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Televisions

wasy

Active Member
Joined
Feb 7, 2006
Messages
1,186
I'm in the market for a new TV, something between 50" and 60". I'm think LCD flat screen. Any TV afficiandos here? Where to by LCD vs plasma? Any input would be appreciated.
 
This was covered back in April here pretty well. Be sure to check the link in post #19.
 
What ever tv you buy, spring for the 1080P set. 768P sets are hard to come by now escpecially if you are looking at 50/60 inch set, 1080P set are dominating the market in this size. Regardless of the distance you are veiwing from, remember this, a 768P set often refered to as a 720P set only has a pixel display of 1368x768. 1080P sets have a pixel display of 1920x1080. Technically, when watching an HD signal from say CBS(1080i) your display will be able to reproduce the image better than a set 768P set due the additional 1,000,000 pixels.


C&R
 
Plenty of 50+ inch plasma 720P sets around and at far better prices then the LCD sets at that size. While you are correct about the pixel count of 1080P having more if you can't see it it doesn't matter and an interlaced 1080i signal only uses 540 lines INTERLACED and is well within a 720P sets capability. The only native 1080P available is Blu-ray and there is no plan for a 1080P broadcast standard.

What ever tv you buy, spring for the 1080P set. 768P sets are hard to come by now escpecially if you are looking at 50/60 inch set, 1080P set are dominating the market in this size. Regardless of the distance you are veiwing from, remember this, a 768P set often refered to as a 720P set only has a pixel display of 1368x768. 1080P sets have a pixel display of 1920x1080. Technically, when watching an HD signal from say CBS(1080i) your display will be able to reproduce the image better than a set 768P set due the additional 1,000,000 pixels.


C&R


I've found Tiger Direct to have some great prices and specials. Or you could wait for Black Friday.
 
Get the BIG one

plasma102-746462.jpg
 
Hi

I'm also looking for a TV as the prices has gone down quite a lot. Here is what I have been able to conclude from reading about it:

Buy Plasma if you are mainly watching regular TV and movies. Plasma can be sensitive to light so if you have it in a room with lots of windows it can influence your viewing pleasure:-)

Buy LCD if you are planning on hooking up your PC og playing games on it.

At the moment I'm looking at Samsung and LG plasma 50" TV's.
 
Shot mine with a twelve gauge pump and never looked back! :D
 
Stop over at AVS Fourms , all the info you will ever need for any av purchase can be found there. They have great reviews, calibration settings, and any thing else you could need for picking out a new tv. There is a ton of info there to help you make an informed decision on, LCD vs. Plasma, 1080i vs. 1080P, and which brand.

Good luck and have fun picking out your new TV!
 
Stop over at AVS Fourms , all the info you will ever need for any av purchase can be found there. They have great reviews, calibration settings, and any thing else you could need for picking out a new tv. There is a ton of info there to help you make an informed decision on, LCD vs. Plasma, 1080i vs. 1080P, and which brand.

Good luck and have fun picking out your new TV!

+1. It begins and ends with AVSForum.

C&R
 
Plenty of 50+ inch plasma 720P sets around and at far better prices then the LCD sets at that size. While you are correct about the pixel count of 1080P having more if you can't see it it doesn't matter and an interlaced 1080i signal only uses 540 lines INTERLACED and is well within a 720P sets capability. The only native 1080P available is Blu-ray and there is no plan for a 1080P broadcast standard.

What ever tv you buy, spring for the 1080P set. 768P sets are hard to come by now escpecially if you are looking at 50/60 inch set, 1080P set are dominating the market in this size. Regardless of the distance you are veiwing from, remember this, a 768P set often refered to as a 720P set only has a pixel display of 1368x768. 1080P sets have a pixel display of 1920x1080. Technically, when watching an HD signal from say CBS(1080i) your display will be able to reproduce the image better than a set 768P set due the additional 1,000,000 pixels.


C&R


I've found Tiger Direct to have some great prices and specials. Or you could wait for Black Friday.


The extra 1,000,000 pixels help regardless of what signal you are watching. Take a look at 768P set and 1080P set showing the same signal preferably broadcast TV. The pixels are much closer together creating a much smother image and the color is better. Yeah 1080i is only 540 lines per .5 second however 1080i is still 1920x1080 the resolution is still getting clipped by a tv which can only display 1368x768. Its not my money, however why buy a tv you cant grow into?

