LG 39 inch TV $314 // TCL 40 inch TV $278

Two TVs with good price.

LG Electronics LN5300 39LN5300 39-Inch LED-lit 1080p 60Hz TV is $314 now at amazon.

TCL LE40FHDE3000 40-Inch 1080p 60Hz LED HDTV (Black) is $278.

I wish I wasn't unemployed, arrghhh!

wow. thanks for the link!

Hmm.. that LG 39 does 4;4;4 chroma.. that could be a good pc monitor possibly

Weenis said:

Hmm.. that LG 39 does 4;4;4 chroma.. that could be a good pc monitor possibly

Click to expand...

I had bad experience with my set and returned it. Visually, it just didn't compare to my 6 year old failing Westinghouse 37".

My experience was exactly the opposite: I love the 39LN5300 and for me it tops both my Westy 37 v1 and the LK420 that I initially replaced it with. It has great colors, stunning blacks, and amazing motion. Additionally, the bezel is about 1/3 the size of the aforementioned monitors.

I am sitting here agonizing about whether to get two more for EyeFinity while they are this inexpensive.

Edit: and I did.

In for one. Thank ya much

http://hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1039948156&postcount=6435

There is the post with some pictures from the set I returned. Even from the same 3.5' distance that I had my Westinghouse, the screen was washed out due to the viewing angle on the edges

another person farther down in the thread said they returned it because it wasn't as good as the Westinghouse too

I spent a lot of time trying to calibrate it -- at least amazon has free returns but it was a pain

Just drove down the street to Fry's and got a price match. The guy, his manager, cashier, and receipt checker were all like "holy crap".

FYI, if you don't have Amazon Prime, they include shipping in the price match.

How's the 40" TCL?

I've got a 22.5" tall space that i'm looking to fill with a TV, and the TCL height is 22.2". I'm assuming that's with the stand otherwise i'd be SOL. The LG height is 23.1 so no dice on that.

EDIT: Just saw on the TCL site that that's the height w/o stand. height with stand is 24.4".

Yeah, there is a huge community of people that replaced their Westys with this new LG 39" It's an amazing set and for the money it's just a fucking incredible smoking deal.

It has a very thin bezel and people mistake it for a PC monitor, not even a HDTV.

Sooo tempting. I don't need another TV or monitor, but damn...

What's really funny is that the 32" is more expensive than the 39". I guess PQ would technically be better on it, but the 39" seems to be the sweet spot!

SixFootDuo said:

Yeah, there is a huge community of people that replaced their Westys with this new LG 39" It's an amazing set and for the money it's just a fucking incredible smoking deal.

It has a very thin bezel and people mistake it for a PC monitor, not even a HDTV.

Click to expand...

SixFoot -- Did you ever post more pictures of your setup? I had purchased a LG 39" after your posts in the other thread, but the quality was so bad vs my westinghouse... I'm not sure if I got a different panel or something.

link to huge community that replaced the westy? My Westinghouse is becoming susceptible to burn in these days. 39" seems too big though.

i just pulled the trigger.. got one. 344$ after tax and fees. should be here two days but was it a mistake? tons bad reviews on it turning off. Not sure if was mistake but 315 sounded good for LG ;/

Justintoxicated said:

link to huge community that replaced the westy? My Westinghouse is becoming susceptible to burn in these days. 39" seems too big though.

Click to expand...

Should be somewhere in here. I skimmed through it and someone hinted at the 42" being the best option...will try to read through it more thoroughly tomorrow to really get a feel for what's what.

Also a [H] thread here...

Sounds like the 42 has a better chance of being IPS, while this is will be MVA. Isn't the westy MVA though?

If you get one with a Y in the code 4th from the end it will be a IPS monitor. However, people seem to be happier with the MVA panels on this tv, but it might depend on the batch. reports of darkening around the edges in both models but seems to be more prevalent in the IPS version.

I'm just not sure if I want another 1080 screen, feels like it's time to go to a higher resolution, but I would miss the size of the westy for sure.

Weenis said:

Hmm.. that LG 39 does 4;4;4 chroma.. that could be a good pc monitor possibly

Click to expand...

It's absolutely freakin great as a monitor!

Justintoxicated said:

Sounds like the 42 has a better chance of being IPS, while this is will be MVA. Isn't the westy MVA though?

