TV-Sets: Plasma vs LCD vs Projection

[b4u]

Hi,

About TV sets, what are the advantages of choosing an LCD, Plasma or Projection TV set?

Which pros/cons you find on each ones?


Thanks

 

[IGBT]

LCD's seem awful expensive. Saw a Sampo 19" at costco and they wanted 999.99. Too fuggen much.

 

[0roo0roo]

projection hdtv is pretty sweet when setup correctly. plasma is ick. contrast is sh*t, black is grey, pixels are big and few unless you pay for the 10k+ bux models, even then not so hot. and from what i remember, i can see the spaces between pixels on lcds

 

[b4u]

From what I see, I believe LCDs tend to be expensive and smaller the the other 2 technologies ... probably something about technology itself ...

But I was thinking about a Projection TV, an LG RL-44SZ20RD (Specifications). It's a new product, so I find not much info around ... and LG site doesn't have it listed yet.

But I was also interested to know if this Projection technology is better/same/worse than Plasma one, or even LCD (this on I believe it's the weakest of them).

Thanks

 

[b4u]

Originally posted by: 0roo0roo
projection hdtv is pretty sweet when setup correctly. plasma is ick. contrast is sh*t, black is grey, pixels are big and few unless you pay for the 10k+ bux models, even then not so hot. and from what i remember, i can see the spaces between pixels on lcds

I heard something about it too ... someone said Plasma is best viewed with light, and Prpjection TV is much-much better than Plasma on a dark room (and I do prefer to see movies in darkness). Given the size of it, then I would get a mini cinema in my home .

But it's kind of expensive, so I much choose carefully ...

Any opinions are blessed

 

[b4u]

One more thing I believe, it that in a Projection TV, there is no kind of radiation out of the screen, into your eyes ... it is just light that comes out, since the image is projected through the use of multiple mirrors.

Can anyone confirm this?

(Also the screen seems to have a refresh of ... 300MHz WOW! No noticeable flickery at all!)

 

[0roo0roo]

Originally posted by: b4u

Originally posted by: 0roo0roo
projection hdtv is pretty sweet when setup correctly. plasma is ick. contrast is sh*t, black is grey, pixels are big and few unless you pay for the 10k+ bux models, even then not so hot. and from what i remember, i can see the spaces between pixels on lcds

I heard something about it too ... someone said Plasma is best viewed with light, and Prpjection TV is much-much better than Plasma on a dark room (and I do prefer to see movies in darkness). Given the size of it, then I would get a mini cinema in my home .

But it's kind of expensive, so I much choose carefully ...

Any opinions are blessed

plasma's only advantage is that its thin. mostly a gimmic. picture quality certainly isn't it.

 

[Pilsnerpete]

so which one has the best picture quality/definition/contrast?

 

[Mr.IncrediblyBored]

Originally posted by: Pilsnerpete
so which one has the best picture quality/definition/contrast?

DLP

Just some clarification: Large LCDs are actually a type of projection television. The largest direct view LCD is about 37" and it rivals the price of a plasma unit.

Projection CRT is probably the best price/performance technology on the market, but DLP and LCOS are set to take over in the next few years.

Here is a great guide to various TV technologies at Cnet.com.

Edit: Apparently, Samsung has a 40" direct view LCD, but it costs $8,000.:Q

 

[Mr.IncrediblyBored]

Originally posted by: b4u
Hi,

About TV sets, what are the advantages of choosing an LCD, Plasma or Projection TV set?

Which pros/cons you find on each ones?

Thanks

We need some specifics about your living condition and financial situation before answering this question.

1) How much money are you willing to spend?
2) How big of a TV are you looking for?
3) How large is the room that you'll be placing this TV?
4) Is the room well lit during the day? Is daytime viewing even important to you?
5) Are television aesthetics important to you (does the TV have to look cool)?

 

[LakAttack]

Originally posted by: KnightBreed

Originally posted by: Pilsnerpete
so which one has the best picture quality/definition/contrast?

DLP

Just some clarification: Large LCDs are actually a type of projection television. The largest direct view LCD is about 37" and it rivals the price of a plasma unit.

Projection CRT is probably the best price/performance technology on the market, but DLP and LCOS are set to take over in the next few years.

Here is a great guide to various TV technologies at Cnet.com.

Thanks for that CNET article. Very informative.

 

[b4u]

Originally posted by: KnightBreed
We need some specifics about your living condition and financial situation before answering this question.

1) How much money are you willing to spend?
2) How big of a TV are you looking for?
3) How large is the room that you'll be placing this TV?
4) Is the room well lit during the day? Is daytime viewing even important to you?
5) Are television aesthetics important to you (does the TV have to look cool)?

