View Full Version : New TV you say... 37 Inches please.. Suits you!
SidewinderINC
07-02-2008, 23:05
Right, I've decided to start saving for a TV/looking to buy one with 0% interest for a year..
Don't say "you can get a 42" TV for only £100 more" because I don't want a 42" TV :p
I'm after 1080p as I don't see the point in buying 720p becuase I could just get a SDTV for £150 till the rest come down in price.
Around £650 is my waaay max budget
I've seen a couple that I like the look of.
The Samsung LE37M87BDX (http://www.samsung.com/uk/consumer/detail/detail.do?group=television&type=television&subtype=tftlcd&model_cd=LE37M87BDX/XEU) That is top of the budget too.
The Hitachi L37V01U (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hitachi-L37V01U-Widescreen-1080P-Freeview/dp/B000QUWEEY) which as you can see is quite cheap at amazon at the moment.
The Toshiba 37X3030DB (http://www.play.com/Electronics/Electronics/4-/3355417/Toshiba-Regza-37-37X3030DB-WXGA-Freeview-HD-Ready-LCD-TV/Product.html?cm_mmc=Buyat-_-Electronics-_-LCD-_-Toshiba+Regza+37+37X3030DB+WXGA+Freeview+HD+Ready+ LCD+TV&P36=7DLQ7T) which is also at the top of my budget.
Can you AV gurus give me any idea of which is good/bad/ugly :p
Ta Muchly
Matt :)
Hmmmm I remember that some people on here got loads off a TV through quidco.
I really like the look at the Samsung's but IIRC the model numbers are very very important for instance is it that the RDX is better than the BDX? Its something like that which you really need to get into the specs for
SidewinderINC
07-02-2008, 23:36
I think with the samsung the M87 is better than the R87. The R87 is only 720p wheras the M87 is 1080p amongst other things. I'm not sure what the last part of the name means.
I hadn't forgotten about Quidco, already got £135 back through it.
Panasonic TH37PX70 :)
depends on what you want it for though really, I would be very careful buying LCD at that size, if you watch SD TV and especially sport then Plasma is a far greater option
SidewinderINC
07-02-2008, 23:52
I'll be pluging either an Xbox360 or PS3 into it, and my computer for streaming media.
I've heard plasmas aren't the best choice for inputs like that, but I might have been misinformed.
And I never watch sport.. ever :p
Plasmas were regarded as having issues with burn retenrion when used for gaming but that really isn't the case any more, LCD may well suit you then as long as you don't watch much SD stuff
sport is the reall no no on LCD TVs
SidewinderINC
07-02-2008, 23:58
As I say, it'll mainly be for consoles/media streaming/dvd
But I will be watching some SD channels whenever I watch TV on it.
What are upscaling DVD players like?
LeperousDust
08-02-2008, 01:41
Upscalling DVD players can be good and bad depending on their upscalling chips. If you want consistent results using your PC with ffdshow would be (a lot cheaper) and a better option. For what you're doing Xbox etc... definately go LCD over plasma, unfortunately you look away from the marker for all of two days and every model number changes so i cant really tell you what to get, but read around avs forums and avforums (or whichever theyre called, i only read them when i need to know). Check out the for sale sections too once you know what you're looking for, or even try last years model (still excellent) but second hand on ebay locally. You'd be suprised what you can save, i mean i know you want 1080, but what if you can save £££ and spend it on loads of other goodies too!? :D
leowyatt
08-02-2008, 01:52
Our plasma has been running in nearly 2 months now with no problems or a sniff of retention. It's used for gaming regularly and is fantastic. After seeing a samsung LCD TV in action it just reaffirmed that I'd made the right choice with our plasma.
We've got the 40" M86/87 and we're really pleased with it. I mainly went with 1080p as I was going to use the 360 on it a lot, along with running a computer through it. I'm also more than happy with the SDTV picture from the internal freeview. OK, so it could look a bit better on a 720p set or on a plasma, but I'm still more than happy with it overall :)
You really need to decide what it's main uses are before beciding on an LCD or Plasma. If you're running a 360 and computer throught it most of the time, I'd opt for LCD personally.
leowyatt
08-02-2008, 11:06
Oh I agree for what he wants, basically a large computer monitor LCD is the way to go but we watch alot of TV so plasma was the best choice for us :)
As it's been said above avforums.com is the best source of advice before purchasing your set.
You really need to decide what it's main uses are before beciding on an LCD or Plasma. If you're running a 360 and computer throught it most of the time, I'd opt for LCD personally.
yes, TV viewing ( expecially sport ) go Plasma , gaming go LCD , I know this is a simplistic view but it isn't far wrong in my experience
Agree with you mate. Like you say, it's a fairly simplistic way of looking at it, but it's not far wrong. Even when we do watch TV, we rarely have any sport on.
SidewinderINC
08-02-2008, 18:41
And people have said this place has less activity than the SPS, pah!
All these replies here and not a single one there.
Thanks guys, any comments on the other 2 screens?
