Video Asylum

Posted by John Chleapas on July 28, 2005 at 22:07:28

In Reply to: Flat Panel TV Reviews posted by Shakey on July 27, 2005 at 09:44:03:

Go to BB, CC, and other stores with a notebook and a pencil, or pen. Then when you find the models that you like the best do searches for specific information and reviews. Like the other people say quite accurately the web forums are a source, but not the best source. I spent a few months of research, and many trips to the showrooms. I was leaning towards the new 61' Panasonic when I found a great price on my 60" Sony. Also use streetprices.com, and bottomdollar.com for price shopping when you narrow down your model for a good price. The same KDF60WF655 I bought for $2,327 + $150 for shipping was $3,699 at BB, Sears, and CC at the same time we bought our's on 7/6/06. The markups are prolly at least 40% on these sets to be sure. Then you will want a stand around 19" high if it is not to be mounted on the wall. The Sony stand was $500, we paid $215 for a new 58" 2 shelf glass and metal stand that went together easily in 1/2 hour. I was going to drive to Brooklyn to hump our new TV home. But the low shippng from EE where I got mine saved me over 400 miles of driving. Also use American Express if you have it. AmEx doubles the 1 year standard warranty to 2 years for free. Then you want a 5 year service plan that kicks in when the factory one ends. I paid $359 for that on line from another store. Do not buy a store warranty as they are a rip off. Some people do not buy extended warranties. Those people scream the very loudest when their set fails in 2 years after their 1 year warranty ends and they pay big bucks for in-home service. If my TV fails and can not be fixed my warranty will pay for a new 60" replacement set. Lastly buy a dedicated UPS to plug your HDTV in. This is cheap insurance. If we get a blackout, or a brownout which we get more than a few times each year the cooling fan will not come on ehen the set goes out. That will reduce the $275 dollar bulb life these Sony sets use. My Dad lost the power supply on his one day old 30" HDTV in his bedroom. BB replaced it for free. He now has a UPS on the 3 HDTV's in his home. Have fun with what ever set you buy. They all are set WAY too bright at the factory for the "ooooh and ahhhh factor" for the show room display floor. So you will want to reduce the brightness, and some other minor tweaks. There are a few DVD's to help you do this yourself.A professional ISF calibration is ~$500 for our 60" Sony. That is for later on in a few months. Keep in mind that most of these HDTV's have a sweet picture with HD feeds. None of them really look the best on analog signals. You can copy these links below and paste them into your browsar to start your search for information. Good luck and find a good set. John C.

http://www.hdtvoice.com/voice/index.php?s=
http://www.highdefforum.com/
http://www.soundandvisionmag.com/idealbb/
http://www.agoraquest.com/
http://www.dlptvreview.com/dlptvreviews/reviews.html
http://www.avsforum.com/
http://www.hdtvmagazine.com/index.php
http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/main.html
http://www.hometheaterblog.com/hometheater/2004/09/home_theater_ca.html