The most reliable quality big screen TVs? (1 Viewer)

[Jay H]

I'm kind of searching for a decent big screen TV for my parents new house. They practically never watch any prerecorded films on VHS or DVD, except for when I rent them for them so a widescreen TV is out. They would never pay for the equipment or broadcasts for High Definition so HD ready is probably a huge waste of money, so any of the new digital like TVs are out. We are looking at good valued big screen TVs like 53" or so would seem to fit their new house in terms of viewing distance. Hanging around over here and awhile ago, it seems that Toshiba makes some pretty good Widescreeen RPTVs that aren't too expensive and I've seen recs on Mitsubishi RPTVs too, do they also make good 4:3 RPTVs too? How about the Sony 53" KP-53V90 model. Happen to see one at Circuit City down by the new house, looked good in the features, didn't get enough time to play.

Down by the new house, there is really only a Circuit city and the nearest Best Buy is about an hour away so selection is not that great.

Any recommendations on where to start looking, brands that one would fine in CC or likewise?

Thanks,

Jay

 

[Jack Briggs]

Well, I've always been fond of Toshiba's accurate colorimetry. But, even though your parents will not invest in an HD STB, I still suggest you get a set that adheres to the ATSC standards. Spending money on an NTSC-only RPTV is not a wise thing to do these days. Simply make sure that if you purchase a 4:3 set that it has a 16:9 mode. They should get a thrill out of seeing a line-doubled DVD in 16:9.

Toshiba also has an excellent service record overall.

 

[davepr]

Whatever one thinks of CR's review and rating criteria, they do take a statistical approach to reliabilty. The lates CR rates Hitachi as the most reliable brand of RPTV.

Dave

 

[Jay H]

How about this one, on sale at Circuit City, which is still a bit far from his house but might be doable:
Hitachi 43FDX10B
It's a HD-ready 1080i TV with color temp selections, 5 display modes:

Five Screen Fill Modes:
- Aspect 1: Standard 4:3 Picture
- Aspect 2: 16:9 Mode with Gray Bars
- Aspect 3: 4:3 Zoom Mode
- Aspect 4: 16:9 Zoom Mode
- Aspect 5: 16:9 Mode with Black Bars

for $1800. Right now his TV is an old Sony 27" DirectView but the new house will have a Den/TV room a bit larger than ours and of course, as he ages, his vision goes so the larger 43" is probably adequate given the room. Not sure how high the TV is, but is it a decent set enough to audition it at CC? The front A/V input is nice though I see most of larger TVs have them, we sometimes use it for the video cam.
Jay

 

[Dwight Amato]

still needs to be put on a stand, which is extra money. I have and like the Panny 47", which doesn't need a stand, and can be price matched for $1500 around the web.

 

[davepr]

It is possible to price match the Hitachi 43uwx10b at Sears for less than 1700 (1660) so the 43fdx10b should be had for less. Do some internet prices searching. Dwight is right that you need a stand for either unit.. If you buy the matching stand it lists is 199 but I was able to get it from Sears for 164..

Dave

 

[Arthur S]

I'd recommend the top rated Hitachi 53UDX10B. This 53" 4:3 had the best picture quality with standard definition material. Since your folks aren't into DVD or HD, this set will deliver a fine picture with cable or satellite. Lists for $2,500. On a Sears 10% off day your at $2,250. Refurbs are available for $1,500 from the authorized Hitachi outlet.

 

[Brad_V]

Jay, if your parents wouldn't use the HD capabilities of a TV, then there's absolutely no reason to pay twice the money to get one.

You are right on the Toshibas. The 50a61 looks GREAT! Pretty much any comment you read of it, the person will say the same. I was shocked when I first saw a 50a61. It was right there with most of the HD sets for DVD material and even some of the HD feed, and at first I thought it was an HD set. No kidding! I didn't think an analog RPTV could look that good.

If you can find the 50a50, that one is the same thing but only has one tuner for pip and no screen protector, but it's hundreds cheaper. A local place had it on sale for $999 the other week. Heck of a deal.

Mitsubishi analogs look good, too, but cost a little more.

 

[Mike I]

I cant believe the argument of HDTV or not still comes up ..3 years ago yes but today now way..To spend more than a few hundred dollars on a tv that is not digital is money not well spent..You can can a great digital tv for as little as 1400...Dont waste a grand on a set that is yesterdays outdated technology..

 

[Allan Jayne]

The Hitachi 43FDX10B has 16:9 mode with gray bars? This suggests that it does not do a true squeeze even for the other 16:9 mode with black bars. It would take some investigation and examination to determine how good the NTSC picture is despite that limitation.
For example if it de-interlaces the NTSC before scaling it to fit between the gray bars, the results will be better than scaling the interlaced fields first.
Video hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/video.htm

 

[Brad_V]

You can get a great digital TV for $1400, but you aren't going to get a great digital 50+" TV for $1400 like he is looking for.

His parents barely watch a DVD and wouldn't bother with HD. So why tell them to pay around twice as much for technology they won't use when the "old" technology works just fine? You can buy a car with every new technological advance in the book if you are willing to pay for it, but that doesn't mean buying a lesser model without a fully-variable automatic transmission or variable compression ratio engine won't do the job for you just fine at half the price.

I bought my mom a surround-sound receiver some years back so she could enjoy television more. She doesn't even turn it on. There's no point in paying for new technology if the person isn't going to use it.

 

[Mike I]

Digital is not new technology ..NTSC is obsolete technology...Analog is out...Dont waste that much money on an anolog set..

 

[Brad_V]

480i can produce an interlaced DVD-quality picture. That's a good picture and is far from obsolete. In fact, DVD rentals just finally caught up to VHS rentals this past year. If everything would go to HD, and I hope it does but I won't hold my breath, and then analog TVs need a converter, then all HD signals should be down-converted to DVD-quality 480i anyway. I'd love to see every analog TV in the country have that kind of picture.

We can go back and forth on this all day, but for this specific scenario, his parents wouldn't use the technology even if they had it -- And that's the bottom line. Someone can spend an extra 10 grand on a car to have an engine with 200 more horsepower, but if they never put their foot into it then the extra 200 horsepower may as well not be there and they may as well have kept that 10 grand in their pocket. And the same applies here just as it does with my mom and the surround-sound receiver I bought her.

All other arguments aside, there is simply no point in spending extra money on something that will not be used. Just because something new comes along doesn't mean the "old" stuff is now obsolete.

 

[Mike I]

The difference in quality betweeen 480i and 480p is like day and night..The difference between 480i and 1080i is not even in the same ball park..

Again , if you are going to spend over 800 on a tv set, don't waste money on analog....

 

[Jay H]

thanks for the inputs! Since my parents got a new house, they're primary concern is new furniture but the TV search is on the back burner for now... Heck, my parents are simplistic, I don't think they would even use the 2-tuner PIP that much. I find myself wanting that alot on my TV, and I know I would use that alot, but they are basic folks.

The one problem is that I think most of the sets they sell in the big electronic chains are all the mid to upper level digital sets, not that much selection of the lower prices units because that is probably not where they make their most money. Like I think I mentioned, the nearest store, Circuit City, is still about an hour's drive away and Best Buys is even further. There's not many other smaller stores either, there is a real small Sears Hardware store that happens to sell TVs but they had like only 4 models on display.

Jay

 

[Brad_V]

Mike, in your opinion the difference between between true (dvd quality) 480i and 480p may be night and day, but in this scenario, he said his parents wouldn't bother with it anyway. There's no point in paying more for something that will never be used.