Sony BRAVIA NX 800 Series 52-Inch LCD TV, Black + Sony BDP-S370 Blu-ray Disc Player

Cheap Sony BRAVIA NX 800 Series 52-Inch LCD TV, Black + Sony BDP-S370 Blu-ray Disc Player Discount Review Shop

Available at Amazon

Cheap "Sony BRAVIA NX 800 Series 52-Inch LCD TV, Black + Sony BDP-S370 Blu-ray Disc Player" Discount Review Shop

Samsung LN52A750 52-Inch 1080p DLNA LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color for $2,200.00

Cheap Samsung LN52A750 52-Inch 1080p DLNA LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color Discount Review Shop

I've had this TV for a year and cannot complain about anything as far as the picture quality is concerned. It is incredible. The dynamic adjustments to the contrast are seamless. I also have a Samsung Blu-Ray player so I take advantage of the AnyNet technology. Using HDMI connections makes a big difference over the Component Video -- the detail is outstanding. The 120 hz motion can sometimes be too much at the high settings (I keep it low) since it tends to show you movement you don't see with the naked eye. (It can make you a little dizzy so I cannot imagine why anyone would want or need the newer 240 hz technology). Even old black & white movies are beautiful on this TV. I also have connect a PC via the DVI and a laptop with HDMI with extremely good results. There are no dead pixels anywhere.

The sound is good considering the size of the built-speakers but I run it through a Yamaha 5.1 channel AV receiver which of course, makes it more than realistic clarity.

Not too many complaints here --- I wish the remote control was programmable but its not (neither is the remote for the Blu-Ray). For wireless LAN, you have to use the Samsung adapter which is no longer available but the Ethernet is fine. Since I have the wireless adapter for the Blu-Ray, I can get most web content from it rather than the TV.

And oh, yes, I bought a re-certified set which saved me a bunch.

Available at Amazon

Cheap "Samsung LN52A750 52-Inch 1080p DLNA LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color" Discount Review Shop

Sony BRAVIA NX 800 Series 52-Inch LCD TV, Black + Sony BDP-CX7000ES 400 Blu-ray Disc Mega Changer (Black)

Cheap Sony BRAVIA NX 800 Series 52-Inch LCD TV, Black + Sony BDP-CX7000ES 400 Blu-ray Disc Mega Changer (Black) Discount Review Shop

Available at Amazon

Cheap "Sony BRAVIA NX 800 Series 52-Inch LCD TV, Black + Sony BDP-CX7000ES 400 Blu-ray Disc Mega Changer (Black)" Discount Review Shop

Sharp Aquos LC52SE94U 52-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV for $2,299.95

Cheap Sharp Aquos LC52SE94U 52-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV Discount Review Shop

This is an outstanding TV. Bright clear picture, clean motion, lots of inputs. I considered the comparable Samsungs but did not like the shiny screen or frame. The picture quality was indistinguishable to my eyes in the store. I ultimately settled on Sharp due to the reports of extraordinary customer service for Sharp vs. much less satisfaction with Samsung customer service. I have not been disappointed with the Sharp so far.

Update - After nearly 6 weeks, the wall mount finally arrived. Thumbs up for Sharp, thumbs down for Abe's of Maine.

I would have rather purchased the TV from Amazon, but they do not sell this model direct. So, I bought from Abe's of Maine, who offered no tax, free shippping and a free wall mount. This made their price substantially less than other vendors; moreover, Abe's was highly rated as a vendor. My experience? I cannot recommend Abe's of Maine (actually, Abe's of New Jersey). After I ordered the TV online, I got an e-mail to call them to discuss the order. Not surprisingly, a high pressure salesman tried to get me to upgrade everything from the mode of delivery, to the free wall mount, to an extended warranty, even to a different TV. I did upgrade the delivery as what came for free was "curbside delivery" and got a mount that was thinner (and tiltable) compared to the "free mount" that was included with the TV which was not tiltable. After about 2.5 weeks, the TV showed up. Delivery was quick and easy and the driver helped me remove the TV from the box and set it up. But the wall mount I ordered was not included, forcing me to scramble to find a solution to put the TV on temporarily. So far, I am still waiting for the wall mount, more than a week after reporting it missing.

Bottom line - This Sharp is one fine TV. Abe's of Maine was disappointing.

Available at Amazon

Cheap "Sharp Aquos LC52SE94U 52-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV" Discount Review Shop

Sharp LC52E77U 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV, Black for Too low to display

Cheap Sharp LC52E77U 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV, Black Discount Review Shop

I picked up this tv feb. 5 2010 and all I can say is what a great tv. Had it set up and working in 15 min. Regular cable is so so but thats not the tv's fault. I got the HD box and service from comcast and wow, what a picture. Supurb picture with a sony 1080p upscaling dvd player. Super picture also with the computer. Have a dual output graphics card with dvi output. I adapted the dvi to an hdmi cable and now have the most awesome 52 inch monitor.****************INSTALLATION NOTE: When connecting your computer you MUST use input 6, hdmi or pc cables.YOU MUST HAVE AN AUDIO INPUT TO GO WITH THE VIDEO INPUT EVEN WITH A HDMI CABLE. There is a 1/8" diameter audio input jack in between the computer video inputs on the back of the tv and thats what I am using. The tv will not recognize the computer without video AND audio input together it will give you an "incompatible audio input error" message. It took me a bit to figure this out. Lets see. The tv only has 20 watts speaker output so the sound is only fair. I have the tv volume off and am running the audio out from th tv to a home theater reciever which sounds great. I love this tv lets see how long it lasts. Register online with sharp and the will increase the warranty. by 3 months. I think I will still purchase an SquareTrade 3-Year Electronics Warranty.





