What's the difference between an LCD Television and a Plasma?

Question

I've long wondered what the difference was and feel so confused when it comes to buying a flat screen tv! I'm about to buy one but have no idea which to go with or what to look for. If someone can point me in the direction of a really good flat screen tv between $800-$1000 that would be fabulous!

Thank you!

Answer 1

Hi there!

First of all I shall explain the difference between LCD and Plasma screens.

A LCD screen tends to blur when a fast image is shown, such as sport.  IE, Racing and possibly football etc.  However, they have a much wider viewing range.  This bascially means that you can sit fairly side on with the TV and still get a crisp picture, with the right colours.

However Plasma televisions do not blur when a fast image is shown.  No matter how fast an object moves it will still appear clear.  The downside to plasma is that it has a more narrow viewing range.  IE, if you sat fairly side on t one, you would notice the colours appearing "negative" and not see much detail.

Thus making LCD ideal for a "group" situation and plasma ideal for those sport lovers out there.

As for the pricing.  Unfortuantely, as with alot of things these days.  You do get what you pay for.  My personal faveorites and the Panasonic Viera and the Sony Bravia's.  The Panasonic is a mid to high range priced television while still holding top quality.  The Bravia on the other hand is a very high range price, but provides outstanding quality!  Another bit of advice on brands, allthough Samsungs might look and sound nice, they have been known to be very sketchy on their high def side of things.

$800 - $1000 won't get you a TV the same size as would a projector would cast, but should get you a decent sized TV.  Probably similar in appearence to a 51CM CRT television (The large boxy ones with the curved screen.)

Answer 2

First, they are two different technologies that result in the same thing.  LCD stands for liquid crystal display; the screen is made up of thousands of little "cache" pots filled with a liquid that when excited by electricity, they turn different colors.  LCD's have a plastic screen, should not be touched anymore that absolutely necessary as repeted touching can kill one of the pixels (cache pots) and you will have an off color dot.  Have seen it many times on display models in stores!  LCD's do run a bit cooler than plasma, do better in a brightly lit environment and are good for general viewing content.  However, in the process of making LCD's there is a chemical released that is 17 times worse than all the CO2 emissions.  MSN had an article on it a couple of weeks back.

Plasma is a gas; either xeon or neon or a combo.  The gas is excited by electicity and turns colors to make your picture.  Plasma sets have glass screens (most have anti-glare coatings now), run a little warmer, are better for viewing sports and other fast action content.  Why?  A gas responds faster to the electrical stimulus than a liquid.  Some of the new LCD's with the bigger processors are better on this but still pretty pricey.  Plasma is also better in a more dimly lit environment, like most living rooms.  

Both are maintenance free technologies.  Panasonic rates both their LCD and Plasma sets for 20 years+.  Buying a TV is definately a "you get what you pay for" item!  It's not necessary to buy the most expensive, just do some research and buy smart.  Consumer Reports just put out an electronics shopping guide a week or so ago, see if you can get a peek at a copy of that at your local library.

Personally, I like the plasma units from Panasonic.  They have been a Consumer Reports Best Buy for about 4 years now and are the #1 selling plasma in the US.  

You're next big decision will be what resolution.  To keep in your budget, I'd say look at the 720p Panasonic plasma.  The picture does not suffer at all with the lower resolution!  I demonstrate the beasts and I have stood and watched a 720p unit next to a 1080p unit from Panasonic and you really, really have to nit pick to find a difference.  Remember you will be viewing it from a distance, not standing/sitting right on top of it!

Good Luck and Happy Hunting!

Answer 3

This site might help you in deciding what to buy.

http://hometheater.about.com/od/lcdtvfaq...

About your second question, try this one.

http://www.nextag.com/flat-screen-tv/sea...