Plasma vs LCD TV's

In my opinion base on what I've read. Plasma TVs produce a better picture at first, but degrades quickly (5 to 10 years). LCD TVs offer a little less quality but tend to last longer (10 to 15 years). LCD TVs are generally cheaper than Plasma TVs. As a rule of thumb I'd recommend the following;

For anything under 30 inches, get an LCD TV. Anything that size or smaller, the difference in picture quality between plasma and LCD is small.

For over 30 inches, shop around and compare cost, warranty, features, size and picture.

So basically, if your looking for a TV larger than 30 inches, I haven't helped you at all.

I really recommend the following link, they do a great job:

http://hometheater.about.com/od/lcdtvfaqs/f/lcdfaq2.htm

Plasmas are generally cheaper than LCDs however they use nearly 3 times the power and lack the definition of LCDs.

LCDs are 'pixel perfect' ie every pixel is represented as it should be.

Generally, I've found the Toshiba units manufactured in Indonesia are very reliable and have an excellent picture quality.

As a rough costing, a 37" diagonal unit runs out at around USD2,300.

An alternative is a SVGA DLP video projector and screen which generally costs about half this.

If you can wait until this time next year. LED laser TV's are supposed to be out by then. It is said they will be better and cheaper than either LCD or plasma.

This doesn't really count towards the ordinary screens that the guest asked about but if you are looking for high resolution projection systems the best image comes for the multi tube CRT projectors. When they were new they cost the an arm an a leg but you can pick a good one up for around the same price as a DLP or LCD projector. The good ones have better resolution, contrast ratios of 20,000:1 or better and last at least 5 time as long as the modern counterparts. If you look on e-Bay you will find there is always some up for sale and there is still a reasonable amount of support available.

I have to agree with Masu that CRT is by far the best picture. I'm a sucker after all, having set these things up thousands of times under demanding conditions most of my life. That's what you get being an AV roadie. Takes ages to get them right, not like the "push here for exact picture" buttons we've been accoustomed to these days. And LCD is not so bad......

CRT is as smooth as silk and about 800 ANSI lumens flat out (unless you've got a Boeing thingo, what did we call that Masu?), which means you pretty much have to be in a dark environment. I mean an exquisite 800 lumen projector will perform wonderfully in 800 lumen sidelight.

The key thing to condider is the influence of sidelight against your contrast. Remember contrast is the difference between black and white, so if your black is not black, how will your white be white?

I've worked with TI and the 3 chip DLP devices and I must say I'm very impressed. The Barco R series, the Christies, and the NECs are pretty well engineered units, but like everything that travels, they don't do that well and need recallibration at every station after they've bounced around in the truck for a few hours.

But back to the matter at hand and Masu's comments, well basically I couldn't agree more (after God only knows, I guess 20,000 projector setups (the first ones were Black and White in '75, gimme a break))

After 30 years of active projection, now I'd favour DLP, 3 chip, but hey, who knows where this may go tomorrow. I'm not stuck on one technology.

Mark and Merry Xmas yall.

I have heard reports from several sources that DLP projectors have been accused of triggering migraine like headaches in susceptible individuals. Never having played with them I have no idea it this is true and it could just be an urban myth.

I have however done a fair amount of research into the causes of migraine or as it is more correctly known severe headache syndrome and its triggers. If you strobe certain colours at specific frequencies it can certainly trigger a headache so it wouldn't surprise me.

Has anybody else heard of or had experience with DLP projectors causing headaches?

two points:

Plasmas are heavy and run hot, compared to LCD. Something to consider if you want to hang it on the wall. A wall mount will add $ to the project.

CRT rear projectors are still around, and at bargain prices. I just bought a 57" Hitachi for $1100, complete with HDMI input and all the bells and whistles. And they sit on the floor, so no table or stand is needed. And they are proven technology, with an excellent picture.