LCD or Plasma...need help deciding please

Steelman

Super Member
Hello all,

I still have a JVC Iart 32" TV and I am ready to upgrade.

What is better, plasma or LCD?

Why would you choose one from the other?

Which ever you recommend, what features are a must and why.

Thanks in advance,
Vincent
 
Personally,being a long time CRT devotee,I could not go with either.Neither looked that good,especially LCD.But over time, the picture quality got better and I ended up purchasing a Pioneer Elite Kuro plasma. A good friend of mine just purchase a Panasonic plasma (his second panasonic) because he saw the Pioneer and couldn't look at his old set anymore (black levels). He states his is very close to what he saw on the Pioneer.To me,black level is everything.That's what I liked about CRTs.

Iv'e seen a Toshiba LCD set that also had amazing black levels and it looks fantastic.

One of the good points with the Pioneer set is that there was no need to do any tweaking of the picture controls or getting deeper into the set's ISF professional mode to do any adjustments.I picked one setting and have never had to adjust a thing,it's that good looking.Gray scale looks fantastic.

You'll probably get a lot of posts here as to which is better.

It would be my suggestion to do a bit of homework.Feed yourself with as much information as possible and then go out and spend a lot of time looking at the different sets. In the end, it's your money. For me,it was strictly picture quality.I don't care what the bells and whistles are nor do I care for the little things that may separate the different models/types. The plasma I have looks like a really sharp (and bigger) CRT to me.
 
I like plasma.

IMO...
Better blacks
No motion blur
Seems like the images have more depth/more 3-D like quality

Bottom line I just think it looks more real because of the above.

All that said, I bought my plasma ~2.5 years ago and have not looked seriously at the best/newest technology out there in either variety.

I understand LCD has improved over what I looked at 2.5 years ago, but plasma has not remained stagnant during that time either.
 
You can usually find better deals on plasmas and their picture quality is usally better, provided you are watching in a light controlled room. LCD technology has come a long way and it is better than plasma in a bright room with lots of daytime watching. Plasma will work best in a darker room where you can tweak the picture to the environment.

Whew, better stop. Just got a chill through my spine thinking of my time working at Circuit City.
 
Did you see this article?
There are lots of "such and such is generally true BUT"s in deciding between the two, and it does a good job of covering them, IMO. Personally, I'm sticking with my 1990 50" projection because I mostly use my TV for old video games anyway.
 
When shopping for our first flat panel, I ultimately went with Samsungs TOTL plasma, After a month of side by side tests. But I've noticed LCD's have closed the gap. The deciding issue for me was Blacks, And sharpness. It still seems the smaller the screen, It's not a big change. 42" plus, The plasma pulls away. I'm only referring to the "Big 3". Panasonic/Pioneer/Samsung. After those company's, Quality drops not matter the format. IMO.
 
There's no superior technology just superior TVs. Some LCDs look better than some plasmas and vice versa.

Much depends on size because some sizes aren't available in both types but only one or the other. For instance I wanted a 46" TV and that put Pioneer plasmas out of the running because their smallest TV was 50".

What you need to do is go out and....shop.

I could tell you which TVs I think are best (for me) but maybe you should discover your own preferences.
 
I went for the 52" Toshiba Regza 120 hz LCD in Jan this year to replace my NEC LCD ceiling mounted projector It was on its way out needing a new bulb $250 - $300 and was getting a blue tinge to it. I asked the pro at Ontario Audio where the repair these things and I take all my vintage PA and recording gear to. He recommend the LCD over the plazma. The LCD's have come a long way and the reason why you are able to get the plazma's cheep now is because they are on their way out so he said. The voltages behind the screen to "turn" the pixels on and off are 120 volts for the plazma and millivolts for the LCD. This can cause RF interfernce, more heat, and higher energy costs. I really can't confirm this but it is how he explained it to me so I am just passing it on a near as I can remember what I was told, not being all that electronical literate myself and feeling that the other side needed a good word. I love my LCD. It has a fabulous picture day or night, soap opera to formula 1.:thmbsp:
 
This can cause RF interfernce, more heat, and higher energy costs.

It is true as a general rule that plasma sets use more energy and produce more heat than LCD, but it's not true in every case.

I bought my TV on my perception of picture quality, not the green factor. I understand green is a concern of some so, if it's a high priority, generally one would want to choose LCD over plasma.

As far as RF interference goes...I dunno...maybe, but I don't seem to have any problem I've noticed with my plasma and other devices.

