Can somebody recommend a TV for me?

On Tue, 01 Aug 2006 10:57:33 -0400, Steve Maser
wrote:

My 10-year-old Samsung 27" CRT television flaked out after a brown-out
at home (the tube is showing everything in "widescreen" when widescreen
is not an option on the TV), so I'm looking for a replacement TV.


I'm not married to the idea of another CRT, but I'm also not looking to
spend more than $600.

Primary use of the TV: Watching coax cable TV (not digital cable),
watching VHS tapes of time-shifted TV shows, and watching DVD movies.
I'm not so much worried about "HDTV" because my primary use will just
be watching over regular cable.

Ideally, I'd like the TV to have an audio out port so I can plug a set
of headphones into it as well.

And, ideally, because of the placement of the TV (which I can't
change), I'd like something that doesn't reflect the glare from
outdoors through the windows (not direct sunlight, but just glare from
the really-big windows we have.)

And I'm stuck with what would be the relative size of a 27" CRT as my
wife doesn't want anything larger.


Suggestions for what models/brands/types to start looking at?

Thanks!

- Steve

My girlfriend bought a 26 inch Toshiba HD ready tv this year and got a
free HD cable box from Time Warner. I think she spent much less than
$600 for the set and I think it gives a really good picture; now we
can watch the occasional HD tv show and I must admit it is quite
fantastic compared to analog tv. The set has all the connections you
will ever need including component which makes a huge difference when
connected to the DVD player.

In article ,
Steve Maser wrote:
Connections: 3 composite A/V (1 side), 2 S-Video (1 side), 2 component
(Y/Pb/Pr), 1 HDMI, 1 RF

RF connections == Coax.

If you have cable or satellite, a set like this would take an HD converter
box, and at least in my area there isn't much of a premium per month
(maybe $8 at most) between digital cable and digital HD. Also, even a
standard-def cable box will often have digital sound and S-Video out which
will look and sound much better than analog off coax. When I had a Time
Warner digicable box I wired it directly into my receiver's optical and
s-video ins (for DBS) and I'd get some network and PBS (and of course
premium movie channel) programming in DD5.1.

I doubt I'd get a Sony product though, I find them overpriced and their
warranties are not that impressive. For an LCD set, I'd probably go
Westinghouse, Dell or Sceptre.
--
"When in doubt, use brute force."
- Ken Thompson

Robert Gammon wrote:

But in 2009, you will need a NEW cable box as they will retire all the
non-HDTV cable boxes.

No. The FCC rule does not affect cable systems, which may
continue to use SD and analog signals.

26" widescreen, which someone recommended, is pretty
small. The 4:3 standard portion of the display would be
only 21". For 27" standard display he'd need 33"
widescreen.

Greg

wrote:
Robert Gammon wrote:


But in 2009, you will need a NEW cable box as they will retire all the
non-HDTV cable boxes.


No. The FCC rule does not affect cable systems, which may
continue to use SD and analog signals.

26" widescreen, which someone recommended, is pretty
small. The 4:3 standard portion of the display would be
only 21". For 27" standard display he'd need 33"
widescreen.

Greg


Ahh, but there are MUST carry rules for local TV that affect Satellite
TV and Cable TV.

Bandwidth rules suggest that the local stations will NOT choose to
implement multiple channels of SD 480i, but will opt for 720p or 1080i.

Then cable and sat TV are NOTHING but old movies and old tv show reruns.

Access to current sports broadcasts will stop, again unless the outlets
make available a 480i feed, or the tuner/cable box is capable of
downconverting to 480i.

People have used 21" TVs for a LONG time. The OP feels that 26"
widescreen is as large as they need in spite of the experience that they
see when they go to the movies.

Heck with movie prices and concession prices today, you can buy a new
DVD and watch it in the comfort of your own home as many times as you
like, OR consider that for the price of a few dozen movie tickets, you
can upgrade to a much larger screen.

Robert Gammon wrote:
....

Bandwidth rules suggest that the local stations will NOT choose to
implement multiple channels of SD 480i, but will opt for 720p or 1080i.

Then cable and sat TV are NOTHING but old movies and old tv show reruns.

Access to current sports broadcasts will stop, again unless the outlets
make available a 480i feed, or the tuner/cable box is capable of
downconverting to 480i.

Cable boxes do downconvert. My SA8300hd puts out analog sound and
SD 4:3 analog video for HD digital cable stations. So even if the rest
of what you said above made sense, people with analog SD TVs are
still going to be to watch cable TV in 2009 and beyond.

Greg

On 6 Aug 2006 11:42:44 -0700, wrote:

Robert Gammon wrote:
...

