What would be a good, normal TV to buy?

Let me start by saying that I am extreeeemely technologically challenged and basically have to do a ton of research before I purchase anything electronic. We have a 25” flat screen Samsung in dd’s bedroom and a 42” Insignia (Best Buy’s brand) in the living room. They are both LCD, because I was told that plasma tvs have “glare issues”. I have been as happy with the Insignia as I am with the Samsung, despite its being much more reasonably priced. The 42” Insignia rated really high with Consumer Reports, so I went for it. I hope this helps.

You’ll want a LCD.

Why LCD rather than plasma?

I too am curious about this. When I window shop, the sharpness often makes me feel slightly seasick.

At the moment I am content with a CRT and roof antenna from 1987 and a converter box, but it is rather like clopping along in a horse and buggy.

@gailcalled Because plasma is going to be more expensive. If @Allie isn’t interested in getting top-of-the-line, but is interested in saving money, there’s just no reason for it.

A TV that doesn’t explode when you try to turn it on. That sounds like a lovely Television set IMO.

Pretty much all of them are the same. Most use the same LCD panel. They really aren’t much more than a computer monitor. I would suggest getting the cheapest. I did and it works well.

Wait for a week and I will email you when I see the best deal.

@Not_the_CIA So then is getting a computer monitor with a cable hookup cheaper for the same size? What’s the real difference between tv vs monitor?

We just bought a 32” Insignia that we are happy with too.

@papayalily – Pretty much the tuner and the inputs. But the actually LCD panel and backlighting are the same.

@Not_the_CIA What’s the tuner?

What’s the tuner?

Tunes in the television signals. Think of your computer monitor and a TV – pretty much the same, but the TV has a tuner.

The 26” 720p LCD is a good size for viewing from a distance of about four to seven feet. We own two: one in the kitchen and the other in the bedroom. In general, the sharpness, brightness and color strength should be turned down to about 50% of maximum when you set up the TV, as the factory settings are way too bright. As for reliability, check Consumer Reports. The Vizio Razor is a new, thin unit with very good side angle viewing which is helpful if you want to sit somewhat to the side of center. They are available for under $300 as factory refurbs on eBay. The Toshiba 26C100U is a reliable conventional unit but side viewing is not as good. Other good choices are Sharp, Sony and LG. All are similar, with Sony using a Samsung LCD panel. Philips, Magnavox and LG are all made by LG. They have good side viewing angles.

Hook up an inexpensive Toshiba DVD player with an HDMI cable and your standard def DVDs will look superb, as Toshiba has much experience with HD “upconversion” and they marketed the superb HD-DVD players until Blu-Ray took over two years ago.

Well in my experience, I don’t think I’ve ever seen an abnormal t.v. (but there’s no telling what they’ll bring out for a profit).. I have a ‘normal’ 27” wide screen magnovox hd t.v. (lcd) I’ve had it going on 7 years, never had it looked at and it still offers beautiful colors.. Though in most terms, a 27” doesn’t sound that big I’m telling you, you will be surprised of how large it actually is. I’ve had no desire to seek a larger one as this one is perfect for me. One thing though, even though mine has not given me any trouble and I would recommend it to anyone, that doesn’t mean they will all function flawlessly.. Could be I was just lucky.