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[Fatghost]

What I need it for:

This TV is going into a bedroom. It can't be too large (say, less than 250 lbs and 36 in. for the screen is the absolute limit). It will be used almost entirely for gaming, particularly classic gaming (PS2 and earlier). There will be some 480p and HD usage though, and a pro-scan DVD player will also be connected. I want an HDTV, but I want one with a really good line doubler - the majority of what I'll be viewing on this TV will be SD.


Price wise, I'm good up to about 850 usd. I live in Canada though, so if keep that in mind if you're thinking about TVs normally above that price but on sale in your area.


Thanks in advance.

 

[Ghost of Bill Gates]

hmmm.. $850

This widescreen can be found at Walmart for $750. It has everything from a built in HDTV tuner, HDMI support and 720p, by upconverting to 1080i.

Here are the specs:
Integrated HD Tuner w/ QAM
HDMI input
2 Component Inputs
2 S-Video/AV inputs
1 Optical Audio Out
1 Analog audio out
2 Tuner PIP
Analog tuner for cable
3D Y/C Comb Filter
http://www.sanyo.com/entertainment/televisions/digital/index.cfm?productID=904

Here's a thread about the Sanyo if interested, I feel this is the best you can get without saving up at least $1000.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=395229

If you have any doubts about Sanyo brand let me put them to rest..

According to Consumer Reports Repair History data Sanyo actually listed as the most reliable brand for 30-32" sets.
http://s94776705.onlinehome.us/cr_repair_history.jpg

 

[thom]

Piggybacking bitch:

can all HDTV's with 480p/1080i do 720p?

I know jack about tv's I know it's painfully obvious.

 

[golem]

Piggybacking bitch:

can all HDTV's with 480p/1080i do 720p?

I know jack about tv's I know it's painfully obvious.

no not all..some can upconvert 720 signals to 1080, some cannot

 

[DCX]

Piggybacking bitch:

can all HDTV's with 480p/1080i do 720p?

I know jack about tv's I know it's painfully obvious.

No...as a matter of fact is kinda hard to find "cheap" HDTVs that do 720P, some just accept the signal and down convert.

DCX

 

[Anamoly]

I reccomend the toshiba 36hf73. I just bought the tv a few weeks ago for $750 usd. It supports 480/720(upconverted to 1080i) and native 1080i signals. I orignally wanted a sony set but for the price, features and size of the set this tube cannot be beat. I've compared both sony and toshiba sets viewing the same hi-def source and honestly could not see any difference between them other than the price and the absence of pip on the toshiba.

I play all my games and movies on this set and they look spectacular progressive or otherwise. Strangely you'll find very little info about this tv on the net but don't be discouraged its a true diamond in the rough if you can find one.

http://www.tacp.toshiba.com/televisions/product.asp?model=36hf73

 

[DCX]

How did you get it for 750??

DCX

 

[Ghost of Bill Gates]

I reccomend the toshiba 36hf73. I just bought the tv a few weeks ago for $750 usd. It supports 480/720(upconverted to 1080i) and native 1080i signals. I orignally wanted a sony set but for the price, features and size of the set this tube cannot be beat. I've compared both sony and toshiba sets viewing the same hi-def source and honestly could not see any difference between them other than the price and the absence of pip on the toshiba.

I play all my games and movies on this set and they look spectacular progressive or otherwise. Strangely you'll find very little info about this tv on the net but don't be discouraged its a true diamond in the rough if you can find one.

http://www.tacp.toshiba.com/televisions/product.asp?model=36hf73

Its not widescreen or has a HDTV tuner. The Sanyo is still a better choice for features.

 

[Anamoly]

How did you get it for 750??

Found a local shop on ebay around my city. It seems most of these small electronics stores tend to give really good prices on ebay but charge an arm and a leg for delivery. I was able to pick it up myself so it saved me a chunk of change. I believe toshiba does not manufacture this model anymore but, you might be able to find it for $900 or less.

