Which would you buy, a plasma or LCD.

To my eyes, the plasmas have a sharper picture. The LCD's look good but they are a little grainy compared to the plasmas.

However, I am certainly no expert on the subject and before I plunk down 1200 + frog skins, I would like some feedback.

Which would you buy and why? Any particular models that you would suggest? Or...that you would advise a person toNOT BUY?

Thanks in advance.

L

Landrum,

Give a look to some of the newest high end Sharp LCDs. They have a 10,000 to one, or better, contrast ratio and I'll bet you will like what you see... I'm about to have the same dilemma and have been doing some preliminary research.. One thing for sure with the LCDs is lamp life... They tend to last/outlast conventional CRT type displays.. On the other side of the coin, the newest, brightest, sharpest LCDs can be quite pricey and the plasmas are continuosly coming down in price...

Just my 2 cents...

Ken....

I would go with the LCD. It only looks any grainier up really close. The other issue is that the plasma "wears out" and needs to be replaced every 5 years or so to keep the picture looking good. I also agree with the Sharp. They have come a long way.

I just bought a 50" LCD. Looked at the plasma
but the room I use for the tv has a lot of light. The plasma tv's have that glass front and you get a lot of reflection. On regular stations the LCD is more grainy than my old tube tv, but on a high def station or a high def dvd clarity is unbelievable.

Yesterday I watched a DVD played on a PC and projected on to a white wall with one of the standard video projectors. The quality was great and the screen was of course huge. No need to worry about a "new" high definition system coming on-line and rendering your TV screen obsolete. And, you can use it for your digital photos as a slide show, etc. I think I'll wait before buying one of the big flat TV screens.

Is everyone aware that you also have the following to choose from:
1. 1080p
2. 1080i
3. 720p
4. 720i

Apparently has to do with the number of Pixels/square inch, Obviously the more data available, the best opportunity for clarity would exist.

I'm looking at 1080p LCDs. I read in some computer mag or newspaper that Samsung is making the sets for Sony in a joint venture. If that is wrong, please correct me.

I have noticed the "View Angle" has widened considerably in the past year. Now as I walk toward them from the side, I can see some of the image. In a smaller room, I can see where that could have created a problem.

You are correct the 1080p is the newest generation. Check out the Toshiba brand $1200-1500 less than the Samsung

Actually the "1080p" is actual high def. The resolution of the panel is 1920 lines by 1080 lines or roughly 2 mega pixels... In this case 1080 means the number of horizontal lines... In the case of a 1080i it's actually interlaced.. That means it's basically displaying two seperate frames of 720p...

Also, if memory serves me correctly, there are only 3 or 4 panel makers in the world. Everybody else orders theirs from one of these companies with their own specs... Plus they do their own electronics to get the "best" picture...

Refresh rate of the pixels is what will make a break an LCD from my perspective.. You'll find most of the better ones are 8ms or better and the high end ones can go as low as 2ms... I don't know if any of the mainstream companies do a 2ms on a LARGE LCD yet or not however...

Anyway, there is a ton of differences in the various brands and resolutions so it's definitely best to see everything you might want to consider buying "side by side"...

Ken....

Thank you both.

Had a buddy go shopping last year for a new HDTV. He went to (I think) 5 different places and got totally different answers to his questions at each place. He called me that night and was sipping a cool one - disgusted - and he RARELY imbibes.
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Do you all plan to just go with a new HDTV, or get a "HDTV Receiver" and wait until the fiasco settles a bit? I believe I can probably "fall asleep" to one as well as the other.

quote:

Originally posted by Hot Core:
I believe I can probably "fall asleep" to one as well as the other.

AMEN !!!!