Yet another LCD TV thread in a long line of LCD TV threads...

I'm too darned lazy to search previous threads, so here goes...

We're going to purchase an LCD television in the very near future. I'm looking at a 42" screen, 1080 dpi (or whatever that number is, I know dpi is the wrong abbreviation).

The best prices I've found have been at (gasp! groan!) Wal-Mart. What are some other things I should look at and any suggestions on brands?

 

Look at Vizio, think 1080p (almost a standard at 42" and up) and 120 hz.
Also, look on line at places you wouldnt think of. Our second HDTV was a 37" Philips bought at dell.com for what worked out to 699. Also had free shipping and a decent extended warranty (Dell's vendor was cheaper than Philips.)
Stay away from Walmart.

 

Almost forgot... you want a high contrast rating... the vizio in the living room is 2 years old and a contrast rating of 1,000-1. The Philips in the bedroom is 4,000-1
This will help explain the difference between 60hz and 120...
http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/sna.aspx?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~topic=tv_learn_120hz

 

I'll second the vote for Vizio. I have a 36" one. I would much rather watch something on that than on our 55" Samsung DLP, which has already crapped the bed once.

 

I r-e-a-l-l-y like the Philips a lot. But I like the Vizio too. The Philips handles nonHD stations better because of the contrast ratio...
Just depends on what you want....

 

I do remember Vizio was one of the brands at Wal-Mart.

 

Yes. Yes it is... If you belong to Sam's Club or Costco (probably too far from you) check that out too.

 

Was at Sam's Club last week, the price was almost double that at Wal-Mart. No Costcos anywhere near me.

 

Sam's Club was double Walmart and owned by the same company?

 

Vizio is shaping up to be a better brand than initially thought. Panasonic also gets consistently high marks. ALWAYS check Consumer Reports before buying anything this big -- they know a little more about this stuff than a bunch of sportswriters do.

Sam's Club double Wal-Mart? You can't have been looking at the same unit. They pay close attention to pricing similarly to each other.

 

Almost double.

I was surprised.

I might get to go back to Sam's Club on Friday, we'll see what that may bring.

 

I just bought one of these babies from Circuit City for an even grand.
Here's Amazon's link for the same set.
http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-REGZA-42RV530U-42-Inch-1080p/dp/B00140R0G2/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1223442266&sr=8-1
I've had it a month and like it a lot. My DirecTV HD programming looks awesome on it.
Will probably buy a Blu-ray player around Christmas to take advantage of the full 1080p