[1] The money IS an issue, but so is a good TV Set, so the LG is rated around ?3400-?3500, and I probably can get a bit less with a discount. It's a bit expensive (for a home TV), but if it's worth it, I'm willing to make the efford for that kind of money

[2] The biggest possible for my living room, but not making it too much.

[3] I can't give you exact numbers now, but it's like 4m by 5m, total of around 20 square meters. I'm sitting at aroung 3,5m in front of (the future) TV Set. I'll post some more specific measures once I get home.

[4] The living room is well litted on day. I do prefer to see movies in a not-so-bight room. Oftem see them at the end of the day, lights off

[5] TV aesthetics take some importance, since I bought my fourniture for the living room also based on aesthetics. I like the looks of the LG.

 

[bcterps]

I completely disagree that DLP will give you the best picture. It may give you a better picture out of the box, but if you want to compare apples to apples, a properly calibrated CRT RPTV will absolutely give you the best picture quality. There really is no contest. That given, I personally wouldn't buy a CRT RPTV because of the space issue, a 50-60" tv will weigh well over 200 lbs. and take up a huge amount of space.

This the order from best picture quality to worst.

CRT RPTV > DLP RPTV > Plasma > LCD RPTV

This is assuming that all units are properly calibrated.

I think that it really depends on the features that you want and how big a tv you can fit into your room. If you can fit a CRT RPTV in your room and don't mind the size and weight, then by all means buy a good one (Pioneer, Hitachi, Mitsubishi), get it ISF calibrated, and you'll have an awesome start to a home theater system. CRT RPTVs have one distinct advantage over any of the competing technologies -- black level. No DLP, Plasma, or LCD set will come close to displaying the black levels that a CRT RPTV set can.

However, DLP/LCD/Plasma are much smaller in terms of footprint. All would fit on a table top stand, all weigh under 100 lbs. DLP/LCD have no burn in. You won't have any convergence issues like you would on a CRT set. They are also a lot brighter than CRT sets.

Those reasons are enough for me to consider purchasing a DLP over a CRT set. I had considered an LCD RPTV, but the black levels on that are pretty bad, I am interested to see the new Sony LCD RPTV that comes out in September though. It is said to have much improved black levels.

LCoS has a lot of promise, but is currently insanely expensive. DLP/LCD sets have come down in price to what I would consider a reasonable level, $2500-3500.

 

[RayH]

If you already have a decent tv, one other option you might consider is keeping it for viewing during the day and getting a DLP or LCD front projector for viewing at night. DLP and LCD front projection has some of the same limitations as rear projection; most notably the black levels but it has improved alot in the past couple years.

I use an old 32" Trinitron during the day and a DLP projector on a 106" screen at night. Cost of the projector and screen was around $2500. I use a pull down screen and the projector is on a movable tripod so the whole setup takes up almost no space.

 

[B00ne]

Plasma panels consume awful amounts of power - I bet they are phased out for better flat panel technology soon...

 

[Mday]

LCD is for small displays. plasma and projection for larger displays. projection usually refers to front projection, where the projector is in a box, and projects onto the back of the screen you see. these usually result in washed out colors unless the room is totally dark. rear projection is hard to set up (rear projection is when the projector is "behind" you like theatres). plasma is the most expensive (though some projection set ups can cost as much) and is a thin profile type display and can be wall mounted.

if i had the money, i would probably go with a mid to high end plasma screen. i hate rear projection.

at the same price, you'll get more bang if you go with projection in terms of screen size.

 

[tdcarrol]

Penny Arcade link

 

[tdcarrol]

Front projection is the way to go

 

[b4u]

Originally posted by: benchiu
However, DLP/LCD/Plasma are much smaller in terms of footprint. All would fit on a table top stand, all weigh under 100 lbs. DLP/LCD have no burn in. You won't have any convergence issues like you would on a CRT set. They are also a lot brighter than CRT sets.

I don't have a TV Set in my living room yet, and the most important reason for that is that the normal CRT TVs have way to much size and height. I would hate to see in my own house, in my own living room, a CRT TV set that occupies most of the stand. I think it takes too much room!

That's the reason I was considering Plasma, but hopping prices to come down . Now this LG RL-44SZ20RD came out, looks beautifull, great design, and one of these days I saw also this Sony XBR Grand WEGA? Rear Projection TV which also looks great and has a bigger screen, and price too ...


Either way, buying a TV Set is an expensive experience, and one I would like to make for many years, so I have to choose wisely

 

[Trygve]

I've got several projectors, the best of which currently being a JVC DLA-G11 DILA projector (about three and a half years old at this point) native resolution is 1365x1024, which is decent, especially in a model that's a few years old. Image quality is great, setup is easy, but the bulbs will burn out and are expensive to replace, so that's one drawback of getting a projector. The fan noise is pretty loud, so that's another drawback, so to quiet the noise I ended up mounting a cabinet lined with eggcarton foam on the ceiling with a hole just big enough for the lens.

