Current TVs/technologies?

[NW-Bound]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tyro I think it's just a form of buyer's remorse.

In my case, it's not buyer's remorse, but the sight that the late comers have better stuff for less. And being the frugal type who does not throw working things away, I am stuck with obsolete stuff, as the thing just keeps on working. Yes, it is obsolete, for the missing features I cited earlier.

Compare that to the first CD player I bought in 1985 for $500, which still works and still able to play audio CD on sale now.

And there are cases where I absolutely do not regret spending the money. For example, in 1986, I bought a VHS video recorder for $1200 before tax. Remember the type that was so big you hauled it on your shoulder while videotaping?

I bought it to videotape my first-born as she was growing up. Never regretted it, as the moment would be gone if I waited.

[fritz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tyro Have you got a link for that article? Everything I've read (including last month's CR article above) says just the opposite.

I also read that article on Yahoo -

Biggest technology flops of 2012 | Digital Crave - Yahoo!

I'm not a fan of 3D TV and expect it to fade away for the reasons the article mentions.

[Tyro]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MichaelB If I were in TV buying mode I'd look for the biggest screen I could afford, make sure the set has wifi and Internet browsing features, and lots of ports and connection capabilities.

From what I've been reading, the biggest screen and connection capabilities are important, but not so much the wifi and browsing features.
I want my dumb TV | TV and Home Theater - CNET Reviews

I'll check out what the folks at AVS forum have to say. Right now I'm digesting the reams of information & wisdom over at CNET, and I'd recommend that site to anyone else researching consumer electronics -- very impressive.

Tyro

[FUEGO]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tyro From what I've been reading, the biggest screen and connection capabilities are important, but not so much the wifi and browsing features. I want my dumb TV | TV and Home Theater - CNET Reviews I'll check out what the folks at AVS forum. Right now I'm digesting the reams of information & wisdom over at CNET, and I'd recommend that site to anyone else researching consumer electronics -- very impressive. Tyro

2 good sources. I usually wait to see a smoking good deal come up on something like a tv (the deal is almost always found online, not browsing in physical stores). Then I take a look at the reviews or comments about the tv (at the different deal sites, or the online stores, or amazon, or cnet/avsforums). If the tv is acceptable and meets my minimum requirements, I get it. Sometimes it takes a month or two of quietly stalking for a good deal before one comes up.

You may not have the time since your current tv just died assuming you want a replacement asap. Also of note are the sales cycles. Black Friday just passed, but the pre-superbowl sales are usually pretty good too.

[REWahoo]

Here's a good source for finding deals on TV's (and other stuff as well): Best TV Deals Online - Compare HDTV and Television Deals

[Tyro]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FUEGO You may not have the time since your current tv just died assuming you want a replacement asap.

Yes, we have just the one set, and for us me, it's a necessity. I can get by through Christmas, but we need to get something in here next week.

Compounding the problem is that for some unknown reason, I can't get DVDs to play on this machine, whereas I have before. Frustrating to say the least. The best I've been able to do is get a few flicks on HBO GO.

Tyro

PS Getting further into CNET, I came across this article/pic, which would be a dream setup for me had we the space and funds...
TV vs. projection: Your TV is too tiny | TV and Home Theater - CNET Reviews
When I showed it to DW, her first response was, "I see he's a bachelor, eh?"

[DFA]

Just purchased 2 Samsung LED TVs; one 55" and one 40", we got rid of two CRTs (both Sony over 10 years old). We got the 55" 8000 series for the family room and the 40" 6500 series for the bedroom.
I am a geek so I like all the bells and whistles such as: WiFi on line access, games, on line media access and much more. Very happy with picture quality on both sets.

Price for both ~ $4,000 at Best Buy; I felt it was high, but had not purchased a TV in a long time and wanted to get the best.

[Bestwifeever]

We will replace our 15 year old 31" crt tv this spring with the biggest flatscreen we can stomach--my but we thought that 31" was huge! I'm glad we waited til now to have skipped some technologies and to have seen enough other folks' sets to know we really want one.

So helpful to have threads like this one to read what others are doing and thinking.

