Is it flat screen or flat panel????

jc0481 said:

I have always corrected people on FLAT PANEL monitors when they say "flat screen". I do know flat panel is the correct term. I am referring more to the television like the plasma, lcd and those new dlp from texas instruments (digital light processor) anyways I see a lot of advertisements, both on print and tv and it says "FLAT SCREEN TV". Just need people's help into which is the correct saying. Thanks

Click to expand...

The most common, consistent usage (discounting people who just say whatever ) I have seen, in the US, is:

Flat Screen = any kind of display except Plasma and LCD, which is flat on the front surface

Flat Panel = Plasma or LCD displays only, because these displays have a panel, in the sense of a panel of liquid crystals or plasma tubes, rather than having an image projected (internally or externally) onto a screen.

EDIT: I would consider a DLP to be a Flat Screen, too, and not a Flat Panel, because the DLP still projects the image onto a screen, as far as I understand the technology. It just has a wider cone angle and can support a unit that is less deep.

But I don't think there is broad acceptance. I just think that, where people make a point of differentiating, that's the most common line I see drawn.

jc0481 said:

I have always corrected people on FLAT PANEL monitors when they say "flat screen". I do know flat panel is the correct term. I am referring more to the television like the plasma, lcd and those new dlp from texas instruments (digital light processor) anyways I see a lot of advertisements, both on print and tv and it says "FLAT SCREEN TV". Just need people's help into which is the correct saying. Thanks

Click to expand...

screen only refers to the actual front of the screen that you view the image on.. if it is in deed FLAT then it is a flat screen.. but like most older tvs which have a tube, they have a convex like shape for the actual screen.. the panel refers to whats behind the screen. what produces the image.. so if it is a flat panel of lcd or plasma then it is a flat panel display.. if there is a tube then it is not flat panel... thus you are correct in your corrections

Here it is plain and simple. A FLAT SCREEN is a display with a tube, but the actual viewing surface is flat. A FLAT PANEL is one of the thin LCD or plasma screens, with no tube. I hope that this clears things up.

FLAT SCREEN:
http://images.google.com/imgres?img...&svnum=10&hl=en&lr=&client=safari&rls=en&sa=G

FLAT PANEL:
http://images.google.com/imgres?img...&svnum=10&hl=en&lr=&client=safari&rls=en&sa=N

CoMpX said:

Here it is plain and simple. A FLAT SCREEN is a display with a tube, but the actual viewing surface is flat. A FLAT PANEL is one of the thin LCD or plasma screens, with no tube. I hope that this clears things up.

FLAT SCREEN:
http://images.google.com/imgres?img...&svnum=10&hl=en&lr=&client=safari&rls=en&sa=G

FLAT PANEL:
http://images.google.com/imgres?img...&svnum=10&hl=en&lr=&client=safari&rls=en&sa=N

Click to expand...

Thanks for clearing up one of the most uninteresting questions. Sorry about my comment to the author of this thread.

DLP is a technology used in TI-based projectors, not really a flat panel, per se. IIRC, it's really a spinning wheel and mirrors and other doo dads.

tuartboy said:

DLP is a technology used in TI-based projectors, not really a flat panel, per se. IIRC, it's really a spinning wheel and mirrors and other doo dads.

Click to expand...

You stupid, tuartboy. NO wheel. Must have mixed up your tech.

Wikipedia