Another HDTV question: Vizio vs. Everyone Else

i swear by consumer reports when buying big-ticket items. you have to subscribe to the web site.

CR lists vizio's GV42LHDTV as a good buy in the quick recommendations. if CR likes it, i'd buy it.

 

Cable box had a dvi output, not hdmi... hence the need for RCA cables... helps when you actually read the manual in depth...

 

There are two kinds of HDMI cables. HDMI to HDMI, and HDMI to HDMI/DVI. Both should have the sound with it. Use the one appropriate for your TV/cable box, obviously.

 

If anyone cares, I went ahead and bought the Vizio today. So far, so good. I got a DVI to HDMI cable (damn cable box doesn't have HDMI) and am considering DVD players right now.

In the hour I got to watch it I was impressed with it, although some of that might be from the initial excitement of actually owning an HDTV. The picture was so crisp, I could read the ticket lanyards of people in the gallery at the Nissan Open.

I haven't looked at the manual too closely, so there may be a way to skirt around this, but flipping between standard def and high def channels takes a while.

 

There is another low priced brand - Olevia - which I have read some good things about in Consumer Reports .

Here is also link to story that ran in NYT about brand:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/12/technology/12olevia.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5070&en=3f61643d89d22744&ex=1171947600

 

It shouldn't if you're running thru the cable box. It should just be a matter of changing channels...

And if you are looking for a surround system, tigerdirect has an RCA system for about 200 bucks that's pretty good...

 

Went to Costco yesterday; the 32 inch is now 599, 37 inch is 799, 42 inch plasma is 999 and 42 inch lcd is 1199...
For a brief moment, I thought about taking back the 37 inch just to get a price exchange, but thought enough is enough...

 

Still enjoying a my new Sony HDTV. Best of CRT, while still getting the benefits of HDTV.

Moving it will suck, though. That sucker was 200 pounds, and I'm not exactly a powerlifter.

 

Does the HDMI cable matter that much? I love the sharpness of my HD programming but I'm not as happy with my "regular" TV signal. They didn't install the HDMI cable when they put my 40-inch Sony on the wall because it wasn't compatable with my TIVO and DISH Network box.
If I go ahead and take the trouble (and it will be a bit since I'm wall-mounted) to use the HDMI cable will the picture of my non-HD programming become clearer?

 

at the very least, use the component cords....
What are you using now?

 

I shit-canned the TIVO and so I'm directly connected from the TV to my DISH HD box using the component cord...I still have the unused HDMI cable...If I can make my picture look better I'll go to the trouble of getting someone over to hold the TV (too heavy for the wife), drop the cable behind my wall and then connect it...I really want my non-HD programming to look better than it is.