Sony KP-53V85 53 in. TV

This is probably the only or last review you need to read. I'm not trying to be a pompous, arrogant jackass. Just that I knocked my head against just about every projection tv out there in this size and larger, and I want to save you the scars of battle.

First, Forget about HDTV "ready" or "capable".

It is not worth time worrying about it, and definitely not worth the additional expense. If and when the networks get their act together on HDTV even the "HDTV ready" sets being sold today will not be worth the additional expense of a decoder box.

Next, realize that the quality of the picture you will see at home depends entirely on the quality of the video source in addition to the TV's ability to reproduce that video.

While more advanced scanning technology promises a better picture, the sad fact is that it will not live up to its promise in the majority of applications due to the limitations of the media itself.

In the few cases where it does improve the video quality, It still does not justify the additional expense incurred in achieving that improvement. The TV companies are no different from the CPU companies. They obsolete perfectly good processors and steer you to the fastest ones for 3 or 4 times the price while giving you imperceptible improvement in real world performance. So it seems to be with the projection tv industry.

Having said that, realize that SONY projection tv's when compared to the other brands in the same conventional projection tv class consistently deliver the BEST picture quality and for that matter sound quality period.

Provided you sit the recommended 10 or more feet away from the set, you will be absolutely amazed at the picture quality when viewing a dvd or other high quality programming source such as a laser disc or digital satellite live programming.

My advice is save your HDTV dollars and instead buy a modern home theatre receiver, speakers (if you dont own a good set already) and please DONT skimp on good quality video cables (BUT avoid the the esoteric high priced crap as benefit/price ratio plunges as you exceed $20). Also use as short a cable length as you can get away with especially if using s-video.

Finally, make sure you comparison shop! This tv varies in price by up to $600 from store to store and also take into account the shipping or delivery charges.

Outpost.com recently had this tv available for just slightly over $1800 delivered and unpacked in your house. I believe this is one of the lowest priced values for this set at this point. Others advertise it for less but charge upwards of $200 for curveside delivery. Anyhow do your homework on price, but dont overwork your brain on which tv to buy. At these prices saving yourself a few hundred for lesser quality brands or paying extra for goodies that only line the Companies' and store owner wallets makes NO sense!

Oh one last thing- This tv is very easy to move as it comes with caster wheels so it rolls easily on any flat surface. Also two adults can easily lift it. If you live on a 1st floor with no or few stairs you might forgo the in-home delivery (if not buying through outpost where its inc. in price) and just roll that baby in the house after cutting away the packaging. This will save you some money since even white glove service will not hook up the tv for you.

Disclaimer: I own this tv. I also don't write opinions for products I dont even own in the hopes you will buy them so I can earn a commission. I would even discourage you from buying from epinion linked merchants since they RARELY reflect the best prices available online or otherwise. Heed these words when reading opinions from people who seem to have made writing epinions a career of sorts.