LCD HDTV - anyone in Europe using recent ones?

[system11]

It's time to replace my TV.

Given that plasma is totally off the cards for obvious reasons, does anyone have anything good to say about any recent LCD HDTVs? Keep seeing input lag and motion blur horror stories..

[PC Engine Fan X!]

You might want to pick up the Sharp 32" LCD TV monitor (model no. LC-32GP1U) with 1080p input via both analog component video input and digital HDMI interfaces. Sharp also makes a 37" sized variant (model no. LC-37GP1U) as well.

I personally don't see any lag nor motion blur with this particular Sharp branded HDTV LCD monitor 32" monitor when running a PS3 console with HDMI setup...looks super razor sharp! ^_~

My only gripe is that there's no standard 31kHz PC VGA input but rather a DVI input -- a simple DVI to VGA adapter works wonders.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[thegreathopper]

It's time to replace my TV.

Given that plasma is totally off the cards for obvious reasons, does anyone have anything good to say about any recent LCD HDTVs? Keep seeing input lag and motion blur horror stories..

Very interested to know the obvious reasons for Plasma being off the cards, I have a Plasma and now I am worried.. It's not going to explode or anything is it?

[Ed Oscuro]

Also interested, if you excuse the risk of going offtopic...I stopped by news threads announcing Pioneer's decision to stop manufacturing its own glass panels for plasma (the least important part, apparently), and people were there claiming that plasma is better than LCD, even for close in viewing o_O

Not sure what to believe at the moment.

[neorichieb1971]

Kuro Pioneers are the best TV's, but I think Bloodflowers is nervous about the reputation of burn in on Plasma technology. And the fact that Plasmas start at 37" which is a bit big for some people (or cost).

I have the Sony Bravia KDL40D3000U (UK model) and its absolutely fantastic. The only drawback is the blacks, which are not perfect, but not bad either.

www.hdtvtest.co.uk is your friend . My online friend reviews for them.

[Daigohji]

I was shopping around for an HDTV when I first got my Xbox 360 a few months back, but ended up going for the cheap option and bought a widescreen PC monitor instead. Anyway, lots of sifting through reviews turned up the Panasonic Viera TX-32LXD70 32" as a good balance of price and performance, though I haven't seen one in action myself.

[system11]

I'm avoiding plasma due to burn, yes. I know they've improved the issue greatly in recent years, but I tend to play the same game for many hours at a time, and that game has a HUD which is in the bottom left 90% of the time, if not more. One with a hard white edge. It's kind of asking for trouble.

PC Engine Fan X: Unfortunately that model does not exist in Europe, or at least - I can't find it, and it's not on Sharps site.

[Strider77]

I'm avoiding plasma due to burn, yes.

you won't get burn in, not unless you blatantly try to get it on there. especially from a new one these days. projection is THE worst for burn in and my buddy has none and he plays the same game for hours every day.

I've always heard plasma was the way to go. Guess their are pros and cons either way and some are more worried about performance in different areas.

I stuck with CRT b/c it can do 480p naitive and also HD. so no lag ect with a XRGB attached. plus I am a fan of CRT's colors and black levels. Plasma seems better off for color/blacks so I lean that way.

But I've seen LCDs I'd take in a heart beat if I had the cash also.

[system11]

I'm avoiding plasma due to burn, yes.

you won't get burn in, not unless you blatantly try to get it on there. especially from a new one these days. projection is THE worst for burn in and my buddy has none and he plays the same game for hours every day.

Local salesman in a shop admitted he gets temporary effects from channel logos on his Pioneer. That's about as good as you can get.

At the moment it's looking like a choice between a Sony (UGH!) and a Samsung, going to try to take the 360 along to check it out.

[Kaiser]

Go for samsung, i have no problem with samsung LCDs for TV/computer use

[system11]

I have a Sony KDL-40X3000 coming after testing it with the 360 today. I couldn't detect any input lag, which means the lag there (they ALL have some) is not big enough to impact games. Amount of blur with 120hz on was very minor, sister was with me and couldn't even see it. No processing artifacts even with Senko No Ronde which should have given it a hard time. Game mode was garbage, all it did was dim the set a bit, I could have done that myself with the brightness control. It also turned off 120hz which was definitely a bad move.

