hi all,

further to the picture failings with sky sports thread i have been informed by the insurance company that i can choose a new set.
i have settled on the panasonic tx37lzd85 lcd.
the reason that i have plumped for the lcd over plasma is because the set will be placed near to a window and the reflection from plasma screens is from what ive seen too great whereas the lcds seem to me to be less reflective.
i must admit however that the plasmas especially the pioneers do great blacks compared to lcds. but in the end the pannys picture is excellent for me and doesnt have the screen reflection issues.
what do you guys think of my choice ? anyone running one ?
regards, scotty

has anyone got an opinion on this set ?
he said impatiently !

It seems good, and like most (not all) LCD's that anti-reflective thang is good... the reason I opted for my LCD


If I were you I'd also have a gander at the Sharp LC37X20E.... The one thing missing is 100Hz, but the picture, when set up properly, is great.

I've got its' predecessor, the 37XD1, also no 100Hz... I watch lots of motorsport and I've got no complaints at all......

Well, except that I had a 12month g'tee on my screen, and if I was buying now Sharp are doing a limited period offer of a 5yr G'tee... D'OH!

Good choice.

I have the previous generation tx37lzd70 and have read/heard the difference between the 7th and 8th gen are not great.

We looked for a long time and this was the best LCD on the market, in our view. Similar Pana Plasma's were a tad better (especially blacks) but I wanted a full 1080p 37" panel, LCD is practically half the weight and less power consumption.

Jay

Scotty, both Mrs Abbydog and I found LCD quite painful to watch for long periods (hour-plus)compared to CRT/Plasma. In fact, we ditched an lcd set after a couple of months for this reason and replaced it with a Fujitsu Plasma, to the great relief of four eyeballs.

This may be peculiar to us and our situation but its really worth trying to arrange a trial of an lcd before you buy, especially if you have been used to and happy with a plasma.

Just a thought....

I can't stand those glossy display surfaces ... that's an important point to me!

As I wanted >=50", and Panasonic sells Plasma only at anything more than 37" it was not for me.

Be sure that it handles 1080p/24 correctly. Pana was quite late to support 24p. The first series which accepted it as external input signal, did convert it back to 60p internally... (which is not at all the idea -> gives judder). The new ones are supposed to have native 24p support.

My evaluation ended with a Philips, you can read more here why:

37-42 inch tv recommendations

still happy with it

all the best
Adrian

thanks guys,

im gonna plump for lcd for the screen reflection
stated earlier which was clearly evident to me in the shop. i admit that the pioneers blacks were the best but there wasnt a lot in it.
the panny tx37lzd85 has all the latest technology including.

100hz
full hd 1080p
24fps
3 x hdmi

the two things that struck me while doing the demo was that the viewing angle was superb and no motion blur evident on hd feed or terrestrial tv....the picture was great too on fast moving on a ps3 driving game.

the final clincher for me is the fact that my local dealer is throwing in a full 5yr panasonic warranty with the set for £1k.

Then check the Sharp... should come in at under £900 with a 5yr Sharp g'tee..... you might need to get it from a specialist retailer to get the g'tee... but then if they're worth their salt they'll install & colour-balance it too.

saw the sharp in the shop mike and to me the picture was not up to the standard of pioneer or the panny. loved the styling though.

Shame...
proper setup on them tales WAY longer than most folk are prepared to throw at it... like a 7 course meal.

If you get it right though... wow...

But if you like the Pana, it's still a fantastic screen.

quote:

Originally posted by scottyhammer:
the final clincher for me is the fact that my local dealer is throwing in a full 5yr panasonic warranty with the set for £1k.

Tescos have just started selling them in store for around £750 and Amazon sell them for £779. I'm sure you must be able to get an extended warranty for less than £250

quote:

Originally posted by jcs_smith:

Tescos have just started selling them in store for around £750 and Amazon sell them for £779. I'm sure you must be able to get an extended warranty for less than £250

That's the spirit.... get a nice dealer to dem it for you, then go buy it from someone else....

