LCD and Plasma Bargains and Discussions thread

Thamza said:
Congrats man! Anything more than 40" won't work for me, unfortunately there is not enough space for that. I am happy though to hear that you are happy with your device. Perhaps if they had 40" of the same device then one might reconsider the budget;).
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If you can't go larger than 40" then you can write off 43" plasma which suits "TV" best, generally.

Sony 40" seems like a good option. Otherwise the LA32D550 is bulletproof!

LA32E550 should also be coming out soon, might be a bit better. My C550 and the D550 are virtually the same quality wise.
 
PostmanPot said:
I understand what you mean. There are different types of "TV"/transmissions/sources though, with different qualities like resolution, aspect ratio, reliance on good motion processing, etc. So while you are buying your TV for home viewing, you will be using it for certain types of viewing which can effect the decision you make based on pros and cons of certain techs/models in relation to what you will be using the TV for. We want to get you the best for your situation that suits your type of viewing, pocket, room conditions, etc.

So can you please elaborate on what you will be using the TV for. You can also tell us the room's lighting conditions - is it very bright? Bright (sunlight) during viewing hours? Curtains?
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I see (thank you). The room is not very bright, there is no direct light rays coming in. The TV will be for watching movies and DSTV (mainly). And yes there are 2 curtains which can be easily dealt with.
 
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Thamza said:
I see (thank you). The room is not bright at all as there is no direct light rays coming in. The TV will be for watching movies and DSTV (mainly)
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Darn, pity you can't go slightly bigger as 42/43" HD Ready plasma (e.g. Samsung PS43D450) is a definite winner for those types of viewing (standard definition) and your room lighting. Also available for R3,999 - R4,500.
 
PostmanPot said:
Darn, pity you can't go slightly bigger as 42/43" HD Ready plasma (e.g. Samsung PS43D450) is a definite winner for those types of viewing (standard definition) and your room lighting. Also available for R3,999 - R4,500.
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Thanks for your responses, I really appreciate it. I will also add the Samsung PS43D450 as an option (in case one can move things around to create space). I was hoping I would get a TV today but with this new information, I now think I need to relax and wait to see what deals are coming up this week. Have a great day man!
 
Thamza said:
Thanks for your responses, I really appreciate it. I will also add the Samsung PS43D450 as an option (in case one can move things around to create space). I was hoping I would get a TV today but with this new information, I now think I need to relax and wait to see what deals are coming up this week. Have a great day man!
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Pleasure, best to go to the shop and compare with LA32/40D550 / Sony / LG (we like Sammy :p) all displaying SD TV. Ignore the bright shop-lighting and its effect on plasma (reflection + "dull" look), just focus on the way the TV displays/renders the SD picture.

If you're used to a 4:3 CRT box TV (which displays SD TV very well) then you will be quite shocked at the quality of SD TV on Full HD/16:9/1920x1080 panels especially LCD.

42/43" HD Ready plasma is the better for SD because it uses a 1024x768 resolution (4:3) but with rectangular pixels for 16:9/wide screen. So SD and HD look great on it. It also handles motion better if you like sport. The resolution may be lower But you won't benefit from a higher resolution. Perhaps in the future.
 
Mike Smit said:
For me only Samsung and LG are focus. Don't care for the rest.
I have that 32" on my PC. Awesome device.
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Thanks man. This will really help in making the decision :).
 
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PostmanPot said:
Pleasure, best to go to the shop and compare with LA32/40D550 / Sony / LG (we like Sammy :p) all displaying SD TV. Ignore the bright shop-lighting and its effect on plasma (reflection + "dull" look), just focus on the way the TV displays/renders the SD picture.

If you're used to a 4:3 CRT box TV (which displays SD TV very well) then you will be quite shocked at the quality of SD TV on Full HD/16:9/1920x1080 panels especially LCD.

42/43" HD Ready plasma is the better for SD because it uses a 1024x768 resolution (4:3) but with rectangular pixels for 16:9/wide screen. So SD and HD look great on it. It also handles motion better if you like sport. The resolution may be lower But you won't benefit from a higher resolution. Perhaps in the future.
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Yes, I could see that you guys like Sammy and I respect that because you are talking from experience :). I will go and have a look at both the Sammies (32" and the Plasma). It always helps to know what is good and why. Once again, thank you:).
 
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Thamza - If you buy an HD TV, and already have DSTV, then do add an HDPVR to your purchase... It really is worth it.
 
But the installation costs are steep. Got quoted 1.7k for the install for a pvr(bought seperately) and decoder for xtraview.
 
akescpt said:
But the installation costs are steep. Got quoted 1.7k for the install for a pvr(bought seperately) and decoder for xtraview.
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That's BS and pure markup, should ask them to break down the bill for you. Or you could attempt it yourself and it would only cost about R500 or so. Fahime did it recently and saved quite a bit.
 
