OK I have a couple things I've been looking into and each will set me back $1,500 - $2,000 and I want them all but have to choose just one. Here are my options listed in random order not by preference. A. Pool Table - I can get a good used slate table in this price range and I really want one for our upstairs game room. I've had one before and play quite often if I have a table available. I can also teach my kids to play but my wife won't play much at all. B. Pool Heater - We have a pool in the back yard. We swim everyday in the summer and would swim year around if the pool was heated. The down side here is an increase in my gas bill every month in the winter. The kids and I will use it often, the wife not so much. C. Flat Panel TV - I'm not talking about a monster plasma but something nice and thin in HD for downstairs. We have a 47" HD rear projection upstairs in the game room which has a great picture but I'd like a nice TV downstairs in the main room so I can enjoy the fire place while watching football and basketball. The kids will enjoy it, I'll enjoy it and the wife will use it more than the pool table or pool heater. OK, so what do you think? Which should I go for? Other suggestions?
Tough call. Even though the best price on this is still about $600 more than you care to spend, my Wired magazine came in today with a separate mag dedicated to reviewing the latest tech gear. This thing got the highest rating possible (and I can't remember anything else in any category that was rated this high): http://www.infocushome.com/amer/eng/products/microdisplay/61md10.asp
I'd go for C because if you watch TV a lot, you'll be saving on the energy as opposed to the 30" CRT TV (think 150 watt lightbulb when on and 30 watts on standby). Plus it looks sexy and HD sports is a world of its own. Pool table would be a second option, but the room that holds it doesn't have the arm space on corner shots, it gets to be a pain at time. Plus, depending on the age of your kids, I'd rather just buy one in the classifieds (as low as 500) and refelt the thing. By knowing flat panels are lowering in price, proper location, and fortunate timing you can get a real good deal on a set. My father bout a 52" RCA DLP widescreen for $899 at Costco after coupon. By spending some more effort on prices (try fatwallet.com forums for the bottom ceiling on your target set), you can possibly get both A and C under $2,000 while getting what you need most from both of them.
A. A pool table is nice but after awhile you just don't have the urge to play anymore. We have a billiard table upstairs and I don't think I've played on it in months. Also, as someone stated earlier, make sure you have room in your game room to fully extend your cue stick. You might also want to move your projection TV out of there if it's in the same room because balls sometimes go flying. B. Pool heaters are nice but it's a seasonal thing, and do you really want your kids out swimming when it's cold? Of course the water is warm but your head is freezing! C. IMO, if you are dead set on choosing one, go with the flat screen. It will open up space in your living room and bring enjoyment for everyone.
I'm assuming your wife likes to watch TV. She doesn't play pool or swim much, so I would compromise. Buy the flat screen, but put it in your bedroom so you can watch XXX movies with the wife, and she can watch Disney on it with the kids during "quality time," before they go to bed. Then you can have some quality time. Install a video camera in your ceiling and use the TV as a monitor?? The possibilities are endless. Buy the pool table later, after she's clearly happy with everything. Pool heater? Wait until next year... perhaps gas will be cheaper. (hey! you asked for suggestions!)
The pool table and the pool lead to an active lifestyle. Much better for the kids than having another idiot box for them to stare at endlessly. Anything but the TV. (and yes, I am a hypocrite bc I blew my "mad money" on a 42" LCD, but I live in a 700 sq ft box in a the city...no room for a pool)
Yeah, we got trouble Right here at clutchfans With a capital "T" and rhymes with "P" And that stands for pool... ping pong is cheaper and more fun than pool...
