30 in Widescreen HDTV - $320-$388 shipped, Philips Outlet

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http://www.outlet.philips.com/b2c_r.../41907ABB9A6F008D00000000828BD472&shop=OUTLET
http://www.electronicsnation.com/en/products/show_product/category/2131

Electronics Nation will pricematch the Philips Outlet (they're an affiliate, or an authorized reseller, or something, and are reputable), and they offer extended warranties for extra cash.

Before you make a major purchase on an HDTV, do your research at:
http://www.avsforum.com/

Here are the pros and cons on the 3 major models usually found at Philips Outlet:

30PW850H: $359
0003784993574_215X215.jpg

Pros:
Fewer problems overall, more likely to get a working unit without any problems
2 component inputs
Has both the 3D comb filter and 'eye fidelity' (480i to 480p upscaling)

Cons:
No HDMI
Can not adjust aspect ratio except on 480i, non widescreen will be stretched.

Avsforum thread: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=366742&page=1&pp=30


30PW8420: $388
43361EBF325F00D700000000828BD472.jpg

Pros:
HDMI port
3D comb filter

Cons:
Somewhat more prone to certain issues, minor hum, geometry, and broken units
Only 1 component input
No 'eye fidelity' (480i to 480p upscaling)


30PW8402: $320-$350
118246-2212p147-4b.jpg

Pros:
HDMI port
2 component inputs
'Eye fidelity'

Cons:
Least reliable, most prone to problems, such as speaker interference with the screen, geometry, and DOA
No 3D comb filter

Other models:
30PW8520 - Picture in picture, 2 component inputs, no HDMI. Not often available
30PW9xxxD - Built in OTA tuner, but analog signals look like crap, often more expensive.


Don't take my word for it, DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH BEFORE YOU BUY! I will not be responsible if you are unhappy with your purchase, and neither will Philips Outlet. Their return policy on refurbs is 30 days, on site repair, shipping back to them at their expense if required, but no refunds, exchange for identical item only. They will only refund your money if they no longer have your model in stock.
 
mmmm, sounds very intriguing and looks like a great deal. I don't have much knowledge on HDTV's, how would you rate this one? If I played my xbox on it would it kick major cheapa$$? Does is support 480p and 720p?? Thanks for the info.
 
Would someone please tell me that this is a bad deal, or a bad TV, or that I should wait, because I'm really tempted to buy this even though a new TV is the last thing I need.
 
does this TV have the integrated HDTV tuner in it, or do you have to purchase that seperately... if it has it, I am ALL over this
 
Same here man, I don't need a tv but if it is great for gaming I may be tempted. We have so many tv's in the house its ridiculous but none are HDTV.
 
[quote name='zman73']does this TV have the integrated HDTV tuner in it, or do you have to purchase that seperately... if it has it, I am ALL over this[/QUOTE]

What does that do?
 
It does not have a tuner, so if you're hoping to pull down HDTV broadcasts from the air, you'll have to buy your own. (They call them HDTV monitors, not TV sets.) If you're using HD cable or satellite or what have you, they tend to provide you with a tuner box.
 
Pulled from the specs sheet: Link to PDF

Two Component video inputs, supporting 1080i and 480p
Two S-Video ins (one side, shared with composite, one rear, shared with component)
Three Composite Video ins (one side, shared w/S-video, two rear)
Monitor out (composite AV)
No HD tuner.

Also note that this is Factory Recertified and comes with a 90-day warranty.
 
Phillips HD is kind of a mixed bag. They are usually on the cheaper end of HDs due to lack of inputs, some buggy issues, and stuff like that. Having said that though, that's a pretty damn cheap HD that would be worth the risk most likely.

There are things I don't like about Phillips HD, but again, that's cheap!
 
For anyone curious about this site - I got my home theater setup from them a few months ago. Not only does it work perfectly but the shipping is very fast.

I would buy from them again.

I've heard that some people have "loud squealing issues" with this TV. Meaning you can hear some kind of high pitched sound coming out of it. Most have said with surround sound on, you can't hear it, but its there.

But thats about the only major issue I've heard, and who knows how legit that is.

Also note that its going to be about $400 after taxes.
 
