My wife and I have decided to take the plunge and get ourselves a new widescreen TV for X-mas.
(...I have a pretty nice full surrround-sound system, so we want a good video display )

Unfortunately, I really haven't done much research yet,
and am a little out-of-touch with what to look for...

I figure on this forum, there is most certainly a wide range of opinions on what's best....

The only thing we know for sure is that we want  :

50"+ in size,  "Thin" format   (ie. LCD/Plasma,  not CRT tube )
WideScreen viewing for DVD
HD  (...although we currently don't subscribe to any HD programming yet...)

The big question (for me anyways...) is Plasma Vs. LCD.

I found a good comparison here, and the conclusion would favor Plasma for TV viewing.
http://www.pentranic-displays.co.uk/news-plasma-vs-lcd.htm

And what about rear-projection ?   (or is that a fancy word for Plasma ? )
How is that better, or different ?

Thoughts ?

---

Another issue for me is BlueRay technolgy, which,  as best as I can tell, is essentially HD for DVD's.
I've seen DVD players which offer up-converting to 1080, but that's not the real deal.
BlueRay players are pretty expensive and movie selection is still not huge.
Still, I don't want to buy a TV that would not allow me to use BlueRay.

---

And waht's HDMI  , ..just a high-performance connection method for HD ?


So all you video experts out there...
Plasma or LCD ?  ( or other )
Best deals on right now ?  (ie. Best bang for the buck )

fire away !

Thanks,
Steph

http://www.hometheatermag.com/buyersguides/flatpanels/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HDMI

ET  pour les cables:

http://arstechnica.com/journals/thumbs.ars/2007/2/19/7116

j'viens de m'acheter une LCD viewsonic 42" 1080P chez costco pour 1199$ ... ( 1099$ � celui d'ottawa! !@$ )

ca te PRENDS une source HD ( j'ai downloader du HD et essayer mon laptop qui output en HDMI .. c'est d�bile la diff�rence)

le weekend pass�, walmarde avait des toshibo hddvd a 98$ ...  they sold 90000 units in 2 days. (now sold out)

Bref, j'm'en va chercher le recepteur HD de videotron tantot

Go for it!

ps: Rear projection is still a big phreaking thing ... it ain't flat.

and btw, all hddvd upconvert your current dvds to 1080p

As of October 23, 2007, 351 titles have been released on Blu-ray Disc in the United States (32 of those titles have since been discontinued). As of October 9, 2007, 179 titles have been released in Japan, with 55 titles planned for release.[3]

So HDDVD is winning over Blue-Ray then ?

Was waiting for that to settle before upgrading myself...

thx MrHide

best one for the price is the panasonic 42''

I will check the number i have here and post later

you won'T get better colors

other HD tv i seen was either too bright or had color bleeding or flashes on them


**also remember when you do get it**

plan 100hrs of BREAK IN time  for the tv.

that means no gaming , no Tv at high contrast , high colors , brigthness,

everything must be at low settings .

you will thank me after that ^^

you will get the best results

HD vs bluray will be decided by the Porn industry (and maybe walt disney) just like beta debate back vcr.

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=51682


edit: my videotron hd is installed and ahhhh VERY VERY VERY NICE!

ok i'll chime in here.

before i post more, i have a 42" 1080p LCD monitor (westinghouse), and a 50" 1366x768 plasma (pioneer).

i also have both blu-ray and hd-dvd.

LCD vs PLASMA:

LCD performs better under difficult settings, for example a room with lots of windows and background lights. It will show an adequate picture with some very minor issues that most people don't notice. Also, with LCD there is no risk of burn-in (you can leave the TV on as long as you like on a static image, and it will survive without permanent damage). For this reason, LCD is typically the right choice.

PLASMA screens reflect a lot, so it is not desirable to watch anything on a plasma if you're in a well-lit room or if you don't have thick drapes to hide the sunlight. However, in ideal settings, the sharp, bright, high contrast picture of plasma completely blows away LCD. Put an LCD next to a plasma in a dark room and there is no comparison.

HD DVD vs BLU RAY:
The short answer is that you need both. In terms of picture quality and sound quality they are totally equivalent. If you like movies, you need both formats since certain important studios have chosen sides (paramount, universal on hd dvd ... fox, sony, disney on blu-ray ... warner brothers is neutral). If you can only go for one, go for whichever has more movies that you like.

Definitely get one or the other -- the picture quality of an HD DVD or Blu-Ray movie is wayyyy better than even the best high def shows on Videotron/Bell.

Cables:

One word - monoprice.com

I bought all my cables here. DO NOT buy your cables at any retail store, even Costco. They sell HDMI cables for $35+tx where monoprice sells them for $6-$7 USD + $1.50 shipping. Also they mark down prices in the declaration no matter what you buy -- I've never been hit with taxes or duties when shipping from monoprice.

