My wife and I own a 100 year old home. As such, when tax return time comes around, most of it goes into home improvements. This year however, I've convinced her that we need to do some upgrading to our media system and she (for once) agrees. She's leaving it up to me how to do it but I'm torn between two options.
1) Buy a new 65inch Mitsubishi DLP television ($1500 with stand)
2) Buy two Xbox 360s and basically make it so that all 4 TVs in the home will be run by media center.
The Xbox route is certainly cheaper since one of them would be an Arcade version and the other the 60GB Pro ($500 for both). I don't need an Elite. The media center PC would move to the living room, and then an Xbox on our bedroom, and Xbox in my sons' playroom and this would allow me to move a PC running Win7 into the kitchen and have TV there. This would also free me up a main Xbox just for gaming.
The TV option is a good one and not a bad deal, but my current TV, while older, is a 57inch Toshiba. It's not perfect (no HDMI) but it works and I can't really complain. I only paid $300 for it. Plus I figure it this way: If I get the Xboxs then I can always get the TV when this one dies. If I get the TV, I'm not going to have a chance to get another Xbox for awhile.
One other thing is that by going to Xbox route, I can also install my OTA antenna which will cut out $50 a month for cable thereby paying for a new TV relatively quickly...
Please help me figure out what I should do here!
Thanks guys!
PS: I'm starting to wonder if I get the TV if I could sell my current set for $500 and cover the xboxs???
I think the Xbox's would make your system more flexible so that would be a route I would go
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Thanks for the input Ian. Something else I'll have to get if I go that way: I'm going to need an 8 port Wireless router. Can anyone suggest a good one? I like Netgear myself, and I don't need Wireless N since all three laptops in the house are G.
I'm with Ian, go for the extenders for the flexibility. Also your TV is already TOO big and I'm jealous!
I love my 57! I do want to step up though. We never go to the theater to watch movies so this is our theater. Much nicer this way.
I lean more towards the 360s every day...
I've only got at a 20....32" HD in the January Sales...
I'm really hoping that the price on DLPs starts to drop a little more soon. More TV for the money that way. I wouldn't mind an LCD but I don't want to step down in size for my main viewing room.
I think your reasoning is sound for going with the x-boxes. 1. you are happy with your current tv and 2. if you get the x-boxes and the Toshiba brakes, well you're going to get a new tv any way ;-).
If however you do really want to get something out of a sale of your Toshiba then I think it's now or never because even DLP's are on a very swift decline. I'm in the market for a tv too right now and going into the big box stores to browse the plasmas and LCD's are front and center but rear projection are relegated to farthest or least traveled section of the tv display area and the selection is slim at best. So it's clear the shift away from DLP is very strong this holiday shopping season.
Have you considered using HomePlug AV (200mps Powerline) rather than WiFi.
I've found it much more reliable for transmitting HD signal and is easiily as cheap as buying wifi adapters for Xboxes and a wireless router.
Also with the current prices of the Linksys extenders you could probably buy two of theose and still get the new telly.
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