Sorry Dave, only just spotted this - a great choice, the Panasonic's streets ahead of most other LCDs & IMO is better than certain plasma alternatives!

"Which" did a group test on TVs a few issues ago & Panasonic LCDs came out tops. I bought one for the kitchen & J.N. also got one. We're both delighted! Enjoy!

thanks tony see you soon.
mike,
i have little choice as i am restricted by the insurance company as to where i can get the set from, it has to be a registered outlet for domestic and general as they are paying to replace my old set which developed faults.
scotty

Scotty, sorry not aimed at you.

Anyway, spent long enough working for a damned inn-sewer-ants company to know how they like to limit their choices and get their kickbacks from their dealer network.

You should have heard the grumbling from mine after a claim from a duster-damaged MC stylus!

mike,
i know where your coming from.....my insurance company (domestic & general) insists that i go to the designated outlet that they specify even though that i have requested my own dealer who has the same set for £100 less with the panasonic warranty and is 5 miles closer !!!
im trying to save them money but they just wont relent and say that its company policy - the mind boggles.
regards, scotty

When I had my stylus issue I insisted that any other company they wanted to use would have to come to my home, prove they knew their way around the TT, and install the new cartridge in situ.

My dealer then quoted them the entire install at n/c over the cost of the cart... that swung it in the right direction... but I still ad to threaten the Insurance Ombudsman to get it done...

Think the wording was " if a dealer unfamiliar to the cartridge, and to the tonearm to which it's being fitted, causes a lack of performance or damage to result, then I shall consider you to have failed to successfully indemnify against the loss involved in this claim. This will result in the claim being re-presented, again with my insistance that a known party carries out this installation."

Factor in that even if the ombudsman finds in favour of the insurer, the ombudsman's costs (minimum £300 per issue) MUST be met by the insurer......


OMG.. I'm ranting aren't I.....


*sheepishly slopes off in search of coffee*

calm down mike! dont want you to have a heart attack mate.
scotty

quote:

Originally posted by Mike1380:
That's the spirit.... get a nice dealer to dem it for you, then go buy it from someone else....

Yes but it's only a TV. In fact I got more attention and advice from Tescos than I did any of the dealers I've been in.And the deno was better

Well, if a dealer can't or won't provide better service than a supermarket then you'd be right not to buy it from the inferior salesman... fair play.


As for "only a TV"... horses for courses... my TV is the "visual loudspeaker" for the hundreds of DVDs that I play on my n-Vi..... as such I consider it a visual equivalent of an SBL (needs to be set up right, but when it is I love what it does).

Mike, that bit of info about the cartridge is very interesting indeed!!

jc, if you got a better demo at Tescos, that's a good enough reason to buy there! People who slope off to buy cheaper are only doing their dealer a disservice if that dealer hasn't given them excellent service in the first place.

Frank, you know how it is... when you've spent a long time in an industry you know what strings to pull... and I spent a long time in insurance!

It's just a shame that I actually HAD to resort to the actions I took in order to get them to play ball... such is life.

well i have now got a shiny new........ panny TX-37LZD85 lcd tv and very impressed with it i am too! its 100hz 1080p with 24fps which really does do a grand job. just watched the fa cup final in glorious 1080i hd and must say it was stunning. also watched a dvd last night in full 1080p hd and it was even more impressive.
this set really does lay to rest the lcd argument for motion blur as there was not an incling of that on fast paced action scenes....the viewing angle has been worked on for this model and again the picture is perfect on this score.
i can wholeheartedly recommend that if you are after a lcd tv to go and check it out.
regards, scotty

Glad you're enjoying your new TV Dave. Be aware the picture quality improves quite a lot over a couple of weeks or so running in.

Enjoy!!!

cheers tony.....think ill get a hi-line for it!

quote:

Originally posted by tonym:
Glad you're enjoying your new TV Dave. Be aware the picture quality improves quite a lot over a couple of weeks or so running in.

Enjoy!!!

and it will also improve as the set warms up during the time it is on! The tuner output for radio is also miles better than a DAB tuner for the extended BBC stations, 6Music, etc.

Jono