If you get one with a Y in the code 4th from the end it will be a IPS monitor. However, people seem to be happier with the MVA panels on this tv, but it might depend on the batch. reports of darkening around the edges in both models but seems to be more prevalent in the IPS version.

I'm just not sure if I want another 1080 screen, feels like it's time to go to a higher resolution, but I would miss the size of the westy for sure.

Click to expand...

No 39" is IPS and the 42" has a chance of being IPS or VA. Seen both and prefer the colors of the non-IPS.

SixFootDuo said:

Yeah, there is a huge community of people that replaced their Westys with this new LG 39" It's an amazing set and for the money it's just a fucking incredible smoking deal.

It has a very thin bezel and people mistake it for a PC monitor, not even a HDTV.

Click to expand...

I've put this set side to side with my Westy and I've *never* gotten the PQ to look anywhere near as good as the Westy. Better than every other LCD display of this size and resolution? Yes; better than the PQ of the Westy? I can't even say it came close.

I still have the LG and I use it - for games it really doesn't seem to make much of a difference and it is a good set! But if there are any tips or places you can point me to get the most out of it, I'm all ears. I did the fiddling suggested by the AVSforums thread (I think that was it) two months back when I bought the thing, but still haven't had it take the Westy crown.

Sad thing is, one of my Westy's *just* died. Pretty sure it's the inverter, and I'm going to try to replace it, but it's a sad day to see one of those beauties die.

To think, I enjoyed eyefinity with them at one point!

I think the main thing to remember is that the Westy was a true monitor and was built as such; that's why it excelled at PC use. Pretty much every large mainstream display since then has been a TV, and while the PQ might come close, I don't know that you could ever match it. The Westy was glorious as a monitor; you could connect your PC via DVI and be set. No fixes or tweaks or workarounds were needed to make it look and perform great.

I still have one that I would be willing to let go of but I would think that shipping costs would make that prohibitive. I haven't had any luck on Craigslist because no one seems to care about what makes it so special (being a true monitor vs. a TV). They're obviously not [H]!

People complaining about PQ with the LG 39" clearly have defective sets as some people have reported. I actually have a mint Westy that has less than 20 hours on it that has sat in a spare bedroom for years, never moved around or banged, no excess heat, cold or dust and the PQ on it via a HTPC we have in there is good but not nearly as good as a new LG 39" that is basically 10 years ahead in tech from the Westy.

I have 3 of the new LG 39" 5300's in eyefinity, all sets are properly calibrated and they look freaking amazing.

You may be right, but it's hard to believe that that many people are getting defective sets, and if so then it's unfortunate that LG's quality control is that poor. Could also be due to panel lottery or some other anomaly, I guess. For the price, I'm tempted to buy one just to make the comparison myself...if I don't agree or get a defective set it's Amazon, so a return should be painless.

mastaBlasta said:

How's the 40" TCL?

I've got a 22.5" tall space that i'm looking to fill with a TV, and the TCL height is 22.2". I'm assuming that's with the stand otherwise i'd be SOL. The LG height is 23.1 so no dice on that.

EDIT: Just saw on the TCL site that that's the height w/o stand. height with stand is 24.4".

Click to expand...

It's a really nice TV for the price. We've been using it as our primary display in the living room for a couple weeks now. I'm no home theatre expert and we don't watch much TV, but it's bright, has good color accuracy and contrast. The only detractions are only two HDMI inputs, and lack of outputs.

The best thing about the TV, for our needs, was the weight. The TV is relatively thin and only weighs 22lbs and can be mounted pretty much anywhere.

FrozenLiquidity said:

I've put this set side to side with my Westy and I've *never* gotten the PQ to look anywhere near as good as the Westy. Better than every other LCD display of this size and resolution? Yes; better than the PQ of the Westy? I can't even say it came close.

Click to expand...

I agree with this, but I only had one of these so maybe I did get a dud? Honestly though, it was fine for gaming/movies/tv from farther away, but from the distance required to use it as a monitor like the Westy (~3.5ft) was impossible due to the crappy viewing angles.

SixFootDuo said:

People complaining about PQ with the LG 39" clearly have defective sets as some people have reported. I actually have a mint Westy that has less than 20 hours on it that has sat in a spare bedroom for years, never moved around or banged, no excess heat, cold or dust and the PQ on it via a HTPC we have in there is good but not nearly as good as a new LG 39" that is basically 10 years ahead in tech from the Westy.

