Rear Projection Televisions!!

George_Bray

True high definition TVs are 1280 x 720 (720p) or 1920 x 1080 (1080p)....

I went into a branch of Comet this afternoon and, for the first time in the UK, saw a genuine HDTV picture, on their SAGEM AXIUMHTD501DLP 50" nicam stereo widescreen dlp rear projection TV, which costs £1999.

http://www.comet.co.uk/comet/html/cache/182974.html

It has a screen resolution of 1280x720 pixels which is the lower of the two main HDTV resolutions, the other being 1920 x 1080 (much better).

They were feeding HDTV demo material from the hard disk of a computer they had connected alongside. Picture quality is superb for a rear projection TV. Comet say they expect Sky to be the first company in the UK to start broadcasting HDTV material, but the launch date may be some way off.

scumgrinder

I went into a branch of Comet this afternoon and, for the first time in the UK, saw a genuine HDTV picture, on their SAGEM AXIUMHTD501DLP 50" nicam stereo widescreen dlp rear projection TV, which costs £1999.

http://www.comet.co.uk/comet/html/cache/182974.html

It has a screen resolution of 1280x720 pixels which is the lower of the two main HDTV resolutions, the other being 1920 x 1080 (much better).

They were feeding HDTV demo material from the hard disk of a computer they had connected alongside. Picture quality is superb for a rear projection TV. Comet say they expect Sky to be the first company in the UK to start broadcasting HDTV material, but the launch date may be some way off.

i download hdtv from us channels, picture quality is perfect
wouldn't mind seeing it on a hd set though (all i have is a 32" sony wega)

bamberbamboo

I too have been looking at these rear projection tvs thinking cool a really big pic (my lounge quite long) but after seeing a friends and realising all the ones in the showrooms where in mainly darkened spaces I decided against it and then decided that I would like a large black television as my fire surround/curtain rail lights etc are black and didn't want to change allsorts to silver ,, fussy I know,, anyway can I find a large black tv anywhere "NO" in one magazine it even said "also available in the new black colour" which I thought was highly amusing I'm still on the old black LOL ....... ::)

brummybloke

off topic but sony do a 32 inch / 28 inch tv with black casing.
cant remember which one but it has an odd shape.

sony are good however ( i too have a sony wega 32fx68)

MarkyMarkD

Re black TVs it depends how much you want to pay, etc., etc. Finlux TVs which I believe are good quality are available in both colours - see http://www.beststuff.co.uk/finlux_range.htm and then price compare elsewhere if you are interested.

scumgrinder

saw a 50" samsung hd tv tonight in currys.........wow!

http://!!!!!!.com/q1dz

this might be it but the stand was much nicer. awesome tv

royalsteve

my brother in law has a projector and i wasnt overly impressed....poor picture quality...very expensive...his was 1000 just for the projector...and a hell of a lot worse then my 32inch panasonic 100 hertz tv

yep CRT's may be bulky but they rule on picture quality

as for rear projection screens the picture on those is awful too....plasmas are ok, lcd's are for pc's (sorry!)

oh...and the projector bulbs dont last long...6000-10000 hours for bro in laws...but thats drastically reduced if you keep switching it on/off. They take ages to power up, especially if youve just powered it off....they dont like getting hot ::) oh and the bulbs...300 a time....ow!

Tony_H_3

You can get some very good deals on extended warranties I suggest you take one (preferably 5 year / £210) Make absolutely sure they cover bulb failure, you will most certainly save yourself a few quid when the bulbs do start to go.

The picture does take getting used to & isn't for everyone, but at the end of the day I would rather my warranty replace bulbs as & when then opt for a plasma for which they claim have a useful life of approximately 5 years.

condyk

Four issues to consider:

1. Quality of picture (and sound if not using separate home cinema sound system).
2. Size ... a wide screen is very cool and adds real value to viewing pleasure. Depth can be a problem, i.e. the big screen CRT TV's are usually very deep and they dominate a room, rear projection generally less so and plasma/LCD not really an issue.
3. Price ... well, you can get cheap and rubbbish and you can get good value. How you assess the latter is up to you.
4. Hassle to set up and maintain, or not! CRT's easy. LCD/Plasma easy-ish. Rear project can be difficult to get all the colours correctly aligned I have heard, and then keeping them at top performance. probably not too much halle tho' if you're into it.

I currently have a really great Sony 32FX68 CRT TV but it is deep and take up too much room now I'm in a smaller place I reckon. Picture superb and nice to use and set up tho'.

I looked at rear projection when I bought the Sony 6 months ago and was VERY close to getting one, but at the time wasn't 100% convinced on the price/performance ratio over CRT. Plasma and LCD I am again thinking about: partly because the best TV picture I have EVER seen was on a Hitachi plasma I set up for a friend and prices are getting to around £1500, all in, for decent 42" models.

However, I think if I had my time again, I would opt for the 42" rear projection. Sure, they're going to be taken over by LCD/Plasma in next 2-3 years, same as CRT, but meantime I'll have a huge picture and not so much depth to worry about in my smaller lounge.

Price and potential performance you could be on the right track. BUT is it really usefull to assume all CRT's, rear projections, plasma/LCD's are good or bad. NO, some are great in each camp and many are rubbish. So, return to the four points above and go and look at some of each. A rubbish plasma will be worse that a good rear projection, etc. Judge not on the technology, butr on what you want from it.

The latest edition of What Home Cinema recommends a Toshiba 42WH46 (they are about the best brand for rear projection) and its RRP is around £1000 ... BUT you can get it cheaper via pricerunner, kelkoo, Dealtime, e.g. a quick look found it at around £720, but no doubt you'd need to add delivery.

Why not go stand in WH Smiths and read through What Home Cinema and similar to get a sense of best models. Go to local Dixons or similar to see 'em in action and then do a price search online. Sorted innit!!

condyk

If you use code AFF10PC at checkout then you can get the above TV for £703.09 from Curry's onlione INCLUDING home delivery. I recommend you do your own research on this TV and others and view it in action before buying though.