$600-700 for an HDTV

SynGamer

SynGamer

CAGiversary!
Feedback
66 (100%)
Since i mainly use my Xbox 360 for gaming and DVDs...i've decided to finally get an HDTV. I'm trying to find the best offer in both size and specifications for at a max, $600.

I had my taxes done last night and instead of having to pay-in, i'll be getting a refund, plus the stimulus check. So i'm upping my price range to $700 (max) shipped but still looking for a 32".

Any help?
-----
Suggested so far;

SAMSUNG Black 32" 720p LCD LNT3242H
Olevia Black 32" 720p LCD 232V
Vizio 32" 720p LCD VX32LHDTV10A
Olevia Black 37" 720p LCD 237T
Samsung 32" 720p LCD LN32A330J
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Right now, going off of what i saw last night at my local Sears, i like the Samsung's A LOT. I was going to get a Vizio but compared to the Samsung, the Vizio seemed a bit washed out. Not bad, just not as good. I'm still in between a 32" and 37". I really don't want to spend any more than $800 on this total, but i would regret buying a 32" for anything more than $600.
 
also consider the toshiba regzas. they're better picture quality than the olevia and vizio, and i remember seeing the 37" 720p at costco for $699. the olevias are decent too, samsung will kill all them (including sony) in picture quality though, but you're going to have to get a smaller screen for the money. Fry's has the 32" sammy for $599 (B&M) , just so you know. they're usually right on par with online retailers as far as price. you can always consider a display model if you're looking in used, target gives 30% off displays and i'm sure most retailers do too. if you find one on clearance, you can walk out the door with a 37" olevia for $400. make sure you go for a 8ms response time or lower for gaming. i own a sammy and love it.

some good sites to check prices on are:
Vanns.com (bought my tv through them on Amazon and great experience)
Techbargains.com
Ableshoppers.com
Slickdeals.net
 
I recently got a Vizio 37" from Dell.com during a sale for $649 and I've seen the same set at Sams Club for the same price. Sams/Costco are great places to find tv deals. I highly recommend the Vizio even over 42" Sony's and 42" Samsungs that I use at work.
 
Don't be a cheapskate when it comes to your TV. If you end up keeping the TV for at least 5 years, spend the money so you don't get a garbage set and buy into another TV again. $750 may not be the greatest price for that Samsung, but at least you know you'll have a quality TV. The sound from them I feel is a bit tinny, but what would you expect from a speaker in a small chassis?
 
[quote name='TrueBlueLS']Don't be a cheapskate when it comes to your TV. If you end up keeping the TV for at least 5 years, spend the money so you don't get a garbage set and buy into another TV again. $750 may not be the greatest price for that Samsung, but at least you know you'll have a quality TV. The sound from them I feel is a bit tinny, but what would you expect from a speaker in a small chassis?[/quote]

Couldn't careless about sound, i have my stereo for that. My concern with the model i listed the post above yours is how it looks. The 8000:1 contrast and 6 ms response time sound great but i don't have a store near me that has one in stock to look at. I'm assuming since it's a samsung the picture quality is good so i don't know. I just don't want to spend more than $700 on a 32"...just doesn't sit right with me.
 
Samsungs do have really good pictures. I wouldn't worry about the model you posted. I say just find a Toshiba Regza. You won't get the deal I got (37" for $699), but you should be able to get the 32HL67 for cheaper than the Samsung.
 
[quote name='TrueBlueLS']Samsungs do have really good pictures. I wouldn't worry about the model you posted. I say just find a Toshiba Regza. You won't get the deal I got (37" for $699), but you should be able to get the 32HL67 for cheaper than the Samsung.[/quote]
Can't find the contrast ratio on the 32HL67 ANYWHERE :( But it does look nice and seems to be about $100-200 cheaper depending on where you get it.
 
[quote name='SynGamer']Can't find the contrast ratio on the 32HL67 ANYWHERE :( But it does look nice and seems to be about $100-200 cheaper depending on where you get it.[/quote]

yeah, that's a great looking tv (sammy). too bad you don't have fry's out there, i know they're $599 for the 32" model. you're right about not spending more than $600 for a 32", anymore and you might as well get a 37". do you have a costco/sam's card? they have very cheap prices on toshiba regzas which are almost as good as the sammys. I was going to buy one until i decided to spend the extra money on a sammy. it'd be worth the $50 membership if you don't have one because they'll save you a few hundred bucks for sure. i know they have 37" regzas for $699 (B&M). The contrast ratio i've found for the 37HL67 is 722:1 (true tested ratio), contrast ratios are always inflated by manufacturer and tested in ways to make them seem higher, so don't be turned off by this number. Here's costco's online ad for one: Toshiba Regza 37" 720p
 
Well, i've decided on THIS one. The picture quality is great...just waiting for it to drop below $700 and i'll be willing to get it.

