lcd vs plasma vs dlp = they all suck?

Why is picking a tv so god damn hard these days?

Plasma seems to be the best, but if you want true 720 and at least 1280x768 res expect to pay through the @#$@#$

LCD is a bit cheaper, although you seem to only get 37" and below. Ghosting issues, crappy blacks,bad viewing angles, but they do have at least 1280x768 res for a decent price

Rear Proj. LCD = buying replacement bulbs....need I say more? Also tend to be physically deeper and at least for me, pointless because of their larger size.

DLP = Rainbows, and again, replacement bulbs and aren't small in size.

CRT: Gigantic, best blacks/colors imho. Heavey as s***, not good for small area's, and do last a long long time though.

Then there's the HDTV/EDTV/SDTV nonsense. EDTV is crap, waste of time and money. I don't get HDTV yet, although if I get my sat. receiver updated I could get "some" channels in HDTV (720p). And that is where the problem lies, even with the new receiver, I'd only be watching some channels in hdtv so most of my programming is still in SDTV which means most of the new hdtv tv's will look like crap.

Then there's gaming. Xbox is 720p native. You need at least 1280x768 res to get the best picture. So, buying anything less then that is pointless imho. But, again, Plasma's at the rez are insanely priced. If the PS3 ever comes out, and it actually does have 1080p games.....I guess 720p ain't going to cut it right now. Heck, 1080p sets are right around the corner anyways, so why even get a 720p set?


I need a TV that has excellent blacks/colors, not very thick in size, around 42", I don't need a damn tuner, speakers would be nice, absolutely has to be 720p native but able to play sdtv without looking like crap, has component and perhaps hdmi ( although hdmi is nothing but hype right now imho). All that and besides the fact that I am flat ******* broke right now, if and when I do buy one ( woman wants to get rid of current CRT as it's too large and "ruins the living room") I would love to not have to re mortage the house to get it.



Personally, while both lcd/plasma are getting better, I think they are both going to be replaced by something better because they both have too many disadvantages, and cost too god damn much. LED displays look promsiing but are way....way.... in the future at this point, or at least anyone can afford them. Any until HDTV is actually broadcasted in some universal resolution ( 720 or 1080p) which seems to be a LONG time down the road yet....what's the point?

I'm thinking, if I do get a new tv, get something cheap, wait until all of this nonsense settles down, then get the one that I'll keep a long time.



End of Rant.
ahhhhh!
 
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I've got 50" Samsung DLP, the picture is brilliant, and if you don't see the raindows this is by far the best way to go as far as a TV without going crazy on a plasma. And since DLP's havent been out all that long the bulb life expectancy is still up in the air. It already sounds like you know what you want so it really doesn't matter what i or anyone else says.

I've made this thread already too, so it'll save ya some time:
http://www.msprotege.com/forum/showthread.php?t=123615751
 
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All depends on what you think of as expensive, I think $3000 for a 42" HD plasma is a great price and sell them all day long. Then again I also sell $12,000 LCoS rear projection TVs and front projector that cost just as much so it's all realative. As for 1080P TV they are already out in both LCoS and DLP rear projection, 45 and 65" LCD flat panels and 71" plasmas, just depends on what price you want to pay to play with, and yes regular TV doesn't look as good on any of these as it does on a cheap CRT tube TV. Best bet is to go into a small high end A/V store and seek some help to really make a decision, you'll be able to see all these types of TV with broadcast HD signals and stand signals on them and really determine what is best for you. I have people come in every day who are confused about this and have to sit them down and explain it all for about 5 mins every day. Each type of TV has it's advantages and disadvantages, personally I'm getting a 50" plasma because in the size they look the best and the wife wants something thinner since we rearranged the rooma nd you now look at the side of the TV as you walk in the house.
 
My discounts forced my hand but I didn't see many shortcomings so I am getting the Sony KDSR50XBR1
http://www.tweeter.com/product/inde...rentPage=family
A lamp blowing is not a common occurrence at least with basic use.

There is a plasma that Tweeter is WHORING out from Pioneer. It is a 43" that they are selling for $2699. It uses the same screen as the elites but doesn't have the same electronics to back it up. The picture is very nice regardless.

LCDs are getting much larger and will continue to do so in the coming months. Because of this plasma prices will begin to fall shortly. Manufacturers of both flat panel technologies have invested billions in new facilities and will be ready for some major price battles next year. Estimates are that the prices of a given size screen will fall up to 15%.

As for DLP, ignore it. It tosses the salad.

Lcos was certainly short lived; at least from its creators stand point. However, companies like Sony have re-engineered it into products like the Qualia which is friggen GORGEOUS.
 
I just bought a dlp front projector from toshiba. 30-300 inches, no rainbows at all, 1800 lumens and 800X600 resolution all for $450.

If you think 800X600 ain't much, well thats higher than most HD and higher than DVD.
 
