Plasma vs. LCD vs. DLP Cont. (Poll Added)

[Molingrad]

The reason I am creating a poll is to see what people really thing is the best technology, the reason is im looking into buying a 42" or bigger TV and all three are quite expensive.

I know each have Pros/Cons this is just a poll to see what the majority of people like.

 

[btf1980]

I voted for LCD, but I like both LCD's and Plasmas and own both. Have 2 lcd's in my gaming room and a plasma in my living room. These things are subjective, it all depends on what you will be using the TV's for primarily. the plasma I use for watching movies and dvd's. the lcd's I use for gaming and watching dvd's as well, but the plasma is my main tv for watching and the lcd's are primarily for gaming.

 

[Greenwit]

The best technology is what is best for your needs. While plasmas no longer are a great risk for burn in, LCD is even more resistant and therefore would be my choice if I weighted HTPC highly. If I weighted TV viewing highly, plasmas win (and by a wide margin, IMO). DLPs and LCDs have, in my judgement, significant picture defects including screen door effect (LCD), silk screen effect (LCD, DLP), discolored/poor blacks (LCD and to a lesser extent DLP), crushed whites (DLP), motion artifacts (DLP and to a lesser extend LCD), rainbows (DLP), eye fatigue (DLP, for some at least), viewing angle issues (LCD, DLP). Plasmas are free of all this, not to mention great color saturation. BTW, my views of LCDs refer to rear projectors. I don't have much experience with more expensive LCD panels as they are limiting in screen size. I know that LCDs are the shiz here but in the HDTV world, they are second/third-tiered technology (plasma and SXRD being the tops) with regard to picture quality.

 

[Javi]

Just some of my thoughts:

While everyone loves plasma, I will go against them because of the price point - I think they are still a bit too expensive for as a true HDTV - while it is true that many plasmas are cheaper these days, many people forget the fact that they are EDTVs. In addition, I think the life of the plasma is still less than that of a LCD or DLP. As I get closer to paying off my original HDTV (CRT), I'm in the process of looking at a new one. I seem to be leaning towards DLP, but I have a friend who just bought a sony 50" LCD RP HDTV (KDF-E50A10) - that thing looks amazing.

 

[Greenwit]

The new Panny plasmas have a life of 60K hours (you do the math) which is longer than you'll want to keep it and at least equal to that of LCDs. Their 50" consumer HDTVs can be had from BB and CC for around $3.7K now....the commerical plasmas online for less than $3K. You also don't have to worry about replacing expensive bulbs which can go out unpredictably in both DLPs and LCDs.

 

[MovieMan80]

I voted for DLP. I just bought a Samsung DLP and the picture is amazing. LCD's and Plasma's were too expensive for the size I wanted. I really considered sacrificing the size of the DLP for the viewing angle of a plasma but I'm glad I didn't. The DLP looks amazing in the living room and unless you're sitting all the way against one wall (greater than 45 degrees off center) there's no noticeable drop in viewing angle. (The tv's in a corner and not angled directly at the center of the room.)

I have yet to notice any rainbow effect and the new samsung dlp's are supposed to be free of any kind of burn-in. The bulbs are $200, last 8,000 hours and can be replaced without the need of an expensive technician.

 

[Greenwit]

The bulbs .......last 8,000 hours

Theoretically.

Do you have it connected to an external sound system? If so, have you noticed any sound sync issues?

In any case, congrats on your new TV.

 

[MovieMan80]

Theoretically.

Do you have it connected to an external sound system? If so, have you noticed any sound sync issues?

In any case, congrats on your new TV.

Yes it's only a theoretical 8,000 hours but according to Samsung's product pages the tv will warn you when the bulb is getting close to being needed to be replaced. Even if it is a full 8,000 I'm still making my roommate set the sleep timer on the tv. (We've lived at our apartment for three weeks now and he's slept in his bed a total of four nights. The rest was passed out on the couch in front of the tv.)

I haven't hooked it up to my receiver yet, my side speakers are small, cheap and not worthy of the tv so until I replace those I won't be hooking it up. I'm a little dissappointed that there's no aftermarket center channel shelf yet for the tv (model 5667). When I do get around to buying speakers I'm going to try putting the center channel below the tv on the stand and see how that sounds. In the meantime the tv's sound is actually pretty good.

 

[illgiveumorality]

I voted DLP because they look pretty damn good and are cheaper than LCD, and I think plasmas just look terrible.

