New HDTV Purchase

[okbo]

I've had a 25" standard non-HD TV for 6 years and felt it was finally time look for a new TV. I've only started looking at new HDTVs for the past week and don't know much about the current offerings. I wanted a TV with the latest features.

I went to Sam's Club at 8PM last night and saw that the LED-LCDs were the most expensive. For these LED-LCDs, the 52" Sharp Aquos LC-C5277UN was the priciest at $1997 and the 55" Vizio VF551XVT was $1876 (cheaper price and larger screen). Down the side of the store, I saw a single open box 55" Vizio VF551XVT on sale. I spoke to a rep and he said the open-box was just put there and was probably just returned. He said it had the same 90 day return policy and warranty as a new one in the box and that I could also purchase the service plan. The price was $1201 for this open-box versus $1876 for a new one.

I stopped by Best Buy after this since they were opened til 9PM. Best Buy didn't carry the Vizio brand, they only had Samsung and LG with the least expensive 55" model being the Samsung UN55B6000 for $2,200.

When I got home, I thought over the $1201 open-box 55" Vizio from Sam's. With the $675 price different over a new one and the savings on tax, I felt it was the best deal. Afraid I'd lose out on this deal, I went back to Sam's this morning at 10AM when they opened to buy it. I brought it home and have it hooked up. Since I don't have HD cable or Blu-Ray yet, DVD was my highest resolution source. The DVD playback looks great.

I didn't really have much time to consider everything before buying this Vizio VF551XVT. Now that I have it and time to reflect on this purchase, I can ask questions and determine if I want to keep it or return it for something better. Since I don't have any HD source yet, I can't really gauge HD picture until I upgrade to HD cable or buy a Blu-Ray player.

How is the Vizio brand? How does this 55" Vizio VF551XVT compare to the smaller more expensive 52" Aquos LC-C5277UN, or the same sized $2,200+ Samsung or LG models? What features I am missing by keeping this Vizio over the Samsung or LG models?


Thanks..

 

[alimoalem]

I'm not very knowledgeable in this, but I always thought Vizio was more of a budget brand. What we did before making our decision was we bought one LCD and one Plasma, and did a side by side comparison at home to see which one we liked better. The Panasonic P50G10 or P54G10 (50" and 54", respectively) should be in your price range, and the Panasonic P50S1 (50") or P54S1 (54") should be, too. They're plasmas. I would buy one of those, and the best LCD/LED/LCD-LED that's in your budget. Compare the two.

I don't want to get you to try and spend more money, but in my family, we generally buy something and keep it 'til it breaks. You kept your last TV for 6 years. If you plan on doing the same with this TV, a $1200 TV comes out to $200/year. A $1500 TV comes out to $250/year, and an $1800 TV comes out to $300/year. If the $1500 or $1800 TV is worth an extra $50 or $100/year to you, go with it (if it's within budget). I'm sure you'll think it was worth the extra money spent.

 

[Blazer]

'Sams' not where i would buy a high dollar HDTV, thier stuff is low quality sets, and $1200.00 for a Vizio! get your money back! right now there are some very good deals on better brand sets, just read through some threads in this forum.

 

[sivart]

gone are the days you can buy a TV and watch it until it dies. Too many changes, too quickly in features and technology. I tend to get the itch to upgrade every 3 years, so I keep my eyes on the models as they are being discontinued and pick one up on clearance. Sure, I end up with a 4 year old TV when I get rid of it, but I've probably only paid 60-70% of what I would have paid buying it as soon as it was released.

 

[smitbret]

That's a great deal!!! Unless you have to have the latest and greatest, you'll be more than happy with your purchase. Vizio isn't the budget brand it was a couple of years ago. #1 selling brand in America. I've had a Vizio for a year and I love it.

 

[blackangst1]

Vizio started off as a "budget" brand, but arguable they are the best in the middle tier now. I read on the AVS forums their 55" is actually a Samsung panel BTW. AFAIK the only two manufacturers for 55" are Sony and Samsung.

Great buy.

 

[sivart]

...and I thought Sharp was making panels for Sony....

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

Vizio started off as a "budget" brand, but arguable they are the best in the middle tier now. I read on the AVS forums their 55" is actually a Samsung panel BTW. AFAIK the only two manufacturers for 55" are Sony and Samsung.

Great buy.

budget or not, they have some really cheap and ugly bezels that scream budget.

 

[sivart]

budget or not, they have some really cheap and ugly bezels that scream budget.

