What is the best home, living room, television to buy today?

Hi, I am looking for the most reliable television, with the best picture available today. I'd like a fairly large screen, but not home theatre size.

Basically, just a great, regular tv.

I don't know what is state of the art these days. Also, I don't know if I should get plasma or something else out there.

Can anyone help me start?

 

Plasma are pretty well down. I'd look closely at Samsung who seem to be the outright leading brand of hdtv today

 

I've been happy with the Sony Bravia.
I've got 3. A 46", a 40" and a 32".
They've all been very reliable and look great.

One important feature to note, is an audio output that follows the input selection. My 46" is fed by 5 different sources. Audio to my sound system is selected by which input is selected on the monitor. This is very handy.

 

Dead of night, please check your "conversations".

 

alas, plasma seems to be a thing of the past.

 

which is crazy because it's the best picture. Just do a search. The new OLED may be as good or even better but they cost thousands of dollars.

 

Yep, unfortunately plasma has sorta/kinda gone away, due mainly to price competition -- not picture quality.

If Dead of Night can give us a price range, I'll toss around some possible suggestions. The higher-end LG and Samsungs aren't too bad, provided you get them calibrated. I would consider 50" to be a minimum size for most living rooms.

 

Anything under $3,000.

 

It took me ten years as I kept on wasting my money on records, but recently I finally got a Panasonic plasma, before they became extinct, only a low end one, but what a fantastic picture, blows away any LCD/LED sets I've seen, there are still a few new stock Panasonics around in the UK, maybe there are still a few in the States as well.

 

I have a 55" (I think) Samsung that I got from Costco. It cost less than $3,000. I also got a calibration disk, the Spears and Munsil, from Amazon. The picture quality is fantastic. Sometimes it gets the "Soap Opera Effect" but most of the time I really think the picture is great.

The couch is probably 8 feet away from the TV and the picture seems to be the right size. I do need to hook the sound system up to the TV though, because the speakers aren't the greatest.

Chad

 

LCD/LED is "good enough" for most people. Plasma, while technically offering a better picture, is higher maintenance and not good for brighter rooms. It's not really worth the extra trouble for a marginally better picture, unless you're a serious videophile.

 

Higher maintenance? I don't understand. Plasma can work just fine in a bright room.

 

When I was researching TVs, I came across lots of stuff about burn-in (how to prevent it, how to get rid of it) and also "break-in" for new sets.

And I'm sorry, but saying that plasma is fine in a bright rooms is simply misleading, especially depending on where the TV is placed in relation to windows. Glare is much more of an issue than LCD/LED.

 

Try turning off the smoothing or motion effects to remove the soap opera effect. While the smoothing really helps slow objects moving across the screen it creates that soap opera effect that I can't stand. Pity, because the effect makes motion great, 3D at times but it also makes everything look cartoonish. It would be sweet if they could perfect the smooth motion so it worked without turning everything into a soap opera.

 

The main reason I bought a Panasonic plasma for my home theater was that it could be viewed at any angle without a loss of picture quality, which is not the case with LCD/LED. Even three years after my purchase, people who see my "Panny plasma" are still blown away by the picture quality.

 

Imho, a Samsung or a Sony Bravia. Samsung is pushing their 'curved' TV's but I think that's a gimmick. Personally, I wouldn't get too hung up on the LCD & LED nomenclature, though LED might have the edge.

 

I've had a plasma for 5 years in my living room which is very bright during the day with no problem whatsoever.

 

I need to check, because I think I turned off the smoothing when I did the calibration disk.

Chad

 

A 55" Samsung LED is a solid start. You should be able to find one for $900, I don't think the higher end models with smart apps are worth it.

 

Then there's tons of stuff you can afford. The Sony 55" & 65" sets are excellent and affordable if you just buy HD and not 4K.

 

$3,000 is a pretty generous budget for a TV these days, isn't it?

 

I've heard there is a new OLED set out there for $3000 that is supposed to be terrific

 

Very! Geez, you can buy almost anything you want non 4k for that. And I agree with the other person who said don't worry about a smart tv. You can buy something like a Roku 3 for under $100 and you are not limited by what will surely be dated technology in under two years. I have replaced my streaming ap boxes three times in the last two years for better and better streaming experiences and I'm really glad it isn't my tv limiting this now important aspect of video viewing.

 

If it's for watching sports / soaps just about any Samsung should do. If it's in conjunction with a bd player for watching movies a Panasonic plasma if you can still find one, perhaps nos.
Size 50/65 inch.

 

PLASMA.

I bought an entry level Panasonic, and it beats MOST lcd/led type models picture wise.

Everyone who sees it marvels at how good it looks, and comments how their tv does not look so real or have such good color etc.