CNET's TV buying guide

Televisions are expensive beasts, but they fall into a few distinct price categories. Here's a cheat sheet that'll help better align the set of your dreams with the reality of your bank account. Note that these prices reflect the latest street/online price as of this writing.

TV price brackets: Less than US$300 | US$300 to US$500 | US$500 to US$750 |  
US$750 to US$1,000 | US$1,000 to US$1,500 | US$1,500 to US$3,000 | More than US$3,000

WHAT YOU'LL PAY		WHAT YOU'LL GET
Less than US$300		Curved tubes: up to 32 inches Flat tubes: up to 20 inches LCD: up to 17 inches
US$300 to US$500		Curved tubes: up to 36 inches Flat tubes: up to 27 inches LCD: up to 20 inches
US$500 to US$750		Curved tubes: 32 or 36 inches Flat tubes: 27 or 32 inches HDTV tubes: 27 inches LCD: up to 22 inches
US$750 to US$1,000		Curved tubes: 36 inches Flat tubes: 32 or (some) 36 inches HDTV tubes: up to 30 inches wide-screen CRT rear-projection: up to 51 inches LCD: up to 32 inches
US$1,000 to US$1,500		Flat tubes: 36 inches HDTV tubes: 32 or 36 inches, or 30- or 34-inch wide-screen CRT rear-projection: up to 61 inches LCD: up to 32 inches
US$1,500 to US$3,000		HDTV tubes: up to 40 inches CRT rear-projection: up to 65 inches LCD: up to 40 inches DLP, LCD, LCoS rear-projection: up to 62 inches Plasma: up to 50 inches
More than US$3,000		Plasma: 42 inches or larger DLP, LCD, LCoS rear-projection: 46 inches or larger LCD: 40 inches or larger