HorizonForumsone horizon
Log inSign up

[ms] · Est. May 2002

Music madethis place,we just kept itgoing...

One durable person. One social graph. Many communities—and every way people speak, share, listen, write, gather and remember.

Forums / Computers / Electronics / Games

plasma vs lcd

41 durable postsStarted 2008-01-07Latest 2008-01-19
#49724Post 1 of 41

so bestbuy has a deal right now for a free bluray player + 10 free movies if i buy a 1080p plasma panasonic tv.

everyone says buy lcd but how about some real info? i hear burnin here and there but im not going to leave the tv on 24x7 with the food network logo in the corner. also i think the lcd pic is brighter but the plasma pic looked just as good. my roommate just bought a lcd tv and the pic is bright, even too bright sometimes. i think i need to turn down some of the settings on it....

any real info on the downsides of plasma vs lcd?

#955302Post 2 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

just bought my parents a sony bravia, was quite impressed with the picture overall but the sound was terrible! no i meen really terrible! you really cant tell untill u have run it through hi def signals and i have also heard about the burning thing with plasma's but my cousin looked into it a little and he came up with the answer that they were getting round the problems with plasma's, tbh its still a massive grey area, choose wisely

#955305Post 3 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

LCD + 120 Hz refresh late = :shock::shock::shock::shock:

Course Sony Bravia's (I know I dissed them out in an earlier thread in here a while back but shit I've had a change of heart recently). they're fuggin awesome

#955306Post 4 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

The newer plasmas aren't really suffering from burn in like their predecessors. LCD's will last a lot longer but are still more expensive than plasmas if I'm not mistaken. The picture quality is still a tad better on plasmas but a good LCD is still comparable. LCD's are a bit hotter when in use, whicj tends to suck sometimes depending on where you live.( the reason that is over here in Germany, air conditioners arent common so a hot tv can seriously heat up ones living room.)The deal you mentione above sounds pretty sweet, but just take your time and see the differences that they all have with your own eyes and compare.

#955327Post 5 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

this is the one im looking at:

[url]http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8501711&productCategoryId=pcmcat21300050049&type=product&tab=1&id=1186004963437[/url]

#955332Post 6 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

I'm not a big fan of Panasonic Flatties but just find out from the techs at best buy if that 10,000:1 contrast ratio is static or dynamic. If its static, you're super golden, if it's dyanmic, ask them what the static one is.

Did you see the weight on that fucker ?

[QUOTE]Product Weight 111.3 lbs. with stand (94.8 lbs. without)[/QUOTE]

Thats nuts...... but then again, since its a plasma, you dont have to worry fuck all about motion blur. So seems like a good deal so far.

#955337Post 7 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

100lbs aint shit compared to the 350lb monster i had in my place before. a bigass sony tube. so that doesnt faze me much. hummm...i will ask about the static vs dynamic ratio. i dont know if those guys will even know for sure since thats not printed on the website. i wonder how i can find out a legit answer? i need to look on the company homepage for the product.

#955339Post 8 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

[QUOTE=res0nat0r;557750]100lbs aint shit compared to the 350lb monster i had in my place before. a bigass sony tube. so that doesnt faze me much.[/QUOTE]

sounds just like my tv :D

[QUOTE=res0nat0r;557750]i dont know if those guys will even know for sure since thats not printed on the website. i wonder how i can find out a legit answer? i need to look on the company homepage for the product.[/QUOTE]

yea check panasonic's website or call their sales line. there must be a 1-800 number on their website. Be sure you get the static contrast number. Of course the higher the number, the better the resolution but anything over 6 - 7K (for the current technology) should be a safe bet.

