I have a good friend looking for a new large-screen HDTV. He's suggested the Mitsubishi WD-65732 65" Rear Projection DLP from Amazon.

I wanted to ask for opinions from everyone here because you guys all offered me a ton of valuable advice when I was shopping for my Plasma a few years ago.

So I'd like suggestions for any alternatives, along with any recommendations for suppliers.

BTW, I bought my Plasma from Paul @ Visual Apex, and I'll be checking in with him to see what they can do for my friend too.

TIA for any helpful comments,

Ross.

Should I take it that the silence here as an indication there aren't *any* Flat Panel alternatives to this set for me to recommend we have a closer look at?

Ross.

If price is a consideration at all, it's hard to beat an RPTV (DLP or LCD RP) in the over 50" size, and especially 65" and up. It's kinda hard to say much more without knowing more about your friend's situation such as environment, budget, viewing habits, etc. Obviously, flat panels have been dropping in price though, and IIRC there are 1-2 60" plasmas coming up that may be closer to RPTV pricing.

Paul,
Thanks for the reply, I was getting worried :)

My friend currently has a 61" Mitsubishi RPTV which is why he's going straight for "what he knows" this time.

He watches mostly TV and DVD's, about 60% non-HD material, but that proportion is likely to change whenever the HD-DVD/Blu-Ray fight is resolved.

The set is located in a good position in his living room with no direct light on the screen and screened windows to keep the light out when needed.

Viewing distance is in the order of 10-15ft depending on which seat you occupy, but there is peripheral seating and his current set suffers a distinct "faded" picture when not sitting directly on-axis to the screen. I believe it's a normal 'feature' of RPTV's, but I'd like to avoid it if at all possible because that's usually where I view from :)

Also, because he watches TV a lot, he's got both the CNN & Fox News logo's burned in to his current set, so having something which doesn't suffer from that would be a plus.

Cost is indeed a major factor, with his preference being under $2,500 (final price after whatever discounts & shipping) - but he could probably stretch to $3K for a 'perfect' solution.

Given your comments (and some peoples comments elsewhere on here regarding end of 2006 model production occurring about now), would you recommend he wait a while for the new models to appear?

Thanks from both of us,

Ross.

I almost mentioned it in my first post, but given your comment about him having good light control, a front projector might also be worth considering. It's more work to set up than an RPTV but if you like the big picture, nothing beats it esp. for movies and sports. I use a projector along with a 36" non-HD CRT for "regular" TV viewing.

Sounds like your friend has a CRT RPTV - he'll be happy to know that the DLP models don't suffer screen burn the way his does. Of course if you wait, things will keep getting better so it's just a question of whether/when the existing products do what he wants at the right price. I suggest asking him to write down his criteria for a new set and then evaluate whether it's out there.

Also, don't expect a winner in the Blu-Ray/HD-DVD format war any time soon. Given LG's apparent introduction of a universal player, that would seem to be the likely outcome. Although note that it's a $1200 player, and I've seen some speculation and controversy over whether it's feasible to get rights to include Blu-Ray & HD-DVD in one player at a reasonable cost. I'm pretty sure Sony isn't too keen on that idea.

Here is a good rule of thumb.

If you are planning on hanging it on the wall then go with LCD/Plasma.
If you are not (or space is not that big of an issue - will have very similar foot prints) then go with DLP/Other.

Also consider viewing angle. DLP will have a worse verticle viewing angle - do you like to lie on the ground(then dlp is no)?

I have both a new 46 sharp LCD and a 60 Samsung DLP both 1080p and I love them both.

If you are never planning on putting it on the wall then you should always go with DLP - much more bang for the $$$$.

Well I don't agree that you should ALWAYS go with a RP set if you aren't going to mount it on the wall, but certainly in very large sizes, especially 60"+, you simply cannot beat the price to performance ratio on a DLP or LCoS set.

Paul,
Thanks for the reply, I was getting worried :)

My friend currently has a 61" Mitsubishi RPTV which is why he's going straight for "what he knows" this time.

He watches mostly TV and DVD's, about 60% non-HD material, but that proportion is likely to change whenever the HD-DVD/Blu-Ray fight is resolved.

The set is located in a good position in his living room with no direct light on the screen and screened windows to keep the light out when needed.

Viewing distance is in the order of 10-15ft depending on which seat you occupy, but there is peripheral seating and his current set suffers a distinct "faded" picture when not sitting directly on-axis to the screen. I believe it's a normal 'feature' of RPTV's, but I'd like to avoid it if at all possible because that's usually where I view from :)

Also, because he watches TV a lot, he's got both the CNN & Fox News logo's burned in to his current set, so having something which doesn't suffer from that would be a plus.

Cost is indeed a major factor, with his preference being under $2,500 (final price after whatever discounts & shipping) - but he could probably stretch to $3K for a 'perfect' solution.

Given your comments (and some peoples comments elsewhere on here regarding end of 2006 model production occurring about now), would you recommend he wait a while for the new models to appear?

Thanks from both of us,

Ross.

If he wants a set at that size, and at that price, and soon, it will have to be RP. A 65" FP at around $2500 is probably a couple years away. The latest RP sets are much improved on viewing angle, so have him go look at some in stores.