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Which is better Plasma, LCD, or DLP?

J

JesseJames

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Mar 28, 2003
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How'd I get here? How can I leave?
So which flat-panel is best?
I heard LCD has good contrast but may have "ghosting" with fast action.
Plasma does not have this issue but its contrast ratio is not as good.
I don't know much about DLP except for the fact that Texas Instruments developed it.
 
(Argh! The dreaded question in work!)

Depends what you mean by better and what size TV you're after.

DLP is used in projectors so isn't really a 'flat panel' TV - although it does give a fantastic big picture at a relatively low price.

LCDs are fine in a smaller size and are getting better.

Plasmas give nice rich colours and stronger blacks (compared to LCDs) and are a lot cheaper at bigger sizes.

(These are not 'scientific', but merely my opinion that I use to sell TVs for living!)
 
JesseJames said:
Equivalent to a 32" or 42" viewable space CRT television.
Click to expand...


For a 32-37" go for LCD.

For 42" go for Plasma.

Edit: Beaten to it!

(DLP is used in projectors and gives a great picture if you don't mind the relative 'bulk' of projector sets.)
 
Sorry I don't mean to hijack your thread but what type of TV would be good to play xbox 360 on?
 
viccles said:
Sorry I don't mean to hijack your thread but what type of TV would be good to play xbox 360 on?
Click to expand...


A high definition TV. Depends on the size of the screen, plus it's worth remembering that an image can burn into a plasma if you leave the Xbox 360 paused a great length of time.

(Sorry if it's the obvious answer! :) )
 
welshandrew said:
A high definition TV. Depends on the size of the screen, plus it's worth remembering that an image can burn into a plasma if you leave the Xbox 360 paused a great length of time.

(Sorry if it's the obvious answer! :) )
Click to expand...

No it's not because I know nothing about TVs! :D
 
welshandrew said:
A high definition TV. Depends on the size of the screen, plus it's worth remembering that an image can burn into a plasma if you leave the Xbox 360 paused a great length of time.

(Sorry if it's the obvious answer! :) )
Click to expand...

Beat me to it. When I worked at Best Buy, we burned a plasma in 2 hours of leaving a DVD menu up. Game consoles would yield the same results.
 
viccles said:
No it's not because I know nothing about TVs! :D
Click to expand...


Sorry. :D

37-32" and below go for an LCD.

42" and above go for a plasma, much better value for money. But be wary of screen burn - when a static image (DVD menu screen, games pause screen, etc) is left on a plasma for a length of time it can burn the image into the screen permanently.

Also, since its for a Xbox 360 and if you can, go for a high definition TV to enjoy the games in their full graphical glory. Plus go for as big a screen as possible or you won't see the benefits of the HD image.

Remember when technology was easy?!? :D
 
welshandrew said:
Sorry. :D

37-32" and below go for an LCD.

42" and above go for a plasma, much better value for money. But be wary of screen burn - when a static image (DVD menu screen, games pause screen, etc) is left on a plasma for a length of time it can burn the image into the screen permanently.

Also, since its for a Xbox 360 and if you can, go for a high definition TV to enjoy the games in their full graphical glory. Plus go for as big a screen as possible or you won't see the benefits of the HD image.

Remember when technology was easy?!? :D
Click to expand...

Ok I want a relatively smallish TV so I should go for an LCD that is HD ready is that right? :p I feel like such a noob
 
i would suggest going to a store to compare tvs for yourself. i personally would take a 40" lcd over a 42" plasma, but that's just me. everyone's tastes are different.
 
siurpeeman said:
i would suggest going to a store to compare tvs for yourself. i personally would take a 40" lcd over a 42" plasma, but that's just me. everyone's tastes are different.
Click to expand...


