[Findm-Keepm]

From a buddy that makes a living repairing flat screen sets:

Stay away from Sanyo.

His favorite sets in order are: Sony, Panasonic, Samsung, Vizio. He likes Hitachi, only because they have great factory service support for independent folks like him.

His money makers: Philips/Magnavox, older Samsungs (caps), LG (inverter boards and power supply issues), and the oddball sets: Polaroid, Westinghouse, Dynex and Insignia.

Sony sets have had panel problems but to avoid problems, Sony replaces the set. He rates their Bravia LED sets as the best pix/value.

He says Sanyo sets are poorly designed - 85 degree caps, and too few vents. He has an account with SFS (Sanyo's parent) - just for buying replacement parts.

Whatever you buy, put it on a surge strip if possible. Summers here bring in lots of money for my buddy, thanks to lightning storms and the all-too-common power supply failures.

I got all of this just before Christmas - we picked up a 47" set to replace my Panasonic Tau CRT set. The TV armoire, other furniture, Christmas Tree, and 3 kids all were a tight fit. We got a Samsung, and it rocks. It has a wifi adapter, so we stream Netflix - getting rid of HBO! If we turn on the Blu-ray, it senses that and changes sources automatically. I'm still toying with the setup - this thing has like 18 or so adjustments for the picture. I used live football coverage and got it set up nicely. Of coourse, my wife is gaga over the facebook crap, but I am sold on the picture. Saving Private Ryan was a treat the other night!



Cheers,