Best Picture

[rainman]

What TV's has the best picture LCD,PLASMA,OR DLP or REAR PROJECTION.

[bobkat]

Its hard to say so I didn't vote. I have a 1999 Pioneer RP high definition set - really nice picture if you feed it the right signal. Some of today's plasmas are superb... but for now I'm happy with my Pioneer. Only drawback is you need to converge the guns from time to time -- a 1 hour painstakingly boring process...

kat

[rainman]

Originally Posted by bobkat

Its hard to say so I didn't vote. I have a 1999 Pioneer RP high definition set - really nice picture if you feed it the right signal. Some of today's plasmas are superb... but for now I'm happy with my Pioneer. Only drawback is you need to converge the guns from time to time -- a 1 hour painstakingly boring process...

kat

I have the rear projection type myself kat but seen the LCD's at wallmart and they seem to have a very clear picture and they seem to be brighter than the rest IMO.

[be236]

I just like DLP (though I dont have one)... only draw back is there's a lamp and you have to replace it every 5 years or so or else you'll start to lose brightness and it'll get dimmer and dimmer over time.. d'oh!

Currently I have an SD rear-projection since 1997 and it still works great... With S-video, my channels are crystal clear.

[Sadoun]

I have just got back from CES and have seen a lot of TVs (all kind).

HITACHI had a very nice display showing the difference in picture quality between an LCD and PLASMA. The plasma screen is superior to the LCD screen by many factors.

Plasma will not degrade the picture resolution for moving images (such as sports, hi action movies, etc). While the LCD will degrade the picture down by 75% on the moving images (depening how fast the image moves).

The Plasma gives richer color than the LCD. Thus the picture comes out more natural.

The LCD has better black level compared to PLASMA. Plasma does not show true black. It is near black.

I saw Panasonic has a 103" Plasma screen. Fantastic.

The BluRay DVD vs Standard DVD display at Pioneer was excellent. I tought the DVD picture was pretty sharp until I saw the side by side comparison with the BluRay DVD. The BluRay picture was very sharp, clear, and significantly better. I am sold on the BluRay DVD.

Many PC vendors like Dell and HP are bundling BluRay DVD R/W player with their PCs now.

[bobkat]

Sounds like you had a blast... I never get to go to those groovy shows...

kat

[Sadoun]

Yes, it was good.

Dish Network announced that they will now offer FREE HD DVR upgrade (VIP622) for new subscribers starting 2/1/07. Monthly DVR fees and HD fees still apply.

DN is also available on mobile cars using a RaySat mobile antenna system.

[be236]

Other than the high cost, why dont more people who have restrictions on putting up a dish use this RaySat mobile antenna system to allow them to watch DN?

[boroda1]

I think whatever can handle 1080p resolution, will show the best picture

[Sadoun]

1080P is better picture than 1080i. However, the differences between LCD and Plasma still apply even at that resolution.

[rainman]

Sounds like you had a great time Sadoun. that sound like it would be any electronics man fantasy.

[pictureon]

I heard that LCD last longer than plasma TV's.

[be236]

But I think rear-projection DLP is the best bang for your buck.. cheaper than plasma or LCD.

I think you can get a 42" DLP set for about $1000... Good price, eh?

[elgemcdlf]

Originally Posted by be236

But I think rear-projection DLP is the best bang for your buck.. cheaper than plasma or LCD.

I think you can get a 42" DLP set for about $1000... Good price, eh?

I believe you can get 42" HD either monitor or TV for the $1300 range without shopping to awful hard. Do not remember Plasma or LCD but believe it was Plasma. Just happens to be the size I am looking at for a flush mount in the wall system in my FR

[wejones]

I'm curious why conventional CRT was not one of the options? From everything I've read, CRT HDTVs are significantly better than any of the other types listed here, although perhaps they aren't available in the same range of sizes.
Actually, this is 95% of the reason I don't have an HDTV now, because I want a CRT model, and the wife wants an LCD. As the TV ad says, eventually we'll compromise, and we'll get an LCD.
{hopefully she doesn't read this forum}

[satnutwillb]

I agree wejones,everything I've read about says crts produce better picture,but I guess are just too bulky.I like the LCD look,but better quality and longer performance are a nice feature also.