#955352Post 9 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

Just went with a 50in Hitachi plasma, with HD1080i. Truly, i picked the plasma over LCD based on the fact that the picture looks more real than the LCD does. You'll get true blacks with the plasma's were as an LCD doesn't. It's important if the room is gonna be flooded with light if you pick a plasma, as it will suffer some glare issues. Not a concern of mine. Heat's be mentioned, as well as the draw on power will be greater with the plasma. People say you'll see tracers (LCD'S) in high speed shit like sports or racing, but i dont see it on mine or my gf's 52inLCD. As for burn in, i've never had anything (even icon's) carry over from one channel to the next. Gaming has been sweet aswell. Who knows.

 Pretty much 50/50 if you ask me.  Just matters what's easy on your eyes.  That whole bright thing pisses me off with the LCD, coupled with the true blacks concern, toppled my decision.  Plasma ftw.
#955369Post 10 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

ive noticed that the lcd tv we have is bright as shit vs watching the non highdef for years. i was watching the weather on a 1080 channel and noticed i was kind of squinting just because of the brightness.

im wondering what kind of jockeying i can get between circuit city and hh gregg to get them to give me some type of price match.

#955419Post 11 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

my parents have had their 52'' sony plasma for about 2 years and they have had no problems with it. We keep an eye on ourselves about keeping the TV on the guide too long.

If i watch a widescreen movie with the bars on the top, i try to go to a regular channel to get the bars back up to life so it doesnt burn in. this may be over-doing it but it never hurts.

The sound on it is OK but is nothing compared to our dolby towers and sattelite speakers....

imo... if your gonna spend the money on a good plasma, get a Sony or dont get anything. Also, spend some dough on some good home entertainment speakers, you will not be disappointed.

Also, ask them about what size plasmaor lcd will go best in the room you are putting it in... if they are good salesmen, giving them the measurements of your room and where you plan on putting it, they should give you a good size that will go in your room of choice. There is nothing worse than picking a tv that is too big for a room... horrible on the eyes.

#958998Post 12 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

Plasma has a loss of contrast and brightness over the years. Not noticeable to eye, it is not an over the night action. LCD is pretty much a-go-now-a-days. Longer life span and has caught up with Plasma in many regards.

#959049Post 13 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

aside from the larger size screens, LCD & plasma prices should be relatively close per size. lcds should have little to no burnin & plasmas have gotten better to control that problem than previous years (as mentioned above) & lcds are better for lots of natural light. lcds also dont seem to produce a better picture on standard cable signals (as compared to plasmas). gaming on lcds are supposed to be better also.

#959501Post 14 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

Do NOT get that Panasonic. Read horror stories about it. You want a higher end Sammy. Trust me on this one. If you want some good analysis go to the avsforums. That place is awesome. Here's a situation why you should not buy a TV from Best Buy (if you can help it). My brother was looking at a 42" from Samsung over at Fry's Electronics. It was the 71 series so a very good television. He went to Best Buy and the same tv was on sale for only $500 more than the Fry's price. LMAO Whenever I've gone to compare tvs I've noticed that Best Buy's sale price is even higher than Fry's regular price. Very disturbing as you know many people shop there. I would recommend you go do comparisons in a shop and then order from Frys.com. I know I'm plugging the place but their prices are awesome. And yes, there is still the issue with burn in with plasmas but it now takes longer to happen. They now have anti-burn in technology but all it does is soften up the lines so it really defeats the purpose of having an HD television set. If you want realistic color, you want plasma. That's the HUGE difference there.

#959576Post 15 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

i am not going to buy that tv now that i have thought about it, it is too much money and i could give a shit about a high def dvd player, esp with the format war still going on (although it looks like bluray is going to win). i love fry's also and am going to do some more research. i just looked at a new apt last night, and i still would like to have a 50" tv, so i will look and see what i can get and hopefully it will fit. i have 3 friends who all have samsungs and like them alot. do you know if you get less blur on plasma vs lcd? the only annoying thing on the lcd my rommmate currently has is, i notice is during scene changes or if someone moves their head around really quick etc, the movement turns into little blocks for a quick second. small thing but it is annoying enough for me to notice.

i will also snoop around on avsforum.com for a while, thanks for the info :)

#959645Post 16 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

You can get lost for days at avsforums. I have. It's a great place to do some research on. The main reason behind blurring, clouding, etc. is due to the processors in the tv, not the actual panel itself. Samsung is great in many respects because they make quality panels and great internal components. Last I checked, there are only four companies in the world that make panels. Everyone else buys those panels for their televisions. My 24" Dell widescreen has a panel made by Samsung. After much research, I picked this one and enjoy it. I don't game so I didn't go by fastest response time because I prefer to have a great picture. Gaming screens are designed to suffer on picture quality as they want fast response time.

