Where to buy DUAL-TUNER LCD TV in London?

I am aware of the fact that in UK TV uses PAL standard and in the US we use NTSC. However, I am trying to find out if any of the LCD TV sold in London have dual-tuner, which means they can display both PAL and NTSC signal.
I.e. Plugging US XBOX / PS2 to UK bough LCD TV.

I have went to Currys and some other no-name store near New Oxford Street and I am getting different answer: Yes, ALL TV sold in UK are dual Tuner ... or ... NO, none of the TV sold in UK are dual tuner and I have to "special" order it.

I tried to get the model number of the TV I want and check it on the manufacturer website (Panasonic, Philips, etc.) but they didn't provide that information (??).

So can anyone confirm whether ALL TV in UK have dual-tuner capabilities? If not, can you recommend on where to buy such TV? I don't want to buy a TV from a store that "promised" that the TV is dual-tuner but then it turned out not to be.

FYI, I used to live in Singapore for about 2 years and even though they use PAL, ALL TV sold in Singapore are dual-tuner.

Okay...I can't give you any specifics b/c my DH did all of the work.  I can tell you that we bought a Sony LCD TV here (PAL) in November and my DH plays his US PS2 and now his PS3 on it just fine...just uses the appropriate converters for the PS2 and PS3.  I must have the dual tuner you're looking for.  We didn't have to special order it...it's like 57 inches I think...HD...it's not the 1080P one (no CLUE what that means but we would have had to wait for that one and pay twice as much)... 

If you want some other specifics PM me and I can have him reply to you...and Paul_1966 will probably chime in at some point...he's quite an electronics guru and will probably be able to give you all the info you need

Thanks, Kdunk27! I have 2 1000W step-down converter, so no problem plugging my XBOX, DVD player, etc. I'll PM you for the TV you have.

FOr the 1080p, that means the TV can display very high resolution image. Playing PS3 or watching HD movies on this type of TV will show really sharp image!

I am getting different answer: Yes, ALL TV sold in UK are dual Tuner ... or ... NO, none of the TV sold in UK are dual tuner and I have to "special" order it.

I think the different answers may be due to confusion as to what you are actually asking at the different places.   The tuner section of the TV is of no consequence if you are connecting baseband video signals directly.

If you have direct RGB or component video (Y/Pr/Pb) inputs, then many U.K.-market TVs will display the video signals just fine, whether 625/50 (British) or 525/60 (American) format.   Even sets which are not specifically intended to work with the "wrong" format will accept video in this way, because with component video you are bypassing all the issues of color encoding.

When you connect via either S-video or composite video, the signal is encoded to the appropriate NTSC or PAL standard, and thus the TV must be capable of decoding it.  Many modern sets sold here will accept NTSC video this way, but not all.   The specifications for the set should say "NTSC compatible via composite/S-video" or something along those lines.    Most of the more expensive large-screen sets available today are fine with NTSC video inputs.

When we come to feeding a signal in via the antenna connection and tuner though, it's a different story.  Few sets on the British market will actually accept an American signal this way.  So even though a TV will display NTSC video via its composite input, you would not be able to take that TV to the States, hookup an antenna, and watch local broadcasts.   This also means that you would not be able to use any video games etc. which hookup via the antenna socket (then select channel 3/4 or whatever).

Hi Paul,

Thank you for the detailed information.

I think the description of "tuner" may confuse the seller as you mentioned. However, when they gave me the "what are you talking about" look, I always mention the following afterwards:

1) Does the TV can display both PAL and NTSC signal?
...<if they're still confused>...
2) I have a US XBOX 360 and DVD player. They are NTSC. If I buy an LCD TV from you, can I hook up these 2 things and use it with the TV?

So I think I made it quite clear to the seller, but may not be clear enough. LOL!

The biggest problem is finding the TV that accept NTSC as you mentioned below. Both the store and manufacturer site do not advertise this. At one point, I was talking to the salesman of Curry's store and I asked whether I can take a look at the manual for the demo version (so he doesn't have to open a new box), and he said he can't do that. So how do I know which TV support NTSC? Maybe someone can tell me the model that meet my specs below and I'll buy the exact same TV:
- 32-37 inches LCD
- Samsung, Philips, or Panasonic
- Have S-Video, Component, SCART, and PC connector.

