Help me select a 42 inch

[st33l]

Hey all
Thinking about getting a 42 inch tv..

its mainly going to end up being just used for watching soap operas and the occasional movies from pen drive. and some sports footballl and cricket..

we dont really need anything fancy ..
the features i would like are
Good playback support from usb and FHD..and good picture quality..also with a digital audio output (i believe they are there in all tv now),so i wouldnt mind an option without 3d ,

initially found sony w850 interesting...though many of its features were going to be useless..yet dad found it to have a good picture quality and he wanted to buy...
but im looking at other options now..

so another option i came across is the Panasonic L42ET60D

yeah both these are 3d and that aspect is never going to be used..but my idea is 3d tvs have better 2d picture quality in general am i wrong?
also the w700b model seems new and alluring

so guys can anyone tell me are there better models..what about ASS..
im a bit concerned as i read here and there that these LED tvs have limited life as short as 5 years or even much less
which is even making me doubt the idea of changing our old 29" so this is also something i guess should be considered

havent checked any other brands other than panasonic and sony so far..
so what about samsung , LG?

i would like the budget to be kept in mind.. an upperlimit around 70-80k is what im lookin at...lower is better..

Also how trustworthy is it to buy online?? im not entirely comfortable regarding buying a big 42 inch..some comment regarding this would be helpfull..
So in short im looking for a 42 inch tv with

• Picture quality
• Maximum USB playback support
• Digital audio output..toslink preferable
• ASS and low maintenance

so TV gurus show me thy path

 

[Vinod.R]

Hello St33l,
Welcome to our forum.

Based on what you have stated, I would also recommend a Panasonic S60 (No frills, FHD panel, no smart TV) which as I see the advantage is that you give up 3D, smart TV etc for a bigger 50 inch panel. Problem is availability. Budget should be around 70-72 market price.

The other TVs are also good as mentioned in your post. There is an LG 4500 plasma model around Rs 33,000-35,000 but it is not FHD. Panasonic the main problem is availability.

As far as panel life goes, it is a lottery, whether Sony, LG, Panasonic anything. if you are lucky good otherwise problem. Also Sharp is offering a 3 year warranty, so that can be another TV on your list.

Hope this helps.

Vinod

 

[st33l]

Thanks undu gadi .. i was based at thrissur last two years now back to kollam though

anyway 42 inch is the max size..and its for my parents mainly..i wont be home often after a while
im leaning towards panasonic now or the w700b as many people have good things to say about it..should go to showroom and check them..
whats your opinion regarding philips 42PFL7977..someone recommended this to me..
but i doubt it would be there in the showrooms
same i think about sharp..
any links for review about sharp philips??

One more thing does any of the current tv support HEVC..or x265?

 

[elangoas]

you have a good budget of 70K... But why 42 inches... is it because of space constraints...

If you are fine with Plasma, You may consider 51F5500 Plasma around 70K... It has FHD, smart functionality, 3D and will play most of the formats from USB & decode both DTS & Dolby....

If you think that you don't need the smart features of the TV, you can consider the step down model which is 51F4900...HD model...

 

[st33l]

that Budget is the max to which i can stretch..if possible i would be more than happy to limit it to 50k-60k
and yes space is one thing..but also as i said its going to be used for SD content..most of the time..but yeah i do plan to watch FHD stuff when im home..
we have a local cable HD set box..and i dont think thats going to be changed..
considering all this together ..i think 42 inch suits our home

the place is also a bit brightly lit..so i doubt i would be able to appreciate the picture quality offered by a plasma
thanks for the reply..

 

[efernand1]

Hi st33l

Go through the below links to understand the main difference in screens...this will help you to decide what you want to go for....LED or 3D or Plasma...

