I enjoy reading the many insightful comments in this forum daily and wanted to pose my upcoming desired purchase scenerio (next weekend) to the group for feedback:

HDTV, 37", pref. flat panel but not deal breaker, $2,000 or under.

I have read all the data on Plasma, LCD, etc. and think LCD is the way to go for me. I will be getting a 'box' from Comcast so I do not think a an inclusive tuner is neccessary. I think for now 720 is ok, but my friends sat broadcasts will be 1080 in 3 years and I will be sorry if I dont purchase a set that displays this.

Thoughts?

Thank you.

1080 is the way to go. Now there are differences there also, I or P.

Check out this forum for great info/advice, http://www.highdefforum.com/index.php

I have a Sharp 37". I'm not sure if this is the exact model:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...188743?ie=UTF8

It's now $1,540 at Amazon. Currently free shipping.

I'd say that color quality/features is probably more important than resolution at the 37" size. The 37" LCDs are either in the 768p or 1080p resolutions. When I was shopping for an LCD some time ago, there was one 1080p LCD, but many HD broadcasts in 1080i didn't look better overall on a 1080p display (this was the Westinghouse model).

HD over cable or over-the air are so heavily compressed that compression artifacts usually negate the benefits of resolution. However, if you plan on watching HD-DVD or Blu-Ray movies, I can see there being a different in the long run (many current movies aren't transferred to the full potential of the new formats).

The other thing to consider is that your TV have adequate inputs for your AV devices.

I've also found out that many people have suboptimal vision (being right at the edge of needing corrective vision) and that HD at 37" exceeds their visual acuity. Finding a good retailer that is showing real HD content will help you decide the importance of resolution versus color/contrast/black levels/features.

I work in Home Theater Sales, so here is my $.02.
By looking for a 37" TV, you severely limit your options. Many outstanding manufacturers (Samsung in perticular) do not make a 37".
I would recomend looking at either the Samsung line in the 32" or 40" and likewise the Sony in the 32" or 40".
While things will be moving toward 1080p in the future, there are no sources (other than a $1000 blu-ray player) which provide this quality. Broadcast 1080p is at least 5 years away, and probably closer to 8.
If you must stick with the 37", I would go with the Sharp LC-37D40U or (if you want to spend the money) the Lc-37D90U. The 90U is a 1080p model, and one of very few.
If you have any more questions, please feel free to send me a PM.

[I]Edited to add: Be sure you see it in store before you make a decision. Some models draw color differently than what you may like or be used to.

Sorry to go OT, but are in-store sets calibrated? I've been staring at my ISF-calibrated set for a couple of years and walking into a store, with all sets turned to Torch mode, literally hurts my eyes. Some of the home theater forums may offer better advice on picture quality in a home setting. This is one case where seeing is not believing.

I think the picture is the last thing I would consider seriously in the store. Like CPRich says, once you get used to an ISF-calibrated picture, the others look like an acid trip. Find a model that has the features and price you like, then invest the $300 or so for a calibration.

While I agree that calibration does make a difference, some things cannot be calibrated. I can attest that, for example, there is a noticable difference in the picture quality of, say, a Samsung and a Westinghouse LCD. Likewise a Maxent 50" Plasma may have similar features to a Hitachi plasma, the Hitachi is lightyears ahead. (I know that Hitachi does not make a 50", only the 42" and the 55")

The current issue of The Perfect Vision is very positive about the Sharp LC-37D90U (1,080p).

Some others to consider:

Acer 3705DTV/MGW (1,080i)
Philips 37PF9731 or 37PF9830 (1,080 - i or p?)
Sony KDL-40XBR2 - it is 40", but full 1,080p. I've seen this one with 1,080p source material and it's like looking through a window.

I would suggest a visit to the Plasma/LCD forum at AVSForums, where you will find a wide array of assessments/diatribes on this topic.

Many (including myself) have chosen to get the Vizio 37" lcd, a very credible 720p unit with integrated ATSC tuner available at Costco for $999. What's especially nice about getting it at Costco is their healthy return policy. What you save with this option gives you latitude to either pursue professional calibration or additional HD programming.

1080p is definately pie-in-the-sky as far as stuff to view and as noted previously is at least 5+ years down the road. I am looking at the 720p and it seems fine for the mostly crappy tv programs od DVD.. Most likely I would buy my next tv at Costco.

MisterNice

A 37" Sharp LCD, 1,920 x 1,080p, at your price point:

Sharp LC-37D90U from $1,979

If you are going to buy a 37" LCD with 1080p, spend the extra money and opt for a 40" 1080p set. IMHO Samsung is one of the best sets out there today and I own two of them (32" & 40"). Their flat panels are made in the same factory as Sony (joint venture) and they are considerably less expensive then the Sony's are. One of my neighbors just purchased the LN-S4095D model from Samsung with 1080p and the picture blew me away as my 40" set was last year's model with 720p. Also that new set has two HDMI inputs so when the the hi def DVD battle is settled you can connect your DVD player to this set with HDMI as well as your cable box.

J&R has the Samsung model that I mentioned for $2199 plus shipping right now which is a great deal! Depending where you live (not indicated in your profile) some brick & mortar stores match J&R's prices and you can save their $154 shipping charge and just take it home with you.

I understand that you have a $2,000 budget, but this is one investment that will last for years and trust me the picture really rocks!!! ^ ^ ^

More than that, most likely. Broadcasters are constrained to use a 6 MHz-wide channel. The digital video coding method used by broadcasters and supported in digital TV receivers (called MPEG-2), coupled with the modulation method (called 8-VSB), cannot squeeze a 1080P signal into 6 MHz. You will, however, see 1080P DVD players.

personally, i would strongly suggest DLP or LCOS (with 1080p) instead of LCD/Plasma..