Television set deals in Galway

Amik

Anyone seen any good deals on televisions in Galway lately? I'm in the market for a Full HD TV, minimum of 32".

Saw a nice 40" at N17 for around 500 EUR but it was some unknown brand. Had a fantastic picture though.

Amik

The brand was "Hannspree". Anyone have any experience with their TVs?

apoeiguq3094y

Amik wrote: »

Anyone seen any good deals on televisions in Galway lately? I'm in the market for a Full HD TV, minimum of 32".

Saw a nice 40" at N17 for around 500 EUR but it was some unknown brand. Had a fantastic picture though.

Bought a HANSPREE 32" FullHD for €369. The picture quality looked the best for any 32" under €600, so i'm very happy with it. The contrast was way better than a similarly priced Samsung or LG.

The benefit of FullHD isn't really noticeable at 32", although the only HD input I use is the PS3.

DID have it, and I heard xtravision are selling it too maybe?

Amik

Nice! All the Hannsprees on display had terrific pictures. I'll take a closer look at them on the weekend. Seems to be a company from Taiwan.

biko

Have you seen the Bargain Alerts forum? Could be worth keeping an eye on.

bildo

Go to harvey norman 15 mins before closing at the weekend and offer them silly money for something, you'll walk out with a bargain.

apoeiguq3094y

The sales woman in DID told me "she had one at home and it was great" but I'm sure she says that to all the boys . She also said that it contained a lot of components made for JVC, but I'd take that with a grain of salt.

The contrast was great on it, the only minor problem it has is that in very dark scenes the blacks are a bit grey. All LCDs have this trouble though, so unless you splash out for a plasma its unavoidable. Its a 31.5" tv as well - they sneakily round it off to 32", but thats not a deal breaker really. It also has a really solid feeling remote, which is surprisingly reassuring.

The had another one out there for closer to 300 but think it was only HDready, and they didn't have it turned on, which made me suspicious. It was some brand call ALLtv or something similar.

dolphin city

don't laugh but can anyone explain - I know HD means high definition. I was thinking of buying a plasma flat screen - if I purchase a HD, do I have to purchase something else as well before the HD works (i.e. what does HD ready mean). Can I just go out and buy a flat screen plasma with HD and just plug it in and it works, like the old fashioned tv or is there something else special i need to do - forgive the ignorence - I'm an old fashioned gal.

death1234567

dolphin city wrote: »

don't laugh but can anyone explain - I know HD means high definition. I was thinking of buying a plasma flat screen - if I purchase a HD, do I have to purchase something else as well before the HD works (i.e. what does HD ready mean). Can I just go out and buy a flat screen plasma with HD and just plug it in and it works, like the old fashioned tv or is there something else special i need to do - forgive the ignorence - I'm an old fashioned gal.

Your HD ready TV will display pictures only in HD if you have something attached to your TV that is capable of transmitting a HD image. For Example if you have a PS3 or blu ray player this will show a HD picture on your TV. If you have a normal UPC or Sky box the picture on your TV will not be HD, it will just be the normal "Soft Definition" that you get on a non HD telly. You'll need a special HD box from UPC/SKY, a HD subscription, and be watching a TV channel that is being broadcast in HD, eg. SkyOneHD before you get a HD picture on your telly. Its all unnecessarily confusing

fergpie

dolphin city wrote: »

don't laugh but can anyone explain - I know HD means high definition. I was thinking of buying a plasma flat screen - if I purchase a HD, do I have to purchase something else as well before the HD works (i.e. what does HD ready mean). Can I just go out and buy a flat screen plasma with HD and just plug it in and it works, like the old fashioned tv or is there something else special i need to do - forgive the ignorence - I'm an old fashioned gal.

You'll need to subscribe to either Sky HD or UPC HD TV package to get the full high definition picture. However only certain channels have HD capabilities. Im sure some other satalite packages have HD as well. Im not well informed on them tho...

s_carnage

dolphin city wrote: »

don't laugh but can anyone explain - I know HD means high definition. I was thinking of buying a plasma flat screen - if I purchase a HD, do I have to purchase something else as well before the HD works (i.e. what does HD ready mean). Can I just go out and buy a flat screen plasma with HD and just plug it in and it works, like the old fashioned tv or is there something else special i need to do - forgive the ignorence - I'm an old fashioned gal.

