I actually own the 30 inch sony. I first bought the samsung 26 hdtv but returned it. The sony has better black levels and more real colors. the sony also automatically switches between fullscreen and zoom. That doesn't sound like a big deal, but it gets annoying to switch back all the time. Basically, if you got the cash, go with the sony, but it is a close call. Also, both for me were crt, if you lookin at lcd it is different.
Also, I should note, no matter which brand you buy of crt, you are going to have geometry issues, but sony has much less noticeable issue of it.
I should add, if I were to do it again, I would probably go with an lcd just because of the weight. Sony weighs 150 pounds and very awkward (spelling) to carry. LCD seems very nice now seeing as it weights less than half.