Plasma Vs LCD

[DAME]

Posted: 2/7/08 at 8:28pm

Looking for a new big ( 50 plus) tv for our den. Considering a Sony Bravia or a Panasonic (and yes.. I read all about 1080p ). What do you all have and what do you recommend? Consumer Reports says Plasmas no longer burn out the screens. And they say the best image is from the best plasmas. But then they kind of seem to say LCD is the way to go. I am confused.

Updated On: 2/7/08 at 08:28 PM

[jrb_actor]

Posted: 2/7/08 at 9:01pm

my research led me to lcd as well. I have a 42 LG LCD and I love it.

best12 and craig will prob have great opinions to offer.

[morosco]

Posted: 2/7/08 at 9:04pm

Here's a good comparison article that's fairly easy for even me to understand. You are right. It can be very confusing.
LCD vs. Plasma Crutchfield.com

[DAME]

Posted: 2/7/08 at 9:16pm

Great article. Thank you. I still don't know what the heck to get.

[morosco]

Posted: 2/7/08 at 10:05pm

What you choose may ultimately depend on what picture looks best to you. Try visiting Circuit City or the like and take a look at everything they have. The difference in actual picture quality can vary from one brand to the other. I have read that the Sony Bravias are rather nice. The Samsung "Full HD LCD" has what they call true black technology that really produces a stunning picture. Ah...so many choices.

[Luscious]

Posted: 2/8/08 at 7:26am

I just heard the same thing about Plasma; the burn factor is no longer a problem. And I believe the general consensus is that MOST plasmas have better picture quality than MOST LCDs. But, I'm a Sony guy. And Sony doesn't make Plasmas. So, it's LCD for me. Until Sony comes out with a Laser, that is.

[madbrian]

Posted: 2/8/08 at 8:25am

I have a 37" LG LCD, and I am very happy with it. We seem to have become an LG family, since we've also recently bought an LG microwave and an LG monitor for our PC.

[best12bars]

Posted: 2/8/08 at 9:00am

Dame---I recommend either the 50" Panasonic 1080p plasma, or the 52" Sony LCD 1080p, in that size. (I have a 58" Panasonic 1080p plasma, and I love it.)

Both the Panasonic and Sony look great, so it's just a question of taste and preference. Both TVs are available at Costco, if you want to go in and check out the picture quality.

I'm not a huge fan of the look of most LCD screens, because they're too much like a giant computer monitor. The image quality can be too crisp with added noise, pixelation, and the black levels are often flat. Sony, IMO, has the best black levels of any LCD TVs right now. They're more rich with detail, giving a photo-realistic picture. I think LCDs in general tend to make everything look like CGI, even when it isn't. Just my opinion, though! And the newer TVs are doing their best to improve the issues I just mentioned.

I prefer the image quality of Plasma, with vibrant colors, and deep dimensional black levels. It looks more like a photograph to me. And IMO, you can't beat Panasonic for plasmas, although Pioneer is usually higher rated. I don't see any difference between the two brands, except for the much higher price tag on Pioneer sets. Not worth it, if you can't see it.

[SonofMammaMiaSam]

Posted: 2/8/08 at 9:07am

I just love when Best12bars becomes BestBuys

[best12bars]

Posted: 2/8/08 at 9:10am

LOL!

[Craig]

Posted: 2/8/08 at 11:43am

And in other news:

LONDON (Reuters) - Nearly half of British men surveyed would give up sex for six months in return for a 50-inch plasma TV, a survey -- perhaps unsurprisingly carried out for a firm selling televisions -- said on Friday.

Electrical retailer Comet surveyed 2,000 Britons, asking them what they would give up for a large television, one of the latest consumer "must-haves."

The firm found 47 percent of men would give up sex for half a year, compared to just over a third of women.

"It seems that size really does matter more for men than women," the firm said.

A quarter of people said they would give up smoking, with roughly the same proportion willing to give up chocolate.

[DAME]

Posted: 2/8/08 at 12:16pm

I couldn't even give up sex for 6 hours! Hmm

Craig what do you have?

[Craig]

Posted: 2/8/08 at 12:24pm

Living in a NYC apt - I didn't splurge on anything huge because of the distance between me and the set.

So I have a modest 32" Toshiba LCD which I think has an amazing picture. And it was relatively inexpensive - around $800

Also, it has 3 HDMI ports - which I appreciate since some competitive products only had one or two

[ErikJ972]

Posted: 2/8/08 at 12:35pm

What would be best for my Wii??

[DAME]

Posted: 2/8/08 at 12:44pm

Is it HD Craig?

[Craig]

Posted: 2/8/08 at 1:51pm

yup

and JR now has it listed for 699

http://www.jr.com/JRProductPage.process?Product=4185084

[Craig]

Posted: 2/8/08 at 1:52pm

p.s FYI - that HD TV is 720p not 1080p

Updated On: 2/8/08 at 01:52 PM

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 2/8/08 at 4:10pm

I'm planning on LCD simply because I want it to double as a computer monitor and I haven't seen a plasma yet that is PC compatible, though I haven't researched it in a while, so that may have changed.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 2/8/08 at 4:28pm

Thanks, Craig. I think I just found my new television.

[DAME]

Posted: 2/8/08 at 10:43pm

We are going to Costco tomorrow.

[morosco]

Posted: 2/19/08 at 10:49pm

Dame...what did you buy? Anything?

[DAME]

Posted: 2/19/08 at 10:58pm

Yes. We got a Sony Bravia 52 inch LCD. It gets mounted on the wall on Saturday. We got a great deal on the tv. But the wall bracket and installation service was unexpected for me.

[morosco]

Posted: 2/19/08 at 11:03pm

Very nice! I'm sure you'll enjoy it...it's gotten nice reviews.

[DAME]

Posted: 2/20/08 at 2:33am

Yes it has. And a friend of our has a smaller version and the picture is just stunning.

[stagescreen]

Posted: 2/22/08 at 12:10am

ugh...we're also about to buy a new flat screen tv, and we're still debating over plasma vs. lcd. I'm going to Best Buy over the weekend and compare televisions. We've decided though that we want a big tv...50 inches. I hope we don't buy a lemon! It's all very confusing isn't it?