len_mullen

These are them. Best deal is at Walmart, but you can get a Panasonic or Samsung for a hundred bucks more without waiting in line. Walmart Samsung 50" Widescreen Plasma HDTV w/ 2 HDMI Inputs $798.00 Circuit City Samsung 50" Widescreen Plasma HDTV $899.99 Sears Samsung 50" Widescreen Plasma HDTV [Online Now at BF Price] $899.99 Best Buy Panasonic Viera 50" Widescreen 720p Plasma HDTV [Online Now at BF Price] $899.99

I think it's irresponsible. If he wants to go, dress properly and join him.

touch games are time killers not comparable to the games on a psp. as a portable game system, the psp is without peer.

how big a tv are you shopping for?

apples and oranges. if he wants to play games, the psp is great. if he wants a unobtrusive media player, the psp is kind of big, the batteries don't last long enough, and memory cards are kind of expensive.

This is probably a stupid answer, but when I started thinking about this, I cut out a piece of cardboard the size of the set I was thinking of and stood it where the tv would go. I also measured the distance from the set to the seats and consulted charts like these to see what size made sense for my room. 60 inches is big and much more expensive than 50 inches. If cost forces you to choose a different technology (dlp), consider image quality and viewing angle as well. good luck!

Dish promotes 'true hd' or 1080p. Problem is that there is little 1080p source for them to rebroadcast. Some people claim the additional compression required to get all those channels to your receiver actually degrades image quality. Not really dumping on Dish -- just skeptical that there will be sufficient 1080p content to cause me to spend extra on a 1080p tv at this time. I waited this long to get HDTV because most of what I watched was SDTV and that did not look good at 720p. Now that 720p is mainstream, I jumped in. Blu-ray looks great at 720p, but even if it didn't, my ps3 is playing 720p games and my provider is pushing 720p content. If that makes sense. Save the difference and get a 1080p when the mainstream is 1080p. You'll have a better set in your living room then and a very nice tv in your bedroom.

How's your head? If you are looking for a deal on a PS3 console and are willing to get a credit card as part of the deal, check out sonyrewards. You can get $150 off your purchase -- that's a $250 PS3. 2 for 1 blu-ray movies too!

right -- same old, same old. there is not infinite money and there is not infinite merchandise. those who are looking for something specific will buy early and pay more while those who are less fussy, will find better deals on less selection as the holiday approaches. each year, i make a list. i start shopping for the stuff i 'must have' after labor day. i do price adjustments and returns as available, but the key is to get mine. once i'm done with that, i shop for deals. finally, i pick over the clearance at the end of the season. i think we had some better than bf deals in the last two months. i have had no opportunity to adjust or return. i'm disappointed in the bf deals and may not even go out. BUT i expect to get some really great deals on the leftover merchandise as the holiday approaches and the retailers panic.

no problems for me either.

I agree. That's the one on my list.

I'm not an expert. I just happen to be a person who recently finished shopping for a new TV. I decided on a plasma early in the process, so I don't have much help for you with your LCD.

I'd have to see the two sets. I hear great things about Sony, but love my Sammy. Do you have models?

DLP is great in a 'home theater' where you sit dead in front and the environment is perfect, but they kind of suck in a living room where viewing angle and ambient lighting are factors. DLP sets are the ones where, if you duck down a little or move to the side a bit, the image quality changes. I couldn't have that in my living room.

They will look AWESOME on a 720p. In my living room, we sit between six and twelve feet from the TV. In Santa's Workshop, I am only about five feet from my 50" plasma. PS3 games and especially blu-ray media are spectacular. Using this chart, you can judge how much impact 1080p will have in your living room, but I still recommend you visit stores and stand back the distance you will be viewing from. I should mention that, except for blu-ray (dish network is another story), nothing you watch will be better than 720p (768 lines of resolution). Chances are the upscaled video will look WORSE at 1080p than the native 768 line presentation.