Bandwidth rules suggest that the local stations will NOT choose to
implement multiple channels of SD 480i, but will opt for 720p or 1080i.

Then cable and sat TV are NOTHING but old movies and old tv show reruns.

Access to current sports broadcasts will stop, again unless the outlets
make available a 480i feed, or the tuner/cable box is capable of
downconverting to 480i.

Cable boxes do downconvert. My SA8300hd puts out analog sound and
SD 4:3 analog video for HD digital cable stations. So even if the rest
of what you said above made sense, people with analog SD TVs are
still going to be to watch cable TV in 2009 and beyond.

Greg

I'll bet that the cable and satellite providers will downconvert the
signal for their "standard tier" programming before it even hits the
cable. For one, the cost of upgrading everyone's cable or satellite
box will be very expensive. And yes I know, most satellite customers
own their own boxes, but you know DirecTV and Dish will have to
subsidize the changeover or face massive subscription losses.
This also allows the cable and satellite providers to continue selling
HD at a higher price point than SD, providing a fatter revenue stream.

John C wrote:
On 6 Aug 2006 11:42:44 -0700, wrote:


Robert Gammon wrote:
...

Bandwidth rules suggest that the local stations will NOT choose to
implement multiple channels of SD 480i, but will opt for 720p or 1080i.

Then cable and sat TV are NOTHING but old movies and old tv show reruns.

Access to current sports broadcasts will stop, again unless the outlets
make available a 480i feed, or the tuner/cable box is capable of
downconverting to 480i.

Cable boxes do downconvert. My SA8300hd puts out analog sound and
SD 4:3 analog video for HD digital cable stations. So even if the rest
of what you said above made sense, people with analog SD TVs are
still going to be to watch cable TV in 2009 and beyond.

Greg


I'll bet that the cable and satellite providers will downconvert the
signal for their "standard tier" programming before it even hits the
cable. For one, the cost of upgrading everyone's cable or satellite
box will be very expensive. And yes I know, most satellite customers
own their own boxes, but you know DirecTV and Dish will have to
subsidize the changeover or face massive subscription losses.
This also allows the cable and satellite providers to continue selling
HD at a higher price point than SD, providing a fatter revenue stream.


In part, it depends on how much advertising cable and satellite
providers do for their HD content. Dish is now saying 25 HD channels.

Big change to the subscription model for DirecTV earlier this year. Now
it is a one time upfront lease payment. When you discontinue service,
you are to return the receiver to the company you bought it from. $100
for the base model HD receiver (no Tivo) and the company does the
install of the 3 to 5 LNR dish and cables to the receiver.

Note that this is cheaper than the price of the current generation of
external ATSC receivers for folks that are still watching the 10 year of
26 inch picture tube TV.

NTSC source material exists in traincar loads, and can be rebroadcast in
SD to folks that will refuse to go get a new TV.


There may be a mandate for Cable as well as for Satellite. Local TV
stations must turn off NTSC, so I can see an argument brewing in
Congress and the FCC that says that cable and satellite companies must
also convert to ATSC ( if external tuner is required for local, then
the same standard should apply to cable and satellite). Broadcasters
will raise holy hell if they are required to relinquish the bandwidth
while cable and satellite companies continue to send NTSC.


It will be interesting to see what TVs are sold at Walmart, Target, and
Sears in 2008. If they all have ATSC tuner in them, from the $135 19
inch on up. Will we also see the $99 or less external ATSC tuner??

A question that I do not know the answer to is Are all cable companies
completely converted to a full digital plant?? That is are there any
old analog tuners out there still that need to be replaced???

The conversion to ATSC may not be as difficult as we might imagine, but
my imagination tends to brew horror stories with TV stations FLOODED
with calls on the day that NTSC gets turned off.

In article .com,
wrote:

Robert Gammon wrote:

But in 2009, you will need a NEW cable box as they will retire all the
non-HDTV cable boxes.

No. The FCC rule does not affect cable systems, which may
continue to use SD and analog signals.

26" widescreen, which someone recommended, is pretty
small. The 4:3 standard portion of the display would be
only 21". For 27" standard display he'd need 33"
widescreen.

Greg



That's what I determined when I went out TV shopping today.

26" widescreen LCD is way too small and anything larger is out of my
budget range. And I had them hook up a VCR to it so I could play a
couple of video tapes and I was surprised how really terrible that
looked (shouldn't have been the tapes, I tried 3 different ones, but
could have been the cables/VCR in the store -- even the sales guy said
he didn't think it should have been that bad...)

So, I'm probably just going to get a Sony 27" CRT and live with that
until I'm forced (if that happens) to get something else.

- STeve

why not try to get a flat screen tv with HD

k kille