20 inch flat tube or 27 inch standard

[dremo]

I just have a quick question about the benefits of a 20 inch flat tube TV. The only flat ones I've seen in person are the Panasonic Tau, Toshiba, and a \/\/ega. I realized that for the price of a 20" flat screen I could get a 27" standard tube TV. I'm in college and live on campus. There aren't many electronic stores I can run to easily. I would like to know everyones opinion on which is better?

I'm looking for a TV to have in my apartment next year. I've seen the picture of the flat screens and I am totally amazed with the picture quality, but I'm having a hard time convincing myself that 20" flat is better than a 27"? I haven't looked at 27" too much, just quickly walking by.

Thanks for all the opinions.


Drew

[DaLeroy]

Hi

I had the same choice recently. Trouble is, I only looked at 21" flat screens, didn't really give anything bigger much thought, as it was for my room only. Then I bought a DVD player, and know I wish I had got a bigger screen, although I love the quality of my flat screen :) Also, my flat screen doesn't have an s-video input, so I'm using RCA's. How much better is the s-video connection? Because the quality seems pretty good as it is. Will s-video make it heaps better?

Thanks

[DigIt]

IMHO, a bigger screen is better than a flatter screen when price is an issue. 20" is considerably smaller than 27", and most people consider 27" to be the absolute minimum for a home theater display. Anything smaller, and letterbox movies are just too small. If I was in your situation, I'd go with size over flatness, especially since you probably won't be watching just movies and you probably won't be watching it alone (as opposed to 27" flat vs. 36" standard -- a tougher choice). Just make sure the 27" has an s-video input (and preferably 2 inputs) and it will serve just fine.

RE: S-video
On a 21" TV, my guess is that the improvement would be noticeable but not overwhelming. The problem is with larger TVs, where small imperfections are enlarged to the point of noticeability and distraction. When you buy a new TV that is 27" or larger, s-video should be on the top of your "must have" list, along with a decent comb filter. Chances are that your flat-screen TV has a decent comb filter, so it probably does a better job than most, but you would still notice a slight improvement with an s-video connection. I wouldn't lose any sleep over it.

[DaLeroy]

Thanks DigIt

I was getting very tempted to return my set and by a larger, non flat screen one, simply because of this. But I think for the minute I'll keep this one and settle for the composite connection. Looks great to me anyway :)