Dad’s Christmas Gift: 46-inch HDTV

by Jon on December 8, 2008 · Comments

I‘m so excited! I’m so excited! I’m so excited! :D

Yes, I’m getting a new HDTV for Christmas! Actually, it should arrive sometime this week (I’m hoping for Monday).

I was fortunate enough to get some extra duty pay at work this month, and the timing couldn’t be more perfect. The local FOX station has been broadcasting all of the Vikings games in high def—even on their standard definition channel—which looks terrible on my 27″ CRT.

So with this extra pay, I can afford to finally get an HDTV for the family, and watch sports in full high definition.

Which HDTV Did I Choose?

After shopping around, I settled on the Samsung LN46A550 sold by Amazon, which is a 46″ model. Amazon is selling it for over $150 less than the local Best Buy, and it comes complete with free white glove delivery.

This isn’t one of the fancy new 120 GHz models, but I watched part of a football game on the model at Best Buy, and everything looked fine to me.

Preparing For The Upgrade to HDTV

I contacted my cable company in preparation for the new TV, and subscribed to the HDTV package, which adds a dozen extra channels (like ESPN HD). I already had the HDTV compatible DVR, but was shocked to learn that the recording space goes from 90 hours of standard definition down to only 20 hours for HD content.

To solve the space problem, I ordered the AcomData 500 GB hard drive from Amazon. This hard drive will connect to my DVR with an eSATA cable, and will increase my high def recording time to around 80 hours (which should be plenty).

To round things out, I purchased:

  • HDMI cable to connect my DVR
  • Official Nintendo Wii Component Cables to connect my Nintendo Wii (interestingly, these cables even improve the Wii’s picture quality on my 27″ CRT, so I wish I had purchased them sooner)
  • A new TV stand (one of the cheap models you have to assemble, but it’ll do the job until I can find something nicer)

Woo Hoo!

As you can tell, I’m very excited! (Did I already say that?)

Once the new TV is delivered and I get a chance to play with it for a little bit, I’ll post a follow-up about it.

Stay tuned!

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Tags: AcomData, Christmas, ESPN, Football, HDMI, HDTV, Minnesota Vikings, Nintendo Wii, Samsung LN46A550

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  • Jon
    @ Tyler -
    "I remember watching the tournament for the first time in HD and just standing there for at least an hour with my tounge hanging out."

    I know what you mean! I had a good friend come over for a Vikings game, and he kept commenting about how you could see the individual blades of grass on close up shots. I probably should have spent my money on something else (like paying down bills), but I still love my TV!

    "One thing I’m happy about is that our TV sits in a niche above our fireplace. It’s well out of reach for little toddlers."

    Yeah, unfortunately mine isn't. :D
  • We got a 47" Vizio right before the 2008 US Open it has been one of the best investments I've made in a very long time. I remember watching the tournament for the first time in HD and just standing there for at least an hour with my tounge hanging out. Everything, I mean everything...even commercials are better in HD

    It's funny because we went from a 27" CRT tv. Ours isn't the newer 120 GHz models either and the only time I've really noticed a problem was during some the Olympic games. Mostly the water games but I'm not complaining.

    One thing I'm happy about is that our TV sits in a niche above our fireplace. It's well out of reach for little toddlers.

    <abbr>Tyler @ Building Camelot’s last blog post..How To Add Icons To Your Thesis Alert And Note Styles</abbr>
  • Jon
    @Stephen Connolly - What's REALLY sad... I just looked at our screen, and we don't have fingerprints... nope... WE HAVE PAW PRINTS!

    Seriously, there are paw prints over several areas of the screen. A few are even upside down, meaning our cat Sammie is jumping on top of the HDTV and pawing down at the screen.

    Fortunately she's declawed, but we might have a dead cat soon if she doesn't knock it off.

    PS. Just kidding about the "dead" part... maybe. ;-)
  • Congrats. Samsung is a great choice. We have the 23 inch model. A word of advice - the LCD screen is nearly impossible to keep clean, so find a way to keep it away from toddler fingerprints. It comes out of the box with a clear film over the screen - I wish I'd left it on.

    <abbr>Stephen Connolly’s last blog post..You Know You’re Old When …</abbr>
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