You might not envision spending thousands of dollars on a ticket to Sunday’s Super Bowl, but you can still grab a sweet deal on a 55-inch TV and get a 50-yard-line-view from your couch.

Consumer website DealNews.com says the best deals are on 55- and 60-inch HDTVs.

“Get the biggest screen size you can afford and accommodate because you’ll have less incentive to upgrade later,” says Louis Ramirez, the site’s senior features writer.

If you want the best value, start with at least a 55-inch LCD model, with 1080p resolution, Ramirez says. Some retailers may be selling older 720p resolution sets, but these often are not the best deal with 1080p the current standard. “There is no point in buying something outdated,” Ramirez says. “The savings are not going to be that great.”

A 55-inch model from a lesser-known brand, such as Best Buy’s Insignia, will cost between $547 and $649. A name brand set of the same size will run about $700, Ramirez says. You can upgrade to a 60-inch brand-name set for about $900 — not a bad deal considering just a few years ago these TVs were well above $1,000.

For the past two years, a 55-inch 3D set was considered the pinnacle of HDTV technology, Ramirez says, but customers just weren’t buying. Maybe it was the $100 3D glasses — a major expense for a large family.

The new push is for Ultra HD models, which have several times the resolution of prior displays. As a result, the price is narrowing between 3D and non-3D 55-inch HDTVs, Ramirez says.

If you must have 3D, look for a brand name 55-inch priced at or below $800.

In the smart vs. dumb HDTV debate, Ramirez says it is important to first assess what you want to watch — and how to receive it (as colleague Rodney Ho explains in this story). All 2013 big-screen TVs should have have built-in Wi-Fi and Ethernet connections for streaming content, and some brands have entered partnerships to support specific content from services like Vudu or Netflix. This may not be the case for 2012 models, so be sure to ask for specifics.

You may also choose to cut the cord as discussed in this recent post from Clark Howard.

Other considerations

You can find great HDTV deals in stores, but you may find even lower prices online. If you do shop online, look for free shipping, Ramirez says — unless you want white-glove delivery, which can run around $300. 

Brick-and-mortar retailers try to discourage “showrooming,” when shoppers go to a store to test an item before buying it online. But if you’re planning to buy online and are undecided about what to buy, it may be worth the time to compare different models in a store.

Once you’ve decided on the model, you need to consider a few other costs.

The No. 1 one thing you need for high-def viewing is an HDMI cable, says Ramirez.If you shop in-store, a salesperson may try to sell you a fancy — sometimes even gold-plated — cable that costs $100 or more. Ramirez suggests shopping online and paying no more than $10 for a plain HDMI cable.

Want to mount your new TV on the wall? Basic mounts run about $25 to $30. Motorized mounts allow you to change the TV’s position with a remote, but many start at around $150 or more.

If you’re not the handy type, plan on spending at least $100 for mounting. The costs of additional installation will vary, depending on your needs.

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