A> Gaming would be fine as its mot plasma (so no burn in form life bars or ammo or radar indicators)

B> Hd ready means ANYTHING plugged into the component hook-ups that supports 480,720 or 1080 will run in those settings w/o a tuner (tuner is for TV signals)


$359 is a good deal for a 30 inch hdtv...phillips is blah, but for an extra tv or a starter HD...take it
 
I bought one.

It does not have an HD Tuner, but Comcast makes you use theirs for their service anyway. It does 1080i and 480p, the Comcast box can convert everything into 1080i if you'd like. This TV goes for $700-$800... Here is the same TV at Bestbuy, on sale this week for $700:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...CategoryId=pcmcat31800050030&id=1077624868351

Of course, the one at Bestbuy is new, and this one is recertified. And the one at Bestbuy has HDMI, and this one does not.
 
AGAIN let me repeat:

> Hd ready means ANYTHING plugged into the component hook-ups that supports 480,720 or 1080 will run in those settings w/o a tuner (tuner is for TV signals)


So unless you wanna spend money to watch TV broadcasts (which cable makes you pay extra for and its usually HBO) in HD just get an HD ready TV people
 
I wish I had the money to buy one. I bought a 27" SDTV for about half that price a few months back. Now I crave line doubling and true progressive scan.
 
Yeah, if you google the part number, you see that these have been on sale forever, slowly dropping in price, so that must mean that there are either a lot of them (read: a lot of these TVs had to be refurbed) or that they just don't sell (read: people aren't buying them, maybe because they know better). But for $375 for a starter HD TV that's basically the largest set I'll ever be able to fit into my current house anyway ... hard to argue with. I have said all year that if I earn some dividends later this year as I expect to, I would probably drop some serious money on a HDTV ... but to be able to do it without dropping serious cash? It's not my dream TV, but for a single-income, two-kid household, I bet it will seem pretty dreamy.
 
[quote name='swick']If only it wasn't a refurb...[/QUOTE]

A refurb could simply mean it was sent back to the factory because the remote was broken.

It could be because the dongle at the end of the plug that goes in the wall was broken.

It could be because some moron couldn't figure out how to adjust the settings on it and didn't read the manual and just decided to return it instead of figuring it out.

A refurb doesn't always mean it was a piece of shit that they had to spend hours fixing.
 
Refurbs are incredible.

For instance, I purchased my 57 inch Hitachi HDTV from UECweb.com for 1300 bucks 2 years ago, and it's been absolutely flawless. I would have spent 2500+ in the store.

Another weird issue with many Phillips HD is that component inputs don't have switches. This comes into play when using an Xbox for instance, because the dashboard will not display at all. Once the game starts, and the 480p or above game kicks in, then the display will be fine. But until then, nothing but black because internally there is no switch for 480i.

But besides that, this should be a great gaming HD for most people.
 
Dam, you guys are making me want to impulse buy. I might by the end of the day after reading all this. Thanks for the great info everyone.
 
[quote name='breathofj']Refurbs are incredible.

For instance, I purchased my 57 inch Hitachi HDTV from UECweb.com for 1300 bucks 2 years ago, and it's been absolutely flawless. I would have spent 2500+ in the store.

Another weird issue with many Phillips HD is that component inputs don't have switches. This comes into play when using an Xbox for instance, because the dashboard will not display at all. Once the game starts, and the 480p or above game kicks in, then the display will be fine. But until then, nothing but black because internally there is no switch for 480i.

But besides that, this should be a great gaming HD for most people.[/QUOTE]
You can set the dashboard to always output 480p, I have to do that for my HD-VGA adapter.

[quote name='seanw']Yeah, if you google the part number, you see that these have been on sale forever, slowly dropping in price, so that must mean that there are either a lot of them (read: a lot of these TVs had to be refurbed) or that they just don't sell (read: people aren't buying them, maybe because they know better). But for $375 for a starter HD TV that's basically the largest set I'll ever be able to fit into my current house anyway ... hard to argue with. I have said all year that if I earn some dividends later this year as I expect to, I would probably drop some serious money on a HDTV ... but to be able to do it without dropping serious cash? It's not my dream TV, but for a single-income, two-kid household, I bet it will seem pretty dreamy.[/QUOTE]
I think its because of what it costs... $800 for a 30 inch CRT just isn't a good price. These used to be available for $500 refurbed not too long ago, and that was considered a nice deal. Philips might only be an OK brand, but at least its not an Apex.

They do have other TV's on the site, but this is probably the best deal.
 
