Which TV to buy?

daddycool

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Another post with this question. I actually posted this in the price thread but was told it was the wrong place so here I am.
Location: Mumbai. Viewing distance: 6-10 ft.
Type of viewing: Very infrequent. Quality of input content: At present cablewallah, in near future either cabblewallah's STB or one of the DTH providers.
Current TV: LG Flatron 21"
I want to buy a 32" LCD TV. Since I am an infrequent viewer, I do not want to spend loads of money on the latest and best. Adequate PQ is fine. I have seen side-by-side displays at a number of places like multiple outlets of Vijay Sales, Croma, E-zone, etc.
In most cases, all the models displayed have acceptable picture quality to serve my needs. There has been the odd bad one but the same has looked ok at another place so I guess it is some manipulation by the outlet to promote a specific model. At one Vijay Sales showroom the Videocon looked a bit inferior to the others but at another it was comparable. At the Croma showrroms, The Panasonic 32LE8 looks bad when displayed next to a VU which Croma is trying to promote. At both Croma's the VU looks brilliant but has a greenish tinge particularly noticeable in the flesh tones. Another TV that did not make the grade for me at all was a Toshiba that I saw at one Vijay Sales.
All in all, Videocon looks like best bang for the buck for me followed by Panasonic and Sharp.
Now reliability is a bigger issue for me than PQ as I don't need to pass my time following up for after sales service or worse, post-warranty service.
Mos ppl advice against Videocon but don't give reasons. If it is for PQ I can live with what I have seen but if it is reliability then wont touch it.
I would like to buy the cheapest but I don't want headaches.
Awaiting advice from you guys.
Once again my priorities are:
1. Reliability.
2. Price.
3. Picture quality.

Which one do I buy?
Do also tell me if I would be better off spending money on a better 26" than a inferior 32" within the above parameters.
 
I am having LG 42LH50 LCD TV. It is an awesome TV. I have bought it from Bangalore for 63K(Now cost should be less than this after the budget).

Same configuration Samsung or Sony will cost you more than 1Lakh. If you can stretch your budget a bit, go and get this one.

It has 200 Hz motion speed with 2.4 ms response time.

Sudhish.
 
Based on your source, viewing distance and time spent on watching TV, a 32" HD-ready tv will be a good option. I don't see any maor advantage with going for FHD 26" TV, unless you are planning to get a BDP or something similar and have access to HD content.
 
@sudhishkv - I am asking about lowest cost 32" and your suggestion of a 42" totally ignores all the points in my post.
@skumar - that is a valuable input.

Can I have suggestions of make/model and price too?
 
I am also in almost some dilemma. I have almost finalized on following models, but still not 100% decided.
Anyways, here is what I have analyzed so far, hope it helps -

1. Panasonix LX 800 - Has 100Hz, but is HD Ready and not full HD (does not really make at big difference in 32"), has IPS pannel. The panel is Made in Japan.
Price was about 40k. I guess this model is getting replaced by X15, and would be priced in same range. I am waiting for this model to reach the showrooms.

2. LG Scarlet 2.0 LH 50: Has ALL the features that one would need. 100Hz, Full HD, IPS etc etc.
Price: around 40-45k depending on where you buy.
The colors generally look good, but when compared to Sony, then not so good.
Have heard that LG has decent after sales service. That may be a deciding criteria....

3. Sony W550A: Has 100Hz, BE3 and Full HD. Price is 60k. I find it way too high.

As I said earlier, I am still confused, and have postponed the buy by 3 - 4 weeks....

:)

Regards,
Anand
 
I am also in almost some dilemma. I have almost finalized on following models, but still not 100% decided.
Anyways, here is what I have analyzed so far, hope it helps -

1. Panasonix LX 800 - Has 100Hz, but is HD Ready and not full HD (does not really make at big difference in 32"), has IPS pannel. The panel is Made in Japan.
Price was about 40k. I guess this model is getting replaced by X15, and would be priced in same range. I am waiting for this model to reach the showrooms.

