42" plasma monitor $1799 @ Fry's

[AMDBOY]

Ad in O. C. Register says 42" plasma monitor, 3D comb filter, 2 component inputs, and VGA input. Item #3832447. $1799. Didn't see this in a search. How good can this be? The one in ad next to it has more bells & whistle's and is nearly $5k. I don't know jack about plasma, but have "heard" plasma may not be the way to go. LCD any better pic in the under $3k price range?? Or, is this an o.k. deal for a low end plasma? Tia.link

 

[Rio Rebel]

It's a very good deal. Plasmas are spectacular televisions, and most of the criticisms don't apply to current generation plasmas.

I have a Daewoo, and I love it. From looking at the ad, it looks about the same in terms of specs. So here's what I would watch for:

1. It says "monitor", which may mean that there's no tv tuner and possibly no speakers. If you have a home theater receiver and use either cable or satellite, no problem. Otherwise, it may be an issue.

2. It's not hdtv, it's edtv. This means it displays in 480p but not 1080i or 720p.

3. No dvi input.

4. Probably a poor scaler. On my Daewoo, standard definition tv looks horrible because of the poor scaler. I just use a dish receiver that can output in 480p and that avoids the problem.

Even with all these considerations, I think it's a heck of deal. The only question is durability, which is an unknown since no brand is listed.

Even though I almost NEVER get extended warranties, I got one with my plasma. From what I understand, if the screen goes bad you can throw it away, and $2000 is too much to risk in my book.

 

[Jenova314]

Originally posted by: Rio Rebel
It's a very good deal. Plasmas are spectacular televisions, and most of the criticisms don't apply to current generation plasmas.

what i have heard is that plasma screens have a life of only 5-7 years. of course i've never looked it up online, but is anybody else aware of this, or have you heard anything similar?

 

[imported_bbomb]

30,000 hours I belive is the rated lifetime of Plasma screens. Thats about 3 1/2 to 4 years of watching tv 24/7.

 

[Jenova314]

Originally posted by: bbomb
30,000 hours I belive is the rated lifetime of Plasma screens. Thats about 3 1/2 to 4 years of watching tv 24/7.

i guess one would have to make sure the mfg actually covers at least that period of time with warranties, if only on the plasma panel, eh?

 

[Rio Rebel]

Who watches TV 24/7?

I average less than 3 hours of tv a day, so by those calculations my plasma would last 28 to 32 years.

In actuality, most reports I've seen estimate about a 10 to 12 year life for current plasmas with normal use. But that "life" refers to the time it takes to lose half its brightness. You can still use the tv and adjust it to compensate for some of that.

The biggest drawback to plasmas is cost. I wouldn't hold off buying one because of how long its brightness will last.

 

[cruzer]

EDTV Plasmas are great when paired with a progressive scan DVD player. That's what the 'p' in 420p stands for. You get a perfect view of current generation DVDs, since the discs only have 420 resolution. High definition DVDs are still about a year away, then we gotta rebuy our entire libraries to get HDTV quality.

 

[Apex]

Yeah, that definitely looks like the Daewoo.

 

[AMDBOY]

Yes, it is the Daewoo. And when I looked at the pic quality, it wasn't that nice. I will probably check to see what I can find for under $3K, that is HD, LCD. I was impressed by the quality of some of those. Keep in mind they were not 42" by any means. More like 26". Thank you all, for all your input.

 

[funboy6942]

Originally posted by: Rio Rebel
Who watches TV 24/7?

I average less than 3 hours of tv a day, so by those calculations my plasma would last 28 to 32 years.

In actuality, most reports I've seen estimate about a 10 to 12 year life for current plasmas with normal use. But that "life" refers to the time it takes to lose half its brightness. You can still use the tv and adjust it to compensate for some of that.

The biggest drawback to plasmas is cost. I wouldn't hold off buying one because of how long its brightness will last.

You obviously don't have childreen or are married. Our tv stays basicaly on from 7am to 10pm. Life span, if I could afford such a thing, would be a huge factor to me when buying a new tv.

 

[hugobomber]

never thought about a regular tv? if its on that long a tube is always the best way to go. My dads 36" toshiba is still going after 12+ years.

 

[puppyfriend]

I'm all about the tube. But I doubt that Toshiba is what it once was. Tubes fade over time as well. It's hard to tell since it's gradual and you get used to it. My old TV looked great to me. But when I got my new one, it looked like poop in comparison. I couldn't even stand to watch it anymore.

Originally posted by: hugobomber
never thought about a regular tv? if its on that long a tube is always the best way to go. My dads 36" toshiba is still going after 12+ years.

 

[Kishan]

why no lcd/dlp?

 

[Rio Rebel]

Originally posted by: funboy6942

Originally posted by: Rio Rebel
Who watches TV 24/7?

I average less than 3 hours of tv a day, so by those calculations my plasma would last 28 to 32 years.

In actuality, most reports I've seen estimate about a 10 to 12 year life for current plasmas with normal use. But that "life" refers to the time it takes to lose half its brightness. You can still use the tv and adjust it to compensate for some of that.

The biggest drawback to plasmas is cost. I wouldn't hold off buying one because of how long its brightness will last.

You obviously don't have childreen or are married. Our tv stays basicaly on from 7am to 10pm. Life span, if I could afford such a thing, would be a huge factor to me when buying a new tv.

I am married and have a 2 year old daughter. I guess some people watch a lot more tv than others.

 

[JackieO]

Well at least no one has suggested getting a plasma 'refilled'. With regard to plasma lifespans, here are some facts.

