LCD and Plasma Bargains and Discussions thread

sunflour said:
Hi PostmanPot

In terms of requirements, I'm looking for a living room led tv for normal tv viewing. I'd also like to connect it to my laptop to use it as a monitor. Viewing distance is probably less than 1m and the room's well lit. My budget is around 5 -6k and min 42". I came across this deal at Game and it looks pretty good! So I am considering shelling out more for the extra size. I don't really need the decoder though (will probably try to sell it).

On a side note, is it possible to use the tv as a monitor for my laptop using a wireless connection (not just for watching movies) or would I need to get a cable?
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If you could test the UA46D5000 LED backlit LCD then you can tell if the glossy screen would be an issue (I am 95% sure it is glossy, stand corrected). What one usually wants to try get for brighter rooms is a LCD with a matte finish, ala Samsung D550 CCFL backlit LCD range, which I would suggest, because I know how much direct light is a problem.

So if you test the D5000 and find the screen to not be a problem, the deal with the HD PVR is excellent.

Another thing to consider is that at less than 1m, 40" is extremely big. Lots of use will probably lead to eye strain. So you could also consider perhaps a higher end 32" LCD (100Hz+ motion, better back-lighting spread for deeper consistent blacks, better PQ). Samsung UA32D6000 is around R6k.

It could be possible, not sure if 5 Series has these sorts of capabilities, perhaps 6 Series does where you can stream to it with the wifi dongle attachment. Please could someone clear this up (Roman?). You'll probably want an HDMI anyway, it's best as it carries audio and video. Also bear in mind that 5 Series and up have USB HD media players, so you could play media off flash drives or external HDD's.
 
Hi guys

I'm in the market for a new TV. Budget +-R15k

Will be used in the living room viewing distance is 2m. Looking for a 46 inch.

I've got my eyes set on the UA46D6000. Dion wired has got this special running where you get the tv plus a 2 tuner HD Pvr for R11500. Now my question is this, what's the difference between the UA46D6000 and UA46D6600? I know the D6600 has build in Wi-Fi but is that the only difference? In terms of picture quality are they the same? How much will a portable wi-fi dongle be?

Your feedback would be greatly appreciated, thanx!
 
dinko9 said:
Dion wired has got this special running where you get the tv plus a 2 tuner HD Pvr for R11500.
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Great deal, basically getting the TV for ±R10K

dinko9 said:
Now my question is this, what's the difference between the UA46D6000 and UA46D6600? I know the D6600 has build in Wi-Fi but is that the only difference? In terms of picture quality are they the same?
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Pretty much the same, but D6600 has better motion handling at 400Hz CMR, although my D6000's 200Hz CMR is near perfect.

3D is also better on the D6600 at FHD 1920x1080 while D6000 is only half at 1920x540.

On the downside I found the light distribution to be more uneven on the D6600s (due to their narrower bezel), the D6000s are usually near perfect.

The D6600 also includes the Skype and Browser Smarthub apps which the D6000 doesn't support.

dinko9 said:
How much will a portable wi-fi dongle be?
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I use a TP-Link 300Mbps AP in client mode connected to my D6000. It can saturate its 100Mbps Ether port running to another one in AP mode. The additional throughput comes in handy, when fast forwarding 1080p content on the TV, throughput can spike up to 65Mbps from my streaming server.

The TP-Link WA901NDs cost about R500 each.
 
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PostmanPot said:
If you could test the UA46D5000 LED backlit LCD then you can tell if the glossy screen would be an issue (I am 95% sure it is glossy, stand corrected). What one usually wants to try get for brighter rooms is a LCD with a matte finish, ala Samsung D550 CCFL backlit LCD range, which I would suggest, because I know how much direct light is a problem.
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There are pros & cons with the reflectivity of the matt and glossy filter panels on the Samsung LCD & LED models.

The are two aspects to reflectivity, the sharpness of the reflected image and the brightness of it. The LCDs diffuse the reflection so its not sharp (just a light blob), but they don't reduce much of the brightness intensity. The LEDs synthetic filter is good at reducing the intensity of the reflection but do not reduce the sharpness i.e. reflection is well formed.
 
Seems to be useful info all over here.
I have 46 Sinotec.

What does around R15k get you these days in a bigger tv?
My viewing distance is 2-3m
I have a 2 tuner hd pvr / mede8er / ps3(hardly used) / soundbar which connects via hdmi.
 