2. LG Scarlet 2.0 LH 50: Has ALL the features that one would need. 100Hz, Full HD, IPS etc etc.
Price: around 40-45k depending on where you buy.
The colors generally look good, but when compared to Sony, then not so good.
Have heard that LG has decent after sales service. That may be a deciding criteria....

3. Sony W550A: Has 100Hz, BE3 and Full HD. Price is 60k. I find it way too high.

As I said earlier, I am still confused, and have postponed the buy by 3 - 4 weeks....

:)

Regards,
Anand

I wouldn't consider 100Hz as a deciding factor if you don't watch sports, action Movies lot.Watching them for normal TV broadcast will make them look like a cheap video.

However I've read good things about BE3 fairing good for SD Telecasts.
 
@anandbj76 - what you have recommended is way over my budget. It appears that we have different needs. I just need a decent, reliable 32" TV and it doesn't really matter if it is not the best PQ but adequate for my very infrequent viewing. I am looking more at the Panny LE8 or the Sharp Aquos 32". I am also considering the Videocon by the way. Just want to know if anyone here knows whether it is reliable enough and their after sales service.
 
I would suggest you check for after sales service. I am most likely deferring my decision to buy Panasonic due to the same reason.

I guess LG and Samsung have the best after sales service.
 
@ daddycool.the shortlist seems fine.but id throw the w550 out as 60k for a 32" is unacceptable.

among the other two..the lx800 would be the better choice, as it has everything that lg has, plus ive read just positive reviews about it toll date nothing negative. heres one:Tech2.com India > Panasonic TX-32LX800 > Reviews > HiFi & TV > LCD

besides this, although i cant ling i had read one user's personal experience in which he said lx800 equalled the v550..

and regarding your fhdvs hd ready doubt, if ur viewing dist exceeds 6feet , then no difference will be noticed.
 
@ daddycool.the shortlist seems fine.but id throw the w550 out as 60k for a 32" is unacceptable.

among the other two..the lx800 would be the better choice, as it has everything that lg has, plus ive read just positive reviews about it toll date nothing negative. heres one:Tech2.com India > Panasonic TX-32LX800 > Reviews > HiFi & TV > LCD

besides this, although i cant ling i had read one user's personal experience in which he said lx800 equalled the v550..

and regarding your fhdvs hd ready doubt, if ur viewing dist exceeds 6feet , then no difference will be noticed.
Hi!
You referenced the wrong guy. Those models were shortlisted by anandbj76.
 
my bad....btw daddycool, this is definitely for u....
reading ur posts u seem to be in the hunt for a tv for quite some time...and seem to have frequented different showrooms...
now since i too plan to go on my "hunt" for a tv, tell me about ur experience in the stores..i.e. are the guys helpful, do they let u fiddle around with settings, and how much of a diff u notice betn high end vs midrange vs low end tv's...will be apprecieted
 
my bad....btw daddycool, this is definitely for u....
reading ur posts u seem to be in the hunt for a tv for quite some time...and seem to have frequented different showrooms...
now since i too plan to go on my "hunt" for a tv, tell me about ur experience in the stores..i.e. are the guys helpful, do they let u fiddle around with settings, and how much of a diff u notice betn high end vs midrange vs low end tv's...will be apprecieted