I have 3 of the new LG 39" 5300's in eyefinity, all sets are properly calibrated and they look freaking amazing.

Click to expand...

Did you buy all 3 of your sets at the same time from the same place? I just wonder how so many people can have "bad ones" (maybe just a different panel) when you have 3 good ones. I don't doubt that you do for an instant if you had a Westy to compare them to. It was very obvious (even to my non-techie girlfriend) that the Westy was leaps and bounds better than the LG even after I spent 2 hours trying many different settings.

harmattan said:

It's a really nice TV for the price. We've been using it as our primary display in the living room for a couple weeks now. I'm no home theatre expert and we don't watch much TV, but it's bright, has good color accuracy and contrast. The only detractions are only two HDMI inputs, and lack of outputs.

The best thing about the TV, for our needs, was the weight. The TV is relatively thin and only weighs 22lbs and can be mounted pretty much anywhere.

Click to expand...

I have an Ikea Jerker that the Westinghouse totally filled up and even though the LG is 2" larger, it looked tiny in comparison. The size difference (bezels, weight, etc) are light years ahead of the Westinghouse, but honestly if I could buy a brand new Westinghouse right now for double the price of this monitor I wouldn't hesitate. I would pay $1500 for a 35-37" 2560x1600 or 2560x1440 monitor. Hell, I would absolutely LOVE a 2560x1080 if it was big enough (read: 42"+ http://www.displaywars.com/42-inch-21x9-vs-37-inch-16x9 )

And about the weight, I think you could even put one of these on an ergotron arm it is so light.

I went to hhgregg and they were willing to price match the 42 inch but not the 39 inch because the best buy across the street didn't have it in stock.
It was $319 for the 39 inch or $417 for the 42 inch so I ended up just getting the 42inch. I haven't hooked it up but I will check back in and give my opinions later tonight

anonuser said:

I agree with this, but I only had one of these so maybe I did get a dud? Honestly though, it was fine for gaming/movies/tv from farther away, but from the distance required to use it as a monitor like the Westy (~3.5ft) was impossible due to the crappy viewing angles.

Did you buy all 3 of your sets at the same time from the same place? I just wonder how so many people can have "bad ones" (maybe just a different panel) when you have 3 good ones. I don't doubt that you do for an instant if you had a Westy to compare them to. It was very obvious (even to my non-techie girlfriend) that the Westy was leaps and bounds better than the LG even after I spent 2 hours trying many different settings.

I have an Ikea Jerker that the Westinghouse totally filled up and even though the LG is 2" larger, it looked tiny in comparison. The size difference (bezels, weight, etc) are light years ahead of the Westinghouse, but honestly if I could buy a brand new Westinghouse right now for double the price of this monitor I wouldn't hesitate. I would pay $1500 for a 35-37" 2560x1600 or 2560x1440 monitor. Hell, I would absolutely LOVE a 2560x1080 if it was big enough (read: 42"+ http://www.displaywars.com/42-inch-21x9-vs-37-inch-16x9 )

And about the weight, I think you could even put one of these on an ergotron arm it is so light.

Click to expand...

I believe there might be a bit of a panel lottery with the LG 39" 5300's. I don't recall what the AVSForums thread indicated in terms of lots and panel types, but I think that it might be clear that there is some inequality going on here. I can't see your 5300's SixFoot, but if I took a close-up of my 5300 and Westy side-by-side, I imagine you'd see the same thing we're seeing. If you'd like, I can do this - in fact, I may anyway.

Feels like a bit of a thread hijack here, so to put this back on course, the 5300 from what I've used it for is great for games and at this price I am tempted to pick up another two - because clarity of text (where the westy seems to best everyone) isn't important on a gaming machine if that's all you're going to use it for. But the fact that yours seem to be leaps and bounds better than the Westy in every category either means you've got a good LN5300 or a bad Westy (or maybe I had a good Westy, and a bad 5300!) Either way, there's a discrepancy here where users of both the monitors are seeing different things when they compare their sets side-by-side.

I'd pay an arm and a leg for a 37-42 inch *monitor* that upped from the standard 1080p resolution and didn't have the annoyance associated with HDTV and having to overscan/underscan/just scan to display the image properly. I suppose I'm spoiled.

