Does brand and model of TV really matter for a light TV watcher?

[Brian Elfert]

My dad would really like an HDTV and I want to buy him one since he has spent weeks working on my house. He might be spoiled by my Pioneer Kuro plasma since I am staying with my parents right now. He and my mom might average one hour of TV a day.

Does it really matter on brand and model of TV for such a light watcher? He wants something smaller than the 50" I have although I think the 50" fits in the space fine. (Bigger than 50" would be an issue.) I'm not looking at forums like AVSforum for recommendations because they would only recommend a really expensive $1000+ TV for the most part and they are really picky. (What AVSforum users would call crap my dad would probably be fine with.) I do want to stick with a semi known brand name. No TCL, store brands, and brands like that.

[Jerome Stanek]

go to a store and view them. We just replaced our 42 inch with a 50 and took the first one back because the picture wasn't as bright white as our old one even though it was supposed to be a much higher end one. I ended up with a so called low end tv that at the store had the best picture. Our old one works great in my shop.

[Matt Meiser]

We have a TV for every person and pet in our house most of them relatively inexpensive ones. 3 are Vizio's (2 32's and a 24-ish) with built-in apps and I like them. We also have a "Hannspree" 32 we got at Costco.com dirt cheap. 3 different cable/satellite installers have seen it in the time we've had it and said they never heard of it but its also been good. We got my mom and dad the same one, same result.

On size, I'll say I wouldn't go smaller than 32 except in special cases. Our 24-ish is in the master bedroom and only has an antenna connection--its our "bad weather/snow day" TV. The 32's are in my office where it serves as an additional monitor more than a TV, in the den, and in the hobby/craft area in the basement. 32 is going to be quite small in many living rooms.

[Brian Elfert]

I plan to go with at least 37" and as big as 47". Something smaller than 37" would probably make the TV seem smaller than their old 27" CRT due to the reduced height. I'm considering either an LG 47" or a JVC 42" right now although I am still looking.

TV showrooms usually have the brightness cranked way up so it is hard to compare at the store. Sometimes a brand rep comes out and sets up their TVs to look good so they might look better in the showroom than another TV that is really a better model that wasn't set up the same.

[Jerome Stanek]

Even in the show room the cheapest one we looked at had the best picture and they didn't even have it hooked up till we asked. It's a Hisense both Best Buy and Walmart sell them. We ought our first one as a refurbished 46 for $200

[Myk Rian]

go to a store and view them. We just replaced our 42 inch with a 50 and took the first one back because the picture wasn't as bright white as our old one even though it was supposed to be a much higher end one. I ended up with a so called low end tv that at the store had the best picture. Our old one works great in my shop.
That doesn't always work. Stores have a tech come in and calibrate the TVs.
Nowadays, pretty much anything is made by only a few companies. Some have features others don't, which you pay extra for. Like "Smart TVs" cost more for that feature.

[Jim Matthews]

I bought an enormous Panasonic Viera and it doubles as a space heater.

The new LED TVs are very bright, and run cooler.
Order through Amazon and they'll bring it in,
take it out of the box and put it where you like.

http://www.amazon.com/LG-Electronics-42LB5600-42-Inch-1080p/dp/B00KVLT0A4/ref=sr_1_1?s=tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1415568806&sr=1-1&keywords=LED+tv

[Jerome Stanek]

That doesn't always work. Stores have a tech come in and calibrate the TVs.
Nowadays, pretty much anything is made by only a few companies. Some have features others don't, which you pay extra for. Like "Smart TVs" cost more for that feature.

But they put the best picture on the TV's that make them the most profit

[Brian Elfert]

I bought an enormous Panasonic Viera and it doubles as a space heater.


I very much like my plasma TV. I would get one for my parents if plasma wasn't pretty much done.

[Jim Becker]

There certainly are quality differences between brands/models...

As to size, you can go much larger with an LCD that you would have with older type TVs for a given room size and with the current prices, there's no reason to skimp on screen size, either. I have a 50" Samsung in the master bedroom and it's really comfortable to watch. (and a really great picture) I have a 52" Sharp Aquos in our media room and wish it was much, much larger, even though the viewing distance is about the same as in the bedroom. But when it was purchased, 52" was pretty expensive. The 50" in the bedroom was half the price and today it would be half that price again!

[Robert Payne]

Brian,

I bought two 42" LGs LED flat screen TVs for the house and one of them died after 16 months. I also have a 42" Samsung LED/LCD which is one I'd recommend.

[Larry Frank]

I have had good luck with LG LED HDTV. I bought my last one at Best Buy and while in the store did a quick search on my phone and found the best price on Amazon and they quickly matched the price. They will match most major sellers.

I did not buy a smart TV. I have a good and not expensive Blu-Ray player that has all of that smart stuff that lets you connect to Netflix or similar. One other comment is that you need to be careful about buying cables. Best Buys sells the most expensive ones that I have seen and IMHO is a complete waste. I find cheap ones online and never had a problem.

