LCD tv purchase

richierobot

Hi all

Im sure this has been posted many times but in the new year im looking to purchase a LCD tv. Ive marked the size i need as a 32' and have planned to spend no more than £900 - £1000 tops. I would like a decent piece of equipment thats going to offer great vision and sound. Im waiting for the sales in January so I can get a good deal.

Does anyone have any good recommendations; I heard Samsung are a good buy.

sarah_elton

I got the Toshiba 32WLT66 in July and absolutely love it. I'm not sure, but I believe the slightly improved 32WLT68 may be out.

The model I got is now available for around £799, it's come down a bit since I bought.

One bonus of it is 2 HDMI sockets, so you can connect more than one high-def box to it at a time.

https://www.avforums.com is your friend for any TV related purchases.

richierobot

Thanks a million Sarah; i shall check it out forthwith!

sarah_elton

It can be a bit of a headache because whatever model you end up opting for you'll find someone on there who's had problems with it, but they're very knowledgeable types. Used it a lot for my redundancy-funded new TV and DVD player.

The only downside to a decent TV is when you've got a poor quality TV broadcast it's more noticeable than on a dodgy old TV, where everything is less sharp! But when I put on a decent quality recent DVD, or play on the 360, it's a beautiful sight.

richierobot

Sounds like buying a new one is going to be a headache! Im never too trusting of Currys etc...............

sarah_elton

I've never met a Currys et al staff member who actually knew any more than I did. I'd recommend your own research. However for purchase I always go for high street store - I like the reassurance of having somewhere to go and shout if there's a problem. I ordered mine from Comet online in the end, hassle free purchase, and they turned up on the day I booked.

Whatever recommendations you get, definitely go see the model you're interested in in the flesh. LCDs are very variable. If you don't know someone who owns the one you want, ask Currys or whoever to put a DVD on the screen for you, and pick something very dark - it's how black the black is, and how good the contrast is in low lit scenes you really want to see. Also bear in mind that in store the TV signal is split through a whole string of aerial wire splitters to feed all the TVs, so one that looks dodgy in store may actually be a good set; another reason to ask them to hook up a DVD player for you.

As well as dark colours, check the viewing angle - if your lounge is set up so you could be sitting not square-on to the picture, again its something that's very variable between makes/models.

One final key thing to compare is watching something like football - colour bleed and 'ghosting' were common on early LCDs and its most noticeable on this with players against a green background. Newer models seem to have mostly cleared this up but still worth checking.

One downside of my model is it doesn't support 1080p - the top current high-def resolution. It'll do 720p or 1080i, which personally I find more than good enough, but if you were after best possible picture look for one that supports 1080p. As I said though, avforums is the best place for the more techy stuff.

Still pushing the wonder that is Toshiba, there's a review here which I agree with:
http://www.trustedreviews.com/tvs/review/2006/05/08/Toshiba-32WLT66-32in-LCD-TV/p1
(except price is now £699 at Comet online, which has just depressed me no end!)

uncle_buck_3

Don’t go to the Av forums as you will never get a new TV!!!

Don’t get me wrong there is loads of great information & advice there but a lot of the people there are true perfectionists.....they tend to point out faults that maybe you or I would never ever notice.

The best advice is to buy what YOU think is a good TV based on the style you want & if YOU think the picture is good.

Good luck.

Plasticman

I've been very happy with my Samsung and I've heard very good things about the Toshiba. Bought my Samsung from "Beyond Television". Got a really good price and excellent service.

richierobot

Thanks again Sarah; i just read the review on the TOSHIBA 32WLT68. I may have to consider purchasing this - therefore my TV's better than yours! :rotfl:

lightspeed

Looking to buy one myself this christmas and have spent sometime searching forums, internet sites and shops.

Firstly, what you can normally buy in Curry's or other high street retailers, you will probably get the same TV at least 25% cheaper buy searching the net.

Secondly, you get what you pay for. I have friends that rushed out and purchased LCD's for £700 that really dont cut the mustard, picture quality poor (irrlevant of the broadcast) and the general crispness (is that a word???) is below a par.

Finally, 2 words for you SONY BRAVIA. All you need to do is to walk down to your local Curry's and put any other LCD next to this range and you immediatly see the difference. For just over your price range, i have found a Sony Bravia 40inch LCD that retails at £1400 in Comet/Curry's but can be purchased online for £1090. It really would be worth spending the extra.

Just my opinion mind.

GL

pldd4

john lewis also do a price match. So you should find the tv you want online or whereever cheapest and go to John Lewis to get it price matched, if they can do it you'll get a 5 year guarentee with it as well.