LCD/Plasma/CRT/DLP - questions

[RLench]

Is there a good site for reviews of flat panel TVs I could browse?

Nope. There isn't a single review resource that is reliable, accurate, and trustworthy. Depressing, isn't it?

The best thing you can do is - as Lyris says - is to try things for yourself. Ask for lots of opinions on as many forums as you can find, but always take your own opinion as the deciding factor

[Kron]

I personally wouldn't bother asking for opinions on TV's either, The only way you'll find one you like is by trial and error.

All LCD TV's feel like they need a couple more years of further development to make them totally liveable. Just make sure you stay away from the Samsungs and don't bother buying a HDTV at all if you are going into it with a budget mindset.

[Mayhem]

As I can get some nice discounts on Panasonic gear currently, anyone give opinions on either of these?

LCD http://shop.panasonic.co.uk/invt/tx32lxd60
Plasma 600 series http://shop.panasonic.co.uk/invt/th42px600ped
Plasma 60 series http://shop.panasonic.co.uk/invt/th42px60ped

What's HDAVI control btw? And when it says Freeview, does that mean it incorporates a built-in digital tuner to pick up those channels? And what real differences are there between the two plasmas? And is there a problem not having DVI compared to HDMI? And what about the fact they are 768 vertical and not 720 native, any downscaling issues?

[Kotatsu Neko]

How about the Toshiba 42WL66? The specs sound very impressive - 1920x1080 resolution (1080p!), 2xHDMI, 1xComponent, 2xSCART, 1xVGA, and Freeview. The screen size is 40".

By far the best specs I've seen so far.

[Chunky]

Why get 1080p though ? If it's for gaming i'd rather get a 720p as that's what most of the games will be in for the forseeable future.

Think i'm off to John Lewis armed with a console or two to see the differences between these sets - anyone around Reading have components leads for PS2 or GC i can borrow please ?

[Kotatsu Neko]

Why get 1080p though ? If it's for gaming i'd rather get a 720p as that's what most of the games will be in for the forseeable future.

Think i'm off to John Lewis armed with a console or two to see the differences between these sets - anyone around Reading have components leads for PS2 or GC i can borrow please ?

HDTV broadcasts are 1080i, HD-DVD is 1080p. So having all those lines could be useful.

The 360 should scale up to 1080p well enough I expect.

[sj33]

Well, 360 does 1080i max, TV would deinterlace. Depending on set, might be preferable to set to 720p and upscale.

[Lyris]

Why get 1080p though ? If it's for gaming i'd rather get a 720p as that's what most of the games will be in for the forseeable future.

As has been said - HD DVD 8)

[Chunky]

I knew i'd get made to look an idiot

I wonder if it's worth me holding on with TV buying then and wait til this time next year before taking the plunge. Will need a new one for gaming and for the lounge then

[sj33]

I wouldn't be suprised it there's an upsurge of 1080p screens around the time the PS3 hits...

If you need HD now (I do, I use a lot of HD content on my PC, as well as my 360), then there's no harm getting a cheap screen now (you could alwayse use it as a PC screen when your done). Otherwise, may as well wait.

[andrewfee]

How about the Toshiba 42WL66? The specs sound very impressive - 1920x1080 resolution (1080p!), 2xHDMI, 1xComponent, 2xSCART, 1xVGA, and Freeview. The screen size is 40".

By far the best specs I've seen so far.

1920x1080 does not mean 1080p. The panel is, sure, but 99% of the displays out there right now only accept 1080i. (and I believe the Toshiba is one of them)

You want 1080p if you're prioritising movies / HDTV, 720p for gaming imo.

The 360 should always be set to 720p or 1280x720 (VGA) where possible.

Sony are planning on releasing the V2500s here at the end of the year, which are pretty much the same as the V2000s, but for 40" and up they're 1080p.

[Kotatsu Neko]

1920x1080 does not mean 1080p. The panel is, sure, but 99% of the displays out there right now only accept 1080i. (and I believe the Toshiba is one of them)

You want 1080p if you're prioritising movies / HDTV, 720p for gaming imo.

As long as I see 1080p on screen, and not some nasty flickery interlaced mess, then the difference should be pretty minimal. That said, I think I'll email Toshiba and ask them.

It will be used mainly for movies I suspect, and may one day be fed HD-DVD movies once the players are cheap enough... and assuming the format isn't dead and has been replaced by IP-TV.

[sj33]

As long as I see 1080p on screen, and not some nasty flickery interlaced mess, then the difference should be pretty minimal.

It's still just going to be 1080i deinterlaced though. The difference between 480i and 480p is noticable enough.

[Kotatsu Neko]

It's still just going to be 1080i deinterlaced though. The difference between 480i and 480p is noticable enough.

That would be more noticeable on 480i/p, as the lines are huge compared to 1080i/p.

[Lyris]

Yeah, my brother's Sony monitor didn't have 1080i film mode (it treats stuff from our HD DVD player as video material) and it took us a long time to actually notice it because the jittering lines were so small.

I couldn't personally buy a 1920x1080 screen that didn't accept 1080p though - it'd just feel like a needlessly limited product.