Plasma vs Lcd

Believe me; learning about each of the technologies was just as hard on me as it can be on you.  This article is here to help you.  What I am going to do here for you is state the facts for you on the technologies and then explain the misconceptions that you may hear about them.  I’m going to say simple facts about them all without getting too detailed.  I’ll introduce them and then break it down by room type and use.

Plasma is the television technology that everyone knew first.  People remember them as the $14,000 sets that only lasted 5 years and had these issues and so forth.  Lucky for the consumers, all three of those things have changed dramatically.  They cost no-where near as much as they once did, don’t have any issues with burn in or consume dramatic amounts of energy anymore (nearly all of them are energy star rated on some level) and have ratings of about 100,000 hours (8 hours a day of use equaling roughly 35 years).  All of the issues you once heard about them are either not true anymore or never were true… it’s as cut and dry as that.  They start around the 42” size range but most models start at 50”.  It’s really tough to judge how any TV looks in the harsh florescent lighting of a show room so if you ever have the chance to see a TV in more of a home-lit room, jump at the chance.  In a normal environment, you’ll notice that Plasma’s have a more natural and lifelike coloring to them.  Grass on the field looks a realistic shade of green.  Blacks and whites have a more realistic look and have more detail in them (think shading on a silk shirt).  If you enjoy nature shows or live sports, this will be a plus because to truly feel like you are there, the coloring must look real, right?  I can’t feel like I’m at the game if the grass has a neon green look.  This coloring is best for rooms where lighting is controllable during the majority of its use.  If no natural light is really shined on the TV and/or most of the lighting is by lamp or if there is no lighting at all then Plasma is the way to go.  If you put them into a room saturated with natural light, they will appear dull and the reflection on them might impede on your ability to enjoy the picture.  The technology itself also has the fastest response time so there is absolutely no image blurring.  So things like fast paced action movies or sports are best.  Gaming is perfectly fine on them now with things like burn-in being a thing of the past.

LCD is a technology commonly found in electronics ranging from digital watches to computer monitors.  They are recognized for their bright imaging and energy efficiency.  They are available from as small as 13” to the largest of sizes.  Most entry to mid level sets have the matte screen everyone knows as a trademark to the technology making them great sets for light-saturated rooms.  One drawback can be that the black levels can grey out as light increases since the screen itself absorbs the light.  The coloring on them has an extremely bright, vivid look (bordering on exaggerated) to increase imaging in bright rooms.  If you enjoy the image quality that jumps out and demanded you to look at it on the wall full of other sets, then you’ll enjoy this.  Just know that if placed into a room with controllable or little light, the brightness or coloring may overwhelm to viewer or cause eye strain.   You do have the ability to adjust brightness and what not, but if you purchased the set because of its brightness only to have to lower that brightness down, what’s the point?  One thing to point out is that most mid-range and literally all performance-end LCD/LED’s have a reflective screen on them to enhance coloring in bright lighting and viewing angle.  Just be aware of this if you want the best set and have a lot of natural light.  One common problem the technology has had over time is motion blurring.  They have done wonders over the years to help this (increasing “hertz” ratings in higher models) but it still remains more of a way to profit than a way to correct a problem (more money in the treatment instead of the cure).  With the exception of the higher hertz-rated sets, sports and action movie watching would be at a minimal for proper viewing.  They are great for gaming and PC use as any TV is now it seems. 

You may have also noticed sets called “LED/LCD” or “LED” and not know what they are or what the differences are.  LED TVs are simply an LCD with different light source.  LED stands for Light Emitting Diode. It is the light source commonly found in police flashlights and most smart cell phones. They last considerably longer than the lighting system found in normal LCD TVs. It is a blue based lighting source so the TV is going to have a much brighter image, dynamic contrasting (brighter and more vivid) and less energy use.  Being as it is a light source that can be completely turned on and off in select locations, LED TV’s can obtain a black level close to that of Plasma.  A lot of people note that since the LED light is a smaller light, brands manage to make remarkably thinner TVs with this technology.  This thinness serves absolutely no use and is strictly an aesthetics specification everyone has become obsessed with as of late.

So to wrap it up, here is a quick run through for you…

PLASMA                                                                                                                     
GOOD FOR – Normal to controllable lighting, movie and sports watching, when you enjoy a more natural looking image.
BAD FOR – Extremely natural-light saturated rooms, if you enjoy a bright, eye popping color quality to your image

LCD/LED
GOOD FOR – Rooms saturated with natural light when views, when you enjoy a vividness to the image with bright colors.  Decent for sports and movies when a higher hertz-rate set is considered
BAD FOR – Controllable lighted rooms, constant fast paced action or when you focus on color accuracy above vividness

                I hope this could have been helpful enough to open up your eyes to some of the truths and fallacies about these technologies.  Just remember one key bit of information.  This is just another source of information along with what else you’ve read and what your tech-savvy friend tells you.  At the end of the day, you go and purchase the TV you want.  I just feel that the more information you know, the more confident you be when you choose the set that is right for you!