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help me out guys, i have to buy a new tv...

Discussion in 'South Oval' started by stonecoldsoonerfan, Sep 29, 2012.


  1. stonecoldsoonerfan

    stonecoldsoonerfan New Member

    not sure what all is out there to buy, what features are available since the advent of the computer/internet, etc. i am considering trying to get rid of cox and maybe use over the air or some alternative source of tv imput. can anyone help me out on what features to look for? any help is appreciated. thanks in advance.
     
  2. olevetonahill

    olevetonahill Well-Known Member

    I aint got a clue Bro
    I got a cheap 40 in. Flat screen that does what I want, IE show football games :very_drunk:
     
  3. MamaMia

    MamaMia Moderator

    When I wanted to size up, I just went to the store and looked at all the pictures on the thin flat screen HD ones with bigger screens and bought the one that was pleasing to my eyes. Everyone always says what a good picture my TV has. I think thats whats important.
     
  4. SoonerBBall

    SoonerBBall Well-Known Member

    What are you going to do with your TV? Are you mostly going to watch movies, do you want to watch Netflix, do you want to stream music or movies to it?

    All of these things change what type of TV you would want to look for.

    Also, don't go to BestBuy or anywhere similar and pick the TV that looks good. Big box stores are notorious for jacking the brightness up as far as it will go. Also, the lighting and openness of the store doesn't give you a good idea of what it will look like in your home which is much smaller with much different lighting.
     
  5. KantoSooner

    KantoSooner SoonerFans.com Elite Member

    Regarding flat panels, keep in mind that there are only about four or five makers in the world. They then provide panels to the electronics companies who ultimately put their labels on the finished units. Do your wikipedia type research on what the terminology means, but don't sweat the brand names.
     
  6. pphilfran

    pphilfran SoonerFans.com Elite Member

    This...and they will also mess with the contrast...

    Whatever you end up buying be sure to use a set up DVD to maximize the picture quality...most people will have brightness and contrast set far from optimum...set up properly the picture might not look as bright but you will be able to see detail much better...
     
  7. yermom

    yermom Stayatworkdad

    don't use the TV speakers, and don't pay more than like 10 bucks for an HDMI cable.
     
  8. badger

    badger Vacuums eat while yelling

    We got a new TV about a year ago. It's a 50-inch Panasonic. We went to Best Buy fully intending to not buy but just look, and lo and behold, there was a really cheap TV with a free blu ray player just waiting for one of the blue shirts to sell to us.

    So, with that in mind...

    1- Go ahead and stop by a local electronics store first. "Showroom" if you must (that's where you look at prices, then whip out your iPhone to see if someone else has it cheaper) but you will probably find a pretty good deal locally.

    2- Don't go 3-D. This was seriously the most idiotic idea in recent television history. Using glasses to use a TV at home? Seriously? Derp.

    3- Don't worry about 1080 versus 720. There really doesn't seem to be that big of a difference unless you have a 200-inch TV (or Soonervision in your home or something).

    4- Want a high def TV? Make sure you have a high def service. Seriously, you will never want to tune into a low-def channel ever again for anything with a high def television. It looks terrible.

    This. You can find HDMI cables anywhere (don't get name brand ones, they are the same thing for once as the generic ones that are cheaper). Also, a sound system, even a bad one, will be better than TV speakers unless you're looking to put the TV in a small room (like a bedroom or bathroom or garage or something).

    While I'm sure that the blue shirts did this, we have had no problems with our TV that we got from there. Unless you are planning on using your television to display French impressionist paintings that must have exact and precise coloring and pixelation, you are not going to care if the picture is not as perfect as it can be, IMHO.

    Us too, but it's football season. Here's a few alternatives that we use:

    1- ESPN on Xbox Live. You need to have a cable subscription to view it, but it gives you additional football games and replays of previous games/highlights.

    2- Netflix. You can broadcast it off of some newer TVs, as well as blu ray players, video game consoles, and even your computer. It's less than $10 a month for internet streaming, so worth it if you use it.

    3- Youtube. Now an app on Xbox Live, is also starting to do some live streaming of its own.

