HDTV Decision

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roz1281

Gawd
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Nov 1, 2004
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Help me help someone help someone else make a good first HDTV choice. Looking for 40" and up.

Are plasma's lifespan still considered real short? And are they still better than LCD when talking 30"+ sizes?

reccomend some nice high-res TV's that will be future-proof for a while. Price doesn't matter, looking for quality for the buck.

TV will be used mostly for... TV, and movies. Probably no gaming.
 
LCD>DLP>PLASMA

LCD black levels are still poor, and inch for inch cost almost as much as plasma

DLP has superior black levels, is the cheapest for size, but contrast and colors aren't as good as plasma. No burned in image, but you will have to replace the bulb.

Plasma has the best blacks, whites aren't as good as LCD but the overall image is the best out of the three. They still have issues with burned in image though from what I understand.


Most plasmas have like a 50,000 hour lifespan or 20 years at 8 hours a day.


For Plamsas the Panasonics look best to me, Phillips are meant to be some of the best but cost much more for a better (more stylish) enclosure. For DLP's I think Samsung carry the crown for best IQ.
 
peacetilence said:
LCD>DLP>PLASMA

LCD black levels are still poor, and inch for inch cost almost as much as plasma

DLP has superior black levels, is the cheapest for size, but contrast and colors aren't as good as plasma. No burned in image, but you will have to replace the bulb.

Plasma has the best blacks, whites aren't as good as LCD but the overall image is the best out of the three. They still have issues with burned in image though from what I understand.


Most plasmas have like a 50,000 hour lifespan or 20 years at 8 hours a day.


For Plamsas the Panasonics look best to me, Phillips are meant to be some of the best but cost much more for a better (more stylish) enclosure. For DLP's I think Samsung carry the crown for best IQ.
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Actually the newer DLPs are much higher contrast ratios than LCDs, which are the lowest.

LCDs:

Pros: Perfect sharpness, good colors, low power consumption, long life, thin.

Cons: Slowest response time, low contrast ratios due to poor blacks, poor interpolation, lower viewing angles, screen door effect on cheaper models, dead/stuck pixels.

Plasma:

Pros: Very high contrast ratios, excellent response time, excellent viewing angles, excellent colors.
Cons: "Stop gap technology" for LCDs (LCDs will provide all the benefits of plasma eventually). high power consumption, burn in, heavy weight, fragile, blacks, relatively short life.

DLP:

Pros: Excellent Color, excellent response times, excellent contrast ratios (newer models) lightweight, relatively low cost, longlife.

Cons: Thicker than LCDs or plasma, "rainbow effect" in older DLPs.
 
I was over at JandR the other day and spoke with a really smart rep there, he really seemed like he knew what he was talking about, but of course he can be wrong...

He said he would highly recommend me a panasonic being that their burn in is much less than other brands out there. He also told me that he read in some home theater mag of a burn in tolerance test they ran on these newer generation panasonics, the test was to load up a pic off an sd card and leave it there for a few days. The outcome was no burn in. basically he said burn in is just a rumor. He also said it would be perfect for video games.

Basically im looking for a 50" for the living room, i just watch cable tv for a couple of hours per day, about 5 days a week sometimes never. but i dont want the dlp bulk. I would just get an lcd but didnt find a 50" today...
 
ratbird said:
basically he said burn in is just a rumor. He also said it would be perfect for video games.
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If you're talking about a plasma thats absolute garbage. Burn in is not a rumour ppl wouldnt just make it up lol, my friends plasma has the Eurosport logo burnt in, my advice is if youre getting a plasma try to avoid playing games on it and every now and then change to tv for a few mins, also when you first get it, run it on half contrast and brightress for the first 100 hours, this will minimize the chance of burn in. Good Luck
 
I was considering a plasma display, but after I saw the plasmas in the airport I could clearly see that the top and bottom bands which display departures/arrivals are perfectly burned-in.
 
I used to run an 60" RCA CRT RPTV but upgraded to a 61" LCoS (Liquid Crystal on Silicon) which is basically an LCD / DLP hybrid. I wanted something with zero burn in possibilities and good HD playback. It does suffer in the Black Level department, but it's no where near the worst I've seen. I'm currently using a single-chip Phillips model, but am thinking about selling it and picking up the JVC D-ILA with 3-chip LCoS. You can find some good deals on LCoS sets if you look around and you can't go wrong running a PC through one via. DVI. Even if you don't plan on gaming, DVD playback through PC (when setup correctly) is superior to most set-top boxes. Good luck with your purchase.
 