Altitude and heat are definitely issues. Not so much as you think, though. My Samsung is designed to operate at altitudes under 6500 feet. Pioneer sets are designed to operate to 7500 feet. If you live at or below 6000 feet, altitude is not an issue. I'm 'breaking in' my set in a spare bedroom we refer to as Santa's Workshop. With the 50 inch TV playing the break-in DVD (which rotates solid screens of colors continuously), a 1200w home theater running, and all doors and windows closed, the room got noticeably warmer. In the same room, watching TV, I don't notice any temperature change. Next time I watch tv in there, I'll take a thermometer in with me. Burn-in is less of an issue. Samsung says my set needs no break-in at all. I did experience some image retention when I left a DVD on the menu for several hours, but I was able to remedy this with the problem using the All-White function for a few minutes. Samsung says this can happen after viewing a static image for more than two hours. So far, using the PS3 has not caused retention (I use the pixel-shift function and set brightness/contrast to recommended levels). I'm more concerned about channels that do not use the full screen and run all programming full screen. Image retention is an issue with LCDs and even CRTs, though, so don't get too wrapped up in all that. Happy TV shopping!

Thank you for the kind words, but I'm no expert. I just happen to have purchased a HDTV and I'm just passing on what I discovered. I knew nothing when I started shopping and, by next BF, I'll be in the dark again. Glad I was able to help.

No question for me -- at any given price point, plasma looks better. Especially for sports. If you are going to put your tv in a brightly lit room or where it will get light from windows, you will need to angle it down a bit to avoid reflections on the glass screen. Good info here... http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=8_nuC&m=1jNCsR6HuXQTuH&b=Q4ubsboseIKf_eWFTnsFmw http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-6449_7-6792632-1.html?tag=rb_content;rb_mtx http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-6449_7-6844370-1.html?tag=rb_content;rb_mtx http://reviews.cnet.com/720p-vs-1080p-hdtv/?tag=rb_content;rb_mtx http://www.daniele.ch/school/30vs60/30vs60_1.html http://www.consumersearch.com/plasma-tv http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/ Your eyes matter more than other people's opinions. Best thing to do is spend some time in front of sets. Start by measuring the distance from your viewing area to where the set will be. That matters because if you are sitting six feet back from a 42" tv, you will be hard pressed to distinguish 720p from 1080p (http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg212/hondar_2008/resolution_chart.jpg). Visit a few stores. My Walmart feeds s-video to their HDTVs, so the picture is not so good to begin with. Try to see a lot of programming. A blu-ray disc of dolphins frolicking is going to look good on all sets. High motion (sports) will challenge a lot of expensive TVs. Most of the differences (price, image retention, picture quality) between lcd and plasma right now are slim. - LCD will look better in a bright room (plasma is glass/reflective) - LCD uses less electricity - Plasma is better for motion - Plasma looks better in a dark room (deeper blacks, richer colors) - Plasma looks better from wide angles (when you are off to the side of the set or looking down on one) There is more variation between brands than technologies. Most rate Pioneer and Sony plasmas at the top, but Samsung and Panasonic are right there for a fraction of the cost. I have a 50 inch Samsung 720p plasma and I like it a lot. BTW, there is a lot of information on this in the dedicated HDTV thread.

no. it would be about the size of a 13" lcd screen (measure is diagonal, so take the square root of the sum of the squares of the two sides).

First, I would get plasma unless you are viewing in a brightly lit room. Second, I think Bravia sets tend to be over priced. Third, financing should be a minor consideration in your purchase -- pick the set, find the deal. If you can only afford a TV by financing, you cannot afford the TV.

I would. Better contrast, newer DNIe (assuming they improve with + and never having compared the two), and more inputs. Still, if you get the chance, look at both. I bet you have trouble telling one from the other until you start counting connectors

There are quite a few differences -- contrast, connections, features, modes. Open these two pages (PN42A400, PN42A450) side by side to see for yourself. The 450 is the better set, but I could see me choosing on price -- I'd have to look at each to see what difference contrast ratio (20000:1 vs 15000:1) and DNIe (DNIe vs DNIE+) makes.

Anyone can change their prices at a moment's notice. No one shops by circular -- except leaked circulars on BF Expect all sorts of slashed prices going forward.

All good things. Check return/restocking policies, but I think you should take the chance under the circumstances.

5% of $500 is only $25. I don't think it's worth the time and gas. Do you?