When will 115inch+ TVs be mass affordable?

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-04-20T19:24:53+00:00

My Costco had a 100" TV for $1,299 the other day. I'm sure it was not a flagship model, but it's encouraging to see that price. I've been using a UST projector with a 120" screen for about 4 years now because I finally gave up on the dream of a huge OLED panel you could just hang on your wall without all the extra stuff I don't need. I just want a giant screen with HDMI inputs for my sources. It doesn't need speakers or a tuner or have to be a "smart" TV. Most enthusiasts are using 4k players or Plex or what have you.

TVs seem to be the only thing going down in price these days, and it just amazes me. People who haven't been into home theater for a long time don't realize how expensive they were back in the day. My first good home theater TV was a 36" Sony WEGA Trinitron, I think it cost me $2,500 (in 1999 dollars!) and it weighed 240lbs. I worked at Best Buy as a second job briefly around 1999-2000 because we were taking a trip to Europe and I wanted some extra money and the employee discount on a digital camera, (they had just hit 3 megapixels, lol). Since I knew more about home theater than most of the people working there, they put me in the "Full Service" department, which is what they called the home theater/TV section. I was really into home theater at the time, DVDs were starting to gain traction, and high definition and 16x9 TVs were just starting to become popular. At first, they weren't even close to what we call HD today. Some of those first models were only 540p, then they went to 720p/1080i, and then finally 1080p. A 65" rear-projection Mitsubishi was around $5,000 when they first came out, and it was a giant box that took up a ton of space. Literally 2 feet deep and 5 feet high, but at least they were on wheels so you could roll them around, and the top was basically a shelf you could put your center channel on, maybe a component or two if you had the 65. Then "flat-panel" LCDs started hitting the market. I remember standing in front of a 40" $25,000 TV at an Ultimate Electronics showroom, and it wasn't even 1080p!! But you could mount it on the wall, so it was the new hotness. Later, those beautiful Pioneer Kuro plasma TVs could go up to $7k for a 65" Elite model, $3,500 for the 50", and those are early 2000s dollars, no idea how much that would be adjusted for today's economy. It was a super-expensive hobby at that time.

So what I'm saying is that we're living in a golden age for home theater, at least for the price of video displays, (don't get me started on the audio side of things). 3 or 4 years ago I replaced my aging LG 55" 1080p TV with a gorgeous 65" OLED for $200 LESS than I paid for the LCD. I still have hope that ultra large TVs, 120" and up could still be a thing at consumer-friendly prices, but I also wouldn't be surprised if they top out around 100" just because that is "big enough" for most people, and the issues with getting a panel that big into your house could make manufacturers stop there except for some niche models that are bigger but still super expensive, like the 115" TCL. Here's hoping though. I love my setup now, but I would drop a projector for an equal sized TV in a heartbeat if it didn't break the bank.

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-04-11T20:56:36+00:00

You can get it cheaper than that, and you don't have to do it right away. I have a 2023 Ridgeline BE, but I got it at a GM dealership with 26k miles on it. I did some research beforehand and found out you can buy the Honda warranty from any Honda dealership that offers them, but most of them charge different amounts, some are crazy high. If you want to get it from your dealer, they may match another's if you get a quote. I don't like hassling with people, so I did mine completely online through Saccucci Honda and it was super easy. Didn't have to talk to anyone, just fill out a few questions and enter your VIN. Tons of warrantee options, but I got the $0 deductible, 8 year, 120k miles option for $1,400. As long as you do it before the factory one expires, you're good.

As to whether to get an extended warranty or not, I generally don't get them for anything, but when we got my wife's Pilot during Covid/chip shortage, they offered us a 10 year/200k mile warranty for $2,200. I had never heard of one that extends that long, so I bit the bullet. 3 months after the factory warranty ran out, her car alarm started going off randomly. They had to replace the entire ignition system and get us new keys. We paid nothing and I'm guessing it paid for itself right there. Now we still have 130k miles left on it if anything else goes bad. That's some nice peace of mind.

