What is the Best Flat Screen LCD HD TV to Purchase For the Money?

Don't give up on tubes...With flat panel TVs emerging nowadays such as plasmas and LCDs, most consumers are highly misinformed and believe that the quality of a flat panel is better than that of a tube (CRT) TV. This is not true at all. The image quality of a plasma or LCD TVs far inferior to a CRT, such as the Sony KD-34XBR970. Even worse, more and more people are buying these flat panel TVs as a 'status symbol' and do not understand true picture quality. Why do you think studios use CRT monitors during production and editing instead of a plasma TV? Most studios want the best, most accurate picture possible, so they use CRT monitors. The quality of the Sony KD-34XBR970 is much like a studio monitor, and surpasses all other displays regardless of cost. The dot pitch is so fine and the picture has so much realism to the point where all other displays look dull and muddy in comparison. Convergence and geometry is perfect out of the box, and the set looked fantastic. Its picture had depth and dimension, unlike the flat look of most plasma and LCD TVs. HD channels look amazing they are very real and are not overly enhanced. The Sony's on-board processing and DRC is perfect and does not make sources look pixelated at all. The picture is fine, clear, and has exceptional detail.

One caveat to remember: The set is shipped in 'Vivid' mode, which is meant to grab your attention in the stores with a bright picture but lacking in clarity. It is way too bright and much too sharp. You can see outlines and picture artifacts in this mode. If you keep the TV in Vivid mode, you are guaranteed to burn the tubes in no time and shorten the life of the TV. Also, the vivid mode is very inaccurate in color reproduction. I have my set calibrated in the 'Movie' mode, with a picture (white level) setting of 20/63 and a brightness (black level) setting of 30/63. Remember, it is very important to lower the 'picture' setting because it controls the amount of white light on the screen. If you do this, the tube will last a very long time and you will see an exceptional image. On the other hand, the 'brightness' setting controls the amount of dark areas you see in the picture. Turning this setting up will allow you to see more dark areas in a movie, but will not burn the tubes or impair image quality. An accurate image is better than a bright one.

Finally, the color decoder needs adjustment as it emphasizes red severely and makes people look reddish or tanned. If you change the 'color axis' setting from 'Default' to 'Monitor,' the colors will be much more accurate and vibrant. If you adjust this set properly and take good care of it, it will produce the best picture of any TV and will last a very long time. (My old XBR TV is 16 years old and still going.) I have a neighbor who spent $10,000 on a plasma TV and the picture quality is far worse than this set. What kind of TV would you buy? Is status symbol more important than image quality? Remember, that after reading this review, you are a much more educated consumer.

John Haliday

Written in association with http://flat-hd-tv-screen.hmmetro.net

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Flat Screen HDTV Connections

Compared to setting up all the connections, buying a flat screen HDTV is the easy part. Indeed, connecting the correct cables to the right inputs and outputs of the proper equipment can be a challenge, especially for those who aren't tech-savvy, so make sure you read the basics first before you take on the task.

Types of Connections

Usually, a flat screen HDTV carries two basic types of connections - analog connections and digital or HD connections, although some new ones only come with the latter. Analog connections are comprised of radio frequency (RF), composite video and S-video connections, which can be used to connect cable boxes, VCRs, DVD players, antennas and some game consoles, of which S-video has the capability of delivering the highest video quality. There are also analog audio connections for older audio receivers and stereo components.

HD connections, on the other hand, consist of component video or YPbPr, FireWire or IEEE 1394, VGA or PC input, DVI and HDMI connections, which are what you should be looking for if you want to enjoy the highest video and audio quality from your HDTV. Check for HDMI connections, in particular, since these allow you to get superb video and audio quality from most HD sources, including HD cable boxes, Blu-Ray players, surround sound speakers, HDTV tuners and newer game consoles.

Connecting Your Cable Box

To get cable on your HDTV, you simply have to connect the wire running from the cable outlet to the box then plug the box to the back of your HDTV using an RF, composite, S-video or HDMI connection, depending on the type of cable box and the input you have available on your HDTV. If you want to record your favorite shows on an HD DVR like a TiVo box, you have to connect your cable box to the DVR first instead of connecting it directly to the HDTV, then connect the DVR to the HDTV via the connections provided.

Connecting your Speakers

To enjoy the superior sound quality offered by your HDTV, it is recommended that you connect external speakers, whether a pair of stereo speakers or four, six or seven surround sound speakers. You cannot connect them directly to your HDTV, though. Rather, you have to connect them first to the AV receiver that comes with the system then connect the AV receiver to the HDTV. Make sure you connect the wires to the right ports on the receiver. For example, if the pair of wires are coming from the front right speaker, they should be connected to the inputs labeled front right, specifically to the ports that match the color of each.

Connecting Your Computer

You may also want to use your flat screen HDTV as your computer monitor. If you do, you will need to get a high quality video card for your computer then connect the CPU to the HDTV via the output provided on the card. If the card only has an S-video, component video or VGA output, you will need to run an audio cable from the soundcard of the CPU to the HDTV, as well. You can also connect your laptop to your HDTV if you want to use it as your DVD or Blu-Ray player, which is especially a good idea if your laptop has an HDMI output.

Connecting Your Game Console

You can also enjoy playing video console games on your flat screen HDTV. In fact, most HDTVs have a dedicated gaming mode that disables video processing to eliminate controller delay. There are two ways to connect your game console - through your AV receiver or directly to your HDTV. Either way, the type of cable you need depends on your game console. Wii game consoles have component video outputs while Xbox and PlayStation consoles have HDMI for superior video quality.

As for your other equipment, simply look at their available outputs then shop for the correct cable. Don't hesitate to ask at the electronics store if you're not sure about which cable you are looking for. Your set-up depends on the types of equipment you have as well as how many of them you want to use with your flat screen HDTV. If you are using a lot of equipment, you might want to go with a wireless hub so the back of your HDTV isn't too crowded. You might want to get a universal remote control, as well.

Learn more about HDTV connections in Edward McKellen's guide to HDTV at HDTVReviewLab.com.

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How to Hang a Flat Screen TV

Here are step-by-step instructions on how to hang your flat screen televsion so you can enjoy HDTV from your plasma or LCD TV. Another great video from Digital Landing ... Hang flat-panel tv HDTV plasma LCD television high definition flat screen



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBfVigFjnLY&hl=en

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