A friend of mine wants a new tv and i need advice to give him (1 Viewer)

[John-Miles]

My friend is looking at getting a rear projection HD tv, most likely widescreen, he has about 2800 or so to spend canadian, so about 2000 american. Basically I am pretty sure he will be watching alot of cable tv, possibly sattilite, but i doubt he will be getting any HD (there isn't much here) He is also a big sports fan, so i think somethign with good stretch modes is important for him.
I have ehard a number of good things about a panasonic 42" model, but to be perfectly honest I have never done any comparing with Rear projection tv's so I only knwo what i ahve learned here. reccomend some model numbers please

 

[Jan Strnad]

All I can do is once again proclaim my love for my Toshiba. From what I've read, it excels in two areas that would seem important to your friend: great stretch modes, and excellent handling of mediocre signals (i.e. cable, satellite).

Which doesn't mean that a Panasonic couldn't also be a great set. It is, however, deeper by several inches than a Tosh, if that is a concern.

I am definitely a widescreen advocate.

Jan

 

[rougehiller]

I second what Jan has posted above. Many agree Panasonic is a great set, especially when calibrated professionally. But if the key is points are good 4:3 stretch modes and mediocre cable watching, I think Toshibas are hard to beat (with the exception of Pioneers) - At least from what I have seen.
Toshiba 42H82 can be had for ~CAD 2900. Unfortunately, Toshiba Canada will not bring the 42HDX82 over here north of the border (or at least that's what they told me).
Also, take a look at this Pansonic 53WX42 vs. Toshiba 50H82 thread.

 

[Jeff Yale]

Another choice to consider is Mitsubishi. Their sets, unlike Toshiba and Hitachi, don't attempt upconversion of 480p signals, which has been found to reduce detail. Pioneer Elite doesn't upconvert either. A 55" gold or gold plus series can be had for the price you are talking about. I have been happy with mine, especially after the isf calibration!

 

[David Ison]

For that kind of money I would look long and hard at a LCD projector. The panasonic ae-100 and the nec-vt45 can be had for about 1500.oo , what's wrong with having a 96 inch picture, yeah I know they are not the best out there but dollar for dollar they are hard to beat even on a home-made screen(black-out cloth stretched over a frame). I can't believe I put-up with a BIG box in my livingroom all these years. I have a projector and I'll never look back!

 

[John-Miles]

Thanks for the advice guys. i think im going to recommend the toshiba to him. the projector is a nice idea, but he isn't the type of persn who would be interested in one, im sure my friend would find one to be too much hassel, he definitely is not a home theater enthuasist.

 

[elMalloc]

David,
I'm going the projector route too...the picture is flawless for most DVDs...hoping I can game on some..

-ELmO

 

[Eric Bass]

"Special limited time offer:
Get the NEC MultiSync VT45 polysilicon LCD projector from Computer Online today and get a $150 cash rebate. Your cost after rebate is only $1249! (expires 9/30/02)"
http://shop.store.yahoo.com/col88/vt45.html
Might be worth a look...