Black Friday HDTV deals thread

freshzen

freshzen

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I figured I'd make a topic where all BF HDTV deals can be shared and discussed.

I'll start by posting some of the more appealing deals that have been posted so far.

Best Buy:
Samsung (LN40B500P3FXZA) [40" 1080p 60Hz LCD) $597
Sony (KDL-32L504) [32" 720p 60Hz LCD] $377

New Egg:
Sharp (LC-46SB57U) [46" 1080p 120Hz LCD] $699

Sears:
Panasonic (TC-P42S1) [42" 1080p Plasma] $649
Samsung (LN40B500) [40" 60Hz 1080p LCD] $599
Samsung (PN50B430)) [50" 720p Plasma] $699
Sharp (LC19SB27UT) [19" 720p LCD] $179
Vizio (VO320E) [32" 720p LCD] $349

Target:
Apex (LD4088) [40" 1080p LCD] $449
Westinghouse [32" 720p LCD] $249

Wal-Mart:
Emerson (PL-P42W-10A) [42" 720 plasma] $448
Sansui (HDLCD1909) [19" 720p LCD] $128
Samsung (LN40B500) [40" 60Hz 1080p LCD] $599
 
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driftmr2 - no idea how much you should expect it to go down, its possible the price doesnt move.
you sound like youre really itchign to buy it. if youre not THAT tight on cash buy it and enjoy it =)


[quote name='VipFREAK']That would pissoff the delivery guy for sure.[/QUOTE]

it could yeah. ive never received flak from them for doing that. two out of the four times ive done it ive found damage and sent the display back.
and really if you want to worry about the delivery guys feelings when youre trying to inspect an item youve paid your $ for then i dont know what to tell you.
 
[quote name='paz9x']it could yeah. ive never received flak from them for doing that. two out of the four times ive done it ive found damage and sent the display back.
and really if you want to worry about the delivery guys feelings when youre trying to inspect an item youve paid your $ for then i dont know what to tell you.[/QUOTE]
sitting on their thumbs while you performance quality checks on the product they're delivering is not at all part of their job.. it's not a matter of "hurting their feelings" it's a matter of being a decent human being and not being a dick. i'm almost positive if he wanted to he could refuse to let you open the package until you sign for it... in fact i'm almost positive that's what he should do in that sort of situation.

personally if i were a delivery dude and some prick tried that shit on me i'd refuse to let them open it until they signed, and then i'd be sure to drop or lose every single other package he ever ordered...
 
[quote name='Ruahrc']You can refuse delivery if you see damage on the box and they will send a replacement but apparently once you sign for it you can't return it. I'm almost wondering if I should make the delivery guy stand around while I open the box to ensure everything is okay (their website does say to inspect the contents of the box before signing acceptance).[/QUOTE]

The delivery guys will be very helpful. They will offer you any assistance you require. They want to make sure you are happy before you sign and they leave. They are professional delivery men whose job depends on customer satisfaction.
 
[quote name='paz9x']if you want to worry about the delivery guys feelings when youre trying to inspect an item youve paid your $ for then i dont know what to tell you.[/QUOTE]

That's exactly why I have problems buying a tv online in the first place. After a while it doesn't seem worth it since if you do send it back, you get another one, and it's the same problem.
 
youre completely off base.
these arent standard ups guys or something. these are contracted delivery companies.
if youre dealing with a big box retailer they have their own delivery service. when you sign you are signing to the acceptable condition of the item, its written right there on the forms.

I dont appreciate you coming into a thread and spouting off that im not a decent human being when you dont know what youre talking about.


[quote name='Koggit']sitting on their thumbs while you performance quality checks on the product they're delivering is not at all part of their job.. it's not a matter of "hurting their feelings" it's a matter of being a decent human being and not being a dick. i'm almost positive if he wanted to he could refuse to let you open the package until you sign for it... in fact i'm almost positive that's what he should do in that sort of situation.

personally if i were a delivery dude and some prick tried that shit on me i'd refuse to let them open it until they signed, and then i'd be sure to drop or lose every single other package he ever ordered...[/QUOTE]
 
[quote name='VipFREAK']That's exactly why I have problems buying a tv online in the first place. After a while it doesn't seem worth it since if you do send it back, you get another one, and it's the same problem.[/QUOTE]

you know i had the same delivery guys bring me the same tv and it be broken in back to back deliveries. one time the screen was smashed. I was NOT happy since I lived in a region that only offered delivery one day a week. that was a while ago and my recent experiences have been much much better.

