Recommendations for flat screen TV 34.5 in. wide max

[DeniseM]

Hi - I want to get my DH a new flat screen for his birthday, or maybe Christmas. Any recommendations? I'm not on a tight budget, but I don't need the very top of the line either. The cabinet where it will go is about 35 in. wide.

Thanks!

 

[LUVourMarriotts]

You are probably looking to get a 32" flat panel if your cabinet will hold 35". My personal recommendation would be a Sony or Samsung LCD. I own a Sony 46" LCD and love it. Friends have pretty much every other brand you could name. The picture of my Sony is better than others, even noted by the owners of other units. I also like the Samsung LCD's. My brother-in-law has a 27" and 42" Samsung LCD and they both are very nice quality images.

Of course you'll want to get an HD box (cable or satellite). Hopefully your provider offers the HD box for no additional charge, like mine does (Cablevision).

Right now is actually a very good time to buy electronics, as the new models start coming in during Sept. or Oct. So you can get a deal on a model from last year, and there won't be much of a difference at all, if any. Looking at the Sony 32" Bravia XBR and Sony 32" Bravia, the difference is only $200, so I'd go with the XBR. It gives you full 1080p HD and also more HDMI ports.

When purchasing, take a look at your local wholesale club. Sam's Club sells many top brands (Sony, Samsung, Panasonic, etc.) at decent prices. The only thing to watch out for is, due to timing, the wholesale club may be priced close to retail. According to Consumer Reports, when buying a LCD TV, the extra warranty is not needed. That's a personal decision though.

IMHO

 

[LisaH]

We just bought a SHARP AQUOS 37" HD LCD TV. It's about 36" wide so yes you can only fit 32" TV in your cabinet. I love my SHARP TV. It's so much better than my regular old TV.

You can get the SHARP 32" one at Costco for $799.

 

[nicklinneh]

remember that the advertised size of the TV is the screen diagonal! a 42" TV might very well fit in your cabinet space. i'd go to a store ruler in hand and find out what model will work. good luck. ---ken

 

[Sandy]

Very good point!

I knew (but forgot) that the measurments are diagonal rather than straight across!

Hope this helps the OP.

 

[LUVourMarriotts]

If you find the model on the web, the specs will be there. For my first post, I had already gone to CircuitCity.com and BestBuy.com to find what would fit in a 35" opening. I did not find anything larger than a 32" that would fit into 35".

 

[Kal]

The top 2 LCD brands in quality and market leadership are Sharp AQUOS and Toshiba (Cinema). Do a side by side comparison and you will see a significant difference in color intensity and black background. From a tech perspective make sure you get a 120 hz frame rate conversion (i.e. refresh rate). Many brands have a 60 hz specification which will result in blurring for fast moving scenes.

Avoid the cheap stuff at Costco (Vizio).

BTW, stay away from plasma even tho the image in the show room may appear more sharp.

 

[frankhi]

We really like buy.com and have bot many things from them including our big family room LCD HDTV, anyhow, they send me ads daily and recently had a Westinghouse 32" LCD HGTV for $469!! (btw its 32" wide also) It was marked refurbished, but we took a chance, as it was just for the guest room. Well, other than the box had refurbished stamped on it, I couldn't tell it from new. It works great, and we were paying the cable company for HD service anyhow. So I suggest you get on the buy.com email list and watch for a deal.

 

[LisaH]

If you find the model on the web, the specs will be there. For my first post, I had already gone to CircuitCity.com and BestBuy.com to find what would fit in a 35" opening. I did not find anything larger than a 32" that would fit into 35".

Totally agree! As I said, my 37" inch measured 36 inch wide. So only 32" one will fit into her 35" opening.

BTW, Love my SHARP AQUOS. The football games looked so much better on it according to my hubby

 

[somerville]

I had the same issue with an entertainment unit that is 20 years old. It was built when 27" was the largest size. I was finally able to find a 32" Sony that would fit in the space. Look for something with no speakers on the side and a narrow bezel. You may be able to find a 37" that will squeeze in.

 

[jerseygirl]

I love my Samsung 'cuz it swivels -- a useful feature in my odd-shaped room (or perhaps we just have the furniture placed at odd angles ).

 

[ownsmany]

flat screen for wall?

what about a good flat screen for the wall? My DH birthday is also coming up, and I'd like to get one for him. Why is someone saying not plasma? I don't even know what the difference is.

