Judging TV Picture Quality on the Sales Floor

by Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger

09 May 2008 04:29 AM

When shopping for a new television, you walk into the electronics store and are instantly confronted by a bank of televisions all showing the same signal that has been split multiple times. It is hard to judge the quality of the picture while staring at all of those images. In addition, the stores set the televisions to attract you, often giving the televisions that they want to sell the brightest settings, and dimming other less expensive models. So what exactly should you look for when trying to judge the picture quality at the store? Here are some tips.

First of all, you have to know that judging a television's picture quality in a brightly lit store without any remote controls can make things difficult. So, it is important that you get a little aggressive about being able to manipulate the television controls. You also want to make sure that the television can be returned if it turns out to be not exactly what you wanted.

Ask the salesperson to adjust the brightness on all of the television models of which you are interested. The goal is to try and get them to be roughly equal in brightness, as well as color and contrast.

Next, see if the salesperson would be willing to dim the store lights for you. Don't be afraid to ask. Most of the time, a television is an expensive purchase, and you should do what you can to make the right decision.

Another little trick to to bring your own movie to use to judge the picture quality. Select a DVD movie from your home collection of which you are very familiar. This way, you will be able to tell the difference between viewing it on your old television compared to potential new televisions. Kids movies are great because chances are that you have been forced to watch them over and over again.

Picture quality is just one, although an important one, of the features that make up a new television. Check back often here at the Computing Blog to learn more.

Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.

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Learn more about Mary Ann Romans

Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat.

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