Id always prefer to buy local if the prices are close, everything about it is easier and youre putting your $ into your community. its definately an easier process.
 
[quote name='Koggit']sitting on their thumbs while you performance quality checks on the product they're delivering is not at all part of their job.. it's not a matter of "hurting their feelings" it's a matter of being a decent human being and not being a dick. i'm almost positive if he wanted to he could refuse to let you open the package until you sign for it... in fact i'm almost positive that's what he should do in that sort of situation.

personally if i were a delivery dude and some prick tried that shit on me i'd refuse to let them open it until they signed, and then i'd be sure to drop or lose every single other package he ever ordered...[/QUOTE]

You must be that asshole at Taco Bell that keeps breaking the taco shells you give me. Thanks.
 
[quote name='gordojones88']The delivery guys will be very helpful. They will offer you any assistance you require. They want to make sure you are happy before you sign and they leave. They are professional delivery men whose job depends on customer satisfaction.[/QUOTE]

I hope you're right, although as an order from circuitcity.com and not a "delivered" item like I would get if I bought from BB and had it delivered to my home, I get the impression this is more like a shipper, but as it is not a standard shipper like UPS or Fedex I don't really know.

As it stands now they still have not processed my order (I see they have run the balance on my CC but not actually charged it). Wonder what's taking them so long. Perhaps it's just backlog from the busiest shopping weekend of the year.

Anyone ever hear of AIT Logistics? That is supposedly who delivers the TV.

Whoops update: I logged into the CC site and checked again looks like the TV has shipped already. Tracking from AIT Logistics says its supposed to arrive on Dec. 8th. I guess we'll see then how it plays out! Hope it works out okay because I have to take my sister to the airport on that day so I can't stay home all day to be there when the package arrives.

Ruahrc
 
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my experience is youll get a call a day or two before the scheduled date to iron out a delivery window.
good luck. let us know how it goes.

[quote name='Ruahrc']I hope you're right, although as an order from circuitcity.com and not a "delivered" item like I would get if I bought from BB and had it delivered to my home, I get the impression this is more like a shipper, but as it is not a standard shipper like UPS or Fedex I don't really know.

As it stands now they still have not processed my order (I see they have run the balance on my CC but not actually charged it). Wonder what's taking them so long. Perhaps it's just backlog from the busiest shopping weekend of the year.

Anyone ever hear of AIT Logistics? That is supposedly who delivers the TV.

Whoops update: I logged into the CC site and checked again looks like the TV has shipped already. Tracking from AIT Logistics says its supposed to arrive on Dec. 8th. I guess we'll see then how it plays out! Hope it works out okay because I have to take my sister to the airport on that day so I can't stay home all day to be there when the package arrives.

Ruahrc[/QUOTE]
 
I bought my parent's TV from 6ave and it'll be delivered by UPS. Told my brother to go to their home that day or the next to go and put the tv through it's paces. Here's hoping everything goes smoothly.
 
[quote name='XxFuRy2Xx']I bought my parent's TV from 6ave and it'll be delivered by UPS. Told my brother to go to their home that day or the next to go and put the tv through it's paces. Here's hoping everything goes smoothly.[/QUOTE]

seriously? UPS? thats interesting. let us know if they just drop deliver it. i really dont like that. Is it a smaller tv? maybe thats the difference.
 
Actually, my 28in monitor came via UPS. That's why I was kinda iffy about the tv delivery, but yeah I'd hope if it's an expensive tv they'd use some that specializes in delivering.
 
I bought a 40" Toshiba LCD from Newegg on 11/25/09(wed). Had to pay $39 bucks extra for shipping. I get an email that it's being delivered by UPS and needs an adult signature upon delivery. Newegg sends out the tv on friday 11/27/09 from their New Jersey warehouse. I live in New York (long island) so I expect it to take the usual 3 days and arrive on 12/01/09 (they also expected this to be the delivery date because I got a recorded message from UPS stating someone had to be home to sign). I start tracking the tv via the tracking number but instead of crossing the river east from Jersey to New York, UPS sends it to Pennsylvania, then Ohio and finally to Indianapolis!! Some genius must have realized it was heading the wrong way and now its headed back to Jersey and is schedualed for "redelivery" on 12/02/09. I hope my tv was packaged well cause all that traveling and changing trucks makes me really nervous.
 
im honestly shocked to hear they sent a 40" via UPS. i get the sub 32".
the last display i had delivered was in march from 6ave it was a 50" and was delivered by a delivery service, i had a 22" monitor delivered via ups around that time also.

i hope you guys dont have any problems. yikes.
 