[Sadoun]

CRTs are no where to be found at the last CES. With 1080P resolution, you will get the best picture possible with today's technology (tomorrow might be a different story ).

When you buy a PLASMA, you have to be careful about burn-ins. This will happen if a static picture is left on the plasma screen for a long period of time. For example, let say you keep the channel on CNN news for a whole day. And the CNN logo is static and stays at the same location on the screen. That will create a permanent burn-in of the logo on that spot of the screen.

I don't know if new Plasma technology eleminated that problem. LCD does not have an issue with this.

[Sadoun]

When you shop for a PLASMA TV, make sure you check the resolution capability of the screen. Some have low resolution (VGA) and sell way too cheap. These are not HDTV capable but will work well with regular SD and DVDs.

[pmb1010]

Originally Posted by wejones

CRT HDTVs are significantly better

Bill, I did the same analysis a couple years ago. Everything pointed back to a tube type set for HD as having the best picture.
So I ended up with 34" Sony HD tube set. This thing is HEAVY.
But I've been very satisfied with the set for the time I've had it. Time Warner cable (formerly Adelphia) has a ton of HD channels, and since I'm near Canada - I can pick up CBC for HD hockey with OTA antenna.

I think realistically the limit on tube HD - Widescreen 16x9 - ends up at about the 36" level. There are manufacturing issues making glass any bigger than that, so thats why nothing at CES for glass anymore. People want 40, 50 , 60 inch sets.... ain't gonna happen with glass.

This will suffice my needs until this "laser" HD technology comes out in a couple years.

[wejones]

Originally Posted by pmb1010

Bill, I did the same analysis a couple years ago. Everything pointed back to a tube type set for HD as having the best picture.
So I ended up with 34" Sony HD tube set. This thing is HEAVY.
......

That "HEAVY" thing is part of the reason why I can't convince my wife to go for the CRT. We now have 4 TVs, 2 of which, are OLD, mechanical tuning types, but are still working fine, but our main TV is a Sony. This Sony, like you say, is HEAVY, but it replaced a Sony that died, that was even heavier, which replaced a Sony that died. My last Sony was so heavy that I needed to use the front end loader on my tractor to move the darn thing. I wanted to replace my current Sony, which has been showing signs of dying, with a Sony HD, and my wife just can't understand why I keep buying Sony TVs when they keep dying, but I really don't think there is anything else with the features of the Sonys, particularly with respect to multiple inputs, etc. When we bought our Sonys, there were also a brand called Proton or something that looked good, but that was years ago, so I don't know if they are still around or not.
But one problem with the CRTs, which will probabably be the case with other type displays once they figure it out, is that at least where we live, you can't get rid of the old ones. Ie we aren't allowed to just put them in the trash. You have to call some special hazardous waste company and pay something like $25 per TV to dispose of it. This goes for both TVs and computer monitors. This went into effect a year or two ago, at a time when I had 2 old TVs, and about 7 old computer monitors in my garage. At that time, I found that a trash transfer station about an hour's drive from me was taking them for a fee of $90/ton, but only for a couple weeks until the prohibition hit them too, so I put my HUGE HEAVY SONY, plus an old Toshiba, and about 6 old computer monitors into my Jeep Cherokee, and drove up to the transfer station, and got rid of them. Kind of neat getting in line behind big trash trucks to get on the scales. I think it cost me about $22, plus the gas to drive there and back. So there are reasons to avoid CRTs now, however by the time a plasma or LCD goes bad, they will probably prohibit those in trash too. I think they were concerned about the lead and mercury and other heavy metals in them, which is probably the same for any electronics, but the prohibition was only for monitors at this time.

[daydreamer]

I just got a 52" Panasonic LCD on black Friday from Circuit City. I ordered it online and they delivered it to the house a week later. When I called to schedule delivery they ask if I had an old tv to have them take. I said yes and they hauled away my old 27" tube tv for free.

[rainman]

Originally Posted by daydreamer

I just got a 52" Panasonic LCD on black Friday from Circuit City. I ordered it online and they delivered it to the house a week later. When I called to schedule delivery they ask if I had an old tv to have them take. I said yes and they hauled away my old 27" tube tv for free.

the company I bought my RP 52" tv from did the same thing. it was a good thing because the old one was a 46" RP.