Ya to get the full impact of HD you would need something like a blu ray player or a sky HD box plugged into it. Some HD TV's though don't handle SD (standard definition) pictures aswell as others so this would want to be looked at if you don't have sky HD. I'd imagine most TVs now handle SD just fine but it's definitely worth checking. There is no problem plugging anything into a HD TV like you would with your normal run of the mill TV.

I bought a TV on pixmania.ie a couple of years back and made a big saving instead of purchasing it in a store here but with all the offers in the past two years I would imagine the savings to have decreased.

steo2009

hi guys check currys store out i know there is a deal on a samsung 32 inch full hd tv, we got a load of samsung tvs in during the week. i think the package is the tv a serano stand and a samsung dvd rose player, but im not 100% on the package contents.

dolphin city

thanks guys - you have all been very very helpful. I think I might go for one - a nice plasma HD, now that I know what I have to do. At the minute the one I have is taking over half my sitting room with the size of the back on it - it could double up as a nice coffee table. :D

Sponge Bob

Currys Samsungs will pick up Irish Digital TV ( DTT) ...which is live in Galway for ages..... where Hannspree probably won't. Make sure you are not sold a pup that will only work in England.

Thargor

The 32" Hanspree in N17 will pick up Irish digital, I know because I bought it. I couldnt be happier with it either, the 360 is insanely good looking on it, same with hd content sent from my laptop.

apoeiguq3094y

Sponge Bob wrote: »

Currys Samsungs will pick up Irish Digital TV ( DTT) ...which is live in Galway for ages..... where Hannspree probably won't. Make sure you are not sold a pup that will only work in England.

Hey that kind of scaremongering isn't doing anyone any good. Did you even check? Just because it doesn't have a major brand doesn't mean it won't work here.

Thargor wrote: »

The 32" Hanspree in N17 will pick up Irish digital, I know because I bought it. I couldnt be happier with it either, the 360 is insanely good looking on it, same with hd content sent from my laptop.

Yeah the Hanspree in DID will also pick up the Irish (mpeg4) signal. Do you have a HD out from your laptop? or is there a way of converting from the digital output for DVB on laptops to HDMI?

Discodog

The picture that you see in a shop will often be a specially generated image & enhanced. Because of all the variations in room lighting, aerials, receotion etc it is very difficult to compare sets. I prefer to rely on reviews by the experts who view them every day of the week. Make a shortlist & then go here & ask John at Richer Sounds for a boardie deal.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=1105

Tv reviews are here :

http://www.whathifi.com/Review/Hannspree-ST321/

Sponge Bob

Discodog wrote: »

The picture that you see in a shop will often be a specially generated image & enhanced.

Exactly, you are not watching an over the air picture. But if the Hannspree model is confirmed as working with Irish DTT then go ahead and buy by all means. Does it show the RTE HD Test Channel as well ????

Aldi and Lidl both have specials over the next few days. NEITHER will work with Irish Digital TV so don't even think of them ( Tevion and Silvercrest brands)

cranky bollix

Irish Digital TV ( DTT)

excuse my ignorance - what does this mean?

Sponge Bob

cranky bollix wrote: »

Irish Digital TV ( DTT)

excuse my ignorance - what does this mean?

It means you can now pick up Digital Telly in Galway ( nice crisp picture widescreen) as well as Analogue Telly (what we have had for 50 years ) on a proper modern telly. The analogue will stop working in two years anyway.

Many shops , most notoriously Lidl and Aldi , import UK Digital TVs with the wrong software for Irish Digital TV....meaning they cannot show a broadcast digital picture and are therefore not televisions although they could sell them as expensive PC Monitors I suppose

The digital signal is available in all of the City and East Galway, in parts of West Connemara ...not yet. Only east of a line from Oughterard to Ros a Mhíl pier.

RTE are already broadcasting HD Digital Tests IF you have the right telly. It is a proper 1080i picture not that 720p cack that is passed off as HD sometimes.

Thargor

apoeiguq3094y wrote: »

Hey that kind of scaremongering isn't doing anyone any good. Did you even check? Just because it doesn't have a major brand doesn't mean it won't work here.