SixFootDuo said:

People complaining about PQ with the LG 39" clearly have defective sets as some people have reported. I actually have a mint Westy that has less than 20 hours on it that has sat in a spare bedroom for years, never moved around or banged, no excess heat, cold or dust and the PQ on it via a HTPC we have in there is good but not nearly as good as a new LG 39" that is basically 10 years ahead in tech from the Westy.

I have 3 of the new LG 39" 5300's in eyefinity, all sets are properly calibrated and they look freaking amazing.

Click to expand...

I've got to echo the sentiments from Anonuser here. Maybe I do have a defective set. I still have the UPC and other relevant information for the unit I have as well, so I can add some data to panel lottery figures if need be. One of the first things I did when I got my LN5300 was to throw the [H] up on both screens in clone mode, calibrate the hell out of it, and even then the visual clarity and sharpness of the Westy was never challenged. It's different for a game though, once you're in, you're rarely concerned with the smoothness of angled high-contrast text or other images. I mean, as a gaming monitor, I really can't say anything bad about the LN5300 - it's the desktop PQ that lags behind. Are you telling me when you're reading a PDF, or sitting there looking at forums that your LN5300 comes out on top in all categories?

I mean, I want the answer to be a big fat yes, so that maybe I can go out and win the panel lottery and have something that will suit my needs.

imyourzero said:

I still have one that I would be willing to let go of but I would think that shipping costs would make that prohibitive. I haven't had any luck on Craigslist because no one seems to care about what makes it so special (being a true monitor vs. a TV). They're obviously not [H]!

Click to expand...

Well, if you ever do, let me know. I'm a real sucker for them, I really am. I bought one from SixFoot and got another that was being sold locally while on a business trip and had to ship it to myself. It's not cheap, but in lieu of any suitable replacement, I don't see an alternative.

This is a nice tv, glad I found this thread and the one at avs last night. Watching hd tv on it is very nice, tune to hook the ps3 up to it and turn on avatar

I reviewed this set on on AVS forums which now has tons of posts and those guys over there are extremely in depth and passionate about this set and have put this set under a microscope more than once any way you can imagine. I think one guy tracked down the panel inside, where it was made, it's features, and even what other sets the panel was used in. Not sure exactly but something along those lines. Point being, this set was and still is under a heavy barrage of interest.

I would just have to see proof and no more about the people making these claims before I would even consider any truth to it. At a very basic level, yes I am sure a few people are having problems but is it because of their skill level, knowledge of the set and it's features and more importantly how to calibrate the set. I run into very passionate PC enthusiasts all the time with 15 - 20 years experience building high-end systems with closed loop water cooling setups and they absolutely know zero about using HDTV as a pc display.

To put this into perspective, for every complaint I see about this set, I see 10 - 15 - 20 people just being blown away. And of the handful of complaints I see if you read their problems it's almost always clearly a defect in the set.

For $300 this is such an amazing deal. LG is very very high quality. They don't do cheap, period.

Personally and I know I speak for many others, we love our large format displays and we don't cut corners to get here. The PQ is pretty amazing.

Sorry I have to LOL when I see people compare this LED 2013 display to a 10 year old Westy.

I call BS on some of it and the rest, take your set back and get a different one.

SixFootDuo said:

I reviewed this set on on AVS forums which now has tons of posts and those guys over there are extremely in depth and passionate about this set and have put this set under a microscope more than once any way you can imagine. I think one guy tracked down the panel inside, where it was made, it's features, and even what other sets the panel was used in. Not sure exactly but something along those lines. Point being, this set was and still is under a heavy barrage of interest.

*snip*

Click to expand...

Anonuser posted in that same thread over on the AVS Forums - and eventually returned his. I think anyone reading those forums should probably have a fairly good jumping-in point from the amount of information contained therein to get their display working as a PC monitor with the correct settings.

I don't doubt that the display is good, I'll admit that if I hadn't ever laid eyes on a 37W3, that I would be very keen on using these as monitors. I don't think anyone that has used one of these here is making the statement that they're terrible for use as PC displays. I kept mine, and am using it as a display for one of my PCs. At the same time, I did run these side by side and I didn't have the same results that you did. Given that we both own both of these units and are having different experiences throws up a bit of a flag. That's not to say that the results that myself, or others are getting are "BS", but rather as others in the thread over on the AVS Forums state, it seems to be a bit of a panel lottery. I'm going to revisit that thread and check my packaging to see where mine falls in this spectrum.