On a side note, I heard that in order to play US console, the TV MUST support NTSC 3.58 and have 60Hz screen refresh, or else it won't work. Is this true?

So I think I made it quite clear to the seller, but may not be clear enough. LOL!

It does sound as though you made your specific requirements quite clear with regard to connecting a game console and DVD player, but unfortunately some of the staff in these places have limited technical knowledge and can often not answer anything which isn't on the advertising sheet.

At one point, I was talking to the salesman of Curry's store and I asked whether I can take a look at the manual for the demo version (so he doesn't have to open a new box), and he said he can't do that.

That doesn't sound very helpful.  If he couldn't answer your question, then I don't think a request to look at the manual to check the specifications for yourself is unreasonable.   

- 32-37 inches LCD
- Samsung, Philips, or Panasonic
- Have S-Video, Component, SCART, and PC connector.

I've just had a quick look at the Philips website, and they do indicate whether models will accept NTSC video signals or not.

For example, here's a 32-inch LCD set which appears to meet your requirements:

http://www.consumer.philips.com/consumer/....../32PF5521D_10_GB_CONSUMER

On a side note, I heard that in order to play US console, the TV MUST support NTSC 3.58 and have 60Hz screen refresh, or else it won't work. Is this true?

Correct, assuming that the console will output video only in standard U.S. format. 

This relates to the scanning figures I quoted above, i.e.

525/60 - American.  525 lines per frame, 60Hz vertical scanning rate.
625/50 - British.  625 lines per frame, 50Hz vertical scanning rate.

These actually result in 30 or 25 complete frames per second respectively.

"NTSC 3.58" is a reference to the frequency of the sub-carrier which is used to convey the color part of the signal.  3.58 MHz is the regular American standard.   The reason that the figure is sometimes quoted this way is that there is another system commonly referred to NTSC 4.43.   This is a kind of hybrid system, using the basic American color-encoding method but adapted to work with the British 625/50 scanning system.  Its main use is in broadcast environments, so a TV which will display NTSC 4.43 but not NTSC 3.58 will be of no use to you.

If a specification says NTSC without the qualifying 3.58 or 4.43, then it's assumed that the normal American standard (NTSC 3.58) is meant.

Hope that explains it a little.  I'm afraid that the subject of international TV standards is fairly complex!


 

Thanks again for the information! Your technical expertise never fail to amaze me!

I went to http://www.samsung.com/uk/products/television/tftlcd/le26r73bdxxeu.asp?page=Specifications and they didn't advertise whether the model I want is NTSC / PAL. It just shows "EU Multi" under "Colour System". Funny thing is that the TV is rated for 110-240V, which seems that the TV can be used in UK / US.

I am going to check out Philips website and probably pay a visit to Sony Centre. Hopefully they're more helpful than Curry's. Sometimes I wish UK have megastore like Best Buy in US that have "specialist" in TV. LOL!

they didn't advertise whether the model I want is NTSC / PAL. It just shows "EU Multi" under "Colour System".

That probably means just PAL and SECAM, with a tuner which will adapt to the different channel allocations used in Europe.  So it's most likely PAL system I (U.K. & Ireland), SECAM system L (France), PAL B/G (just about everywhere else in western Europe).  It might cover PAL D/K as well (eastern Europe).   It's rather vague though.  I've seen some sets advertised as being suitable for "All of Europe" which don't include system L.  So they're really "All of Europe except France."    Some specifications aren't very helpful. 

Funny thing is that the TV is rated for 110-240V, which seems that the TV can be used in UK / US.

Not necessarily.  The power supplies within many modern TVs are designed in such a way that they'll run on this wide range of voltages.  Chances are there's a North American version of the set which uses the same power supply.

Incidentally, 127-volt domestic power was once found in several parts of Europe (certainly in parts of France, Belgium, and Spain).    Although conversion to 220V has probably taken place in most, there might still be one or two isolated places on 127V.