HDTV buying advice template

[Renegade]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

Since I am pissed off at my company HR, I have decided not work much today. Unfortunately I cannot research much either due to stupid websense. So tell me, what is the difference between C530 and C550. Also I saw the LA37C530 which did not look noticeably smaller next to the LA40, any comments? The price difference was (55-48)K

 

[Gannu]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

^Do not, I repeat do not buy any 37 inchers from Sony or Samsung since there are no S-PVA panels manufactured for 37 inchers ATM. You will end up getting inferior SMVA or AMVA panels. Besides, the difference between a 37" and 40" panel is pretty less so bank on a 40".

Between C530 and C550, the following are the differences in a nutshell:

-Aesthetics; bezel is slightly thinner for the C550 and the ToC design.

-DLNA capabilities do not exist for the C530; i.e. there are no ethernet ports so you cannot connect this TV to the PC/router to share the media from the PC.

-Contrast ratio is slightly lower for the C530; but in actual the differences perceived for the human eye are much less.

 

[Antidote]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

Guys,, So i guess theres this panel lottery thing for Samsung LCD TVs.How about Samsung's LED TVs ? Are these panels consistent in the manufacturing ?

Im planning to buy an 46" LED from samsung.Confused between 5 series 46" UA46C5000 ( INR 91,200 ) and 6 series 46" UA46C6200 (INR 104,000).The only difference between the two is the True motion i guess.If theres anything else from other brands in this price range pls let me know.

I think he got it from a retail outlet called Kohinoor. At least that's what he told me when he was checking out the display in person. 55k for the C530 is a wrong quote. I think you are referring to the C550. C530 costs less than 50k in almost all the retail outlets with the free Airtel HD DTH offer.

Got a quote of 49.5k for the C550 at Vasanth & Co with free Airtel HD.

 

[kippu]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

done c530 for 49k , AA panel , doesnt matter a bit

 

[Gannu]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

done c530 for 49k , AA panel , doesnt matter a bit

Congrats! Nice deal indeed. Do have it calibrated though.

 

[arun687]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

^^
Could you help with the calibration settings for C530 and do these settings differ with the panels as well? I'm very bad at comparing things visually and can hardly make out the difference, it would be great if someone could post a few settings which are generic and work well for most situations like DTH, HD playback, gaming and normal ambient lighting.

done c530 for 49k , AA panel , doesnt matter a bit

Congrats mate, it's raining Samsung LCDs here in TE now.

 

[Shakensoul]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

Suggest a budget HTPC card which can drive a full HD 42" LCD TV effortlessly, only HD movies and no gaming requirement.

 

[Ragin_Ice]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

[/COLOR]

Where did you get it from? Croma is selling it at a special Diwali discount price of 55K.

Got it from a local dealer here in Navi Mumbai but Croma and Kohinoor were ready to match the price. My local dealer let me choose the panel which others didnt i.e. he opened the boxes he had in his warehouse.

 

[Gannu]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

Suggest a budget HTPC card which can drive a full HD 42" LCD TV effortlessly, only HD movies and no gaming requirement.

Please mention a budget! Under 3k? 4k? 5k?

Besides, are you going to bistream DTS HD MA/True HD over HDMI? Please mention this as well.

@Arun: It varies from panel to panel and differs from sizes. A LA40C530 may not necessarily have the same settings as that of the LA46C530, both panels being the same. Perhaps you should look at the thread from AVS Forums I had suggested to Ragin before.

In the meantime, I shall post the settings for the LA40C630, when I have it installed.

 

[Shakensoul]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

Please mention a budget! Under 3k? 4k? 5k?

Besides, are you going to bistream DTS HD MA/True HD over HDMI? Please mention this as well.

Approx around the 3k figure

Yes, the DTS HD MA/ True HD bitstream over HDMI ...(phew that sounds like greek to me now) would be required I guess to make it future proof if I upgrade to a HT setup later.

 

[medpal]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

Yes, he got a quote from Kohinoor and bought it from another local electronic store for same amount, is what he told me. Renegade is right, it is priced at 55k in Croma, Vijay Sales, Hypercity, Reliance Digital and all major chain outlets in Mumbai. It was the same 55k in Jumbo electronics as well, where I got it from, but the salesman offered to match the price I get from elsewhere and I told him the ebay price and he just matched it, although with exchange. AFAIK, there is no bargaining in Croma, Vijay Sales etc, or is there?

There is bargaining in Croma / Vijay Sales / EZone / Next everywhere.

You need to have special bargain skills. or some contacts there.

I got the best price I got from elsewhere matched at Croma, just wait for show off

 

[arun687]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

^^
Waiting for show off :hap2:

I didn't know about this. I thought we could only bargain in small time shops like local electronics store, and whatever Croma prices etc. are fixed and cannot be brought down. :ashamed: Besides, my bargain skills are pathetic to say the least.

Next time will use the price matching technique to my advantage. It's one powerful tool for a noob bargainer.

@Gannu

Will check out the AVS forum and do some calibration, the TV is at stock settings since it got home.

 

[kippu]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

the guy in hypercity offered couple of other tv's a flat 10k off their marked up price , so yes there is bargaining involved in the big shops too , dont be too shy about it ,

 

[Chaoseater]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

I think he got it from a retail outlet called Kohinoor. At least that's what he told me when he was checking out the display in person. 55k for the C530 is a wrong quote. I think you are referring to the C550. C530 costs less than 50k in almost all the retail outlets with the free Airtel HD DTH offer.