I'll also go back and attempt a side by side test with a Westy while running on different computers so the "cloned output" isn't a factor and I can tailor the settings on the PC attached to the 5300 to the most optimal settings I can find.

I will try to capture some images for you that detail the differences I am seeing when putting this display side by side with my current. Hell, maybe you can immediately pinpoint exactly what those of us having this issue are doing wrong, or maybe tell us our individual unit sucks. I *want* this display to be the replacement that myself and others are for, so I really *hope* that my unit is just a dud. I'm not holding on to my Westy out of some sort of misplaced loyalty or stubbornness.

Let's put it this way, if the display is a dud and I just got unlucky, it could easily happen to anyone else that was looking for a replacement for their 37W3 that had terrible burn-in issues, a dead inverter, or the myriad of other issues which plague the unit. They could just as easily taken their 39" 5300 home with them and set it up next to their 37W3 and came to the same conclusion.

So laugh all you want, but if there are duds out there, lets point them out so people know what to look for and can enjoy our big-ass monitor computing and gaming habits.

SixFootDuo said:

I would just have to see proof and no more about the people making these claims before I would even consider any truth to it. At a very basic level, yes I am sure a few people are having problems but is it because of their skill level, knowledge of the set and it's features and more importantly how to calibrate the set. I run into very passionate PC enthusiasts all the time with 15 - 20 years experience building high-end systems with closed loop water cooling setups and they absolutely know zero about using HDTV as a pc display.

Click to expand...

SixFootDuo -- I am an engineer and computer enthusiast and have been building systems for 20 years. I promise you that my set, even when calibrated, was not even close to as good as my Westingouse 37". I have seen others post similar results. I agree that a lot of people loved the set, but I've also seen a fair share of people who had problems like me.

My main issue was the viewing angles. The screen was darker at the edges/corners sitting ~3.5ft away while the Westinghouse displayed none of these issues. If I moved ~5+' or more away they were alleviated, but that is too far for a computer monitor. Also, the PQ just wasn't quite as good as the Westinghouse.

I have to agree with FrozenLiquidity about bringing this to people's attention. Definitely buy it somewhere where you can return it in case you run into the same issues. I am almost considering buying another one and hoping that it's better, but I'm on the fence.

SixFootDuo -- Let's see some pictures of your triple 39" setup already!

I don't think anyone is necessarily in the wrong here, because with all of these people posting their thoughts on the units you have to take into account different levels of experience (as Six pointed out), different levels of expectations, possible defects and/or panel differences, etc.

That being said, I am in agreement with FrozenLiquidity about the Westy's outstanding quality as a PC monitor. I've seen and experimented with quite a few HDTV sets over the years (not nearly as many as some people on AVS) and none of them held a candle to the Westy as far as desktop PC use and text clarity. When I bought it, I thought it was cool that not only could I connect my PC to it and not give up *anything* in terms of quality, but it would also serve as an HDTV (minus the tuner, of course) for my other consoles, DVD & Blu-ray player, etc. that I might have and they would all work seamlessly together. Now, several years later, I have no doubt that the Westy has been surpassed in most respects and newer sets work better for those "other" devices. But I'm still not convinced that they surpass, or even match, the Westy in terms of desktop PC use (not counting gaming, as obviously newer sets will have less blur, better black levels, etc.).

Let me be clear. I think the LN5300 is probably a great unit. One of the best in recent years, even. I'm sure it's awesome for television, fantastic for movies, great for X360 and PS3, etc. I don't doubt that it does all of those things very well. I also don't doubt that it's one of the better units to pair with a PC, out of the various LGs and Samsungs and Panasonic and Vizios that have been released throughout the years. But some current and former Westy owners are having a hard time agreeing that it serves as a better PC monitor than the Westy, and I don't think it's fair to write them off just because you're happy with how yours looks...

