Plasma vs LCD

[Cygnus]

I'm looking at getting a 42" 1080P television to replace my 27" Sony CRT and am wondering if I will notice any big differences between LCD and Plasma. I might use it with my laptop as well, so that might be a consideration to go with an LCD over a plasma, but what are the main pros and cons between the two types? My budget is max $1200CDN, and I''m not too picky about brands, save for Sony. I don't like their flat-panels.

 

[gmichael]

Plasma:
Better blacks
Better color
Less motion blur

LCD:
Brighter
Lighter
Uses less energy

 

[Cygnus]

Plasma:
Better blacks
Better color
Less motion blur

LCD:
Brighter
Lighter
Uses less energy

Thanks, while we're at it, what about LED? Is that the next best thing? I'm still hearing that Plasma's still at the top right now. Oh, I also don't care at all about 3D.

 

[cpd]

I have an edge lit samsung led in my bedroom that I like. PQ is good enough and it has the advantage of being extremely thin which is perfect for my installation (small room). I would not, however, be happy with it for my main movie watching screen (on very dark material the edges are sometimes lighter than the center).

I have read good reviews of the back-lit led tvs that have been on the market for a little while now. The sets with "local dimming" are said to have much better black levels because they can dim areas of the led illumination. Depending on the model and the review some say they rival the blacks of a plasma and others say they are not quite as good. Still, they are pricey. If you are looking for good brightness and decent blacks they may be worth looking at. If you watch a lot of sports, I would recommend plasma.

Good Luck.

 

[Cygnus]

I'm not much into sports, and watch mostly movies and play Playstation on occasion. I'm just looking for something to complete my High-Definition project.

 

[MDS]

This debate always comes down to 'plasmas have better blacks'. Maybe I'm not quite the video afficionado but I think its mostly much ado about nothing.

My LCD is about 3 years old now and as far as I'm concerned, the blacks are plenty black. It does occasionally show the 'flashlight' effect that does plague LCDs where on an almost totally black screen, such as the end credits of a movie, you can see little light spots in the corners. It doesn't bother me a bit and you never see it watching an actual movie or cable TV. Motion blur from sports or other fast moving content is non-existent.

I was sold on LCD because I value the fact that they are thinner, lighter, and far less power hungry than plasma. They can also be made to be very bright if your room suffers from too much sunshine during the day. My living room is pitch black at night because the house faces West and the living room is in the back of the house and I think it looks damn good for movies.

 

[cschang]

I just went through this whole self imposed battle for a new TV in my livingroom. I analyzed the situation for a few weeks before making a decision.

First...I purchased an LED/LCD unit with local dimming.

If I had a room where I could control the lighting, I would have went with plasma. From my experience, it is the better picture overall.

But my livingroom is a multi-purpose, has a large window that I do not want to cover, and the dining area is adjacent. With my old Epson RPTV/LCD, the reflection and glare bothered me.

The two TV's I narrowed my decision down to were the Panasonic 54" G20(plasma) and Vizio 55" 553SVT(LED/LCD). Both TVs had better reflection and glare properties than my old TV, but the matte screen of the Vizio was much better. Power consumption, the LED/LCD may save me $25 a year...not a big deal. Plasmas put out more heat, that could be a issue for some...but not for me.

While the blacks of the plasma are better, the local dimming LED is extremely good and fairly close. The color linearity was rated good as well...but I am not a video guy, so I don't currently have a good eye for this sort of things. I also haven't noticed any issues with fast motion...and I watch sports. Of course, there other picture characteritics that each have...that you may like, or not...so those you will have to judge.

The greatest thing of all....no glare or reflection! All the light in the room, and I have a great picture.

 

[bigbassdave]

I love my Samsung LCD. PQ is fantastic and the black levels are very good for an LCD unit. The only thing that bothers me is the motion blur. I only notice it during football games. For instance when Philip Rivers lets one go deep the ball gets a little tricky to see. Also, if the camera pans from one area of the field to the other very quickly I'll see it then too. Honestly at this point, LCD has improved so much (whether its LED lit or not) I would say just narrow your choices down to a few options and buy the one you can get the best deal on.

 

[Cygnus]

I just bought a Samsung 46" LCD-LED display. I was looking at it in comparison to a 46" Panasonic Plasma (which was waycheaper in price) and the Samsung won, hands down. I'm excited! My system is finally complete, though I'll have to ditch the SL1200 for a while, because I no longer will have room for it.

 

[3db]

I just bought a Samsung 46" LCD-LED display. I was looking at it in comparison to a 46" Panasonic Plasma (which was waycheaper in price) and the Samsung won, hands down. I'm excited! My system is finally complete, though I'll have to ditch the SL1200 for a while, because I no longer will have room for it.

Congradulations

 

[ThumperSD]

Plasma will cause more heat, use more energy and will generally not last as long as LCDs

With that said, I prefer Plasma even though I have an LCD for my bedroom. If I have a HT setup, Id get a plasma. Leave the LCD in the bedroom.

 

[Cygnus]

I noticed on the display that the corners are bright during scenes that are black, or movies with bars on the tops and bottoms. Doesn't really bother me much though. Also, I'm using "Game Mode" on it because without it, there's lag. This creates a grain effect though. Is there a different way to cut down on lag while still using HDMI through my AVR for video and audio, without using the game mode?

 

[mcfearless]

I have personally always picked LCD over Plasma. I have a friend that had a plasma and he had nothing but trouble with burn in.

 

[x360 fever]

I noticed on the display that the corners are bright during scenes that are black, or movies with bars on the tops and bottoms. Doesn't really bother me much though. Also, I'm using "Game Mode" on it because without it, there's lag. This creates a grain effect though. Is there a different way to cut down on lag while still using HDMI through my AVR for video and audio, without using the game mode?

** Turn off all enhancements, which includes 'game mode', play around with the reference levels (if the option is available), and you should be fine. For games, set it to 720p (98% of all games are native 720p). For movies stick to 480p, unless they're HD DVDs. For that, you might want to experiment between 720 and 1080p. Also, try to keep the color, contrast and backlight settings a little low.

 

[Bass Bum]

I have owned two plasmas and two LCDs. I have MUCH preferred the plasmas for their accurate picture and especially the lack of motion blur. My current Panny is my favorite. Time to step up to something new and bigger next summer.

 

[Cygnus]

** Turn off all enhancements, which includes 'game mode', play around with the reference levels (if the option is available), and you should be fine. For games, set it to 720p (98% of all games are native 720p). For movies stick to 480p, unless they're HD DVDs. For that, you might want to experiment between 720 and 1080p. Also, try to keep the color, contrast and backlight settings a little low.

I did all this and it seems to be fine. Thanks!