Its not widescreen or has a HDTV tuner. The Sanyo is still a better choice for features.

Well, widescreen is more of a preference, so some people may like it and some do not. Personally, i do prefer widescreen but only when viewing widescreen or anamorphic picture. Viewing a 4x3 game/program at full size on a native 16x9 gives that annoying squashed look. Its not as distracting on a larger widescreen set, but at 30" it would become very apparent.

The Toshiba does have the auto 16x9 feature for viewing widescreen material and it works really well, even improving the IQ slightly. If you compare screen sizes, even with the 16x9 mode on, at 36" you're still getting a larger picture than the sanyo (roughly 3" larger) while still having the option of viewing 4x3 material the way it was intended. Its all a matter of preference though.

The built in hd tuner on the Sanyo is quite a deal, but I'm still a little suspect on the picture quality as I've read generally negative reviews on most sanyo sets.

 

[keiichi]

I just got this:

http://www.samsungusa.com/cgi-bin/nabc/product/b2c_product_detail.jsp?eUser=&prod_id=TXP2675WHX/XAA

from Circuit City for 649.99.

I love it, everything looks great.

 

[DaCocoBrova]

Am I the only one that hates silver electronics, specifically TV's?

 

[heavy liquid]

I just got this:

http://www.samsungusa.com/cgi-bin/n...XP2675WHX/XAA

from Circuit City for 649.99.

I love it, everything looks great.

Nice. I would recommend this for gaming, too. Good price, 16:9, built in HD tuner and you don't have to worry about burn-in from too much gaming.

 

[levious]

Am I the only one that hates silver electronics, specifically TV's?

me too, I didn't buy that component switch box for months cause I couldn't find the black one.

I hate silver electronics even more than I hate biege computer cases.

I don't see many large black tvs though.

 

[Fatghost]

How does 480i stuff look on these HDTVs? Say a game like Megaman Anniversary Collection or Street Fighter 3 or Castlevania 3. I've heard some HDTVs have a hard time displaying 480i or the line doubler makes the image look like shit.

Any thoughts?

 

[Ghost of Bill Gates]

I just got this:

http://www.samsungusa.com/cgi-bin/nabc/product/b2c_product_detail.jsp?eUser=&prod_id=TXP2675WHX/XAA

from Circuit City for 649.99.

I love it, everything looks great.

This is only 26" 4:3 content would look very tiny on this set unless you stretch the image..

Fatghost28 How does 480i stuff look on these HDTVs? Say a game like Megaman Anniversary Collection or Street Fighter 3 or Castlevania 3. I've heard some HDTVs have a hard time displaying 480i or the line doubler makes the image look like shit.

Any thoughts?

480i content will look just fine.

 

[Ghost of Bill Gates]

The built in hd tuner on the Sanyo is quite a deal, but I'm still a little suspect on the picture quality as I've read generally negative reviews on most sanyo sets.

Did you know Sanyo uses Samsung picture tubes in their TVs?...

 

[Rodriguez]

Is this 22" Sharp Aquos TV good for gaming?

 

[Marty Chinn]

Is this 22" Sharp Aquos TV good for gaming?

There's no point in wasting your money on an LCD. For the price you get that for, you can get a much nicer and better looking TV for gaming and TV.

 

[Ghost of Bill Gates]

Is this 22" Sharp Aquos TV good for gaming?

How much is this? we're dealing with a budget of $850

 

[Rodriguez]

I should have mentioned the TV is for me, not for the thread starter.

I want to upgrade my current TV (currently using a 20" Toshiba Flat Screen). I plan to use it for gaming (specifically XBOX) and watching DVDs. Since everything is in my room, I really don't want a TV larger than 26". I definitely want widescreen, yet remain under $2000.

 

[Crazymoogle]

I should have mentioned the TV is for me, not for the thread starter.

I want to upgrade my current TV (currently using a 20" Toshiba Flat Screen). I plan to use it for gaming (specifically XBOX) and watching DVDs. Since everything is in my room, I really don't want a TV larger than 26". I definitely want widescreen, yet remain under $2000.