Something I didn't quote but will comment on, is the seeming demise of plasma. It does seem to be on the decline but, IMO, this decline is not a technological inferiority issue, it's a bottom line issue. Cheaper cost of production = potentially higher profit = promote and sell more LCD. YOMV.
 
I still love my 720p Panasonic plasma.
I don't think I'll buy anything else but plasma tvs since I love the black levels, color levels, and no blur.
 
LCD's have really improved lately....

The power consumption of a plasma vs. lcd is another bonus... Those plasma's really put some heat off...
 
LCD's have really improved lately....

The power consumption of a plasma vs. lcd is another bonus... Those plasma's really put some heat off...
Not a concern in my room since I have air conditioning + ceiling fan + small fan on a shelf.
The tv does warm up my room in the winter.
 
Thanks all for the food for thought...

Dumptruck...thanks for the link, the article was very informative for a someone who does not know what the differences between the two were.

Vincent
 
One thing I read today in also researching the issue is that plasma will do 3-d while the current technology lcd will not. It may be a non-issue but as I enjoy 3-d photography and the 1st 3-d digital camera has been released it do add to the plasma plus column for me. If 3-d movies so do take off it might obsolete the entire current technology of lcd teles or at least limit viewing.
 
Plasma all the way!

Really, at the same price Plasma units blow LCD's out of the water. You have to spend a ton on a local dimming LED backlight LCD to come close. And at that point you are paying twice per diagonal inch.
 
I bought a 42" Phillips Plasma about 2 years ago and have been very pleased. I have several small LCD units in the house also, 1 in the kitchen and I have 1 in the master bath (I like to watch the news in the morning) as well as 1 in my office. Not a fair comparison since the LCDs are all 15" units.

For me, I did a lot of comparison watching in the store, LCD vs Plasma and the Plasma did look better to me. As mentioned before, darker black levels were a factor. The Plasma units are heavy, though! Mine sits in a large wall unit cabinet and the weight is not an issue.

Spend some time in a good store where you can compare the 2 technologies side by side and brand to brand!

Good luck! I certainly have enjoyed my well-researched choice!
 
I looked around quite a bit, ended up a couple months ago with a 46" Panasonic plasma. Overall picture quality blows away any comparable LCD, IMO. Couldn't be happier with my decision.
 
I looked around quite a bit, ended up a couple months ago with a 46" Panasonic plasma.


What do you consider comparable LCDs? IMO my 46" Samsung A-850 LCD has a better picture than the Panasonic plasmas I looked at; more accurate color and less digital artifacts and noise. I don't think any TV "blows it away" and I looked hard at the LED backlit 950 Samsungs and XRR-8 Sonys as well as the Pioneer plasmas. Of course the Panasonic plasmas are excellent TVs but as with hi fi different people are sensitive to different flaws.

The only issue I have with the 850 is uniformity in the blacks which are pretty deep but show a little cloudiness on a pure black screen. However my 37" Samsung B650 in the den has no such uniformity problem.

On the other hand when it's just sitting there not being used the 850 is IMO the best looking set out there, for what that's worth. ;)
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Look at the Panasonic plasma with the THX color option. You will pay a bit more, but the THX setting really gives me a natural picture.

With its sleek, all glass casing, it even looks great while off. No cheap plastic frame.

Ken
 
What do you consider comparable LCDs? IMO my 46" Samsung A-850 LCD has a better picture than the Panasonic plasmas I looked at; more accurate color and less digital artifacts and noise. I don't think any TV "blows it away" and I looked hard at the LED backlit 950 Samsungs and XRR-8 Sonys as well as the Pioneer plasmas. Of course the Panasonic plasmas are excellent TVs but as with hi fi different people are sensitive to different flaws.

The only issue I have with the 850 is uniformity in the blacks which are pretty deep but show a little cloudiness on a pure black screen. However my 37" Samsung B650 in the den has no such uniformity problem.

On the other hand when it's just sitting there not being used the 850 is IMO the best looking set out there, for what that's worth. ;)
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That's why there are options and varying opinions, Brennan- I looked at everything normally available to look at in 46" or thereabouts, and nothing I saw came even close to the one I bought. Your opinion is obviously otherwise, and you're welcome to it, but I see no value in arguing about it. Everyone in the market for one should go spend some time with what's available and make their own damned decision, because they'll have to live with it, not me or you.
 
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