DLP vs. LCD(3)

[RussL]

<font color='#000000'>Went to Circuit City this morning to look at DLP and LCD rear projectors. *The store had a 43&quot; Samsung DLP set up right next to a 50&quot; Mits LCD and 50&quot; Sony LCD. *The Samsung seemed to have a slightly better black level than the two LCD sets and looked much more natural than the Mits.

Since the sets are not usually &quot;set-up&quot; properly in the store I was wondering if anybody else is looking or has purchased one of these sets. *The two LCD sets are on sale for $2699; the 50&quot; DLP on-sale for $3299. *That could be $600 towards a DVD-5900!! *Thanks in advance for any opinions.</font>

[RussL]

<font color='#000000'>Went to Circuit City again yesterday to do the LCD vs. DLP compare again. *Spent a lot of time looking at both and came to several conclusions. One- The Sony LCD seemed to have a more consistent picture; both dark and bright scenes looked good. *The Samsung DLP looked better than the Sony on bright scenes but (much) worse than the Sony on dark scenes. *Flesh tones were terrible on the Samsung but the sets are not “set up”. *Two- After spending almost an hour looking at the two I had the salesmen play a DVD on the Samsung. *The result was disappointing as it was a definite step down from the HD feed. *Not really surprising but the picture seemed no better than an (apparently) very well set up Toshiba rear (CRT) projector set.

This appears to be a new ploy at Circuit City, Best Buy, etc. *Run an HD feed to every set so they all look great in the store. *Than the unknowing buyer gets home, hooks up the cable and ....what POS did I buy.

The answer to why a $3200 set question above .... WAF, WAF, WAF, etc.. *Oh, did I mention WAF! *“Don’t want that monster set in MY den”. *We can build a full wall bookcase around the two types of chip projectors. Can't do that with a CRT projector without knocking out an outside wall 12-inches or so. *But I looked at the Toshiba for another 15 minutes or so and really enjoyed the more analog type picture. *Need to rethink the sets again (where’s my hammer and saw).</font>

[ED27]

<font color='#000000'>I went through the same debate a few months back when I made my purchase. &nbsp;I decided to go with the Sony GWIII 50&quot; (KF50WE610) because I felt the picture overall was better than the Samsung DLPs. &nbsp;More natural skin tones, decent black level and an overall bright picture (important to me since my family room gets a lot of sun light). &nbsp;The bonus was that the price was even cheaper. &nbsp;HT magazine loved the 60&quot; version and gave it a 95.

The downside is that there is a problem with the factory installed Phillips-made bulb. &nbsp;It will most likely cause problems within the first few months of ownership. &nbsp;The problem is that the unit will attempt to turn for about 45 seconds and then give up. &nbsp;The red &quot;lamp&quot; light will flash indicating that the bulb needs to be replaced. &nbsp;Also, during the 45 seconds the set will making a &quot;buzzing&quot; noise as it attempts to start up.

Sony has been sending out replacement bulbs to customers without any hassle. &nbsp;Just give them a call with your appropriate information and they'll ship it out with 2nd day service. &nbsp;So far the new bulbs have been working without any issues according to owners who have done the fix. &nbsp;I am waiting for my bulb to arrive this week.

Even though this problem appears to be widespread I would still recommend this set. I would, however, advise to get the extended warranty for peace of mind.</font>