The AQUOS sounds like a bad idea, then. Ignoring the whole possibility of pixel failure, you would be looking at a future of heavy ghosting and problems with certain resolutions.

 

[Ghost of Bill Gates]

The AQUOS sounds like a bad idea, then. Ignoring the whole possibility of pixel failure, you would be looking at a future of heavy ghosting and problems with certain resolutions.

Thats true.

I seen one of these in best buy(LCD), they had a xbox hook to it.. There were Pixelation/motion artifacts on the screen while playing the game.

 

[Caddle]

I just received my philips lcos generation 3 hdtv which support 720P natively. This set is huge 55" with matching stand that can hold all of my audio equipment. Of course the price is kind of high.

 

[Spike Spiegel]

Feh.

I've been eyeing this as my next gaming TV:

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/prod...4&type=19&dept=3944&path=0:3944:121791:136944

 

[MrAngryFace]

Spike:

Just spend a little extra money on a Samsung 27 inch dynaflat tv (the one that isnt hdtv). Mine has been fantastic.

 

[Buggy Loop]

Questions to those with widescreen, how does it look when you watch a 4:3 game or tv? Does it stretch the image? Put black borders in the side?

 

[MoxManiac]

Watch out for Toshiba's HDTVs, I believe the upscan all 480p to 720p (480i probably too) This isn't good for games.

 

[Fatghost]

I've been considering the Panasonic TAU 27 or 32 inch flat screen (non HDTV) since the majority of stuff I'd be doing with it is classic gaming. But I don't want to spend money on a SDTV if HDTV will work just as well for the stuff I'm doing now and be good for future uses too.

But if I'm going HDTV, I'll need to go 16:9, but I'll want a large enough 16:9 that when I view 4:3 material in 4:3 mode (not stretched to 16:9) I get a viewable screen area of at least 27 inches.

So that would mean I need a 34 inch 16:9, right?

 

[Spike Spiegel]

Spike:

Just spend a little extra money on a Samsung 27 inch dynaflat tv (the one that isnt hdtv). Mine has been fantastic.

This one?

http://www.samsclub.com/eclub/main_...&oidPath=0:-23542:-23589:-24298:-25206:854766

...We'll see. Right now I'm just looking for something affordable, that'll hold me until I graduate and (hopefully) find a REAL job.

 

[Nos_G]

Watch out for Toshiba's HDTVs, I believe the upscan all 480p to 720p (480i probably too) This isn't good for games.

My Toshiba 30HF83 upscans/downscans 480i/p, 720p, 1080i to either 540p or 1080i depending on what is selected.

I don't know if that applies to all Tosh HDTVs though.

It's awesome for gaming btw.

(Y)

 

[MrAngryFace]

yeah, thats a great tv!

 

[Anamoly]

My Toshiba 30HF83 upscans/downscans 480i/p, 720p, 1080i to either 540p or 1080i depending on what is selected.

I can confirm this on the 36HF73 as well. In the menu there is an option for either 540p or 1080i conversion. I usually leave the 1080i conversion on for games and switch to 540p when watching movies. Either way both regular and hi-def content look great!

 

[MoxManiac]

Ah, I completely messed up! Thanks for the correction. I meant 540p, not 720p.

 

[Ghost of Bill Gates]

Although nice TVs known of them have features like the Sanyo, such as: built-in HDTV tuner which cost $300 on its own. Also the TVs that are mention do not have HDMI input which is better then Component, next gen consoles should support this.. and there's 720p supports by upconverting to 1080i. All in this 30" widescreen for $750 plus the reliability of the Sanyo brand. This is a no brainier here.. unless you can save up more money.

 

[TekunoRobby]

Also the TVs that are mention do not have HDMI input which is better then Component, next gen consoles should support this..

Can you please educate me on HDMI Input? I'm sorry for the trouble but I scavanged google and about.com for information but came up with a bunch of listings for TVs that support it. Thanks in advance!

