What to look for when you want a basic HDTV

Suzanne Choney • E-mail

High-definition TV sets have moved from the exclusivity of home theater compounds to the living rooms of the rest of us. You can still easily spend thousands of dollars for a top-of-the-line HDTV, but you can also find some fine sets for around $500, especially if you are looking at those with displays of 32 inches or less.

While HDTVs were mainly high-end purchases a few years ago, there are now more different types of HDTVs than ever, which means more shopping choices — but also some shopping confusion.

If you're an HD enthusiast who wants the latest and greatest — which at the moment means sets that use LED backlighting or illumination, those with frame refresh rates of 240 hertz and HDTVs that connect to the Internet — you'll pay a premium. If you're looking for a great picture and are willing to pick and choose your set's features, you'll find plenty of candidates.

For example, Sony's new 46-inch Bravia LCD HDTV (KDL-XBR10) uses light-emitting diodes (LEDs), has a top refresh rate of 240 Hz and 1080p resolution and has four HDMI inputs (more on this lingo in a moment), and retails for $4,500.

In contrast, Sony's 46-inch Bravia S Series LCD TV (KDL-46S5100) uses fluorescent lighting, has a refresh rate of 60 Hz, 1080p resolution and 3 HDMI connections. It goes for around $1,100 — $3,400 less than its sibling.

For sure, with technology constantly changing, future-proofing your set — beyond the next six minutes — can be tough. As it is, one out of four American families buys a TV set every year, according to the Consumer Electronics Association, although with the recession, that figure may change.

Smaller screens prevail
HDTV prices are down about 20, and even 30, percent in some cases, from a year ago, said Paul Gagnon, director of North America TV market research for DisplaySearch. Size-wise, he said, 32-inch displays are "far and away the most popular size of TV right now, especially since they've fallen under $500, and are small enough to be used in multiple rooms of the house."

For the living room, 40- and 42-inch screens are common, and displays for bedrooms tend to be between 19- and 22-inches.

Consumer electronics shopping site Retrevo confirms the trend. The company recently noted that a year ago, for every buyer who purchased a 37-inch or smaller display, there was one who bought a larger set of up to 50 inches. Now that ratio has shifted, to three buyers of smaller sets for every two of larger ones, Retrevo says.

No matter what size suits your needs, space or budget, here are some factors to consider when shopping for a "basic" HDTV:

Resolution: Sets that are 1080p (the "p" is for progressive) are considered to have the best resolution, providing 1,920-by-1,080 pixels of resolution, with each frame of video transmitted progressively for a smoother scan. There are also sets that are 720p, providing 1,280-by-720 pixels of resolution.

Displays that are 720p are less expensive, and if you're looking to buy a set that's 37 inches or smaller, a 720p set might work well for you. Some experts believe there's little, if no, difference between the two resolutions in terms of quality, that they both look great. Others feel differently. But most agree that on a smaller screen, it's difficult to discern a 720p picture from one that's 1080p.

HDMI connections: High-Definition Multimedia Interface connections are used for the cables to connect your HDTV to a cable TV or satellite box, DVD player or video game console. HDMI transmits both uncompressed audio and video signals. A year or so ago, HDTV sets had one and sometimes two HDMI connections. Now, two is OK; three is typical and higher-end sets have four and sometimes more. How many you need will depend on how many devices you want to connect to your TV.

"It’s even useful to have one of those HDMI connections located on the front or side of the TV, because a lot of consumer camcorders now come with an HDMI connection," Gagnon said. "So for hooking up and playing video back from your camcorder through your TV, it’s very helpful to have an HDMI jack where it’s accessible."

PC and USB inputs are also useful to have for connecting other devices, as is built-in SD card reader for photographs from your camera that you might want to show on your set.

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