Prices are $479 and $429 respectively. Price really isn't an issue, but I want to get the better tv. Not too sure if a bigger plasma with less pixels is better or a smaller LED HDTV with more pixels is better. I will be using the TV mostly for streaming shows from my computer (via a cord from my CPU to the TV), video games via PS3, and sports that are on television. Also what else should I buy with either of the TVs? Obviously, I know I need a HDMI cord and probably a surge protection chord to plug into the wall socket. Thanks in advance!! I love you all
1080p. Smaller LED with more pixels is better. I would also check the refresh rate. Don't get anything less than 120Hz.
The screen refresh rate is 60hz :/ how big of a problem would this be? The 51 inch plasma is 600hz though... Just when I thought I had made up my mind lol
My Brother just picked this up at Comp USA its 179$ and its got a great picture. [h=1]Toshiba 40E220U 40" Class LCD HDTV - 1080p, 60Hz, HDMI, USB, DynaLight[/h] http://goo.gl/t3nzM
Found the same Samsung with a refresh rate of 120hz, its $70 more. You think that it is worth it? Thanks again!
Its crazy how prices have come down so much. If i can get a tv thats better than my panasonic viera 46in 1080p plasma from 4 yrs ago for under 500 bucks im gonna have to do it. The 51 720 is tempting.
I went with this one: Samsung - 40" Class (40" Diag.) - LED - 1080p - 120Hz - 3D - HDTV http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Samsung+-+40%22+Class+(40%22+Diag.)+-+LED+-+1080p+-+120Hz+-+3D+-+HDTV/5612003.p;tab=reviews?id=1218672942709&skuId=5612003#tab=specifications Doubt I use the 3D, but the specs seemed pretty good and it seemed like a great value getting a $850 TV for $499
Sorry for the late reply, but the refresh rate is very important for watching sports, and gaming. With fast moving objects on screen, football, baseball, and quick action sequences on movies and tv in general, with only a 60 Hz refrese rate, you might see a trailing effect - like a baseball leaving a slight trail like a commet. However 120 Hz refresh rate limits this. Although there are tvs with 240 Hz refresh rates, the human eyes can't process anyting faster than 120 Hz anyway. You made the right choice. 120 Hz is the most importatnt thing to look for imo after the 1080p resolution.
Conversely, 120Hz sets achieve that refresh rate not by showing you the NTSC standard 30 frames per second twice as fast (that's physically impossible), they achieve that refresh rate by sampling the current frame being displayed, guessing how the next frame will look based on the content of the current frame, and creating a totally new frame that is inserted between the current frame and the next frame coming down from your TV provider. The result is that motion looks smoother… for some shows, like live sports. For other shows, the resulting effect will look like a soap opera. And the image processing increases both response time (the time it takes a pixel to change to another color and back) and input lag (the delay from when you input a command, like moving the analog stick on a game controller, and the on-screen execution of that command). UCF, the moral of the story here is that you should be very careful how you use 120Hz mode. Since you bought a Samsung TV, you should use its network connect feature to go out to the Internet and update its firmware, and make good use of its feature to name the different inputs you plug into your set. Make sure you apply the "Game" label to whatever input your consoles plug in to, so that the 120Hz processing (and other filtering) is disabled when playing games. And you made the right choice by going with 1080p at 40'' over 720p at 51''. Higher pixel density at the same resolution will always make content look better without having to adjust that content. Any 720p set over, say, 26'' is generally a ripoff, especially with HDTV prices being as low as they are. Lastly, since someone said they prefer LED to plasma… LED simply refers to the TV's backlighting, not the display. There is no such thing as an LED display, thus it is impossible to compare an LED TV to a plasma TV. TVs labeled as LED have LCD screens with LED backlighting, usually along the edge of the display (with the higher end sets mounting the LEDs directly behind the display, which looks better). LED backlighting replaces CCFL backlighting, which is the same sort of lighting in your office ceiling, with the benefits being lower power draw and instant, full brightness (CCFL lights can take up to 30 minutes to warm up to full brightness). There is no difference in image quality, save for perhaps a mildly brighter picture (which is not always better). So there you go, tech babble that may or may not pierce the tryptophan coma.
I totally want this: http://www.amazon.com/Panasonic-VIERA-TC-P50U50-50-Inch-Plasma/dp/B00752VLRC/ref=cm_wl_cp_al_pt $599... yeah, it's an older "u" series, but who cares? 3D TV's have pushed these models to lower prices and who buys a 3D anyway? I guess I don't NEED it... and can wait until the price comes down even further.
Thank you so much for this post!! I didn't even know you could adjust the TV to and from 60hz and 120hz lol; I have had a standard TV all my life.
Depends on the set, but Samsung TVs apply different processing effects (like 120Hz) depending on what label you assign to the input. So if you take your gaming console input and name it Satellite STB, it's going to be awful because of the input lag caused by the set doing things like 120Hz processing. But if you name that input Game, then the TV won't do anything extra and will just output the image it's receiving as quickly as possible. Settings like Satellite STB also let you configure the effects and turn them on and off, but there's still some processing that's done that you can't control, which is why input names are so important on Samsung sets.
