It is not a wise move to go by the appearance! You should be able to judge the features and quality for making a choice that complements your requirements.
Here is how you can make a more informed decision!
Decide on an apt place for your TV
Before you proceed to look at the types to consider, you should be sure if you want to hang the TV to a wall or place it on a flat surface. Check the measurements of the place you are going to mount your TV on before deciding on the dimensions of the set.
Wall:
Choose a suitable location on the wall, spacious enough and from where you can view your LCD or Plasma TV with convenience. You can also consider buying a wall mount to place your TV on.
Floor/Flat surface:
If sufficient wall space is unavailable, consider placing your LCD or Plasma on a flat surface like a stand. CRT and rear projection TVs are easy to place on a flat surface and cost much lesser with an insignificant compromise in picture quality.
Know what you want to watch:
These days, state-of-the-art television sets in the market give you a choice of buying specialised sets meant to cater to specific needs. If you are an avid movie watcher, looking for DVDs to play in full resolution, your TV should possess a vertical compression mode.
Satellite and digital cable subscribers can ensure themselves an improved picture quality by acquiring a TV set with S-Video inputs.
Component video inputs are usually reserved for DVDs to give a better picture quality.
If you wish to play video games on your TV, a TV set with front panel inputs allows for easy connection and disconnection.
Choose the right screen size
Television sets come in different screen sizes. An inappropriately big screen size makes your room look awkward and crammed. It is strenuous to the eyes if a dearth of space prevents you from pushing yourself back enough from the screen.
A good approach to choosing a suitable screen size is by correlating it to the dimensions of the room. Measure the length, width and depth of the area where you intend to install your TV.
Small Room:
Portable TVs like NEC N3481 or flat screen LCDs, for example, Samsung 940MG 48.26cm LCD or Samsung 940MG 48.26cm LCD are viable options for a small room!
Narrow Room:
Rear projection displays like Sony KDS60R2000 152.4cm, Samsung SP61L6HX or Sony KFE50A10 are good choices for a narrow room. You can also go in for LCD or Plasma like Samsung PPM42S3Q 106cm Plasma, LG 42PX5D Plasma or LG M5500C 140cm LCD.
Large Room:
LCD, Plasma or rear projection like Sony BRAVIA KDL52X2000 132.08cm LCD, Sony KF55E200 139.7cm LCD, NEC PX50XM5W 127cm Plasma, Sony KDS60R2000 152.4cm Rear projection, MITSUBISHI DV42P1 Plasma are feasible.
Apart from this, it is equally important to consider the distance between the TV and your seating area. Larger the screen size, farther should you sit and watch the TV. Having an exceptionally large screen and viewing it from too close is definitely not a good idea! The table below suggests viewing distances for different screen sizes.
Screen Size
Comfortable Viewing Range
37 or 92.5 cm 1.3m 2.1 m
43 or 107.5 cm 2.4m 2.7 m
44 50 or 110cm 125cm 3.0m 3.3 m
50-60 or 125cm 150cm 3.3m 3.9m
60 70 or 150cm 175cm 3.9m 4.2m
70 or 175cm 4.5m
Check if the weight is feasible
A CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) display TV is bulky and inconvenient to move around. If shipping costs are involved in your purchase, it is always feasible to cut on costs by choosing a TV of a lighter LCD or plasma type. When you wish to move your TV around to different rooms a lightweight TV will serve you better.
Check the sound and picture quality
Some technical sound and picture quality aspects you should be familiar with are as follows:
Frequency Rate:
Also known as ‘refresh rate’, it is the number of times a picture is updated every second. Higher the rate, lesser is the screen flicker.
New television models possess capabilities of 100 Hz refresh rate for enhanced image clarity.
Picture Tube:
Consider buying a TV with a flat picture tube for minimised glare from external sources and a better viewing experience. LCD and Plasma screens are flat by themselves.
