wynn05 wrote:Dont bother buying a Westinghouse TV. I was at best buy the other day looking for a TV and one of the sales guys told the other one "Well, we broke last months record." I then asked the sales guy talking "For what? Sales?" He then said to me "Nope, westinghouse brand TVs returned, let me tell you, it seems like we get back even more than we sell!" For a sales person on commission to admit that, its gotta be crappy.

Best Buy employees are not on commission.

These are great for playing games on!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/zapwizard/444532626/

Dont bother buying a Westinghouse TV. I was at best buy the other day looking for a TV and one of the sales guys told the other one "Well, we broke last months record." I then asked the sales guy talking "For what? Sales?" He then said to me "Nope, westinghouse brand TVs returned, let me tell you, it seems like we get back even more than we sell!" For a sales person on commission to admit that, its gotta be crappy.

Is this where we pretend that we don't know that Best Buy employees don't work on commission?

Ouch. I spent that much on the 37 incher!

taslo wrote:

There is, also, the factor that the plasma in the television might need to be replenished one day. The cost of refilling the plasma in the television costs just as much as the television when you bought it.

You are joking, right?

If not, then I have some synthetic blinker fluid for sale for your car CHEAP!

42" won't work for me, or I'd buy one of these too!
You'll end up plugging a cable/satellite box into this anyway, so not having a tuner is no big deal.
If you're going to plug a Blu-Ray or HD-DVD into a monitor, 1080P (that's for progressive scan) is the way to go.

zapwizard wrote:These are great for playing games on!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/zapwizard/444532626/

checked out the first 10-15 pages of your photoset, i gotta say, pretty impressive...

tell me more about the monitor, seeing as you have at least two!

bthackne wrote:I have no comments on the tv as it is clearly amazing... however Rachel Ray is everything and so much more that the podcast tries to convey!! I <3 Rachel Ray :-)
Does anyone else agree that she is a serious hottie?

jklyank wrote:

If you like girls built like little boys.

AAACKKK!!! It's the Ray-tard!! Kill it! Kill it!!

LOL still only $5 shipping, good luck with that from Fedex.

HD doesn't impress me. Westinghouse doesn't impress me. Paying over $1,000 for a refurbished TV should be a crime. Nice try woot, but no thank you.

kpk021 wrote:

The issue with component video not passing 1080p is not a technical one. It's a political one. Since component video is analog, it's much more difficult to implement copy protection schemes than on a digital connection like HDMI. Component video is perfectly capable of handling 1080p though. So what we might have here is a manufacturer giving in to the movie industry. If you find any device claiming that it can't output 1080p (or 1080i, etc.) through component output, it's a design choice and not a component video limitation.

That is some nice information... I don't really care why it can't do 1080p over component. I just care that it can't.

How about you take some of your own advice and keep up with the time. LCD and DLP are almost exactly the same these days. DLP no longer suffers from the rainbow effect because the increased the speed at which the mirrors spin(upwards of 4x). LCD also has improved in getting rid of the screen door effect by reducing the space between pixels. You can not tell the difference bewteen LCD and DLP in a side by side comparision anymore. The differences are only numbers and obscure statistics like weight and size. And to cover the whole field plasmas are plasmas. Burn in only occurs in the first 100 hours of use? It's something along those lines. Once you are past that it's a great picture quality but plasmas still have faults. Longevity and repair if necessary are probably the two biggest cons. So you rank system should go something like...
1. Plasma
2. DLP/LCD

Once you get past that you need to look into the uses of the technologies. DLP is amazing in a projector. The benefits are more noticable then in a DLP tv because it helps get rid of age old negative projector traits. It's not all about picture qualtity. There are so many ways to compare these technologies there is no clear "winner". It's more of do you research and pick what benefits you want the most then take those with the trade-offs with that certain technology.

cwarrington wrote:

I have the 37" version you are talking about, and with any LCD solution SD video will 'not' look as good as it would on a traditional tube tv, or even a rear-projection type of TV. The issue is that those 480 lines of SDTV have to be stretched to the 1080 to display on this screen. Because LCD is so crisp and there is actually 1080 vertical pixels there is a noticeable difference. I find myself looking through my HD channels and if there isn't anything on them I'll watch something recorded or play my xbox360.

After the first week or so I hardly even care anymore. And pick yourself up a cheap up-converting DVD player, you'll thank yourself.

We mostly watch analog cable broadcast on ours (same model unit as Woot), and it looks as good or better than our 32" JVC CRT. This is running through a TIVO and into the Westy via S-Video cable.

DVDs look fantastic! The Scalar in this unit does a superb job going from 480p (3 year old progressive scan JVC DVD player) up to the 1080p. Looks to me like a film being project on a screen at the cinema.

The upscaling of standard DVDs will not be a replacement for a true HD-DVD or Blu-Ray signal, but it still does an amazing job of making my current DVD collection look VERY good until I can afford an HD DVD player and a new library of movies ;)

This looks very good with my PS2 too (via Component cables). Especially enjoy playing Tiger Woods golf on it. Some day I'll see it's true glory if/when I get a PS3...

lorraines wrote:

You are joking, right?