8000:1 dynamic contrast and a 6 ms response time should be great for gaming and action movies.
 
Last July I got a 27" Olevia LCD HDTV for $330 shipped from Frys.com, haven't seen a better deal since then. I highly recommend an Olevia.
 
[quote name='PINKO']i got a sharp aquos 720p set for 600 even including tax at sears the weeekbefore chrismas a local store had the tv listed at 588.88 whet down to sears got it pm



and ive been happy person[/quote]
i was waiting for someone to mention this sale also. i got mines right before black friday from best buy. loved it ever since. tv still goes for $999. i think its on sale now for $799.

but yea if your getting a tv. make sure u take into thought of how many ports u need like component, hdmi, vga, etc.
 
Yeah, since this is my first HDTV purchase, i will more than likely go cheap, as in $500 or less. I'll wait a few years to go big and fancy.
 
I would suggest the olevia then. It was my first hdtv and I loved it. The only reason I'm looking for a new one now is because mine was stolen. If you come across a free ship code for newegg I may very well buy another.
 
Kinda OT, but my wife just "authorized" me to buy a HDTV now that we have a new house. I just came back from BB and they have two open-box Panasonic 42" Viera Plasma for $799. For that price, I am entertaining getting both and the salesperson said he take $100 off each if I purchase them both. Anyone know how these are for gaming, as that will be my primary focus?
 
$699 for each 42" sounds like an amazing deal and it makes me further wish i had a BB, CC, or something here so i could get a deal like this :(
 
[quote name='hoofrog']Kinda OT, but my wife just "authorized" me to buy a HDTV now that we have a new house. I just came back from BB and they have two open-box Panasonic 42" Viera Plasma for $799. For that price, I am entertaining getting both and the salesperson said he take $100 off each if I purchase them both. Anyone know how these are for gaming, as that will be my primary focus?[/quote]

Open box TVs is a crap shoot from personal experience (bought two both had things wrong with them) I would honestly go with a Vizo (or two) as was stated earlier in the thread. They are outstanding and will be my next TV purchase (I have a Sony 42" 1080p right now)
 
[quote name='joshnorm']Open box TVs is a crap shoot from personal experience (bought two both had things wrong with them) I would honestly go with a Vizo (or two) as was stated earlier in the thread. They are outstanding and will be my next TV purchase (I have a Sony 42" 1080p right now)[/quote]

If he can buy an extended warranty for $100-ish for each TV, then he should be fine.
 
I personally have had great open box experiences with the things I have purchased in the past (tv and camcorder) so that really is not an issue. My concern is that the newer Viera models have a "game" mode, I am assuming to prevent lag issues between the console and the display and this model does not. I just want to make sure it will work flawless with my consoles.
 
Alright, now that the TV is ordered, i plan on using this with my 360...do i want to use the RGB cable/hookup that's already included with my 360? Should i use VGA? I'm not sure how to get HDMI with the non-HDMI 360 so that's out of the question.
 
If it's a 720p/1080i TV, you should use component. If it's 1080p, you can try VGA and mess with the color settings. I have a 1080p projector and I still have my 360 hooked up through component.
 
[quote name='raybert']Where did you find it for $625?[/quote]

Jellyfish.com, it was on the daily show at 1pm EST and i was able to get it for $20.67% off. 32" 720p but it's a Samsung and has a 6 ms response time compared to the normal 8 ms.
 
Get A Vizio or Olevia if you just want a hdtv. If you want a average brand with better video quality than Vizio/Olevia, get a LG or Toshiba. If you want the best PQ get a Samsung or Sony
 
[quote name='SynGamer']Alright, now that the TV is ordered, i plan on using this with my 360...do i want to use the RGB cable/hookup that's already included with my 360? Should i use VGA? I'm not sure how to get HDMI with the non-HDMI 360 so that's out of the question.[/quote]

i can tell you from experience that my sammy (LN-T4069FX) hates VGA. I bought the MS VGA cable this week and was all stoked. My picture sharpness went fuzzy (text) even though i messed with the fine and course settings on my tv. the blacks were now grey, even though i had my 360 adjusted to expanded. component looks way better, the colors are more vibrant, blacks more black and the whites are more white. just go with component. oh yeah, and the VGA made no difference in upscaling my SD DVD's (even using my HD-DVD player). Superbad looks unreal on my tv in SD because my tv upconverts it to 1080p already, so the VGA made no difference. some DVD's are just poor quality (Hero, LOTR II, etc.) while some look awesome (casino royale, superbad, LOTR III, etc.). HDMI is a non issue with the older 360's, if it doesn't start with HDMI, it isn't HDMI, converters won't do anything. enjoy your sammy, that's a good price...
 