C&R
 
Its recommended not to get anything over 50. Recommended size is 40-42. Anything higher tends to stretch the image giving less quality. Depends on the size of the room as well. 40-42 inch is more than enough for watching within 10-20 feet.

definitely 1080p
LCD over plasma (plasma is more and doesn't hold up long I hear)

My parents got a Samsung, its really really nice. Crystal clear images on the HD channels with Direct TV.
 
Not if you can't see them. The whole point of resolution vs distance is that you have to be close enough to physically be able to discern those pixels. If you are set in location for the screen and seating AND are past the point of visual acuity for the higher resolution it is just a waste. If you aren't and are seated within 10' (for a 50"set) then there may be an actual benefit to the higher resolution because you may be able see it. It all comes down to size, distance and how certain you are of the mounting location. One can always buy more then they need but it isn't a requirement.

The best example I can give is to put a pin head on the wall. At 10' you may not see it or if you do can't tell what it is. Put a thumbtack on the wall at the same distance and you can see it and tell it is a circle. At lessor distance you can see the pin head and discern more detail.

Of course, the way to get around any of this is to buy a front projector which you can size to give you whatever resolution you wish to watch at whatever distance you need. However, that is more expensive then the LCD/Plasma screens we are discussing.


The extra 1,000,000 pixels help regardless of what signal you are watching.

C&R
 
Not if you can't see them. The whole point of resolution vs distance is that you have to be close enough to physically be able to discern those pixels. If you are set in location for the screen and seating AND are past the point of visual acuity for the higher resolution it is just a waste. If you aren't and are seated within 10' (for a 50"set) then there may be an actual benefit to the higher resolution because you may be able see it. It all comes down to size, distance and how certain you are of the mounting location. One can always buy more then they need but it isn't a requirement.

The best example I can give is to put a pin head on the wall. At 10' you may not see it or if you do can't tell what it is. Put a thumbtack on the wall at the same distance and you can see it and tell it is a circle. At lessor distance you can see the pin head and discern more detail.

Of course, the way to get around any of this is to buy a front projector which you can size to give you whatever resolution you wish to watch at whatever distance you need. However, that is more expensive then the LCD/Plasma screens we are discussing.


The extra 1,000,000 pixels help regardless of what signal you are watching.

C&R

I like your example of the thumb tack/pin head analogy. Am I correct in assuming the thumb tack is 768P set and the pin head is 1080P? Then I'll take and recommend the 1080P(pin head analogy) because the of the densely packed pixels create a nicer looking image regardless of distance. I am not watching tv/movie/sporting event to see pixels, but to see an image reproduced as best it can be.

Not sure if Wasy's seating distance is sitting 10' or further, which may change over time, rearrangment of a room, ect.

C&R
 
I've provided some verification of the distance VS resolution ability. Do you have anything to offer besides your preference? Distance is not regardless, it is the defining factor of this conversation. As I stated above if certain conditions are met and aren't going to change then it won't matter which resolution you get because you won't see the difference. Distance is the controlling factor as to what resolution you can see. Go outside the physical limitations of the eye and it is not true that more pixels will result in a better looking picture because you can't tell they are there or not.

If the distance is such that you will be able to see the resolution then a 1080P set is certainly the way to go but it is not better under all circumstances and that is all I have been saying.


Then I'll take and recommend the 1080P(pin head analogy) because the of the densely packed pixels create a nicer looking image regardless of distance. I am not watching tv/movie/sporting event to see pixels, but to see an image reproduced as best it can be.

Not sure if Wasy's seating distance is sitting 10' or further, which may change over time, rearrangment of a room, ect.

C&R
 
This pair of Samsung TVs were just announced today. I might have to think about getting a new TV!

Link
 
Generally speaking, LCDs can be brighter than Plasmas, but plasmas are capable of of a slightly better picture. I just bought a 60" Pioneer Kuro plasma for the main TV viewing room in our house. I also have an LCD mounted outside in our lanai, and another LCD mounted in another room that has more ambient light. So I consider myself technology agnostic when it comes to LCD vs. plasma. The Kuro does look better than any plasma I have ever seen though. (-:

This is pretty much pure speculation, but I would be willing to bet 720 sets will not be around much longer. Remember "enhanced definition" TVs? I believe 720p will be going that way soon. Having said that, if 720p meets your needs with regard to seating distance and screen size, then go ahead and get one. However, it is reasonable to assume that there may be 1080p broadcasts at some point in the future, so you would be ready for it if you got 1080p now.

As I mentioned above, my Kuro looks fantastic. If you have the money for the 50", I recommend at least considering it and reading some reviews. The blacks and color rendering are phenomenal, and that can make more of a difference in picture quality than resolution.

JK
 
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