TV selections

I decided to just save it up for another couple years. In January 2003 I bought a 36" Panasonic. After perusing the AVS forum for awhile, there where to many questions/complaints about the reliability of new formats (Plasma, DLP, LCD) to justify the cost. There were also complaints of the non-HDTV signal looking better on an analog set than a HDTV set. Since TV is lagging behind as far as HDTV programming, I decided to wait a couple more years. Hopefully the prices will come down on plasma, and the reliability will improve.

Regards,
John

I`d get a Hitachi or mitsubishi instead--better quality. Also, I couldn`t afford buying 2 big tv`s in a 2 yr time span. That is why I`m saving up for a big one now. I know it is not an easy decision. I sold these before. We dropped the Samsung and the Toshiba lines because of reliability problems. Just a word to the wise. Dan R

the viewing angle in your setup may not work very well with a rear projection TV go to the store stand directly in front of the TV at your viewing distance and start walking straight to your left while watching the TV picture get progressively worse until its totally unacceptable.BTW Panasonic sucks had to sell it because it was terrible.

"Fever104"

Going by the picture of your room above, I may I have to concur with "Mejames" up to a point. I don't think that an RPTV is going to work either. Not if you go with the placement of the TV versus the seating position from which you will be viewing the TV. With what you are faced with, then I think that a 36" Direct-View set might be the best thing for you.

But, let me ask you this one question before I go on. Is this arrangement going to be permanent??? Or are you and your wife planning to move in the next two or three years or so???

If you guys are going to stay put for a while, then it might be best for you to invest a few more dollars and get a Sony 40" Direct-View set (either their standard model or their XBR model...... either way, both sets are HDTV ready).

On the other hand, if you guys are going to be moving sometime in the near future, then I would go ahead and go with an RPTV then.

I really think that before you go out and spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars on a TV, I think that it is imperative that you decide what your future living arrangment is going to be. That in itself will go a long way toward which type of set you will want to buy and stay with over the long haul.

By the way, that's what I have done and so forth. Right now, I have a 27" analog set (a TOL Panasonic from 2000). My set has a great picture (it ain't high definition, but it remarkably close for what is an analog set. Hook up a decent DVD player to it, you'll know what I'm talking about then). For the three years I had my Panasonic, I ain't had no complaints about mine. And like I said, the picture is magnificent. I'll be holding onto mine until a good affordable plasma comes along. I'll just hope that by the time I get mine, the technology and reliability issues that John has pointed out will be addressed then. And hopefully, the price will be came down a little further by then as well.

And they had better be addressed too. I'm going to be pretty pissed off if I end up having a $2,000.00-to-$2,500.00 TV sitting in my house and I cannot even get the damn thing repaired when it breaks.

--Charles--