Plasma or LCD

Coveredinbees!!!!

arthurp8 wrote:

panasonic th42px60 - 900 squid plasma bargain!

before you buy one read this on avforums http://www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=394430

I still wouldn't buy an LCD thou just waiting for a proper fix :mad:

Theo_Cupier

OK, in my less cost conscious days, I spend £2.5K on a 42in plasma TV. I spent a LOT of time researching this (you'll find my posts all over the forum Coveredinbees mentioned there). Here is the perceived wisdom I have gained:

LCD
+ very good on smaller screens (37in and below)
+ can be higher resolution, since it evolves from computer display technology
+ is a newer technology than plasma so has a lot more "improvement" to do
+ perfect geometry, so you don't get curling at the edges like on CRTs
+ colours can be vibrant
- black parts of the image are not very black. This can lead to a huge lack of detail in dark scenes and this will affect you more than it seems from just reading this
- work best in bright light conditions, so will always look good in the shop, maybe not so much in your shop

PLASMA
+ mature technology so it's already "right"
+ blacks can be actually black, so you get better detail in dark pictures (see above)
+ perfect geometry, so you don't get curling at the edges like on CRTs
- will be lower resolution, you won't get above 1024 x 768 pixels on a 42in plasma simply because of the physical size of the plasma pixels
- colours can be a little more washed out than LCD

CRT
+ great colours
+ proper blacks
- picture geometry not perfect and gets worse with big screens
- sets are huge and eat up your room

The key things to remember are:
- a cheap LCD or plasma is always going to be a gamble. A good model from a good manufacturer will be all you could hope for, but probably come with a price to match. In plasma, Pioneer and Panasonic are the makes to look for. Samsung & LCD are OK, but you might end up kicking yourself. The 'no name' brands you can get from Aldi, Argos, etc are a gamble.
- High Definition v Standard Definition. I could write an essay on this. Suffice to say that a good HD set will be able to look good in SD too. A less good HD set will look poor with SD broadcast. Since about 95% of what you can watch now (and for the next few years) is going to be SD, think carefully.
- do NOT make your purchasing decision on the basis of a quick look in Comet, or Currys. Their TVs are set up terribly - rubbish receivers with a low quality signal over awful cables. The only exception to this will be the one make/model that they are getting double commission for which will be set up beatifully. You are spending a lot of money in this shop. Demand a lot of help. If you dont get it, go elsewhere.

So, what should you do?

Firstly ask: WHY NOW? If your old set has just died and you are looking to make a quality purchase to last 10+ years then buy as big an HD set as you can - probably a plasma, from a decent manufacturer. It will still be an excellent set when HD broadcasting becomes commonplace in 5 years or so.

If you're only doing this because you've just got an HD games console and you're itchy then do the same as above, if you can afford it. Don't buy something cheap with an HD badge on it, just because it's HD. It is NOT worth it in the long term.

If you can actually afford to do this properly, now is a good time to do it. The market is pretty competitive and there are deals to be found. Make sure you use this to get a good deal on the right set, rather than a real "bargain" on the wrong set.

Hope this helps.