Which TV to go for

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Mr Wealth

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Guys, I got delivery of a starters HT a few days ago, I love it and now I am planning on buying a 46" to 50" TV, I am not sure which would be a good buy between an LCD, LED and plasma. I generally watch movies, DSTV stuff like sport and shows, no gaming at all. Wont use it as a computer screen / monitor other than for watching a couple of videos stored in my comp. I prefer something with excellent picture quality. Have read some forums where they talk about the 'black' the 'white' being better on one tv vs another.
I may want to introduce myself to 3D as well, i hear passive is better than active. (is active that bad).


Anyway most forums lean towards plasma tvs but THEY say there is the issue of burn in and durability and they says plasma has good quality under cinematic conditions, i.e. when its dark meaning its a minus if I am to watch during the day or when my lights are on.

Went to a couple of shops couldnt even try to make a decision based on what I saw, either the sales people are disappointingly worse than me in not knowing their product, or 80 percent of the tvs are displaying a terrible dstv picture that has frozen.

Saw a Panasonic (online i.e.) THP-50UT50Q plasma FHD R11,000 (not sure of the support if something goes wrong)
a Samsung PS51E550 51" Plasma FHD R10,000
LG 47LM6410 47" LED FHD R10,400

any other suggestions are welcome, would have loved to write 3 pages.
 
Just a tip - While Plasmas are awesome, just have a look at their energy usage - they are sometimes MUCH higher than LED Screens.
When buying a LED/Plasma Screen, also ask the salesperson to connect a BluRay player directly to the screen and make your own decision based on what you see - the biggest lesson I had learnt, dont listen to anyone except yourself.
If the screen matches the budget and the display looks good, buy it.

I will not mention brands, there you need to decide for yourself but if you decide on 2 or three models, read the reviews online.

Oh, and modern Plasma screens are FAR less susceptible to screen burn-in than they were in the past.
 
If you have a very bright viewing area the plasma may annoy you a bit as you would have to close the blinds/curtains during day time to avoid reflections on the screen.

Other than that issue I really like the plasmas and they save you allot of money as well.

The burn in issue is no longer a problem unless you switch off the burn in protection they come with.
 
Thanks Psynapt, is the difference in energy consumption that significant, e.g if I go for a plasma instead of an LED my bill will be up by say R500? I know there a a lot other variables but I am just trying to quantify it for decision making purposes. If the difference results to R50 -R100 I wouldnt worry much, but if the plasma challenges my geyser or 4 bar heater then I can do without.
Will ask them to connect it directly to Bluray, I just need to find a customer friendly shop where salesman earn strictly on commission.
 
Mr Wealth said:
Thanks Psynapt, is the difference in energy consumption that significant, e.g if I go for a plasma instead of an LED my bill will be up by say R500? I know there a a lot other variables but I am just trying to quantify it for decision making purposes. If the difference results to R50 -R100 I wouldnt worry much, but if the plasma challenges my geyser or 4 bar heater then I can do without.
Will ask them to connect it directly to Bluray, I just need to find a customer friendly shop where salesman earn strictly on commission.
Click to expand...

He he :) Definitely not Geyser level LOL :)
One will need to do a calculation, but with the increasing electricity costs, every cent helps, and the amounts cound add up to, say a R25 difference each month possibly.

Most salespeople will be able to hookup a digital device for you without any issues - sometimes the speciality HiFi stores could actually give you a better deal even.... Just make sure that, when they hookup the BluRay player, they use a HDMI cable NOT the normal Red, White and Yellow RCA cables.

Also see that the set has at least 2 HDMI ports, you never know when you might need to plug in a tablet, camera or video camera to show the family some pics.

Also ensure that the set has at least one, if not two USB ports. Most of the USB ports on the TV sets now include 5Volts output and its handy to charge devices sometimes. Also, a USB port would likely mean that the TV is easily upgradable with firmware that you can download off the internet. :)

Too many Alsos - I know :)
 
Mr Wealth said:
Thanks Psynapt, is the difference in energy consumption that significant, e.g if I go for a plasma instead of an LED my bill will be up by say R500? I know there a a lot other variables but I am just trying to quantify it for decision making purposes. If the difference results to R50 -R100 I wouldnt worry much, but if the plasma challenges my geyser or 4 bar heater then I can do without.
Will ask them to connect it directly to Bluray, I just need to find a customer friendly shop where salesman earn strictly on commission.
Click to expand...

Just be careful when viewing TVs at the store. Stores usually have bright showrooms whose lighting conditions are nothing like your home. Also the tv settings(like colour temp and contrast) they use in store can sometimes be horrible.
 
Thanks a lot guys it makes a huge difference. What do you guys think of the Panasonic THP-50UT50Q plasma FHD 50"?

The issue of closing blinds/curtains might put me off, but I hope its watchable with normal levels of light.

Thank Mika but I am not really a fan of Hisense.
 
I have the PS51D550 Full HD Samsung. My best buy ever. You wont regret it.
 
Gerhardva said:
I have the PS51D550 Full HD Samsung. My best buy ever. You wont regret it.
Click to expand...

Have to agree. Got me a Sammy Plasma screen 50". Not sorry I spent my money on it. Buy the set that gives YOU the best picture, after all it is your money!! :)
 
Not sure where you are.

But save hyper (think thats the name) in Pietermaritsburg have the LG pa60" plasma for only R9999 thats full HD!!
I landed up buying a 6 series Samsung 55" LED for R13000, that was also R3000 cheaper then any where else.
 
That Panasonic you mentioned is a really good TV. Unfortunately Panasonic's tend to be overpriced in SA though. If you can get one at a decent price, grab it!
 
Power consumption on the plasmas nowadays, as well as image-retention/burn-in are a non-issue. Get one. They will give you the best quality for a much lower price. I've got a 42" Sammy and it's bloody awesome.
 
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