We had our 3rd bi-annual RPTV face off yesterday. It will be in the February issue, which you subscribers should be getting in about 7 weeks. As I mentioned previously, all the sets were 1080p. They ranged in size from 50 to 62 inches diagonal with an average price just over $4000. We had a panel of 5 judges rank each of the 6 TVs on a variety of factors and on a variety of material. What is perhaps most interesting is that the TV that came in last place this year was better than at least half of the TVs from the 2004 face off. TV competition is fast and furious, and the buyer/enthusiast profits the most from this. For example, the average full on/full off contrast ratio was right around 5000:1, a vast improvement over the digital sets from two years ago. And as far as CRTs go, well, CRT is dead. Sorry. We loved you dearly.

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Reader Comments

Posted 11/12/2005 at 20:25 — By Ross Jardine

I am assuming/hoping that regular production Sony 60" XBR was one of those in the face off. In your November review of the same model, probably conducted in early September, you note that you planned to provide an update as to any improvement in the color point SMPTE specs, posting an update on the website. Can you provide that information now?

Posted 11/15/2005 at 18:49 — By Geoffrey Morrison

The price point of the face off was around $4000, so we included the 50-inch version of the SXRD. The color points were pretty much the same as the 60-inch, so I�d assume that�s what Sony is going for with that set.

Posted 11/18/2005 at 22:27 — By Jonathan Gallmeier

I find it interesting that you say the CRT is dead. I'd agree if you want a large display. However, I still prefer a good CRT for quality video. Scaling artifacts, added delay, and other technology dependant artifacts detract from my viewing experience. While I also agree that 1080p is the holy grail of viewing, I find that I'm not really using the added resolution yet. Digital cable quality is poor due to the extremely small bandwidth allocated to a channel, and SD DVD video must be scaled (again) to the display resolution. Some units do better than others in this area. What happens to the allocated audio bandwidth when you are looking at 1080p? For now, please don't take my CRT away.

Posted 11/20/2005 at 23:45 — By Geoffrey Morrison

Well said Jonathan. In the RPTV market, CRT is effectively no more, but in smaller screens, it�s alive and well (for now). In fact, I can�t imagine giving up my CRT computer monitor for anything. As far as the scaling concerns, all HDTVs scale the image. I don�t believe you can buy a CRT TV any more that will actually display 720p (or even to 480p for that matter) natively. They will still scale the image to 1080i/540p.

Posted 12/1/2005 at 15:21 — By Chuck Wauda

First off, congratulations on a great website, and your erudite journalism. What confuses me regarding your up-coming RPTV face-off is your comment about the model rated last year in the middle of the group, that winds up dead last this year? I thought this year's line-up was going to be 1080p models? You're implying a level playing field of comparison when afterall, these(1080p)sets were just introduced this year. Thanks.

Posted 12/1/2005 at 18:15 — By Geoffrey Morrison

On factors other than resolution (where this year�s sets obviously win), the TVs in this face off were better than about half the TVs from the previous face off. This includes factors like scaling, black level, grayscale tracking, color accuracy, and so on. So no, not a level playing field per se, just a judgment on how much the picture quality has advanced in two years on the �average� television.

Posted 12/16/2005 at 5:13 — By Bal Sidhu

Can any of these sets handle 1080p input (DVI, VGA, HDMI)? Can I plug in a computer that can do 1920x1080 or other resolutions?

Posted 12/19/2005 at 20:37 — By Geoffrey Morrison

I talk about that in the article. It should be availible early in Jan.

Posted 12/22/2005 at 5:23 — By Steve Cebe

Have any of you seen the NEC 50XR5 plasma monitor? I have trying to find a review from someone besides an NEC executive. Any help will be deeply appreciated! Thanks, Steve

Posted 12/23/2005 at 16:28 — By Keith P. Seymour

I'm going to finally buy a big screen tv. I've narrowed it down to the Sony and JVC LCoS technology based rear projection 1080p models. Has any seen an indepth review of the JVC HD-(56 or 61 or 70)FH96 sets? Will it be in the February issue mentioned above? Best Regards, Keith

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