#959653Post 17 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

Now that the many of the LCD's have gone with 120hz you don't get the blur as much as they used to. Sure, if you look super closely you can still barely see it but LCD is almost the same as plasma now, when it comes to ghosting.

As for the Plasma, the panasonic 700 series acutally got incredible reviews even over the new Pioneer Kuro.

I've actually been doing a shit load of research on on plasmas vs. lcd's lately because I'm also in the market to buy them.

What I've been reading a lot is Plasma's are better for darker blacks, and LCD's are better for more vibrant colors.

If I were to go with LCD it would be the new Samsung. NOT SONY. Sony's XBR's were incredible last year but they don't match up against the new samsungs.

If you're going to go with the 50" plasma, go with the panasonic... [IMG]http://www2.panasonic.com/static/Content/spacer.gif[/IMG] [URL="http://www2.panasonic.com/consumer-electronics/shop/Televisions/Plasma-HDTVs/model.TH-50PZ700U_11002_7000000000000005702"]TH-50PZ700U[/URL]

If you've got money to burn then go with the Pioneer Elite Kuro... you won't get a better picture BUT you're going to pay for it too.

#959658Post 18 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

Sonys have always been overrated. I've compared many and I could never get a good picture with those damn things. Overpriced. I don't wear glasses or contacts and my vision is great so that could be my downfall for not liking Sonys. There are still plenty of TVs with 120Hz that have issues and you will find them in the threads on avs. The problem with panasonics is their processors. They've improved but they're still seeing issues. You definitely won't get a great image with them. You will get a decent one though.

#959662Post 19 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

My new TV will be a Samsung. For the price and quality you really get the best.

The Top selling HQ TV are either Sony or Samsung. I have heard they actually share a lot of the same components ... except for when the Sony logo is slapped on the labor cost increase $500 - $1000.

Yep. Samsung all the way baby. I am just waiting for a 32 to go 1080P and I am golden. :lol:

#959675Post 20 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

You don't want to settle for a 32. Go bigger. You'll be kicking yourself.

#959710Post 21 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

... Just our bedroom TV. ;)

#959773Post 22 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

[quote=asdf_admin;558779]... Just our bedroom TV. ;)[/quote]

bling bling :)

#959788Post 23 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

Is there much difference between HD ready and Full HD? My 32 "" LCD is only HD ready and this is I think 500-600 pixels below the 1920x1200 full HD resolution. The difference between the normal tv resoultion to this is recognizable but I don't know how much the few extra pixels will bring in your average tv session.

While I am at..can anybody explain to me how upscaling works in a way that I can understand it lol? As far as I see it, when you enlarge a resolution the result does not get better because if you can't add more information and details you just blow the data up...I imagine this like encoding a 64kb stream to a 320k mp3 file..what is not there can't be added but maybe this comparison is wrong. Is the information available on a DVD in higher resolution and it is normally downscaled (if such a word exists) and the upscaling reverses the effect?

What I also would like to know is how is it possible that everything can be broadcasted in HD. We have a channel where they show old rubbish western and 60ties movies in HD. What is the original resolution of such old movies and is everything you see on the telly downscaled as well so it is compatible with the tv format? I like the new toys but HD still confuses me lol.

#959800Post 24 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

[quote=asdf_admin;558779]... Just our bedroom TV. ;)[/quote]How far away are you going to be from the tv? We're going with no less than a 40" as our headboard is almost 13 feet away from the opposite wall. Anything smaller would be very annoying to look at.