 

[Greenwit]

When I do get around to buying speakers I'm going to try putting the center channel below the tv on the stand and see how that sounds. In the meantime the tv's sound is actually pretty good.

That will work fine. I have my plasma on a stand with two shelves and the center speaker is on the upper shelf several inches below the TV. Works as well as a center speaker on top of the TV (which is the arrangement I use with my big box rear projection CRT).

 

[MovieMan80]

That will work fine. I have my plasma on a stand with two shelves and the center speaker is on the upper shelf several inches below the TV. Works as well as a center speaker on top of the TV (which is the arrangement I use with my big box rear projection CRT).

That's good to hear. It'll still be a little while before I hook it up with speakers but at least now I know it will sound good.

 

[BillR]

I voted for DLP. I just bought a Samsung DLP and the picture is amazing. LCD's and Plasma's were too expensive for the size I wanted. I really considered sacrificing the size of the DLP for the viewing angle of a plasma but I'm glad I didn't. The DLP looks amazing in the living room and unless you're sitting all the way against one wall (greater than 45 degrees off center) there's no noticeable drop in viewing angle. (The tv's in a corner and not angled directly at the center of the room.)

I have yet to notice any rainbow effect and the new samsung dlp's are supposed to be free of any kind of burn-in. The bulbs are $200, last 8,000 hours and can be replaced without the need of an expensive technician.

8000 hours? Trust me, total hype. If you could actually get 8000 hours at a usable brightness (they forget to tell you that part) that would be good, but it just isn’t happening.

$200? Only no name replacements for the cheap Sony’s are that low, and they are so far off spec it’s not funny. $350 to $650 is more the average for a name bulb from a name company.

Even if you did get 8000 hours face it, that’s about 3 years average use, not a long time in the real world.

Good RP CRT based projection is still the best bang for the buck with few exceptions.

Long term, spend the money on Plasma, 8 to 10 years from now you will still be watching it at about 80% or better of it’s original picture quality.

I might add this, BB, CC etc all sell different sets then you will find at a real AV dealer. BB carries only the low end Mitsubishi, and Samsung, a few bucks more from a real AV dealer will buy you a lot more set especially with DLP and LCD projectors.

Buying on line? Good luck. Unless you have a sales receipt from a franchised authorized dealer, Sony, Mitsubishi, Samsung Sharp etc don’t want to hear your warrantee stories Let me add most on line dealers require you to ship the set back to them for service, just a small addition to your costs since most pay shipping neither way. If you are really lucky your on line dealer just might still be in business.

 

[Happy Hopping]

Long term, spend the money on Plasma, 8 to 10 years from now you will still be watching it at about 80% or better of it’s original picture quality.
.

So your bet is on plasma. I vote for LCD but I really should have vote for plasma. I like the pic. quality. But besides the degradation on pic. quality years from purchase date, what are the maintainence issues and disadvantage of having a plasma?

I know that at place w/ high altitude, like Denver, CO, because plasma is ionized gas, at higher than above sea level, the ionized gas are not as fluid due to barometric pressure, as sea level city, such LA. As such, a view of the same DVD on the same plasma at LA is better than on Denver.

That's one disadvantage of plasma that I know of.

 

[NulloModo]

I voted DLP because they look pretty damn good and are cheaper than LCD, and I think plasmas just look terrible.

You've probably just looked at some really crappy plasma screens then. Plasma has probably the most variation from the low-end to the high-end sets of any of the solutions mentioned. The difference in picture from a $1500 no-name Korean knock off ED set to something like a Pioneer Elite HD set is absolutely incredible, the top end pioneers have pictures so nice it is just like looking through an open window.

 

[Greenwit]

Good RP CRT based projection is still the best bang for the buck with few exceptions.

Long term, spend the money on Plasma, 8 to 10 years from now you will still be watching it at about 80% or better of it’s original picture quality.

I might add this, BB, CC etc all sell different sets then you will find at a real AV dealer. BB carries only the low end Mitsubishi, and Samsung, a few bucks more from a real AV dealer will buy you a lot more set especially with DLP and LCD projectors.

Buying on line? Good luck. Unless you have a sales receipt from a franchised authorized dealer, Sony, Mitsubishi, Samsung Sharp etc don’t want to hear your warrantee stories Let me add most on line dealers require you to ship the set back to them for service, just a small addition to your costs since most pay shipping neither way. If you are really lucky your on line dealer just might still be in business.

