TV advice requested

[Chris Knight]

We need to get a new TV. I am thinking in terms of an HDTV with Sky plus box to suit.

I haven't kept up with all the various changes that have taken place and should appreciate some advice on what to look out for, for example:-

1. Plasma or LCD? Does it matter, is there a best option?

2. Format - The wide and narrow letter box format of the physical TV enclosures looks a bit weird to our old eyes, is it necessary, desirable, a matter for choice anyway - does the choice impact the picture as displayed?

3. Pixels - they talk of 1920 by 1080 - my 30 inch Apple cinema display has 2560 by 1600 - is this sort of thing just for computers or should I be looking for a TV with something similar?

4. Ideally we want as few boxes as possible - is the TV and a Sky box sufficient to record lots of stuff and get all the HDTV we can stomach or is there something else to be thought of - as per question 5 below for example.

5. Will the above play HD DVDs (BluRay etc) or is that some other blasted box that's needed?

I'd be grateful for any suggestions

 

[Argee]

1. Plasma used to render blacks better than LCD sets, but now the difference is almost imperceptible. Best bet is to go to a big shed (Currys, for example) where you can compare side-by-side. Some big names have ceased marketing plama screens now.

2. All modern flat screens are wide format, but you can select either a zoom mode or a smart mode to your choice.

3. 1920 x 1080 is the resolution to be sought now. It's sometimes known as "Full HD" because many of the more recent "HD Ready" TVs feature a resolution of 1,366x768 pixels. This will display the commonly used 720p and 1080i formats, but 1080i/1080p signals will be downscaled to fit.

4. HD TV + HD Sky box will get you HD pictures for sure, provided that they were recorded in true HD to begin with. Some of the so-called HD channels on Sky aren't HD at all, but they fill the broadcasting slots with programmes that couldn't possibly have been so recorded. Apparently, the next major implementation is Freeview HD (see here, although the vast majority of HD TVs come with built-in Freeview, so may be able to be tuned for the scheduled HDTV Freeview programmes in the coming months.

5. Sky+HD box is an off-air hard disk recorder/player only. It cannot play externally-recorded DVDs or BluRay. A separate player is required for this. BluRay plays DVDs too, DVD players won't handle BluRay disks. Connect a BluRay player to your HDTV with an HDMI cable - job done. Sky box connects via HDMI cable too and most HDTVs have 2 HDMI connectors. You might want to check if there's a PC connector on the TV if that might be a future option for you.

Ray

 

[Paul Chapman]

2. Format - The wide and narrow letter box format of the physical TV enclosures looks a bit weird to our old eyes, is it necessary, desirable, a matter for choice anyway - does the choice impact the picture as displayed?

Everything with a screen these days seems to have this awful wide-screen format. I find it really irritating because it distorts everything and everyone looks short and fat. Every time I switch the TV on I have to alter the format to get things looking right. My wife thinks I'm too fussy..... :roll: :lol:

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[wizer]

The only way to completely minimize the amount of boxes would be to go for a PCTV. This is a lot of work, a hobby in itself, and I'd probably advise you not to bother. You could buy a Media Player, which is something I bought recently. It plays video content over the network. This would enable you to have all your DVD content elsewhere in the house and fed to the TV via an ethernet cable. I'm using Home Plugs with my setup and it works perfectly. But the downside of this method is that you would have to rip each DVD to the computer. No good if you like to buy (or rent) a DVD then view it straight away. Martin (mahking) recently posted a thread about this. He is using a NAS server to keep a library of all his DVD's. You would still need the SkyHD box with this setup.

Harrods used to have a good TV viewing room last time I went there (years ago). So that might be another option to view the TVs in action. I find the wall of TV's in places like Currys to be useless for deciding on anything buy the general look of the TV. To experience the picture quality, it really needs to be in a better environment.

 

[Chris Knight]

Thank you all.

Ray,
Admirably succinct and clear

Paul,
My wife is the fussy one in this case!

Tom,
I definitely have no patience for all that! I hate Cucumbering about with cables and the like with a passion.

 

[wizer]

I agree, it's a pain. Before we moved in here, I sank all the cable for the TV into the wall. Then mounted the 42" LCD to the wall and placed the boxes beside the sofa. Genius thinks I. A couple of weeks ago I found the plug snapped off one of the HDMI cables. Now I'm stuck with using scart leads. :roll: The reason I went for the Media Player was to stop the DVD Player and the DVD's being annihilated by my little thug of a daughter :lol:

 

[tom owens]

have you looked at led tv,s. iv seen plasma,lcd and led side by side and its by far the crispest picture out of them all. There slightly more expensive but for displaying hd i,d highly recommend it.

 

[cambournepete]

Not much to add really.
I'd recommend buying a good make of TV - Sony or Panasonic are probably the best - and getting it from your local John Lewis - they price match and give a 5 year warranty for free.
Get one that does 1080p for full HD.
We have a Sony bluray player (S360?) we got from Richer Sounds for just £100 - it's excellent.
Don't skimp on cables, but don't spend silly money. I know HDMI is digital, but better cables induce fewer errors that need correcting.
We route the blu-ray and Sky HD through a Sony AV amp (using HDMI, so it switches audio and video) so we just use one input on the TV.
This also gives us surround sound from both easily - don't forget Sky HD does Dolby Digital sound, which is much better than pro-logic.
If you don't have an AV amp and speakers you should allow for those as well to get the full benefit of HD and bluray.

