1. Rear projection CRT sets, where you could buy large diagonal 57" HDTV 1080 screens for a reasonable price compared to more expensive LCD sets were GONE last year along with Direct View sets (CRTs) and the earlier EDTVs that had been used to playback DVDs at their best resolution at the time.
However, rear projection sets from Mitsubishi Electric, DLP mirror technology, have a small footprint and are sold with a component storage unit the HDTV set is secured on. While DLP sets are not designed to be hung on the wall, if you're looking for a large screen size with outstanding brightness and sharpness for a great price, we believe it is the best buy.
Below is a photo of a 65 " DLP screen with an actual Hi-Def picture in a home entertainment environment. The price of $2,300 included the 70" HDTV DLP set, a wide two-shelf componenet stand as shown, a five-year warranty, and tax and delivery. And because the unit uses no phosphorus, video games static images cannot burn an image into the screen. With power usage of plasma sets coming into question by some government agencies, the DLP is energy efficient when compared to plasma technology.
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| Actual 65" Diagonal DLP screen image untouched |
Because of this plasma sets will continue to be challenged until they can reduce their energy usage, as environmental whackos in the name of religion in California and England are already trying to ban its sale in 2010, forcing the marketplace to use the LED and DLP technologies.
2. Flat-screen HDTV
format television descriptions in circulars do not always mention if
they have built-in stereo amplifier or speakers, and if they do what would be the sound quality anyway in an entertainment room. HDTV sets with
tuners will say HD-Built in, meaning an HD tuner is built into the set. It therefore will not require a converter box for receiving broadcasts from local television stations transmitting HDTV digital signals.
Please check with a salesperson if you are looking at any of the
flat-screen models mentioned on a sales floor. These sets do not include a television stand or wall mounting bracket unless noted with a special in-store promotion.
3. All television sets sold today have digital tuners, so you don't need to worry about buying a convertor box to receive all-digitial broadcast signals that took over analog in June 2009. The old workhorse NTSC that allowed us to have televisions signals beamed into the air has gone by the wayside, replaced by higher resolution signals that allow 1080 lines of resolution. The system that is used today was developed by Zenith in the late 1990s.
4. Basic 5.1 Dolby
very low-wattage, separate, home stereo systems can start around $150
if you need to add audio to your wall-hanging HDTV set. But the less expensive ones are not built to handle those huge base signals coming from the new Blu Ray Disks. Plus we prefer the Dobly 7.1 systems for a better surround-sound experience and higher wattage. We found the Onyko an excellent value for the price, with a dynamic woofer and heavy surround speakers, feeling twice the weight and size of their 5.1 system.
Basic
HDTV stands can run $200 or more. Normally these don't have enough
space to hold all the components, probably requiring you to purchase
an additional vertical component stand to be placed near your
flat-screen HDTV set. If you need to mount the speakers on the
wall, you may have to also purchase a mounting bracket for each
speaker. Please check our chapter on accessories and wiring for more information. (Note: I had to drill holes in the rear of the Onkyo speakers so they would hang horizontally from the ceiling.)
5. Newer HDTV sets can come with three HDMI inputs or more, important when realizing the basic HDTV configuration has a minimum of three sources; Blu Ray / DVD player, Satellite / Cable / TIVO, and video streaming for downloading movies or Internet viewing.
Also remember LCD technology had to be stepped down to 720 because it could not display the higher number of pixels needed for 1080 resolution. Some manufacturers have caught up with the newer LCD's for a true 1080 picture, but you will still pay more for these sets if all LCD manufacturers do not offer full 1080.
Some step-up features on HDTV sets include PC-capable displays and memory card slot for displaying digital-still pictures from your camera or camcorder.
Keep in mind when looking at HD televisions, if you come across "monitor" it mean that's all it is, a video monitor. Monitors are used mainly for monitoring a video signal in a studio control room or for computer displays for large images on a small footprint.
And for wall-mounted Plasma and LCD sets with small footprints, be aware while some may have a stereo output and a built-in amplifier with speakers, the sound quality will be limited to the smaller speaker size with very minimum bass sound, since there is no woofer or at least one of any consequence for that small cabinet space. Be careful, as these sets may expect even the audio output to be taken from an external tuner and not the set itself. Which means if you don't have an audio system at home, you may have to buy one getting the audio from the feed source. They call these units HD Theatre Systems.
The newer Dolby 5.1 and 7.1 audio systems have come down in price. But watch out, as mentioned, for sound quality that cannot fill a large entertainment room without pushing them to distortion. While home theater sound systems can start in the $200 - $300 range, high-end amplifiers with speakers sold separately can be expensive but will give you all the full range audio and bass your Blu Ray BD-DVDs are capable of, these playback units continuing to be updated as new firmware releases become available.
A better sound system will have a dynamic woofer that supplies its own power, having to be plugged into the wall. That is because you can get just so much bass driven from the speaker outputs of a low-end amplifier.
