The NEW HDTV Buyers Guide>>

Your budget range

Pricing parameters
5 years ago, Plasma and LCD tv's were thousands more than they are now. Now they are just as affordable as your current standard defintion television. Here's a cheat sheet that will help better align the set of your dreams with the reality of your bank account.

What you'll pay
What you'll get

LCD & Plasma
15"-26" | Prices range from $299-$699
32"-37" | Prices range from $599-$1,299
40"-42" | Prices range from $899-$1,499
46"-52" | Prices range from $1,399-$2,999
55"-60" | Prices range from $1,999-4,999
65"-73" | Prices range from $2,999-$6,499
103" | Sony has one model at $68,000

Size up your screen

After you have your budget squared away, you need to decide how large of a screen you want. Usually, the largest screens cost the most, but regardless, the TV should deliver the right-size picture for where you'll sit relative to the screen. Sitting closer to a smaller TV means you won't have to spend as much on a big screen. But if you sit too close, the picture will look poor.

42 Inch - Min 5FT | Max 10FT
47 Inch - Min 6FT | Max 12FT
50 Inch - Min 6FT | Max 13FT
60 Inch - Min 7FT | Max 15FT
65 Inch - Min 8FT | Max 16FT

That being said, it's easier to move your couch back a foot than purchase a new $3,000 TV.


Resolution

Now we're talking. Let's get one thing out of the way. If you buy a 22 inch TV, the resolution won't matter. If you buy a 65" TV it will matter. Let's make it simple:

Bad: 480i (Standard Defintion CRT)
Good: 720p | 1080i (Early or Lower End Models)
Best: 1080p (Many newer models)

Now resolution is extremely interesting point. First of all, whomever you get your HD digital cable from, they will be pumping out a 1080i signal. So if the ONLY thing you do is watch cable, then maybe you can save a few hundred or thousand bucks and buy a 720p/1080i tv. However, if you plan on purchasing, have purchased, or have even contemplated purchasing a Blu-Ray player, you need a 1080p TV. Your HD DVD player is the only thing you will be plugging in to your brand new TV that will support that full 1080p format.

HOWEVER, a 720p television will still look great with a 1080p signal from a blu-ray player.

Widescreen (16:9) vs. 4:3

High-Definition is captured, edited and processed in it's native 16:9 format. We prefer to remove the bars and enjoy the pure quality of a 16:9 HDtv.

Picture Quality

Besides the resolution (1080p), picture quality is person to person. Wether you like a blacked out contrast ratio, where blacks have no definition, but looks good, or where the screen looks brighter, but you can then see the definition in the blacks. When it comes to picture quality, watch your favorite tv station or dvd on as many tvs as possible. The fact is the top brands bring exceptional quality, and it may just come down to options and of course, price.

Features

As many brands have increased their quality and the larger brands having nowhere to go as far as resolution improvements, the top brands have come out with some exceptional features. Wether it's the 120hz frame refresh rate found in Toshiba Regza and many other higher-end models, or the 24p TrueMotion by Sony on there higher end Bravia models. Features make your viewing pleasure even more pleasurable. For anyone that watches sports, action movies, or plays games, we strongly suggest the 120hz feature, or 4ms response rate found in Sharp Aquos models, which decreases blur exponentially by doubling the frame refresh rate. Another bonus for movie-watchers is the sony 24p TrueMotion which improves motion picture viewing by emulating the 24 frames/second which is the native format of film. Many of the top brands such as LG, Panasonic, and JVC.

Have fun, that's what your new TV is all about.