Unfreaking real I can't find this thing anywhere..... With the QAM tuner, it's the best deal short of a sony...

Have you tried B&H photo? They *used* to have this model on-line as a special order. It's possible they ended up with one or two in-store.

Also, since Best Buy was the main retailer, you should probably focus there (though apparently some folks got it at PC Richards, as well).

Call around to the driveable Best Buys in NYC state, LI, CT, etc and see if anyone has anything in stock. If not new-in-box, you might find a display model. Good luck!

ps of course, why not check ebay too...

Well i finally caught hold of one... freaking upstate. i have friend coming down next week, so she's gonna pick it up on the way down. it's a floor model, listed at $599, + 12% coupon + whatever she can negotiate off considering it's a floor.

think this is gonna work out after all.... got my qam tuner and all. now i just gotta this pos Sanyo back to walmart....

wickerman, if you've got anything to say about the LG, now would be the time ;)

I personally don't like getting display models. Often those have been running with contrast maxed out 10-12 hours a day for months. I've never owned the LG so I don't have any real experience with it but I wouldn't get it based on things I've read. For one thing I've heard that the anti-glare coating on it is very dark and a member posted some comparison pics of it vs the Samsung SlimFit a few months ago and the Samsung's PQ looked clearly better in those pics. Also, I've heard it suffers from the same geometry issues that the Samsung has. Get the Sony Xbr970. You'll be very happy with that ( Unless you get unlucky and get a defective one, of course. ).:) I know that it costs more than you want to spend but after you get it home and get a HD feed going into it and see the great picture that it has I believe you'll feel that it was worth every penny ( Especially in the Pro display setting. I like this one the best because there is no picture enhancement and everything looks more smooth and natural. ).

i have the 30fs4d and live in NY. Bought it on jan 16 or 19? Anyways the PQ is good. SD is avg and HD is pretty good. One thing to notice though is that pixalated look when viewing dar solid blacks. Sorta like you see in a bootleg movie. Also a green tinge where solid black is concerned. Then again my tube is messed up but this could be the norm though. Hopefully others with this set can clarify this. The tube isnt that bad but its bad enough to need replacing. I got mine BTW from a BB store in queens! They had one new and one floor model. However I wouldnt shop there if I wewre you. They only offer a $50 gift card after purchase of the item and they are selling it at a price set of $579 before taxes. Which is the same as buying one new. I was going to buy the floor model but they would not haggel with me on the price. I was even lied to on the phone that they had the remote for the TV and they would include it. When I got there they said that they dont know of any remote in a draw. I asked a manager to look in the draw and he found one. The lady was peeved. After all she was the same lady who told me they did have the remote and then told me different when I got there. Thankfully she got n ear full from her manager :eek: . IOW you are duly warned just in case they still have it. Good luck and dont forget to try ebay.

Read ANY of the threads, even the Sony 955/970/960 ones, and there are complaints to varying degrees about geometry etc on ALL of them. Along with the general model threads, there are plenty complaint threads about all the vaunted Sony sets.

So, the bottom line is, any CRT direct view tube is going to be crapshoot. Chances are yours will have a minor imperfection of one sort or another, but it probably won't be a deal breaker (unless you have a problem like Homer's).

You say all you do is mostly watch movies, well movies via an upconverting DVD player via HDMI cable on this set and you won't notice any of the typical tube imperfections that are more apparent on TV/video game images (b/c of text, aspect ratio etc).

ymmv

ps the $579 is the "clearance" price...$799 is the "current" MFRP (and what B&H Photo was selling them on-line, before they removed the item). That said, BB is ridiculous when it comes to expecting customers to pay near full price for an open box item w/o remote, box, or manuals...laughable!

pps fyi: the LG came in THIRD overall in comsumer reports testing of 30" + CRT tube HDTVs (just behind the Sony, and Insignia).

Yeah, we all know that ALL CRTs have gemoetry problems to a degree. But these slim ones go above and beyond what is typical when it comes to this.

Exactly...and which I re-stated in this thread to point out that you won't find a perfect CRT, so why go over budget for the Sony? Especially when the LG rates 3rd in this category, and not far off from the Sony.

The Sony isn't a slimfit, which is perhaps why you summarily recommended the Sony over the LG, but the bottom line is, whatever model you buy it's going to be a crapshoot to some degree. If the LG and Sony were the same price, that's a different story...

ymmv