Just to add a small update about the Sharp LC26GD7E - as it was going back, I decided to do some more extensive testing. (I wasn't testing it nearly as much as I usually do, as I wanted to keep it)
I hadn't really tested any interlaced material, other than a little Freeview at about 8ft, so I didn't really have a good look at how well it was de-interlacing. I loaded up some 2D games and the results were laughable. It must be doing some sort of noise-reduction that cannot be disabled, as there's no way the panel could be this bad.
Any sort of details in be background just all blend together and form huge trails. Things are pretty badly edge-enhanced, and cause ghosting too. If you've been jumping around in a game and stop moving, it takes a half-second or so for backgrounds etc to "pop" back into "focus."
It's infinitely worse than the Samsung, and completely unusable for any sort of 2D gaming.
I was also considering the new JVC, but while the specs on paper might be good, I have no confidence in the brand, and don't want to buy another television like that just to take a chance and hope it looks decent.
The new Panasonics due in April sounded good, but every Panasonic product I've either owned or read about has needed a long time for the software/firmware to mature before it actually becomes a good product.
So, it look like I'll forfeit a VGA input, and pick up the Sony V26. It has a manually adjustable backlight, and a "power saving" mode which lowers it even more. The main reason I wasn't considering it until now is because the majority of sets now have a VGA input, and while I don't make a lot of use of it (really just the 360) when the set costs more than any other LCD in its size, why should it have less connectivity? I'm sure that in a year or so's time I will probably be regretting it though.
As with all Sony products it looks to be over-priced, and under-specced, but what they do, they usually do well.
Lyris assures me that it does a fantastic job handling SD material, and he watches his current WEGA LCD far closer than I would get to a screen, and thinks it looks great, so I'll take his word for it.
I plan to go down to John Lewis tomorrow and get one, as their 5 year warranty should mean I don't have to worry about the "Sony Timer."
If I do end up keeping the set, I will have an XRGB2+ with some Saturn and PS2 cables for sale if anyone is interested. (I seem to remember someone posting here recently saying they were trying to get a hold of one)
I hadn't really tested any interlaced material, other than a little Freeview at about 8ft, so I didn't really have a good look at how well it was de-interlacing. I loaded up some 2D games and the results were laughable. It must be doing some sort of noise-reduction that cannot be disabled, as there's no way the panel could be this bad.
Any sort of details in be background just all blend together and form huge trails. Things are pretty badly edge-enhanced, and cause ghosting too. If you've been jumping around in a game and stop moving, it takes a half-second or so for backgrounds etc to "pop" back into "focus."
It's infinitely worse than the Samsung, and completely unusable for any sort of 2D gaming.
I was also considering the new JVC, but while the specs on paper might be good, I have no confidence in the brand, and don't want to buy another television like that just to take a chance and hope it looks decent.
The new Panasonics due in April sounded good, but every Panasonic product I've either owned or read about has needed a long time for the software/firmware to mature before it actually becomes a good product.
So, it look like I'll forfeit a VGA input, and pick up the Sony V26. It has a manually adjustable backlight, and a "power saving" mode which lowers it even more. The main reason I wasn't considering it until now is because the majority of sets now have a VGA input, and while I don't make a lot of use of it (really just the 360) when the set costs more than any other LCD in its size, why should it have less connectivity? I'm sure that in a year or so's time I will probably be regretting it though.
As with all Sony products it looks to be over-priced, and under-specced, but what they do, they usually do well.
Lyris assures me that it does a fantastic job handling SD material, and he watches his current WEGA LCD far closer than I would get to a screen, and thinks it looks great, so I'll take his word for it.
I plan to go down to John Lewis tomorrow and get one, as their 5 year warranty should mean I don't have to worry about the "Sony Timer."
If I do end up keeping the set, I will have an XRGB2+ with some Saturn and PS2 cables for sale if anyone is interested. (I seem to remember someone posting here recently saying they were trying to get a hold of one)
)
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