For best price, look into the system where the amplifier includes in the box five or seven matching speakers and a dynamic sub-woofer sold as an entire set, the best value for your buck. HOWEVER, be aware these are mass-merchant items and the receivers probably are not sold separately. THEREFORE, if something goes wrong with the receiver in the first 15 or 30 days of the retailer's return warranty, you cannot just return the receiver for repair. Instead, you will be required to rebox the entire system including all literature, collateral materials, wiring, and speakers that are hung in the ceiling. The other alternative would be to ship the amplifier to the manufacturer's service center and wait for its repair.
And unless you're going to pay around $500 or more for a Dolby receiver, don't expect excellent internal component or HDMI switching. Some of these high-end receivers will allow you to switch HDMI and component video signals along with the audio, eliminating one remote if you already own a separate HDMI remote-driven switcher. I have discovered, however, that the HDMI built-in switcher in a receiver could be designed to be extremely sensitive to HDMI coding rules. Is that important? You bet.
In my case the receiver's internal HDMI switcher would view a HDMI signal from a DirecTV HD box, while it refused to pass the signals from a Blu Ray and a discontinued HD-DVD player. Switching these three around, no matter which HDMI input port was used, only the satellite HD box would be allowed to pass the signal to the HDTV television. I was advised that the HDMI codes are strict to help prevent the recording of HD movies. Because of that these units could reject the incoming signal from lesser models, my being told the engineers were surprised a Blu Ray's HDMI signal had been block by their unit.
In my case, I simply went back to my HDMI remote-controlled external switcher. While I had almost sent the receiver back, further investigation told me that to rebox everything and ship it back to the dealer might be a waste of time with a new amp having the same results. That is because the unexpected problem was not a defective component but overzealous engineering. But a few months back I purchased the DLP set shown above, instead using its three internal HDMI inputs and remote switching, eliminating the need for an external HDMI switcher.
Be also aware the world is changing for these audio receivers in other areas and you may have a high probability in the future of no longer being able to find FM / AM tuner with these models or a gasp . . . magnetic or ceramic vinyl turntable input!
Therefore, if you have an audio turntable for your vinyl record collection, you might have to invest in a magnetic cartridge amplifier for around 40 more bucks. If you have a turntable, buy one of these separate magnetic amplifier. That's because one day in the not to distant future you could find yourself no longer being able to find these little gems.
However, turntables can now be purchased with an USB output along with standard left and right stereo cables. This new breed of turntable is being sold along with software for direct connection to your computer for audio corrections that will assist in eliminating hiss and pops before they're burned to a CD in your computer. One new one is even built for 78 speeds, too, while others allow playing 78 records on 45rpm and then up-converting them to 78 speed using the software provided by the manufacturer. There is now even a laser turntable that will play broken records. Those owners can tell their wives, "Go ahead, throw it. I can still play it."
(Note: When you speak to someone about turntables today, the word now has a double meaning. Turntable is also used to describe computer laptops whose screens turn horizontally to allow others to see the screen without having to shift the position of the unit.)
The final step in the HDTV revolution down the road will be viewing surfaces you can paste to your wall at home like old-style wallpaper, even going around corners, the new OLED screens a precursor to this coming technology. There are amazing technologies just around the corner.
Finally, here are some new trends to look for in mid to late 2010 (see source below) :
Backlighting in either an edgelit format or a full backlit design. Local dimming will provide better blacks
Faster refresh rates are coming as manufacturers try to drastically reduce motion blur.
Look for developments in 3D (But I still hate the glasses, and have since introduced at the 3D movie of the wax museum many decades ago.)
Internet capabilities to stream video will become built-in to the set.
Thinner screens with greater energy efficiency
New technology of making ultra-thin displays using organic light-emitting diodes (OLED) will soon be offered by Sony, Samsung, and others but in very small screen sizes for now.
Source: amonitorblog
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KEY
1.) |
HDTV resolutions; 720 and 1080 |
2.) |
Screen
Size ( in inches measured diagonally.) |
3.) |
Format by color:
Direct View (not advertised in selected retail brochures this year), LCD (LCD),
DLP (DLP),
and Plasma (Plasma) |
4.) |
Street
Price (This is not manufacturers suggested retail, called MSR. Price rounded to next dollar..) |
5.) |
Manufacturer (Corporate or third-party brand name.) |
6.) |
Model
Number (As shown in the ad brochure.) |
(Prices for Best Buy (bb), hhgreg (hh), and Sears (sr) sets are for late Demember 2010.. Walmart (wm) prices were taken in same time period from their Web site. These prices should hold into the fall of 2009, when new models hit the streets again,. These are usually introduced at the international CES show but usually not available for purchase until the fall. This may be the last year this chart is needed if the industry moves to a single format. Look for OLED to become the new standard.