New TV advice needed

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Hello Ladies

I've decided to replace my rapidly dying TV and enter the 21st century. Before I venture forth into the particular hell set aside for women trying to buy technology, can I pick your brains first?

I want:

1. A 32 inch TV. I'm fine with the idea of an Internet enabled one but don't want 3 D

1. A method of being able to record one channel while watching another.

1. A device to play DVDs

I don't want 3 boxes cluttering up my tiny flat, so if the second two requirements could be combined into one box in the way my old video recorder was, that would be ideal. I'm not fussed about BluRay, I don't have or intend to buy a gaming system and I don't have cable/Sky

What do you recommend?

What should I be looking out for?

What's not worth spending money on?

Can you explain it in terms that a geeky sort who has no interest in hardware could understand.

Bump

Ok, these are my thoughts:

1. 32" is a bit small nowadays. If you can squeeze a bigger TV in your lounge, do it. I have seen loads of people think 32" is fine then 6 months down the line regret the decision and wished they'd spent a little more.

2. DVD is dying as a technology. The world is moving to Bluray. You say you are not fussed now. Will you be in 2 years time when you cant get a DVD anymore?

3. An all in one device will cost a lot. In addition most PVR/DVD boxes are erm...DVD. I agree with amic, getting seperate boxes will prob work out cheaper and give you more options.

Thanks you've both given me something to think about.

It's going to have to be a 32 inch as that's all we have room for and that's what we have now. Am I right in thinking a BluRay player will play DVDs?

I've got my eye on the Sony 32 inch smart TV. So now all I have to do is work out what else works best.

I guess it's another trip into town, this time with DH. I went to the Bluewater John Lewis earlier this week and encountered the world's rudest and most aggressive TV salesman. I had to retreat, shocked and a bit scared (though not without sending a scathing email to their customer services)

Bizarrely I work in IT and spend a lot of time evaluating software, but hardware's simply not my scene. I think I'll have to try my local John Lewis. I usually avoid it as many of the staff, especially the technology ones, used to be by students from back in my teaching days. It gets a bit disconcerting having them address me as Miss, but they still have the pavlovian response to my evil eye

I strongly advise you post the same question on this forum: www.avforums.com. There are thousands of really knowledgable people on there who will helps. Try using this sub-forum: www.avforums.com/forums/freeview/

I am confident you will get the help you need there.

But to help in the first instance here on this forum, something like this: www.panasonic.co.uk/html/en_GB/Products/VIERA+Flat+Screen+TV/2010+Plasma+TV/TX-P42G20B/Specification/3569566/index.html?trackInfo=true as a TV, has two tuners (one to take freesat from a satellite feed and one to take an aerial feed). You can plug in an external hard drive (the data storage unit from inside a PC) to the USB port in the back of the TV and the TV will record programmes to that hard drive from one tuner, while you watch TV using the other tuner.

You then only need to buy a separate blueray player, which will play both bluerays, and DVDs

Both the blueray player (using CD/DVD ROMS) or the TV (using a USB Memory card) will allow you to show your home photos on the screen too.

The TV I have linked to is in no way unique, most good quality modern TVs with two tuners will have a recording function.

Regarding TV size. If you have a 32inch old style TV "CRT" now, then you will fit in a far bigger TV. The surround and rear structure of modern TVs are much smaller, and I would advise you to look for a 42 inch TV as a minimum - trust me!

Regarding techno jargon (if you go and speak to a sales person), you are looking for a twin tuner TV which has the capability as acting as a PVR when paired with an external large capacity hard drive via the USB port on the TV.

You need to decided if you want to connect the TV to a satellite dish, or an aerial on your roof. A satellite tuner is a DVB-S (Digital Video Broadcast - Satellite) and the aerial is DVB-T (Terrestrial). In order to get HD TV to work on the TV, you need to have a DVB-T2 or DVB-S2 tuner (the "2" stands for second generation). If you get first generation tuners, the TV will display HD content (from a blueray player), but won't be capable of getting it sent via the aerial or satellite feed (e.g. BBC HD/BBC One HD/Channel 4HD etc). I.e. HD Ready doesn't mean you will actually get HD TV unless you buy more kit!