eedcam is being very cynical... :-) So-called LED TVs don't use LED technology to deliver the image: eedcam is right - they still use LCD technology. However, what the latest LCD TVs do is to use LED as the backlighting technology. (Previously, the technology that was typically used was CCFL - Cold Cathode Fluorescent Lighting). LED backlighting brings two important advantages to LCD TVs. One is that it is easier for the TV's processor to control, meaning - for the most part - better image quality. The other important advantage is that it enables TVs to be much slimmer/lighter - down from a few centimetres in depth to a few millimetres.

So far as resolution is concerned: yes, as others have said in theory, more pixels equals better image quality. Thus, a 1080 resolution TV - so-called full HD - will bring you 1,080 rows of 1,920 pixels. HD-ready will give you 720 rows of 1,280 pixels.

However, for smaller screen sizes - 32" is about the median point - it's moot whether you get any advantage from having more pixels. Certainly, at the 22-26" screen sizes, it would be hard to justify paying a premium for Full HD over HD Ready. For larger screen sizes, however, the difference can be very apparent. As eedcam has said: viewing distance will make a difference. If you think about it: a 32" screen with 777,600 pixels will need larger pixels to fill the area: one with 2,073,600 will need much smaller pixels to fill the same area. Thus, if you sit closer to the TV, the larger individual pixels will be more clearly visible, and thus the image quality will be impaired. Sit further away, and it makes much less difference.

As eedcam has said, though: resolution/number of pixels isn't everything. There are big differences in image quality between manufacturers. Typically, although not necessarily, you get what you pay for. More expensive TVs include additional processing that is designed to make the image look better - reduce motion blur, provide better contrast and so on.

That said: there's a lot of people out there who are very happy with TVs that would have critics crying into their beer...

One thing to look out for is that much of what is broadcast is still SD (standard definition) that has to be upscaled by the TV's processor so that it mimics an HD broadcast. Some TVs do a great job of this, others less great. For my part, before buying a TV, I would always want to see how good a job it did with an SD broadcast.

Oh, and one other thing. Purists will tell you that what you really need is 1080p rather than the much more common 1080i. The difference between the two is the way in which the image is delivered to the screen. With 1080i, it's interlaced, the screen is filled in two stages - odd lines, then even lines. With 1080p, the screen image is 'painted' all at once. The theory is that this gives a much smoother image. For those of us with normal eyesight, though, who don't spend £100 on HDMI cable, that can be a moot point.