Yeah the Hanspree in DID will also pick up the Irish (mpeg4) signal. Do you have a HD out from your laptop? or is there a way of converting from the digital output for DVB on laptops to HDMI?

I have a HDMI port on my laptop so I just use that, every new laptop has HDMI these days, dont know about any other way to do video out, sorry.

apoeiguq3094y

Discodog wrote: »

The picture that you see in a shop will often be a specially generated image & enhanced. Because of all the variations in room lighting, aerials, receotion etc it is very difficult to compare sets. I prefer to rely on reviews by the experts who view them every day of the week. Make a shortlist & then go here & ask John at Richer Sounds for a boardie deal.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=1105

Tv reviews are here :

http://www.whathifi.com/Review/Hannspree-ST321/

Its a relatively unknown brand, and because of the large number of models in every brand, (often with only a slight difference in the #) i often find it hard to find a specific review.

Yeah I'm usually wary of a special image being shown that may hide a problem with a given TV.. In DID they had sky news on so I was fairly happy with that. With the Hanspree the weather actually looked a lot better (the picture not the forecast ), i.e. some of the blue/white shades were not being shown clearly on the others, whereas it looked very clear on the HANSPREE.

There was also a 3 year warranty, so that somewhat allayed my fears about buying a lesser known brand. For the < 500 range it was the best 32" I could find. Obviously you'll get better TV's if you can find one on sale or something.

The whathifi review is for a completely different model to teh one I have, its a SJ32DMBB so i wouldn't take anything from that review.

Sponge Bob

That model will show SD Irish Digital TV for sure, can you see the HD channel too ( the one called RTENL2 below TG4)

darrenh

How do you connect your HD tv to free view digital?

_Whimsical_

Sponge Bob wrote: »

The digital signal is available in all of the City and East Galway, in parts of West Connemara ...not yet. Only east of a line from Oughterard to Ros a Mhíl pier.

RTE are already broadcasting HD Digital Tests IF you have the right telly. It is a proper 1080i picture not that 720p cack that is passed off as HD sometimes.

is that channel now TV3? Or should there be another channel there?
I have a samsung le26c450 that was bought in DID and guaranteed to work here but below TG4 I only have TV3.

Amik

This one looks interesting:

http://www.did.ie/Product/SAMSUNG-40andquot-1080P-LCD-TV-LE40C530F1WXX/18010/317

Sponge Bob

_Whimsical_ wrote: »

is that channel now TV3? Or should there be another channel there?

The channel is named RTENL, the question is whether you see any pictures on it.

pdiddy

i know this prob isnt much help but was in power city in drogeda during the week and they had a 50 inch samsung hd ready tv for 599 though it was a pretty gud deal

zero19

This is a great tv, full 1080p HD,i bought one myself recently. Cheaper in argos than powercity or DID.

http://www.argos.ie/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Search?storeId=30001&catalogId=1500002451&langId=-1&searchTerms=le32c530

_Whimsical_

Sponge Bob wrote: »

The channel is named RTENL2, the question is whether you see any pictures on it.

I don't have any channel by that name. I only have rtenl . Does the channel that you're talking about broadcast scenic footage of Dublin and Galway and sometimes just a test card of colored bars with Ath Cliath written on it?

Sponge Bob

_Whimsical_ wrote: »

Does the channel that you're talking about broadcast scenic footage of Dublin and Galway and sometimes just a test card of colored bars with Ath Cliath written on it?

Yep that is the one and you have HD .

My yoke probably needs a rescan since TV3 launched this week, still has the old names stored.

cranky bollix

Sponge Bob wrote: »

It means you can now pick up Digital Telly in Galway ( nice crisp picture widescreen) as well as Analogue Telly (what we have had for 50 years ) on a proper modern telly. The analogue will stop working in two years anyway.

Many shops , most notoriously Lidl and Aldi , import UK Digital TVs with the wrong software for Irish Digital TV....meaning they cannot show a broadcast digital picture and are therefore not televisions although they could sell them as expensive PC Monitors I suppose

The digital signal is available in all of the City and East Galway, in parts of West Connemara ...not yet. Only east of a line from Oughterard to Ros a Mhíl pier.

