Should I buy an LCD or plasma TV?
I have a few grand burning a hole in my pocket and my TV is about to die. Any help would be appreciated. I have to decide between a plasma TV, an LCD, or something else.
Answer #1: I have a Sharp Aquos LCD and love every minute of it but DLP will save you a ton of money and the picture is still great. Also unlike the PLasma if the TV breaks you can get it fixed for cheap.
Answer #2: Burn in is not a serious problem any more, so don’t worry about that. In July I got the Panasonic 50″ HD plasma, the commercial version. It’s cheaper than the consumer version, all black (which I prefer), does not come with a stand (I planned to and did mount it on the wall), and does not come with speakers (I planned to and did take care of sound through my receiver/home theater speakers). I absolutely love the TV, it is amazing.
Answer #3: I Just bought a 42-inch plasma last week. Burn-in does not affect modern plasmas nearly as much as older models (pre 2004-2005). Also, the life of today’s plasmas can easily exceed the life of picture tube TV’s, some plasmas are expected to last 10 years or more. An added plus is that plasmas have the sharpest, brightest picture of any of the three technologies, can be wall-mounted (unlike DLP) and, depending on size/brand, is very competitively-priced. The best plasmas are Panasonic, Pioneer, or Hitachi.
Answer #4: If it’s going in a room that is fairly bright (as in sunlight), LCD will handle this better. Otherwise, it’s whatever looks better to him. I personally would stick to a brand name.
Answer #5: I like LCD better then DLP or Plasma, but there’s no real better among them. It just personal choice and the kind of picture you enjoy. Do you need a flat panel? If you want a screen bigger then 46″ and need or want a flat panel you have to go plasma. LCD flat only goes up to 46″ and there is no DLP flat.
It’s true that the days of burn in are over for plasma TVs with the latest models. But be careful with Panasonic; they were very slow to adopt the non burn technology and there’s still some Panasonics out there that you have to be careful with. I don’t like the “blur” or “clay face” you get on a lot of the plasma screens even with HD during a football game.
Whatever TV you go with try and get 1080p resolution even though it’s a big expense. If you’re spending 3 grand on a TV get something with the best technology you can.
I just added a 50″ Sony 1080 LCD to my collection. It was a lot less expensive then a 50″ 1080i plasma. If you don’t have to have a flat panel save the money and buy a 1080p LCD or DLP whichever you like better.
If you have a Circuit City near you go there and check out the 1080P DLP from Mitsubishi and the LCOS 1080p from Sony. There are also some 1080p plasma sets out now from Sony and Samsung but they are over 4 grand. About 1500 more then the DLP or LCD rear projections but they are direct pictures.
The first thing you need to decide is your space for the TV. The second thing you need to decide is what you’ll watch most. Then read and shop and have fun.