EDIT - just looked on the Which? report about LCD TV's that was posted on the 8th of Jan and it rates the Toshiba above the samsung screen (the 37" sammy isn't on there but the 40" is) where the samsung gets 47% and the Toshiba gets 67% and a best buy award.
Nowt wrong with which? (I'm a subscriber too) but what criteria do they score on? Do those criteria match your needs? A % score is no use without knowing the reasons behind it.
I could of course go read my Which? mag and find the answer myself, but I cba. :p
Is sport still that bad on LCD sets? On my dads pre HD LCD (slightly below) it does look blocky, best example is a footy game when the camera is panned out and scans down the pitch. Does this still occur?
Once we have all our test results in we evaluate the data to determine the total test score. Currently 40% of the total test score is awarded to picture quality, 20% to sound, 20% to ease of use, 10% features, 5% power use and 5% for digital TV features.
47% is really rather low for a Sammy. I wonder if they tested the lower spec model.
Is sport still that bad on LCD sets? On my dads pre HD LCD (slightly below) it does look blocky, best example is a footy game when the camera is panned out and scans down the pitch. Does this still occur?
cant speak for them all but put a Sammy LCD in for a friend recently and the ghosting/motion blur was very noticeable
SidewinderINC
09-02-2008, 07:35
Nowt wrong with which? (I'm a subscriber too) but what criteria do they score on? Do those criteria match your needs? A % score is no use without knowing the reasons behind it.
I could of course go read my Which? mag and find the answer myself, but I cba. :p
I know there's nowt wrong with which?, which is why I'm concerned lol.
Samsung LE40M87BDX/XEU
This ultra-sleek top of the range 40-inch HD ready LCD IDTV from Samsung comes with a host of impressive features. It's compatible with high definition DVD, features 3 HDMI sockets and boasts the highest screen resolution available, but HD viewing quality is actually a disappointment.
Images can become washed out depending on the angle you view them and there is a slight pink hue and smeary movement when watching standard definition pictures. There is a loss of detail on Freeview but it generally looks OK.
Significantly, it is fully compatible with high definition DVD players (both Blu-ray and HD DVD) and can display the highest quality 1080P HD signal without suffering from jerky movement on motion and panning scenes. Unfortunately the high definition really isn't up to scratch - detail is lost on black sequences and there are definite signs of digital processing side effects.
Sound-wise the TV just couldn't cope with jazz tracks, it's too quiet on analogue and prompted our experts to pronounce it tiresome and “not a pleasant experience”. It also makes a slight hum but it's barely audible.The long and angular remote is awkward to use and cluttered but at least the on-screen menus are intuitively structured.
The 2 Scart sockets (one with RGB) and 3 HDMI sockets for connecting high definition equipment are easily accessible. There are handy sockets at the side for connecting headphones or a camcorder and either a stereo HIFI or surround sound system can be hooked up.
Unusually for a Samsung it's not brilliant when connected to a PC. It doesn't support high PC resolutions and text is blurred.
Pros: High definition DVD compatibility
Cons: But then high definition is a real let down, sound quality
That's the review of the 40" version of the screen I've listed.
leowyatt
09-02-2008, 09:13
you tried hdtvtest.co.uk? Good site for reviews.
That review makes the TV sound utter crap. I can tell you it's far from that. Do some reading over at avforums and you'll get better reviews.
Yeah, maybe they just got a bad sample. I've seen yours and it looked OK to me.
SidewinderINC
09-02-2008, 14:03
Right, it's between the Sammy and the Tosh for sure now. Gonna go into somewhere that has both and see if I can view them side by side, and then if I can pricematch :p
I'm after 1080p as I don't see the point in buying 720p becuase I could just get a SDTV for £150 till the rest come down in price.
Sorry but I strongly disagree with this. A good 720p rip (on a 32" LCD) looks brilliant and how can you even compare to SDTV?
:/
LeperousDust
11-02-2008, 20:36
Sorry but I strongly disagree with this. A good 720p rip (on a 32" LCD) looks brilliant and how can you even compare to SDTV?
:/
Jump from SD to 1080p is a lot more than SD to 720p. Especially when you get a fair sized TV 37/40" +
leowyatt
11-02-2008, 21:15
Jump from SD to 1080p is a lot more than SD to 720p. Especially when you get a fair sized TV 37/40" +
True the jump from SD to 1080p is big but what Rob is saying is correct, how you can compare 720p to SD is astonishing. I'm truely shocked at that suggestion.
SidewinderINC
11-02-2008, 21:30
Sorry but I strongly disagree with this. A good 720p rip (on a 32" LCD) looks brilliant and how can you even compare to SDTV?
:/
I don't mean in terms of quality, that would be absurd.
But for me 720p would be an interim thing, and as such if I was to buy an interim TV I would just buy a bigger SDTV than the 17" one that I have now :)
leowyatt
11-02-2008, 21:34
Ah I see now, did kinda say you weren't going to buy it because of the quality :p
Personally I don't really say a big explosion of 1080p content for the next 3+ years. I don't think we have the infrastructure for such broadcasts, but hey it all depends what you want your TV for.