Well I guess I'll find out tomorrow. I don't know about making the UPS guy wait while we check the tv out. My wife will be home for most of the day and she's not going to know what to do anyway. If the box is crushed yeah but if it's not so obvious then she'll just sign. They usually drop crap off and run like the wind. Around this time of year they also have 2 guys per truck. One just runs out and delivers and the other hauls azz as soon as the first guy makes it back!
 
[quote name='paz9x']im honestly shocked to hear they sent a 40" via UPS. i get the sub 32".
the last display i had delivered was in march from 6ave it was a 50" and was delivered by a delivery service, i had a 22" monitor delivered via ups around that time also.

i hope you guys dont have any problems. yikes.[/QUOTE]
The 50" plasma I ordered from 6ave is supposed to come this Friday, UPS Ground. Shipping weight is 102 lbs. so I'm sure I'll have to help the delivery guy get it off the truck. Definitely won't make him wait around for me to unbox that sucker.
 
Well i got my 40" Toshiba lcd tv about an hour ago from Newegg. Newegg made a box and surrounded the retail box with padding around the corners. The corner padding kind of moved during shipping but the retail box looks great (just like if I picked it up retail) and surprisingly the outer cardboard box looked ok considering UPS sent it west 3 states over before sending it back east to New York. Like I said in my previous post, the UPS guys ( 2 to a truck during the holidays) brought it to my door on a handtruck and I had to sign for it outside. They weren't going to stick around for me to open it. My wife scanned the box while I showed ID and signed for it. As they were leaving one guy says I could roll the box end over end to get it into the house easier!! I politely smiled and waved goodbye. That made me nervous........ but all seems well. This is a gift for Christmas so I am going to leave it there and hope all is ok inside the box but it seems fine.
 
Looks like myself and redline got the exact same TV. I got my parents the 50" panny on sale from 6ave, and UPS guy will be delivering. I'm about to call my parents and tell them to make sure that the box is in good condition before signing for it. They're far too trusting.
 
Fry's has the Samsung 52" LCD LN52B550 advertised today for "$1129 after instant rebate but before in store savings".

I called them up to find out what the in store savings amount to, and it's $1019 in store.

Amazon and newegg have it at $1119 and free shipping (tax at newegg for CA though), though with CA tax at Fry's it would work out to about $1120 (not including any shipping or having to pick it up and take it home yourself).

I bit the bullet and bought it, after checking out warehousedeals to see if they had any insanely good prices on this one (LOL, they only had a $60 discount for open box units but were charging $50 + for shipping).
 
Honestly I was thinking about getting the 46" B550 with a blu-ray player for $870 but after comparing it to the B650 at Best Buy there is no way I'd get the 550. Only problem is that I can't find it for less than $1359. I might just wait a month or two and see if I can get one for a lot less when the new models start shipping. Was also thinking about settling for the B630 which is essentially the same except without a high gloss screen and 20K less dynamic contrast. The B650 looks amazing though.
 
[quote name='freshzen']Honestly I was thinking about getting the 46" B550 with a blu-ray player for $870 but after comparing it to the B650 at Best Buy there is no way I'd get the 550. Only problem is that I can't find it for less than $1359. I might just wait a month or two and see if I can get one for a lot less when the new models start shipping. Was also thinking about settling for the B630 which is essentially the same except without a high gloss screen and 20K less dynamic contrast. The B650 looks amazing though.[/QUOTE]

52" B630 was $994 ($800 or so off) at Fry's on Black Friday...would have jumped on it but found out way too late to get out there and hope for a shot at it.

I'll settle for the 52" 550, as this will do me just fine for the next few years. I will probably get a 65" (or even larger by then, LOL) LED/OLED/??? in a few years when we move into a larger house.

BTW, I would definitely recommend you wait then until at least the beginning of the year and the Super Bowl sales especially. Usually amazing deals around the end of January. Also, around March Madness you get good deals as well. Good luck!
 
I'm gonna revisit this thread as my TV is supposed to be delivered today. The delivery company gave me a 3 hr window in which to be there to receive the TV so I will go home a little early and wait for it. Will post again later with hopefully good news of an ordered TV with no problems!