If not, then I have some synthetic blinker fluid for sale for your car CHEAP!

lol...well said...

This is a really great set at a real good price...

wynn05 wrote:Dont bother buying a Westinghouse TV. I was at best buy the other day looking for a TV and one of the sales guys told the other one "Well, we broke last months record." I then asked the sales guy talking "For what? Sales?" He then said to me "Nope, westinghouse brand TVs returned, let me tell you, it seems like we get back even more than we sell!" For a sales person on commission to admit that, its gotta be crappy.

I know that some of the early Westy's had "lock-up" issues, but I own two 42" sets just like this one, and two friends own the smaller 37" model. Mine have worked flawlessly for over a year, my friends have had no problems with their sets either.

I don't think you can beat the Westy's for bang-for-the-buck, and it is superb for gamers. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Paul <eMtnMan>

rbj325 wrote:How about you take some of your own advice and keep up with the time. LCD and DLP are almost exactly the same these days.

DLP is junk and LCD is only slightly better junk. Plasma supports more pixels per line and have much better colors and richer blacks. If you are planning to use this as a TV don't, save your money until you can afford a plasma or just hope that woot puts up a plasma tv soon.

On the other hand if you are planning on using this for a monitor go ahead. I bought this model from Best Buy at the beginning of the year and let me tell you I've never enjoyed playing WOW more then I have with this as my monitor.

kelleybest wrote:all those who continually said..."meh, not 1080p"....well, here you go.

Now they'll say "meh, a r efurb"

fakepie wrote:That is some nice information... I don't really care why it can't do 1080p over component. I just care that it can't.

Except that it can, they just won't admit it publicly and encourage scrutiny, since they're not "supposed" to allow it. Much like cars in Japan with twin turbo V8s "only make 280hp" because there's a "gentleman's agreement" that more powerful cars won't be made.

I can personally attest that this set and its 37" and 47" bretheren can indeed accept and display 1080p via component, and there are hundreds of other owners on AVS that will do the same. If you choose not to believe people who have the set and use it every day, that is your own problem.

rbj325 wrote: DLP no longer suffers from the rainbow effect because the increased the speed at which the mirrors spin(upwards of 4x).

That all depends on the eyes. Some see it and some don't.
When consumer DLP sets have 3 wheels it will be awesome.

LCD also has improved in getting rid of the screen door effect by reducing the space between pixels.

LCD's don't have the SDE, only the plasmas do.
If you are seeing SDE on a LCD you are sitting WAY to close

You can not tell the difference bewteen LCD and DLP in a side by side comparision anymore.

Again, that all depends on the set of eyes looking at it.
I can surely tell the difference. LCD is much better IMO.

Burn in only occurs in the first 100 hours of use?

Say what?
Burn in is permanent and can occur anytime during a plasmas life.
I wish the networks would do something about those annoying logos that cause IR and burn in to people!

I have a 42 inch plasma and could not be happier.
As was said before colors on a plasma are so much more real than a LCD but it really depends on if it's adjusted/calibrated correctly. that makes a HUGE difference.

There was a review on this by coolest gadgets a couple weeks ago.

http://www.coolest-gadgets.com/20070311/westinghouse-42-lvm-42w2-lcd-1080p-hdtv-monitor-review/

1000:1 contrast ratio? What a piece of doody...

Wow, $1050 for a used Westinghouse? What a joke. I'd rather pay $200 more and have a new one. This refurbi$hed stuff is garbage.

stevewaldorf75 wrote:

P is better. LCD's are either 720p or 1080p natively.

Actually, P means Progressive Scan and I means Interlaced.
Progressive Scan is better, and 1080p screens are really REALLY hard to find.

I'm tempted, honestly.

The only downside is that it's a refurb (rox0rz!)

Dutchhater wrote:
YOU ARE NOT A SMART PERSON AT ALL. This is $300 less than anywhere else. The warranty is posted on the front page. Why would you come to the forum and ask what the warranty is? Its not a nice tv on paper? It gets great reviews from AV enthusiasts and anyone who knows anything about contrast ratios knows that the number used by manufacturers is completely subjective and there is absolutely no standard used to measure contrast ratio. Please show us the 42" LCD with 1080p resolution for tons cheaper, otherwise I stand by my first comment. Then again, I havent met you so I cant say for sure.

Go ahead, buy the tv then buddy. Im not trying to rain on your parade but everyone knows 1000:1 ratio is crap for this price on something that is used. And are you really satisfied with a 90 day warranty on something you have bought that is already used anyway. Good luck extending the warranty too.

They're hard to find at this price, but there's a reason for that. Seriously, 1000:1 contrast ratio? That's terrible, the picture is going to suck.

Get a Vizio Plasma for $999 at Costco brand new. It's 1080i so if you're someone who likes to have things just for the sake of saying you do, maybe that wont work.