LCD vs LED vs Plasma

LED vs LCD vs plasma TV - Which? Technology

Can LED LCD look as good as plasma? - CNET

CNET's guide to 3D TV: What you (still) need to know - CNET

Whats the Difference Between Active 3D and Passive 3D TVs? | eBay

We already have threads on Samsung, Sony W700B and Toshiba available on HFV which will provide information on experience by users...an internet search would also yield complaints and performance for the brands you shortlist...the hard truth is that nowadays the TVs last anything from 3-9 years and so it is important that you get good warranty ...Sharp n Toshiba offer 3 years warranty...you should perhaps demo those models....it would be better to visit an electronics store and see TVs side by side with the same channel and do a comparision and decide what suits you in performance and budget...

 

[Vinod.R]

If you are primarily aiming this TV for your parents, then I guess soaps, serials and other similar programs are going to be the staple diet.

Then one more recommendation is the Samsung 42 inches H4900, HD (1366X768) priced at Rs 42,900 in reliance. You can save some serious money and buy a OLED/4K TV in the future. For normal domestic viewing I would recommend not spending even Rs 50,000 unless there is going to be lot of HD/FHD content like blu ray disks etc.

Based on what I saw in your post, I would recommend LG PN4500 42 inches easily available at Rs 35,000 without bargaining. Good bargaining can get you this TV at about 32-33,000.

 

[st33l]

Thanx a lot for your comments...indeed i have to agree..with you all
but dad is like since we are changing a tv after a long time we might as well get a decent one and all that..he wanted w850..
(went to three showrooms today )
after seeing w850 and w700 anyone would say that
they had this football clip playing and it appeared ridiculously smooth and fluid in w850 but a bit jitteryon w700b ..must be the triluminous thing :/..but in the end..managed to get him to decide on w700b..i looked out for the panasonic model LET60D but cant find it anywere everywhere its sony LG samsung..found a showroom which had sharp models but they didnt have the latest one model they had was 40LE835 which they quoted 65990 after all discount but i believe its for the display item

Yet to finalise the buy..there is another retailer who he knows personally so we are gonna ask him for the final price of w700b (all three shops quoted 64k after discount)



my query is there a good LG model..in the w700b range..just want to know other options..

 

[Vinod.R]

Thanx a lot for your comments...indeed i have to agree..with you all
but dad is like since we are changing a tv after a long time we might as well get a decent one and all that..he wanted w850..
(went to three showrooms today )
after seeing w850 and w700 anyone would say that
they had this football clip playing and it appeared ridiculously smooth and fluid in w850 but a bit jitteryon w700b ..must be the triluminous thing :/..but in the end..managed to get him to decide on w700b..i looked out for the panasonic model LET60D but cant find it anywere everywhere its sony LG samsung..found a showroom which had sharp models but they didnt have the latest one model they had was 40LE835 which they quoted 65990 after all discount but i believe its for the display item

Yet to finalise the buy..there is another retailer who he knows personally so we are gonna ask him for the final price of w700b (all three shops quoted 64k after discount)



my query is there a good LG model..in the w700b range..just want to know other options..

Careful of shop demonstrations!!! They usually have FHD clips playing through a proprietary HDD drive/company property demo drives so that all the clips look fantastic! Take your own clips, or ask the shop to play the TV through normal STB connections. Then obviously the quality takes a dip. This is true of all TVs and Sony's are masters of this kind of demo. Most companies anyway do the same. They usually have football demos, fishes, shopping mall scenes and oceans where the TV looks fantastic. Absolutely wrong way to judge the picture quality.

 

[m2maddy]

I did a demo of w700b w600b a Philips and w850a.
Asked for demo of HD SD and USB content have to say 850a stood out easily.

In fact if I see only sony with demo clips the 850a looks way better.

So I did purchase a w850a 47inch today

 

[st33l]

yeah im aware of that...but people had many good stuff to say about the model w700b so i really didnt went far to check
before finalizing ..i should get dad to see some sd videos and channels being demoed on it..

unless we manage to get hold of panasonic im more or less sold on w700b now..this being one of the latest model..and all..
after having gone thru several threads in this forum.. i havent seen anyone suggesting a good alternative to the same model..