The difference between Plasma and LCD televisions?

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http://hometheater.about.com/od/lcdtvfaqs/f/lcdfaq2.htm

Hi Zain. I found a website that gives you pros and cons for buying LCDs or Plasma. My husband has been in the TV Sales business for quite some time and he highly recommends plasma over LCD although he says both of them are at par with longevity. LCD is more expensive and clear picture-wise. He also added that LCD is made of liquid crystals. If a dot appears on your screen, there is no solution for that. Whereas, a plasma have gas which can be easily replaced. He also recommends Panasonic plasma.

p.s. my husband is not employed by panasonic =)...Show more

there are few main differences

Plasma-
you will get a greater picture on a plasma

you will not get a blury picture from any fast motions like football games.

they do get a little bit hotter then LCDS, which eats a little bit more energy

plasmas are a lot cheaper then lcd when compared in quality

99.9% of plasmas have a very reflective glass screen that might make it hard to watch when room is very bright

start at 42' and up

rec. Pioneer and samsung

LCD
come is very larg amount of sizes

has an anti glare screen that eliminates some of the glare( most have anti glare LCDs have done some gloss screens, which makes the image look more vibrant)

little bit more energy efficient compared to Plasma of the same size.

cost a little bit more depanding on brand

cover all screens from 15' and up

Rec. Samsung and sony and not far under would be lg and toshiba

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when looking around check out the contrast ratio's the higher the better. for the size that you are looking for look for televisions that are about 10,000 to 1 or better. and when looking around get the 1080p (true HD) which has 1 million more pixels on the screen then the 720p televisions that are little bit less on the price.


there is no better or worse with LCD or Plasma, they all will last you the same if all conditins were ideal. its really what you are going to use it for that makes it better or worse

( i work in the home theater departament at bestbuy i gots to know my stuff)...Show more

It's a lengthy answer Zain, but after all the research I did before buying an HD TV, a question I love so here goes...
One must consider a few things about "how" they are going to use their new HD TV before they buy one...
1. What size do they have in mind?
2. Will it be used for video games or watching sports OFTEN.
3. Brightness of the room it will be viewed in if often watched during the day.
4. Blacklevels (ability to best produce black color on screen as in a movie such as Star Wars - where "space" is constant)
5. Viewing distance from the TV to your chair/couch
6. Resolution (i.e. 720p vs. 1080p)
7. The devices connected to the TV and their resolution capability (i.e. VCR, DVD, Gaming, Blu Ray, HD DVD etc.)
Those are my 7 primary factors for consideration.
Answers:
1. Size matters right? :) LCD is less expensive then Plasma on a pure size basis, bottom line. That's why LCD has been gaining market share in the last year or so. LCD used to have a size limitation of 42" so Plasma was leading the pack on "bigger" screens which everybody wanted. LCD has made breakthroughs that are changing that equation. Either technology could win here depending on what your scenario is.
2. Video Games & Sports: LCD is still a "projection" type of TV where Plasma consists of EVERY pixel being it's own light source so the transmission of FAST moving action like games and sports has always been a short coming of LCD. Plasma wins here.
3. In a bright room, LCD tends to win here because it is a "projection" TV so it's emitting light like a flash light so it's a little more easy to view in a bright room if TV is used in daylight a lot. If most viewing is at night, I'd say it's an even tie.
4. LCD does not do as well of a job with blacklevels because it is a projection TV. The color black is the "abscence" of color so when projecting "light" or "color via light" it is hard to project "dark" using "light", make sense? It's hard to HAVE color when "colorless-ness" is required - so Plasma wins here hands down in everything you read. Pioneer does it better than anybody.
5. Items 5, 6 & 7 are all kinda related. Viewing distance of TV to couch impacts desired "size" right? Yet studies have shown that at distances of 6 to 7 ft. the human eye isn't capable of telling the difference between 720p and 1080p WHEN viewing an HDTV of 50 inches or less which brings item 6 into play.
So the question for the end user is this: How far is my seating from the TV and How large of a TV do I want/can afford?
If 50" or smaller stick with 720p and save the $1000 difference. If you want to have a larger screen & viewing distance is greater then 1080p may be worth the investment.
which brings the last item #7 into play...

What devices do you plan to connect to your HDTV?
True 1080p can only be realized by Blu Ray or HD DVD and even then it depends on the actual capabilities of the TV Mfg. you buy.
Cable and Satellite have some very high def programming, but most of it is NOT in 1080p.
No upsampling DVDs come anywhere near the mark of 1080p and are mostly a gimmick to sell lower end equipment at a higher price than a "plain" dvd player.
The choice of paying the cost of 1080p is mostly about investing in the future for what is "to come" as technology advances so quickly (if you're in a smaller TV) OR it's for BIG TVs for theater rooms where quality is of the utmost importance or the money doesn't matter.
All things considered? I still feel Plasma is the best way to go.
I asked a lot of retail sales guys what the "best" type to buy is and I ALWAYS heard "Plasma" as a response which is what lead to my research on "WHY".
Hope this helps!...Show more

LCD are good for gamers and general TV viewing. Plasmas can deal with fast moving images better so are good for watching sports and movies. LCd have the soft screen and Plasmas have glass screens. Do not buy a Plasma if you are a gamer and you play the console for long periods of time.
I personally would go for Plasma....Show more

you might want to go to this website and compare for yourself
http://www.flattvpeople.com/tutorials/lcd-vs-plasma.asp

We have a plasma TV and we love it, picture and sound are terrific no matter if it is TV, DVD or VHS tapes....Show more