Who has a 3d TV? Do you watch 3d often enough to make it worth having one? I have a perfectly good HDTV, but it isn't 3d. Is there enough 3d content to make buying a 3d TV worthwhile? How about the 2d - 3d feature that some 3d TVs have? Is it any good?

Don't buy into 3D just yet. If your existing HD TV is doing fine, then just wait. Over the next 18 months 3D TVs will become much cheaper and MUCH better. LG is currently making a 3D TV with passive glasses, just like in the movie theater. Expect more companies to jump on that bandwagon very quickly. It is a vastly superior technology.

There is nowhere near enough 3D content to make it worth your while at this moment. There are some 3D movies, but not as many as you could make regular use of. Very few broadcasts are in 3D, and the word so far has been... Meh?

Some people in the industry are already predicting that 3D may be just a fad. However, studios, and electronic companies want this technology, so it may eventually get better.

Just wait 18 months. If 3D is going to stick around we'll all know it by then. Also, with better 3D technology, and cheaper prices coming along, you'll be glad you didn't early adopt.

I've checked out the LG TVs with passive technology, and they're nice in that you can use the same glasses you use at the movies. I had just come from a 3d movie and used the glasses from the movie theater to watch the TV. The plasma TVs with active technology give better resolution, though.

And here I am thinking maybe its about time to get an HDTV. They are finally getting to a price I will pay.

Is it just me or has anybody else noticed that if you use an Antenna which about half the country does, the old system which we were forced to get out of, when the weather was bad, you got a little snow but you still got the picture and the sound was always there. Now with new and improved digital pictures it just freezes, becomes little squares on the screen then the little roving rectangle box starts wandering around the screen saying Poor Signal.

Digital may be better but Analog you could always trust.

As for buying a 3DTV a friend once told me, if its electronic, wait a year, the price will come down, wait 2 years and they will be giving them away.

River

Riverwind (imported) wrote: Wed May 18, 2011 5:23 am And here I am thinking maybe its about time to get an HDTV. They are finally getting to a price I will pay.

Is it just me or has anybody else noticed that if you use an Antenna which about half the country does, the old system which we were forced to get out of, when the weather was bad, you got a little snow but you still got the picture and the sound was always there. Now with new and improved digital pictures it just freezes, becomes little squares on the screen then the little roving rectangle box starts wandering around the screen saying Poor Signal.

Digital may be better but Analog you could always trust.

As for buying a 3DTV a friend once told me, if its electronic, wait a year, the price will come down, wait 2 years and they will be giving them away.

River

I wouldn't put off buying an HDTV for another year or so. I think that 3D is going to be at a premium price for at least two years and that, as they say, is a lifetime in electronics.

I bought HDTV over five years ago in a smaller 22inch Toshiba and then in 2009 replaced that with a 37 inch LG HDTV. That's about as big as you want for a bedroom.

What you want is 1080p, 120 Hz and at least two if not four HDMI inputs. The more the better off you will be. HDMI is the best TV signal.

There are a ton of cheap HDTV out there with only 720p and you don't want to spend $$ on that. It's the lesser quality screen being dumped at low price.

Also, 60Hz verses 120Hz does show up in action sequences. It's hard to explain what you see on the screen when it does but there is a big difference between the two frequencies.

For twenty years I have had a quality sound system attached to the TV and from my cable box I use a Tos Link optical cable that provides the highest quality sound through a pioneer amp and bose speakers. I can shake the house and split eardrums. Remember, I have had Symphony subscription tickets for 35 years and I loves my good music. My house thumps to grand opera and occasionally, the Pogues.

You can live with the sound of a HDTV and be happy but the sound is coming out of tiny speakers. By putting a real amplifier and speakers on the TV, you get the heavy bass and ear-piercing highs like a theater. Of course then you need museum putty holding all of your knick-knacks in place.

I can tell you that AVATAR (the movie) is satisfyingly impressive on the 32 inch HD screen. And the explosion on the season finale of THE WALKING DEAD looked excellent on my TV.

Slammr (imported) wrote: Tue May 17, 2011 9:29 pm I've checked out the LG TVs with passive technology, and they're nice in that you can use the same glasses you use at the movies. I had just come from a 3d movie and used the glasses from the movie theater to watch the TV. The plasma TVs with active technology give better resolution, though.

If you are going for just a better HD TV with awesome resolution and contrast, those new 3D Plasmas can't be beat. The problem is, even though it is the best HD technology, it is not the best 3D technology. A year from now, that Plasma will be replaced with the passive glasses technology, six months after that, they will actually be affordable. Why not get the best of both?

If it were me, I'd wait for Panasonic's next 3D Plasma with the passive glasses system. I wouldn't get one with the active glasses technology. Each pair of glasses will cost you about $200, and most of those TVs don't come with enough of them. Having a group of friends over to watch a 3D movie will be very expensive. Not so with the passive system.

Also, have you tried watching a 2 hour + movie with the active glasses? The flicker WILL give you a headache. If you wear glasses like I do, The active glasses just don't fit properly. They are too bulky.

I work in a shop that sells these things. I've had a lot of time to play with it, and learn what will be coming next year. The passive glasses will be very big with the upcoming products, and they won't give you a headache.

If you want 3D it will be worth the wait. If you just want a better HD TV, then go ahead and get the 3D Plasma that is out right now.

Just my two cents.

3D is a fad that will eventually go away except for die hard enthusiasts. People have enough trouble keeping track of the remote control, let alone wondering where they put their 3D glasses.

The difference between 3D and HDTV adoption is that HDTV is passive, you just have to hook it up. 3D is active, you actually have to do something different each time you use it.

--LT