Available at Amazon

Cheap "Sharp LC52E77U 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV, Black" Discount Review Shop

Toshiba REGZA Cinema Series 52XF550U 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV for $2,999.99

Cheap Toshiba REGZA Cinema Series 52XF550U 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV Discount Review Shop

I have searched far and wide for the "perfect" LCD HDTV for at least 2 years, and there isn't one. If you think you've found one then do not go searching for Reviews -- and stay away from the heavily-active Forums that discuss these items because you will become discouraged.

The first problem is in knowing what to look for. The next is in knowing what to avoid. The third is figuring out if any of this matters to you, in your situation, for your specific needs.

This Toshiba 52" is the latest iteration of their top-line products. And if you're into minimalism, it's a stunner. The bezel is amazingly thin compared to other sets. Advantage? It allows you to fit a larger screen into your available space, if the conditions are right.

But, ah -- the catch! Next out will be Toshiba's super-light, super-thin sets that are 2" less thick. Can you wait yet another year? You'll never defat the "What's Next" Catch-22.

It has every major feature you could think of, but I won't go into the merits of these because you'll soon find that beauty and "merit" are in the eye of the beholder. If you want easy setup, this TV has it. HDMI? It has 3 inputs and one output. Nice Black Levels -- definitely, yes. Great color accuracy out-of-the-box -- yes... to my eyes. I'm sure a professional reviewer will find fault with this compared to the Pioneer Kuro excellent line of plasmas.

Like every other set, does it come from the factory over-tweaked? Yes. It will take some research to fine-tune the picture. The darn conrtrast and backlight were set at 100% -- which hurt my eyes terribly in a dark room. Is every LCD perfectly glare-free? -- not this one. The reflections of overhead lights are annoying (like reflections off Scotch "Magic Transparent Tape"), but softer than any Plasma or Glass-fronted screen I've seen. The speakers on this set are nearly invisible and perfectly adequate (much more so than my 37" Sharp).

If you insist on looking into the nitty-gritty, please note that -- at this time -- I've been unable to find any professional Reviews on this set. And it's been out there in limited quantities for a few months. Finding it locally may be difficult. Why? Because the guys in the know are snatching these up as fast as inventory comes into stock. My purchase from Beach Audio was very easy and they communicated very well. But they are, technically, not an authorized Reseller. Their Distributor and Amazon both are, and I've been reassured that Toshiba will not simply walk away from their Warranty.

UltimateAVMag.com is working on a professional Review, right now -- due out shortly. AVSForum has a raging online discussion that has most people very excited about this set -- and it has gone on for months with some great insights and advice (even tweaking tips on how to squeeze out the best picture) -- and no "This kills the deal!" discoveries, as happens on so many other seemingly worthwhile sets. These participants are not pansies. They'll eat your lunch when it comes to discussing esoterica about these sets that you never knew existed.

But beware! These Forum settings can destroy the unprepared or uneducated casual visitor by nitpicking the least-likely of all problems, and blowing it completely out of proportion to most viewers experiences. Sometimes, you'll wonder if these participants ever enjoy anything! Ahhh, the joys of fanaticism! Having said that, it is perhaps especially telling about this model that they have not found too many Achilles' Heels... yet. Not too many people actually own this set (I do). When they hit the big consumer stream, this may all change as newer sets rise to the occasion. You cannot stop progress.

When turned to no picture, my set displays "brighter" dark regions in every corner. Some guys find that unacceptable, but I've only ever seen a true black on a Pioneer plasma. And I've never noticed these regions while watching any video or TV images. If these types of revelations bother you -- DO NOT VISIT AVSFORUM!! Your enjoyment of ANY set may be doomed if you read these discussions too deeply. Or if you have a thin skin.

Biggest observation I can offer...
If this is your first "big" HDTV, please beware -- the bigger you go, the worst your "normal" TV channels will look. Unless you invest in a Video Scaler (several thousands of dollars, although Gefen has one coming for HDTV that runs about 0) or an Audio-Video Receiver that includes an upscale HQV Processor (such as Onkyo's TX-SR875, at slightly over ,000), you will NEVER improve regular programming by buying a fancier or larger set. Most homeowners not versed in resolution and scaling issues will be frustrated and angry about this. I think it will become the Number One misleading "thing they never mentioned in the store" -- where they probably only ever viewed demo discs of Blu-Ray movie clips.

You buy an HDTV for viewing HDTV content. NOT for improving SD or sub-par video or compressed cable source material. Blu-Ray movies will be so darned perfect, you may cancel your cable and FIOS and satellite movie bundles and decide to only rent Blu-Ray discs through great services such as Netflix. Local or piped-in HD stations will vary in quality. The good ones will knock your socks off -- but poor video sources are MADE WORSE by large and expensive HDTVs, just as they are by the cheap ones. A few of these do offer better video processors, but there is no easy source to look at, telling you which ones they are. That's where the Forums do help -- some of these guys rip their sets apart and tell you which processors they found inside. Remember I mentioned the word "fanaticism"??

This Toshiba is one of the best LCDs available, so far (at least, until the professional reviews come out telling us Early-Adopters that we're wrong). So stay tuned...

Available at Amazon

Cheap "Toshiba REGZA Cinema Series 52XF550U 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV" Discount Review Shop