Weigh pros, cons and prices

Remember when remote controls and cable-ready capability were the new must-have TV features?

If you haven't considered buying a TV in several years, be advised: Things have changed.

With an alphabet soup of technologies and options to wade through -- from SDTV, EDTV or HDTV to CRT, LCD, DLP or LCoS -- and more models available than the average viewer can shake an antenna at, the picking isn't easy.

There's a new vocabulary to learn in order to compare the different types of TVs now available.

Digital TV, which offers higher-quality picture and sound, is the broadcast format poised to replace analog television -- the kind most of us watch right now. More information and features can be packaged in the digital format, such as surround sound.

"The [quality] difference between digital and analog is similar to the difference between DVD and VHS," says Megan K. Pollock, spokeswoman for the Consumer Electronics Association, which represents 2,000 manufacturers, retailers and other companies in the consumer electronics industry.

There are three levels of digital television: standard definition (SDTV), enhanced definition (EDTV) and high definition (HDTV).

Picture resolution (how an image is scanned onto the screen) and pixels (dots of light that make up the image) are key. Generally speaking, the higher the resolution, the more pixels there are and the sharper the image. Think of SDTV, EDTV and HDTV as good, better and best, respectively, Pollock says.

Aspect ratio, the screen's width to height ratio, also is a factor. Most squarish TVs and most programming for such TVs are formatted in a 4:3 aspect ratio, four units wide for every three units high. Movie-like widescreen HDTVs and HD programs are formatted in the 16:9 aspect ratio, 16 units wide for every nine high.

It breaks down like this:

Standard-definition TV: a 4:3 or 16:9 screen, lines scanned at 480i, 480 lines drawn on-screen in an interlaced pattern, like a basket weave.

TV buying and viewing tips Buy for what you watch. If you watch lots of DVDs or HDTV via satellite, you probably want to consider a widescreen (16:9) HDTV. If not, a (4:3) HDTV, which puts the letterbox black bars above and below the picture, will suffice. If you're going to watch lots of DVD movies, make sure the set can handle a progressive-scan image. Satellite and cable subscribers should get sets with S-Video inputs to take advantage of that connection's superior picture quality. If you have a camcorder or video game console, get a set with front-panel inputs for easy connection. If you plan to use a camcorder and plan to connect lots of devices, make sure the set has a lot of component inputs for HDTV and DVD. Get a set with an audio output if you want to connect it to your home theater. Fit the set to your room and sit 2 to 3 times the screen's diagonal measurement away from a wide-screen HDTV. Be advised, many HDTV buyers are disappointed by how regular television looks on their new big-screen sets. That's because generally, big screens (42-inches and up) exaggerate the flaws in standard TV programs. In the store, watch a regular TV program on an HDTV set, not just a DVD or HD program, to get a true sense of how regular TV will look. Sources: CNET.com's David Katzmaier; Consumer Reports

Enhanced-definition TV: a 4:3 or 16:9 screen, has surround sound, lines scanned at 480p, 480 lines scanned progressively, like the slats of miniblinds. Picture quality about the same as a DVD.

High-definition TV: a 16:9 screen and surround sound, lines scanned at 720p (720 lines in a progressive format like miniblinds), or 1080i (1080 lines in an interlaced format like a tight basket weave), resulting in a seamless, clear, crisp, lifelike, high-quality image.

There are four basic types of televisions -- the age-old tried-and-true cathode-ray tube (CRT) TV, liquid crystal display (LCD) flat-panel TVs, plasma flat-panel TVs and rear-projection TVs.

CRT

"A good quality CRT with a good signal would give you a really good picture," says Gerard Catapano, manager of testing for Consumer Reports electronics division. "It can even give you the best signal with a high-definition TV, and it's also the cheapest now.

"Our tests reveal that most all of the TVs below CRT are a step below in picture quality. The best LCD displaying a high-quality HD image will still fall short of an excellent CRT because a CRT still is able to really render the best black to white contrast ratio."

However, CRTs are falling out of favor, he said, because they're bulky and heavy.

To combat that, a couple manufacturers -- Samsung and LG Electronics -- are making thinner CRTs, says David Katzmaier, a senior editor with CNET.com, a technology news and reviews source.

One 30-inch-screen Samsung slim model is only 16 inches deep, weighs 120 pounds and has a wide screen. It costs about $1,000.

Even bulkier CRT TVs can have flat picture tubes with flat screens instead of curved.

"It doesn't have a picture-quality benefit, but does reduce glare," Katzmaier said.

Bulky CRTs with flat screens shouldn't be confused with what's now become the gold standard in TVs -- the slim flat-panel LCD and plasma TVs. Lightweight, flat-panel LCD and plasma TVs that can be mounted on walls or ceilings are the most popular TVs today.

"There's a worldwide demand for flat-panel television," Katzmaier says. "Everybody wants a flat TV, and finally, in the last year or so, people could start to afford them."

LCD

These liquid crystal display flat-panel TVs, especially in the 32-inch size, are extremely popular right now because they're thin and lightweight.

"They range in price from $1,000 to $2,000, they have a flat screen, all are HDTV compatible, most can accept computer signals," Katzmaier says. "These are kind of the jacks-of-all-trade LCDs."