Honestly, in the last month or so, I have watched more TV in the showrooms than I have watched at home :)
I have visited 2 Croma stores, 2 Vijay Sales stores and Hypercity in my quest for a TV. I have also walked in to a few showrooms which I don't remember now. I am in no hurry because I have started renovation work in my house and do not want delivery till the end of Sept or so. In fact, if someone tells me I will get a better deal after Diwali, I can even wait till then. That is why I am pretty easy in taking a decision. Secondly, my need is simple and so low budget will be one very important criterion.
In side-by-side comparison of various TVs I do think that Sony and Samsung consistently come out on top when the content is good. But the margin is so small that it probably wont make a difference when viewed independently. At home I have cable and may go for the same guys stb so I feel there will be no discernible difference at all in my own situation.
Within Samsung itself, you can even see marginal difference between series 3 and series 4 for instance. The LG and Panny come next with Sharp Aquos also at more or less the same level. The Videocon comes last. All of them will be fine for my kind of use. "cablewallah's stb"
Then there is VU which Croma tries to sell aggressively. It was kept next to the Panny LE8. It looked brilliant while the panny looked absolutely dull even in isolation. I am convinced that the panny was sabotaged to make the VU look better. The issue with the VU was the colour tones were not accurate and this can be an issue even if it is not a side-by-side viewing. I found the same tones on another VU in another Croma showroom as well so it was not a issue of one single piece. I have seen and liked the panny LE8 everywhere else I saw it.
I have also seen one Toshiba at Vijay Sales Santacruz and it was very bad. Not good enough for even my simple requirement. Elsewhere I also saw a couple of Hitachis that were decent and well priced.
Final verdict, for a exchange price of Rs 19990/- the Videocon is unbeatable VFM. My only hesitation is because I do not have any testimonials regarding its reliability. If I get it, its videocon for me. If not, it will be a choice between Panny 32LE8 and Sharp.
Regarding the sales staff, the Croma ones are very helpful at all their stores. Vijay Sales is store dependent but at some level I see a bit of snobbishness when they know that you are looking for a low budget solution. The VS, Santacruz experience was good however.
Hypercity sales person I encountered was incompetent.
Hope this post is helpful and also I hope I get some feedback about the reliability of Videocon.
 
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Honestly, in the last month or so, I have watched more TV in the showrooms than I have watched at home :)
I have visited 2 Croma stores, 2 Vijay Sales stores and Hypercity in my quest for a TV. I have also walked in to a few showrooms which I don't remember now. I am in no hurry because I have started renovation work in my house and do not want delivery till the end of Sept or so. In fact, if someone tells me I will get a better deal after Diwali, I can even wait till then. That is why I am pretty easy in taking a decision. Secondly, my need is simple and so low budget will be one very important criterion.
In side-by-side comparison of various TVs I do think that Sony and Samsung consistently come out on top when the content is good. But the margin is so small that it probably wont make a difference when viewed independently. At home I have cable and may go for the same guys stb so I feel there will be no discernible difference at all in my own situation.
Within Samsung itself, you can even see marginal difference between series 3 and series 4 for instance. The LG and Panny come next with Sharp Aquos also at more or less the same level. The Videocon comes last. All of them will be fine for my kind of use. "cablewallah's stb"
Then there is VU which Croma tries to sell aggressively. It was kept next to the Panny LE8. It looked brilliant while the panny looked absolutely dull even in isolation. I am convinced that the panny was sabotaged to make the VU look better. The issue with the VU was the colour tones were not accurate and this can be an issue even if it is not a side-by-side viewing. I found the same tones on another VU in another Croma showroom as well so it was not a issue of one single piece. I have seen and liked the panny LE8 everywhere else I saw it.
I have also seen one Toshiba at Vijay Sales Santacruz and it was very bad. Not good enough for even my simple requirement. Elsewhere I also saw a couple of Hitachis that were decent and well priced.
Final verdict, for a exchange price of Rs 19990/- the Videocon is unbeatable VFM. My only hesitation is because I do not have any testimonials regarding its reliability. If I get it, its videocon for me. If not, it will be a choice between Panny 32LE8 and Sharp.
Regarding the sales staff, the Croma ones are very helpful at all their stores. Vijay Sales is store dependent but at some level I see a bit of snobbishness when they know that you are looking for a low budget solution. The VS, Santacruz experience was good however.
Hypercity sales person I encountered was incompetent.
Hope this post is helpful and also I hope I get some feedback about the reliability of Videocon.

the panasonic LE8 has a CMO panel which is does look dull,washed out.the VU looks like it has a AMVA panel good contrast but poor image processing.
 
Sagar,

If you want uninterrupted browsing, then Croma is the place to be; the sales guys never seem to be interested in a prospect. This was my experience, not in one but two stores. You can browse around for hours without a single guy or lady approaching you to ask what you are looking for. In fact, I like it that way.

