Choosing a TV type

[mhooper1125]

Ok am looking for a screen for primarly video game use.

Distance can be anything as far as viewing since it wil be setup with the ability to move the origination point of viewing.

Since it will be used primarly from a computer the first question would be:

What to choose, Front projection, Plasma, or LCD?

It needs to be able to keep up with very high FPS.

 

[mhooper1125]

And by FPS is Frames per second.

not first person shooter.

I apologize for any confusion.

 

[Phil Taylor]

I'd say get a 1080p DLP or LCoS/SXRD front projector. Go BIG Since you are playing a lot of games - a plasma could possibly get burn in from counters and such depending on the brand and model - although burn-in has been all but eliminated from the best plasmas.

 

[Panjsheri]

I would say go with and LCD as they are on average now 4 ms. I have been playing some really awesome games on my TV and never had any issues especially with the FPS (Frames per second). Plasma will have no slowdown issue but there is the chance of burn in and the pixels are bigger so not as crisp as an LCD. The projectors are the biggest with the best bang for buck but they are best if you sit directly infront of them and not on an angle. Also they arent as bright as a lot of mid range LCD's so again get an LCD prices are a lot better now anyways

 

[annunaki]

I would say go with and LCD as they are on average now 4 ms. I have been playing some really awesome games on my TV and never had any issues especially with the FPS (Frames per second). Plasma will have no slowdown issue but there is the chance of burn in and the pixels are bigger so not as crisp as an LCD. The projectors are the biggest with the best bang for buck but they are best if you sit directly infront of them and not on an angle. Also they arent as bright as a lot of mid range LCD's so again get an LCD prices are a lot better now anyways

LCD still has motion blur even at 4ms response times. Especially when it is side by side with a plasma.

The burn in issue with plasmas (Pioneer & Panasonic) specifically is really a moot point. I have said it many times, but you would have to intentionally burn the set in. (i.e. vivid/dynamic mode with most settings at or near maximum) I have seen a Panasonic TH-50px75U in vivid mode with a still image (Spiderman II dvd menu) for more than 6 hours that had no permanent effect on the set. There was image retention for about 20 minutes but it was completely gone thereafter.

I would not say that LCD's are more crisp. They sometimes appear sharper with a static image, but when there's motion it all changes.

 

[jliedeka]

I bought an LCD because I was worried about burn-in. If I had to do it over, I'd go plasma. LCDs actually lose resolution when there is a lot of motion. I don't really notice it myself but I probably would if I were used to plasma.

Another consideration is your environment. If it's hard to control the light levels in your room, a projector probably isn't what you want. Also, in general, LCDs are less susceptible to a bright environment. Some plasmas have anti-glare screens, though. If you are able to block out daylight, then a projector may be a good choice. You can certainly get a bigger picture for less money.

Jim

 

[zumbo]

Neighbor has had a Samsung 720p plasma for about a year. It's decent.

I have had a Toshiba 1080p LCD for 10 months. It's dead. At shop.

My brother has had a Samsung 1080p DLP for about four years. Fantastic TV.

The only reason I didn't go DLP is because I needed a 42". If you can go larger than 42", I would say DLP.

Don't know about LCoS/SXRD.

 

[StiMpACk]

if your main use of the tv will be games and hooking it up to the computer, you probably wanna go with lcd. no worry of burn in like you would with some plasmas, and you dont have to change a lightbulb every 2-6 years for a projection. if you like to turn your games on and off, thats really bad for dlp considering you should leave the tv on for a while before you turn it off to conserve the bulb.

i suggest a samsung with 120 htz, 4ms makes it pretty quick, great picture, and they usually have swivel, so you can change your viewing angle with ease

 

[Biggiesized]

I'd go with a DLP.

 

[bandphan]

with the price of the panny plasmas so competitive, its hard to understand why plasma wouldnt be the clear choice with top quality pq and value.

 

[annunaki]

if your main use of the tv will be games and hooking it up to the computer, you probably wanna go with lcd. no worry of burn in like you would with some plasmas, and you dont have to change a lightbulb every 2-6 years for a projection. if you like to turn your games on and off, thats really bad for dlp considering you should leave the tv on for a while before you turn it off to conserve the bulb.

i suggest a samsung with 120 htz, 4ms makes it pretty quick, great picture, and they usually have swivel, so you can change your viewing angle with ease

I am not sure if you read my post above, but I would give it another look.

In my opinion 120hz is a complete gimmick feature in most applications. Especially so if one wants to see the media as intended.

