Newb Needs HD Suggestions
 

Hope this is the right forum to post this. To be honest, I have only very recently begun to consider an HDTV & a Blu-Ray or HD-DVD player. I think I'll be buying both in the next week or so. I'm hoping for some suggestions. Keep in mind that I'm an HD newb:

1. The war rages on, but things are looking a bit bleak for HD-DVD (too bad, for some unknown reason, I was hoping that HD-DVD would win the war). If I'm going to buy a HD-DVD or Blu-Ray player this weekend, which way would you go? Which specific model/player would be the best value?

2. Which HDTV would you all suggest? I'm hoping for a 42" or larger (kind of thinking Plasma over LCD, but not sure) - 1080p, I suppose. Hoping to keep the price down, though, without resorting to a purchase I'll regret. Any suggestions on manufacturers/models?

3. My current Sony receiver (about 7-8 years old), obviously won't support HDMI. Do I need to/should I buy a new receiver, as well? Suggestions?

Thanks so much!

1) PS3
2) SXRD
3) No

The best value would easily be the HD-DVD Toshiba A2 1080i player @$239.99 at Amazon. The 1080p A20 is also $324.

:clap: Short and to the point.

Thanks for the replies, so far. I have another dumb question:

4. Will I even notice a difference between 1080i and 1080p?

Some can, some can't. It really depends on the eye, and how close you are sitting to your TV.

If you get a quality 1080p display it won't matter.

I just would like to keep the TV below $1500. So, while I certainly would rather have a 1080p, I'd also like as large a screen as possible, at that price point. I'm trying to avoid the "bargain" TVs, but to stay around $1500, I'm wondering what my best options are...

You could get a 50" Panasonic 720p Plasma
http://shop2.outpost.com/%7BSDZLv-bg...H:MAIN_RSLT_PG


You won't find a 42+ 1080p Plasma for under 1500.

Now if you want a different 1080p display thats another story.

Also, I really do think sound is half the package. I didn't have a new receiver for 6mos of owning my PS3 and then I upgraded to a receiver with HDMI/lossless and it makes a huge difference.

You might want to look for last years model refurbished Onkyo 604, which I picked up on eCost for <$299. It looks brand new and comes with a full 1yr warranty. If you really want you can get this year's full Onkyo 605 which is fully HDMI 1.3 compatible and fully decodes all the latest and greatest sound formats for $399 at J&R.com. But since no players outputs DTS-MA lossless it's pretty much useless right now.

As Jake77444 mentioned, "as large a screen as possible" and "1080p" are hard to reconcile at your price point if you want a flat panel plasma or LCD (you could get a 40 inch 1080p display at that price, possibly something larger if you shop sales). However, you might be able to find a DLP or LCD rear projection display in larger sizes with 1080p resolution for $1500 or less. For example: this 56" LED DLP RPTV

To get an idea of whether you might be happy with a 720/768p display you need to consider your viewing distance in addition to screen size:
http://www.carltonbale.com/wp-conten...tion_chart.png

There are so many choices to weigh in selecting an HD display, I suggest proceeding slowly and researching your options before making a decision.

With regard to your older receiver, you might want to check on whether it has 5.1 analog inputs. If so, you could use them to take advantage of the improved sound of BD/HD DVD if you purchased a player with 5.1 analog output. Or you could buy a new HDMI capable receiver.

You should be considering a projector and a screen if size and cost are at issue. My HD1000u and 106" Da-Lite was $1150 shipped from Projector People. Amazing value for the money.

Ok, now that I've done more reading and looking (at my local B&M), I'm more confused than ever.

I've adjusted my max price to about $2000 and would like to stick with LCD or Plasma. But for the $2000, I can't buy anything bigger than a 46" (Sharp open box ~$1700) which is 1080p, but I'm more likely looking at a 40-42". But from what I've been reading, many people say just move up to a 50" (Panasonic, for example) 720p and the difference is likely not going to be noticeable. We'd likely be sitting about 10 feet away.

So I'm just wondering if anyone would have more suggestions on whether a somewhat non-trained eye would even notice a difference. We really just want something to watch HD-DVDs on and enjoy the better picture (than our cheap tube TV). I just have to wonder if I'll ever be sitting in front of a 50" 720p Panasonic thinking: "Gosh, I wish I had gone with a smaller 1080p set"... And in a year or two, we'd likely re-visit a new primary 1080p set when the prices come down a bit more...

Any feedback would be really appreciated.

Thanks for all the help so far!

Thanks DVD Josh for the reference to the Projector People. I am interested in going to a projector and need to educate myself first before committing. While I currently use a 65" Toshiba RPTV (65H80), my preference would be to go to a bigger screen size.

Where do you watch TV? While TVs now are better and cheaper than they were a few years ago, there's still some way to go and eventually we will see name-brand 1080P TVs of 46"+ for under $1000.

I ask where you watch because what is your "main" TV now could become your secondary TV in a few years when you upgrade it. I say this because once you have an HDTV it's going to be hard looking at a regular TV from there on out.

And sound is integral but can be purchased separately at a later time.

Yeah, that's what I was thinking: In a couple years, we could take this new TV and move it to the bedroom and get a new one. But to be fair, I would be a bit disappointed if I had to live 2 years with a TV that get pixelated or jittery when watching a football or soccer game. On the other hand, I don't want to spend hundreds more on a TV if I'm not going to notice a difference. We'd be watching this TV inside of 10 feet in our living room, with some natural light directly behind us (a pair of french doors, actually).

Thanks!