I just think that every now and then, someone stumbles onto a product like this and it becomes the hot new thing that everyone buys and gets excited over and sometimes for good reason. But I've seen this happen before and I've seen the results not live up to the hype. Shortly after I purchased my first Westy, someone on [H] posted a thread about some new Sharp Aquos 32" (I can't recall the model) that they bought and claimed that it just blew their Westy away in every regard - motion, clarity, black levels, contrast, color, etc. etc. Well, I bought into the hype and purchased the exact model and had it side by side with my Westy. While it was a good display in its own right and did some things very well, I kept the Westy because it was unsurpassed as a PC monitor, where I spent the majority of my time.

In some respects, this doesn't surprise me. I simply don't see how you can expect to purchase an HDTV with a tuner and a million whiz-bang features and expect it to match a dedicated PC monitor. You can go through great lengths to disable much of that extra processing, and it's great that sets like the LN5300 give you that option where others are more restricted, but I still think you end up sacrificing something on the PC level. They have PC modes that affect things like input lag and maybe text clarity, but the fact is they were built first and foremost to be TVs, not monitors. And that goes back to my original statement that the Westy, even with its faults, was purpose-built as a PC monitor with none of that extra junk to taint the experience. And it did it incredibly well. It has been surpassed on a technical level in probably any other area but that, but for that one thing, I believe only other PC monitors surpass it...and the vast majority of them are smaller. So you give up screen size to gain resolution, better motion clarity, better blacks, etc.

In the end I think the LN5300 is at or near the top of its game and is certainly an incredible set for the price, assuming you get a "good" one or you can configure yours with all of the settings suggested by experienced owners. For an HDTV where PC use will be a primary factor, it's probably one of the best to come along in a long time, if ever. The Westy isn't even available anymore, and even if it was, some people would be willing to sacrifice its PC prowess to gain everything that the LG does better. I don't want to take anything away from the LG when it's such a fine performer, but let's not detract from what the Westy was and is known for doing best. I'm willing to concede that it's not the king of everything, especially in 2013, but give credit where credit is due!

edit: sorry for the novel and FrozenL, my Westy is available should you ever be interested. It's been sitting in my bedroom, powered off, for over 2 years and had no signs of the dreaded backlight issue when I last used it. I actually bought two, but I gave my SE to my father to use in his bedroom. The one I have is the classic one ($1,200 new, haha)

Thanks for the input imyourzero. Much appreciated. I'm on the fence on this one....I got bit by the hype bug several years ago by a pair of headphones over on headfi.

TypeO said:

Thanks for the input imyourzero. Much appreciated. I'm on the fence on this one....I got bit by the hype bug several years ago by a pair of headphones over on headfi.

Click to expand...

I'm just sorry to have cluttered the thread with a wall of text, but if the info helps anyone then it's worth it. As I said, I'm sure the LG is one of your top options today if you're looking for a big display at a very reasonable price that happens to work pretty well with a PC. The fact is, most people buying this (outside of tech forums) probably don't care one bit whether it works well with a PC or not. The fact that it does is a bonus. If you're mainly going to use it for TV/Netflix/consoles/some PC, this is a great deal. But if you're looking to use it as your primary PC display, for all I know it could be your best option out there these days. A few of us were just questioning whether it could best the king, and evidently some people who purchased this were left disappointed after reading the initial hype about it being as good or better than the Westy.

I too got bitten by the headphone hype bug on Head-Fi. You're right, the SAME thing happened all too frequently over there. Always a giant-killer or flavor of the month. It's been soo much better for my wallet to stay away from there and be happy with what I have. I know there are better cans, but many of them excel in some areas and sacrifice in others. It's much less expensive to not spend copious amounts of money chasing that perfect set or Next Greatest Thing because it's all totally subjective. All too often, others rave over something while you're left feeling lukewarm.

imyourzero, well thought out post

Wy Westinghouse is suffering from the backlight bleed / dark zone issue and I'm still using it because I just haven't found anything good enough to replace it! If you knew me personally, you would see how out of character it is to use it with this big splotch down the middle in darker scenes.
May have to pick up a korean 27", put it on a monitor arm, and swing that thing a foot closer than the Westy. I don't really see any viable alternatives and I've tried more than a few.

It is sad to know that a 7 year old discontinued monitor does what I'm looking for better than anything else.

Is anyone using this as hdtv/console tv? If so was wondering what settings you used. This is quite funny I'm color blind as all hell and my buddy that calibrated my last tv moved 2,000 miles away.