 

[Ghost of Bill Gates]

Can you please educate me on HDMI Input?

http://www.hdmi.org/faq/faq.asp

 

[drohne]

ps2 is classic gaming now? :eek

 

[MoxManiac]

So it's basically the step up from DVI?

 

[Ghost of Bill Gates]

So it's basically the step up from DVI?

Yes, DVI is being upgraded to HDMI connectors (physically different) that will not only carry the digital video, but hi quality, multi-channel digital audio as well. DVI is video only.

 

[Fatghost]

ps2 is classic gaming now? :eek

90% of my PS2 time is spent with Street Fighter Collection 2 and now Street Fighter 3 Third Strike, so yeah

 

[toohectic]

Do you guys notice any lag on your HD TVs? We tried to use a HD TV (don't know what brand/model) for the finals at Evo2K4, but the TV had a small amount of lag so it was unusable. The lag was only a few frames, but it was enough to screw up the players/combos/etc.

Damn, we had planned to use 60 plasmas for the general pool play, but that never materialized. Good thing it didn't, that would have been a disaster. (assuming they all had the same lag problem).

 

[Crazymoogle]

Damn, we had planned to use 60 plasmas for the general pool play, but that never materialized. Good thing it didn't, that would have been a disaster. (assuming they all had the same lag problem).

Read this.

Plasma and LCD are more susceptible to 'lag' in the form of refresh issues (LCD having far worse problems than Plasma). CRT and DLP have no issues, and it sounds like LCOS won't have any problems with it either.

There are always exceptions to the rule though, especially if your HDTV was upsampling (like, say, taking 480i to 1080i) - cheaper conversion electronics could concievably lag things a bit.

 

[Ghost of Bill Gates]

Damn, we had planned to use 60 plasmas for the general pool play, but that never materialized. Good thing it didn't, that would have been a disaster. (assuming they all had the same lag problem).

I use a 42" plasma for gaming, pictured here.

I know nothing of this lag you speak of...

 

[toohectic]

Yea, I wouldn't doubt that the HD TV that we had was a low quality one. So I'm glad to hear that lag isn't a problem on high level HDs. But be aware that the lag isn't super noticable. It took quite a few matches before the players noticed it. (Well, I'm sure there were quite a few "WTF, that should have worked" moments in those opening matches.) No delay is important for all gaming, but perhaps it's less important for certain genres. Or what if you had never played a particular game on anything other than that laggy TV, then you might not ever know that there was lag in the first place. Just an idea. Anyway, our HD TV probably just sucked.

 

[TekunoRobby]

Thank you Ghost of Bill Gates.

My next purchase shall be a 50+ inch LCOS with HDMI inputs.

 

[mrklaw]

Plasma and LCD are more susceptible to 'lag' in the form of refresh issues (LCD having far worse problems than Plasma). CRT and DLP have no issues, and it sounds like LCOS won't have any problems with it either.

why so much misinformation around here? If you know what you are doing, LCD is a fine choice if saving space and HD is important for you.

Modern LCDs have a refresh rate that is fine for gaming and TV (60Hz) and you should have no real ghosting issues. Sure you might on a PC playing quake 3 at 100fps, but not on a TV at home with a console. Very different things.

They are also likely to be at least 720p native resolution (1280x720), so mapping isn't an issue, and if you have a good scaler on board, 480i/p, or 1080i should be no more a problem than other TVs with fixed pixel sizes (hands up LCOS/LCD projection/DLP)

 

[shantyman]

I'm very happy with my new TV:

Sony 30" widescreen

 

[Ghost of Bill Gates]

I'm very happy with my new TV:

Sony 30" widescreen

Nice. My dream TV is,

Sony KD-34XBR960 34" Wega just release last month.

The best CTR direct view on the market! It has 1400+ horizontal resolution, the highest of any TV out there! This is the closest you can get to True HD without getting CTR computer monitor.