Buying a TV ?. Review on Buying a New TV

Thanks to all the folks who have read my initial writeup on ''buying a new TV ?'' and rated. It was my first ever writing experience and all of you have surely encouraged me to write more. So here I go in details.

Its unfortunate that most of us in India are pretty ignorant about newer technologies that are happening to us. In my opinion, one cant demand the best if he does not know whats the best. Thus I would dedicate the first part of the writeup talking about only technology and the last about the scene in India.

When you choose a TV its not just for today, we should choose something which is the best that our pocket could afford and should last for some time. There is lot in terms of technology that has evolved in the television arena. There are five things you would consider when choosing for a TV:

1. Whats the Screen type you would need?

   
   




2. What would be the right screen size ?

   
   




3. Would you need a Regular or a high definition TV ?

   
   




4. What would be the screen shape that would suit best for you ?

   
   




5. And finally what is the price for the product ?

   
   

1. Three types of Screens available:

Cathode-ray tube (CRT) is most popular kind of TVs available in the Indian market today. The images on a CRT would be sharp and bright and should be visible in almost all lighting conditions.

Then there are Rear Projection TVs (RPTV). The sizes available under this category is from 40 inches to 60 inches. They are good for watching movies and games. The only draw back is that you have to be seated straight in front of the screen for optimum viewing. They cost around Rs 1.5 lacs and above.

And the latest is flat panels. These type of TVs are able to reproduce bright images without the use of a CRT. These are very slim and can be mounted on a wall like a picture frame giving great asthetic appeal. Flat panels comes in two flavours, LCD (liquid Crystal Displays) and Plasmas. A Plasma costs at about Rs 4.5 lacs & above in India.

2. What should be the screen size ?

Did you buy your last TV just because someone suggested that a 21 inch or a 14 inch is good ? The screen size actually should depend on the room size where you plan to keep the TV and how much you can afford for it. The bigger the better, bigger gives you more impact. But you should have the right distance available to watch the TV. It should not be too close that you start to see the picture construction in terms of pixels (tiny dots that make up the picture), not should you be seated too far to loose the impact of it. There is a formula that you should apply to calculate the optimum viewable distance. For standard definition TVs (SDTV) you should multiply the screen size by 3 to get the right distance. For example, a 32 inch TV should be viewed from a distance of 8 feets. On the other hand for High Definition TV (HDTV) the multiplication factor is 2.5, yes you need less distance to watch a HDTV. For example, for a 35 inch TV you should be seated at a distance of about 7.3 feet. Its recommended that your eyes should be with level to the middle of the screen.

3. Now for the question of Regular or High definition ?

Surely HDTV is the best in technology and is the future.

Today digital television (DTV) broadcasts are available to more that 90% of America and they plan to shut off all analog broadcast by the year 2006. Technology has bridged geographical distances, and mark my words when I say that a DTV signal can be available in India sooner that you think. A DTV broadcast can contain both SDTV & HDTV signals. HDTV would rule as it would give you 4 times better, rich vibrant cinema like viewing experience with Dolby Digital sound. Even a SDTV digital signal would be much better that what you get from your cable TV with interferences like snowing & ghosting. Dont rule out HDTV just because a HDTV signal is not available in your country or city. These TVs can change the way you watch television even if there is no HDTV content. All HDTV comes with some kind of upconversion circuit to make SDTV signals a smoother experience by reducing the visible horizontal scan lines.

A DVD would look good on your normal SDTV. It would look better when upconverted by a HDTV. But it would give you a whole different experience giving a picture at its best when you use a progressive scan DVD player with a HDTV.

4. And for the screen shape suited for you ?

Today almost all SDTVs have a squarish look, i.e. a screen aspect ratio of 4:3 and most HDTV has a aspect of 16:9. Let your viewing preference decide the aspect for you. If you are more into watching TV programes then you would probably settle for a 4:3 aspect and would not mind the black bars at the top & bottom of the screen when watching a wide screen formatted movie. And if you are among the movie buffs then the 16:9 aspect would be best where you would not mind the black bars appearing on the sides of your TV programes, where as your movie would be full blown and seen as the director intended for his audience without any cutting.

5. And lastly, you have to see you budget and over-ride the suggestions mentioned above.

There are other features, like the number of channels, zoom, pan, no. & type of audio video connectors, sound type, etc. that you may look for in a TV besides the basic five points that I've tried to explain.

Coming to the present scenario of India. I feel that if you can afford you should go for a HDTV. They are available from 29 inches & above and costs Rs 80,000/- and upwards. Surely the price of HDTVs are going down by the day, but it depends on the type of buyer you are. Whether you want to wait for the technology to go on the brink of being obsolete and then buy it at a less price or you buy the best available technology and enjoy. The reason that I recommend a HDTV is because it can dramatically improve your viewing. Currently you can atleast use a progressive scan DVD player with a HDTV for the best movie viewing. With Reliance putting up fibers all over the country and I'm sure you can see DTV signals appearing sooner. Competetion would soon join in.

So, all the best and make the right decision when you buy your TV !