PostmanPot said:
The problem is that it has a glossy front, not good for reflections.

Stay away from Sinotech unless you're on a real budget, you can't compare the quality.
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Alright. I am not quite sure about the Sinotec myself. I am really after picture quality, since I do gaming.

I have seen a Toshiba at Pick n Pay Hyper and it is going for R4,299. It is a 40'' FHD LED with 2 HDMI ports. What do you think of this deal. It has a 12month warranty.
 
My future-proof choice would be the Samsung 46" D7000 3D LED TV.

I want to hang it on the wall portrait style. :)
 
kingrob said:
My future-proof choice would be the Samsung 46" D7000 3D LED TV.

I want to hang it on the wall portrait style. :)
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Can't see the need to break the bank on a TV - I'm still happy with my 72cm LG Flatron CRT. While I can see the improvement in these newer technologies I simply can't justify spending R10k+ on a TV.
 
Speedster said:
Can't see the need to break the bank on a TV - I'm still happy with my 72cm LG Flatron CRT. While I can see the improvement in these newer technologies I simply can't justify spending R10k+ on a TV.
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Just with the power savings alone you can justify it. :eek:

No, seriously, you just cant compare an old CRT TV with a Samsung D7000. Two different worlds.
 
Speedster said:
Can't see the need to break the bank on a TV - I'm still happy with my 72cm LG Flatron CRT. While I can see the improvement in these newer technologies I simply can't justify spending R10k+ on a TV.
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True! Doubt any of them match CRT PQ (blacks, colours, motion) in any case.
 
kingrob said:
Just with the power savings alone you can justify it. :eek:

No, seriously, you just cant compare an old CRT TV with a Samsung D7000. Two different worlds.
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About R20 per month for heavy viewing.

Would love to hear your comparison!
 
Speedster said:
I'm completely with you on that. I'm just not sure if I agree that it's a R16 000 difference.
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Simply amazing to watch sport & movies in SD/HD on it. You take your xbox/ps3 games to another level. Watching pictures/video clips from your Galaxy S2 smartphone on it.

And my personal favorite - watching a blu-ray in 3D/HD on it. :)
 
Speedster said:
Can't see the need to break the bank on a TV - I'm still happy with my 72cm LG Flatron CRT. While I can see the improvement in these newer technologies I simply can't justify spending R10k+ on a TV.
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I suppose it depends really how much you enjoy watching TV and movies.... and how much you enjoy the benefits of new technology.

I stayed with my 74cm CRT for years... waiting for prices on panel displays to drop. Finally bought a 46" last year... and it is amazing! The move up to HD is great. Watching sport is a treat! The size change from a letter box movie on a 74cm TV to a filled 16:9 46" screen is massive.

If someone is paying R600+ per month for DSTV, then I think going HD is a must! R6k - R7k for a nice screen + R1500 for the HD PVR - definitely worthwhile for me! :) Nothing beats watching Super 15 in HD... F1 in HD, etc, etc. And using the screen as a monitor is also a major bonus (media player, etc).
 
kingrob said:
Simply amazing to watch sport & movies in SD/HD on it. You take your xbox/ps3 games to another level. Watching pictures/video clips from your Galaxy S2 smartphone on it.

And my personal favorite - watching a blu-ray in 3D/HD on it. :)
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No doubt. Guess we just value those "experiences" differently. I have no issue with high quality TV's, perhaps I just don't value it as highly as others.

greg_SA said:
I suppose it depends really how much you enjoy watching TV and movies.... and how much you enjoy the benefits of new technology.
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That probably sums it up best.
 
kingrob said:
Yes, watching a movie in letterbox 480i/p is just such an awesome experience!! :p

And what about HD gaming, movies & sport? :p
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Predictable answer. :p I'm talking technical aspects like blacks, colours and motion - contrast, Picture Quality (besides definition and size benefits which is obvious). Things which AFAIK flat panel tech is still catching up on.
 
PostmanPot said:
Predictable answer. :p I'm talking technical aspects like blacks, colours and motion - contrast, Picture Quality (besides definition and size benefits which is obvious). Things which AFAIK flat panel tech is still catching up on.
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The expected Pot answer. :p

So you're saying we should all go back to big ol' bulky CRTs?
 
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