Yep. My wife also wanted to know why so steep. Here's the breakdown:

Switch: r450
>> Labour:r400
>> Twin lnb:r350
>> Cabling:10m free,additional at r18/m

And 500 for the decoder. I saw the switch for 350 at tafelberg on saturday so they making 100 on that alone. Might have to wait longer to do the install since its so much. This was the cheapest quote though. Accredited multichoice installer.
 
greg_SA said:
Thamza - If you buy an HD TV, and already have DSTV, then do add an HDPVR to your purchase... It really is worth it.
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Hi greg_SA,

I do not have DSTV but it is what I was planning to get hopefully as soon as I get a TV. To tell you the truth, I wanted to get an HDPVR but I heard someone (I don't remember where exactly) that there are extra charges to pay when you have an HDPVR as opposed to having a standard DSTV decoder. How true is that, I had already made up my mind on getting the std decoder because of the reasons mentioned above? If you don't mind, would you please tell me the advantage(s) of an HDPVR according to your knowledge.
 
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akescpt said:
But the installation costs are steep. Got quoted 1.7k for the install for a pvr(bought seperately) and decoder for xtraview.
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Maybe these are the costs that were alluded to. With the normal DSTV, you can easily get free installation; it is for this reason that I thought I will just do everything all at once.
 
Thamza said:
Hi greg_SA,

I do not have DSTV but it is what I was planning to get hopefully as soon as I get a TV. To tell the truth, I wanted to get an HDPVR but I heard someone (I don't remember where exactly) that there are extra charges to pay when you have an HDPVR as opposed to having a standard DSTV decoder. How true is that because I had already made up my mind on getting the std decoder because of the reasons mentioned above? If you don't mind, would you please tell me the advantage(s) of an HDPVR according to your knowledge.
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The reason I suggested an HD PVR, is because it you buy an HD TV, you need the HD PVR to watch the HD channels, and it is really miles better than the normal DSTV channels, especially for sport! There are only 6 HD channels at the moment, but they are the most watched channels in our household.

The extra fee that you have heard of is the "extra view" fee - it is required if you want to record TV using the PVR or watch DSTV on a 2nd decoder (in another room). If you only want to watch DSTV, and have access to the HD channels, then you don't have to pay this fee.

With regards to installation... The only difference between between a normal installation and one for use with the HD PVR, would be a dual LNB (instead of a single LNB) and and extra length of cable. So that should only cost R300 or so more.
 
greg_SA said:
The reason I suggested an HD PVR, is because it you buy an HD TV, you need the HD PVR to watch the HD channels, and it is really miles better than the normal DSTV channels, especially for sport! There are only 6 HD channels at the moment, but they are the most watched channels in our household.

The extra fee that you have heard of is the "extra view" fee - it is required if you want to record TV using the PVR or watch DSTV on a 2nd decoder (in another room). If you only want to watch DSTV, and have access to the HD channels, then you don't have to pay this fee.

With regards to installation... The only difference between between a normal installation and one for use with the HD PVR, would be a dual LNB (instead of a single LNB) and and extra length of cable. So that should only cost R300 or so more.
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Thank you very much for the clear explanation. Now it is a matter of reviewing what I need DSTV for and decide which decoder to get. Thanks for your time and help :).
 
akescpt said:
Yep. My wife also wanted to know why so steep. Here's the breakdown:

Switch: r450
>> Labour:r400
>> Twin lnb:r350
>> Cabling:10m free,additional at r18/m

And 500 for the decoder. I saw the switch for 350 at tafelberg on saturday so they making 100 on that alone. Might have to wait longer to do the install since its so much. This was the cheapest quote though. Accredited multichoice installer.
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Okay so for the LNB they are making R150 markup, they are making almost 125% markup on the switch and R18 a meter? Even PnP charges R99 for 20m coaxial cable, and at R2 for an F-type connector you won't get near R18 a meter. That is ridiculous, dude seriously if the dish is up already, just do it yourself, it will take about 2 hours and you'd save a lot of money.
Look at getting your parts from hd-cabling.co.za they really are good at pricing.
 
When u put it that way. Is there a guide that I can read through. I actually already have a cable from my present decoder to my room. So I would need to install the twin lnb and the switch. Dish is up already. Got an electrician that did my current cable. Maybe he can figure out the twin lnb and the switch with a diagram.
 
Lupus said:
That's BS and pure markup, should ask them to break down the bill for you. Or you could attempt it yourself and it would only cost about R500 or so. Fahime did it recently and saved quite a bit.
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what user is this? whats the username? cant find 'fahime'
 
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