5 Things To Consider When Buying Your New Flat Screen

So you're thinking of upgrading the old TV. Perhaps you've seen the new Sharp 80 inch Flat Screen LED TV and you can't stand another day without it? Well hold up just one second. If you intend to buy the TV, one must consider the toys that go with and most importantly choose the right TV. So maybe you can go without a new X-box 360 but a PlayStation 3could be considered a 'necessity' for a brilliant new Flat Screen setup. So without further ado...

While it may appear like Flat Panels have been out for years and not much has changed that is not in fact the case. Just like any other hot technology item, manufacturers are racing to come up with the best and biggest (orthinnest) flat panel displays. Previously the popular choice was between an LCD (liquid crystal diode) and Plasma. A third choice, LED (light emitting diode) has recently become the most sought after. What's the difference between LED and LCD? Well both technologies in fact use theliquid crystal diode (LCD)technology, however the LCD's use fluorescents for lighting as opposed to the light emitting diodes of the LED. LED'S advantages include lower energy consumption, longer life, thinner, faster switching and darker darks. Of course all these advantages lead to quite a price increase for an LED over its comparable LCD.Other options to consider are the clarity (1080p is currently the best), 3D, and the sound quality (assuming your not purchasing a sound system).

The ubiquitous cable box has once again made its way back into our homes. However these new cable boxes are no longer required to convert cable channels into a single channel (remember channel 3 or 4). Instead the new cable boxes often referred to as a PVR(Personal Video Recorder), are used for various functions including an On-screen menu, High Definition Channels, Pay-per-view channels, and for recording, managing and storing our favorite shows. These relatively simple functions have shot the PVR into mainstream popularity.

Remember VCR's? They were those big cassette tape looking things (everyone 20 years old and younger is now wondering what a cassette tape is). Well those VCR's are largely extinct (in the landfill) as DVD's and now Blu-Ray's have quickly taken over. There are many Blue-Ray players out there now available for under a $100, but be careful, the quality of some are quite low. An easy way to avoid these quality issues is to buy your son that PlayStation 3 he might have been asking for as a Christmas or Birthday present. That PlayStation 3 made by Sony is actually a high quality Blu-ray player. One rule required, the PlayStation stays with the big screen TV. Your happy, your son's happy, win-win.

At the home electronics store, your 2 minutes away from purchasing your flat screen and the salesman suggests you have a quick look at the wall-mounts and "oh by the way, we carry some great HDMI cables too." What should you do? Runaway, run-Away! Don't even think about spending $50 on a 3ft HDMI cable and $200 on some fancy wall mount. Instead before you go buy your new flat screen have a quick look on-line at a specialty cable retailer such as www.bestpricecables.com. Online retailers carry great quality HDMI cables for as little as $3.00, and wall-mounts for $40. Top end HDMI cables will carry features such as high speed, Ethernet, 3D and 2k resolution. Any HDMI cable will support current best standards such as 1080p resolution, digital audio and digital video. You'll need an HDMI cable for each connection, one for the Blue-ray and one for the PVR.

Ok so you've got your go to list. Flat screen, preferably LED and 1080p, but in the end buy what you can afford. A PVR for watching and recording HD shows. Blu-ray player for HD blue-ray discs or perhaps a PlayStation 3. HDMI cables and a wall-mount purchased online to save some additional cash.