Forget about a FS template this warrants attention right NOW

[daknee_k]

Biggest issue is how you use your TV. Do you watch local news all the time or is it on sports all day long. Do you have kids playing video games for hours and hours? Budget, size of your room, old eyes, room lighting, all play into it. My experience is that you want to have a Big name brand unit rather than the cheapest Wally World special if yo want it to last longer than the warranty period (90 days to a year). Netflix and the other online services are great if you are not my mother who needs me to tell her where the on button is every coupla months. The newer plasmas are a great deal right now with a good balance of size clarity and lack of problems like picture burn in or dropped pixels. This is mainly because big screen plasmas have been around for awhile. Figure on some heat being put out by your big screen, even with the latest LED lit TVs. The laws of physics still apply no matter what the latest glossy marketing sheet says. Buy from a place that has a good return policy so if there is an issue, you can get it taken care of right away.
bleagghh this is getting long.

[hollohas]

I have an LED LCD with Wi-Fi. I use the internet content ALL the time. As someone mentioned earlier, internet content may change in the future but that doesn't mean your Wi-Fi TV will lose access. They download updates just like your computer does. With a good internet TV my guess is you will always have access to all the top online content.

My Sony TV has access to way more than I could ever want. Currently I use Amazon, Netflix and YouTube on it frequently. It also has things like Pandora, Hulu, Slacker, Qriocity and Picasa. One of the things I like most about it is you can sit down and show a slideshow your digital pictures that are stored on your computer. Or use your big screen to watch digital home movies that are stored on your computer. All without an extra box, equipment or wires.

Personally I stay away from Plasma. They do have great images but the individual plasma cells can burst at higher altitudes...I would seriously think twice about buying one if you live anywhere above Denver. I have had many friends with Plasma's that had burst cells in the mountains...and your warranty won't cover it until you have a certain percentage of cells burst so you have to live with little black spots all over your screen.

I'll also add, go with 240hz. If in doubt, find an electronics store that has 3 similar TVs displayed side-by-side all showing the same video but at different rates (60hz, 120hz, 240hz). You will see the difference immediately.

[Graves]

We have a plasmas in our cabin @ 9600' - no bursting of the cells there.

[hollohas]

We have a plasmas in our cabin @ 9600' - no bursting of the cells there.

Good news. I had read that in Home Theater magazine a couple years ago as well as witnessing it but perhaps technology has fixed the problem or it only applies to the cheaper sets. Either way, glad to hear it has not been an issue for you.

[Byte Stryke]

I have an LED LCD with Wi-Fi. I use the internet content ALL the time. As someone mentioned earlier, internet content may change in the future but that doesn't mean your Wi-Fi TV will lose access. They download updates just like your computer does. With a good internet TV my guess is you will always have access to all the top online content.

My Sony TV has access to way more than I could ever want. Currently I use Amazon, Netflix and YouTube on it frequently. It also has things like Pandora, Hulu, Slacker, Qriocity and Picasa. One of the things I like most about it is you can sit down and show a slideshow your digital pictures that are stored on your computer. Or use your big screen to watch digital home movies that are stored on your computer. All without an extra box, equipment or wires.

I'll also add, go with 240hz. If in doubt, find an electronics store that has 3 similar TVs displayed side-by-side all showing the same video but at different rates (60hz, 120hz, 240hz). You will see the difference immediately.

This^


I have a Samsung 50" LED wi-fi as well as an Ethernet jack.
Love it.

would recommend it to anyone.

I would reiterate going and looking at them side by side and making your choice that way.

[Circuits]

You need to make sure the Internet component supports what you want, or the wifi (or even wired) networking is useless. Many less expensive tvs only support the content and channel stores of the manufacturer, requiring monthly subscriptions and/or pay per view fees to even get to Netflix or amazon prime.

The only semi-worthwhile online content I can get on my Mitsubishi is pandora, so I don't even turn on networking except to check for firmware updates, and I feed Internet content to the tv with an apple tv, a roku, and a PS3.

[Jer]

Personally I stay away from Plasma. They do have great images but the individual plasma cells can burst at higher altitudes...I would seriously think twice about buying one if you live anywhere above Denver. I have had many friends with Plasma's that had burst cells in the mountains...and your warranty won't cover it until you have a certain percentage of cells burst so you have to live with little black spots all over your screen.

Uhmmm... no.

[Byte Stryke]

You need to make sure the Internet component supports what you want, or the wifi (or even wired) networking is useless. Many less expensive tvs only support the content and channel stores of the manufacturer, requiring monthly subscriptions and/or pay per view fees to even get to Netflix or amazon prime.

The only semi-worthwhile online content I can get on my Mitsubishi is pandora, so I don't even turn on networking except to check for firmware updates, and I feed Internet content to the tv with an apple tv, a roku, and a PS3.

with my Samsung I can access any shared media from any computer on my network.


this varies between manufacturers

[daknee_k]

Old plasma displays had huge problems with altitude. It came down to pressure and how they were made. Course, back then a 50" would cost you 10 grand or more. If you are fairly tech savvy, (this is a net forum) you will love internet connectivity. That being said, almost any modern display can be hooked into practically any modern computer. Have an old machine? Dedicate it to use as a net appliance. Then you can surf away or watch your shows. Lots of ways to skin a cat.

[Jer]

Old plasma displays had huge problems with altitude. It came down to pressure and how they were made. Course, back then a 50" would cost you 10 grand or more. If you are fairly tech savvy, (this is a net forum) you will love internet connectivity. That being said, almost any modern display can be hooked into practically any modern computer. Have an old machine? Dedicate it to use as a net appliance. Then you can surf away or watch your shows. Lots of ways to skin a cat.

We're still talking about a short coming of some generation 1 (read: 10yrs ago) as a negative to owning a plasma? I don't think you were so much as others in this thread so I'm not quoting you to attack you. I'm just amazed that people still spread anti-plasma urban legend from 10yrs ago as reasons to not buy.

For the record, I have several plasmas and one of which is a 50" Maxent. It's basically a rebadged Panasonic (same glass & same boards) for a lot less money. At the time the Panasonic was almost $5k I paid $2k and it's been hanging on our wall in our bedroom ever since. No hissing, no 'burst cells' just one of the best pictures a person could want at a fraction of the top of the line option at the time and never a problem.