Display hardware, in this case

[unixronin]

Technically, we have a TV¹.  It's a Pioneer 46" 4:3 back-projection NTSC TV.  It's also still in North Carolina, twelve years old, and needs its front screen replaced for the second time (because of damage inflicted by small people, also for the second time), which will probably cost around $400 even assuming parts are still available.  Doesn't seem like a good investment in a 12-year-old TV.

Costco has a coupon special good through this Sunday offering a $300 discount on this Vizio 42" direct-view LCD HDTV.  Right now, it appears that direct-view LCD is the technology to go with in a large-screen TV.  Direct-view LCD TVs have a wide viewing angle, low power draw, low heat output, good brightness, do not rely on short-lived halogen bulbs (which are often vendor-proprietary and cost as much as $500 each), and are typically on the order of 4" thick (and therefore readily wall-mountable).

Downside:  The Vizio unit does not natively display 1080i, but down-converts it to 720p (its native physical resolution is 1366x768, rather than the 1920x1080 required to natively display 1080i broadcasts).

Then again, neither does anything else under $3000 in that size, so far as I can tell.  I have found exactly three HDTVs under $3000 that natively support 1080i/1080p resolution.  Two are 37" sets: the Planar XP37W at about $2000, and the Westinghouse LVM-37W3 (which is a pure monitor and requires a separate tuner even for NTSC/ATSC) at about $1200.  The third is JVC's 40" LT-40FN97, which has an MSRP of $3499 but can be had for $2600 online.  It tunes ATSC and QAM internally, but apparently not NTSC.  The Vizio, at $1299 until tomorrow, tunes all three and is larger than any of the sub-$3000 1920x1080 units.

For an almost 3:1 price differential for the same screen size, I think we could stand to forego native 1080i resolution.

[1]  Well, technically, we have two.  We were given an old Sharp CRT set in the 19" range with only composite NTSC input, a missing power button, and a screen about as curved as a football.  The kids use it to watch videotapes of The Magic Schoolbus and the like.

Comments

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

With a few days' research, I can't find anything price-competitive with the Vizio in the same size range, including looking at refurbished units.

That said, for about $80 more than the regular, non-sale price of the Vizio, we can get a Westinghouse LWM42W2 LCD HDTV monitor (https://www.westinghousedigital.com/pc-44-7-42-1080p-monitor.aspx). The Westinghouse is a pure monitor with no tuner; on the other hand, around here, we're told TV reception pretty much implies either cable or satellite, which means anything we're going to be driving it with will already have a tuner. It's a couple hundred dollars more than the Vizio; on the other hand, it's full 1080p-capable, with native 1920x1080 resolution, it has better contrast ratio, and it's a known brand name. It only has one HDMI input vs. the Vizio's two ... on the other hand, really, how many do you need, with an A/V receiver? It has wimpy 10w internal speakers ... on the other hand, hooked up to the A/V system, we'll probably never even use them anway. I never used the internal speakers on my 46" Pioneer back-projection TV.

[genuine-snark.livejournal.com]

Now that's what I'm talking about. I wouldn't miss the tuner at all.

That looks like a terrific choice.

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

The big question then becomes whether we want to spend $1680 on a TV.

What I need to do is find a deal like I got on my Pioneer -- last of line, discontinued model, display model, Fourth of July sale, all stacking to yield a final price of $1200 on a 46" back-projection TV in 1994.

[genuine-snark.livejournal.com]

*nod* That's how I got my 36" Sony CRT HDTV. $800, iirc, at Fry's on closeout. OTOH, after moving it into the apartment once, now I appreciate the concept of an LCD. 250lb televisions aren't fun to maneuver through doorways.

Still, nothing beats the picture quality of a good CRT.