I can’t even tell you how many television recommendation requests I field. Unfortunately, I don’t always have a good HDTV suggestion, because I’m only paying close attention when it’s time for me to make a purchase. Generally speaking, I steer the less tech savvy/interested friends and relatives towards Costco (or similar) for whatever Vizio LCDs they have on hand. (Basically, what we did with Mom.) For those with a larger budget and higher expectations, I suggest Panasonic for plasmas or to find a Samsung LCD in their price range. However, if you’re looking for more specific guidance in higher-end sets, the HDGuru has compiled a top ten list of his current favorites:

• LG LH90
• Mitsubishi Diamond 249
• Panasonic G10
• Panasonic L S1
• Panasonic V10
• Panasonic Z1
• Pioneer Kuro Signature
• Samsung LNB8000
• Samsung LNB8500
• Sony XBR8

Two notes… First, not all of these HDTVs are still in production, although they should all still be available (somewhere) for purchase. Also, as sets have slimmed down, speaker size and audio quality have been sacrificed. So, for example, you’d probably want to use a receiver and external speakers (or soundbar) in conjunction with the HDGuru’s budget recommendation of the Panasonic G10 plasma (which starts at about ~$900). Whereas, my earlier generation 42″ Panasonic plasma has full sound at high levels built right in. (I don’t have a surround solution at the moment, but this set is destined for the bedroom.)

The highlight of CES 2009 for me back in January was the unveiling of Yahoo’s Internet TV widget platform. Given so many partner announcements (Intel, Samsung, Vizio, Sony, LG) and demos, I was hopeful we’d see a glut of Yahoo Connected TV products, including HDTVs and set-top boxes, by mid-year. Yet Yahoo’s Linux-based SDK hasn’t even hit v1.0 with fewer than three months left in the year. And the widgets that have been deployed are fairly basic. Internet-sourced info is a good start, but where’s the high definition Netflix and Showtime streaming video? The concept is sound, and inevitable at this point, but can we speed things up a bit? I’m looking at you Vizio, with that QWERTY remote. (See DirecTV and Verizon’s FiOS TV for different variations on widgetized television experience.)

Although the Star Trek holodeck always held great appeal (when it wasn’t malfunctioning and killing off lesser characters), many people reserve a bit more skepticism on the need for 3DTV. This has a lot to do with left-over images from the 1950s, but it also stems from the fact that 3D viewing still requires special glasses, which can be a minor annoyance or a major headache depending on your particular visual cortex.

Possible consumer hesitancy aside, the CE and TV industries are now moving aggressively forward to bring 3DTV to a household near you. The latest evidence? According to a GigaOM Pro report, up to 46 million 3D-capable TVs will ship by 2013. There’s a lot of wiggle room in the words “up to”, but several elements determining this prediction are undeniable, including 3D box office success and the money being spent on 3D technologies by CE manufacturers like Sony and Panasonic. The ecosystem extends far beyond consumer television sets too. Motorola (my own employer) has been making noise lately about encoding advances designed to support 3DTV.

Unfortunately, the GigaOM Pro report doesn’t have any good news with regard to 3DTV viewing without 3D glasses. Autostereoscopic displays still use far too much processing power to make them practical outside the digital signage arena. In other words, the future is here, but it still requires glasses. Maybe this year I’ll stock up at Super Bowl time.

My pal Tim has been mucking about in the newish DirecTV widget platform and, based on his video above, isn’t all that impressed. (Which may be partially attributed to DirecTV’s house brand of DVR which doesn’t function as smoothly his former DirecTiVo models. He’s just a little bitter.) While DirecTV’s “App Store” (Flickr, Twitter, weather, etc) seems too slow in his home to be usable, I prefer this on-box Internet app overlay experimentation to the connected television trend -  folks will purchase/upgrade their sets with much less frequency.

A Q4 2009 release has morphed into a second half of 2010 launch as, I assume, ZillionTV struggles to find distribution partners, perhaps feeling threatened by local broadcasters which don’t appreciate the studio-backed over-the-top video STB encroaching on their turf. I also assume their business plan of a free box streaming ad-supported content will be reevaluated… and then dropped.

Can’t say any of this is surprising, as it’s damn hard to launch a new “television” service. Just ask Sezmi and their “TV 2.0″ experience, which we first covered 5/08 and has yet to see the light of day. Or how about satellite-broadband hybrid XStreamHD, first revealed late 2007 and who canceled their 2009 CES press conference on Ben Drawbaugh (EngadgetHD) and I without announcing distribution plans or partners. (And most know that the current incarnation of TiVo, Inc has had a hard time retaining customers of what is arguably the premiere DVR.)

That’s not to say there’s isn’t room for success in this space, as it sure looks like networked gaming consoles and Roku (having moved hundreds of thousands of units) are thriving as secondary sources of video content. But my money’s still on the existing, entrenched cable and satellite providers maintaining their lock on the primary television service market.

For NFL fans, DirecTV is the television provider you gotta have. I’m sure many appreciate the expansion of the Red Zone channel to other pay TV services, but mine (Cox) isn’t one of them. Not to mention, given the Twitter buzz, Comcast’s implementation was lacking in many markets. No HD?!

DirecTV’s Sunday Ticket Super Fan package isn’t inexpensive – we’re talking like $400. But it’s hard to argue with the coverage. Access to pretty much every game – on television, PC, and iPhone. Including the Red Zone channel and a Player Tracker overlay to keep an eye on your fantasy team. (Mine’s not very good, although the Seattle QB+TE tandem paid dividends.)

I’m pretty sure my buddy Tim was mocking my lack of access when he sent pics of the Adobe Air Supercast (top) and iPod Touch (below) video streaming apps. However, even though I’m stuck with just the “local” games at home, my new wing place is also a Super Fan. And we managed to catch the Eagles while someone else cleaned up after us.

Netgear Entertainer Live ($150)

The new Netgear Entertainer Live (EVA2000) was originally announced as a VuNow platform device at Netgear’s CES press conference back in January. At that time, I saw the unnamed Netgear product demo-ed using VuNow’s non-distinctive hardware, but has since been repackaged with some left over Netgear router enclosures. In addition to YouTube and CinemaNow VOD access, and unlike Roku’s similar small box solution, the EVA 2000 is also capable of streaming a wide variety of local media. PlayOn is supported (and offered at a discount), but that PC-based software hack is only interesting until Hulu drops the hammer (technically or legally). However, this $150 box should gain a bit more traction than Verismo’s VuNow with the Netgear brand and retail relationships.

LG BD390 Blu-ray Player with Vudu ($400)

Vudu continues to execute on their hardware diversification strategy as LG announces a network upgrade to their existing 802.11n-capable Blu-ray player. The smooth Vudu experience and extensive HD video-on-demand library joins Netflix on YouTube on the well-regarded connected BD390. While the $400 MSRP may seem a bit steep for what it offers and compared to the Sony unit below (or the $300 PS3), this box can be found online for significantly less. We’re hopeful of taking a look at a review loaner in the near future.

Sony BDP-N460 Blu-ray Player with Bravia VOD (~$250)

Sony just unveiled a new Bravia-connected device at CEDIA. The BDP-N460 Blu-ray Player will be available in October “for about $250″ and features “Bravia” Internet services, including video-on-demand, YouTube, Slacker, and Netflix streaming. While it doesn’t incorporate the type of wireless connectivity found in the LG BD390 above, Sony’s upcoming model sure looks aggressively priced to boost holiday sales.