What's the -least- I can expect to pay for an HDTV with 480p/720p? (1 Viewer)

[John_Klimek]

I'm getting married this September and will be finding a place to move into... As of right now, I don't have any decent TV's so we'll probably end up buying one before we actually move in together.

So, I'm wondering what thats the least I can expect to pay for a decent TV that supports 480p (and hopefully 720p). Money is obviously a HUGE concern but I never buy garbage... (I'd rather do without and save money until I can afford something decent).

Right now I'm thinking of something in the 32 - 36" range but depending on price bigger would be nice

So... what should I be expecting to pay on average or at minimum?

 

[Tommy G]

John, is front projection a possibility? You can usually get in cheaper with great quality in an HD Projector. Just a thought.

 

[John S]

You would probbaly want to look at the 42" and up sizes.

Panny ED Plasma can be had for under $2000 these days, but not 720p. It of course will take 720p, but convert it to 480p for display.


The 720p makes it seem like your looking for fixed pixel displays?

I mean there was a decent 60" Widescreen for sale at one of the big box stores recently for $1300. CRT rear projection is still going to give you the biggest bang for your buck, but most of those that can take 720p convert it to 1080i for display.

 

[John_Klimek]

To be honest, I don't know enough about what I'm talking about... I've read that 720p is one of highest quality pictres you can get... (I thought 1080i would be, but apparantly thats between 480p and 720p?)

It doesn't matter if the TV is front projection/rear projection, etc. I'd like to avoid a stand-alone projecter though.

Also, $1300 seems about in my price range but I'll have to check with the fiance. When I told her a TV will cost around $1000 she wasn't exactly happy, so $1300 might be pushing it.

Anything around $1000? (what types/brands should I be looking at for that range?)

Should I even be considering 720p or should I just look for "HDTV @ 480p"?

Sorry for all of the questions!

 

[Rich Malloy]

Panasonic has 47" and 53" HD-RPTVs that you can find for around $1100 and $1350, respectively, and these have gotten very good reviews. Search on "Panasonic 47x54" or "Panasonic 53x54" (and don't confuse them with previous year's models with very similar model nos.).

These sets have native resolutions of 540P and 1080i (no 720P). The only 720P programming I know of is some HDTV broadcasts (like Fox), which will be converted to 1080i by your cable/satellite box for your TV. Progressive scan 480P from DVD will be converted to 540P by the television (or if you have an upsampling DVD player with an HDMI output, you can pass an upsampled 1080i signal via the digital interface).

I'm certain there are other excellent options in this size/price range, but these Panasonic models have gotten alot of good feedback this year.

 

[ScottHH]

You should first read this post about HDTV. 480p is not HDTV. An EDTV plasma is not HDTV.

People will argue about 720p vs. 1080i being the "better" format. I don't think it's that big a difference to worry about.

$1,000 and 32 - 36" leaves you with a CRT unit.
For about the same money you can get a 46-52" CRT-RPTV unit.

There really aren't going to be that many options in that price range. I would shop stores for models in your price range and come back to the forums to look them up. Also, many inexpensive HDTV's are monitors that need an external HDTV tuner which will cost you another couple hundred dollars, or can be rented from your cable company (HD cable box).

 

[John_Klimek]

Well, I only said $1,000 and 32 - 36" because I thought that would be all I could get in that price range. If I can get a 47" TV for about the same price then I'll definitely go that route. (espicially if it's a better picture too)

 

[John S]

Yep.. Star searching for deals...

CRT RPTV HDTV / HDTV Ready will be your way biggest bang for your buck.

 

[ChuckSolo]

Check out the thread below, another poster asked basically the same question you did.


http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...hreadid=226536

 

[Rich Malloy]

Well, some folks prefer direct-view CRTs for standard-def TV viewing and for viewing in environments with alot of ambient light, but you'll pay a bit more and will be limited to a size of 36-40". Some folks prefer the "filmlike" look of an RPTV, but these are much more effected by ambient light. Given the right ambient environment, however, a big ol' HD-RPTV is simply phenomenal looking.

