TV Recommendations?

[smstonypoint]

I am in the market for a TV for my farmhouse.

I would like to have at least a 32" screen and I would like to keep the purchase price under $400. We have DirecTV at the farm if that matters.

Any recommendations for particular brands/models that I should choose or avoid?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Steve

 

[dmccarty]

I don't think the TV's come in that small of a size, but the best bang for the buck on a large screen is the Mitsubishi DLP TVs. They have a lamp that will burn out after years of service and they are not flat panels you can hang on the wall. But they are well priced for the size. We waited for the Christmas sales and got a 65 inch screen for $800. At this time last year the same TV was $1,100-1,200 for good prices if you shopped around.

We bought the TV from Dell of all places.

I THINK their smaller size is 60 inches but you would have to check.

If you can wait a few more weeks you can get some better prices on the TV.

Later,
Dan

 

[Car Doc]

I have several large Samsung's all HD 1080p 60hz lcd and all are absolutely crystal clear and sharp black edges just stunning clarity.

The newer 120hz lcd are supposed to be better and the more expensive led's are also supposed to be but my eyes cant tell the difference just stand back at the store across the room and see which tv stands out I bet money it will be a Samsung! :thumbsup:

 

[George2615]

I've had good luck with Sanyo TV's.
Had a Sanyo 27" in the Living room that I've had for over 8 years with no problems. So last year I bought a Sanyo 42" LCD HD flatscreen to replace it and moved the 27" to the Bedroom. Bought both of the at Walmart. When I was buying they had several brands on display all playing the same show. I liked the picture color and quality each time I purchased. The Walmart site has several 32" tv's in your price range.

 

[schoolsout]

I bought a Dynex (Best Buy's house brand) 32" for $279 about a year or so ago. I like it, especially for the price. I have recently noticed other major brands selling for about the same price. If you go with an LCD display, the speakers will suck so you may want to consider another sound source. I have the Vizio Soundbar with wireless sub and love it...the remote sucks, though...whatever you do, don't drop it or you will be replacing it.

 

[KennyG]

These days most of the flat screens are "acceptable". However, based on my experience, I would recommend a Samsung. All their models are good quality and the price is competitive. I also think they have about the best quality when upscaling from a standard definition signal to high definition. I've seen a lot of TVs that lose the quality, but I have to look twice sometimes to tell that it's an SD signal on my 52" Samsung.

Also, I think a 42" should be the minimum to consider for most locations. You can sit closer (in relative terms) to an HD TV than an old SD TV. Today you should only consider LCD and LEDs. The plasma sets run hot and ususally don't scale SD signals well. DLP is beautiful but you have to be centered - the picture fades as you move to an angle.

Basis: I have a 10 year old 43" DLP Samsung that is still a great picture, a 52" 120Hz Samsung LCD and a Panasonic projector (120" diagnonal screen). The projector is breathtaking with HD signals but almost unwatchable with SD signals.

 

[wny770]

Vizio. Awesome product.

 

[hr3]

Vizio. Awesome product.

Me too I love mine,,but the Plasma tv is very hot,,I'd go with an LED tv..

 

[jwnge]

We have a Samsung led and a Panasonic plasma, both have excellent pics and the new plasmas don't run as hot as the older ones and usually are cheaper than led. Check out tiger direct.com , good prices, free shipping and usually no tax.

 

[grsthegreat]

I don't think the TV's come in that small of a size, but the best bang for the buck on a large screen is the Mitsubishi DLP TVs. They have a lamp that will burn out after years of service and they are not flat panels you can hang on the wall. But they are well priced for the size. We waited for the Christmas sales and got a 65 inch screen for $800. At this time last year the same TV was $1,100-1,200 for good prices if you shopped around.

We bought the TV from Dell of all places.

I THINK their smaller size is 60 inches but you would have to check.

If you can wait a few more weeks you can get some better prices on the TV.

Later,
Dan

Sure they do. Best buy just advertised a Sylvania 32" 1080 dpi HD tv for $329.00 today. If i didnt hate best buy so much, i might get one for my shop today hehe.

Im holding out for a Sony Bravia for the shop though. I have one in the theater room, and it has an amazing picture.....just truly amazing.