[quote name='dafoomie']Link
Plus tax where taxable.

Hmm, I posted this in Other deals + Requests, but it ended up here... Move if you'd like.[/QUOTE]

fucking fuck shit... I might pull the trigger... That is a sweet deal... I Gotta look up the specs or whatever, but damn.
 
[quote name='dafoomie']You can set the dashboard to always output 480p, I have to do that for my HD-VGA adapter.


I think its because of what it costs... $800 for a 30 inch CRT just isn't a good price. These used to be available for $500 refurbed not too long ago, and that was considered a nice deal. Philips might only be an OK brand, but at least its not an Apex.

They do have other TV's on the site, but this is probably the best deal.[/QUOTE]

Hey now.... I love my 27" $200 apex! Sure... it came from walmart... but it has 4 inputs, a flat tube and it does look pretty nice.
 
[quote name='Kayden']Hey now.... I love my 27" $200 apex! Sure... it came from walmart... but it has 4 inputs, a flat tube and it does look pretty nice.[/QUOTE]
I have a $60 20" Apex, nothing wrong with it, but its one of the brands that people like to rag on as being low quality.

Put it this way, at least its not an Orion, those things are horrible. Or a Sansui. At least Philips is an actual brand.
 
[quote name='Admiral Ackbar']This thread is now officially a CAG State Secret!

cagcommie.jpg
[/QUOTE]

oh n0es! its teh gestapo!
 
[quote name='Admiral Ackbar']This thread is now officially a CAG State Secret!

cagcommie.jpg
[/QUOTE]

If only it wasn't posted there first!

:p
 
[quote name='Franz']If only it wasn't posted there first!

:p[/QUOTE]
There being SlickDeals?

They had it two days ago.
 
[quote name='radjago']There being SlickDeals?

They had it two days ago.[/QUOTE]

3 days ago and they said it sold out already just try to complete checkout
 
Ah..I was looking at this TV in CompUSA a couple weeks ago thinking it was pretty good for the $800 they wanted for it. So, looked online, saw it for $400 or $500 at Sam's Club and considered it. Now..I think I'm gonna do it. I really think I am. :p

Thanks OP! And thanks everyone else for the info about this TV, HD in general, refurbs and stuff. :p
 
It was already on a couple other sites before I posted, though I found it on the Philips site first, and I looked at deal sites to see if they had more information.

Some places have this listed as sold out, but it periodically restocks. I think daily. It was in and out of stock yesterday, but I ordered mine today.
 
Reality check.

And this might only apply to me, who's not going to pay for HD cable or an HD antenna/tuner, only has a Gamecube for current-gen gaming and really likes to watch DVDs.

This is a nice set, but

1. It doesn't have HDMI, which is far and away the preferred output for HD DVD players. If you're buying to be a long-term, future-compatible monitor, that's a major hit. The different between component and HDMI is probably similar to that between S-video and component, or maybe even composite and component.

2. I currently have a 32" SDTV. Obviously, this screen is a little smaller altogether, but it's better for widescreen movies and TV and so forth. Except: Without digital cable/tuners, the only way to watch widescreen TV is to zoom in on the picture -- a quality loss, especially if you're using standard analog cable.

3. But the real hit is in gaming: Just because a game is 480p doesn't mean that it's widescreen. So, correct me if I'm wrong, but when you play non-16:9 480p games, that means that you're either playing them in 4:3, which is the equivalent of a 25" or 27" image in the middle of the screen, or you're playing them stretched out, right? As much as I like the sharpness, losing 5" of image off my diagonal is, to me, a net loss.

Those are three big strikes for me. I was totally about to do this, but I don't want to make that big of an image size/quality trade, and I don't want to buy a new HDTV whlie I still have a good SDTV and not at least get HDMI inputs.
 
[quote name='seanw']

1. It doesn't have HDMI, which is far and away the preferred output for HD DVD players. If you're buying to be a long-term, future-compatible monitor, that's a major hit. The different between component and HDMI is probably similar to that between S-video and component, or maybe even composite and component.
[/QUOTE]

Wow you have been incredibly missinformed. Digital is not automatically better HDMI looks nearly identical to Component. The movie and tv industry are just forcing that standard onto people to take away your right to time shift. Thats right the entire purpose of hdmi is copy protection not higher quality video. The only difference you may notice between hdmi and component is noise and thats caused by having crap cables.