You happen to be shopping at a great moment in monitor history if your primary concerns are picture quality and bang-for-the-buck. It seems the mainstream consumer is utterly enamored with flat panel plasma and microdisplays like DLP. These are already much more expensive than CRT-RPTVs, and while they have their merits most purchasers looking for "best picture for the money" are finding that the prefer the image quality of far less expensive RPTVs. I've been quite impressed with some of the plasmas, DLPs, and even LCDs I've seen... but the ones that look good to me, or as good on balance as some of the latest RPTVs, cost $3-4K or more.

Avoid "EDTVs", and get the HDTV. By no means settle for a SD (standard def) TV. Make sure that the model you buy has an HDMI input (or, at the very least, a DVI one). Finally, you'll be surprised at how much size matters... if you're torn between the smaller and larger models, and you've gotten the necessary spousal approval for the larger one, don't hesitate to get it. Trust me: if you don't, you'll regret it in a very short time.

 

[John S]

Interesting, so many still call 480p SD instead of ED.

The differenc between the two is also night and day..

A 480p Display -vs- a 480i only display. More so than a 480p display to an actual HD display in my experiences.

 

[Rich Malloy]

I stand by my advice: there's no good reason to go for an EDTV today (and any salesman trying to push an SD-TV should be slapped upside the head). In my experience, there's a much greater increase in perceived resolution between 1080i and 480P than there is between 480P and 480i, but the upshot is that the resolution improves in a quite obvious way at each step up the definition ladder (at least for larger displays, say around 50" and above).

I would love to see a 1080P display, but I suspect such monitors will be a good deal pricier than what we've been discussing in this thread!

 

[John S]

My only concern with your statement, is that many of the best 480p displays are way better than many of the lower end 720p displays as there is so much more to a display than raw resolution.

480i gets bad much over 40" or so, 480p is good up to really large sizes by comparison.

Just look at all the happy Panny Ed Plasma owners, or the new wave of 4805 FP owners around here. Those displays do a great job of displaying HD sources / content even though they display them in ED (480p).

At viewing distance, you can be hard pressed even telling a difference between the two on displaying true HD sources.

 

[ScottHH]

John S,

I was specifically responding to John_Klimek's comment "HDTV @ 480p"? HDTV is a standard which he should understand before purchasing anything.

Although an EDTV plasma may be an fantastic buy relative to an HDTV plasma, I believe the least expensive Panny 37" EDTV will run at least $1,800 delivered. Since "Money is obviously a HUGE concern", I don't think any form of plasma is going to work.


Answer: $400
Actually I don't know if this TV is "decent" or not. But if you want a 27" 4:3 TV, it's worth checking out.

What are you going to watch on this TV: DVDs, HDTV or standard TV? If you are going to watch a lot of standard TV, it gets pillar boxed on a widescreen set. The size of a 4:3 image on a 34" widescreen TV is only 22".

The least expensive better-than-SD TVs are small CRTs
The least expensive big and better-than-SD TVs are CRT-RPTVs
I think if you go look at these two types of TVs it will be a relatively easy decision to pick one based on what you watch and how far you plan on sitting from the screen.

 

[John S]

I mention the plasma's only because they seem to have a great WAF is all. I have seen wives won over by it and be more willing to the extra is all.

But I agree with you, a budget is a budget.

This is the one I have, I have been pleased with it, you can't really feed it a composite source though as it has the worst 3 line comb filter in the industry.
http://www.samsclub.com/eclub/main_s...33919&mt=a&n=0

But you should probably target a widescreen set with all the bells and whistles, I have some unique circumstances that made that particular set the right one for me.

I don't see the awesome 60" Philips widescreen deal now, this was a few weeks ago, I guess in a Cicuit City flyer. My neighbor got one, it is pretty darn sweet all in all.

Oh yeah, and if live anywhere near a larger city, do not underesitmate the amount of HD you will probably be watching free Over the air.

 

[Jerome Grate]

Unless space is an issue, then I'd go with RPTVs 46 to 55 inch range. Some great sets, I personally have the Sony, and love it for Standard TV and DVD via upscaling player.