Wasn't sure where to post this, so if it needs to be moved, please feel free to do so. Also, my apologies if this is a topic that gets beaten to death here. I'm in the market for a new television, and the more research I do, the less sure I become about which way to go. I am leaning towards LED, but am seeing some powerful arguments online for plasma displays. Word is that the burn-in issues that used to be so prevalent in plasma sets are pretty much a thing of the past, and that with the proper conditioning during the first 100 hours or so, should never become an issue at all. I'm not quite sure what I will settle on, as price and features and availability at the time that I make my purchase will all play a part in my decision process. The things I AM sure about: Screen size of 47 inches or above. 1080p display (does anyone really even consider anything less anymore?). Minimum refresh rate of 120 Hz. WiFi built in. The best reproduction of true blacks that I can get. Things I am interested in that won't make or break the purchase: 3D - Would be neat, but not so sure I'd use it enough to justify the added expense. If the price was right though, I'd bite. Would like a good amount of varying input options - 3 HDMI inputs minimum would be nice, and at least one USB port, but preferably two. Aside from that, it's mostly about picture quality and color. Don't want an overly bright and super richly colored set that doesn't produce realistic life-like colors, or shows blacks as dark greys, but don't want a set that is too dim. LED sets look vibrant and bright, but I've seen a fair amount of light bleed out there. Plasmas seem to have the blackest blacks and truest life-like color reproduction, and they have that native 600Hz refresh rate which means no motion blur. And the prices on plasmas have dropped significantly, making them a real contender. However, they tend to wash out in a brightly lit room. Something the LED's compensate for with the back lighting. So I throw it to you fine folks. What kind of TV do you have, and why did you make the decision you did? Are you happy with your choice? And if you had to do it all over again, are there any features you could do without, or would insist on having this time around? Would love to hear what you have to say. I should probably have mentioned that I do a fair amount of console gaming, and use my Xbox 360 as my primary media center. I don't have cable television, just high speed internet and watch all my TV shows and movies either via streaming options such as Netflix and DLNA, or bluray and DVD. So I guess gaming needs have to be considered as well.
Nothing? Hmm. I guess this subject probably gets a lot of attention. Perhaps people are just tired of talking about it.
If you don’t want the info and just some recommendations, skip to the bottom, if curious and want to learn more about this tech; read away my friend. Ok, if you're going to do a fair amount of gaming, most plasma's would be out of the question. The only plasma I would recommend for gaming is Panasonic's. Samsung's plasmas are really good too, have a nicer design/frame, but Panasonic has better image retention. And yes, a big deal breaker is that Plasmas have greatly gone down in price. In addition, Plasma's with Active 3D have slightly better 3D performance than an Active 3D LED. Nowadays, Plasma's have better anti-reflection. I really, really hate these glossy finishes that manufactures have been putting on screens for years now. Matte is the way to go, but you won't find too many now, if any. Plasma's glossy screens have been getting better, but for some odd reason, glossy screens on LEDs such as Samsung's seem to be getting worse. So for a Plasma I would recommend (not knowing what you're budget is): Very Good: Panasonic TC-P55ST50 Better (but more expensive): Panasonic TC-P55VT50 Can't go wrong with either of those TV's. If gaming wasn't an issue, Samsung's PN51E8000 or older D7000 series would be another excellent choice. Now with LED's. Yes most LED LCD TV's have problems with them, BUT if done right; they can be better than Plasma's in a lot of ways. Take for instance Sharp's Elite Pro LED lineup. Expensive as hell, but the best TV I've ever seen so far period. The Sony XBR-HX929 is also amazing, but again; too expensive. So besides the overpriced Sharp, in this case, they only one manufacturer I recommend for LED LCD's is……….Sony. I have one. The Sony KDL-55HX850 is an amazing TV to get right now. The HX750 is good too, I would say however my Sony 55NX720 performs on par with the newer HX750. I don't know why the 750 has gotten so many mixed reviews, perhaps if calibrated right, people would change their minds. But in that case, I would definitely recommend the 55HX850. This is an LED LCD TV done right. Reflections are way down compared to all other LED’s, Colours are so damn vivid, more than most plasmas. Anything over 120hz Refresh rate is overkill, but the picture is pretty smooth too. The downside to having a higher refresh rate is you will get the “soap opera” effect like almost all LED’s with higher than 120hz RF; when the TV tries to refine the picture’s native refresh rate “movement”, so if you do get this TV, make sure that you turn Motion Flow, or Auto Motion Plus feature, off or down to very low, you don’t need it and don’t want it. Don’t worry, your picture will still be really damn smooth, it’s just an added feature that you want turned off. More Pros: Screen uniformity (brightness in certain areas) if very good for an LED, It’s also quieter than plasma’s (no buzzing noise that you sometimes get with plasma’s), turns on/changes channels quicker than plasmas, uses less energy, list goes on. One of my favourite with new Sony TV’s is the ability to play almost any media file from USB. I really can’t emphasise enough how good this TV is. Lately, I just happen to be a fan of Sony’s. Their quality had dropped a couple of years ago, but they’ve really turned things around lately. It's a little more expensive than some plasma's, but pretty much in the same price range as some of the top plasma's on the market, also it outperforms any LED I’ve seen (besides the Elite and 929), AND, not only that, compared to most LED TV's, and considering the performance it produces, it's cheaper too. So the next time you’re at the store take a look at the: Panasonic TC-P55ST50, Panasonic TC-P55VT50, and Sony KDL-55HX850 You can’t go wrong with either of these TV’s. I’m sure you’ll be very satisfied with any one of them. But of course the best way to decide is to look at it yourself. Just make sure, that when you go to stores like Best Buy; to ask for the remote so you can put the TV’s settings to Standard to test for quality. A lot of TV stores put the TV’s they want to push to sell on very high vivid settings which you may find out there.
Thank you for your thorough and thoughtful response. You've given me much to think about. Due to budget restrictions, I was hoping to keep things under $1000.00. Not sure I'll be able to realistically do that and get the set I really want.
i got myself a sony ex520 (46 inch led) last january for $800 brand new with warrenty.tv works fine i have a ps3 hooked up to it that works fine.the only reason thing that was a let down was i need a $100 usb internet usb thingy to use wireless features.I have seen a 65inch samsung tv led smart tv think it was series 12 and that looks a lot better than mine but that was $3500. under $1000 your not gonna get the biggest and best tv.the older stock in shops will be cleared out (discounted) around xmas time (we have sales starting now) and cleared out even (discounted ) more if any are left after xmas.some of the less reliable brands have been going out very cheap here (awa,soniq,). my tv got mixed reviews on the internet,now if wanted you could get a newer model sony led smart tv for the same price.if i didnt get the sony my other choice would of been a samsung series 8 or higher.