Any flat screens out there that you could use as a photo viewer also? Love to use it as a large picture frame when not watching the TV.

 

[jerseygirl]

I think most of the above can be installed on the wall, right? I know my Samsung can, but we like the above mentioned swivel capability better in it's particular location. Have a Toshiba up on the wall in a different room.

 

[Kal]

what about a good flat screen for the wall? My DH birthday is also coming up, and I'd like to get one for him. Why is someone saying not plasma? I don't even know what the difference is.

Any flat screens out there that you could use as a photo viewer also? Love to use it as a large picture frame when not watching the TV.

A plasma contains a gas between 2 sheets of glass. The gas distribution can be a real problem where you can not lay it down for more than 3 hours without damage. More importantly the screen is reflective which means the glare is terrible. Basically, it's an inferior technology compared to LCD.

 

[JeffW]

Also, plasma's were more suspectible to burn in (I think that may have been corrected in most newer models, not sure though), so they definitely wouldn't be a good candidate for showing photos (being static images). Also, plasma's (and DLP's for that matter (bulb) had a finite lifetime. It could have been a decade under 'normal' viewing, but that could easily drop in half or more if you doubled the daily usage by displaying photos on it.

Jeff

 

[daventrina]

Hi - I want to get my DH a new flat screen for his birthday, or maybe Christmas. Any recommendations?

If your still looking and need some more info give us a call...
We went through this process and it can be VERY confusing.

Enjoy Tahoe!!! , We'll miss it this Thanksgiving (we'll be on a cruise), but will be there next year.

 

[DougH]

Basically, it's an inferior technology compared to LCD.

Inferior ??? Not sure about that.

Plasma has the best black levels (most important item for getting true colors), and has better refresh rates (which makes fast motion scenes smooth) than LCD's.

Right now...the folks at CNET have plasmas as their highest rated panel TV's.

So ... I don't think they could be termed 'inferior' when they are the highest rated TV's around.

 

[Makai Guy]

To maximize screen size that will fit within a limited-width cabinet, try to find a set where the speakers are beneath the screen instead of down the sides. You'll have slightly less apparent stereo separation that way, but if you're feeding the output to a separate AV system, you probably won't be using the tv's built-in speakers for any critical listening anyway.

 

[Kal]

Inferior ??? Not sure about that.

Plasma has the best black levels (most important item for getting true colors), and has better refresh rates (which makes fast motion scenes smooth) than LCD's.

Right now...the folks at CNET have plasmas as their highest rated panel TV's.

So ... I don't think they could be termed 'inferior' when they are the highest rated TV's around.

The horrible reflection off the plasma screen is a deal killer. When I sit in front of the set I don't want to look at everyone else in the room or my own reflection. And most importantly, I don't want to have to sit in a totally dark room.

 

[daventrina]

Inferior ??? Not sure about that.

Plasma has the best black levels (most important item for getting true colors), and has better refresh rates (which makes fast motion scenes smooth) than LCD's.

Right now...the folks at CNET have plasmas as their highest rated panel TV's.

So ... I don't think they could be termed 'inferior' when they are the highest rated TV's around.

We have one of each and the LCD can not compare in sharpness, color saturation and depth to the plasma. On the up side it is where it gets more glare and you don't have to worry about burn in with the LCD.

If you like to hit the pause button for periods of time the plasma will be a problem.

 

[Icarus]

First you have to compare apples to apples. You have a sample size of 1 of each, so I don't think that's a very scientific approach. I have an 1080p LCD panel that will match up really well in sharpness and depth to almost any similarly (low) priced plasma panel.

Plasma:

Pros: better blacks, slightly better picture (with good light control in the room).
Cons: Power hog, glare is a problem so light control is a must in the room, screen burn in (not as bad a problem as it used to be, but still a problem), plasma has limited life, so it's not really suitable if you keep the tv on all the time.

LCD:

Pros: Glare is not a problem, burn-in is not a problem, low power consumption
Cons: Blacks are not as deep, backlight has limited life (but not as limited as plasma life.) Refresh rates used to create blur for things like sports action, but that's not a problem anymore as refresh rates and the technology has improved.


A few years ago, plasma was the clear choice. Now, there's not that much difference between the two technologies .. at least to the point that there isn't a clear winner. You have to chose the best one for your viewing habits and conditions, and you have to check out the technology for yourself before you make a purchase decision.

-David