Thanks for the replies, I'm sure it will be helpful. If it were my choice, I'd rather have a smaller LCD than a big Plasma, i just like the pic on LCD better
 
SXRD, which is similar to LCoS I believe, are some of the best sets I've ever laid my eyes on bar none. Thinking of a 60 inch. ~$4 to $4.5k :eek:

Sony SXRD Wega's. Many critics agree. :D
 
Well, I have both a 42" Pioneer plasma and a 26" Samsung LCD, and while they are both definitely sharp, the Pioneer is definitely sharper of the two. Better colors, viewing angle, and just overall crispness (even in the larger screen)...but the Samsung is still awesome.

I think if price isn't an issue, I'd go with a 50" Pioneer Plasma if you want the best image quality possible (along with great viewing angle)...although I don't have a DLP set here to compare it with.
 
I suggest you head over to Best Buy or Tweeter and just look at the sets for a few minutes. This will give you a much better idea since perception can be so different for different people. I have found that Panasonic plasmas have the best image quality bar-none. Of course this is just me, so I suggest you check it out yourself. There is also AVS Forum which has a boatload of knowledge if you can spare a few hours of intense reading.
 
Ultra Wide said:
I suggest you head over to Best Buy or Tweeter and just look at the sets for a few minutes. This will give you a much better idea since perception can be so different for different people. I have found that Panasonic plasmas have the best image quality bar-none. Of course this is just me, so I suggest you check it out yourself. There is also AVS Forum which has a boatload of knowledge if you can spare a few hours of intense reading.
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well said, i spent alot of time doing this myself

finally found the Toshiba 46H84 46" RPTV widescreen HDTV for $1400 at BB, i had $1000 to spend, so $1400 for TV, $130 for 6' HDMI cable, tax, delivery....all came to about $1800.....i told him i had $1000 to spend, and they sold me the TV, tax, delivered, and cable for $1050

alot of people dont like the size of a RPTV and the angle restrictions, but to be honest, in my application, it was going to be catty-cornered in the living room, and we watch TV with the lights dimmed or off in the evenings, so you would never even know it was a RPTV

i dont like the lack of black in the LCD's, or the price, and the plasma's and DLP's dont impress me with their stratospheric cost, high maintenance cost, etc......

work 'em, they dont get commission on the product sales, they get commission on the extended warranty sales
;)
 
High maintenance cost? How so? I've had a Pioneer plasma for almost 2 years now and not a single thing has happened to require "maintenance costs" (hell, there haven't been any problems, period). Also, the price (around $3500 for a 50" and $3000 for a 42") is hardly "stratospheric" considering its a flat-panel TV...

Could you elaborate on what seems to be a couple of completely baseless generalizations?
 
live2sk8 said:
High maintenance cost? How so? I've had a Pioneer plasma for almost 2 years now and not a single thing has happened to require "maintenance costs" (hell, there haven't been any problems, period). Also, the price (around $3500 for a 50" and $3000 for a 42") is hardly "stratospheric" considering its a flat-panel TV...

Could you elaborate on what seems to be a couple of completely baseless generalizations?
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um yes, i havent had any issues either

my TV is going to look just as good as that expensive plasma, expecially considering i watch most things in HD or via an upconverting DVD player that outputs upscaled DVD content at 1080i or 720p, selectable

i have spent days collectively in BB, CC, and the like comparing IQ, there's little to no difference, in most cases you cannot even tell a difference other than the plasmas do seem to be a bit brighter, definately not anything worth paying three to four times as much for, my TV cost me $1050 delivered, yours cost three times as much, the space behind my TV would never have been put to good use anyways, so the space thing was not an issue, it's just not so uber impressive when i have guests over, they can't marvel at the 4" thick TV hanging on the wall......but i didn't buy it for space savings or to impress anyone but me

and if you do some googling, the bulb/s in that TV will cost you an easy $500 to have replaced and they typically only last 5-7 years at best, depends on your useage
 
peacetilence said:
LCD>DLP>PLASMA

LCD black levels are still poor, and inch for inch cost almost as much as plasma

DLP has superior black levels, is the cheapest for size, but contrast and colors aren't as good as plasma. No burned in image, but you will have to replace the bulb.

Plasma has the best blacks, whites aren't as good as LCD but the overall image is the best out of the three. They still have issues with burned in image though from what I understand.


Most plasmas have like a 50,000 hour lifespan or 20 years at 8 hours a day.