On the plus side, I've used it to turn stage theaters into movie theaters and at lots of events and it's bright and clear enough that the picture actually looks okay on a 20' screen with the house lights up.

Since it projects onto a screen (which can be put up when not in use) it can take up very little space in a room, especially compared to a large rear-projection TV set, and it's easily portable. At one point I had another, smaller projector set up under the bed bouncing off a mirror at the foot of the bed to project onto the ceiling. That's harder to do with other types of TVs and would be great if I watched TV in bed, but I never really used it much, so eventually I disassembled that setup.

 

[Mr.IncrediblyBored]

Originally posted by: Mday
LCD is for small displays. plasma and projection for larger displays. projection usually refers to front projection, where the projector is in a box, and projects onto the back of the screen you see. these usually result in washed out colors unless the room is totally dark. rear projection is hard to set up (rear projection is when the projector is "behind" you like theatres). plasma is the most expensive (though some projection set ups can cost as much) and is a thin profile type display and can be wall mounted.

if i had the money, i would probably go with a mid to high end plasma screen. i hate rear projection.

at the same price, you'll get more bang if you go with projection in terms of screen size.

Some of those points are incorrect. You have rear and front projection backwards. Front and rear refers to the light source with respect to the view screen. Front projection is analagous to a movie theatre, where the projector is in front of the screen. Rear projection usually involves mirrors and lenses to project onto the screen from behind the television, hence rear projection.

Another thing to note, some projection (front and rear) TVs still use LCD technology as the source for display. They consist of an extremely small, high-resolution LCD substrate that's amplified and projected onto the front of the screen.

If you want the home theatre, front projection is an excellent way to go. The latest DLP-based projectors are extremely bright and have amazing color fidelity.

Unless you're into the status symbol of owning a plasma television, my recommendation is stay away from them for this generation.

 

[bcterps]

Originally posted by: Trygve
I've got several projectors, the best of which currently being a JVC DLA-G11 DILA projector (about three and a half years old at this point) native resolution is 1365x1024, which is decent, especially in a model that's a few years old. Image quality is great, setup is easy, but the bulbs will burn out and are expensive to replace, so that's one drawback of getting a projector. The fan noise is pretty loud, so that's another drawback, so to quiet the noise I ended up mounting a cabinet lined with eggcarton foam on the ceiling with a hole just big enough for the lens. On the plus side, I've used it to turn stage theaters into movie theaters and at lots of events and it's bright and clear enough that the picture actually looks okay on a 20' screen with the house lights up. Since it projects onto a screen (which can be put up when not in use) it can take up very little space in a room, especially compared to a large rear-projection TV set, and it's easily portable. At one point I had another, smaller projector set up under the bed bouncing off a mirror at the foot of the bed to project onto the ceiling. That's harder to do with other types of TVs and would be great if I watched TV in bed, but I never really used it much, so eventually I disassembled that setup.

What you have sounds great for a portable type of setup, but I have my doubts as to the picture quality. I have a hard time believing that good picture quality can be achieved by just setting up a screen, and then setting up your front projector somewhere in the room. I think that you would need to have a permanent screen somewhere as well as the projector mounted in a fixed position so that the image can be properly calibrated.

b4u, the Sony set that you linked to is Sony's LCD RPTV. I too was considering that set, however when you compare it to the Samsung DLP sets, I think that the Sony's are inferior. However, as mentioned before, Sony is coming out with a new LCD RPTV in September which is supposed to have better black levels and a lower price tag. I think the 50" is going to retail for USD 3000. I suggest you take a look at Samsung's DLP sets, though not perfect, I think they will fit your needs.

 

[amnesiac]

DLP is one of the best emerging technologies. However, current single-chip DLP units can exhibit rainbow problems (rainbow "halos" around fast moving objects in high contrast) and cause eye fatigue for some viewers. Three-chip DLP units are available but prohibitively expensive.

The most promising system thus far is LCoS (Liquid Crystal on Silicon). Prices on this are coming down rapidly and both Sony and Pioneer already have TVs using this technology that are getting rave reviews.

 

[Trygve]

Originally posted by: benchiu


What you have sounds great for a portable type of setup, but I have my doubts as to the picture quality. I have a hard time believing that good picture quality can be achieved by just setting up a screen, and then setting up your front projector somewhere in the room. I think that you would need to have a permanent screen somewhere as well as the projector mounted in a fixed position so that the image can be properly calibrated.

There's not too much calibration to do--it's a single-lens projector (not a three-CRT model), so you just have to adjust the zoom and focus to whatever you want and you're good to go. I did spend some time adjusting the image parameters on the Focus Quadscan scaler that I use with it (with the help of "A Video Standard" test disk), but those settings don't need to be changed from one location to another.

 

[ElFenix]

plasma tvs are supposed to have a shorter lifespan than either LCD or CRT