Extremely inexpensive no-name flat-panel LCD TVs are good bargains -- costing sometimes hundreds of dollars less than major name brands -- if you're just going to watch TV with it, Katzmaier says. However, movie watchers should probably stick with more expensive name-brand models that have higher picture quality.

Plasma

These bright, bold and colorful flat-panel big-screen TVs are all the rage -- the most common size is a 42-inch -- and they're plummeting in price, tending to be cheaper than comparably-sized LCDs.

"You'll be able to get a 40-inch flat-panel LCD for $2,500, Katzmaier says. "Right now, today, you can buy a 42-inch plasma for $1,500. People are surprised that plasma prices have fallen."

And prices will continue to fall. He expects 42-inch plasma TVs to cost less than $1,000 in early 2006.

The one knock against plasma TVs, the burn-in or ghosted-image problem, is real but greatly exaggerated, Katzmaier says.

"Plasma TVs can be damaged if you leave them on a static image, very bright, for a very long time," he says. "However, most people watch moving images. Plasma is perfectly durable technology for 90 percent of the people out there."

Those who keep fixed images on their screens, such as news channel tickers or video game screens, may be more at risk of burn-in, Catapano says. The black bars that can appear at the top and bottom or sides of some programs to make a program fit the TV's aspect ratio also sometimes can result in burn-in.

"Manufacturers are aware of that and trying to make the bars light gray," Catapano says.

Rear-projection (CRT)

These big-screen TVs use three cathode-ray tubes to produce an image. The picture quality is the "least best" of their ilk and they're bulky and heavy, but they're the cheapest big-screen TVs around, Catapano says. A rear-projection 50-inch CRT can run about $1,500.

Rear-Projection (Microdisplay)

These big-screen TVs offer incredibly bright pictures and are better but more expensive than their CRT rear-projection counterparts and use LCD, DLP or LCoS technology. The 50-inch and 56-inch screens are most popular.

"Rear-projecting CRT types can be 20 to 30 inches deep and very heavy, whereas these microdisplays can be 6, 7 and 8 inches deep and only about 100 pounds," Catapano says.

LCD rear-projection TVs use liquid crystal display technology; DLP rear-projection TVs use digital light processing technology -- millions of tiny mirrors and a spinning color wheel -- to create an image.

"DLP can produce a better image than LCD projection and can produce darker blacks and can be a bit sharper," Catapano says.

With LCoS rear-projection TVs, Liquid Crystal on Silicon technology creates the image. These TVs offer better black and contrast but are more expensive because the LCoS chips are difficult to make.

Generally speaking, the rear-projection microdisplays look sharper and don't wash out in the daytime like the old CRT rear projection TVs did, Katzmaier says.

Front projection

There also are front-projection TVs, basically small, stand-alone projectors that require a screen or wall onto which the image can be projected. They used to be available in a three-CRT format but now more often use LCD and DLP technology. Front projectors usually don't have built-in tuners, so a tuner or cable box is required. Front-projectors cost $1,700 to $20,000.

"Higher-end ones are high definition and can really render some superior images," Catapano said. "That's for someone who is a real movie aficionado and wants a real movie experience."

On the down side, front projectors have to be viewed in a darkened room or the images wash out on the screen, and screens are expensive.

High definition

All five types of TVs come in HD-ready models, which require an HDTV tuner, HD cable set-top box or HD satellite set-top box receiver.

Integrated HDTVs have a digital tuner built into the set, which can receive over-the-air digital TV signals free without a set-top box. However, if you have digital cable or satellite TV, you don't need a TV with an integrated digital tuner.

There also are digital cable-ready HDTVs that can be plugged right into a cable jack without the need of a set-top box.

The tentative turn-off date for analog TV signals is Dec. 31, 2006, though Congress is considering legislation that would move the date back to Dec. 31, 2008.

If you already receive cable or satellite TV, the turn-off date won't noticeably affect you. People who watch only over-the-air stations on analog TV are the ones who will be affected when analog broadcasts end. The Consumer Electronics Association estimates that's about 12 percent of U.S. households with at least one TV or roughly 13.2 million households, spokesman Jeff Joseph says.

In order to receive digital TV signals, those folks will have to buy a converter box -- about $100 -- to change a digital signal to analog. There also currently is legislation under consideration in Congress that would require the government to pay for the converter boxes for these folks, many estimated to be the least likely to be able to afford them. A television with an integrated digital tuner also would do the trick.

"We are recommending people buy HD-ready TVs," Catapano says. "It's here to stay, especially if you want to watch movies and get digital cable."

If you do go the HDTV route, Consumer Reports also recommends getting at least a 34-inch set.

"It doesn't pay to buy a small screen," Catapano says. "If you go for less than a 30-inch (4:3 aspect ratio) screen, you really won't get to see the HD image in all its glory because it's too small and 16:9 HD is really meant for a bigger screen."

One last footnote.

"To get HD TV and see HD in all its glory, it must start as HD, must be shot with a high-definition camera and transmitted with a high-definition signal," Catapano says. "Some [programming] isn't shot in HD, and they do some fancy digital conversion to make it HD, but it's not [true] HD."

For more information, visit www.consumerreports.org and www.cnet.com.