A CRT was my second choice when I purchased my plasma in May. They get a bad rap of being dinosaurs, bad PQ, et. al. Unfortunate. About 18 months ago when I started searching for a second HDTV I went to the B&Ms with great anticipation to see the newest DLPs and LCDs. I was surprised as sh*t that they were, IMO, a step down in PQ from my Pioneer Elite CRT. I *really* wanted to buy a new LCD and DLP but after seeing them in person it wasn't going to happen.

Buying online......there are a number of reputable dealers out there (like TV Authority and Visual Apex) that are authorized retailers of Pioneer, Panasonic and many other manufacturers. I got my Panny from TVA, and discounted substantially compared to the B&Ms. The only way that going online for an order is going to be a problem is if you got bad pixels out of the box.....then you *will* have to ship it back on your coin. If it is another problem, you can choose to ship it back or have it serviced. After 30 days there is no difference between BB, CC, TVA, Visual Apex, etc. If something goes wrong within the warranty period, both Panny and Pioneer will come to you to service the TV.

 

[MovieMan80]

$200? Only no name replacements for the cheap Sony’s are that low, and they are so far off spec it’s not funny. $350 to $650 is more the average for a name bulb from a name company.

http://www.samsungparts.com/part_detail.asp?catalog_name=Parts+and+Accessories& category_name=&product_id=BP96-00826A&search_model=HLP5667W

$200. Linked directly from Samsungs website. I knew bulbs were expensive when I was researching DLPs and Samsung had by far the best deal on replacement bulbs, mostly because their designed for the end user to change them and they're not god awful expensive.

CRT's probably do have the best picture, but after helping my friend move his 34" hi-def crt weighing in at a hefty 180+ pounds, I knew that since I wanted a big picture crt's were not going to cut it.

DLP's offer the best picture to size ratio. I got a 56" dlp with a matching stand for around the same price as some nice 42" plasmas. And definitely a lot cheaper than a (good) 50" plasma. For me, the small benefits of plasma lifetime and better viewing angle are dwarfed by the fact that they're 6-14 inches smaller and more expensive.

 

[Greenwit]

http://www.samsungparts.com/part_detail.asp?catalog_name=Parts+and+Accessories& category_name=&product_id=BP96-00826A&search_model=HLP5667W

CRT's probably do have the best picture, but after helping my friend move his 34" hi-def crt weighing in at a hefty 180+ pounds, I knew that since I wanted a big picture crt's were not going to cut it.

I must admit I see some things very different than many of you. I rarely will move my TV. It is a pain to set up but when it is set up it doesn't move. Why moving a TV becomes an issue is beyond me when the purpose of the TV is displaying images. (Assuming, of course, you are not a student who moves alot.) For a particular TV, moving it consumes one-tenth of one-thousandth of one-millionth of its life. Is it worth compromising PQ?

 

[MovieMan80]

I must admit I see some things very different than many of you. I rarely will move my TV. It is a pain to set up but when it is set up it doesn't move. Why moving a TV becomes an issue is beyond me when the purpose of the TV is displaying images. (Assuming, of course, you are not a student who moves alot.) For a particular TV, moving it consumes one-tenth of one-thousandth of one-millionth of its life. Is it worth compromising PQ?

Weight normally isn't a big deal for me either. But I was looking at tv's that were much bigger than 34". If 34 weighs 180 pounds, then bigger crt's would weigh even more. And as I'm still renting (an apartment with stairs) with all the heavy stuff I already have to move it's kinda nice knowing that my tv is going to be easy. The real problem with moving tv's is that they're fragile (compared to dressers or desks) While a big crt may weigh about the same as a big wooden desk, I know the desk will still work if it gets dropped accidently.

 

[FlatLine84]

I've worked on them all within peoples homes, I've heard least amount of complaints and problems from DLP. I often goto homes for problems with Plasma such as burn in, which is removed by running a program that actually uses a blank screen with some light, which you have on for a long period of time, and what it ends up doing is burning this one shade throughout, yes this removes the burn in, but it dulls and dims the whole picture. Only problems I've seen with LCD is people complain of what ends up being back light problems, or natvie res issue, where they don't have a true HD signal, so the image looks like crap. DLP issues end up being dust issues on the mirrors, which can be cleaned by somone such as myself. First time I did it, I left a finger print on one of the mirrors. I turned it on, and it was fuzzy on one part of the screen, I ended up taking it apart and cleaning the mirror of course..... perfectly fine after that.