[jaochoo]

After successfully building my first HTPC (yay!) I am now looking for a HDTV (don't ask why it's in that order). I know it's slightly off topic here, but I hope to find some recommendations here.

These are my requirements so far:

Features:
- LED (I was considering a Plasma before and like their picture quality while being cheaper than the new LEDs but changed my mind after reading about their heat and the image burn in)
- 50-60'' (given my budget it'll probably be a 50-55'' rather than a 60'' - rather wanna compromise on size than on picture quality. Anything below 50'' is too small; anything more than 55-60'' would be too big)
- 1080p Full HD
- good 24p handling would be nice
- Usage: mostly used with a HTPC (XBMC) to play movies and series, maybe a bit gaming, watching TV every once in a while
- Light: Left to the TV (90 degrees) will be a big window looking into north-east direction so I assume there won't be bright sunlight directly shining on the TV.

Features I don't necessarily need:
- 3D is a nice-to-have but not a must-have (if I can test view it and love it I would be willing to pay for it, but so far I'm pretty disappointed of what I saw in terms of consumer 3D technology)
- can live without fancy apps and "social"/"smart" TV whatsoever thingies
- DVB-X receiver nice-to-have but most probably would go into the XBMC box

Other:
- Budget: around 1,000-1,500 Euro (I'm not on a shoestring and can spend more but don't want to burn money either)
- Region: Germany

So far I liked:
- Samsung for its picture quality and flat panels
- Sony for its picture quality and overall style, though seemed to be comparably more expensive
- LG for its 3D (was the only TV that I tried which really surprised me positively regarding 3D)

Opinions welcome!

[PatrickVogeli]

you could have a look at Media Markt. They've had a samsung 60" (ue60es6300) I think for 1600€. The 55 may be cheaper

[TRaSH]

perhaps check out the plasma from panasonic VT/GT series
check them first before you say no i don't want plasma.
goto a decent TV shop that have a decent setup room you might be impressed.
i know i was

[jaochoo]

you could have a look at Media Markt. They've had a samsung 60" (ue60es6300) I think for 1600€. The 55 may be cheaper

Cool, thanks. I'm not a big fan of MediaMarkt/Saturn but might give it a try.

perhaps check out the plasma from panasonic VT/GT series
check them first before you say no i don't want plasma.
goto a decent TV shop that have a decent setup room you might be impressed.
i know i was

Initially I was going to buy a plasma because I liked their picture. Meanwhile, I read that an LED is superior in all major aspects (except price, of course): picture quality is equally good if getting a full-array, panels are flatter, energy consumption/heat is less, no burn in. I read a few articles though that mentioned that power saving is actually not worth it (20€ per year savings vs. 500-700€ higher investment) and that there won't be much future development for full-array panels because for a real full-array you actually would have to install 2.1 million LEDs which won't be economical. However, these articles were from 2010 I think.

[jaochoo]

A couple more questions:

1. Can anyone recommend some good review/test websites? I know the CNET/Katzmaier reviews - are they good? What other websites do you recommend?
2. For a viewing distance of apprx. 3.4 meters do you think a 55'' is too small and I should rather go for a 60''?

[Dougie Fresh]

I too would recommended checking out the Panasonic plasmas. Their PQ is really amazing. I have an 2012 Panasonic LED-LCD in my living room and 2007 Panasonic plasma in my bedroom and while I like them both, for my main TV the plasma's PQ is better.

I sit about 3m away from my 55" LED-LCD and it's good. However, if you can go bigger, go bigger. Go as big as you can. You'll be surprised how quickly you get used to it and no one I know has ever said "I wish I had a smaller TV".

[nickr]

I like my 55 and 65 inch LED LGs, but I also liked the Panasonic 46 inch plasma we had in our bedroom until we upgraded the lounge and put the 55 in the bedroom and passed the 46 down the chain to one of the kids (yeah we are over tv'd but my wife loves a bargain and some shop that was closing had $1000 off the price of the 65...)

Unfortunately the tvs with the "smart" features probably come with the best panels. But for sure my XBMC machines are way smarter than the tvs.

And yes the LG 3d system with the cheap cinema glasses is pretty good IMHO. Now if we had some decent 3D movies to watch...

[Manfur]

Have you considered 4K?

There are two 50 inch brands that are in your budget.
Seiki and TCL

Look here 50" 4k TV for $1000

[Crssi]

By my opinion plasma is way better than LED, it is soft, easy on eyes and has way better response time.
And I would buy LED only if the TV would be in really very bright room or direct sunlight.

And don't worry about size... the bigger, the better (but not over PQ).
I have bought a 60" and I am sitting about 3m max 3,5m away.
The first week I wanted to return it because it was to big for my eyes to process.
A friend of mine told me that I should wait a week or two and then decide.
I have listened to him and now I wouldnt mind 80"-85".
You get used to it really fast realising that I wouldnt hesitate buying 1500€ worth 80"... so will wait for bigger to get into this price range.