Geekzone: technology news, blogs, forums
Guest
Welcome Guest.
You haven't logged in yet. If you don't have an account you can register now.


tebling

13 posts

Geek


#22514 30-May-2008 08:51
Send private message

Hey folks!

I will likely be moving from the US to Wellington, NZ in about three months or so.  I'd love to bring my current LCD TV with me (or buy another one here at a similar price), given how expensive comparable models are in NZ.  Shipping is all paid for, so that's not an issue.

I will mainly be using the TV with my existing PS3 and Xbox 360, but my wife has expressed interest in getting some local programming.  If it weren't for that, my main issues would simply be dealing with the 120V -> 240V power requirements.  I'm almost certain my set, which is a Samsung A650 series, will not accept PAL analog signals.  I'm less sure though about digital signals, which is why I'm writing to find out whether a digital Freeview signal fed via HDMI will present problems for my display.  I understand that HDTV signals are not made equal, and I'm going to hazard a guess that Freeview outputs at 50Hz, while my set probably expects 60Hz.

Is that definitely the case?  If so, I may need to sell my current TV and find something compatible with 50Hz digital signals (I believe Philips and Sharp both distribute sets here in North America that qualify).

Thanks very much!

-tim

Create new topic
wellygary
8810 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 5287


  #134351 30-May-2008 09:24
Send private message

Similar examples in this forum

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/25316-4-hdmi-ntsc-flavours

Would tend to indicate that there may indeed be some issues regarding 50/60hz in terms of HDMI inputs,



cyril7
9073 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 2499

ID Verified
Trusted
Subscriber

  #134358 30-May-2008 09:57
Send private message

Personally I would err on the side of caution and leave it there. All TVs/displays in the 50Hz world will display both 50 and 60Hz material, however US models of those very same products often (if not always) have their firmware crippled to prevent 50Hz operation.

I would contact Samsung and get a comment from them, if its a definite positive that it will support 50Hz then fine, othewise dont bring it.

Cyril

tebling

13 posts

Geek


  #134361 30-May-2008 10:07
Send private message

Thanks for the replies.  IMO it's certainly worth the effort to research as the price gap is about 2x to 3x even taking the exchange rate into account.

Given that, it may be still worth it in the end to employ one of these converters:

Atlona HDMI PAL/NTSC converter



cyril7
9073 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 2499

ID Verified
Trusted
Subscriber

  #134364 30-May-2008 10:11
Send private message

I agree, would be interested to know Samsung US's response.

Cheers

tebling

13 posts

Geek


  #134544 31-May-2008 07:00
Send private message

Talked to Samsung and did some online research and unfortunately it looks like my current TV won't do 50Hz.  So I'll probably need to sell it.  I'm now looking at replacing it with a Philips LCD TV (52PFL7422D/37B), which is one of the very few brands offered in the US that supports 50Hz modes.  From the specs:

Video Formats (resolution / refresh rate) : 480i / 60Hz, 480p / 60Hz, 576i / 50Hz, 576p / 50Hz, 720p / 50, 60Hz, 1080i / 50, 60Hz, 1080p / 24, 25, 30Hz, 1080p / 50, 60Hz

Based on this, I'm pretty confident that this TV would work and I can save some major $$ in the process :)

richms
29097 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 10206

Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #135518 4-Jun-2008 19:26
Send private message

Yeah but its a philips. so when it breaks you have no warranty.

You really need to test it there with a 50Hz signal from a PC or similar to see if it will work. Its still hit and miss tho.   




Richard rich.ms

 
 
 

Stream your favourite shows now on Apple TV (affiliate link).
cyril7
9073 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 2499

ID Verified
Trusted
Subscriber

  #135542 4-Jun-2008 20:46
Send private message

Yeah but its a philips. so when it breaks you have no warranty.


Snap, pity you have to choose from the bottom rank. I recon you are better of just paying the 2-3x price to get a better product and support.

Cyril


tebling

13 posts

Geek


  #135580 5-Jun-2008 01:13
Send private message

I've actually changed strategies slightly now that the wife has "authorized" a bit more $$ toward the TV.  Now looking at a Pioneer Kuro plasma, which has absolutely been confirmed to work with 50Hz.  That solves the "bottom rank" problem, but still leaves the warranty as an issue. From the information I've gathered these have a very low failure rate provided everything checks out in the first month (we're moving in about two months), so I'm feeling pretty good about taking a chance on it.

cyril7
9073 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 2499

ID Verified
Trusted
Subscriber

  #135593 5-Jun-2008 08:15
Send private message

Your wife has good taste in TV/s hope you got her a nice bunch of flowers for that liberty. :)

Cyril

tebling

13 posts

Geek


#135596 5-Jun-2008 08:45
Send private message

Cyril, you couldn't be more right :)  My plan is to actually bring the flowers in the door ahead of the TV, which I'm hoping will soften the "big box" shock a bit!

mentalinc
3384 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 1023

Trusted

  #135605 5-Jun-2008 08:59
Send private message

Don't forget the box of chocolate.
Can't beat some "3musketeers" bars either http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3_Musketeers_(confectionery).




CPU: AMD 5900x | RAM: GSKILL Trident Z Neo RGB F4-3600C16D-32GTZNC-32-GB | MB:  Asus X570-E | GFX: EVGA FTW3 Ultra RTX 3080Ti| Monitor: LG 27GL850-B 2560x1440

 

Quic: https://account.quic.nz/refer/473833 R473833EQKIBX 


Create new topic








Geekzone Live »

Try automatic live updates from Geekzone directly in your browser, without refreshing the page, with Geekzone Live now.



Are you subscribed to our RSS feed? You can download the latest headlines and summaries from our stories directly to your computer or smartphone by using a feed reader.