Contrast Ratio:
This is the ratio of the brightest and darkest images a display can produce. In other words, it is the difference between the brightest white and the darkest black.
Average ratio being 500:1, you should pick a TV with a high contrast ratio in order to view sharper and brighter images.
Aspect Ratio:
This is the ratio of width to height of a TV screen. 4:3 is the standard aspect ratio. A more innovative wide screen aspect ratio is 16:9 supported by televisions of the HDTV (High Definition TV receiver) type.
TVs with such aspect ratios are ideal for watching DVDs on because they display motion pictures in its original format.
Screen Resolution:
Determined by pixels, higher their number better is the image quality. Typically, the value is 1024 x 768 pixels.
Dolby Surround:
Generally, TV programmes are broadcast in Dolby Surround, decrypted by your TV using the Dolby Pro Logic. An improved version of the Dolby Pro Logic is Dolby Pro Logic II.
Dolby Digital 5.1:
This is the best audio system available in the present times. You should choose a TV of this sound type if you intend to use it for watching movies or playing video games.
Audio and Video Connections:
The number of port connections depends on the external components you intend to install i.e. Cable/Satellite TV, DVD, VCR, Video Games, A/V receiver and so on. For optimum image quality and sound, select a TV that offers maximum number of In/Out port connections.
Select the right type of TV display
Selection of a suitable type of TV necessitates you to be aware of the various kinds of display available.
Let us have a look at the different types.
CRT (Cathode Ray Tube)
is the traditional kind of display that was prominent till plasmas and LCDs took over.
Brands like NEC, Phillips, and Panasonic still manufacture TVs that make use of this display.
The standard shape of such televisions is ‘curved’ but they also come in flat screens. Such TVs are heavy and difficult to move around.
Plasma
is the most popular choice of large, flat panel Televisions. Sleek in appearance, they are generally wide-screened with the screen size ranging from 36” (90 cm) to 70” (175 cm). Since such TVs do not have much depth, they can be easily mounted on walls.
The screen of a plasma television is absolutely flat, which imparts clarity, minimises distortion and makes view possible from wider angles.
A disadvantage with plasmas is that their screens are vulnerable to burn-ins if operated for long hours.
Popular models are SAMSUNG PS42D5S, NEC PX42XM4W 106.68cm Plasma, Sony FWD50PX2 127cm Plasma and Samsung PPM50M5H 127cm Plasma.
LCD (Liquid Crystal Display)
are also sleek and stylish like the Plasma type. However, they offer better screen resolutions than plasmas.
LCDs are also flat screened to enable viewing from wide angles. However, a part of clarity is lost in case of LCDs unlike Plasmas. Beyond a screen size of 40” (102 cm), LCDs tend to be more expensive than plasmas and rear projections.
Popular models are Sony BRAVIA KLV26S200 66.04cm LCD, Samsung 460PN 116.84cm LCD, Acer AT3704 94cm LCD, Acer AT2720B 68.58cm LCD and Sony KLVS32A10 81cm LCD.
HDTV (High Definition TV)
make watching movies and sporting events an amazing experience! With a powered picture quality, sharpness, clarity and Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound capabilities, HDTVs have become very popular.
A HDTV indicates that it can receive high definition television signals, usually with additional hardware. Hence the jargon HDTV ready, HDTV compatible or integrated HDTV.
Popular models are Samsung PS63P3H Plasma Television and Samsung 940MW 48cm LCD Television.
Rear Projection
come in big screen sizes that go up to 70” or 175 cm. Economical than a similar sized plasma TV, some of these also support HDTV. They make use of lenses and mirrors to magnify an image and project it on the rear of a translucent screen.
While some stick out of walls, others are placed on cabinets along with their necessary peripheral equipments like light source, lenses, mirrors and the like.
Until recently, rear projection TVs comprised of three CRTs but the new ones include LCD and plasmas also.
A careful co-relation of the points above with what you are looking for in your Television will help you make the right pick at Getprice!
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