    I am seeing a lot more streaming services popping up lately. Is cable en route out?
     
  9. C&CDean

    C&CDean Administrator

    Buy one that starts with "S" - Samsung, Sharp, Sony. If you're gonna have it somewhere where it might get beer spilled on it, or somebody might knock it over, buy a Vizio or LG. All the new ones do pretty much the same things these days. I own a Samsung, a Sharp, a Toshiba, a Panasonic, a Vizio, and a Sylvania. A couple LCDs, a couple LEDs, and I don't know what the hell the Sylvania is (it's a flatscreen like all the rest, but it won't sync up with Dish remote controls for whatever reason). The LEDs are great in a room where there's a lot of light. If you've got a dark room save some money and buy a plasma.
     
  10. jk the sooner fan

    jk the sooner fan loved by all

    the new vizio's are MUCH better than the older/original
     
  11. KantoSooner

    KantoSooner SoonerFans.com Elite Member

    Let's see if I can remember how this lined up....

    Samsung and Sony are made in the same factory, same process.

    AU and Phillips and Vizio, same deal

    Mitsubishi, Panasonic and LG, same deal

    Sharp is on their own and had a proprietary technology that some people really liked.

    The factories were too expensive ($5 billion or so) and the tech was changing too rapidly (you had to build a new plant every year) for companies to keep up alone, so they formed little consortia.

    If you really want to drill down, look at whose Digital Signal Processor (DSP) is driving the whole mess. If it's not Sony or Texas Instruments, raise an eyebrow.
     
  12. achiro

    achiro SoonerFans.com Elite Member

    My parents bought a 60" Sharp Aquos Quattron last year and the picture is great. It's different than the others for sure. Whether you think it's better or not would be personal preference but if I were in the market, that's the direction I would go.
     
  13. SoonerLaw09

    SoonerLaw09 New Member

    I'll put in my .02 for Samsung. I bought a 51" plasma last year and it's hands down the best TV I've ever owned or seen. It even kicks the butt of my parents' Aquos. If you need an LCD/LED because of room brightness then go for the Aquos, but if not, you can save a lot of money and get the same size screen with a good plasma. Looked at Panasonic as well, but the Samsung picture quality blew me away.
     
  14. BajaOklahoma

    BajaOklahoma SoonerFans.com Elite Member

    We have a 50" LCD Samsung smart TV at the lake. We love it. It is hooked up to cable internet, satellite, a HD over-the-air antenna, blue-ray and a couple of game systems.
    I love the thin edge screen. It basically hooks itself up to whatever you plug it into. Downside, there is no manual. It is built into the TV, and not the best. However customer service is very helpful.
    We have two other Samsungs, not Smart TVs. Great picture and okay sound.
    I can wait for some of our other TVs to die so we can replace them.
     
  15. GDC

    GDC New Member

    I also love my Samsung plasma, wouldn't have anything else, especially for the price.
     
  16. Tulsa_Fireman

    Tulsa_Fireman SoonerFans.com Elite Member

    I would disagree with this.

    In smaller TVs, yeah, it doesn't make a difference. But I too have a 50" and viewing true 1080 versus 720 is AMAZINGLY different. Not upconverted 720, true 1080. Most of what you see in cable broadcasting even on a 1080 set is still 720, giving the false impression that there's not much difference. The difference is actually staggering and personally, I have a hard time watching true 1080 at 30 frames. The detail is obscene and I get a headache from what literally feels like my eyes sucking back in my head trying to process the detail.
     
  17. stonecoldsoonerfan

    stonecoldsoonerfan New Member

    great stuff guys. i appreciate the help. i've been told that plasma doesn't really come any lower than a 50" or so, but that might be outdated info. anyone know about this?
     
  18. C&CDean

    C&CDean Administrator

    Alls I know Steve is that plasma sucks if you have outside light coming into the room. Glare/reflection is terrible. If your room is dark, plasma rocks.
     
  19. stonecoldsoonerfan

    stonecoldsoonerfan New Member

    actually, it's dave, but it's MR. dave to you... ;)
     
  20. olevetonahill

    olevetonahill Well-Known Member

    Heh,
     

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