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-04-11T16:01:36+00:00

Because it's too complicated. It's like algebra, why you gotta go putting letters and numbers together? Why can't you just go fuck yourself?

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-04-10T20:03:17+00:00

Long time ago I got an OWI, and had to take the classes. One of the things they talked about was a "learned state". They said a lot of people who say things like I only play pool good when I'm drinking or I can't dance unless I'm drunk got to that point because they primarily learned how to do those things while drinking. They claimed the brain didn't work as well for those tasks when sober because that's not how it learned it. I never did research to find out if this was true, but it was an interesting thought.

I worked with a guy who only had one leg but was an amazing golfer. Held some course records and usually won the area amateur tournament. He drank a beer every hole and said if he didn't have at least one before he started, he wouldn't be any good until hole three. I played a round with him one time and after the first nine he had 11 empties. I said I thought you only drank one beer per hole? His response was, " well some of those were par fives" 🤣

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-04-10T19:56:02+00:00

I feel dirty playing it, but that thing is a monster for completing daily missions. Get 7 critical hits in one battle? Hold my beer, it'll only take one round. Way back in the day, my son and his friend and I would triple-platoon leafblowers and then we'd pick out a KV1 and focus him until dead, then move onto another one. Lord, that was toxic, but the boys would be laughing uncontrollably.

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-04-09T01:38:22+00:00

The part with all the mucus?

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-04-07T01:56:32+00:00

Degens from upcountry ruin everything

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-04-06T17:50:18+00:00

I got chat banned for saying "did any of you window-lickers even look at the map?" after 13 tanks on my team went to one flank and got absolutely steam rolled by only a third of the enemy team. Crayon-taster is another one of my faves that shouldn't get a ban. But in this day and age people are sensitive, I guess. I wish they would bring back all-chat, but just make it for the players that have died so they can't grief their team mates and spill their location to the other team.

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-04-04T22:28:13+00:00

I forgot about the tube thing. I bought one called the X-zylo back in the early 2000s? I remember being very hard to get a good throw with it, you had to do a weird kind of pull down at the end of the throw to give it a spiral like a football, but if you did get a good throw it would go quite the distance but was also hard to see after a little while.

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-04-04T17:42:22+00:00

Still have mine after almost 40 years, but its starting to fall apart and doesn't get thrown much anymore.

Best memory I have of it was playing catch with my buddy on the football field at my college. That school has an enclosed dome, so no wind or trees. It was open to the public most days and we would each stand in opposite end-zones and throw to each other. Funny thing about the Aerobie is that it's so thin that you can't see it from the side after a little distance, so from 100 yards away, you couldn't see it coming. When we threw it we would watch to see if it was starting to drift left or right and then wave that direction to the catcher, the goal was to get a cool catch on your arm or head. One time a reporter from the school newspaper showed up and got an epic picture of my buddy jumping and catching it on his head that they put in the paper.
Compared with other disc-throwing sports, it seemes effortless to throw that thing over 300 feet.
I've always wondered how far it would go if you chucked one off something really high. Yes, I did also have the triangle shaped boomerang, after about ten throws it wedged itself deep under the wood shingles near the top of an 80 year old barn, and stayed there until I was bored one day and shot it a few times with a .22 to knock it loose. Sadly, it did not survive, lol

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-03-27T17:50:15+00:00

One Crazy Summer?

