Earlier this year I bit the bullet and bought a flat panel high definition TV set. In the process I learned quite a few things, and I'd like to distill them down to a few key points here. A lot of these will likely be contrary to what you might hear elsewhere.
I assume that you already know the basics. Like the fact that any HD set, of any size of resolution, can scale and properly display any HD signal, so you're not wondering if a 720p set can display 1080i (duh, it can). Like the tradeoffs of plasma vs LCD, and that LCD is killing plasma in a hurry.
In general, you want to hit the pricing sweet spot. Not too cheap that you have problems with the set from day one, and not so expensive that you regret spending all that cash for something that's not going to age well, considering how rapidly the market is moving.
1. The big makers are the three S's: Sony, Sharp and Samsung. You can't go much wrong by buying one of these three. Yes, there are bargains out there by the likes of Vizio and Olevia et cetera, but you just have to spend an hour in the AVSforum threads for those models to find out what kinds of problems those people have to live with.
2. Avoid the higher end 1080p displays. I was really set on buying one of these, but what I found is that the higher pixel densities place demands on the manufacturing processes that the suppliers haven't fixed yet. Maybe by 2009 they'll have that figured out, but right now they don't, and the consumer forums are infested with people bitching about uneven lighting, banding, and other flat panel artifacts that you would hope not to have to deal with on a $3000 display. Instead, buy a higher quality 720p model and you'll never look back. Sets with a 720p resolution will still "wow" you and you won't notice the difference if you sit more than 6 feet from your TV.
The only reason to consider 1080p sets is if you are buying 46 inches or larger, and in that case I think you are a fool. The prices are too volatile to invest that kind of money (like, $3000 and up) on a set that won't give you half the features of an old CRT, just lots of square inches. You'll regret it 2 years from now when they've perfected 120Hz refresh, black frame insertion, 5 lambda backlighting, and all sorts of other tech that's going to be appearing in affordable models by then.
3. Don't be afraid to get a modestly sized set. You 'll be pleasantly surprised how big a "small" 37 inch set looks in your living room. Sure, in the electronics store showroom it looks puny next to the bigger model, but once you get it home it looks a lot bigger. And you won't be breaking the bank. Settle for a set between 37" and 42" for now. Check out this great little TV size calculator for help in visualizing what kind of improvements in image size you'll be looking at.
4. Don't worry about whether the set can do HDMI 1.3 . And don't bother spending more than 2 minutes even trying to understand what that even means. It doesn't matter. Read more here if you like.
The items above will save you hundreds of dollars because you won't be artificially limiting yourself to displays that have 1080p resolution or HDMI 1.3 interface capability, and will save you a lot of grief because you won't be dicking around with returning or repairing (or lamenting) that cheapo set you got.
5. Don't get caught up in picture quality. Unless you are a cinematographer, or television editor, with suitably calibrated eyeballs, you just won't notice any differences that can't be simply corrected by adjusting the display settings. Or put another way, you're likely to have the display settings all screwed up anyway (brightness cranked up, for example) so the slight differences in display model just aren't going to make a difference. And certainly don't compare the sets in a store; at best, the store staff will have them set wrong, and at worst they will game the settings to make a certain model look better because they're trying to sell it. I'm including black level and contrast ratio in the things that you shouldn't really care about.
6. DO get concerned about features. Brace yourself for a big step back, because these new flat panels are lacking a lot of the features, and careful design, that you may take for granted on your old CRT. Dual tuner picture in picture? Nope? Intelligent muting behavior? Nope. It's going to take a few years for the manufacturers to remember how to do those things right again.
7. One feature in particular to scrutinize: zooming capability. All the sets will do the basic zoom modes (e.g 4:3 stretch) but the one to watch out for is whether the set can zoom digital signals. For example, let's say you have an HD signal tuned in on the antenna, and for some stupid reason it is actually pillar boxed SD signal, and then WITHIN that SD frame they've letterboxed a movie. On some sets (I dare say most), you can't zoom that so that the small 16:9 image fills your 16:9 display. And I'm not talking about stretching! You need to test whether your set can zoom a digital signal, without stretching distortion. Alas, mine can not, and it drives me nuts to see the thick black border around all four sides of the image.
8. If you are planning on using the tuner in the set, test the channel changing speed. These things change channels a LOT slower than old analog tuners -- like a channel-to-channel time of 3 seconds. Think about that ... 3 seconds of black every time you press the channel up button on the remote. I personally watch only over the air (OTA) channels and it's a real drag when channel surfing.
9. You don't have to buy special HD service from satellite or cable company. All of the TV stations in your metro area are on the air with their FREE HD signals! You can just hook up a small antenna on the back of the set, or better yet in your attic, and you will have the most gorgeous HD in the business. True, it'll only be a dozen or so channels, but really do you need to see all that cable shite? For that much money per month? C'mon, it's only TV. You watch mostly DVDs anyway, right? And if you must have your cable channels, you do NOT need to pay extra for HD, because all of your local network affiiliates (ABC, NBC, CBS, etc) will have their HD signals on your cable for free already. Just make sure your new set has a "QAM tuner" in it. Seriously, at least try this before forking over the extra money.
If you're going to pay for HD service, get it from DirecTV satellite. They are WAY ahead of their competitors on the quanity and quality of their HD offerings. By January they will have 100 HD channels on the air, and all will be MPEG4 at healthy bitrates. Trust me on this one.
10. Do you have a digital video recorder (DVR)? It probably doesn't do HD, which means you will have to plan on upgrading someday. You can live with standard def (SD) recording for now, though. In fact, if you're going to watch OTA and not bother with cable or satellite, you are actually stuck with SD right now. Inexplicably, there are no standalone DVRs on the market that will record and playback OTA HD! Well, there's the Tivo Series3 and HD models, but those require a monthly subscription fee. (Here's a great Series3 analysis, by the way). You can get HD cable DVRs from the sat and cable companies, though they are generally inferior to independent DVRs. Hopefully the OTA HD DVR situation will improve soon ...
That's it! I tried to get this out in time for Black Friday, but whaddyagonnado ...