[MichaelB]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tyro From what I've been reading, the biggest screen and connection capabilities are important, but not so much the wifi and browsing features. I want my dumb TV | TV and Home Theater - CNET Reviews I'll check out what the folks at AVS forum have to say. Right now I'm digesting the reams of information & wisdom over at CNET, and I'd recommend that site to anyone else researching consumer electronics -- very impressive. Tyro

That's reasonable. Features like wifi can always come from external boxes, all you need is the connectivity.

When we bought our first plasma (42") an HD display cost $4k and an SD display cost $2k. One could see the difference, but it was not "earth shattering". I figured if I bought the less expensive model, the money saved would pay for another set down the road. Four years later, the $2k was enough to buy a 50" HD set.

The display quality seems to be the major differentiator among models across product lines. We have always gone right at the midpoint for that, then looked for other features.

[ERD50]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bestwifeever We will replace our 15 year old 31" crt tv this spring with the biggest flatscreen we can stomach--my but we thought that 31" was huge! I'm glad we waited til now to have skipped some technologies and to have seen enough other folks' sets to know we really want one. So helpful to have threads like this one to read what others are doing and thinking.

Just remember - that 31" CRT is a diagonal measurement on a rather square screen (4:3). The flat panels are widescreen (16:9), and 31" diagonal is much shorter on a flat panel than on a crt.

According to this Gadget Toad's Screen Size Comparison Tool you need ~ 40" widescreen to give the same height as a 31" crt.

-ERD50

[NW-Bound]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tyro PS Getting further into CNET, I came across this article/pic, which would be a dream setup for me had we the space and funds... TV vs. projection: Your TV is too tiny | TV and Home Theater - CNET Reviews When I showed it to DW, her first response was, "I see he's a bachelor, eh?"

I think I am the only one who does not care about a gigantic screen. One reason I do not like to go to movie theaters is that the big screen and the loud sound give me a headache. My surround receiver (>15 yr old) is not currently hooked up to my TV for that reason.

That's said, I was joking about being "disgusted" with advances in electronics.

I am actually amazed at how they can produce these gadgets for so cheap. It's a cutthroat environment, and being an electronic engineer but working in industrial and aerospace applications, I am glad I was not in the consumer product arena. We would be even hungrier, if we had to sell our gear so cheap.

I mentioned earlier about my observation that newer electronics do not seem to last as long as what we bought 15-20 years ago. I think there's a lot of corner cutting there. But on the other hand, people do not seem to mind as much, as this would give them a chance to upgrade.

[Mulligan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bestwifeever We will replace our 15 year old 31" crt tv this spring with the biggest flatscreen we can stomach--my but we thought that 31" was huge! I'm glad we waited til now to have skipped some technologies and to have seen enough other folks' sets to know we really want one. So helpful to have threads like this one to read what others are doing and thinking.

15 years ago was about the time I first bought mine of that size. I had upgraded from a 21 inch and thought that thing was huge. That tv made me realize how old I am getting. When I first bought it, I moved several times and would just pick it up and move it by myself, no problem. A year ago, when I found it a home for someone who needed a tv, I about broke my back moving it by myself.

[explanade]

Panasonic plasmas. Cheaper and better picture quality than LEDs, which are set bright in showrooms ("torch mode").

I bought a 3D model last year, don't have the glasses. Didn't hook up wifi on the plasma or the Blu Ray player.

[explanade]

Oh and look up 'motion artifacts' when it comes to LED/LCD vs. plasma.

[eytonxav]

I have a 52" Samsung that is pretty nice, but DS bought a 55" Visio 3D set that is quite good. Although I was skeptical about 3D, I've seen a few 3D movies on his setup and was favorably impressed. I suspect alot of the better sets come with 3D, so I would not let that feature deter you whether you use it or not. Good time to buy a set is typically just before the Super Bowl.

[ERD50]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NW-Bound I am actually amazed at how they can produce these gadgets for so cheap. It's a cutthroat environment, and being an electronic engineer but working in industrial and aerospace applications, I am glad I was not in the consumer product arena. We would be even hungrier, if we had to sell our gear so cheap.

