Buyer’s Guide to Buying TVs

This article serves as a buyer’s guide to buying televisions and lists many of the considerations that should be taken into account when purchasing a new television.

The first consideration to make when purchasing a new plasma or other HDTV is resolution. Newer technology TVs are built with a 1080p resolution, while older HDTVs have a 720p resolution. Higher resolution TVs often cost 50% more, but have a significantly clearer picture than 720p TVs. The 1080p resolution also allows the owner to take full advantage of the clarity produced by other high-definition products, such as Blu-ray DVD players.

TV size is a major factor in the cost of TVs and should be carefully considered based on your room situation. The average person sits 3 meters from the television. From that distance a 50-inch TV is perfect, if a 720p TV is selected. Since the 1080p TV has a higher resolution, a larger TV would work just fine from the same distance.

Another television specification that needs to be considered is the contrast ratio of the television. Contrast ratio measures the difference between the darkest black and the lightest white produced by the TV. Top-of-the-line LCD TVs have contrast ratios of 5,000:1, or higher if the screen is larger than 42 inches. If a TV has a contrast ratio below 5000:1, dark images tend to look dark gray while light images look deteriorated.

A buyer of a new television should also consider the connectivity of the televisions. All HDTVs come with at least one standard AV input and one component video output. To ensure that they can use all of their high-definition devices, HDTV buyers should also make sure that their TV has DVI or HDMI connectivity. If you want to connect a laptop to the TV, you will need a VGA input connection.

The brightness of an LCD TV, LED TV, or Plasma TV is also another specification that can have a huge impact on the viewing experience. A good brightness rating is 550 cd/m2. If the brightness rating falls below that, images will appear blurry even if the TV has a strong contrast ratio. A TV with a poor brightness ratio is also very difficult to view in a bright room, as the sun will eclipse most of the TV picture.

The manufacturer of the TV is also very important. Panasonic TVs, Samsung TVs, and Sony TVs are often among the top rated LCD, Plasma, and LED TVs. There are several other manufacturers that produce HDTVs, but many of those TVs are less reliable and of lower quality than those made by Panasonic, Samsung, or Sony.