#959816Post 25 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

About ten feet. This will just be primarily for me and evening viewing of sports center and the news. We watch flicks when the boo is asleep but I would rather get huge a HDTV for the downstairs. Still have not pulled the trigger ... for money I would rather just get the main room HDTV and wait for the prices drop for the bedroom. Dunno. waiting.

#959821Post 26 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

i have a 42" LG Plasma, and love it. I'd still consider buying a plasma over an lcd right now, but thats just personal preference. watching HD is so much better than regular tv or movies, you won't really give a shit. In 3-5 years, sure, but right now just having a good HDTV is fantastic.

the main concern with a plasma is to get the extended warranty. I've got a 5 year replacement if-it-craps-out warranty, and wouldn't have gone any other way. once a plasma goes, its gone.

#959826Post 27 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

No. The main concern is getting a good quality screen. Secondary, is the warranty or extended coverage.

assfuck_admin... 40" isn't big. That's the standard. I see them everyday. Don't go small. It doesn't pay to be a cheap ass. You'll be kicking yourself afterwards.

#959828Post 28 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

lol.

#959859Post 29 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

[QUOTE=TomTom;558874]While I am at..can anybody explain to me how upscaling works in a way that I can understand it lol? As far as I see it, when you enlarge a resolution the result does not get better because if you can't add more information and details you just blow the data up...I imagine this like encoding a 64kb stream to a 320k mp3 file..what is not there can't be added but maybe this comparison is wrong. Is the information available on a DVD in higher resolution and it is normally downscaled (if such a word exists) and the upscaling reverses the effect?[/QUOTE]

The difference between upscaling video to HiDef vs. mp3 to Higher bitrates is $$ Here, engineers and programmers write advanced recoding software to upscale the video vs. mp3 upscalers you download on sourceforge.

I read a detailed paper about it but didnt understand the half of it, but understood something along the lines of how a laser reads the data on the dvd, deciphers the pixel color info from one pixel to another (and around the overall object), run algorithms to decide the closest color match of the new pixel data and build up a higher resolution picture from it. They add sharpening and other tweaks to the data (some of the better upscalers threw in Faroudja's chipsets for smoothing out the video output in hi-def) and created a remarkably improved albeit fake hidef signal.

[QUOTE=TomTom;558874] What I also would like to know is how is it possible that everything can be broadcasted in HD. We have a channel where they show old rubbish western and 60ties movies in HD. What is the original resolution of such old movies and is everything you see on the telly downscaled as well so it is compatible with the tv format? I like the new toys but HD still confuses me lol.[/QUOTE]

HD upscaling has its limitations, those old rubbish 60ties movies can only be upscaled by so much, so they still look like shit. The original resolution would be the resolution of the camera recorded them back in the 60s. Nothing is downscaled, nearly all of the tvs (until the advent of HD) displayed the data as it was presented to them in the horrid analog format, of course they threw in curved screen tvs, flat screen tvs, anti-glare tvs, small screen large screen tvs, sony's pioneering 3 beam trinitron's, improved refresh rates, yaada yaada yaada, but end of the day, they were not too far apart from each other because the signal was so shitty, the visual improvements were too small to take notice.

Full HiDef on the other hand has nearly 4 times the lines and so of course at that high a resolution, the digital signal can be tweaker ridiculously and filters added for a picture quality that's not even in the same playing field as analogue tvs

#959862Post 30 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

Thx mate. :D

#959870Post 31 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

I have 3 Samsung Plasmas and have never had a problem with any of them. Aside from my 42" that I bought in Houston and moved to Denver with. Turns out they make TV's in Denver (Since it's the mile-high city) altitude ready. So the life of my 42" was cut in half. It makes a really loud buzzing noise when I turn it out now too, kinda sucks. It's due to die this year. And I'm going to buy another Samsung. Samsung's just the way to go with TV's nowadays.

#959880Post 32 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

I have a 56" Samsung LCD dlp 1080p and its great. Had it now for just a little over a year.

