New TV purchase even though I dont want to

[mrcorbo]

homedrog yeah I really do want a plasma set as well. Last time when I was looking at buying a TV in earnest was one of the Kuro HDs and I only stopped because well they stopped making them. And they are a good bit cheaper than the Sammy too! I have a mental block for some reason against plasmas though in terms of the weight, power draw, heat they make and I have heard of ghosting issues as well when playing games.

In case you weren't aware Panasonic acquired Pioneer's plasma tech when they left the market. Weight, power draw and heat are all legitimate considerations, but having used a Panasonic plasma for a couple of years now as a primary PC display and until a few months ago as a primary console gaming display I can give it a ringing endorsement in these applications. And hey, in the winter it's like having a small space heater in the room.

 

[DuckThor Evil]

"New TV purchase even though I dont want to"

"I am going to settle with a 46 inch"

"i don't care about 3D content"

"my mind is open to a 52 incher"

"http://www.samsung.com/us/video/tvs/UN55D8000YFXZA"
(55" 3DTV)


So... In less than 20 hours you went from "Geez this f:n sucks! someone kill me...I guess I have to get a new TV . No bigger than 46" and for sure none of that 3D shit"

to

"I was literally drooling over that 55" 3DTV"

I know the feeling

 

[suryad]

"New TV purchase even though I dont want to"

"I am going to settle with a 46 inch"

"i don't care about 3D content"

"my mind is open to a 52 incher"

"http://www.samsung.com/us/video/tvs/UN55D8000YFXZA"
(55" 3DTV)


So... In less than 20 hours you went from "Geez this f:n sucks! someone kill me...I guess I have to get a new TV . No bigger than 46" and for sure none of that 3D shit"

to

"I was literally drooling over that 55" 3DTV"

I know the feeling

I could not have summed it up any better. This is my first ever TV purchase and I am such a kid whenever I am about buy gadgets I just can't help it. I wonder if they have a scientific name for this...but I still dont want a 3D tv. I would have all the features in that TV without 3D and I would buy it. I just can't seem to find one like that. I was looking at the 6 series too because it was not 3D enabled but it lacked wireless didn't have the ultra stretch bezel etc etc....sigh....they need to allow mix and match features in TVs.

 

[AlphaWolf]

I could not have summed it up any better. This is my first ever TV purchase and I am such a kid whenever I am about buy gadgets I just can't help it. I wonder if they have a scientific name for this...but I still dont want a 3D tv. I would have all the features in that TV without 3D and I would buy it. I just can't seem to find one like that. I was looking at the 6 series too because it was not 3D enabled but it lacked wireless didn't have the ultra stretch bezel etc etc....sigh....they need to allow mix and match features in TVs.

ya 3d is the feature they want you to have, for whatever reason there's no getting a high end TV that lacks it anymore.

 

[DuckThor Evil]

but I still dont want a 3D tv. I would have all the features in that TV without 3D and I would buy it.

Yeah I was just messing around with that as it was too juicy to pass
Hope you enjoy your TV whatever you'll end up with!
I've heard some people don't like the way those Panasonic plasmas handle motion, but I've never seen that model in person myself.

ya 3d is the feature they want you to have, for whatever reason there's no getting a high end TV that lacks it anymore.

It'll also dripple down to mainstream models pretty soon.

 

[Sxotty]

BTW last time I checked plasmas and LED/LCD got far closer in power draw as the size increased. It was b/c a 1080p plasma had the same number of cells whether 42" or 60", but the backlight for the LCD/LED had to get brighter and therefore required more power.

 

[AlphaWolf]

BTW last time I checked plasmas and LED/LCD got far closer in power draw as the size increased. It was b/c a 1080p plasma had the same number of cells whether 42" or 60", but the backlight for the LCD/LED had to get brighter and therefore required more power.

http://reviews.cnet.com/green-tech/tv-consumption-chart/

doesn't seem like plasma ever gets all that close, calibrated(apples to apples) plasma's are typically using 2-3x the power per square inch of calibrated LED in that chart.

 

[suryad]

Nice find AlphaWolf. I was hoping to have gone to Best Buy last night and plonked down my money for the TV but the wife convinced me to wait a bit and look for a proper tv stand since I don' t think I can mount the thing on the wall anyway...so close and yet so far...anyone have any advice on where I can go and look for some slick looking TV stands? I am more of a glass/steel kind of a guy...

 

[Grall]

So... In less than 20 hours you went from "Geez this f:n sucks! someone kill me...I guess I have to get a new TV . No bigger than 46" and for sure none of that 3D shit"

to

"I was literally drooling over that 55" 3DTV"

I know the feeling

LOOOL! Yeah, I'm exactly like that too, except I skip step #1 and go straight to "I was literally drooling over that 55" 3DTV"...

