Widescreen Premium a Rip-Off??

The better wide screens allow you to adjust the picture format. I had the same concerns & didn"t buy a widescreen last year but I have one now & it is great especially for movies & sports.A widescreen looks nicer in a room which may be important if you are married.Also you have to remeber in the not too distant future the 4:3 sets will have the "funny" picture. Good luck

I, too, hesitated to buy a 16:9 TV until I saw some good DVD's on a 65" Mitsubishi set. Wow! That changed my mind. Since I watch little TV and mostly movies, I have been quite happy for the last month, let me tell you. I probably would have been very happy with the conventional 61" Sony set I was going to buy, but for only $500 more, I got the widescreen set. To me it was worth it. To others, it may not be. Make your own decision.

Problem with signal quality a real one with analog cable and some satellite channels. My Loewe 16:9 is awesome with a good signal (and esp. good DVD), but less than outstanding with poor signal. Its not a true HDTV (1080i), it is a progressive scan DTV. Totally revealing of any deficiencies in the source material, but incredible. So if your use is primarily DVD and/or HD, then I would go widescreen; if its TV then I would carefully check out the real world performance.

Swampwalker -- Do you have the 30" Loewe? Are you familiar with the new Aconda 38" that the dealers are raving about? I am trying to decide if these are worth the price and the wait or if I should maybe buy the Panasonic 34 " 16:9 which seems to have an amazing picture. There is also a ProScan 38" which Lyric HiFi in New York claims is the same tube as the new Loewe. (?) I watch only movies, mostly DVD, but my girlfriend is a compulsive TV surfer with Time Warner "D TV" Cable. If you or anyone could recommend one of these TVs I would greatly appreciate it.