I am happy with my HDTV ready Sony 47 inch rear projection TV i have had for the past couple years.....you can get it pretty cheap now (under 1K new).

if you have the space it is nice........

Will probably get DLP for my next Television many years down the road........

-R
 
mp3moose said:
I just bought a dlp front projector from toshiba. 30-300 inches, no rainbows at all, 1800 lumens and 800X600 resolution all for $450.

If you think 800X600 ain't much, well thats higher than most HD and higher than DVD.

The problem is that your 800x600 is the wrong aspect ratio. Also, any form of HDTV and the next generation DVDs and even video game consoles are above that resolution already.

The rainbow is an effect is something some peoples eyes are fast enough to spot and others are not. The problem is that DLP distorts colors since it can only display one at a time. Also DLP even at HDTV resolution has to scrap a large amount of the signal. I have a fuzzy feeling DLp will be pushed aside within the next 4 years. Too much is invested in Plasma and LCD at this point so both will be around for the long haul.

For my money, if it has to be a flat screen, then it has to be plasma. If you want projection, then get LCD. Obviously, it all really boils down set by set so use your eyes. Be midful of the games manufacturers play with the settings. Alot of bestbuy TVs are specificly setup to JUMP out at you in the store under those god awful lights. However at home they will look like complete crap.
 
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True, I just wanted something that could eventually handle HD. As a college student, I am lucky just to have TV. That and I don't care much about the aspect ratio. I'd rather have 16:9 but 300 inches is a huge step up from my 14 incher.
 
mp3moose said:
True, I just wanted something that could eventually handle HD. As a college student, I am lucky just to have TV. That and I don't care much about the aspect ratio. I'd rather have 16:9 but 300 inches is a huge step up from my 14 incher.

You haven't tried it as a large image yet have you?
you will clearly see each pixel and it will be the darkest image you have ever seen. Keep it around the 50-60" mark and you should be good to go.
 
I use it around 80 inches but I've had it up to around 200. I can see the pixels up close, but just a couple meters away and I can't see them anymore.
 
Obviously its not high-end home theater or anything, but for the usage, price and portability it can't be beat.
 
txrxs said:
I've got 50" Samsung DLP, the picture is brilliant, and if you don't see the raindows this is by far the best way to go as far as a TV without going crazy on a plasma. And since DLP's havent been out all that long the bulb life expectancy is still up in the air. It already sounds like you know what you want so it really doesn't matter what i or anyone else says.

DLPs aren't new.. I've been working on them for quite a while now. The last company I worked for dealt with DLP projectors for control room solutions (military, police, educational instituions, lockheed, nasdaq, etc). The bulbs on them aren't that great, and they havent changed since. I worked on the Nasdaq office in Times Square. We had to change the bulbs on the projectors once a month, but they should've been replaced more often than that. Of course, those projectors run 24/7 though. If CNN hosts a new year event at the Nasdaq office again, you can tune in and see that none of the 90 screens match in color or brightness, best seen if they use a blue background (which they most likely will coz they always do), you get 90 different shades of blue.

I would recommend waiting until sources are HD and are of a high resolution, then see which TV is fit for then. Don't buy an expensive TV now, because chances are you will regret getting it. Don't get an HD tv just because Xbox will look nice on it, what a waste. Xbox will look nice on a standard LCD. If you really had to get a TV now though, Plasmas have dropped drastically in price, and most new plasmas have addressed screen burn, and show SDTV a lot better than LCDs.
 
I dont think anyone here has brought up one big fault with the some of the older and current gen HD tvs.

The older 720p DLP/LCD/LOCOS all can not display blacks. Only gray. You can really see the limitations on movies like "Sin City" "Aliens" and alot of video games that have dark scenes. its really irritating and makes the picture look bad. The new 1080P DLP and Sony's LOCos has good contrast and is way ahead of the older ones when it comes to showing blacks. But currently the 1080P TVs are not cheap. about 3500bux for a decent one.

also the new generations of DVDs will support 1080p so buying a 720P tv now gonna make it obsolete.
 
i have a sharp 45" it's res is 1280x1080 capable of 1080p when it's available. i love it i thinks it's one of the best tv's i have ever owned. nice thing about lcd is you don't have to worry so much much about image burn.
 
slo03.5msp said:
i have a sharp 45" it's res is 1280x1080 capable of 1080p when it's available. i love it i thinks it's one of the best tv's i have ever owned. nice thing about lcd is you don't have to worry so much much about image burn.

the 1080p tvs just game out this past late spring. I dont think sharp has any 1080p tvs out yet. Its most like 1080i. big difference from 1080p.
 
slo03.5msp said:
i have a sharp 45" it's res is 1280x1080 capable of 1080p when it's available. i love it i thinks it's one of the best tv's i have ever owned. nice thing about lcd is you don't have to worry so much much about image burn.
How can it do 1920x1080? Is it interpolated?
 
I will say that sonys new A10 series lcd rptv's have closed the gap pretty well in the black quality department.
 

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