 

[johnrex62]

I have both the Vizio plasma and LED. The plasma is about 4 years old and does put out heat, but less than my old 17" computer monitors do. Yes I still have one of those old boys in use.

I am sold on Vizio's quality and performance. Anything better I can't see the difference anyway so it would be lost money. Just like some audio packages are better, but I can't tell the difference when I listen so why pay more? Maybe if I were putting together a light and sound controlled theater room things would play out differently, then again, maybe not.

 

[grsthegreat]

I have both the Vizio plasma and LED. The plasma is about 4 years old and does put out heat, but less than my old 17" computer monitors do. Yes I still have one of those old boys in use.

I am sold on Vizio's quality and performance. Anything better I can't see the difference anyway so it would be lost money. Just like some audio packages are better, but I can't tell the difference when I listen so why pay more? Maybe if I were putting together a light and sound controlled theater room things would play out differently, then again, maybe not.

I built a nice light and sound controlled theater room downstairs a few years ago. LOVE IT. My wife gets lost with controlling it, and thats half of the fun.

I have everything slaved to a single MX3000 copntroller, but she still complains. So i hand her the individual controllers (all 7 of them) and tell her "have fun".

 

[EddieWalker]

I just bought a new TV a few months ago and after months of research, I went with Samsung LCD.

I like to read reviews, compare prices and look at them in the store. It took several trips to different stores before I made my decision. In the end, I found the very best deal at Sam's Club.

For the best reviews, I really like Amazon.com

Whatever you do, don't buy a tv that you see at the store and like the way it looks. The longer you look, the more you learn, the better a decision you can make.

Plasma where all warm to the touch. Price is good, but that warmth means energy. They have a bad reputation for being energy hogs for a reason.

Rumor has it that there is going to be a big price drop on the smaller flat screens for the holidays. Buy now if you have to, but wait another month if you can.

Eddie

 

[Bob77064]

We just bought two led tv's. They have a nice bright picture. And they do not use much power, so they don't put out as much heat.

 

[grsthegreat]

My LCD keeps pretty cool to the touch. I have heard that plasmas get pretty hot.

 

[ronjhall]

Needed a new TV for bedroom. 28" LCD TV did not have large enough screen to read anything on screen. 40" Viore from Costco. Not a Sony or Samsung, but for $400 it fills the bedroom requirement very well.

 

[charlz]

I bought a Vizio LED 55" at Costco last year during the holidays. Awesome picture. If you are a member of Sam's or Costco it might be worth it to wait until the holidays to either save some $$ or get a bigger TV for the same money.

Our TV has built in wireless internet so it can stream NetFlix movies etc. That is definitely something I would look for in a TV going forward. We ended up cancelling Netflix with all their price changes etc. but who knows what might be coming down the road where you would want that network connectivity feature.

 

[hizoot]

I remember my grandparents buying the latest technology back in the early '60's. It was a Curtis Mathis "COLOR" tv. It was a 25" console monitor only (no stereo)with maple cabinet...seemed huge compared to the old 19". They paid right at 400.00 . A big sum for then! Amazing that you can buy a much bigger and heaps more better tv for the same price or less almost 50 years later......

edit to add: We bought a 60" Sharp Led last year. It has 4 color LED's vs. most that have 3 color LED's. Its been an amazing TV and everyone that watches it for the first time,comment on how great a picture it is.

 

[beersngars]

I may be payng a bit too much, but I have had my best luck with the better Sony's. That's all I have bought for the last 20 years with the exception on the 65" Mitsubishi DLP mentioned above. I can't remember a Sony quiting, just getting bigger ones and doing the TV shuffle.

You know, moving the newer one in and rotating the others around. I think we own 10 now. I even have one in the garage.

 

[jimrs]

You need to research there is a lot of info on the new t.v's. The three S's seem to be rated the best by most people Sharp, Sony, Samsung this is what I heard. I have bought 4 in the last two years One for me, One for one son, one for Nephew, and one for Granddaughter. Two were the size your looking for and one was a Sony and one a Vizio. Two others were bigger than 50's and they were both Sony. If you go over a 32" get one that has the fastest refresh rate you can get to eliminate bluring this is important during sports.