TV advice

[biblemanryan]

We are looking to purchase a 37" LCD TV for our church and I was wondering what suggestions anyone would have. We have researched different ones, but I was wondering if anyone had any personal experience to add. Sound is not an issue because the sound will not be used on this TV. Thanks for any help.

God bless,
Ryan

[Full Quiver]

at this point I would say buy American.

[beckrl]

Which every brand you look at always look for the highest resolution
Need to have IMHO 1830p


Here's a link to some reviews:
http://www.lcdtvbuyingguide.com/37-lcd-tv.html

I like the Sony KDL-37XBR6 37" LCD TV
and LG 37LG50 37" LCD TV

note: the cheap one's will have lower resolution

[Full Quiver]

You will pay unnecessary costs for the "newest" technology and in my opinion that is not fair to a church budget.

[RamboPreacher]

You will pay unnecessary costs for the "newest" technology and in my opinion that is not fair to a church budget.

I disagree. especially if the technology can be used, or will be able to be used soon. It is my experience that it is necessary to buy as best/highest of technology for church as the budget will allow. partial reasoning is that many churches won't otherwise have a budget for tech very often and getting something that will last longer will have a wider spread TCO.

As example if a TV is purchased that costs $300, but only lasts 2 years, you have spent $150 a year for it's use. But if you spend (if the budget allows)$500 for a higher tech TV, and it lasts 5 years, you have spent $100 per year for it's use.

Obviously an oversimplification, but there are many factors to consider when buying tech for churches (or homes, or businesses). and the budget at the moment is only a partial variable to consider.

[bibleguy]

You will pay unnecessary costs for the "newest" technology and in my opinion that is not fair to a church budget.

I disagree. especially if the technology can be used, or will be able to be used soon. It is my experience that it is necessary to buy as best/highest of technology for church as the budget will allow. partial reasoning is that many churches won't otherwise have a budget for tech very often and getting something that will last longer will have a wider spread TCO.

As example if a TV is purchased that costs $300, but only lasts 2 years, you have spent $150 a year for it's use. But if you spend (if the budget allows)$500 for a higher tech TV, and it lasts 5 years, you have spent $100 per year for it's use.

Obviously an oversimplification, but there are many factors to consider when buying tech for churches (or homes, or businesses). and the budget at the moment is only a partial variable to consider.

Agreed, especially if there is growth potential/expectation, since it won't be long before you NEED to upgrade.

[Full Quiver]

That's fine Rambo but when we are talking 740, 1080, etc. we are talking how long it will last. If you want to go there then one must consider that the warranty is only good for one year and therefore one can ONLY assume the TV will last 1 year.

MOST people will never see the difference in 740, 1080, and beyond. When one buys the newest tech on the market they pay huge costs for not that much more quality.

Be wise Bibleman!

[dolfan]

I worked for a physician practice as business manager after I graduated law school, passed the bar, all that. Lasted for about 8 months. One reason: a bad deal they'd made on a phone system. They were locked into a lease for this system that was a phone equivalent of the Concorde. They needed a DC-10. Income was down because of other (before I got there) very bad business decisions on equipment investments that were not making them money, but were in fact losing money.

The main opponent I had: the wife of the doctor. She's the one who insisted on hiring me, and when I got there we fought.

The phone system conversation went something like this:

"Why did y'all replace the phone system you had with this one? What does this do for you that the old one didn't."

"We did it because the technology changed." (The old system was virtually the same, by the way, and they had taken it home with them to use, and it was way more system than needed for anybody's home unless you live in the White House.)

"Well [wife's name], (chuckle), the phone works pretty much the same as it did 100 years ago. It rings, you pick it up and say 'hello' and then people talk to each other. What does this system do to make that any cheaper?"

Silence......

Then a cold front moved into the office and stayed. I left months later, weary of fighting for a guy against his own wife. Technology being up to date is no reason to buy something unless there's no way around it. It is irresponsible as a business investment, and it is irresponsible as a church expenditure. It doesn't return your money, and it doesn't make more valuable any interaction. A 1080 screen is plenty good enough. When they stop making things that you can see reasonably well on a 1080 resolution screen, and you simply must have a TV screen in your church or whatever else it is, then you might be able to rightly say the change in technology is forcing your hand. Otherwise, you're paying for someone else's need to have the latest gadgets, and that tends to be as much about pride as anything else. (That goes for cell phones, too.)

[Pastor Bill]

Don't buy the cheapest, because you do get what you pay for, but you probably don't need the cutting edge technology either.

two problems with cutting edge, first the price, one step below won't make that much of a difference down the road. and second, the newest thing out there might not standardize. take a hint from BetaMax, or HD-DVD.