From your description LCD is the best option for you.
I agree, 1080p is a way off in broadcast terms - if ever. Of course it's available for DVD/consoles.
Been hunting around myself, though I'm considering smaller sizes for bedroom use. Haven't had a usable TV in there for years (though I'm going to try the old 20in CRT for now - now that I can actually get at the sockets to plug it in - hope it doesn't do an iMac on me. :p).
I can't see HDTV really kicking off until the analogue has been switched off. That being said, what are the Sky HD channels broadcast in, is it 720p or 1080p?
1080i afaik, no chance of 1080p in foreseeable future
SidewinderINC
12-02-2008, 08:51
I can't see HDTV really kicking off until the analogue has been switched off. That being said, what are the Sky HD channels broadcast in, is it 720p or 1080p?
Currently at 720p
PS3 and Xbox360 both do 1080p though :)
Though not many games on the 360 support it.
Tbh I dont think you notice the difference between 720p & 1080p until you start getting 42" and above. I sat in Currys looking at at the 1080p 37" M87 and the 720p 37" R88 and from a comfortable viewing distance (~7ft) I just couldn't tell the difference, so I saved my money and went for the R88.
SD looks great on it thankfully, though it is being upscaled by the vision box :o Mind you the built in tuner was great too when we were using that.
I think 1080p is overated in general.
Especially when companies start using it as a marketing tool when few are going to get the benefit right now, which is what they seem to be doing.
Is sport still that bad on LCD sets? On my dads pre HD LCD (slightly below) it does look blocky, best example is a footy game when the camera is panned out and scans down the pitch. Does this still occur?
On my tv the picture is fine for sport (Toshiba 26wlt66) and on my parents 32" LG it's fine also.
We don't watch a lot of sport, but I've never really noticed any problems. I was watching to footy on our older and smaller 27" LCD in bed the other night and the pic was crystal clear on Freeview.
LeperousDust
12-02-2008, 20:33
Some of you in this thread may be interested in this (http://www.hotukdeals.com/item/144951/philips-dvp5980-multi-region-capabl/)since its on offer
Marmoset
13-02-2008, 17:44
We watched 3:10 to Yuma on Blu-ray at the weekend and then I watched an upscaled standard DVD and the difference was :shocked:. That's with the PS3 outputting at 1080p and the TV downscaling to 720p. Outstanding picture quality. :cool:
my import has hit the fan so next week i'm off shopping for a 37" as well.... this threads getting difficult to track... whats everyone suggesting...the sammy?
just found this (http://www.ajelectronics.co.uk/ViewProdDetails.asp?prod_code=LE37R87BDX) btw which seems rather good for 37" 720peas
SidewinderINC
14-02-2008, 00:18
Check out the Toshiba too (there is most likely a 720p version of it too) and see what you think of that :)
I've heard nothing bad about the Tosh at all.
aye, might have to take a trip to meandowhell some time.
Do you know any shops that price match? only ever done that with camera shops, but noticed you mentioned it before :)
A Comet salesmen (while I was looking at a nice Panasonic 26in LCD TV - no I didn't buy it, but I might) said they do, but what the terms are, I dunno. Probably won't match online (certainly won't with the Panasonic I was looking at ;))
SidewinderINC
14-02-2008, 08:50
aye, might have to take a trip to meandowhell some time.
Do you know any shops that price match? only ever done that with camera shops, but noticed you mentioned it before :)
If you can afford to buy it with cash, then I'm sure most shops will do it.
I've done it with guitars, guitar equipment and camera stuff :)
As you'll be getting the internet price if they do it, it doesn't hurt to try all of them :p
Stan_Lite
14-02-2008, 09:12
Went to Comet once with my bro to buy him a laptop and he wanted the web price on a particular laptop which was about £30 extra in the shop. They wouldn't give him it unless he had a printout with the price on it. He went back to the office and printed out the webpage and went back to the shop and got the discount - I don't think the sales guy expected him to go fetch it, most people probably just say "What the hell" and pay the extra (one of the benefits of having a company car and a fuel account and buying stuff on company time :D).
Edit: Have a look at the Tosh. I bought a 37" Tosh LCD a year or so ago and I like it (can't remember the model No.).
just found that FHD sammy for £665...
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-LE37M87BDX-M87-1080p-Ready/dp/B000SKBRQI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1202984290&sr=1-1
very tempting
SidewinderINC
14-02-2008, 19:02
EDIT - wrong TV, my bad :p
whoo ended up with the cheap and easy option after finding bad reviews of the site i was going to order from.
Just got a TV from tesco - 1080p 37" - £499 - FTW :D
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2277/2275174404_4c527333b3.jpg?v=0 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/markwalker/2275174404/)
Marmoset
19-02-2008, 11:11
:cool: I'm liking the Dr Pepper supplies.
£1.22 at tesco on the six pack so i couldn't resist :D
not had any in years - forgotten how good it is!
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