If you're in the market to buy an HD TV, then I'm sure you've found out there's a lot more to know about buying TV's now than there used to be. Ten years ago, all you would do was to walk in the store, take a look at the screens, then buy the one that looked best to you. You didn't have to worry about compatibility with various video game systems, Blu-Ray, even computers.

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Well, things have changed. Now, you need to get a little education before you buy an HD TV. Let's look at what you need to know.

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Basically, you need to understand who makes the TV's and who are the best companies to buy from. You need to understand resolution, especially what is defined as high-definition. Understanding the difference between plasma and LCD technology is important. Finally, really getting a handle on what you're going to use the TV for will help you choose the right one.

Let's go over each of these in turn.

Manufacturers

There are several big manufacturers of HD TV's, but the main four currently are Sony, Samsung, Toshiba, and Panasonic. I would love to be able to tell you that one is a lot better than the other three, but that's not the case. Samsung seems to have more choice, but the other three manufacturers have plenty to choose from, too!

Resolution

Right now, TV's come in three resolutions, 480, 720, and 1080. Now, there's a little more to clarity than just the resolution, like how the TV actually creates the picture, but you need to at least understand these three numbers and what they mean.

The numbers refer to the number of lines the HD TV scans across the screen in one pass. The higher the number, the greater the resolution. Only 720 and 1080 are considered "high-definition". 480 will look good on a smaller set, but you won't get that Hi-Def effect!

LCD vs. Plasma

Again, between these two, there's no real winner. LCD TV's are lighter, and thus easier to mount on the wall. Their screens also reflect less light than plasma screens. Also, they use less power.

On the other hand, some people think plasma pictures have deeper colors--they look more cinematographic! Part of the problem with plasma TV's is that they are heavy. They're harder to mount on the wall. Larger TV's will require extra bracing, if you want to mount them. Also, you can have burn-in on the screen more easily.

Uses

Finally, when you're deciding which HD TV to buy, you need to really think about what you want it for. Are you using it just to look at cable and DVD's, or do you want to play video games on it?

What You Need to Know Before You Buy an HD TV

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