Most of the time I'd recommend a step down from the best, you get a huge cut on price, today, and in a year, when the next big thing is out, you'll not really be that far apart from todays best. the difference is mainly that this is "the best there is", at least for now.

[Pastor Gary]

When they stop making things that you can see reasonably well on a 1080 resolution screen, and you simply must have a TV screen in your church or whatever else it is, then you might be able to rightly say the change in technology is forcing your hand. Otherwise, you're paying for someone else's need to have the latest gadgets, and that tends to be as much about pride as anything else. (That goes for cell phones, too.)

Interesting thought. Are you consistent in that? Do you feel the same way about vehicles, homes and other things, or just technology. For example, for me, as long as it rolls, is dependable, reasonably comfortable and looks fairly decent, a car is a car, but I know people who "need" to trade cars every year or two to have the latest/greatest... people who keep moving up to bigger and more expensive real estate when they have a perfectly fine home already.

Computers and cell phones are the tools of my business: communication, human connection, and scheduling/planning, so I prefer to use efficient, up-to-date, functional tools and they rapidly change.

[dolfan]

When they stop making things that you can see reasonably well on a 1080 resolution screen, and you simply must have a TV screen in your church or whatever else it is, then you might be able to rightly say the change in technology is forcing your hand. Otherwise, you're paying for someone else's need to have the latest gadgets, and that tends to be as much about pride as anything else. (That goes for cell phones, too.)

Interesting thought. Are you consistent in that? Do you feel the same way about vehicles, homes and other things, or just technology. For example, for me, as long as it rolls, is dependable, reasonably comfortable and looks fairly decent, a car is a car, but I know people who "need" to trade cars every year or two to have the latest/greatest... people who keep moving up to bigger and more expensive real estate when they have a perfectly fine home already.

Computers and cell phones are the tools of my business: communication, human connection, and scheduling/planning, so I prefer to use efficient, up-to-date, functional tools and they rapidly change.

Yes, I am. I drive an 8 year old car with 200,000 miles on it, and love it more every single day. I have a 4 year old used cell phone because it works. I'm typing on a used laptop bought from a colleague of my wife.

Your job requires you to be connected. That's different than most of us who don't actually need to be so. Being up to date on technology for that means something more than just having the latest cool toy. Where it adds actual utility and saves time, and in your case allowing you to attend to your core business which is helping people be their best in specific ways, then the thing is no longer a toy but a tool. Most of us aren't quite that connected to connectedness. I know I'm not and hope I never am.

[Pastor Gary]

When they stop making things that you can see reasonably well on a 1080 resolution screen, and you simply must have a TV screen in your church or whatever else it is, then you might be able to rightly say the change in technology is forcing your hand. Otherwise, you're paying for someone else's need to have the latest gadgets, and that tends to be as much about pride as anything else. (That goes for cell phones, too.)

Interesting thought. Are you consistent in that? Do you feel the same way about vehicles, homes and other things, or just technology. For example, for me, as long as it rolls, is dependable, reasonably comfortable and looks fairly decent, a car is a car, but I know people who "need" to trade cars every year or two to have the latest/greatest... people who keep moving up to bigger and more expensive real estate when they have a perfectly fine home already.

Computers and cell phones are the tools of my business: communication, human connection, and scheduling/planning, so I prefer to use efficient, up-to-date, functional tools and they rapidly change.

Most of us aren't quite that connected to connectedness. I know I'm not and hope I never am.

On the other end of "connectedness" are people, and I highly value being connected to people.

[dolfan]

That's why you do what you do so well.

[Pastor Gary]

That's why you do what you do so well.

Okay... but there are those days, I confess, when a power failure would be a nice break!

[dolfan]

I long for, wistfully and foolishly, the 1980's. When cordless phones were the great thing, cell phones were just coming around. I'd like one of those remotes like Adam Sandler had in Click, (ironic, eh?), and would just pause it all. You were connected enough to be found when needed, but doggone it you were not too connected to where it is presumed that you must be connected or should be connected.

I heard on NPR yesterday that in Japan, they're giving away iPhones with subscriptions because no one wants one there. You can't watch TV on it, you have to hook it up to an actual computer (which, apparently, Japenese people don't use anymore .... it is so 2006), and the applications are not advanced enough. Japan's citizens use their cell phones as their main computers, it seems, and they do everything through them. That means within 5 years, that'll probably be so here. And, I just don't relish the thought of having to do everything through a handheld device. But, society expects you to keep up or get left behind on this thing, and I pretty much choose to be left behind. Then again, that comes at a price because your kids will not be left behind, and then you run into the whole they-can-do-what-they-want-in-that-world-and-I-won't-know-what's-going-on thing. So, here we go, I'm forced into it after all. Again, I wish it was 1987, technologically speaking. Regular LEADED gasoline with higher octane levels.