Reno Crew Thread, 2005

Its deffinitly NO for the Philips…after working at Circuit City (tv and Home theater dept) and Sears (tv dept) for a few years, ive seen too many philips get returned for them to totally gain my trust. But if your on a budget, then by all means pick the one thats the cheapest for your wallet. But the saying, “you get what you paid for” generally holds strong with TVs.

So that would leave the Pana, sam, and sony
the next one off the list is the Panasonic. Now dont get me wrong panasonic is a good brand, and it was a hard choice to get rid of this tv. There were a few things however, that brought me to this conclusion. The major thing was the speakers. Panasonic generally has some wierd sounding speakers, they usually sound kind of tinny (high on the treble). Perhaps they fixed it with this new model, but i highly doubt it. Plus, with only 20watts total power for the speakers versus sony’s 30, it leaves me to still doubt. Now i know some of you are wondering, but thats only 10 watts difference. Trust me, side by side you can hear the difference. Also, when your down to low wattage numbers like 10, 20, and 30 watts, believe me you can tell. Another thing about the panasonic is the features. Sony and sam have a few automatic video/picture and sound features that tend to beat the competition (im not gonna list em…the tend to fly over most peoples heads).

leaving the samsung or the sony left…
this is a close one…again sony beats them out it sound. I find that sony is usually the Best on the market for sound in TVs. But the specs speak for themselves also (samsung has the same sound specs as the Pana). Also, the features are just about the same with these 2, but the sony also has 1 more s-video port then the samsung. It might not mean anything to you but some people like to generally get the better pic with s-vid versus the composite type connections. Lastly, the sony is the cheaper of the 2. But one thing the samsung has over the sony is a better “Factory” warranty, with a 12month parts AND labor limited warranty…versus the sony with 12months parts and only 3months labor coverage in there limited warranty. Now after reading a couple reviews about the TV, some people were complaining that the samsung has a tendancy to have a “bowed out picture” every once in a while. As a matter of fact, some of them are saying its happening to about 1 outa 20 of the samsungs. So you might have to use that warranty quicker then you think. But if the sony still holds strong to its “Best TV Quality on the Market” thing, then you’ve got nothin to worry about with these babies.

THE MUFFIN MANS CHOICE= The Sony KV-30HS420

EDIT: Also, if you want a second opinion, by all means go into your nearest Circuit City and ask one of the Salesmen what they think about your 4 choices. They are there to help you. Believe me, the minute you walk into those doors everyone in that place has just become your bitch. :tup:

koogy · September 30, 2005, 11:49am

The Muffin Man:

Its deffinitly NO for the Philips…after working at Circuit City (tv and Home theater dept) and Sears (tv dept) for a few years, ive seen too many philips get returned for them to totally gain my trust. But if your on a budget, then by all means pick the one thats the cheapest for your wallet. But the saying, “you get what you paid for” generally holds strong with TVs.

So that would leave the Pana, sam, and sony
the next one off the list is the Panasonic. Now dont get me wrong panasonic is a good brand, and it was a hard choice to get rid of this tv. There were a few things however, that brought me to this conclusion. The major thing was the speakers. Panasonic generally has some wierd sounding speakers, they usually sound kind of tinny (high on the treble). Perhaps they fixed it with this new model, but i highly doubt it. Plus, with only 20watts total power for the speakers versus sony’s 30, it leaves me to still doubt. Now i know some of you are wondering, but thats only 10 watts difference. Trust me, side by side you can hear the difference. Also, when your down to low wattage numbers like 10, 20, and 30 watts, believe me you can tell. Another thing about the panasonic is the features. Sony and sam have a few automatic video/picture and sound features that tend to beat the competition (im not gonna list em…the tend to fly over most peoples heads).

leaving the samsung or the sony left…
this is a close one…again sony beats them out it sound. I find that sony is usually the Best on the market for sound in TVs. But the specs speak for themselves also (samsung has the same sound specs as the Pana). Also, the features are just about the same with these 2, but the sony also has 1 more s-video port then the samsung. It might not mean anything to you but some people like to generally get the better pic with s-vid versus the composite type connections. Lastly, the sony is the cheaper of the 2. But one thing the samsung has over the sony is a better “Factory” warranty, with a 12month parts AND labor limited warranty…versus the sony with 12months parts and only 3months labor coverage in there limited warranty. Now after reading a couple reviews about the TV, some people were complaining that the samsung has a tendancy to have a “bowed out picture” every once in a while. As a matter of fact, some of them are saying its happening to about 1 outa 20 of the samsungs. So you might have to use that warranty quicker then you think. But if the sony still holds strong to its “Best TV Quality on the Market” thing, then you’ve got nothin to worry about with these babies.

THE MUFFIN MANS CHOICE= The Sony KV-30HS420

EDIT: Also, if you want a second opinion, by all means go into your nearest Circuit City and ask one of the Salesmen what they think about your 4 choices. They are there to help you. Believe me, the minute you walk into those doors everyone in that place has just become your bitch. :tup:

no you’re wrong.

move back to reno as penalty

System_1 · September 30, 2005, 5:36pm

The Muffin Man:

Its deffinitly NO for the Philips…after working at Circuit City (tv and Home theater dept) and Sears (tv dept) for a few years, ive seen too many philips get returned for them to totally gain my trust. But if your on a budget, then by all means pick the one thats the cheapest for your wallet. But the saying, “you get what you paid for” generally holds strong with TVs.