For Plamsas the Panasonics look best to me, Phillips are meant to be some of the best but cost much more for a better (more stylish) enclosure. For DLP's I think Samsung carry the crown for best IQ.
Click to expand...


you know

with the way you pointed the arrows, you made LCD teh best and Plasma the lowest
 
misenthrope said:
um yes, i havent had any issues either

my TV is going to look just as good as that expensive plasma, expecially considering i watch most things in HD or via an upconverting DVD player that outputs upscaled DVD content at 1080i or 720p, selectable

i have spent days collectively in BB, CC, and the like comparing IQ, there's little to no difference, in most cases you cannot even tell a difference other than the plasmas do seem to be a bit brighter, definately not anything worth paying three to four times as much for, my TV cost me $1050 delivered, yours cost three times as much, the space behind my TV would never have been put to good use anyways, so the space thing was not an issue, it's just not so uber impressive when i have guests over, they can't marvel at the 4" thick TV hanging on the wall......but i didn't buy it for space savings or to impress anyone but me

and if you do some googling, the bulb/s in that TV will cost you an easy $500 to have replaced and they typically only last 5-7 years at best, depends on your useage
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You don't replace the bulbs in plasma TVs...Plasma TVs work by sending an electric signal to each pixel where certain gases (xenon, neon, and argon) produce whatever color/light combo is designated by that pulse. DLP TVs use bulbs which typically last ~75,000 hours (not too far from the "lifespan" of the gases in plasma displays) and cost around $200 ro replace after that. Even being modest and saying my plasma will only last 50,000 hours, I could leave it on for 5 years, 8 months, 20 days, 17 hours and 21 minutes straight before it "went bad." Sure, about halfway through that time the picture won't be quite as vibrant as it was when it was new, so lets say I could leave it on for half that without losing much picture quality. At an 8 hour/day average, then, it would last over 8 years before you'd notice much. And in 8 years, if you think you will still be satisfied with whatever RP HD display you have, more power to you...

Sounds like you need to "do some googling."
 
live2sk8 said:
You don't replace the bulbs in plasma TVs...Plasma TVs work by sending an electric signal to each pixel where certain gases (xenon, neon, and argon) produce whatever color/light combo is designated by that pulse. DLP TVs use bulbs which typically last ~75,000 hours (not too far from the "lifespan" of the gases in plasma displays) and cost around $200 ro replace after that. Even being modest and saying my plasma will only last 50,000 hours, I could leave it on for 5 years, 8 months, 20 days, 17 hours and 21 minutes straight before it "went bad." Sure, about halfway through that time the picture won't be quite as vibrant as it was when it was new, so lets say I could leave it on for half that without losing much picture quality. At an 8 hour/day average, then, it would last over 8 years before you'd notice much. And in 8 years, if you think you will still be satisfied with whatever RP HD display you have, more power to you...

Sounds like you need to "do some googling."
Click to expand...

im batting pretty poorly tonight, not surprised......im just an idiot, oh well
 
When I got my tv I looked at all three. Plasmas by far had the best picture. Plus for larger than 45", you were looking at paying a lot for an LCD for what I thought was a worse picture. I game on my plasma and I can't see any type of burn in, so I'm sure you'd have to be pretty special to allow real burn in to occur. DLP was too fat for my likings and the viewing angle is no where close to what I want. It was an easy decision for me, but on the internet you will find hundreds of people suggesting whatever they bought to help justify their purchase to themselves. Look at your alternatives with your own eyes, try something other than a best buy (they like to split their signal a bit much) and make your own decision based on price, picture and looks.
 
{NcsO}ReichstaG said:
why not just get that 37" Westinghouse?
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iwas thinking the same
im just a college kid and for about 1500$ i could get that hopefully before the summer, for my xbox and htpc :)
ill own i nice lcd tv one day wooo
 
dudewth said:
When I got my tv I looked at all three. Plasmas by far had the best picture. Plus for larger than 45", you were looking at paying a lot for an LCD for what I thought was a worse picture. I game on my plasma and I can't see any type of burn in, so I'm sure you'd have to be pretty special to allow real burn in to occur. DLP was too fat for my likings and the viewing angle is no where close to what I want. It was an easy decision for me, but on the internet you will find hundreds of people suggesting whatever they bought to help justify their purchase to themselves. Look at your alternatives with your own eyes, try something other than a best buy (they like to split their signal a bit much) and make your own decision based on price, picture and looks.
Click to expand...

What he said.

(I'm on my third plasma and burn-in, at this point, is a non-issue)
 
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