Korean Job Discussion Forums

[justin moffatt]

Anyone planning on possibly selling a relatively new Samsung PAVV or LG X-Canvas 40+ TV (LCD/HD/Full HD) in Seoul? Just curious . . . (PM me)

BTW Does anyone know what the real difference between HD and Full HD is?

Also, is there a distinct difference between Samsung PAVV quality and LG X-Canvas? Thanks again.

[bassexpander]

HD could be anywhere between 720p (1024x768 progressive)

and 1080P (1920x1080 progressive), which is "Full HD".

The thing in between is 768p (1366x768) which is a TV that accepts a 1080i signal, but downscales it to 1366x768.


Basically, you need a TV 37 to 40" or larger to enjoy "Full HD" resolution. It's also dependent on how close you sit to your TV. In this day and age, the absolute lowest resolution you should buy is 768p. If you can afford 1080p, then get it, but on a TV smaller than 37", it's pretty much a waste unless your sitting close -- about 3 to 5 feet away. The farther out you sit, the less your eyes are able to make of the higher resolutions.

I've got a 50" LG-Xcanvas PDP TV running at 768p. It looks great, but at this size, I sort of wish I had a Full HD television at times. If you are 10 feet back or further with a 50", you don't notice the detail enough to need 1080p anyway. You notice the higher resolutions more with video (news/sports/dramas) than you do with film (movies).

The main questions you must answer are:

1. How big will your TV be?
2. How far back do you plan to sit?

[hanguker]

Really useful link discussing seating distance vs. perceived resolution:

http://www.engadgethd.com/2006/12/09/1080p-charted-viewing-distance-to-screen-size/

It convinced me not to dish out an extra 1.0-1.5 Million won for 1080p 50". To see a difference between 1080p and 720p, you have to be sitting within 9-10ft of a 50" screen. Who sits that close, and is it worth adding 30% to the price?

Of course, some videophiles with disagree with me, but it's just MHO. I can't hear the diff between 256K and 128K mp3s, either.

[bassexpander]

[bassexpander]

On a 40" to 50", if it comes down to a few hundred dollars difference, go with 1080p. If it's like $800 or more difference, then don't stretch yourself if you can't afford it. As an owner of a 50" 768p set, I wish it were 1080p, because I do sometimes sit closer. That was out of my price range before, however.

If all you ever watch is standard DVD, then any of these will do. You should invest in a nice upconverting DVD player like the Oppo 980H, which I have. It's 10 times better than any $150 or less piece of crap put out by anyone else out there. It even bests my PS3 at DVD upscaling quite handily. Almost makes me think I don't need blu-ray.... almost.

Either model is great, but just get the cheaper one, as the differences are barely detectable. If anyone wants a demo, let me know. I've got blu-ray too.

www.oppokorea.com

[ultra]

If you would consider a 32", maybe this person will sell...


http://forums.eslcafe.com/korea/viewtopic.php?t=122710

I have a Samsung 32'' PAVV LCD TV that's 14kg and I really want to take it home to the US with me. This is probably a stupid idea...

[justin moffatt]

Thanks for the replies.

LG X-Canvas is 42", compared to Samsung PAVV at 40" (and a higher cost around 300,000won). Is the Samsung PAVV worth the extra money and smaller size? (Or is it a Korean thing about brand name-the same tv is $400US cheaper in US websites).

[bassexpander]

In my opinion, I'd go with the Samsung.

I've had a bitch of a time with LG as far as service. They've always come out immediately for each problematic TV, but it takes them 3 service calls to actually admit to a problem.

By the way, I went through no less than 3 LG TV replacements (and the last one had all internals replaced) before I got one that was right.

Go with Samsung. Yes, it's worth the extra money.

[hfrancis]

I've been thinking of buying a Samsung 40" Full HD LCD. Any advice or suggestions for foreigners wanting to buy large expensive items from any reputable Korean online shopping site? With help from a Korean co-woker I registered with 11st.co.kr but apparently credit cards issued from foreign banks are not accepted.

[bassexpander]

Well, I can tell you not to buy it from a "botique" store owned by LG or Samsung. They are overpriced, and if there is a problem, the service they offer is NO BETTER than any other store or online. In fact, it's worse. The LG store would not let me get my money back, and I couldn't exchange for another brand like Samsung. Had I purchased elsewhere, perhaps it would have been different. I found the LG store to be a really bad idea. I was stupid -- bought during a sale that turned out to be the same as an online price anyway, and the service was no better.

Buy online. The TVs are all delivered from the same place anyway.

I usually shop www.enuri.com , shopping.naver.com , or just tool around and compare prices at Yongsan's E-land.

[spliff]

I bought my Samsung 40" Full HD LCD at a local store and paid pretty near danawa's lowest price and used my Samsung card and spread the payments out over 10 months interest free. Also got some nice "service" gifts as well.

[OneWayTraffic]

[bassexpander]

Samsung regularly places in the top 3 as far as testing results on large LCD's, and LG is nowhere to be found. LG is considered a bargain brand in the USA. Samsung is a top-3 brand up there with Sony and Pioneer and Panasonic (Samsung will make the top 3 depending on who you talk to).

[hfrancis]

Rather than post a new thread I'll just post my other question here.

I recently bought Samsung's first generation Blu-ray player BD-P1000 used at a local e-mart for W150,000. The salesman claimed it had only been used for about 6 months so I thought they probably had the demo around for a bit longer, probably 12 or 18 months. Regardless, I figured it had been used minimally since I don't see many blu-ray demos around especially at e-mart.

I did some research online and discovered that the player can be hacked to accomodate all regions for DVDs but not for Blu-Ray discs. This was fine for me but when I attempted to hack it I was unsuccessful. My question after all this is; is it possible I may not be able to hack the machine? Do any of you have this player or know someone who does? Is W150,000 a reasonable cost for a used region 3 player. I'm tempted to return it but I thought for 150 bucks it was a pretty good deal even if I can only use it while I'm in Asia. Any thoughts?

[mattperreault]

hey spliff, how did you go by making payments on your tv, i am interested in doing that