It made me sad to buy a Sony product. Unfortunately, no matter how I tried I couldn't find a reason not to buy it, which is how I approach decisions like this.

So, for anyone else in the same boat - try one of those out.

[neorichieb1971]

Wow, you spent top dollar on that. The X series is the dogs gonads though, it even has the window edge border. You've opted for a 1080 panel as well which given the sort of distance a 40" demands of you and the type of game you play, I wonder if you'll get to see the benefits.

If you go Blu-ray in the future or exchange that 360 for a PS3, you'll start to see some benefit to having that 1080p panel, but not much.

Extremely good choice in TV though.

[system11]

It was more a case of picking the size (I have a 36" CRT but this will sit an extra foot away from me), then going for something with 100hz. 1080P gives a certain amount of future proofing too. Don't forget the 360 outputs 1080P...

[Daigohji]

I have a Sony KDL-40X3000 coming after testing it with the 360 today. I couldn't detect any input lag, which means the lag there (they ALL have some) is not big enough to impact games.

I thought input lag on HDTVs was due to it upscaling SD signals from older consoles. You wouldn't expect any lag from a 360 which outputs 720p and so takes the processing weight off the TV.

[neorichieb1971]

Its just my opinion. But 1080p future proofing isn't really necessary. For starters, they cost twice as much as 768p panels. Secondly, depending on your distance of viewing for a 40", anything more than 8ft your not going to notice any more clarity in the picture over a 768p panel. In 3 years time, TV's will be revolutionized again. There is still some way to go for HDTV in general. With LCD having some pitfalls of its own.

I adore my TV, which is the same size as yours. Apart from styling, I wonder how much better yours is over mine which cost me £780 delivered.

You must remember, 768p panels can now take 1080p signals. Cars on Blu-ray looks astonishing on my TV, you won't find any better picture quality than that on any TV. I recommend you get that movie to show off your TV (if you get a blu ray drive).

[system11]

I have a Sony KDL-40X3000 coming after testing it with the 360 today. I couldn't detect any input lag, which means the lag there (they ALL have some) is not big enough to impact games.

I thought input lag on HDTVs was due to it upscaling SD signals from older consoles. You wouldn't expect any lag from a 360 which outputs 720p and so takes the processing weight off the TV.

It varies hugely by brand. Some are worse than others, some measure it even at native resolution as upscaling is far from the only processing they have to do. Philips were the worst I saw when shopping around - in a bank of TVs at a local store, 6 of them tiles on a wall, you could see the Philips were slightly behind all the others yet all sets had the exact same HD source... LG also seemed a little behind, Toshiba (in that display wall anyway) were faster. Shop assistant couldn't even tell, but one of the others who came over agreed with me.

[PC Engine Fan X!]

I'm avoiding plasma due to burn, yes. I know they've improved the issue greatly in recent years, but I tend to play the same game for many hours at a time, and that game has a HUD which is in the bottom left 90% of the time, if not more. One with a hard white edge. It's kind of asking for trouble.

PC Engine Fan X: Unfortunately that model does not exist in Europe, or at least - I can't find it, and it's not on Sharps site.

Here are the specs on the Sharp Aquos 32" LC-32GP1U LCD HDTV, click on link below:

http://www.sharpusa.com/products/ModelD ... 4-,00.html

and specs on the Sharp Aquos 37" LC-37GP1U LCD HDTV:

http://www.sharpusa.com/products/ModelD ... 9-,00.html

The above listed particular Sharp Aquos TV monitors are NTSC models & do have built-in support for European PAL-M and PAL-N video signal formats. My apologies for not mentioning that they were NTSC models in my earlier post.

The interesting thing is that Sharp LCD TV monitors are designed in Japan and built in Mexico at their manufacturing facility to their exact specifications. Sharp USA's distribution center is based out of California. The 32" sized Aquos LCD TVs are the smallest size to have the 1080p feature. Unfortunately, not very many USA dealers carry the above listed Sharp Aquos 32" and 37"LCD TVs. I had to order it through "special order" but well worth the $$$ spent for one... ^_~

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[system11]

It's arrived and all set up.

Surprised how good the built in speakers are, I didn't really notice in the shop.