BEST LCD OR PLASMA 42" TV SET ON MARKET???
meteore
I am planning to buy one of those 42 inch LCD or plasma hdtvs
I want a TV that will be trouble free for years like my old Hitachi 35
inch TV, which still works perfect after about 15 years of heavy use.
I realize that plasmas or lcd tvs have not been on the market for 15
years, so it would be a real guess.
Can someone recommend a tv from their own personal experience. I do
not wish to read magazine reports
Which brands have the reputation of being trouble free or maintenance
free?
I do not want to buy a new set after five years.
Thanks.
Roger
Rod Speed
> I am planning to buy one of those 42 inch LCD or plasma hdtvs
> I want a TV that will be trouble free for years like my old Hitachi 35
> inch TV, which still works perfect after about 15 years of heavy use.
Thats less likely now, the technology wont necessarily last as long, particularly with plasma.
> I realize that plasmas or lcd tvs have not been on
> the market for 15 years, so it would be a real guess.
And we do know that they dont last as long as glass TVs did, particularly the plasmas.
> Can someone recommend a tv from their own personal
> experience. I do not wish to read magazine reports
That wont help with the life question, because none of the ones that have
been around for say 5 years and are still going strong are buyable now.
> Which brands have the reputation of being trouble free or maintenance free?
No such animal.
> I do not want to buy a new set after five years.
Is it really that important now that the prices have dropped to very reasonable levels ?
Logan Shaw
> I am planning to buy one of those 42 inch LCD or plasma hdtvs
>
> I want a TV that will be trouble free for years like my old Hitachi 35
> inch TV, which still works perfect after about 15 years of heavy use.
>
> I realize that plasmas or lcd tvs have not been on the market for 15
> years, so it would be a real guess.
I think this is one of those things that nobody really knows the answer
to for sure, so you have to make an educated guess based on known failure
points.
Manufacturing quality, which to some extent is determined by the
manufacturer is one characteristic that matters. Probably the best
way to gauge that is just by the manufacturer's reputations with past
products. It's no guarantee, but it's better than no information.
Another major characteristic of LCDs is the backlight. Right now,
most of the LCDs on the market use a cold-cathode fluorescent tube.
Though the actual LCD panel will last for *quite* some time, the
backlight will burn out eventually. It's just a fluorescent bulb,
after all. Personally, that's why I'm probably going to wait for
the next generation of LCD TVs, which will use LEDs as the backlight.
LEDs don't last forever, but they will last longer than cold-cathode
fluorescents, and probably something more like the time that the
LCD panel itself will last.
Right now there are a few LED backlight LCDs on the market, but
they're all really new and expensive. But there are supposed to
be more coming out, and if it gets to be a feature that is offered
on middle of the line TVs (which is what I'm assuming), I'll
probably get one of those.
- Logan
timeOday
> Another major characteristic of LCDs is the backlight. Right now,
> most of the LCDs on the market use a cold-cathode fluorescent tube.
> Though the actual LCD panel will last for *quite* some time, the
> backlight will burn out eventually. It's just a fluorescent bulb,
> after all. Personally, that's why I'm probably going to wait for
> the next generation of LCD TVs, which will use LEDs as the backlight.
On the other hand, those florescent tubes are replaceable. Right now
they're awfully expensive, but they might be a lot cheaper by the time
you need one in a few years.
Personally, I haven't gone hi-def because it was too much money, would
have obsoleted my stereo receiver, and due to programming. My old
analog cable is so expensive already. Plus everything hi-def is locked
down with DRM. If I can't watch it when and where I want, it's not
worth paying for.
Shawn Hirn
<03aec174-8343-41b7...@1g2000hsl.googlegroups.com>,
meteore <bigr...@gmail.com> wrote:
Check Consumer Reports magazine. They reviewed LCD and plasma television
sets in a recent edition. I don't recall that they had any reliability
estimates, probably because both types of TVs are too new to allow for
enough time to pass before their reliability can be assessed.
Ron Peterson
> Personally, I haven't gone hi-def because it was too much money, would
> have obsoleted my stereo receiver, and due to programming. My old
> analog cable is so expensive already. Plus everything hi-def is locked
> down with DRM. If I can't watch it when and where I want, it's not
> worth paying for.
I have a hi def tuner that works through the USB port on my computer
and allows me to record to a hard disk or view like I am using a TIVO.