Soulcalibur 2
Resident evil 4
Burnout 2
go to HDTVarcade.com for some more
 
[quote name='seanw']Reality check.

And this might only apply to me, who's not going to pay for HD cable or an HD antenna/tuner, only has a Gamecube for current-gen gaming and really likes to watch DVDs.

This is a nice set, but

1. It doesn't have HDMI, which is far and away the preferred output for HD DVD players. If you're buying to be a long-term, future-compatible monitor, that's a major hit. The different between component and HDMI is probably similar to that between S-video and component, or maybe even composite and component.

2. I currently have a 32" SDTV. Obviously, this screen is a little smaller altogether, but it's better for widescreen movies and TV and so forth. Except: Without digital cable/tuners, the only way to watch widescreen TV is to zoom in on the picture -- a quality loss, especially if you're using standard analog cable. But the real hit is in gaming: Just because a game is 480p doesn't mean that it's widescreen. In fact, I don't think any Gamecube games are widescreen. So, correct me if I'm wrong, but when you play non-16:9 480p games, that means that you're either playing them in 4:3, which is the equivalent of a 25" or 27" image in the middle of the screen, or you're playing them stretched out, right? As much as I like the sharpness, losing 5" of image off my diagonal is, to me, a net loss.

Those are two big strikes for me. I was totally about to do this, but I don't want to make that big of an image size/quality trade, and I don't want to buy a new HDTV whlie I still have a good SDTV and not at least get HDMI inputs.[/QUOTE]

My TV is 27" to begin with....
 
[quote name='BULL_Ship']Wow you have been incredibly missinformed. Digital is not automatically better HDMI looks nearly identical to Component. The movie and tv industry are just forcing that standard onto people to take away your right to time shift. Thats right the entire purpose of hdmi is copy protection not higher quality video. The only difference you may notice between hdmi and component is noise and thats caused by having crap cables.[/QUOTE]

Ahhh. That makes sense. I had heard that the main point of HDMI was that component didn't do nearly as good of a job when it came to upconversion of non-HD images, which is what all of our DVD collections are, but that's a much better justification as to why they're moving to HDMI.

OK, so maybe that's not that big of a deal.
 
[quote name='seanw']1. It doesn't have HDMI, which is far and away the preferred output for HD DVD players. If you're buying to be a long-term, future-compatible monitor, that's a major hit. The different between component and HDMI is probably similar to that between S-video and component, or maybe even composite and component..[/QUOTE]
This is not correct, at all. There is absolutely no difference in quality between HDMI and component inputs. They're pushing HDMI hard because it supports copy protection, it has built in encryption. Also, HDMI cables have quality issues when they start getting long.

Some DVD players will only upconvert on an HDMI output because of copy protection, theres no reason why component can't.

[quote name='seanw']3. But the real hit is in gaming: Just because a game is 480p doesn't mean that it's widescreen. So, correct me if I'm wrong, but when you play non-16:9 480p games, that means that you're either playing them in 4:3, which is the equivalent of a 25" or 27" image in the middle of the screen, or you're playing them stretched out, right? As much as I like the sharpness, losing 5" of image off my diagonal is, to me, a net loss.[/QUOTE]
Many Gamecube games support widescreen, I believe most if not all of the 480p games support widescreen. Its dependant on the individual game.
 
[quote name='dafoomie']This is not correct, at all. There is absolutely no difference in quality between HDMI and component inputs. They're pushing HDMI hard because it supports copy protection, it has built in encryption. Also, HDMI cables have quality issues when they start getting long.

Some DVD players will only upconvert on an HDMI output because of copy protection, theres no reason why component can't.


Many Gamecube games support widescreen, I believe most if not all of the 480p games support widescreen. Its dependant on the individual game.[/QUOTE]
I said all of that already
 
[quote name='BULL_Ship']I said all of that already[/QUOTE]
Would you like a cookie? Maybe I was busy doing something and I didn't have time to read what was posted while I was still writing the message.
 
[quote name='dafoomie']Would you like a cookie? Maybe I was busy doing something and I didn't have time to read what was posted while I was still writing the message.[/QUOTE]
Thats why you have the option to delete the post
 
[quote name='BULL_Ship']Thats why you have the option to delete the post[/QUOTE]
I don't really care if you said it already.
 
bread's done
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