With Direct TV HD package its awesome, but the HD Tuner built in is even better as like my local channel 9 is a true 1080i and it looks fucking super clear! Just go get a $10 Antenna. Laker games and Dodger games on the local antenna look dope!

Im moving out soon and I plan on purchasing the same tv. If I can find it. I think Samsung doest sell the one I have anymore, they have made newer versions of it...

Go Samsung!

#959972Post 33 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

[QUOTE=Kamal;558950]HD upscaling has its limitations, those old rubbish 60ties movies can only be upscaled by so much, so they still look like shit. The original resolution would be the resolution of the camera recorded them back in the 60s. Nothing is downscaled, nearly all of the tvs (until the advent of HD) displayed the data as it was presented to them in the horrid analog format, of course they threw in curved screen tvs, flat screen tvs, anti-glare tvs, small screen large screen tvs, sony's pioneering 3 beam trinitron's, improved refresh rates, yaada yaada yaada, but end of the day, they were not too far apart from each other because the signal was so shitty, the visual improvements were too small to take notice.

Full HiDef on the other hand has nearly 4 times the lines and so of course at that high a resolution, the digital signal can be tweaker ridiculously and filters added for a picture quality that's not even in the same playing field as analogue tvs[/QUOTE]FALSE. What you see on television and what you see on DVD format is a downscaled, compressed version of the original video. I'm referring to analog television. It was always well known that there were limitation of regular television and that the signal had to be compressed in order for it to be viewed "properly". Those older films that you see being brought back in HD/BD format are not going to be fantastic but they are definitely going to be better than the original VHS/Beta/DVD release. Unfortunately, we are in the bigger screen era so the typical person will not notice the better video quality as they are going to be more concerned with it not being as good as HD/BD.

#959974Post 34 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

@BureOne... you'll be impressed with what Samsung now offers.

#960281Post 35 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

Cool. So I should get a Samsung LCD from Frys. That was easy.

#960288Post 36 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

[QUOTE=beanzncheez;559074]FALSE. What you see on television and what you see on DVD format is a downscaled, compressed version of the original video. I'm referring to analog television. It was always well known that there were limitation of regular television and that the signal had to be compressed in order for it to be viewed "properly". Those older films that you see being brought back in HD/BD format are not going to be fantastic but they are definitely going to be better than the original VHS/Beta/DVD release. Unfortunately, we are in the bigger screen era so the typical person will not notice the better video quality as they are going to be more concerned with it not being as good as HD/BD.[/QUOTE]

did they sell that to you in fry's as well ?

#961166Post 37 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

so my friend keeps trying to sell me one of these Vizio brand tv's. how the hell are these things so cheap and getting some press that they are good? i looked at the contract ratio for some random model and it was 1800:1 which sounds like shit. he said it is a marketing scheme and referred me to this: [URL]http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/null/29651[/URL]

so whats up with these, are they just popular because they are cheap and are still shit? like those 60$ apex walmart dvd players that play every pirate fav format under the sun but break in 6 months, but people love them because they are cheap?

#961179Post 38 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

[QUOTE=res0nat0r;560434]are they just popular because they are cheap and are still shit? like those 60$ apex walmart dvd players that play every pirate fav format under the sun but break in 6 months, but people love them because they are cheap?[/QUOTE]

bingo (dont know about the breaking in 6 months though)

#961185Post 39 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

they are cheap but are they so cheap that the quality is that much worse, or is it relatively comparable? (not that im going to buy one but have been wondering)

#961208Post 40 of 41

Re: plasma vs lcd

Not only are they cheap BUT they've started placing some Higher end processors inside that aren't even found in the nicer tv's.

Wouldn't go with the LCD though... no 120hz!

[URL]http://gizmodo.com/341225/high-end-budget-hdtv-vizio-vp605f-vp504f-1080p-plasma-has-silicon-optix-hqv-reon-processor-inside[/URL]

Log in to reply