50" rear projection tv

Fugitive

I wanna 50" (or thereabouts) DLP rear projection tv. It should have at least 2 scarts and be compatible with HDTV.

I've seen a couple for around the £2000 mark - a Samsung SP50L7HX and a Toshiba 52WM48P but there don't seem to be many reviews of them as they still seem to be in production.

Has anyone got a recommendation ?

Thanks.

PeteB_2000

now fella,

Im also in the same boat looking around 50" same sort of budget try here for advice

http://www.avforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=165

Pete

webhamster

I recently bought a toshiba 42 inch widescreen from currys , I wont be doing it again.I had 3 delivered with 3 different faults , one being black marks behind the screen , one being a line down in dark or green scenes , and another being the red crt being too high.MY 5 year old one HAD better picture quality without 100hz and all the extra image electronics.

I also dont rate the delivery people , they ARENT on the payroll but are contractors , they lifted the unit in all angles despite the warnings on the box.

If your serious about a rpj dlp , then the sagem is the best ive seen , although that itself is a con as its not running a TUNER but a hdtv progressive input of a wmv file through a hi-def input.One thing i will say though is that if it gives a DOTTY picture on the tuner turn the sharpness down so it smooths it away , not too much though , and take your time setting it up.

Fugitive

Thanks for the link Pete, I spent hours going through various posts last night.

Webhamster. I have ruled out the SAGEM 50 as it is not compliant with the HD that Sky are pushing out. The SAGEM 45, however, is - and it's 3000:1 contrast.

It's down to that one and the Toshiba 52" now.

I measured it up against my 32" Panasonic last night. It's going to be massive :-0

condyk

Fugitive wrote:

I measured it up against my 32" Panasonic last night. It's going to be massive :-0

Unless you have a massive lounge I reckon 52" is too big. I have a 42" Toshiba (awesome TV) and it is perfect in terms of scale of picture and being reasonably discrete in a normal sized lounge. Personal choice ... unless you want to just have big TV and a Layzee Boy chair like Joey and Chandler in Friends ;-) and live on Pizza and beer.

The comments above about delivery people are very important. These TV's need to stay upright and if they're banged around then they may suffer the alignment problems mentioned. However, set up properly, after they're 'settled' for a week or two', and using Avia Guide to Home Theater DVD, you'll be amazed at the difference. You can import this via ebay.

Personally, I'd go for a cheaper (£700-800) RPTV now and then see what unfolds technology wise with HDTV in UK over next 24 months and prices have calmed down. I don't think they've all agreed the input standard yet have they!? I know SKY have said how they want it to be, but not sure all the manufacturers are in agreement. I dunno ... just bits I've picked up when I was looking into TV's 3 months or so back. You may buy a TV that is HD today, but if you can't easily plug HD SKY and DVD boxes into it because it doesn't have the right connectors it will be a pain. Depreciation will be a big bummer with all non compatible TV's (esp LCD, plasma and expensive RPTV's) once real HD hits us.

PeteB_2000

Fugitive I too have spent hours upon hours trawling through all the info out there and I think Ive finally decieded on the Sagem HD- D45, the toshs is too big
physically wheres as the HD45 has a smaller frame and the speakers can be removed, it also has 2.1 Virtual Surround sound with a built in SUB and its suppose to be a great sound and as I dont have a SS at present this to represents a big plus........!!!

As for tuning most people on that forum recommend Digital Video Essentials, theres a guy on that forum selling original PAL versions for £13 inc VAT and P&P, which is the best price Ive found anywhere.

One further note, you can buy the HD-D45 from most John Lewis stores although its not listed online the reason this is a noteworthy point is that they give you a 5 year warranty by default.

Hope this helps

Pete

Fugitive

Pete,

the reason I'm thinking about the Tosh rather than the SAGEM is that I've already got a Sony surround system so the 2.1 was just overkill for me. It has def. a better picture than the Tosh and the John Lewis warranty was also a major factor that I considered

The downside for me was that it doesn't come with a stand (unless you want to pay another £300-ish and Mrs fugitive thought the Tosh looked better !

Condyk - having drawn a scaled up picture of a 52" i am now going to look at the Tosh 46 as well !

When I got my 32" I thought it was massive but now think it is too small. I wouldn't like to splash out on a 42" to just be disappointed a year or two down the line. Whereas the 52" I don't think could ever be called too small. I sit about 18 feet away from the TV so it wouldn't be too big...but I don't think you could ever call it discrete !

PeteB_2000

Fugitive

I was in comet yesterday and they are selling their plasma/rptv glass and chrome stands at half price, very nice too different sizes but no more £100 if memory serves me

Pete