 

[matt]

John Lewis is your friend. Make a point of asking for the TV expert. Whilst they can all sell you a TV there are always those that specialise in specific areas.

 

[Max Power]

Sure I saw something about 3D televisions coming out, wonder what impact they will have ?

 

[DeanN]

Wealth of information at http://www.avforums.com/forums/tvs/. I used this extensively when choosing a set for the dining room.

 

[cambournepete]

Sure I saw something about 3D televisions coming out, wonder what impact they will have ?

From the demo I saw at the ideal home show (her idea, not mine :wink: ) not a lot for a while if you like your TV picture in focus.
There were one or two impressive parts of the demo, but overall the picture was hard to view properly and very low effective resolution.
I think the angle of view is very norrow.
Not impressed at all, especially for £4000!

I saw a 3D demo over 15 years ago on a Silicon Graphics workstation of a flyover of a mountain region somewhere.
The footage was from two neighbouring flypasts of a satellite.
They used LCD glasses, swapping the image in time with the LCDs on the glasses so that each eye saw just the images from one flypast.
That demo was better than what I saw of 3D TV.

 

[bugbear]

2. Format - The wide and narrow letter box format of the physical TV enclosures looks a bit weird to our old eyes, is it necessary, desirable, a matter for choice anyway - does the choice impact the picture as displayed?

Everything with a screen these days seems to have this awful wide-screen format. I find it really irritating because it distorts everything and everyone looks short and fat.

Paul

Only if the source material wasn't recorded in wide-screen? What you're describing is the effect of showing 4:3 material stretched on a 16:9 display, which is a damn silly thing to do.

BugBear

 

[bugbear]

have you looked at led tv,s. iv seen plasma,lcd and led side by side and its by far the crispest picture out of them all. There slightly more expensive but for displaying hd i,d highly recommend it.

Do you mean LED backlighting or proper LED (which I thought wasn't really out yet)?

BugBear

 

[Harbo]

My TV is set to show the transmitted format ie 16:9 as that and 4:3 as that with grey bands at each side, so no distortion.
I think most sets can be adjusted that way?

I was in Currys the other day and overheard the Samsung Rep. telling the manager that they will be getting a 3D system in next week.

Rod

 

[wizer]

I think most 'new' tv programmes are now shot in wide screen. Certainly everything that the BBC makes in house. If the TV is setup right it should auto sense? Shouldn't it?

 

[Argee]

Do you mean LED backlighting or proper LED (which I thought wasn't really out yet)?

You're right - LED TVs aren't out yet in any useable size - I think the biggest is < 10" at the moment. There are a few flat screens with LED backlighting which do have a slightly brighter picture overall. I've no idea if it makes any real difference, other than allowing a thinner and lighter screen unit. My friend's got the new Samsung LED backlit and it's a lovely picture for sure, but no better than my top end Sony. For me, the killer feature would be a total lack of motion blur, but that's not dependent on the method of backlighting AFAIK.

I think that 3D is irrelevant at the moment. There's such a long way to go to get anything affordable, plus programmes will need to be considerably "tweaked" to appear to be three-dimensional that it will undoubtedly affect quality, sharpness and motion blur.

Ray

 

[Calpol]

Not much to add either except most BluRay players have an upscaling function which although won't give an HD picture it's better than original...

As for advice on which one all I can say is I have a Philips Ambilight job which is the bees knees, although I've not had a descent HD TV before that so might just be better than cheap ones :?

SKY have realeased a 3D channel now but think it's mostly going to be football for the time being. Roll on Disco Shed 3D :lol:

 

[scholar]

I would endorse the comment that John Lewis is the place to look - they do generally know their stuff and they carry a good wide range, and then shop around online.

As to LCD v Plasma, there does not seem to be a universal answer to this as there is a great deal of subjectivity involved and the technology has developed on both sides. My own view (as no expert) is that on a larger screen (40" and over), LCD can look more flooded with colour and the picture somewhat less sharp; on the other hand some might see the Plasma as slightly colder. With good quality sets you probably have to see the two alternatives side by side for most people to be aware of this either way. We have gone for Panasonic plasmas and have been v happy.

The other key consideration is screen size - this will depend on how obtrusive a unit you can put up with in your chosen location, but I think that the guidance that prevails around screen size is wrong and certainly for HD viewing, I would go for the biggest goddamnedest screen the fussy one will permit!

As to source, get Sky+HD and you will never look back, plus a decent blu-ray player.

Cheers

 

[Oryxdesign]

Have a look at 'Sling Box' too, this will enable you to use your sky remotely, watch and record even to your mobile phone. My AV guy friend is recommending Samsung at the moment for price V quality, he says that the quality is pretty much there, whatever that means.

Simon