scott182

I think I've finally decided and am close to buying a Samsung DLP LED HDTV. Space is not an issue, so I don't need a plasma or LCD.

I was planning on getting the HL-T5687S but see that there is also an HL-T5689S model; as far as I can tell, the only major differences are the 89S uses HDMI 1.3 rather than 1.1, and includes picture-in-picture and an illuminated remote (neither of which I care about). The 87S can be had for $1700 shipped and the 89S is around $2100 shipped.

So is HDMI 1.3 worth an extra $400? I'm guessing no, but I just want some reassurance. I already have a Blu-ray player, the Panasonic DMP-BD30, which supports Deep Color on HDMI 1.3.

Spiky

Not on a TV. Deep color is a future potential, no more. The discs won't support it, so what will? The main benefit of 1.3 is for surround audio, which won't matter to a TV.

PIP is fun if you like lots of football, not much else.

scott182

Thank you for telling me exactly what I wanted to hear. I'm satisfied. Now I can think about getting the 61" instead of the 56"!

movielib

Get the 61". I'm glad I did. I know I'd have been sorry if I hadn't.

dvdsteve2000

I have a Samsung 61" TV and I love it. The only drawback is with video gaming, mainly online gaming. The (my) DLP has some lag to it. Games like GH2 & 3 must be calibrated manually, Rock Band has a DLP setting which seems to be dead on, and Halo 3 has a lag to it.

scott182

How far away do you guys sit from the 61"? That's a slight concern of mine: I'll be sitting about 9 feet away, and while I know that this is definitely not too close for HD material, how does it look on standard TV and DVDs?

I just wish I had bought it a while back before prices started going up. At one point, Amazon was selling it for $1800 with free shipping. Now it's more like $2000 plus shipping.

dvdsteve2000

LOL, man, I sit about 5ft away (usually). Standard TV looks pretty good with the exception of Nickelodeon for some reason. Most channels that I watch have an HD sister station so that's all good. I don't even notice SD being 'bad' anymore, and if you are watching a regular station, when you click to an HD station it looks all that much better. My TV is used in our living room, so it's used for just about everything, you just have to get used to the not-as-good picture if that's how you're going to be using it.

movielib

I'm about 8' away. HD looks amazing. SD on cable TV looks decent, not great. I just got Blu-Ray and HD DVD and both upconvert standard DVDs that look excellent. On a DVD player without upconversion they still look quite good (although I have no reason to watch them that way now except for non-R1s on my Malata).

What doesn't look so good is standard TiVo but it is watchable (2nd highest level out of four) and you can adjust the PQ up at the expense of less recording time. I haven't gotten HD TiVo yet.

scott182

Thanks all for your help. You've made my decision much easier.

Sdallnct

In my theater room, our first row is right at 10.5 feet from a 94" screen. HD TV and DVD (SD, HD and BD) all look great! My wife actually sits in a love seat about 2 feet closer! Personally I think that is to close. But not because the quality goes down a lot, but at the distance you are really looking up based on the height of my screen.

SD is watchable. It is ok to watchable depending on the channel. If I'm watching a lot of SD I'll move to the back row (about 12.5 feet) But to be honest, HD on that size will spoil you. You will start making watching decisions based on HD or SD...lol