37" TV - is there a good deal?

Spiritseeker

Hi all,

my TV has lately started playing up, and I think it's time for a new one. I've no idea on what is a good TV and have never really had a good TV to notice a difference vs my current one. I am wondering if anyone can suggest a good deal out there that would be worth me looking into?

I am looking for a 37" flat screen - this is the size of my current TV and it has a custom built 'surround' which means I can't go larger. I don't want to go any smaller obviously

Other than that - LCD, plasma, HD ready - these are all a little bit foreign to me. I have no idea what I would want, but I think having HD would be a nice luxury so would be great to get a TV with this. I have an HD box with Virgin that has never used its HD setting!

I would like a reliable brand, and preferably would like it at a decent price from a supplier with a good rep (John Lewis would be great!). I have no idea what a decent TV would cost, and don't really have a budget that I have to stick to. I suppose I could spend up to £500, but if I can get a really good TV with the warranty, HD and quality that is good enough for daily use, then obviously £400 would be better than £500! (if this sort of TV does not exist for sub £500 then maybe I need to revise my expected spend!)

thanks in advance

suicidebob

Plenty of choice at under £400.00

Ebuyer

Order one today and you'll have it tomorrow.

Andrew1472

Near the top end of your budget with the 5 year warranty, but here is one to get you started.
http://www.richersounds.com/product/lcd-tv/samsung/le37c650/sams-le37c650
Review of the 32" variant here http://www.avforums.com/review/Samsung-C650-LE32C650-32C650-37C650-40C650-LCD-TV-Review.html

keith1950

Hi, if you are limited by some housing that you keep your tv in , bear in mind that a 37" with a wide surround can actually be bigger than a 40" with a very narrow surround.
There are some good prices around, I normally prefer Panasonic/Samsung but last week I saw a 40" Sharp in Makro at £249.99+ VAT.
Some LG'S have very narrow surrounds so might enable you to get a larger screen.

LucianH

Here's a good link for comparison of the different types of TV:

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/lcd-vs-led-vs-plasma.html

Spiritseeker

Thanks for the really helpful responses. I appreciate the link on the differences between LCD, LED and plasma, but confess it still leaves me unsure which one to go for! Plasma was winning for me, but I have 2 lodgers, and they are (extremely frustratingly) very good at pausing the TV for long periods of time, or watching a recorded program and then never 'stop' it after it ends, so it gets to the end of the show and just freezes in place. I would worry slightly about the image burning in. Stupid qestion: burn-in is only an issue when the TV is on, right? I could probably train them to turn the TV off on threat of replacing a brand new TV, but am certain they would turn it off without actually ending the playback on the Virgin box once a recorded program is done playing.

Keith - the tip about the size is great, thanks! I just measured my TV 'space'. The new TV could have external dimensions of 94cm wide and 62cm high - the edges around the screen on mine are big! I hadn't even considered this. I wonder if there are any 40" out there that would fit now!

Thanks again all, lots to consider.

LucianH

Spiritseeker wrote: »

I have 2 lodgers, and they are (extremely frustratingly) very good at pausing the TV for long periods of time, or watching a recorded program and then never 'stop' it after it ends, so it gets to the end of the show and just freezes in place. I would worry slightly about the image burning in.

I'm not an expert, but I imaging that burn-in only applies if you have a part of an image (such as a fixed logo) displayed continuously on the same place on the screen for a number of days rather than hours - can anybody confirm this?

Andrew1472

LucianH wrote: »

I'm not an expert, but I imaging that burn-in only applies if you have a part of an image (such as a fixed logo) displayed continuously on the same place on the screen for a number of days rather than hours - can anybody confirm this?

Yes, correct. I'm not sure I'd want to risk a "number of days" though.:) I'd say 3 to 4 hours before changing to something different for a while would be more sensible.
Plasmas are more likely to get image retention when they are new. It is temporary and will disappear eventually as long as you stay away from whatever caused it. After 200 hours use they usually become more resilient.
Burn in (permanent damage) is very rare these days. Serious abuse would be needed.

I think the smallest Plasma worth buying is 42" anyway, so I imagine the OP will go for an LCD of some sort.