[quote name='SynGamer']Alright, now that the TV is ordered, i plan on using this with my 360...do i want to use the RGB cable/hookup that's already included with my 360? Should i use VGA? I'm not sure how to get HDMI with the non-HDMI 360 so that's out of the question.[/quote]

Mad Catz makes a HDMI converter for the older 360's without HDMI ports for $60. OXM gave it a pretty good review.

What is the max resolution of the TV? If it's 720P just go with the RGB component cables that came with the 360. HDMI doesn't become really important until it becomes a 1080p resolution issue or arranging connector issue.
 
[quote name='joshnorm']Open box TVs is a crap shoot from personal experience (bought two both had things wrong with them) I would honestly go with a Vizo (or two) as was stated earlier in the thread. They are outstanding and will be my next TV purchase (I have a Sony 42" 1080p right now)[/quote]

I totally agree. Open Boxes are good, only if you tack on a warranty which doesn't cheapen the deal that much. Vizio's are very nice tv's. A relative of mine bought one for his room and it is considerably good for the price. I have a 42" Sony LCD Rear Projection HDTV that I bought from Sony Outlets as a refurb. Very nice television for 600 dollars (bought Labor Day Weekend). :D
 
I'm going to get a 3 year warranty for $74.99 from SquareTrade unless someone suggests otherwise. I figure $25 a year isn't a bad investment.

*EDIT: and i've decided to go with the component cable my 360 came with. It's cheaper (free) and seems to offer the best picture quality.
 
I'd go with the Vizio. You may even be able to get a 37' for less than $700 if you look around. If you're adamant about the $600-$700 criteria, than you'll have no trouble getting a 32' for under $600. When I first heard about the company, I was skeptical. However, they've all but put Philips out of business (I recently read that due to the success of Vizio and some of the other lower priced models of LCD TV's, that they no longer will make Philips LCD or Plasma TV's themselves- they're contracting a company from Japan to produce them instead), and every review I've ever read about their TV's say the same thing- the best TV you can buy for the money.

As you said, you're not a technofile, so this TV will be awesome for gaming and Blu-ray (if you have a PS3). I'm going to do the very same thing as you, though I'm currently thinking about buying a 46' or greater non-HD TV once there's no demand for them (at the end of this year or around the deadline for HDTV) instead.

It'll be amazing to go into a Best Buy or elsewhere and buy a 50' Projection TV for $400 or less (due to it not having a HDTV tuner). As of March, all of the retailers are supposed to carry HDTV tuner TV's, and if they don't, they have to notify the consumer about this. It's because of this that these TV's will continue to take up space while the HDTV tuner models fly off the shelf. The retailers will have no choice but to clearance them, and those of us willing to get a HDTV tuner box will reap the benefit.
 
Well, i ended up getting a 32" Samsung for $626 after taxes and shipping. 720p, 8000:1 contrast, and a 6 ms response time. I compared a Vizio and Samsung size-by-side at my local Sears and the Samsung looked much better. The picture was smoother, no motion blur from what i could tell, just overall better.
 
[quote name='MSUHitman']Mad Catz makes a HDMI converter for the older 360's without HDMI ports for $60. OXM gave it a pretty good review.

What is the max resolution of the TV? If it's 720P just go with the RGB component cables that came with the 360. HDMI doesn't become really important until it becomes a 1080p resolution issue or arranging connector issue.[/QUOTE]

Other than somehow only having HDMI ports available on your TV and not component (I've yet to see a TV like this), I'm not sure why anyone would want an HDMI converter. The main benefit of HDMI is a purely digital signal from your device to your TV. This Mad Catz converter must be taking the analog component output and converting it to HDMI, which sounds rather pointless to me.

Edit: I suppose this might allow some 360 users to get a 1080P signal to a TV that doesn't support 1080P over component, but I don't know of any content on the 360 that's in 1080P, so again, what's the point?
 
TV looks amazing! Still need to stop and get my HD DVR from TW but i plugged the 360 in and it looked great. PGR4 looks a bit washed out so that's either the game or the TV but it looks great either way.

Just bought a 3 year warranty from SquareTrade.com for $53. Used the coupon code FREEDOM40 if anyone is interested.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
bread's done
Back
Top