I am too, for some things I buy. But when you see how they go together in mass production, you get a sense of it. So much is based in the integrated circuit packages, and those are produced very cheaply now. And they get mass soldered to the boards. Hundreds, thousands of solder connections made with a single swipe of solder paste through a screen/mask, parts placed into the solder by machines that pick and place faster than you can follow with the eye, and then a pass through an oven to melt the solder. The solder flux is volatile, it just vaporizes off - no washing. Some minimal assembly - snap in a display, click a few case parts together - done!

So many circuits are pre-tuned at the IC or package level, so no big process of tuning pots/coils/caps like in the old days. A lot of self-testing too. Just power up, and verify a few things, and you have a good confidence that it is functional. And if not, it's not as important as an industrial aerospace device, so corners can be cut.

Quote:

I mentioned earlier about my observation that newer electronics do not seem to last as long as what we bought 15-20 years ago. I think there's a lot of corner cutting there. But on the other hand, people do not seem to mind as much, as this would give them a chance to upgrade.

I wonder about this. No doubt it is true in some cases. Things like cell phones are going through so many changes, I really don't think too many people expect to keep them 10+ years - why build them to last if only 1% would keep them anywhere near that long? Really inexpensive stuff may have cheap buttons/switches, so those only last so long. Or a battery that isn't user-replaceable - a cheap product may not be worth the effort to take apart to get to the battery. But for other things, esp non-portable, I just don't know. I've got a scanner and printer that are ~ 12 YO and going fine, and those have a lot of mechanical stuff. And if I look around the house for stuff that is 20-30 years old (I have a few stereo receivers that old), well, that is survivor-ship bias. How much stuff died that I've long forgot about? I guess I'll have to get back to you in ten years about my current stuff

Quote:

That's said, I was joking about being "disgusted" with advances in electronics.

But it is something I hear from time-to-time. And I respond as I did here - people would like it better if prices went up? Who knew?

-ERD50

[Tyro]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fritz I also read that article on Yahoo - Biggest technology flops of 2012 | Digital Crave - Yahoo! I'm not a fan of 3D TV and expect it to fade away for the reasons the article mentions.

Ok -- now that I've read the article (and this really has nothing to do with which HDTV we'll wind up with or why), the reasons I see (JMO--ICBW) for fading away a stall in 3D "adoption rate" are 2:

1. Both technologies have significant drawbacks (clunky expensive glasses vs. loss of HD). The technology/industry will have to shake out as it did with VHS vs. Betamax and Blu-ray vs. HD. Neither drawback is insurmountable; the latter will become irrelevant if UHD ever catches on (which I have some reservations about).

2. 3D is great for movies, sports events, and some other kinds of programming, but unlike HD, it's not practical for everything all the time. Headaches notwithstanding (a small percentage of general population) nobody is going to (want to) wear glasses all the time, anymore than headphones. 3D without glasses is on the horizon (a LOT of folks working on it) -- maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow... If/when perfected, 3D will be here to stay, and I don't think it will be all that long. (Ask those consumer electronics folks who work so hard to bring us those whizz-bang techtoys. )

What I disagree with in the article is the expectation that less and less 3D content will be coming out. Like PIP and other features people may never/seldom use, I think it'll be there, especially on Blu-ray discs.

Tyro

[explanade]

Next big thing is 4K TV.

Prices will have to come way down though.

[Tyro]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ERD50 I've got a scanner and printer that are ~ 12 YO and going fine, and those have a lot of mechanical stuff.

We have an HP 5L laser printer that's a tank; can't toss it cuz it just won't quit. We bought an all-in-one printer a couple years back for color & scanner, and looking inside, I can't believe they could produce it for what we paid for it, let alone R&D, design, marketing, etc., etc. Hundreds of parts for under $150? Even with slave labor...

[Tyro]

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Originally Posted by explanade Next big thing is 4K TV. Prices will have to come way down though.

I just read these opinions. They seem to make sense, but I'm not tech-savvy enough to know.

Why 4K TVs are stupid | TV and Home Theater - CNET Reviews

Three TV improvements more worthwhile than Ultra HD 4K | TV and Home Theater - CNET Reviews