Looking for some tips on how to set this up for ps3 gaming and blu ray movies only

-I think we have a couple of different camps going here with completely different expectations. If you are looking for something more like a 27" 1600p monitor, you feel one way about the sharpness provided by the Westy over the LG. If you are looking for something more in line with a 1080p experience, the LG has characteristics that in many ways exceed the Westy.

Three things:
1) At the same resolution, the LG is 2" larger and not designed directly to be a monitor like the Westy was, although its a great one. At the same distance, LG isn't going to be as sharp, although mine is really pretty close with a few exceptions I couldn't calibrate out. Read the 4:4:4 thread for my experiences with both the LK450 and the LN5300. If you are looking for absolute sharpness, get something at a higher resolution than 1080p: You guys should be looking at 4k monitors/TVs, like the 39" Seiki.
2) The colors and motion on the LN5300 are absolutely hands down better than the Westy. I had significant black-color ghosting on mine and although I love the Westy still, the LN5300 is a much superior experience in that regard. Its also a much better-looking unit physically. I would never get 3 Westys for Eyefinity due to the 3.5"+ bezel gaps that combo would have. With the LN5300, its going to be a little more than an inch.
3)At this prince, the LN5300 is an absolute steal. $315 is approx. 1/5 what I paid for my Westy v1 in January '06.

Summary: the Westy was great in its time; it was a monitor sold as a TV but it was made on 2005 tech and no one will make something like that in less than 4k res again.

Rhinohelix and imyourzero, I'm in pretty much complete agreement.

The LN5300 is a fantastic all-around unit and I'm glad I have mine. It is perfect for watching media or playing a game in my living room, PC gaming, consoles, and the like. This is a great deal if those are your planned uses for them.

If you intend to use it as a PC monitor then you should have realistic expectations for it. At 39" , 1080p is not going to look nearly as sharp 1080p @ 27" - in my experience, it is a little less sharp than the 37W3 is. I think this is understandable and I don't feel that there's anything wrong with that either. It's just different, and built with a different objective in mind, with several generations of improvements behind it.

It is what it is, and the buyer ought to know whether or not they'll be picky about the sharpness of their tab flaps in Chrome (I know I am!), and whether that loss in DPI and the resulting "grain" will be a deal-breaker for them. So, if you're the picky sort, then buy it locally so you can return it if it doesn't float your boat. If you know what you're getting into, or don't intend to use it as PC monitor, then look no further.

For me, it can't replace my current 37W3 for all-purpose use, but that said, I am about to go fire up a game on my LN5300 right now.

wish it was still on sale. i'd get it

I could care less if one of you were an astronaut. If you have a problem, return the set or buy something else. I don't think we need big long stories of explanation here.

I've taken my 39" LG LN5300 to at least 7 Lan parties here in Kansas City, the set has been exposed to over, I'm guessing 2500 - 3000 people. I've seen the best of the best in terms of displays in a semi dark environment which obviously would be the idea lighting situation. I would put my display up against anything for the size, PQ and cost. Hands down the best money you will ever spend. It's actually almost to the point that I hate to take the set because I am constantly interrupted to answer questions along with being told, "awesome display!"

The proof is in the pudding.

Apparently a few people have defected sets, duds, ignorant in how to properly set up the set along with calibration. No one here doubts for whatever reasons you're unhappy with whatever. Guess what, you're the 1%. Most people are extremely pleased with their 39" LG LN45300 experience. Extremely pleased.

Some of you can twist this issue one way or another, continue your barrage of bias but at the end of the day I doubt seriously that anyone would take the complaints seriously. There is just too much extremely positive in depth feedback on this set to the point, as I said, I have serious doubts about some of the claims being made here.

Here's the thing. If spending $400 dollars on a Korean 27" feels better to you, go do that. Spending $1100 on a high-end 30" for Dell, then that is also another option. This set is for gamers who want to do a number of things. Save money A LOT OF MONEY, large display, thin bezel, small foot print. BTW, This set weights 20lbs people. 4:4:4 - LED, LG quality, I could go on and on and on. I will absolutely defend this set because for me personally, trying to game on a small as 21" - 24" or even a 27" is a crime against the gaming gods. Until you've seen Battlefield 3 on eyefinity across 3 x 39" displays you don't know what gaming is IMHO.

I am still basically like ... whhuuuuut? Srsly, don't like the set, just get out of here, go get something else. Be done with it.