Buy HDMI cables for everything. In general, there's no big quality difference between HDMI and Component, but with HDMI you have peace of mind that the connection is all-digital and you have no possibility of noise. For example on my system I originally had component cables, and there was strange video noise going on probably due to a ground loop. Instead of trying to debug this and make sure all my equipment was grounded perfectly and buy a fancy power bar, I just switched to HDMI and it solved everything.

Hope that helped -- good luck.

Thanks for the feedback guys...

A lot of good info there...

I guess I need to go compare-shopping  now... !  



Cheers,
Steph

Quoted from 519

best one for the price is the panasonic 42''

I will check the number i have here and post later

you won'T get better colors

other HD tv i seen was either too bright or had color bleeding or flashes on them


**also remember when you do get it**

plan 100hrs of BREAK IN time  for the tv.

that means no gaming , no Tv at high contrast , high colors , brigthness,

everything must be at low settings .

you will thank me after that ^^

you will get the best results

You really have no idea what you're talking about.

Steph, Mani summarized all pretty darn well and you can tell by Phil's enthusiasm that it is definitely worth the money.  The picture will blow you away.  And there are enough HD channels now playing HD content (at Prime Time hours especially) to keep one happy.  You need to begin with a decent screen.  In my opinion, it is just not worth buying a projection anymore (not even an excellently priced and nice quality Sony SXRD) as LCDs and Plasmas have come down in price a lot this fall (upcoming holiday) season.

Any Sony 1080p type LCD is pretty amazing.  Sharp Aquos are also 2nd best (and 1st for some people).  Pioneer plasma is probably best (supposedly better blacks) with Panasonic being 2nd right now.  Pioneer is amazing but they are just too expensive.  If choosing the Plasma route, choose Panasonic and save the $500 or so for the HD/PVR Rogers terminal.

I have a Panasonic 42" 1080P Plasma and could tell you that the image is breath taking.  The 42" is $2300 and I could assure you that it looks better than the probably even the best XBR3 (or XBR4) Sony LCD.  The 50" is about $3400 right now will impress you for sure.

Begin with a HD terminal and a flat screen for now.  Give a HD-DVD & Blu-ray a few more months to decide what to do there.  At this point, there is no way that either format will be abandoned anytime soon so most are seeing this format war a stalemate and Dual format players such as those from LG will become more in demand soon.  Right now, those Wal-mart HD-DVD players are so cheap, that it is hard to say no.  And you could also get a Blu-ray player for about $400 now (PS3 is still always an option if you like console games).  In the end, any movie collector (perhaps who purchases some DVDs and not just rents) will have to purchase on both formats to find the movies they want.

DVDs upconverted (with Sony Progressive type DVD player) look amazing on the Plasma screen even if not HD.  In my opinion, don't rush buying movies in HD-DVD or Blu-ray if you already have then on DVD.

And stay away from Monster cable type HDMI cables that are way over priced at Best Buy and Future Shop (I made that mistake once).

Good luck with your choices.  Some URLs:

http://panasonic.ca/english/audiovideo/plasma/index.asp
http://www.sonystyle.ca/commer.....amp;categoryId=32050
http://www.sharp.ca/products/index.asp?cat=30

http://www.shoprogers.com/stor.....8PT83MDUUKKP2A3N3NME

http://www.deepdiscount.com/

Mani's advice was spot on, but I'd like to add to it.

1080p: Yes, more resolution than 720p, but unless the display is bigger than 50", you can't see the difference.

HD DVD vs Bluray: This is a heated debate, and the only objective answer is that they're both great, and you 'need' both to get all programming. On the other hand, for a first system you can't go wrong with HD DVD since the hardware is cheaper, has more special features (internet connectivity, PiP features, etc.), and has a better lineup (my personal opinion, yours will vary). For most titles that are Bluray only in Canada, you can import a European HD DVD release, HD DVD is region free unlike Bluray. I imported T2 and The Prestige on HD DVD. Disclaimer: I own HD DVD, and not Bluray, but that doesn't mean I'm wrong.

LCD vs Plasma: Choose whatever your eyes prefer. I happen to like the look of LCD more than plasma since most times lighting conditions are not perfect. It's tough to tell when you're standing in a big box store since the lighting is so bad. The safe bet is LCD since it's the most popular (easy to resell), there's no burn in (less chance it'll get ruined), and looks fantastic (they look good, really). If yo go with LCD, I recommend an Aquos, they're the best looking LCDs around. The Sonys are just rebranded Samsungs, and they look good, but aren't worth the price. The Westinghouses are super cheap, and are good enough if you're on a budget. The Aquos is the best picture quality for the price, checkout avsforums for more info on any of this stuff.

