OT: What flat screen TV should I buy?

Samsung 55" LED 3D is what I have after research. Absolutely a great TV!

Get the fastest refresh rate possible. 120 Hz or even 240 Hz if you can. Faster screen images smooth out motion - less blur - very important for watching hoops, hockey, etc.

I would highly recomend a Vizeo. I purchased a 42' lcd with 60Hz and the picture quality is fantastic. Don't fall into the "buy a 120hz" if you are not a gamer or techy. I almost fell into that trap, no need to overbuy on a tv, unless you're not worried about a budget.

If you want to watch movies in 3d, then yes, get a 240 hz and a 3d blu ray player.

I have not experienced a bad reception on my 60hz Vizeo and my kids play on their wii and the picture is great. You won't go wrong with a Vizeo or Samsung, IMO, good luck.

Of all the Panasonic plasmas I've recommended to family and friends through the years, they've been nothing but thrilled. But I'll also agree with the folks mentioning Samsung and Vizio. Find a tv in your price range from one of those 3 brands and I think you'll be quite happy. Very nice bang for your buck represented by all three.

I don't think you will notice any difference between 120 and 240 hz but there will be a price difference. Whatever you buy will soon be outdated anyway. So make your decision based on picture quality. Maybe google some reviews on how a model you like works with the net and apps because some may do a better job than others. Most Husky Fans here seem to recommend the Samsung or Vizio. I would go with one of those. Now start a thread on where you can get the best deal

Thanks again everyone. I like what I hear about the plasmas, but from what I understand they would not be a good choice given the amount of sunlight/glare to which the TV will be exposed in that room.

I also like everything I hear about Vizio; and we recently bought a smaller one of those for the new kitchen area and we are happy with it. They appear to deliver the best value overall, coming close to Samsung at a much lower price at every level.

But since this is going to be the main TV in the house, I'm still leaning toward the Samsung. I haven't been back to the stores to check them out since Christmas time, but I think I'm ready to go back again now, armed with some better insight and some questions to see how the salesperson responds.

I am probably going to Best Buy, especially since, last I knew, they had a no-interest for a year deal if you use a Best Buy credit card. I don't have one, but I'll get one if that's the case. I could use the float to help furnish the room in the meantime.

Mitch's does sell Costco merhandise. I only know this because I was in Costco electronics department when he came in and overheard a conversation with a Costco manager. He buys all their blemish and outdated merchandise.Never been to Mitch's but I'm guessing they have some pretty good vlaues.

Late $0.02

I did my research about 18 months ago. Panasonic and Samsung were the best available products.
I purchased 2 Sammys based on picture quality, features, reviews, price and aesthetics.

I went for a 50" plasma and a 32" LED for bedroom. By far the Plasma is the best picture. The LED is all PC, low energy consumption yada yada but if picture quality is important to you go plasma, unless LED technology has drastically improved since my purchase.

Also, after purchasing the 32" from the local BB, I learned Best Buy is far from the best buy.

I bought the 50" from an outfit out of state (Brooklyn or Jersey). Arrived, by truck, at my door...saved a ton of money over Not really the BB store....couldn't be happier with purchase and 50" Sammy. It's a high end 3-D but we don't use the 3rd D. Agree 3D currently is a gimmick. 50" Sammy 2D/3D picture is nothing short of spectacular.

Set up/calibration (pushed by BB) proved unnecessary...I think it's a BS moneymaker for BB
like extended warranty and unnecessary (exception computers).

I bought the 55" LG 3D TV and have no regrets. I also hooked it up with a Bose sound system. I have Avatar and have watched it several times. The 3D glasses are passive and inexpensive. I have 8 sets. Almost every sports event today is broadcast in 3D. Not only do you have the depth perception but the picture is much clearer in 3D. If you don't like to wear the glasses (my wife doesn't) it is easy to switch to 2D. The additional cost for 3D over 2D was much less than I expected. You should view a sports event in 3D before you make your decision.