1) Almost all new plasma panels are rated to 60,000 hours until phosphor half life. This includes most of the major manufacturers (Fujitsu, Panasonic, NEC, Sony, etc...). I don't know who makes the Daewoo panel, I am 95% sure it's NEC. Some new ones are still rated 30k hours, and most older generation ones are 30k hours.

2) Half-life does not equal death, it means the phosphors are half as bright as when they were first turned on. Will the TV be usable at this point? I don't know, probably but read the next one and determine whether you're even going to want to.

3) 60,000 @ 12 hours a day is 14 years.

4) A plasma has no moving parts, that means if the power supply doesn't die it will require no maintenance, no new bulbs, backlights, convergence fixes, etc.

In regard to their other merits, those are all highly subjective so you have to decide whether they work for you or not.

 

[toneman]

Originally posted by: JackieO

4) A plasma has no moving parts, that means if the power supply doesn't die it will require no maintenance, no new bulbs, backlights, convergence fixes, etc.

But if the PS does go bad on you, better be thankful for that warranty--especially for those of you who have trick in-wall/flush mounts. A buddy of mine did a picture frame-type flush mount with his Pioneer Elite 50" plasma and had two power supplies die on him within a few months of ownership due to the lack of air circulation behind the drywall. Only after installing some PC-type cooling fans with some ducting behind the wall does it appear that the PS now runs fairly "cool". I forgot how much the plasma PS went for but IIRC they weren't cheap...but then again, the PS was for a Pioneer Elite plasma rather than some $2K cheapo model/brand.

 

[JackieO]

Right, but the power supply has no more chance of going out in a plasma than any other display - and of course if you follow the guidelines that come with the unit (one of which is allowing for ventilation ) the chances of PS failure is probably very low.

 

[Apex]

Originally posted by: JackieO
Well at least no one has suggested getting a plasma 'refilled'. With regard to plasma lifespans, here are some facts.

1) Almost all new plasma panels are rated to 60,000 hours until phosphor half life. This includes most of the major manufacturers (Fujitsu, Panasonic, NEC, Sony, etc...). I don't know who makes the Daewoo panel, I am 95% sure it's NEC. Some new ones are still rated 30k hours, and most older generation ones are 30k hours.

2) Half-life does not equal death, it means the phosphors are half as bright as when they were first turned on. Will the TV be usable at this point? I don't know, probably but read the next one and determine whether you're even going to want to.

3) 60,000 @ 12 hours a day is 14 years.

4) A plasma has no moving parts, that means if the power supply doesn't die it will require no maintenance, no new bulbs, backlights, convergence fixes, etc.

In regard to their other merits, those are all highly subjective so you have to decide whether they work for you or not.

Great (and correct) info.

Also of note: At 1/2 brightness, most plasmas should still be brighter than a CRT tube TV is, brand new.

 

[AMDBOY]

I, myself, being cheap, er uh I mean subjective, want a kickass picture on a big screen that is not projected; that is going to last a long time; if I'm going to spend $2,000 PLUS! on a tv/monitor/whatever. Oh ya, HD would be nice too. I agree the price needs to come down (for me to take the plunge). Won't the prices star to decline next year a little?? After Xmas?

 

[Kishan]

plasmas half life is 20,000 hours. Check out CNet if you don't believe me.

 

[Lawranch]

The replacement cost will be much lower 5 years from now. You will probably get a 50-60" HDTV screen for $500. So you probably will be a little happy that your 42" EDTV screen went out and you have to replace it. I know I don't miss my PII 400. $1800/60 months=$30 a month, I spend much more than that on cable.

 

[Lawranch]

The replacement cost will be much lower 5 years from now. You will probably get a 50-60" HDTV screen for $500. So you probably will be a little happy that your 42" EDTV screen went out and you have to replace it. I know I don't miss my PII 400. $1800/60 months=$30 a month, I spend much more than that on cable.

 

[toneman]

Originally posted by: JackieO
Right, but the power supply has no more chance of going out in a plasma than any other display - and of course if you follow the guidelines that come with the unit (one of which is allowing for ventilation ) the chances of PS failure is probably very low.

Yeah, my buddy found that out the hard way--lucky for him it was still under warranty. Of course, most people don't typically mount their CRTs on a wall, let alone into one...it's not always necessarily true that a CRT PS has no more chance of going out than that of a plasma.

But yes, you're right--following instructions, no matter how simple they may be, are very important...especially when it comes to $7000+ displays.

 

[JackieO]

Originally posted by: KPSHAH316
plasmas half life is 20,000 hours. Check out CNet if you don't believe me.

Did you even read my post? I don't post in these threads because I think it's fun to make things up. No current generation plasma has a 20,000 hour half life. All of them are at least 30,000 hours and most are 60,000 hours. If you don't want to take my word for it over some outdated Cnet information you can look it up online or call one of the manufacturers like Panasonic, Pioneer, NEC, JVC, Hitachi, Fujitsu, or Sony.

This isn't some arbitrary number they slap on their displays, it's science - they wouldn't open themselves up to lawsuits by putting a 60,000 hour life rating on a display that will last 10 or 20,000 hours.

I'm not promoting any technology more than any other here, I jsut shudder when I see Best Buy Salesmen-esque quotes like "Plasmas will die in 3-5 years", "Plasma gas needs to be refilled and can kill you if it leaks out" etc... Just do some reading before you make sweeping statements.

 

[caivoma]

talk about those saleman, they told anything to get you buy the insurance. by the way, is it a good idea to buy insurance for the plasma tv