All I can say is LCD projector.  Do it right.  You can tailor the size of the screen to the room and you aren't limited to 50" or whatever...
I have a Sony and it's great for movies and games etc.  I would recommend a smaller flat screen type TV for daily viewing of news and stuff.

Pickup  a copy of this month's consumer reports; they do a good unbiased job of rating tv's.  
The short answer is:  get the 50' or 58' Plasma from Panasonic (the 1080P) (even the 720p performed well).
Good luck with your purchase and you may want to wait for boxing day.

Quoted from Dino

..and you may want to wait for boxing day.

I'll have to wait until my 2 kids are grown up, how are you at all able to even watch tv ?  

Oh. and shopping games with a new born in the house ?  

Quoted from mark

You really have no idea what you're talking about.

Edit:
still after me.....

Mark : do you like baseball?  

Quoted from Mani

HD DVD vs BLU RAY:
The short answer is that you need both. In terms of picture quality and sound quality they are totally equivalent. If you like movies, you need both formats since certain important studios have chosen sides (paramount, universal on hd dvd ... fox, sony, disney on blu-ray ... warner brothers is neutral). If you can only go for one, go for whichever has more movies that you like.

Samsung will be the first manufacturer to release a device that is capable of playing both HD DVD and Blu-ray discs.
It maybe wise to wait a little and purchase a unit that does it all.
Also, HDMI(High-Definition Multimedia Interface)  is the way to go, that is until they make something better. But any highend unti will have this anyway. And don't skimp on your cables.

actuallg LG has one out already

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/ol.....amp;id=1165610378688

Cons: Outdated

"Will not play the latest Blu-Ray and HD DVD titles. I called LG and was tolded a firmware update was in the works but I would have to wait until it was available. While I am waiting my $1000.00 unit will not play my $25.00-$30.00 DVD's. Two months ago I would have given this product a five star rating as of today I would give LG a one star rating for not keeping current with technology."

yikes!

   I just bought a Panasonic 58" Plasma from the States...$1600...its the 1080i version, but the picture looked identical to me. I know there are future issues that may make 1080p better, but for right now just watching sports and movies its more than good enough. With the HD box the picture is incredible. BTW the 50" version of this TV is on sale at Costco for $1800!!!!  Still a great deal IMO....all research I did showed if you're going 50" or over go Plasma not LCD. Pioneer or Panasonic....DEFINITELY not LG!!!!

Quoted from Mrhide

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=51682


edit: my videotron hd is installed and ahhhh VERY VERY VERY NICE!

One word : discovery channel HD   ^_^

I've been thinking about getting this TV:

http://www.samsung.com/ca/products/tv/lcd/lnt4671fxxaa.asp

It has the new 120 hz processor and some true color technolgoy and I have to say I have never been blown away by the picture I've seen in HD, I've thought it looked good but again it didn't blow me away.  

This TV blew me away I couldn't beleive the color and clarity that this TV has and I've seen some pretty decent systems.

One question I have is, are the super duper power bars with all that noise reduction necessary?  The guys at every store I've been to make it out like it is a must have but for like an added $200 I wonder if it is REALLY needed?

They only need you to buy it because their profit margins on cables, power bars, and extended warranties are much higher than for the TV.

120hz is great stuff because it's divisible by 24. go for it!

jvegas - 1080p is great stuff for larger sets, but it was a hard lesson for me to realize that our eyes notice brightness, contrast (especially black level) and colour before noticing resolution. this is why my 1080i plasma looks infinitely better and sharper than my 1080p LCD.

Quoted from Vengeance

I've been thinking about getting this TV:

One question I have is, are the super duper power bars with all that noise reduction necessary?  The guys at every store I've been to make it out like it is a must have but for like an added $200 I wonder if it is REALLY needed?

For high end sound systems where you would hear the difference I would say yes.  I am talking about $7,000 - $10,000 and up sound systems here.

For TV's I don't see the need for a line filter or noise reduction filter.  That said maybe the new HD TV's may be very susceptible to 'dirty' lines and a filter of some type might be necessary.

That's their claim, that the dirty power considerably lessens the lifespan of the TV.  I have no idea how much truth their is to that.

Quoted from Meat Popsicle

For high end sound systems where you would hear the difference I would say yes.  I am talking about $7,000 - $10,000 and up sound systems here.

For TV's I don't see the need for a line filter or noise reduction filter.  That said maybe the new HD TV's may be very susceptible to 'dirty' lines and a filter of some type might be necessary.

I have a REALLY hard time believing that a high-end TV manufacturer cannot integrate a filtering system in their component power supply. I had a service tech tell me the same thing for my plasma when I had screen issues. It ended up being the TV power supply that was missadjusted.

Spend 200$ for a stupid power bar that will also protect in case of a power surge like lightning or such?  .... Screw that. Why pay for a gadget when I already pay insurance for such cases, and I would end up with a new TV in the end.