Didn't read the replies but here is my .02

I will never buy another Samsung again. I bought a Samsung because it was top o the line a few years ago. after 24 months I had a single horizontal line across the entire screen and then I a few months later started having vertical lines across the entire screen at turn on, along with a clicking that went on for 20-60 seconds. After doing some research, i realized the capacitor was bad and probably also the video board..in less than 4 years. One day, all i had were the horizontal lines

I retired that and bought a Sony 46 LED for under 1k at tiger direct and absolutely loveit. great pic, better sound than the samsung.

In the basement, I have a Panasonic Plasma that is about 2 years old....great tv and the plasma's were much more size/dollar when I bought it.

My only advice, never buy an HDMI cable from a big box retailer.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-20056502-1/why-all-hdmi-cables-are-the-same/

I'm not sure the type of cable mentioned in the quoted blurb, but if Best Buy will gouge you on HDMI, they are probably gouging you on the other cables you are purchasing. Do your homework on perpipherals too, and then go to newegg.com

I bought a 50" Panasonic plasma close to 3 years ago. The picture is amazing.

Plasma still has the deepest blacks and still has the best contrast ratios (Ratio between the whites and the blacks). LEDs will have a brighter colors. Plasma will have the wider viewing angle. LED/LCDs will have a lower power consumption and will be less in price as well.

I tracked my purchase for a few months on http://camelbuy.com/. And when I came to buy the TV, I used a price match at Best Buy and also packaged a home theater system for free (Pansonic BluRay + speakers). I ended up selling the entertainment system on Ebay later though. Sometimes, it helps waiting for those package deals. Used a Best Buy reward zone card as well to use the points for DVD's, paper, printer cartridges, cables etc ...

Just don't buy the overprice cables at Best Buy though ...

HTH.

Agree. I ended up buying a cable from Amazon as a filler for another product I purchased there to get free shipping.

This is the exception. There is a reason why Samsung is beating Sony to a pulp, though Sony and Samsung have similarly low defective rates. I have a Samsung PN58c8000 in my basement and replaced my defective 42" LG upstairs with an older 43" Samsung plasma. Love them both and have no problems.

Plasma is still the way to go .... Panasonic is currently the best. Formerly, Pioneer Kuro technology was the best plasma on the market, but they decided to get out of the business.

If you're getting the tv for a man-cave and are sitting at least 10 feet away, get yourself a 720p $600 51" plasma tv and don't look back. You'll save money, have great image quality and won't be too sorry when you upgrade to OLED in 3-5 years.

Cheap 120hz LEDs will still have ghosting especially in football or hockey. You want at least 240hz, but that is still less than half of what typical plasma has (600hz). Then you have light leakage with lcd. Watching movie in a dark room on an lcd results in black being grey. To fix that you need a local dimming led lcd. Those are expensive, typically starting at $3500 compared to $2000 for edge-lit led which only offer energy and weight savings with still crappy image quality.

So, to have nice image quality on a budget but have a bright room and expect to watch Saturday noon football, get yourself some cheap curtains and a plasma. You should come in under $1000.
Otherwise go for $3500 local dimming LED LCD or if you've got money to burn,wait till fall and get yourself a $10,000 OLED tv (think Samsung Galaxy S2 screen but 50" instead of 4.3".)

I'll vouch for the Panasonic plasma. I own two: a 4-5 year old (can't remember off the top of my head) 42" plasma and a 2 year old 50" plasma, both are 1080p. The newer TV has internet access.. which I'm a fan off.. I mean you're Blu-ray player will most likely have it too and almost everything has Amazon and Netflix... I use Amazon on a regular basis and am very pleased with the picture quality over my crappy internet connction. Not much beats the convenience of an internet connected TV. I mean I have Amazon and Netflix on 3 or 4 different devices but the TV is the easiest to deal with. It's funny how little things like not waiting for the PS3 or Blu-ray player to boot up make a difference. The picture quality on the newer Panasonic is astounding. It wasn't the top end Panasonic either...

I heard it was suicide.