Anyone recommend a 40" LCD HDTV

[mikeny]

Hello. Im moving into an apartment and was wondering if anyone can recommend a LCD HDTV of at least 40" (40-46"). I was looking at Samsung, Philips, Sony, and LG. I was also looking at Vizio but the reviews arent too assuring. I plan on hooking up a home theatre system with the TV. Im looking at a budget from $1100-1600).

 

[The_Hunted1]

At that price there is no truly excellent model of TV that you can get. However I can suggest a few within that range I will also suggest to you one that is out of your price range in case you can stretch your budget just a bit.

First off whatever you do, do not get plasma if you plan on doing any type of gaming and also plasma screens have a very low lifetime, usually 2-5 years max before they need work done on them. I know you asked for a suggestion for an LCD I just wanted to mention this in case other readers don't know.

Sceptre at newegg is pretty good and will run you at about 1500 USD(1200 after instant rebate) for a 42" that has 1080p with 1 HDMI input and a decent 8ms refresh rate and an average 1000:1 contrast ratio.
Here is the Link
(btw- you need the box that comes with it for free at newegg.)

Westinghouse also has a good 42" TV with the same specs as the Sceptre for about 1500 USD(1300 after instant rebate at newegg).
Here is the link

Now the best one that I can recommend which is also the one I have sitting at home is the Samsung LNS4095(the 4096 has cable-card input which is a waste of money due to the fact that cable-cards are incapable of on-demand services).
Either way, this TV has a 6000:1 contrast ratio, is 1080p and supports full 1920x1020 input for PC if you want to use that option. It has 2 HDMI inputs and a good 8ms refresh rate. Newegg has it on special as I write this for 1799 (1599 after instant rebate) which is a steal. I got mine at Best buy for 2600 after all taxes and PRP plan and it was worth every single penny.
Here is the Link

I hope this helps--of the two non-Samsung TV's I would suggest the Westinghouse. Otherwise grab the Samsung while it's still cheap. Sales on it never last more then 2-3 weeks at a time. Whatever you do, make sure you get 1080p so you are not stuck wishing in a year or two that you didn't make the mistake of getting less then 1080p. 1080p will be the standard!

Last note: I would suggest you buy your TV at a retail store and buy the best coverage plan they have, as most LCD HDTVs will need a lamp replacement or adjustment before 3 years to keep the color clarity and brightness looking as good as the first day you owned it. (at least the older ones did, no telling if they fixed this yet till it's too late).

 

[deardeath]

imo, i try to avoid Westinghouse, they are not bad TV's, but I find the colors tend to be washed out, suffer from backlight bleeding. Since the new HDTV models from every manufacturer just came out in stores, Ide say take a look at Samsungs 1080p series from last year. They have a 40" 1080p LCD TV for roughly 1799$ (Canadian) at alot of places, great deal IMO