Extra bonus is that I think the slew of cables I ordered from Monoprice arrive today as well so I won't have to wait long to implement my cabling setup (I bought a bunch of short cables so there isn't a whole lot of excess running around all over)

Ruahrc
 
Well good news! Delivery service came by to deliver the TV and everything worked out pretty well. The TV box was not in a separate box which worried me at first but it looked like it was in good condition so the box could not have taken too much abuse in transit. I didn't demand to open and hook up the TV in front of the delivery guy but he did hang around for a minute while I opened the box to see if there were any big defects like loose things rattling around in the box which could have damaged the screen. Everything checked out okay.

Got the TV assembled and connected, everything's looking great! No dead pixels and the picture quality is really good. I am not a super high end TV user and this set looks like it provides more than what I am looking for in image quality. I have not had enough time to figure everything out with it and clearly a lot of tweaking to the settings will be needed but so far I'm happy with what I see. I do intend to do a pretty careful calibration of the set to get it tuned right (I want to try to do it with my monitor calibrator too) but I will have to work on that as time goes on.

The off-angle viewing is fine for my setup and only gets to be bad if you get to the really wonky angles. Switching the TV to "game" mode there is no input lag for gaming (at least not enough that I could tell), even on the standard modes there does not seem to be any but perhaps I can detect a subtle difference between the two modes. This was one of the things I was worried about especially as there were basically no reviews or info on the TV out yet- but it turned out to work out great for me.

Only "problem" I detected was that the TV does not seem to be passing 5.1 audio through its optical out port. I had originally connected up my 360 using just the HDMI cable thinking I could output the 5.1 via the optical port on the TV into my receiver but I only get stereo sound in this setup. Is it a setting or a problem or what I am not sure (need to dig into the manual a little) but for now I just connect the 360 direct to the receiver via the audio dongle. I would like to get it to work with just HDMI in the future though so I can connect multiple HDMI things to the TV and get the 5.1 audio.

Other than that things look pretty good. It's a little more reflective than I would like but if I turn out certain lights it is not an issue. Anyhow thanks for everyone's input in this thread hope you all find/get TVs you like too! As it stands right now I'm pretty happy with my purchase, especially considering the pretty good price I was able to land on it.

Ruahrc
 
[quote name='Ruahrc']
Only "problem" I detected was that the TV does not seem to be passing 5.1 audio through its optical out port. I had originally connected up my 360 using just the HDMI cable thinking I could output the 5.1 via the optical port on the TV into my receiver but I only get stereo sound in this setup. Is it a setting or a problem or what I am not sure (need to dig into the manual a little) but for now I just connect the 360 direct to the receiver via the audio dongle. I would like to get it to work with just HDMI in the future though so I can connect multiple HDMI things to the TV and get the 5.1 audio.
[/QUOTE]

It's not going to work. My new Panasonic TCP46U had the same problem. I found buried deep in the manual that it said optical output downgrades to stereo when HDMI is the source. Very very frustrating as all 3 HDMI inputs to the tv has to be run separately to the receiver, and then I have to switch receiver sound every time I switch tv source. So I go to use the Xbox 360 optical out and what do you know, my Microsoft component/optical cable plug won't fit next to the HDMI plug on the back of the xbox, it's too big. Luckily my new Wii/360/PS3 component cable had a smaller AV/optical plug that did fit next to the HDMI plug on the back of the 360. This must certainly be a legal issue pertaining to HDMI.
 
My "reciever" isn't really an AVR like you think it is. I use the klipsch dd5.1 decoder box which was a small decoder unit made as a companion to their Promedia 5.1 speakers. It has 2 digital audio inputs and will decode DD5.1 and DTS audio. I use one digital input (TOSLINK) for my mac laptop and the other one (a coaxial SPDIF input) for the xbox audio. I bought a little optical to coaxial converter so I can use the optical audio on the 360 as coaxial audio on the decoder. Because the decoder only has 2 digital inputs I'd like to get the TV to just pass through digital audio into the box so that all the digital devices I would have would use the digital audio on the decoder.

I'll have to read through my manual to see if my TV has the same problem. I hear of other people getting it to work (no mention of my specific TV) though and even if you read the MS marketing literature on the xbox HDMI ports it advertises that you can do both digital video and 5.1 audio over the single HDMI cable. I really don't think it's a legal issue persay, given that the whole point of the HDMI cable was specifically to incorporate an all digital video and audio connection into a single cable. And what would be the point of passing 5.1 digital audio to a TV if it was only allowed to play over 2 speakers as stereo?