--
Ron
Seerialmom
> In article
> <03aec174-8343-41b7-95d3-99faa0ebb...@1g2000hsl.googlegroups.com>,
>
> - Show quoted text -
But Shawn...one of his last sentences said he doesn't want to read
magazine reports. You'd think that perhaps the question would be
better posed in a general "consumer" group where people like to SPEND
money vs being frugal? An even better resource would be at
epinions.com, at least there people give pros/cons about electronic
devices. Oh well.
Dennis
<timeOda...@theknack.net> wrote:
>Personally, I haven't gone hi-def because it was too much money, would
>have obsoleted my stereo receiver, and due to programming. My old
>analog cable is so expensive already. Plus everything hi-def is locked
>down with DRM. If I can't watch it when and where I want, it's not
>worth paying for.
I'm not sure what you mean by that. Over-the-air HD and unencrypted
(QAM) cable HD don't have any kind of DRM. Certainly HD and Blu-ray
DVDs are encrypted, but so are standard definition DVDs. Likewise,
satellite providers have always made their programming hard to access
outside of their machines, HD or not.
Do you mean online sources? Or are you thinking of HDCP?
Dennis (evil)
--
The honest man is the one who realizes that he cannot
consume more, in his lifetime, than he produces.
timeOday
> On Sun, 03 Feb 2008 18:59:14 -0700, timeOday
> <timeOda...@theknack.net> wrote:
>
>> Personally, I haven't gone hi-def because it was too much money, would
>> have obsoleted my stereo receiver, and due to programming. My old
>> analog cable is so expensive already. Plus everything hi-def is locked
>> down with DRM. If I can't watch it when and where I want, it's not
>> worth paying for.
>
> I'm not sure what you mean by that. Over-the-air HD and unencrypted
> (QAM) cable HD don't have any kind of DRM. Certainly HD and Blu-ray
> DVDs are encrypted, but so are standard definition DVDs. Likewise,
> satellite providers have always made their programming hard to access
> outside of their machines, HD or not.
>
> Do you mean online sources? Or are you thinking of HDCP?
DVD encryption was broken long ago, so I can copy a movie to my laptop
before a long flight. (This saves the power to spin the DVD drive and
opens the option bay for an extra battery).
I haven't bought satellite or digital cable due to DRM. I'm still with
analog cable.
Shawn Hirn
<4511308d-7457-4371...@s12g2000prg.googlegroups.com>,
Seerialmom <seeri...@yahoo.com> wrote:
Good point.
Shawn Hirn
timeOday <timeOda...@theknack.net> wrote:
There is no DRM on digital cable TV broadcasts. You can record them the
same as standard over the air television broadcasts.
Logan Shaw
> There is no DRM on digital cable TV broadcasts. You can record them the
> same as standard over the air television broadcasts.
Sure there is, on encrypted QAM channels. In order to decrypt, you
have to have either a cable box rented from the cable company or
a CableCard (also rented from the company) in a device that supports
a CableCard. And, surprise, there are very few CableCard devices
that let you do much of anything with the data. They certainly
don't let you copy it to an external device. Personally, I'd call
that DRM.
- Logan
Rod Speed
Yes they do, most obviously with the TV you watch it on.
> Personally, I'd call that DRM.
More fool you.
Logan Shaw
All the devices I've seen tend to have an HDMI output, which
means encryption there too. Can you name an example of one
that has a digital output which isn't encrypted? If so, I'm
interested to know because I'd like to buy such a device.
Of course, there is also an "analog gap" if the device has a
component video output. But the presence of an analog gap
doesn't mean it's not DRM. Every system ultimately has an
analog gap. If having an analog gap meant a system didn't
have DRM, then there would be no such thing as DRM.
- Logan
Rod Speed
>>>> There is no DRM on digital cable TV broadcasts. You can record them
>>>> the same as standard over the air television broadcasts.
>>> Sure there is, on encrypted QAM channels. In order to decrypt, you have to have either a cable box rented from the
>>> cable company or a CableCard (also rented from the company) in a device that supports a CableCard. And, surprise,
>>> there are very few CableCard devices that let you do much of anything with the data. They certainly don't let you
>>> copy it to an external device.
>> Yes they do, most obviously with the TV you watch it on.
> All the devices I've seen tend to have an HDMI output, which means encryption there too.
They still clearly allow you to copy it to an external device when that device is a TV.
> Can you name an example of one that has a digital output which isn't encrypted? If so, I'm interested to know because
> I'd like to buy such a device.
I was JUST commenting on your claim that 'they
certainly don't let you copy it to an external device'
They all clearly do when that 'external device' is a TV.
> Of course, there is also an "analog gap" if the device has a component video output. But the presence of an analog
> gap doesn't mean it's not DRM.
It does however mean that you can ignore the DRM if you choose to.
