Five Factors to Help You Choose Between the Plasma or LCD TV
Congratulations! So you've finally gotten a bigger apartment and can finally afford a nice TV set for your football games and romantic stay-at-home movie dates.
Before you write a cheque or swipe your shiny credit card for a nice big TV, you should first check the following list and make sure that you do understand the difference between getting a plasma or LCD TV. Whether you already have your heart set on getting a plasma or LCD TV, or if you don't have a clue on the difference between the plasma or LCD TV, these five factors should always come to play the moment you consider getting a brand new TV for your home.
Factor One: Price-to-Size Ratio
The term: "value for money plasma or LCD TV" is an oxymoron. This is because the idea of getting a plasma or LCD on a tight budget sure is nice, but it sure doesn't exist for now. If you're going to get a fancy big panelled TV with a width between 40 to 42 inches, then you can expect both the plasma and LCD TV to be neck-to-neck in terms of price. Having said that, the price of plasma TVs tend to stay on the higher range for at least 12 months whereas the price of the LCD TV steadily decreases the longer it's been in the market. If you decide to go for a dramatically large TV set over 50 inches wide, then the LCD will surely be cheaper than getting a 50-inch plasma TV.
Having said that, the average Joe would be more than satisfied with the average 26-inch TV set. You will be hard pressed to find a plasma TV that has a width of 26-inches though so your best bet is to opt for a LCD TV instead. For some reason, plasma TVs that are sized 32-inches makes for poor quality viewing.
If you're buying the TV for your own bedroom, then a 32-inch LCD TV would be sufficient for viewing from your bedside. If you're setting up a TV set for the entire family, then you should opt for a larger TV set, be it plasma or LCD, as long as it's about 40-inches or larger.
Factor Two: Performance
It's still up in the air whether the plasma or LCD is the better performing TV. Generally, most believe that the plasma TV delivers better home cinema performance than LCD mostly due to the less efficient backlighting method of the LCD TV. Specifically, LCD TVs are notorious for not being able to display the colour black as well as its plasma counterpart. Instead, LCD TVs tend to depict the colour black closer to shades of dark grey. The reason why this may be important for your viewing pleasure is because a clear definition of the colour black adds another level of detailing into your feature film. When done right, a viewing on a plasma TV can actually make the pictures seem three-dimensional, as opposed to a flat two-dimensional imagery.
Having said that, before you decide between the plasma or LCD over the picture quality, it is prudent to take note that the technology and hence, the picture quality of both types of TV sets are improving rapidly so be sure to compare the performance of the plasma TV and the LCD TV before making your decision.
Factor Three: Lifespan
Nobody wants to bring home an expensive piece of equipment only to have it black out on them the moment the warranty is over, right? Whether you get a plasma or LCD TV, it is inevitable that your TV screen will gradually become dimmer the longer you leave your TV set turned on. Generally, LCD TV sets tend to have a longer lasting brightness display as compared to the plasma TV set. Having said that as well, both the plasma and LCD TV should provide you with a minimum of 100,000 hours of viewing regardless of the technology or features included in that specific unit.
Factor Four: The Anti-Burn
The burn-in occurs when an image displayed on your TV screen literally burns an imprint of itself unto your screen. This usually happens when you've been viewing a still image on your TV set for far too long such as a stock ticker or a news crawl. You may also come across the anti-burn phenomenon when you watch standard TV on a widescreen model as well. To prevent this problem, most manufacturers have included screensavers into their TV sets as well.
The good news is the LCD TV sets never suffer from burn-ins. If you're set on getting a plasma TV anyway, then you could try eliminating the danger of a burn-in by reducing your contrast setting to below fifty percent for the first one hundred hours of usage.
Factor Five: Gaming Consoles
Today's modern TV set is expected to be capable of being integrated with other hardware as well, especially your computer. Regardless of whether you're getting a plasma or LCD, make sure that it comes with a DVI or D-Sub port in order to get the best video quality while plugged in to another form of hardware like a gaming console. Again, the LCD wins out simply because of its ability to avoid the burn-in problem. This means that you'll be able to log on to the Internet for hours while viewing your activities from your LCD TV and not worry that an image will remain stuck on your screen forever.
And there you have it, the five most important factors to take into account when it comes to deciding between getting a plasma or LCD TV set. Do remember that a TV set could be an impulsive purchase, but it is also an expensive purchase that you will have to face every time you cross your living room or bedroom, so make sure that you pay your dues and run your research before buying an electronic that you may regret later.
The basic consensus is that when it comes to choosing between the plasma or LCD TV, then it is a matter of deciding between who the TV is meant for. An LCD TV is sufficient for a one-person usage but a plasma TV would be better for family viewing.
Some websites from our partners: |