insignia 32" TV - Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community

PIMking · 12-25-2009, 02:33 PM

So the future father in law bought me this tv for christmas. I did get it set up only to watch it for a couple of mins. So far it was SOOOO MUCH better than the 22" vizio that I bought for the bedroom.

its only a 720P and 60Hz tv but looks good to me. keep in mind the only HD thing I have is a xbox. I have directv and it looks great.

I'm thinking about getting another for the man cave so I have a two tvs in that room one for xbox and the other for tv and then a tv in the bedroom to fall asleep to.

what are your thoughts on said tv?

sclitheroe · 12-25-2009, 03:36 PM

I think I probably have the same model, which I purchased as the second TV for the basement, and I think it's pretty good too. Insignia is a FutureShop/Best Buy "house brand" I believe. I thought it looked better than the very cheapest LCD 720p TV's they had on display, but definitely not as good as similarly sized Sony or Sharp TV's. So a decent mid range TV at a great price, IMHO

Russic · 12-25-2009, 04:08 PM

I think budget HDTV's get a bad rap. If you're a videophile and are the type of person that can actually see subtle differences in things it may not be for you, but I like them. A friend of mine bought a 42" insignia and truthfully I can't tell much difference between it and my sharp.

PIMking · 12-25-2009, 05:38 PM

I only got to watch it for a couple of mins before I had to leave.

(heres the story)

went to the future father-in-laws opened presents and I had to run home (bout 2 miles away) to get the fiance some medications. So I take the tv with me and takes me like 3 mins to get it set up and turned on. get back to the house and she was like "what took you so long?" like they expect a 24 year old to not try to play with his toy.

It looked great for the time I got to watch it so I will watch it more tomorrow and if I like it then I will get another.

ken0042 · 12-25-2009, 10:42 PM

Let me preface this by saying that as long as a TV looks good to you; then that is all that really matters.

However I'm going to go against the grain here. I own two Insignia TVs. Both 15"- bought them about 3 years ago during BestBuy's counter of the Big 4 sale for $99 each. One is the TV/computer monitor in the garage; and the other is wall mounted in the main floor washroom. (Did that just because I could.)

Anyway- while these TVs were worth the money I paid for them, I can see the difference between these and Sony or Samsung TVs. The colours to me just aren't quite as crisp, and while watching sports I can also see the response time difference.

Now when I bought them they were 1/3 the price of a comperable name brand, and are still cheaper than anything I could get again today. For what I use them for they are excellent TVs; being placed in secondary locations. But given the choice of a $399 Insignia 32" vs. a $499 Sony 32"- I'd be willing to fork over the extra $100 if the TV is going to be used as a primary TV.

Raekwon · 12-26-2009, 12:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ken0042

One is the TV/computer monitor in the garage; and the other is wall mounted in the main floor washroom. (Did that just because I could.)

This is what its all about. I salute you!!

PIMking · 12-26-2009, 03:06 AM

I didn't pay for it. It was a christmas gift.

I'm watching the pianist right now and it looks great. not HD great but good.

we will see when I watch hockey on it.

plus I'm trying to figure out if I just need to get an HDMI cord or the xbox kit.

ken0042 · 12-26-2009, 09:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PIMking

plus I'm trying to figure out if I just need to get an HDMI cord or the xbox kit.

If your output device and your TV both have HDMI, get an HDMI cable. Go to monoprice.com or if you are buying one locally don't pay more than $10 for a 6 footer.

ma-skis.com · 12-26-2009, 03:12 PM

I read through a consumer reports and they rated the insignia brand as the best budget HDTV out there, not bad considering the price differences, I think my only concern would be the long term use of it after 3 or 4 years... I

although i'm sure sony and samsung are built to break in 5 years as well, how else could they stay in business, I remember my parents old zenith tv though, that lasted 20 years.

You Need a Thneed · 12-27-2009, 11:02 AM

3 years ago, when our TV was shot, I bought an Insignia 27" CRT TV to replace it, I couldn't believe how bad the picture quality was, I brought it back, and bought a Toshiba instead - which was FAR better.

I doubt I'll be buying an Insignia TV again, based on that experience.

GreenLantern · 12-27-2009, 11:09 AM

T.V.`s are just like a Woman.. if it looks good to you, nothing else matters.

Weiser Wonder · 12-27-2009, 12:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GreenLantern

T.V.`s are just like a Woman.. if it looks good to you, nothing else matters.

