw herself out of most good televisions if she insists on 1080P on a 32" set. LG makes one, but LG is an iffy brand. On a 32" set, it's unlikely that she'll be able to notice a difference between 720P and 1080P unless she's sitting two feet away (which for all I know, she may be).

If you're looking for a good set with good features at a good price, look for a 32" Samsung set with 720P. LCD is probably the route you'll have to take, or LED if there's a good price. Sets in that range can sometimes be found locally at a good price that beats any online price, if you find the right sale (and right now there seem to be good sales going around because a new line is right around the corner).

Here's what looks like an okay online deal if you don't mind Toshiba (I'm not a fan) and really need the 1080P:

http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-32E200U-32-Inch-1080p-Black/dp/B0038JED6W/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1300826467&sr=1-3

Hope that helps!

Suskie - March 22, 2011 (02:52 PM)
My experience with 1080p was on a larger set, so I'm glad you brought that up. Samsung seems to be the go-to reliable brand, but I wanted to get an outside opinion. My sister's previous TV was a Sony and it had a surprisingly short lifespan.

Anyway, thanks a lot!

True - March 22, 2011 (03:20 PM)
Good points, Jason. Also, Mike, I'm not sure who your sister's television provider is but I know that the big three--Dish, Direct and Comcast--rarely, if ever, broadcast in 1080p, just 1080i. That's not to say they won't in the future, but for now they only things you're going to find with that resolution are Blu-Rays and some PS3 games (Call of Duty is the only one I can think of though).

A couple upsides are that I don't know of a lot of televisions that do i and not p. If you find a television with 1080 capacity, more than likely it's going to be both.

Also, a lot of people buy into the myth that they absolutely must have 1080p for the best picture when typically 1080i is just as good. Sorry, let me explain. I stands for interlaced and P for progressive. It's used to describe how the picture is produced. Interlace means they first lay out odd vertical lines--the first, third, etc and then odd. Progressive is where they lay out all lines at once. Pixels, or blemishes, can sometimes occur between the lines when they're laid out on interlaced. How often that happens? Rarely. Would you be able to tell on a 32" television, unless you were--as Jason said--two feet in front of it? Highly, extremely doubtful.

Again, you are probably not going to find a T.V. that does I and not P (typically they only jump from 720 to 1080) but if you can find one and there is a substantial price difference between the two, I would not let I/P influence your/her decision too greatly.

As far as brands...I love my Sony. Great quality, nice additional features, sturdy design. I got it on sale. A big part of the price with Sony, however, is name. If you can find it at a discount (I would recommend Ultimate Electronics if you have one. They're going out of business and having sick discounts) they are who I would recommend. LG is a decent, well-known brand and they tend to be lower than Sony overall, but I've also heard they don't have the best in terms of shelf-life. It's good, but not great, since they're still fairly new to the industry. I could be wrong though. Samsung would be my third choice, they have all of the positives mentioned above. My only hang up with them is I've had three phones from them, each failed shortly after a year. My trust has been diminished.

I would strongly urge you not to go with Vizio. They are almost always the cheapest brand, but you get what you pay for. I've heard they go out a lot, which televisions sometimes do, but they don't have the service or willingness to repair their product as good as the three mentioned above.

Also, go with LCD or LED. Plasma still has a huge list of problems, even if you don't live in a high altitude area: loss of quality, permanently stuck pixels, burned in images and very rarely you get ghosting, where the color leaks from one pixel into the next, and you get sort of a blurred outline of the original image. There one upside is speed, but GHZ shouldn't play too big a part unless your sister is an avid FPS player. I've heard that they can cause you to miss simply because it shows a person on the T.V. but in the game they've already moved. That's never actually happened to me. Just watching television or a movie, I can almost guarantee you're not going to see any sort of lapse or delay in terms of movement and scene changes with a lower GHZ television.

Hope that helps. If you have any other questions, you know where to find me.