While I will agree that the Samsung LCD's seem to perform the best (750 Series on up), plasma represents such a better value. One must purchase the 750 series LCD's just to come close to equaling (not surpassing) what the 720p Panasonic plasmas already do very well (Black levels, motion, color accuracy, etc.) at nearly 1/3-1/2 the price, resolution aside.

 

[StiMpACk]

I am not sure if you read my post above, but I would give it another look.

In my opinion 120hz is a complete gimmick feature in most applications. Especially so if one wants to see the media as intended.

While I will agree that the Samsung LCD's seem to perform the best (750 Series on up), plasma represents such a better value. One must purchase the 750 series LCD's just to come close to equaling (not surpassing) what the 720p Panasonic plasmas already do very well (Black levels, motion, color accuracy, etc.) at nearly 1/3-1/2 the price, resolution aside.

yeah if i was to recommend a plasma would definitely be panasonic or pioneer. i dont think panasonic swivels though, nor does it have a vga(atleast not in the 80u series) so if hes connecting it to a comp with no dvi or hdmi, uh oh ><;

 

[jliedeka]

I would agree that Pannys are probably one of the best values. Their black levels are second only to Pioneer and their colors are better. I wouldn't overlook Samsung plasmas if you can find a good price. They are reputed to be decent.

Jim

 

[poutanen]

OP: we need more info...

Price range? Other sources that may feed into it? Desired size?

For a small TV, a flat panel LCD I think is one of the only options (under 32")

For a medium, there are a lot of decent plasmas for a decent price in the 42 and 50" sizes.

For large, it's projector all the way for cost vs. results. I'm not even convinced a 50" plasma is better than a 720p projector w/a 50" screen (if you can find/make one) for the money. A projector displayed on a proper sized screen can be just as bright as a plasma or LCD tv, but ambient light makes all the difference. A projector *may* make hooking into a computer easier, and DLP is ultra fast for games.

My old setup was an InFocus IN72 (480p projector) displayed on a 76" high contrast (grey) screen. From about 6' and back the pixels disappeared, and gaming on it was excellent (from a PS3 and PS2). The projector cost $800 back in the day, and the screen was $250.

 

[bandphan]

yeah if i was to recommend a plasma would definitely be panasonic or pioneer. i dont think panasonic swivels though, nor does it have a vga(atleast not in the 80u series) so if hes connecting it to a comp with no dvi or hdmi, uh oh ><;

there are vga to component converters as well as many other options for display mounts.

 

[Panjsheri]

LCD still has motion blur even at 4ms response times. Especially when it is side by side with a plasma.

The burn in issue with plasmas (Pioneer & Panasonic) specifically is really a moot point. I have said it many times, but you would have to intentionally burn the set in. (i.e. vivid/dynamic mode with most settings at or near maximum) I have seen a Panasonic TH-50px75U in vivid mode with a still image (Spiderman II dvd menu) for more than 6 hours that had no permanent effect on the set. There was image retention for about 20 minutes but it was completely gone thereafter.

I would not say that LCD's are more crisp. They sometimes appear sharper with a static image, but when there's motion it all changes.

Yes Plasma's have gotten a lot better with the burn in but the only reason I am saying the LCD's are crisper is because I had my PC connected to a plasma once and you couldnt read the letters properly it almost hurt to stare at but then when I used the LCD it was crisp and easy to look at, know what I mean???

 

[annunaki]

Yes Plasma's have gotten a lot better with the burn in but the only reason I am saying the LCD's are crisper is because I had my PC connected to a plasma once and you couldnt read the letters properly it almost hurt to stare at but then when I used the LCD it was crisp and easy to look at, know what I mean???

Not really? It sounds lik ethere was more at play here than just the orientation of the tv.

 

[poutanen]

Yes Plasma's have gotten a lot better with the burn in but the only reason I am saying the LCD's are crisper is because I had my PC connected to a plasma once and you couldnt read the letters properly it almost hurt to stare at but then when I used the LCD it was crisp and easy to look at, know what I mean???

Were they both the same resolution??? You could have been looking at a 720p plasma and a 1080p LCD.

 

[bandphan]

Were they both the same resolution??? You could have been looking at a 720p plasma and a 1080p LCD.

i dont think it would matter which resolution it was, once properly set up a 720p 42xx80u panny has top tier PQ with no motion blur

 

[poutanen]

i dont think it would matter which resolution it was, once properly set up a 720p 42xx80u panny has top tier PQ with no motion blur

He was saying the letters were blurry, so if one TV was a higher resolution than the other, that could account for the blurriness, no?