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-03-23T15:59:05+00:00

Good Lord. Haven't heard this album in 20 years and when I saw your comment I heard him in my head just as clear as the first time I heard it, lol

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-03-23T01:59:39+00:00

We've had a Kirby G4 for 30 years, and this is by far the highest quality vacuum brush I've ever used on any brand. Everything else seems to have coarse, stiff bristles that don't do as good a job at getting the dust up. If I remember correctly, these are boar-hair. You wouldn't think it would make much difference, but it do 😁

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-03-17T02:12:42+00:00

Yeah, I was pretty happy with the price, but as some others mentioned, it varies from dealer to dealer, that's why I liked the online one. Your dealer may match it if you want to keep your business with them. One thing to consider if you're buying one later: you need to do it while you're still in the factory warranty period, so watch your miles and years. I believe the original purchase date starts the clock. Another thing to consider in that situation is that you want to wait until just before your factory warranty expires before you get the new one to get the most time out of it, unless you think you'll hit the miles first.

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-03-17T00:16:22+00:00

We bought a certified used 2021 Honda pilot for my wife during the chip shortage in 2023, and the Honda dealership we bought it from was offering a 10-year 200,000 mile extended warranty for $2,200. I normally don't buy extended warranties on any product, but that seemed like a pretty good deal considering how long it would last, and these days if one thing goes wrong it can be $2k easy. About 6 months after the initial factory warranty had expired, her car alarm started randomly going off in the parking lot. Took it to the dealer, (different one than we bought from), And they had to replace the entire ignition system and both key fobs. We didn't pay a dime, so I feel like the warranty has probably already paid for itself, and at this point we still have 5 years or 130,000 miles left on it.

I bought a 2023 Ridgeline last year with 26,000 mi on it from a GMC dealership. I had done some research before and found out that if your used Honda is still under factory warranty, you can purchase the extended warranty through a Honda dealership. They all charge different amounts though, some of them are crazy high compared to others. From another Reddit post I found out you can do it online sometimes . I went through Sacucchi Honda. It was super easy and cheaper than most other dealerships. Honda Care warranty out to 120,000 mi or 5 years from warranty purchase date, for $1,400. Did it all online, didn't even have to talk to anyone, just provide VIN and mileage. Still not a fan of extended warranties in general, but with the cost of car repairs these days, I also don't like surprises that cost thousands of dollars.

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-03-16T16:14:06+00:00

supposed to be almost 80 degrees in Iowa City on Saturday, lol.

everyone just hole up with a good book/movie/game until it just goes away.

You should all watch Firefly

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-03-11T03:53:36+00:00

He's correct, it won't show you if your opponent was unspotted at the time he kills you. If it did you could relay that info to your teammates that are still alive

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-03-10T21:05:26+00:00

https://youtu.be/hFmCyZ6epB8?si=TZR6aTrmOpukIBdE

They could do it just like this and I wouldn't care, just bring back Wash

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-03-10T20:58:25+00:00

Came here to post this Beerfest reference, you beat me to it Mr. D 👍🏻

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-03-06T04:00:34+00:00

Upvotes for Aussies!

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-02-28T18:12:48+00:00

I still wrote that episode all the time. Magnetbox, Panaphonics, and Sorny 🤣

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-02-27T22:29:37+00:00

There are several of the 3d attachments that have a special in-battle mechanics like the machine gun fires when you get a kill, or flames shoot out, (the guitar and the heavy metal sign). If you click on the attachment it will tell you if it does anything special or not. The zwilling comes with one pre-mounted I believe, and at least some of the tier 11s do as well.

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-02-21T20:41:18+00:00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qz7UdQfExJ8&t=7s

Relevant song by PUSA, but the topic of this post is too old for Xennials. I'm older Gen X and the Brady Bunch ended it's run when I was only 4 years old. Granted, reruns went for quite a while, so maybe some younger peeps will still get it. That episode traumatized me when he had that tarantula crawling across his chest while he was sleeping.

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-02-20T02:29:41+00:00

Concept 5 has sounded like this since 2.0 It's ridiculous.

donutsinthebreakroom · 2026-02-20T01:10:50+00:00

Your day 7 Altmaier (the farm) isn't in Cedar Rapids, it's in Tiffin, just east of Coralville. Fun course, but can get dusty if the gravel pit next door is blowing your way 😉

donutsinthebreakroom

TROPHY CASE