[wejones]

Since I posted (last Jan) about the problem of getting rid of old TVs and monitors, my (very small) town put me in charge of finding a place to dispose of such things. I called around, and the going rate for a full size TV was $25, for businesses, however I called one place and they said that for residential TVs, that it was FREE! Apparently our state (Maine) forces manufacturers to pay for recycling such things, so they just bill the manufacturer. Haven't tried it yet, and the place that said it is free still has a $25 fee listed. But hopefully, if this trend continues into other states, it may no longer be a problem to dispose of TVs and monitors.

Also, since posting in Jan, I've finally bought an HDTV. I got an LCD. We went and looked at the various types, and there wasn't a whole lot of difference in picture quality that we could see, at least with the canned video they were displaying, however there was one HUGE difference, and that is reflection of light from windows and lights, etc. We have so many windows in our house, that it's almost impossible to see the screen of any TV with a shiny glass surface, but the LCDs almost completely eliminate the glare from window and light reflection. It's amazing.

[rainman]

Thats what I am thinking of going with the next time around LCD.

[mreaves53]

One aspect of plasma that has not been mentioned is viewing angle. LCD lose brightness when viewed from an angle, plasma does not. My room is long and narrow and I have my plasma on the long with with chairs at angles of at least 45 degrees or greater. No picture degradation at all.

I have a 42" Hitachi plasma and my wife even likes it.

Michael

[q12345]

Hi everyone, I'm a newbie here.

I agree with wejones that CRT picture quality can't be beat yet.

But, mreaves53, I've seen some new LCD sets that do not lose their brightness from most angles. I believe that Samsung is the most popular in Korea, and that Hitachi is still at the top in Japan. These are totally non-scientific findings on my part based on asking actual people who live in those countries.

As of now, I like the new Sharp Aquos line of LCD tvs. There is a marked difference in picture quality when viewed side-by-side with other sets. They're pretty pricey though, so I can't afford one.

Just one other point. LCD has the lowest electrical consumption, while plasma is an energy hog. This may sway your purchasing decision if energy costs are high in your area.

By the way, I still have my old Sanyo 19" and it still suits my purpose.

[William Eng]

Originally Posted by q12345

Hi everyone, I'm a newbie here.

I agree with wejones that CRT picture quality can't be beat yet.

But, mreaves53, I've seen some new LCD sets that do not lose their brightness from most angles. I believe that Samsung is the most popular in Korea, and that Hitachi is still at the top in Japan. These are totally non-scientific findings on my part based on asking actual people who live in those countries.

As of now, I like the new Sharp Aquos line of LCD tvs. There is a marked difference in picture quality when viewed side-by-side with other sets. They're pretty pricey though, so I can't afford one.

Just one other point. LCD has the lowest electrical consumption, while plasma is an energy hog. This may sway your purchasing decision if energy costs are high in your area.

By the way, I still have my old Sanyo 19" and it still suits my purpose.

I brought the Sharp Aquos 1080i in January, shortly the discontinued it and switched to 1080p. I very much enjoy this TV. To be honest, at 20 away, I don't anyone can tell the difference between any of high def screens. In my opinion, the quality of the feed is much more important. The way I looked at, sooner or later you will have to get a new TV when they turn off the analog OTA signals. And since they are already broadcasting 20 some channels already in digital in my area, I would rather get a new TV sooner. My biggest issue is reliablity, why spend thousands if it won't stand the test of time. During my research, I spent some time reading other peoples reviews, even top brand names TV have problems, and they have no qualms telling what the problems are. So I have no problem paying more for quality.

My old 27 in RCA which is still working after 18 years old is now in the guest bedroom

[vze59zgb]

Originally Posted by rainman

I have the rear projection type myself kat but seen the LCD's at wallmart and they seem to have a very clear picture and they seem to be brighter than the rest IMO.

rainman just got the sony bravia 32 inch tv windgard antenna hi deff you would not believe the picture great get all high deff channels
soney the best good price to about $950 dollars

[vze59zgb]

Originally Posted by rainman

What TV's has the best picture LCD,PLASMA,OR DLP or REAR PROJECTION.

the sony bravia lcd which i have is the best for my money no mater were


you sit in the room still looks great great picture quality high def fantastic


vze59zgb

[Muad'Dib]

The answer can only be given by setting a money limit first...............