Ruahrc
 
Ruahrc can you post pics? The IPS screen worth it in the end? Looks like I may have to wait to score a deal on the 47sl90. Too bad it isn't back lit.
 
I will see if I can post some pics this weekend or something. TV area is still a little disorganized from the install too :)

I like the IPS screen. I got out my monitor calibrator yesterday and calibrated the TV while it was connected to my laptop. I looked through a bunch of my digital photos and they look amazing on it. The calibration measured in pretty good with an average dE2000 of just over 1. Might be able to improve on that if I fiddle around a little bit too but probably won't bother as I don't really intend to use it for color-critical work. It was pretty sweet to look at apple.com movie trailers in 1080p on a big screen.

I'm also liking the gaming performance as well. There really isn't any input lag that I can tell so far and I even tried turning on a bunch of the processing options (things like noise reduction, 120Hz frame interpolation, etc) and I still could not really detect any lag. I was playing Forza 3 though which might not seem quite as sensitive to input lag as say a shooter. I will have to test more with games like borderlands or Halo ODST.

i love the styling but definitely the product photos you see on the web do make it look better than it ends up looking for real because the product shots don't have reflections on the screen :). In most lighting conditions you can still see the border between the screen and the frame when the TV is off, although it all sits under a uniform glass surface. Whereas in the product photos the whole screen area is uniformly black. At any rate it is still one of the best looking TV stylings I have seen. When it's off and in a bright room it is pretty reflective but when it's on it's not an issue. I just keep on some indirect lighting and the reflections are very low.

I'm okay with the edge lit TV. I'm not a super videophile and also typically you need to turn off local dimming for gaming anyways due to the input lag (local dimming involves processing the image on the screen to know what parts to dim) so if you are going to mainly game on the TV then the local dimming may not be a big benefit to you. I guess it would be nice for movies but local dimming sets were stretching the budget.

Ruahrc
 
[quote name='driftmr2']Ruahrc can you post pics? The IPS screen worth it in the end? Looks like I may have to wait to score a deal on the 47sl90. Too bad it isn't back lit.[/QUOTE]

I saw the 47LH90 on Sears.com for $1500. I believe the LH90 is supposed to be a step up right? Not sure if that is more than you wanted to spend, probably about what the SL90 is sold for or possibly even a bit less. Personally I am strongly leaning towards a PN50B650. Would like to avoid off angle viewing problems, and I have read LED is even worse than standard LCD.
 
[quote name='freshzen']I saw the 47LH90 on Sears.com for $1500. I believe the LH90 is supposed to be a step up right? Not sure if that is more than you wanted to spend, probably about what the SL90 is sold for or possibly even a bit less. Personally I am strongly leaning towards a PN50B650. Would like to avoid off angle viewing problems, and I have read LED is even worse than standard LCD.[/QUOTE]

it is for viewing angles.
 
I know it doesn't have anything to do with black friday, but just wanted to post that I finally found and bought a television. I bought the Panasonic Viera TC-L32S1 32" 1080p LCD TV for about $454 shipped.
 
[quote name='paz9x']it is for viewing angles.[/QUOTE]

I hear this a lot but have yet to see proof. I was thinking about this the other day and could not really come up with a legitimate reasoning as to why changing the backlight affects the viewing angles, when it really should be independent of the backlight/method used? Especially after you consider that all the backlights are being diffused anyways. I thought the LCD panel itself was the one responsible for the viewing angles, and not the backlight.

I also have yet to see any quantitative evidence that LED TVs measure worse on viewing angles, all I see is reviews saying "it looked worse on off-angle viewing" with nothing to back up their claims. I have only really had experience with my current LED TV, and am willing to accept that a LED TV does have worse off-angle viewing, but only after I see some measured proof. I would suggest that people take this claim with a grain of salt and try to do some personal viewing comparisons before concluding on this. Just my $0.02.

Anyways, I took some pics of my TV for you guys to see. I took a few shots from the side (both with screen off and on, so you can judge reflections) as well as some front shots (again with the same variations). Click the spoiler to see.

Keep in mind these were taken in the daytime but with the shades closed (as I usally have it). There is some more reflections in the daytime as ambient light leaks in as well as lamps on vs. at night when you can turn a lot more off. At night I usually leave one or two indirect lights on providing illumination to the room but minimizing reflections.