RTE are already broadcasting HD Digital Tests IF you have the right telly. It is a proper 1080i picture not that 720p cack that is passed off as HD sometimes.

has this tv got DTT Irish digital - i dont see it anywhere in the spec
http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/5296417/c_1/1|category_root|Home+entertainment+and+sat+nav|14419512/c_2/2|cat_14419512|Televisions|14419667.htm

Sponge Bob

cranky bollix wrote: »

has this tv got DTT Irish digital - i dont see it anywhere in the spec
http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/5296417/c_1/1|category_root|Home+entertainment+and+sat+nav|14419512/c_2/2|cat_14419512|Televisions|14419667.htm

Most Argos TVs will not work properly here as Digital TVs , some will ( the LG range will I think) At the bottom of that link you see

"Please note that the digital and Freeview features of this TV are not available in the Republic of Ireland"

Look out for that line. Also read this note on claiming all your money back from Argos if you bought a Digital TV there since 2008 and it will not display the Irish picture. They should not be selling this crap here, disclaimer or no disclaimer.

I rescanned mine Whimsical and then it corrected the channel names and stored them. Thanks.

TerrorFirmer

On this topic, anyone know where I'd get a cheap older TV? Was looking for about a 28 or 32" for the kids at my girlfriends house (they have a big sitting room and the current 21" is ludicrously small), but as luck would have it, none for sale in Galway at all over on adverts....I guess I might have to just get a reasonably priced 32" LCD but for the moment, it'd suit better to just get an older one (it's on a deep stand in the corner of the room, so being flat screen isn't an issue).

Sponge Bob

TerrorFirmer wrote: »

On this topic, anyone know where I'd get a cheap older TV? Was looking for about a 28 or 32" for the kids at my girlfriends house (they have a big sitting room and the current 21" is ludicrously small), but as luck would have it, none for sale in Galway at all over on adverts..

Lots of people think there is no market for older CRT tellys...but there is . Why not put a Telly wanted 28 or 32 inch will collect ad on adverts ...and donedeal

cranky bollix

Sponge Bob wrote: »

Most Argos TVs will not work properly here as Digital TVs , some will ( the LG range will I think) At the bottom of that link you see



Look out for that line. Also read this note on claiming all your money back from Argos if you bought a Digital TV there since 2008 and it will not display the Irish picture. They should not be selling this crap here, disclaimer or no disclaimer.

I rescanned mine Whimsical and then it corrected the channel names and stored them. Thanks.

cheers spongebob, that one completly passed me by, thats shocking behavior from argos,

you would think that in ireland they would have just gone with the same system as the uk

TerrorFirmer

Sponge Bob wrote: »

Lots of people think there is no market for older CRT tellys...but there is . Why not put a Telly wanted 28 or 32 inch will collect ad on adverts ...and donedeal

I did, no joy, which surprised me!

fish fingers

O Connors on the Sean Mulvoy Rd do 28" crt widescreen's second hand. Well they're ex-rental, but its the same thing. I got a nice Panasonic 28" flat screen crt a few months ago.

TerrorFirmer

fish fingers wrote: »

O Connors on the Sean Mulvoy Rd do 28" crt widescreen's second hand. Well they're ex-rental, but its the same thing. I got a nice Panasonic 28" flat screen crt a few months ago.

How much did you pay if you don't mind me asking? That sounds like what I'm after

fish fingers

TerrorFirmer wrote: »

How much did you pay if you don't mind me asking? That sounds like what I'm after

I think it was around 120, don't hold me to that. The old memory is not too good. They have Black Diamond also, but try and get a panasonic if you can.

gerryo

Sponge Bob wrote: »

Most Argos TVs will not work properly here as Digital TVs .

If it says Freeview HD - does that make a difference?

Even though Argos say the digital features do not work, ISTR reading somewhere that Freeview HD might work here.

I think freeview HD is MPEG-4 AVC Level 4.

Sponge Bob

gerryo wrote: »

If it says Freeview HD - does that make a difference?

I think freeview HD is MPEG-4 AVC Level 4.

