Budget: Before you even start looking at HD TVs, work out a budget and then stick to it.  With your budget in mind, you can then see what size TV you can get.

Room Size: It's amazing how many people buy an HD TV without considering the size of the room they will be placing it in. If you have a tiny front room where the sofa is three foot away from the TV, buying a 50-inch HD TV not only will waste your money, but your experience will be unpleasant.

Use: Will you mainly be using your new TV to watch HD programming, or will it be a mix of SD and HD? If you will be using the TV for gaming, will you use the PS3 and Xbox 360, which have high resolutions, or the Wii or older gaming systems with lower resolutions?

Resolution:  HD TVs are rated either 720p, 1080i or 1080p.  720p is the lowest standard of HDTV which will be fine for most content but not for Blu-ray and other high-definition broadcasts. 1080i offers content at 1,920 x 1,080 pixels, but interlaced rather than progressively scanned, which means the odd-numbered and even-numbered lines appear alternatively.  The resolution is 1080p because it means the television is capable of displaying full-HD.

Brands: It's true about HDTVs--you get what you pay for.  Don’t buy an obscure, unknown brand and expect the picture quality or features to match up with a TV from LG, Samsung, AOC, Toshiba and Panasonic, the top-performing HDTVs.

Picture: The quality of the picture is probably the most key ingredient in buying the right HDTV. The best way to determine picture quality is actually viewing the television for yourself in a store.

Connections:  There are right or wrong connections your new TV should have--so make sure before you purchase an HD TV that it’s compatible with all of your current equipment!

Talk with Paul or another one of the knowledgeable Sims TV & Electronics representatives about HD TV.