Also note that I turned the backlighting down a bit (all the way to 0, I typically run it at 27 out of 100) in these pictures where the screen is on, so that the brightness difference of the room and the screen is not too great and it doesn't blow out on the photo. In reality the screen brightness is a bit higher than this and also since your eye can see much more dynamic range the reflections get subdued a little more.

Side view, screen off. There is a large glass sliding door just to the right of the photo. Had I taken the picture from the opposite side of the TV you would see a lot more reflection due to the glass door being over there.
sideoff.jpg


Side view, screen on.
sideon.jpg


Front view, screen off. Also in this pic I have turned on a floor lamp that sits next to the couch so you can see in bad situations the reflections can be very bad. In reality though any TV with a glossy screen will behave like this and even a matte screen will have some level of washout due to the lamp positioning (I used to have a 22" LCD monitor here and would have the same issue if I used that lamp).
frontlampoff.jpg


If you turn the screen that lamp is still easily visible but actually if you're playing a game you don't focus on it and it's not as bad as it seems. Nevertheless I usually don't use the floor lamp when gaming or doing serious watching.
frontlampon.jpg


Turning that lamp off and using other indirect lighting the reflections are much more controlled. Here is the screen off.
frontoff.jpg


Lastly screen on with the lamp off.
fronton.jpg


As I mentioned before I am very happy with the picture quality. I have gotten the picture settings tuned in pretty much to where I want them now and I am liking it. I do have a colorimeter and did balance the white point for D65. Someday I might try to use my colorimeter to fully calibrate up the screen although I did run some test patterns and in the default configuration the screen setup is quite good.
 
there are side by side photos on avs.
there've also been an article or two explaining the tech and why it negatively effects viewing angles.

you can also do your own, though not the greatest of enviornments viewing in a showroom. its apparent there as well.

In my opinion, if youre concerned with viewing angles you shouldnt be getting an lcd in the first place. the
benefit in picture quality led lends, outweighs the shrinking viewing angles in comarison to other lcd displays.

but yes the viewing angles are worse its not an opinion its a fact.

[quote name='Ruahrc']I hear this a lot but have yet to see proof. I was thinking about this the other day and could not really come up with a legitimate reasoning as to why changing the backlight affects the viewing angles, when it really should be independent of the backlight/method used? Especially after you consider that all the backlights are being diffused anyways. I thought the LCD panel itself was the one responsible for the viewing angles, and not the backlight.

I also have yet to see any quantitative evidence that LED TVs measure worse on viewing angles, all I see is reviews saying "it looked worse on off-angle viewing" with nothing to back up their claims. I have only really had experience with my current LED TV, and am willing to accept that a LED TV does have worse off-angle viewing, but only after I see some measured proof. I would suggest that people take this claim with a grain of salt and try to do some personal viewing comparisons before concluding on this. Just my $0.02.

Anyways, I took some pics of my TV for you guys to see. I took a few shots from the side (both with screen off and on, so you can judge reflections) as well as some front shots (again with the same variations). Click the spoiler to see.

Keep in mind these were taken in the daytime but with the shades closed (as I usally have it). There is some more reflections in the daytime as ambient light leaks in as well as lamps on vs. at night when you can turn a lot more off. At night I usually leave one or two indirect lights on providing illumination to the room but minimizing reflections.

Also note that I turned the backlighting down a bit (all the way to 0, I typically run it at 27 out of 100) in these pictures where the screen is on, so that the brightness difference of the room and the screen is not too great and it doesn't blow out on the photo. In reality the screen brightness is a bit higher than this and also since your eye can see much more dynamic range the reflections get subdued a little more.

Side view, screen off. There is a large glass sliding door just to the right of the photo. Had I taken the picture from the opposite side of the TV you would see a lot more reflection due to the glass door being over there.
sideoff.jpg


Side view, screen on.
sideon.jpg


Front view, screen off. Also in this pic I have turned on a floor lamp that sits next to the couch so you can see in bad situations the reflections can be very bad. In reality though any TV with a glossy screen will behave like this and even a matte screen will have some level of washout due to the lamp positioning (I used to have a 22" LCD monitor here and would have the same issue if I used that lamp).
frontlampoff.jpg


If you turn the screen that lamp is still easily visible but actually if you're playing a game you don't focus on it and it's not as bad as it seems. Nevertheless I usually don't use the floor lamp when gaming or doing serious watching.
frontlampon.jpg