Vijay Sales - On Sundays, there is a big crowd, so individual attention can be ruled out, but on weekdays, the salesperson is sure to come to you.


my bad....btw daddycool, this is definitely for u....
reading ur posts u seem to be in the hunt for a tv for quite some time...and seem to have frequented different showrooms...
now since i too plan to go on my "hunt" for a tv, tell me about ur experience in the stores..i.e. are the guys helpful, do they let u fiddle around with settings, and how much of a diff u notice betn high end vs midrange vs low end tv's...will be apprecieted
 
Sagar,

If you want uninterrupted browsing, then Croma is the place to be; the sales guys never seem to be interested in a prospect. This was my experience, not in one but two stores. You can browse around for hours without a single guy or lady approaching you to ask what you are looking for. In fact, I like it that way.

Vijay Sales - On Sundays, there is a big crowd, so individual attention can be ruled out, but on weekdays, the salesperson is sure to come to you.

Yes you are right about Croma. I too like it that they let you see what you want uninterrupted. The only exception was at the Bandra place where if I was alone for a short while someone or other would approach and ask what I wanted.
I think you are right about your assessment of VS too. Sunday evening is very crowded at least at Andheri. On the other hand, I went to S'cruz on Saturday afternoon and the sales staff outnumbered the customers by a huge margin. So there was one guy with us all the time. However he was very friendly and helped us to measure the indoor unit of the A/C too which we had no intention of buying from VS.
 
the panasonic LE8 has a CMO panel which is does look dull,washed out.the VU looks like it has a AMVA panel good contrast but poor image processing.
I have never found the Panny 32LE8 panel dull anywhere else like it was at Croma, Bandra. Since it was already on my shortlist, I was shocked and wanted to see it elsewhere. The same day I had also dropped in at Croma, Ghatkopar but there was no Panny there. They told me that Panasonic has discontinued that model. I subsequently saw it at several more places and found it quite satisfactory. But yes, the VU is a brilliant display. Sad that the image processing makes it unbuyable for me. In any case, I am not sure if I would trust a Zenith product.
 
the panasonic LE8 has a CMO panel which is does look dull,washed out.the VU looks like it has a AMVA panel good contrast but poor image processing.

Let me narrate something interesting that happened at Vijay Sales, Santacruz. The sales person who was showing us around said that the panny 32LE8 is a IPS panel. This was without us asking about it. Then he proceeded to run his finger tip along the surface of the LCD to show very little dark trail of his finger. He did the same to the other LCDs around and there was a bad trail.
He concluded that the panny has a IPS panel and so it is a hard surface.
 
Let me narrate something interesting that happened at Vijay Sales, Santacruz. The sales person who was showing us around said that the panny 32LE8 is a IPS panel. This was without us asking about it. Then he proceeded to run his finger tip along the surface of the LCD to show very little dark trail of his finger. He did the same to the other LCDs around and there was a bad trail.
He concluded that the panny has a IPS panel and so it is a hard surface.

well the LE8 doesn't use a IPS based panel.panasonic only uses ips alpha in LX80 and upwards in 32inch and 37inch.in 42inch they use LG IPS panels.
the finger tip trick is utter bull,no way can one say its a IPS or VA or even a TN panel based on that trick.sales person won't even know whats the full form of IPS or how the crystals are arranged.
 
My key question still remains.
Which is the cheapest 32" TV I can buy with reasonable quality (for my need, the Videocon PQ is reasonable) but good reliability (low failure) and decent ASS?
What is the best price I can get it at?
Note: I am willing to wait till Diwali and even beyond if it gives me a price advantage.
 
Hi Daddycool,

This has been said in several threads. VU is a brand promoted by Zenith, an Indian PC manufacturer. And yes, Croma somehow tries to promote them ahead of Panasonic, and maybe even Sony's. This I experienced in Bandra, where the VU LCD's seemed miles ahead of other well known brands in terms of brightness and contrast.
 
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