But then you're paying more for a TV of inferior quality! :eek:

I agree with your suggestion of going to a shop and having a look for yourself. It's a lot of money and you want to be happy in your purchase.
 
if you're looking for places to go, my friend bought a 42 inch plasma from Costco. its a panasonic. he saw it rated really well on consumer reports. they also let him exchange it three times, not because it was broken but because it dropped in price over a year, so he got over $500 back.

i'm not sure how much knowledge Costco has when it comes to TVs but if find the one you're looking for, certainly check them out when you're ready to buy
 
Yeah, I'd pick an LCD if I wanted something smaller, and a plasma if I wanted a bigger TV.

However, I really like the picture size and price combination of the DLP's and wouldn't mind sacrificing a wall-mount for a 60+ inch TV. Which means that my next (main) TV will probably be a DLP.
 
welshandrew said:
But then you're paying more for a TV of inferior quality! :eek: .
Click to expand...

I just bought a 52" LCD. It's a 1080P sharp Aquos. There are few plasmas that support 1080p and those that do actually cost more then LCDs. In addition my LCD doesn't suffer from any burn in (unlike plasmas) and has black levels that are surprisingly close to the plasmas.

Finally (and this was the main reason I went with an LCD) LCD screens do not reflect light. My LCD is mounted on a wall accross from a bank of windows... our previous TV's were unusable between 4:30 and 7:00 as the sun set behind them. This is no longer the case with our new LCD.

LCDs have gotten a lot better in the past year. The costs have come down significantly and the quality is now equal to (and actually superior in some respects) to the large plasmas.
 
Don't forget screen resolution. Not all HD is equal. You have 480p, 720p, 1080p & 1080i where p stands for progressive and i stands for interlaced.

It takes 1/30th of a second to make a frame. Regular TV is broadcast in interlaced mode. Two fields = 1 frame. One field does the odd lines and the other field does the even lines. That is what interlaced means. Progressive is just the opposite. You start with line one and display 1,2,3, all the way to 480 or 720 or 1080 depending on your resolution.

If I was buying a high def screen today I would get a 1080p or 1080i.

This link give a good explamation:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1080p
 
Right now I'd say LCDs and Plasmas are on par in the high end, but LCDs are more expensive. But I firmly believe that as LCD technology progresses, it will exceed the quality of very hot and power-hungry plasmas, and also eventually be cheaper.

In other words, I think LCD is the future.
 
JesseJames said:
So which flat-panel is best?
I heard LCD has good contrast but may have "ghosting" with fast action.
Plasma does not have this issue but its contrast ratio is not as good.
I don't know much about DLP except for the fact that Texas Instruments developed it.
Click to expand...

Wow! So many responses and no one has really answered your questions. :D


LCDs no longer ghost. Particularly the good ones.

Plasma has a BETTER contrast ratio than LCD. (Plasma 10000:1 vs LCD 2000:1)
but LCDs are improving.

DLP is basically a very bright bulb projecting through a small, transparent TV screen (like an old fashioned slide projector) then onto a large front panel.

LCDs are very bright so they are good for sunny or bright rooms.

Plasmas are darker and are better for darker rooms. They reproduce colours better. Power consumption is about the same as LCDs for similar sizes and burn-in, while still possible, is a lot rarer these days. If you watch a lot of standard definition TV or super-widescreen movies (black bars on sides or top/bottom of screen) then burn-in could be an issue down the road.

DLPs are even darker than plasmas and require quite a dark room to be viewed properly. A bulb in a DLP lasts a few years and costs up to $300 to replace.

42" is the dividing line currently as most LCDs are below that and most plasmas are above. When you get to about 60", DLPs are more common than plasmas.
 
Well, I finally got around to watching "Master and Commander" the other day and enjoyed it.
I want to build a modest home theater system. I want a good flat-panel. But I want an outstanding sound system. I believe sound makes all the difference.
I played the movie on my Mac and I have a speaker system with a subwoofer hooked up to it and my lord, I could feel the concussion of the cannon shots through the subwoofer.
 
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