Turning that lamp off and using other indirect lighting the reflections are much more controlled. Here is the screen off.
frontoff.jpg


Lastly screen on with the lamp off.
fronton.jpg


As I mentioned before I am very happy with the picture quality. I have gotten the picture settings tuned in pretty much to where I want them now and I am liking it. I do have a colorimeter and did balance the white point for D65. Someday I might try to use my colorimeter to fully calibrate up the screen although I did run some test patterns and in the default configuration the screen setup is quite good.
[/QUOTE]
 
[quote name='paz9x']there are side by side photos on avs.
there've also been an article or two explaining the tech and why it negatively effects viewing angles.[/QUOTE]

Can you post or PM a link to the article(s)? I'm not trying to rag on you I've been curious about this myself and would like to see the articles for the explanation.

Ruahrc
 
[quote name='Ruahrc']Can you post or PM a link to the article(s)? I'm not trying to rag on you I've been curious about this myself and would like to see the articles for the explanation.

Ruahrc[/QUOTE]

haha no worries man. i can tell youre a legit guy.
ill try and find them tomorrow. its late and ive been on the damn roof for hours hanging lights.
 
Viewing angle isn't my biggest selling point. I am interested in saving space and lowering power consumption. That is one of the reasons why the LED tvs appeal so much to me. My 24" LED Apple Cinema Display has an amazing viewing angle.

My Mom just got a 50" Samsung plasma tv black friday, not sure what model. I was pretty impressed with the picture, especially the darkness of the blacks.
 
Keep in mind that unless you're wall mounting the TV, a thin LED model is not really "saving" that much space. The stand on the bottom of the TV still takes up approximately the same depth as a standard TV, just the panel that sits on it is a lot thinner. For example the surface of my TV screen is sitting about 6" from the wall, about the same as it would be if I had gone with a thicker CCFL model due to the depth of the stand being the limiting factor. Wall mounting the TV you'll be able to get the surface of the TV screen closer to the wall, but are you really going to notice that you have an extra 2" of space right up against the wall?
 
im struggling to find that info. there are SO many threads. i saw your posts over there. the one decent reply was technically accurate as the led's focus light output. thats not to the detail ive seen described.
ill keep looking. the articles were linked through avs and the picture comparisons were within a thread in the plasma forum. Ill keep looking but man its like a needle in a haystack over there.
 
[quote name='paz9x']im struggling to find that info. there are SO many threads. i saw your posts over there. the one decent reply was technically accurate as the led's focus light output. thats not to the detail ive seen described.
ill keep looking. the articles were linked through avs and the picture comparisons were within a thread in the plasma forum. Ill keep looking but man its like a needle in a haystack over there.[/QUOTE]

Hehe well don't fret too much if you can't come up with it. I appreciate you looking though.

The one guy who claimed that LEDs focus the light on output has a point, but still when you consider that even in the LED direct-backlit situation it is being diffused, and in the edge lit situation it is being diffused and turned 90 degrees, I'm not so sure the focused pattern of light output from the LEDs really affects anything in the bigger scheme.

Also I think LEDs can be made to focus light output in different ways, depending on the packaging. I have not seen what the LEDs inside TVs look like but the traditional little pill-looking LED shape, it is the shape of the plastic molding that is focusing as much light upwards and outwards. If you change the shape of the plastic molding you can alter the light output pattern.

Ruahrc
 
Well for me the benefits are coming from upgrading from an old 32" Sony Triniton CRT lol. I guess any newer tv would fit that bill. I have been waiting for the tv to die but not sure I can wait that long lol.
 
[quote name='Ruahrc']Hehe well don't fret too much if you can't come up with it. I appreciate you looking though.

The one guy who claimed that LEDs focus the light on output has a point, but still when you consider that even in the LED direct-backlit situation it is being diffused, and in the edge lit situation it is being diffused and turned 90 degrees, I'm not so sure the focused pattern of light output from the LEDs really affects anything in the bigger scheme.

Also I think LEDs can be made to focus light output in different ways, depending on the packaging. I have not seen what the LEDs inside TVs look like but the traditional little pill-looking LED shape, it is the shape of the plastic molding that is focusing as much light upwards and outwards. If you change the shape of the plastic molding you can alter the light output pattern.

Ruahrc[/QUOTE]

in the display tech I understood focusing the emission as a benefit. without that the blooming and dimming artifacts would be much worse.

that site is just to big, especially since the info is close to a year old.
 
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