I'm not looking for a new TV right now myself, but it's good to know what's out there, so this is a good thread. Keep it up, peeps!

 

[homerdog]

It's no secret that plasmas use more power than LCDs. But high end plasma TVs tend to be a lot cheaper than high end LCDs, especially in larger sizes, and to make up the price difference in your power bill would take years and years of heavy use.

 

[Sxotty]

Not sure how up to date your chart is alpha, but for comparison the same brand and line.
50" plasma 0.501 watt/in^2
58" plasma 0.3901 watt/in^2

When I purchased my set I found the power use in such reviews was pretty terrible b/c they used default settings. Hence simply turning the brightness way down made the sets looks all energy efficient, but of course in the store they are not on the default settings, nor in my home.

 

[AlNom]

It's no secret that plasmas use more power than LCDs. But high end plasma TVs tend to be a lot cheaper than high end LCDs, especially in larger sizes, and to make up the price difference in your power bill would take years and years of heavy use.

Less power with wide (2.35:1) movies?

Spoiler

grey/brown games are environmentally friendly!

 

[homerdog]

So grey/brown is green?

Never thought about it, but I guess in theory a plasma TV would use less power with 2.35:1 material. LCD otoh would not. But I seriously doubt it would make any noticeable difference with either technology.

 

[AlphaWolf]

Not sure how up to date your chart is alpha, but for comparison the same brand and line.
50" plasma 0.501 watt/in^2
58" plasma 0.3901 watt/in^2

When I purchased my set I found the power use in such reviews was pretty terrible b/c they used default settings. Hence simply turning the brightness way down made the sets looks all energy efficient, but of course in the store they are not on the default settings, nor in my home.

You'll note it includes calibrated and default data and that article is less than a year old. And looking at that chart the samsung LED's seem to use less power/square inch as they get larger as well.

So grey/brown is green?

Never thought about it, but I guess in theory a plasma TV would use less power with 2.35:1 material. LCD otoh would not. But I seriously doubt it would make any noticeable difference with either technology.

Why wouldn't an LCD use less power when 1/3rd of the screen is black? It's not going to go down as much as a plasma because it's not using as much in the first place.

 

[Arwin]

Wow that's the tv I want, I am so jealous.

Yeah, I wouldn't mind having that TV either! I've settled for just getting a second PS3 for now though, it will probably be a long while yet before I'll be able to decide if a new TV is in order, let alone one in that price-range. I may be losing the company car in September and then we'll have to see if we can do without altogether (using rentals and share and such - there's a car rent almost directly across from our house) , or if I have to invest a little money in a reasonably priced (probably second hand) car. If you're wondering why I'm losing the company car - I only manage a little over 10000km a year, as I just don't have to visit customers that often and if I do, half the time I go by train as well because I live close to a big railwaystation and traffic in many areas of clients I work for (including Brussels) is horrible.

 

[homerdog]

Why wouldn't an LCD use less power when 1/3rd of the screen is black? It's not going to go down as much as a plasma because it's not using as much in the first place.

Assuming a uniform and constant backlight a LCD will use more power when black. Dynamic backlighting and local dimming will complicate this, but viewing 2.35:1 material is not likely to cause the backlight to dim and only the very expensive LCDs have local dimming.

 

[suryad]

Ok guys just a heads up but I went ahead and placed the order for the TV today. It will be deivered on Thursday. I am a bit excited at the prospect of having a tv...my first ever TV in fact. I was wondering do you guys happen to know the name of that one website which has the best prices for all sorts of cables? I am in need of an HDMI cable and an optical cable to start out at least.

 

[Sxotty]

You'll note it includes calibrated and default data and that article is less than a year old. And looking at that chart the samsung LED's seem to use less power/square inch as they get larger as well.




Why wouldn't an LCD use less power when 1/3rd of the screen is black? It's not going to go down as much as a plasma because it's not using as much in the first place.

Yeah LED LCDs are far better in that regard. The old school CCD backlight ones did not exhibit that behavior as much. I thought the review was only default, but it is good to see they are better now.

 

[AlphaWolf]

Ok guys just a heads up but I went ahead and placed the order for the TV today. It will be deivered on Thursday. I am a bit excited at the prospect of having a tv...my first ever TV in fact. I was wondering do you guys happen to know the name of that one website which has the best prices for all sorts of cables? I am in need of an HDMI cable and an optical cable to start out at least.

http://www.monoprice.com/home/index.asp

 

[homerdog]

Yep, monoprice is the place for cables, adapters, mounts, and everything in between.