This is only a question that you can answer which is why you probably haven't received any responses. I would check out the HDTV Sony for sale and see if its performance on standard def is better than the cheaper stand def TVs. It is possible, I don't know for sure, that the HDTV sets might have received more care in their setup at the factory so they could quiet easily display a better SDTV picture but I don't know. My 30HS420 was certainly better at SDTV than the previous 10 year old Sony (which their mid-line at the time V series). As for the price I don't know what they go for in Canada. That doesn't seem on unreasonable to me nor does it see a super bargain either. I paid $225 over a year ago for a 30HS420 which is in the more desirable for most folks 16:9 aspect. Given now that these things are a year older and digital sets are that much cheaper I would have expected prices to have fallen further but may not (I don't keep up with them now since I have the set I need).