"High Definition" home theater options (LCD/Plasma/LCD Projectors)

[Snowdog]

My wife and I are wanting to replace our old television with a something capable of high definition and have bogged down due to all the choices out there.

We purchased a Blue Ray player (PS3) and decided that we would like something with a native resolution of 1080p.  I've located a 47" Vizio LCD at Sam's Club (attached link below) that is 1080p, 240 Hz, 50,000:1 contrast and 500 cd/m2 brightness for my price limit of $1,000 or less. From my current understanding, these figures sound good.  For those "in the know", does this sound decent for the price?  BTW, the way our living room is configured, we would be sitting about 10' away from the television.  

http://www.samsclub.com/shopping/navigate.do?dest=5&item=454845

Also, a buddy of mine suggested an LCD projector.  I have done some research using Google but find these projector specifications very confusing.  There's the contrast, lumens and resolution among other listed specs.  
Does anyone have experience with LCD projectors for home theater use?

[Cromlech]

Looking at the Walmart and Sam's Club reviews it seems to have been received well by customers, and lookin at the specs, it seems pretty good for that price. If you wanted a more prestigious brand name with good features for the same price, you would probably have to sacrifice some screen size.

[CNYCacher]

I will be going with a projector.  1890's balloon-frame "we put two windows on this wall, no need for more on that wall" construction leaves me a wall in my man-cave that is 9-feet tall and roughly 13 feet long with no windows.  A little screen paint and a nice projector on a shelf on the opposite wall (16 feet away).  And i'll be all 

[Regolith]

You could always go with one of these:

http://www.popsci.com/gadgets/article/2010-01/new-worlds-largest-tv-asterisk

 

(Might be a bit hard on the wallet, though.)

[roo_ster]

Looks like we may pull thetriger, soon.

Here are our requirements & like-to-haves:
Req   Value   Note
Price:    < $1000   
Tech:   LCD   pref LED, but not hard req
Screen_Size:   40"+   bigger is better
Max_Width:   50.9"   
Res:   1080p   
Refresh:   120Hz   
Response_Time:   TBD   faster respnse (lower number) better
Contrast:   TBD   higher contrast better
Inputs:   TBD   more & more diverse better: HDMI, RGB 15-pin D-sub (analog PC), DVI(Digital PC)
Brightness   TBD   greater is better
Viewing_Angle:   TBDjavascript:void(0);   wider is better
Power:   TBD   Energy Star pref

Here is a spreadsheet calc with some useful data:


We are keeping our eyes open.

[Physics]

Looks like we may pull thetriger, soon.

Here are our requirements & like-to-haves:
Req   Value   Note
Price:    < $1000   
Tech:   LCD   pref LED, but not hard req
Screen_Size:   40"+   bigger is better
Max_Width:   50.9"   
Res:   1080p   
Refresh:   120Hz   
Response_Time:   TBD   faster respnse (lower number) better
Contrast:   TBD   higher contrast better
Inputs:   TBD   more & more diverse better: HDMI, RGB 15-pin D-sub (analog PC), DVI(Digital PC)
Brightness   TBD   greater is better
Viewing_Angle:   TBDjavascript:void(0);   wider is better
Power:   TBD   Energy Star pref

Here is a spreadsheet calc with some useful data:


We are keeping our eyes open.

Man I love the way this guy thinks.

[never_retreat]

Projectors are nice if your going to do a home theater. If your going to have it on a lot (watching it all the time not just movies) I would stay away from the projector. Most projectors don't have great life spans on the bulbs. I had a Hitachi at work the ate bulbs every 500ish hours, at 300 some bucks each. So something to consider, check out the price of replacement bulbs for the unit before you buy it.

[sanglant]

a website to play with

and a handy graph

[Brad Johnson]

I got an e-mail from Sams the other day.  Something about a 47" LCD for $898 or somesuch (online only).  Don't remember the details, though.  Might be worth checking out.

Brad

[Myself]

Viewing angle is a big one for us.  We may be doing this soon also as our existing screen is getting flaky. 
With the seating arrangement in our family room we need as close to 180 degrees as we can get.

[brimic]

If a wide viewing angle is needed, a plasma will be much better than an LCD, other than that, there isn't much difference between plasmas and LCDs so long as the LCD has a refresh rate of 120hz or better.

720 vs 1080P: from my understanding, a 1080P doesn't have much of an advantage until you start to approach 50" in size.  The TV I have now is a 3 year old 42" plasma with 720, it doesn't lack any picture quality.
 I'm also looking for and comparing prices and features for another set in the 46-50" range right now for not much over $1000.  The one linked in the OP looks like a really good deal.

[grampster]

My son's profession is in audio/video integration.  He says to not buy a Vizeo as they recently lost a lawsuit having to do with pirating good electronic parts.  As a result their tech is bad and failure rate is high since then.
He says Samsung is the best TV.  Plasma in the large screens is preferred.  He says it is not necessary to pay the steeper price for 1080 as the picture improvement is subtle and not easily differentiated enough to warrrant the extra price.  He installed a Yamaha surround sound bar and subwoofer under our new 52" Samsung.  The thing gets programed with lasers somehow to shoot the sound off the walls and you get magnificent sound without all the speakers scattered around the room.

[Jamisjockey]

I have a 37" Vizio in the basement and it is a really good TV.  I'd readily buy another one if I needed another TV.  Its over a year old now without a hiccup.

[mgdavis]

Plasma is underrated because of problems the early ones had. Don't overlook them.

LCDs are prone to uneven darkness in the picture. I bought a mid-level Sony 40" a couple months ago. It's great, except with a dark image you can see light areas at the top corners. It is only noticeable with a dark picture, but I know it's there.

Projectors are awesome for movie watching. A family friend has one set up in his basement. 1080p with a six foot screen. 

[Brad Johnson]

Dug up the email from Sams

47" Philips LCD
$898
Free shipping
Sams club item number 726497

Brad