LCD or Plasma HDTV for a bright room with a skylight + above a fireplace?

Question

I am looking to spend around 1500, definitely under 2000. It will be in my family room which has a few windows and a skylight from above, so it is a bright room. It will be situated in a wooden frame above my fireplace mantle. Which would be better for these circumstances, an LCD or a Plasma? And it would be nice if you could recommend me any good models which are out now. Thanks.

Answer 1

Three letters  L...C....D!!!!

Always go with Sony,Samsung, or Sharp LCD tvs!!

Check out the *Samsung LN40A650

Sony KDL-40V4100

or the KDL40W4100  (set for release sometime in spring)

Answer 2

Contrary to what the previous poster said, plasmas do HORRIBLY in bright rooms with lots of sunlight. You get tons of glares since it has a glass screen. LCD is your best shot. because of what the screen is made of it, it actually minimizes sunlight glares (althought not completely gone), and typically they are also much Brighter than plasma sets. There is definately a lot of models in your price range, but you just have to specify whether you want a 1080p model or not, what size and so forth.

Furthermore, if you will play games on it, hands down you need an LCD. They perform much better than plasmas at this. Because of plasmas chance of burn in, if you have a logo or let's say "life meter" in one of your games that stays in the same spot for a long time without moving, it can cause the image to burn into a plasma. LCD screens can not be burned in.

A lot of people make the mistake of buying an entry level HDTV or a generic brand one...DON'T. Save yourself the headaches, as they are mostly unreliable. Like always, you get what you pay for. Save a little money for a bit longer if you have to, it will pay off in the end. It's an investment, and paying $700 for an HD LCD as apposed to $1500...well it won't make a difference when you have to replace that "economic" set a few months down the road. In terms of reliability and quality, Look into what I concider to be the best LCD makers; Sony, Samsung and Sharp. If you can afford it, Sony Bravia XBR series LCD are STUNNING. By far the best picture out there. Typically, a 52" is about $3000, 46" about $2500 and the 40" around $2000.

Finally, as for the extended warranty....here's what I have to say about it. Most manufacturers are getting much better at producing HDTVs. Most issues that will occur with a set, typically happen within the first year, which is what most manufacturer warranties are. HOWEVER, if you are going to go with an "economic" brand, I would HIGHLY suggest buying an extended warranty, as the chances of it failing are much higher. If you can afford it, I would buy it anyway, regardless of it being a cheapie tv or not. a 4 year extended warranty from best buy is about $300, and if it ever breaks down and they can't fix it, they'll replace your set. Not too bad, you're paying $6.25/month to give you piece of mind that if anything were to ever happen...you'd be ok. This is especially nice if you buy a very fancy expensive one. If it goes out...you didn't just buy yourself a very expensive paperweight....Hope this helps! And feel free to e-mail me if you have anything else! :)

Answer 3

Each technology has it's pro and cons.

Plasma will give a nice bright picture in well lit rooms, and are thin and pricey. Plasma tv life expectancy is about est. 60,000 hours which by that time will loose it brightness making it hard to view in a bright room plus depending on the technology by then you are looking at discarding the whole tv set and buying a new one.

LCD is also good for well lit rooms. If your looking into buying a big wide screen set more than likely you will be looking at a rear-projected LCD system. Bad thing about the rear-projection system is that you will be replacing the lamp bulb at least every couple of years. The bulb can cost about $200 or more.

Also make sure that tv comes with a anti-glare screen

If it was me, i would look at a Samsung, just my opinion for best quality.