So that would leave the Pana, sam, and sony
the next one off the list is the Panasonic. Now dont get me wrong panasonic is a good brand, and it was a hard choice to get rid of this tv. There were a few things however, that brought me to this conclusion. The major thing was the speakers. Panasonic generally has some wierd sounding speakers, they usually sound kind of tinny (high on the treble). Perhaps they fixed it with this new model, but i highly doubt it. Plus, with only 20watts total power for the speakers versus sony’s 30, it leaves me to still doubt. Now i know some of you are wondering, but thats only 10 watts difference. Trust me, side by side you can hear the difference. Also, when your down to low wattage numbers like 10, 20, and 30 watts, believe me you can tell. Another thing about the panasonic is the features. Sony and sam have a few automatic video/picture and sound features that tend to beat the competition (im not gonna list em…the tend to fly over most peoples heads).

leaving the samsung or the sony left…
this is a close one…again sony beats them out it sound. I find that sony is usually the Best on the market for sound in TVs. But the specs speak for themselves also (samsung has the same sound specs as the Pana). Also, the features are just about the same with these 2, but the sony also has 1 more s-video port then the samsung. It might not mean anything to you but some people like to generally get the better pic with s-vid versus the composite type connections. Lastly, the sony is the cheaper of the 2. But one thing the samsung has over the sony is a better “Factory” warranty, with a 12month parts AND labor limited warranty…versus the sony with 12months parts and only 3months labor coverage in there limited warranty. Now after reading a couple reviews about the TV, some people were complaining that the samsung has a tendancy to have a “bowed out picture” every once in a while. As a matter of fact, some of them are saying its happening to about 1 outa 20 of the samsungs. So you might have to use that warranty quicker then you think. But if the sony still holds strong to its “Best TV Quality on the Market” thing, then you’ve got nothin to worry about with these babies.

THE MUFFIN MANS CHOICE= The Sony KV-30HS420

EDIT: Also, if you want a second opinion, by all means go into your nearest Circuit City and ask one of the Salesmen what they think about your 4 choices. They are there to help you. Believe me, the minute you walk into those doors everyone in that place has just become your bitch. :tup:

Cool, this hella helps me out alot cuz I dunno jack shit bout TV’s. I really like the slim look of the Samsung, but are looks of the TV enough for me to overcome Sony’s quality, I dunno, something I gotta think about.

The_Muffin_Man · September 30, 2005, 9:24pm

yea, the samsung is definitly the “Prettiest” of them all.
That slim design is pretty nice.

Now im no TV manufacturer, but with TV being smaller and thus making the CRT (the glass shit the picture shows up on) smaller, this might have some effect on why these TVs have that bowing out problem (mention on prev post). But this is just my theory.

Also, if your gonna try and make your decision based on “Looks”, then also consider where your planning on putting the TV. Is the place you plan on putting the TV really gonna show off the prettyness??? Are you gonna put this thing in a large cabinet where the depth of the TV is gonna be hidden in the first place??? Just think about it.

Lastly, if you already got a place picked out for your new purchase, then make sure you know the size of the TV first and see if its even gonna fit. All to many times I had people return there TVs they purchased just because they didnt measure the spot they chose and there TV didnt fit.

LATES

popo187 · September 30, 2005, 11:50pm

Nice post Muffin, holds pretty accurate, as I worked at Best Buy.

I remember the mgr of the TV’s dept. tell me that it’s between Sony and Samsung also, but he told me that Sony has the MOST returns because of faulties, etc. out of every TV they carry, so I’d really recommend Samsung, it’s what I use also, and it’s beautiful :sad: .

The_Muffin_Man · October 1, 2005, 12:15am

Thanks man.
And as for sony with the “faulties”, i guess some stores see it happen more then others, so im not gonna try and discredit what you say. Sony had a pretty good record at my store, but thats not to say i dont believe you or its not the worst in other stores. Plus its good to throw in your opinion on it, the more info we all know, the better chance that us TV buyers have of makin a good choice.
Thanks popo for your added opinion :tup:

System_1 · October 1, 2005, 2:07am

I’m going to put it in my room, so I’m also going to need to buy a TV stand. Probably be using it primarily for Xbox 360, PS3, and movies. Thanks for all the help though, I appreciate it.

The_Muffin_Man · October 1, 2005, 4:46am

Hey no prob man. I know these days, TV purchases can be pretty confusing. Theres alot of choices and alot of crazy features that confuse alot of people. So id figure i would help out a bit.
FYI…they might make specifics stands made for those TVs. The matching stands are generally more expensive though. But they sure do make that home theater setup more pretty.
Again, glad to help

Avarus · October 1, 2005, 11:17am

I must finish the combo video. 15 new combos that need recording!!! BWAAAAA

koogy · October 1, 2005, 7:23pm

I urge everyone to try out the F.E.A.R. Multiplayer Demo. Myself, pignutz and JC have formed the mighty team [XXS], and dominate throughout the universe. >:O! Join us, and own or something.

btw you can get the game demo at www.fileplanet.com

The_Muffin_Man · October 1, 2005, 8:40pm

Alot of people are saying F.E.A.R. is coming out for the xbox 360. If thats true, ill just wait for that. Plus, MS is saying for FFXI they will allow the xboxlive servers to link up with the people of the PC ver. servers. If thats the case, they might do the same for FEAR
We can only wait and see i guess.
Who knows, i might breakdown and buy the PC version if i cant wait any longer