> Every system ultimately has an analog gap. If having an analog gap meant a system didn't have DRM, then there would
> be no such thing as DRM.
Irrelevant to your claim that 'they certainly don't let you copy it to an external device'
They all clearly do when that 'external device' is a TV.
Logan Shaw
> Logan Shaw <lshaw-...@austin.rr.com> wrote
>> Rod Speed wrote
>>> Logan Shaw <lshaw-...@austin.rr.com> wrote
>>>> Shawn Hirn wrote
>
>>>>> There is no DRM on digital cable TV broadcasts. You can record them
>>>>> the same as standard over the air television broadcasts.
>
>>>> Sure there is, on encrypted QAM channels. In order to decrypt, you have to have either a cable box rented from the
>>>> cable company or a CableCard (also rented from the company) in a device that supports a CableCard. And, surprise,
>>>> there are very few CableCard devices that let you do much of anything with the data. They certainly don't let you
>>>> copy it to an external device.
>
>>> Yes they do, most obviously with the TV you watch it on.
>
>> All the devices I've seen tend to have an HDMI output, which means encryption there too.
>
> They still clearly allow you to copy it to an external device when that device is a TV.
OK, even though I thought the meaning was clear from context, I will
revise my original statement to be clearer:
"They certainly don't let you copy it to an external device *which
has non-emphemeral storage*."
Hope that's clearer now.
- Logan
Rod Speed
Nope, the second last word is a complete wank.
Shawn Hirn
Logan Shaw <lshaw-...@austin.rr.com> wrote:
I do have a box, but I have no problem recording TV shows to tape or DVD.
Shawn Hirn
Logan Shaw <lshaw-...@austin.rr.com> wrote:
My Scientific Atlanta HD DVD box from Comcast has an HDMI connector;
however, my HD TV does not, so I use its component video connectors.
Works fine for TV viewing and recording.
Shawn Hirn
Logan Shaw <lshaw-...@austin.rr.com> wrote:
Perfectly clear, but totally wrong.
Dennis
wrote:
>My Scientific Atlanta HD DVD box from Comcast has an HDMI connector;
>however, my HD TV does not, so I use its component video connectors.
>Works fine for TV viewing and recording.
Please explain how you record HD signal from component (not composite
or S-video) outputs in full resolution.
Logan Shaw
> Perfectly clear, but totally wrong.
OK, I'll bite: how do I get encrypted QAM into a format I
can control (has no DRM) without going through an analog gap?
Set-top box with Firewire?
- Logan
Shawn Hirn
Dennis <dg...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> On Wed, 06 Feb 2008 05:39:41 -0500, Shawn Hirn <sr...@comcast.net>
> wrote:
>
> >My Scientific Atlanta HD DVD box from Comcast has an HDMI connector;
> >however, my HD TV does not, so I use its component video connectors.
> >Works fine for TV viewing and recording.
>
> Please explain how you record HD signal from component (not composite
> or S-video) outputs in full resolution.
I haven't tried it in full resolution. What I do is record it to my DVR,
then record it to my DVD set-top recorder or record directly to video
tape or standard definition DVD. I don't own an optical media recorder
that handles high definition media, so I have no way to try it.
rick++
and they arent holding up too well after several years. Theres burn-
in,
dead pixels, faded colors etc. I presume they either leave them on
12 hours a day or never turn them off.
Dennis
wrote:
>In article <nl6kq3t9q83tud99n...@4ax.com>,
> Dennis <dg...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
>> On Wed, 06 Feb 2008 05:39:41 -0500, Shawn Hirn <sr...@comcast.net>
>> wrote:
>>
>> >My Scientific Atlanta HD DVD box from Comcast has an HDMI connector;
>> >however, my HD TV does not, so I use its component video connectors.
>> >Works fine for TV viewing and recording.
>>
>> Please explain how you record HD signal from component (not composite
>> or S-video) outputs in full resolution.
>
>I haven't tried it in full resolution. What I do is record it to my DVR,
>then record it to my DVD set-top recorder or record directly to video
>tape or standard definition DVD. I don't own an optical media recorder
>that handles high definition media, so I have no way to try it.
What you are recording is down-converted to Standard Def NTSC by your
DVR. Which can still look pretty good -- close to DVD quality -- but
is not High Def. There is only a very limited, very expensive set of
hardware available that will capture the output of component or HDMI
at full resolution High Def, and then the uncompressed stream is
something like 30GBytes per hour.
Dennis (evil)
--
I'm behind the eight ball, ahead of the curve, riding the wave,
dodging the bullet and pushing the envelope. -George Carlin