So, should I wait to buy my dream TV - and how long? (1 Viewer)

[ericFD]

I will soon (next 2-3 months) be flush with some cash, and am considering replacing my 10 year old 32" Mitsubishi TV. I recently upgraded my speakers (killer new SVS surround sound with SVS subwoofer), receiver (Harman Kardon AVR-240), and DVD player (Oppo upscaler). Very happy with all of these. But wow, does my TV look crappy now.

So, I am a bit of a novice regarding TVs. I want to make sure my investment is a good one, but I can wait if need-be if something good is coming down the pike.

I was all set to buy a Sony of some sort - either the A20, or the SXRD. But if some new 1080p sets are coming out (or have come out already) then I would be interested.

Someone please help me out here - will there be some "WOW" TVs coming out in the next few months, or is there anything out there now I should look at?

My budget is around $4000. Would like 50" or a little bigger - will be sitting 8 feet from the screen. Watch mostly movies and some TV recorded on a DVR (not HDTV yet, but will upgrade to it once I have an HD set).

 

[Sal Vento]

You're in the same situation as me. I'm leaning towards the Sony SXRD (currently, there'a a 50, 60, and 70 inch models available). Not sure what the price is in American dollars.

If you could hold out a bit, I believe Sony is releasing their 2nd generation models in July-August (unconfirmed thus far, should be announced sometime this month).

The new line has a 55" model. Like the current models, the TVs will have 1080p resolution but will also have 2 1080p compatible HDMI inputs. So the TV will not only be able to display 1080p content (through up-converting existing signal) but will be able to receive 1080p content through an external source (i.e. cable box).

 

[Charlie Campisi]

You've already made the decision, you just don't know it yet...

How do you make other tech purchases? Do you buy latest and greatest, wait for the price to drop, wait until the prices hit rock bottom? Chances are your behavior with other tech purchases will be the same for this purchase. Most tv prices will come down when new models and improved technology hits the street. New models come out every year, and new technology or improvements come out faster than that. If you want to buy the best tv and always have the best tv, you will be disappointed because something better is always right around the corner, or else your price will be 30% cheaper.

Find something you like at a price point that is acceptable, purchase and enjoy. I'll admit it was nice to know my CRT RPTV held its value for a year or more, but the most important thing for me is that I have gotten 2 great years of viewing and I still prefer the picture to most of the flat panels and the DLP or LCD RP sets. Do your research, buy the display that is right for you and enjoy. It is not an investment and you'll only frustrate yourself if you try to think of it that way. It's an expensive consumable.

 

[ericFD]

Good points - "not an investment, but an expensive consumable". That helps make the decision a little easier.

Although I must say my 10 year old 32" Mitsu was a decent investment! But now with everything else new and top of the line I can tell its limitations.

Going to hope it will survive a few more months so I can get the new Sony with the 1080p inputs!

 

[Ray Chuang]

I'm going to check out Akai's new PT46DV27L 46" LED Lamp DLP RPTV when it comes out next month. (There's a 55" model also coming but that won't be out till May. :frowning: )

Why? Because unlike everybody else's DLP RPTV's, Akai's new unit uses a three-LED light source (red, green and blue) that works directly with the DLP chip, which might mean the end of the infamous "rainbow effect" in fast motion that plagues most other DLP RPTV's.

 

[Gregg Loewen]

Akai!!! good luck (not a great choice....based on history)

 

[Garrett Lundy]

Wait till they have HDMI v.1.3 inputs. And hope HDDVD & BRD don't suddenly demand HDMi v.1.4 befor ethey arrive on store shelves.

 

[RickER]

I just broke down and bought a 50 inch Toshiba Plasma, got a great sale price and i couldn't pass up on 3 years no interest. So far i am very happy. I wanted a 50 inch Panny, but couldn't find any. I also would have loved a Sony Plasma, but once again, none to be found, except a floor model. I dont know what you have to spend, but for me the price of the Tosh, and a great no interest deal was enough to make me jump.

 

[Arthur S]

Rick

Where did you get your Tosh and what did you pay, if you don't mind.

Thanks

 

[RickER]

Arthur, i got it at Best Buy for $3400. I went in for the Panny that was in the ad on Superbowl weekend (or the weekend before, cant remember). But guess what they didn't have it, and couldn't get any as they were out of stock at the distribution level. So i made a deal on the Tosh. The 3 years no interest was a great deal they had going on TVs $600 and up i think.

 

[Dave Moritz]

It all depends on what your goals are and your budget. I agree that Akai does not have the best track record. And the light source was not the problem for causing the rainbow effect. They pretty much solved that by increasing the speed of the color wheel.

The 1080p sets are supposed to be coming out soon but I am not sure when. If you really do want to have a tv that displays the full 1080p blu-ray picture. Then I would wait for the new hdtv's to come out. If however you dont have to have a 1080p set now and can wait a few years. I would also consider a projector if you have a good size room. For the price of a rptv you could have a 80" - 120" picture instead of a 50" - 60" screen. For a projector one of the companies I would recomend is InFocus.

http://www.infocus.com/Default.aspx

Otherwise if you want to stick with the 50 - 60 inch size of rptv. I would recomend looking at Mitsubishi, Samsung and Sony. I personally am staying away from Toshiba just because what they have done with HD_DVD. They have locked out 720p and 1080i from the component outs which screwed all the early adopters of HDTV sets. So since they like to play like that I will not be buying or recomending Toshiba.

For LCD Sony I think has the best as when I was looking at HDTV's I also looked at Hitachi. And IMHO the Sony was way better than the Hitachi. If you want a DLP the Samsung has a great picture and so does the Mitsubishi. Toshiba does have a nice picture but they can take a flying leap. The only thing I would do is bring your favorite movies and compair the tv's and buy what looks best to you.

 

[TheBat]

I also heard bad things about Akai. I did see one that was a size 50 at sam's club. I went with the samsung 47 inch. my tv set came with a free tv stand. for about 1100.

JACOB