--- Updated Post - Automerged ---


Just curious but did you actually notice the difference between the 60Hz and 100Hz? On a LG panel? I hope you are kidding! Or maybe you were referring to those sample videos which demonstrate the effect of the motion interpolation on the panels? TruMotion on LG panels is a complete rip-off - the usual 60Hz panels from Philips/Sony and Samsung performs on par with LG's 200Hz TruMotion panels.

Read about LED backlit panels here - LED-backlit LCD TV - Wiki . If you still have doubts, let us know!

I'd recommend the Samsung LA32C530 or LA32C550 for you. The latter offers ethernet connectivity so you can hook up this display to a router/PC to stream media. The TV supports a lot of media formats. Samsung's panel lottery has been already explained in the first post - please go through it.

Lastly, it would be worthwhile if you have windowblinds/curtains on those windows behind your panel.

Yes the window is covered with curtains !! I dunno about it but i did really see the difference in LG !! Planning on C530 but i m gonna use the TV for my PC directly for gaming !! Is it worth getting C550 jus for router and PC streaming !!

 

[xcept89]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

1. Budget.= 45000-55000

2. Viewing distance.=10-12feet

3. Sources/inputs such as HD DTH/consoles/stand-alone media players etc.=cable STB, PC HDMI input,DVD Player

4. Preference for plasma TV/LCD TV/LED-LCD TV= LCD or LED

5. Preference for brands.=SAMSUNG or LG

6. Willing to purchase it from the grey market?= NO

7. Ambient lighting conditions of the room.=have windows opposite to tv stand

8. Any other feature you are looking for such as 3D support on the HDTV, DLNA capabilities etc.=NO

 

[amigoatul]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

Bought a Panasonic 42V20D a few days back. This is a great tv for HD content. Also bought a WD TV Live and a 1TB WD ext HDD. Time for some HD fun.

Will post it in show off soon.

 

[indy1811]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

was quoted 66k for an LG 42LE5300 LED TV at Pai International, Bangalore...

 

[Gannu]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

Approx around the 3k figure

Yes, the DTS HD MA/ True HD bitstream over HDMI ...(phew that sounds like greek to me now) would be required I guess to make it future proof if I upgrade to a HT setup later.

I hate to say this but if you can extend the budget a bit, and squeeze a ATI HD5550/5570, you should be worry free in the long run. Otherwise, the 4650 1GB should work fine as well.

There is bargaining in Croma / Vijay Sales / EZone / Next everywhere.

You need to have special bargain skills. or some contacts there.

I got the best price I got from elsewhere matched at Croma, just wait for show off

I've got to give it to you Doc. This deal wouldn't have been possible without your timely help.

Yes the window is covered with curtains !! I dunno about it but i did really see the difference in LG !! Planning on C530 but i m gonna use the TV for my PC directly for gaming !! Is it worth getting C550 jus for router and PC streaming !!

Depends. If you are not willing to connect the TV to the PC or the router, skip this and get the 3~4k discount instead.

1. Budget.= 45000-55000

2. Viewing distance.=10-12feet

3. Sources/inputs such as HD DTH/consoles/stand-alone media players etc.=cable STB, PC HDMI input,DVD Player

4. Preference for plasma TV/LCD TV/LED-LCD TV= LCD or LED

5. Preference for brands.=SAMSUNG or LG

6. Willing to purchase it from the grey market?= NO

7. Ambient lighting conditions of the room.=have windows opposite to tv stand

8. Any other feature you are looking for such as 3D support on the HDTV, DLNA capabilities etc.=NO

The Samsung LA40C530/C550 or the Sony 40EX400 should be a good bet. Refer Samsung's panel lottery policy mentioned in the first post. Sony OTOH will not support playback of many formats through the USB port.

Bought a Panasonic 42V20D a few days back. This is a great tv for HD content. Also bought a WD TV Live and a 1TB WD ext HDD. Time for some HD fun.
Will post it in show off soon.

Congrats man! Now put up a snazzy show off thread!

 

[iamlegend]

Re: The "Help me buy an HDTV" thread!

1. Budget.45 to 60k

2. Viewing distance - Less than 5 ft

3. Sources/inputs such as HD DTH/consoles/stand-alone media players etc.- DVD & Airtel DTH

4. Preference for plasma TV/LCD TV/LED-LCD TV.- LED

5. Preference for brands.- samsung UA32C6900VR OR LG 32LE5500

6. Willing to purchase it from the grey market? NO

7. Ambient lighting conditions of the room- LOW

8. Any other feature you are looking for such as 3D support on the HDTV, DLNA capabilities etc.- FULL HD,LED,USB PLAY BACK

Currently i am looking for Best 32"" LED with FULL HD. Pl suggest which model i should go for from UA32C6900VR OR LG 32LE5500 ?

 

[Gannu]

Re: HDTV buying advice thread

32C6900 or the 32C5000 would do fine if you are not peculiar about the 100 Hz Motion Plus tech. i.e in case you do not desire to watch sports channels too often you can safely go with the latter and invest the dough elsewhere. The Sony 32EX600 is an amazing panel as well but the USB playback options are very limited.

--- Updated Post - Automerged ---

On a side note, although Philips has launched their new lineup for this year, I am yet to see a single model on display! Not even in the Philips Arena outlets. Pretty surprising.