Feedback
	honestgamer - March 22, 2011 (01:38 PM) Before you give your sister any advice, make sure that she knows she'll screw herself out of most good televisions if she insists on 1080P on a 32" set. LG makes one, but LG is an iffy brand. On a 32" set, it's unlikely that she'll be able to notice a difference between 720P and 1080P unless she's sitting two feet away (which for all I know, she may be). If you're looking for a good set with good features at a good price, look for a 32" Samsung set with 720P. LCD is probably the route you'll have to take, or LED if there's a good price. Sets in that range can sometimes be found locally at a good price that beats any online price, if you find the right sale (and right now there seem to be good sales going around because a new line is right around the corner). Here's what looks like an okay online deal if you don't mind Toshiba (I'm not a fan) and really need the 1080P: http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-32E200U-32-Inch-1080p-Black/dp/B0038JED6W/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1300826467&sr=1-3 Hope that helps!
	Suskie - March 22, 2011 (02:52 PM) My experience with 1080p was on a larger set, so I'm glad you brought that up. Samsung seems to be the go-to reliable brand, but I wanted to get an outside opinion. My sister's previous TV was a Sony and it had a surprisingly short lifespan. Anyway, thanks a lot!
	True - March 22, 2011 (03:20 PM) Good points, Jason. Also, Mike, I'm not sure who your sister's television provider is but I know that the big three--Dish, Direct and Comcast--rarely, if ever, broadcast in 1080p, just 1080i. That's not to say they won't in the future, but for now they only things you're going to find with that resolution are Blu-Rays and some PS3 games (Call of Duty is the only one I can think of though). A couple upsides are that I don't know of a lot of televisions that do i and not p. If you find a television with 1080 capacity, more than likely it's going to be both. Also, a lot of people buy into the myth that they absolutely must have 1080p for the best picture when typically 1080i is just as good. Sorry, let me explain. I stands for interlaced and P for progressive. It's used to describe how the picture is produced. Interlace means they first lay out odd vertical lines--the first, third, etc and then odd. Progressive is where they lay out all lines at once. Pixels, or blemishes, can sometimes occur between the lines when they're laid out on interlaced. How often that happens? Rarely. Would you be able to tell on a 32" television, unless you were--as Jason said--two feet in front of it? Highly, extremely doubtful. Again, you are probably not going to find a T.V. that does I and not P (typically they only jump from 720 to 1080) but if you can find one and there is a substantial price difference between the two, I would not let I/P influence your/her decision too greatly. As far as brands...I love my Sony. Great quality, nice additional features, sturdy design. I got it on sale. A big part of the price with Sony, however, is name. If you can find it at a discount (I would recommend Ultimate Electronics if you have one. They're going out of business and having sick discounts) they are who I would recommend. LG is a decent, well-known brand and they tend to be lower than Sony overall, but I've also heard they don't have the best in terms of shelf-life. It's good, but not great, since they're still fairly new to the industry. I could be wrong though. Samsung would be my third choice, they have all of the positives mentioned above. My only hang up with them is I've had three phones from them, each failed shortly after a year. My trust has been diminished. I would strongly urge you not to go with Vizio. They are almost always the cheapest brand, but you get what you pay for. I've heard they go out a lot, which televisions sometimes do, but they don't have the service or willingness to repair their product as good as the three mentioned above. Also, go with LCD or LED. Plasma still has a huge list of problems, even if you don't live in a high altitude area: loss of quality, permanently stuck pixels, burned in images and very rarely you get ghosting, where the color leaks from one pixel into the next, and you get sort of a blurred outline of the original image. There one upside is speed, but GHZ shouldn't play too big a part unless your sister is an avid FPS player. I've heard that they can cause you to miss simply because it shows a person on the T.V. but in the game they've already moved. That's never actually happened to me. Just watching television or a movie, I can almost guarantee you're not going to see any sort of lapse or delay in terms of movement and scene changes with a lower GHZ television. Hope that helps. If you have any other questions, you know where to find me.

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