Their 120Hz TV bezels look exactly like the Sony bezels...I'll agree, ugly, but high end <> pretty TV. Plus you should be staring at the screen not the bezel

 

[okbo]

I usually go with the Samsung, Sony, or LG brand. I just checked out the AVS forums and they mentioned the Vizio uses the LG Panel, but I'm not sure if this is true. I can't spend more than $1500 so if I went with one of these nicer brands, I'd probably lose the LED-LCD. So it's keep the Vizio LED-LCD or go with the better brand in a Plasma or non-LED LCD screen.

The AVS forums also mentioned this Vizio can do H.264 and WMV9, is this something fairly standard in all brands? I'd like to be able to play videos when I attach my computer.

 

[JackBurton]

Vizio started off as a "budget" brand, but arguable they are the best in the middle tier now. I read on the AVS forums their 55" is actually a Samsung panel BTW. AFAIK the only two manufacturers for 55" are Sony and Samsung.

Great buy.

Vizio started off as budget and still is budget. No way would I rank it up there with Samsung. MAYBE if you are comparing the worst Samsung vs the best Vizio, then MAYBE. But just because they may use a Samsung panel (or whatever), doesn't make it a Samsung. Just like Runco using Panasonic glass doesn't make a Panasonic a Runco. Sorry.

And "#1 selling brand in America" doesn't mean anything. That's like saying Wal-Mart is the biggest retail store in America. And? What does that have to do with quality?

 

[jtvang125]

If you look around I'm sure you can find a Panasonic 50" G10 or maybe even a 54" for that budget and I'm willing to bet the PQ on the Panny will be way better than any Vizio LED LCD or not.

 

[manimal]

A neo pdp panny right now will be much more accurate than any vizio. I havent spent any time in front of one of these Tvs so I cant speak to their quality. The Samsung 6000 series of LED-if these are in fact similar panels- look good to most people who dont know any better. They are high contrast with very good aesthics-thin is in as they say-. They are not very accurate and tend to backlight bleed since they are edge lit. Unless you have to have the thinnest tv on the market I would not recommend any edge lit Backlight LED TV. Go with a 8500 series samsung or the LG LH90 if you want LED.

My G10 to my eyes looked better than any Lcd-led or not.

 

[sivart]

My Vizio plasma (3 years old) has a LG panel inside. Clearly visible when looking through the vents. I've had no issues with it over the 3 years and it's picture quality rivals that of the mid-range Sony LCD's available at the time. (Using my brother's as comparison)

I use it for casual viewing in the living room, so I was looking for a nice looking picture for a good price. Don't regret the purchase. Would probably not purchase a Vizio (or any other LCD) because the picture quality just hasn't caught up to plasma yet.

 

[smitbret]

Vizio started off as budget and still is budget. No way would I rank it up there with Samsung. MAYBE if you are comparing the worst Samsung vs the best Vizio, then MAYBE. But just because they may use a Samsung panel (or whatever), doesn't make it a Samsung. Just like Runco using Panasonic glass doesn't make a Panasonic a Runco. Sorry.

And "#1 selling brand in America" doesn't mean anything. That's like saying Wal-Mart is the biggest retail store in America. And? What does that have to do with quality?

It has more to do with quality than you can apparently comprehend. You sell crap, then you probably won't be around for long, let alone be the biggest seller of TVs in the country. No one said they were a Samsung or Sony, so go brand-whoring elsewhere.

That being said, the PQ on the Panisonic Plasmas will be better than ANY LCD, regardless of manufacturer. But this is an excellent deal for an LED/LCD of that size with that level of picture quality. Better LCD televisions are out there, but probably not for the money.

 

[blackangst1]

Vizio started off as budget and still is budget. No way would I rank it up there with Samsung. MAYBE if you are comparing the worst Samsung vs the best Vizio, then MAYBE. But just because they may use a Samsung panel (or whatever), doesn't make it a Samsung. Just like Runco using Panasonic glass doesn't make a Panasonic a Runco. Sorry.

And "#1 selling brand in America" doesn't mean anything. That's like saying Wal-Mart is the biggest retail store in America. And? What does that have to do with quality?

Chill man. I agree #1 seller doesnt mean much; however your analogy to a Runco using Panny glass is absurd. Glass on a plasma != panel on an LED or LCD. Apples and oranges.

Is the Vizio the absolute premier brand out there? No. No one said they were. But theyve come a long way from budget. Winning cnet's Best of CES award is no small feat, and the 55" LED did just that. Also, avguide gave it VERY favorable reviews. That is also not a small feat.

 

[pcguru78]

I have a Vizio 32in 1080p LCD and I am very impressed with the picture quality. Looks just as good as my brother's more expensive sets. Well worth the 400 I paid for it.

 

[DanielaPolina]

You need to change your cable box to an HD cable box to get those HD channels. Also you will need HDMI cables or the component AV cables to use with your HD cable box.You can buy a HD antenna also for cheap to get those local HD broadcast channels in your area for FREE.