1080p is hardly noticable, if at all, on smaller screens like this. When you get into the 60"+ arena, then yes, 1080p makes sense. You're wasting your money getting a 42" 1080p set, especially this one, it's crap. Westinghouse is a maypop brand like Symphonic. Money saved now will be money spent later on repairs or a new TV, a real one...like a Samsung Plasma

Xplosonhed wrote:1080p? damn, is it I or P that is better? Any one of you more tech minded folks offer up an explanation?

This has probably already been answered, but "p" is better. It stands for progressive scan, versus "i" for interlaced. On large pictures, when the screen interlaces, or draws even unbered lines, then odd numbered lines, you get jagged edges on fast moving pictures.

On smaller screens, it really doesn't matter. On this one, it probably does.

Hope that helps.

I bought this monitor last Christmas and I enjoy it very much. The only issue I've had is that when switching video inputs the screen will flicker off and on. Very annoying, but easily remedied with a quick power on/off routine.

Best Buy regularily has these same units new for at least $50 cheaper. This monitor was a gift from my boss and I could've spent as much as I wanted, but after many side-by-side comparisons I felt this was the biggest bang for "my" buck.

Westinghouse TVs account for about 60% of the returns and repairs I've seen at work.
I don't really trust their TVs. The Best Buy guy was right. When I worked there, it seemed like product processing had at least one a day to send to the service center.
These refurbs are probably where they ended up

younggogetter wrote: a real one...like a Samsung Plasma

Those new Samsung plasmas are looking mighty good!
I still wish I could afford a Pioneer Elite
My plasma has 10.000:1 contrast ratio. Although that's dynamic. I'm not sure of the native.
Previous plasma had 3000:1 dynamic.

stopher2475 wrote:Who needs a tuner? If you're using cable the cable box is the tuner and you never use it anyway.

If youre not using a cable box, you would need a tuner.

fakepie wrote:It clearly said it doesn't take 1080p through component. So you would need to use DVI or the HDMI for that. If you are sending your audio to a receiver that sucks unless you have a new receiver with a bunch of HDMI in and outs. Otherwise I don't see how to do it unless you have an HD set top box with DVI out? Does that even exist? Maybe a switch box. I don't know.

For those saying that they get 1080p through their component cables, you might want to tell Westinghouse:

http://www.westinghousedigital.com/details.aspx?itemnum=44#VALUE

They seem to think otherwise and they built it.

PS3 lets you do video through hdmi and audio trough the digital audio plug. FYI

lorraines wrote:

Those new Samsung plasmas are looking mighty good!
I still wish I could afford a Pioneer Elite
My plasma has 10.000:1 contrast ratio. Although that's dynamic. I'm not sure of the native.
Previous plasma had 3000:1 dynamic.

I've got the 4253 and it's amazing - it took a bit of tweaking to get it tuned in right but now it's breathtaking everytime I watch it. Discovery HD Theater is unbelievable. Nothing can beat a Plasma's ability to display dark, inky blacks. LCD's just look washed out, IMO.

Not sure if it's been mentioned before, but this is one of the few HDTV's that is having problems talking with the PS3 over HDMI. I'm almost positive that it's the TV and not the PS3 since my TV tuner had the same problem over HDMI.

Other than that, the TV has been great. It's got excellent sound, picture quality is phenomenal, and the setup is pretty easy. I've had mine since early February (read Superbowl), and have no dead pixels. I have noticed a little burn-in on the edges from when my wife was watching a non-HD show without stretching the image. After a short time of doing something else on the system, the bars have gone away.

younggogetter wrote:

I've got the 4253 and it's amazing - it took a bit of tweaking to get it tuned in right but now it's breathtaking everytime I watch it. Discovery HD Theater is unbelievable. Nothing can beat a Plasma's ability to display dark, inky blacks. LCD's just look washed out, IMO.

Did you use the DVE disk or have calibrated by a pro?
I can't decide if it's worth paying a pro to come do it. I am hearing it is well worth it.
My 100 hours of break in is over and I'm ready to calibrate this. I think I'll try the DVE disk first.

I've got the Panasonic TH42PX600
Worst Buy has the 58 -600 for 3200!!!!

fakepie wrote:

That is some nice information... I don't really care why it can't do 1080p over component. I just care that it can't.

Their website and manual says that it won't do 1080p over component, however when playing a game or watching a movie on the PS3, the on-screen information says that it's displaying at 1080p.

I have this tv and i love it. Plays all my hd planet earths off my media center beautifully, but freeze up some times though, but those times are far and few between.

I ended up buying 1.

lorraines wrote:

Did you use the DVE disk or have calibrated by a pro?
I can't decide if it's worth paying a pro to come do it. I am hearing it is well worth it.
My 100 hours of break in is over and I'm ready to calibrate this. I think I'll try the DVE disk first.

I've got the Panasonic TH42PX600

I used the AVIA DVD

younggogetter wrote:

I used the AVIA DVD

Like it? User friendly?

I might grab the 103 inch Panasonic plasma up later on.
(after it drops 50 grand)