If it says "Freeview HD" not Freeview and HD separately then it does make a difference. Argos have a number of these in stock and they can work here. If you order a French TV from Pixmania ...and they are damn cheap, make sure it says "TNT HD" somewhere in the specs ...it is usually a graphic beside the picture. These generally work here because TNT HD uses MPEG4 as well. Course the menu could be in French

Freeview and TNT on their own will not work here, simples.

However you are at risk of dodgy firmware ( the software inside) that will not work here or else does peculiar things if you set the TV up as if it were in the UK or indeed France.

Fortunately there is a special thread on Boards where you can search for these models and where you can ask about a specific model before you buy. Remember that a single letter or number somewhere in a VERY long model name will make the difference betweeen it working and not working, it is that specific.

A very good example is Panasonic models where generally ones ending in L will work and generally ones ending in B will do weird things ..or not work at all.

Search this thread first and if the model is not already mentioned then ask. If you have a TV working perfectly and displaying the RTENL test channel as well thereby proving it will do HD in Ireland, then add the information to the special thread to save someone some hassle in future.

This is the thread

Sponge Bob

Lots of people have older TVs and out of subscription SKY boxes that only do SD and they may wish to upgrade some or all of them in future but not quite yet. This unit below is the best deal around for them given all its features.

It will pick up all standard and high definition channels from RTE and Satellite(s) and will record programmes to a USB output ( hard drive or stick) as well. Costs €169. Great all in one unit.

It is not a substitute for a subscription SKY box, it will not take the card.

http://www.saortv.com/shop/Digital-TV-Receivers/Combo/Edision-Argus-mini-2-in-1-IP-Combo-HD-Satellite/DTT-Receiver/prod_72.html

cranky bollix

so my friend got a 32" samsung mpeg 4 tv today from did electrical. i did a scan for digital channels but nothing came up, no channels at all.

now, i may have been doing the scan wrong or something, im not quiet sure, but im gonna give it another go later on.

is there a particular setting i need to have it on, in order to pick up the digital channels

the house is located in castlawn heights, is digital tv available in this area

all help is very much appreciated

Sponge Bob

Possibly the digital tuner is not automatically turned on in an Ireland profile. There is a transmitter in Tonabrocky only 2 miles away at most. If you change the country to UK does the tuner come on and do the channels stay there if you change back to Ireland??

Digital is called DVB-T and is there a DVB-T menu anywhere ?

Samsung and LG, in fairness to them, supply regular firmware upgrades for their tellys and perhaps you should look for one and download it to a memory stick or SD card and bring it with you .

cranky bollix

Sponge Bob wrote: »

Possibly the digital tuner is not automatically turned on in an Ireland profile. There is a transmitter in Tonabrocky only 2 miles away at most. If you change the country to UK does the tuner come on and do the channels stay there if you change back to Ireland??

Digital is called DVB-T and is there a DVB-T menu anywhere ?

Samsung and LG, in fairness to them, supply regular firmware upgrades for their tellys and perhaps you should look for one and download it to a memory stick or SD card and bring it with you .

thanks for the tips, ill follow up on them later

Sponge Bob

OH! and does he have an aerial ?

cranky bollix

Sponge Bob wrote: »

OH! and does he have an aerial ?

aerial? i assumed it was built in

Sponge Bob

Bring a coat hanger

Discodog

If you are buying anything for a specific purpose get the retailer to confirm that it will serve this purpose. Ideally do this by email as you will have a copy. If not ensure that you have a witness. This way you can then return it for a full refund.

By the way if anyone is looking to replace a Sky+ box with a free to air alternative the Foxsat PVR is superb & gives HD as well.

Amik

An update on my end:

I'm still on the lookout for a good 32"+ but in the meantime bought my daughter a lovely 22" Grundig for my kid's room:

http://www.argos.ie/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Search?storeId=30001&catalogId=1500002451&langId=-1&searchTerms=grundig+22

It's not in the Argos print catalogue, but there is a 19" version in the Christmas catalogue. Great colours and it has a built-in DVD player! I've never been disappointed with anything this company makes, my Grundig MP3 player lasted almost 6 years!

I almost bought the Hanspree 32" at N17 but was turned off by the 8.6ms reaction time (I think that's what it's called).