[Erik Loza]

We've owned Panasonic plasmas and presently, two Samsung HD LED TV's. Never had any issues with them. Bought the Samsungs at Costco. Good pricing there but it seems like all the models they offer are "about to be discontinued". Good luck in your search.

Erik Loza
Minimax USA

[Ken Fitzgerald]

We have a top of the line Sony 46" and an Insignia 40". There isn't a significant difference between two.

[Dan Hintz]

If you're looking for something on a budget but still a decent quality set, have a look at Vizio. They started making decent sets right form the beginning (surprising a lot of the AVS forum elite)... it's no Sony, Samsung, etc., but from the sound of it, your father would be quite content.

[Curt Harms]

46" seems like a nice size for normal sized rooms. We have a mix of brands - Sony, Vizio, Westinghouse. The Sony was a higher end model at the time and has a better picture than the other two purchased around the same time but for occassional non-home theatre use I'm not sure there's a noticeable difference between them. I don't know how many manufacturers make their own panels but I suspect not many. So TV brands may be like P.C.s today, an assembly of 3rd party components.

[Pat Barry]

Bigger is certainly better so if they can fit that 50 inch LED unit in the space then go for it. They will be happy (trust me, I know from personal experience with eyesight not quite so sharp as it once was that bigger is nicer). After a day or two their new set will be like an old friend.

[David Weaver]

As a light TV watcher, I don't care about anything other than refresh rate - the only thing that ever bothered me with cheap TVs was motion on the early flat screen TVs. 120 hz tvs don't have the problem, though, at least not to noticeable amount.

When our last tube TV went kaput, I had to rush over to target and get whatever was there in 120 hz and 42 inches or whatever the standard size was at the time. I have never watched it and thought "I need to have a TV like our friends do, one that costs 4 times as much".

I "get" it with people who like to watch TV, I watched 5 hours a day as a kid because I lived in a rural area and my parents were always working. I don't "get" wasting money on it, and at the same time, don't watch it like I did when I was a kid.

[Brian Elfert]

I was looking at a Vizio that gets good reviews for picture quality, but the dozens or hundreds of reviews about the TV being DOA or dying within a year are making me shy away a bit. My dad really doesn't want a 50" even though it fits just fine. My 50" TV in that room does seem pretty big. If it was me I would buy a 50". I wanted a 42" or so when I went TV shopping, but the Pioneer was only in 50" or 60".

I need to go to Sam's Club and take a look at what they have, but I won't have time for a few days.

[roger wiegand]

I think they are all so good these days there is little to differentiate them on picture quality. That leaves other features, like ease of internet connectivity to Netflix/Amazon, whether you can interpret the buttons on the remote, etc. At the store you will compare them side by side, you'll never do that at home. If you're upgrading from a tube they will all look fantastic at home.

[Jerome Stanek]

I think they are all so good these days there is little to differentiate them on picture quality. That leaves other features, like ease of internet connectivity to Netflix/Amazon, whether you can interpret the buttons on the remote, etc. At the store you will compare them side by side, you'll never do that at home. If you're upgrading from a tube they will all look fantastic at home.

If he has on old tv what makes you think he will need a smart tv

[Wade Lippman]

One hopes an expensive one will last longer than a cheap one, but they all look good. (and the cheap one will probably last a long time)

Unless there is a feature you want, go by price.

[Brian Elfert]

I ended up ordering a 47" LG for about $500. It includes a $200 Dell gift card that I can hopefully sell, or I will use. It is out of stock for two weeks so I am going to keep looking and cancel if I find a better deal.

[Jim Becker]

Brian, I bought my Samsung for the MBR at Costco...they have very attractive prices. In fact, it was the second one from them; I returned the first (a Vizio) after only a week because the picture quality wasn't up to my standards. They didn't even blink. I took home the far more satisfying Samsung a few minutes later. So if you have a membership or access to one, check Costco out. They really do have good prices on that kind of thing!

[Brian Elfert]

Brian, I bought my Samsung for the MBR at Costco...they have very attractive prices. In fact, it was the second one from them; I returned the first (a Vizio) after only a week because the picture quality wasn't up to my standards. They didn't even blink. I took home the far more satisfying Samsung a few minutes later. So if you have a membership or access to one, check Costco out. They really do have good prices on that kind of thing!

I went to Costco last night. Nothing was as good a price as the $379 net price I will pay for the LG 47". I should also get 15% back from Discover for another $71. Most of the Black Friday deals have been revealed already and nothing looks all that great at this point.

[Myk Rian]

If you have any intention on connecting the TV to wireless, Sony TVs and Netgear wireless routers have a real problem in that area.
I've been helping a friend get hers connected, and it just ain't working.