TVs are just like a woman, after a while they won't get turned on anymore.

PIMking · 12-27-2009, 07:13 PM

okay so far so good.

I cant wait to get HDTV on this thing.

Got a HDMI cable for the xbox and it makes a huge difference.

Daradon · 12-27-2009, 07:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ken0042

Let me preface this by saying that as long as a TV looks good to you; then that is all that really matters.

However I'm going to go against the grain here. I own two Insignia TVs. Both 15"- bought them about 3 years ago during BestBuy's counter of the Big 4 sale for $99 each. One is the TV/computer monitor in the garage; and the other is wall mounted in the main floor washroom. (Did that just because I could.)

Anyway- while these TVs were worth the money I paid for them, I can see the difference between these and Sony or Samsung TVs. The colours to me just aren't quite as crisp, and while watching sports I can also see the response time difference.

Now when I bought them they were 1/3 the price of a comperable name brand, and are still cheaper than anything I could get again today. For what I use them for they are excellent TVs; being placed in secondary locations. But given the choice of a $399 Insignia 32" vs. a $499 Sony 32"- I'd be willing to fork over the extra $100 if the TV is going to be used as a primary TV.

Agree, if it's working for you then that's all that matters.

But I bought and Insignia iPod dock/clock radio and am very disappointed with it. Needlessly complicated to set, sometimes doesn't seem to go off (no not just a setting problem) and really screwy features.

I'm never buying anything insignia again.

Hack&Lube · 12-27-2009, 08:15 PM

Insignia is the no-name house brand for Best Buy (it's their President's Choice lol) that re-brands different products. One experience with one Insignia product will not necessarily be the same as the experience with another.

The quality of their products will vary all over the map because they are just imported from Chinese companies and re-branded for Best Buy.

For an LCD TV, what is important is you figure out which particular LCD panel is in the TV that you buy as there are only a handful of LCD manufacturers in the world and they make the panels for everything.

The panels inside Insignia could be made by Sharp, LG, Phillips, etc.

PIMking · 12-27-2009, 08:29 PM

Well my fiance and her father are consumer reports nut jobs. So it got a great review from them.

nickerjones · 01-15-2010, 02:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hack&Lube

The panels inside Insignia could be made by Sharp, LG, Phillips, etc.

I just bought this maybe an hour ago. http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Insignia...&skuId=9299895

The panels are actually made by Samsung. Anyway I saw it on a wall next to a samsung 1080 and the pic was pretty decent comparingly. I have a samsung 46 inch 1080 and had a 46 hitachi projection. I got rid of the hitachi to make room for a new tv. I went with this mainly because of the price , which i actually only paid 657.00 bucks. I know they prob give it to everyone but since I am the highest reward zone member they said thats why i got the discount. It made me feel special lol....
secondly Insignia is the only tv brand right now that offers a 2 yr warranty on their Tv's. You can even buy another 2 yrs from bestbuy that includes a loaner program if they cant fix your tv that day.

Got it home out of the box and hooked it up... I turned it to NHLHD network and HOLY !!!!! It looks better than my 1080 LCD that I had in the living room. I was blown away. It is a nice TV , not the best but I was saying it is. However for under 700 bucks and double the warranty , I am extremely happy with my purchase....

2nd best thing , Now the 46 inch samsung gets to go to the sports room to play video games on WOOT WOOT!!!! LOL

GoinAllTheWay · 01-15-2010, 02:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ken0042

and the other is wall mounted in the main floor washroom. (Did that just because I could.)

You, sir, have raised the bar impressivley! My hat is off to you.

If I may ask, how are you feeding it a signal? Also, the one you have in your garage, how does it deal with the cold and what is its signal coming from?

ken0042 · 01-16-2010, 08:43 PM

The one in the bathroom gets an S-video feed from the main receiver. That way whatever is on in the living room also shows in there. It primarily gets used for Superbowl or NHL playoffs, so that works for me.

The one in the garage has coax coming off the main "trunk"- so I have access to most of the receivers in the house via UHF remote.

The main reason for the lack of an HD signal is the purpose of these TVs. They are pretty much secondary, and being only 15" it really doesn't make that big of a difference.

As for the cold weather performance; my garage is insulated and often heated, so most of the time the temperature in the garage does not fall below 0. However it does handle 0 just fine (as in no difference between 0 and +20.) I have fired it up in -15 once, and it maybe took a couple of minutes to warm up to the point that it could handle the change in picture.