Poll: LCD vs. Plasma vs. DLP vs. RPTV vs. LCDP - Blu-ray Forum

martinstraka8282 · 08-09-2007, 04:35 PM

Well I've been reading the threads for quite a while here at Bluray.com, and I can't help but notice the underwhelming support for Plasma T.V. I want to know what people prefer, and what dissadvantages of the different types of displays bother them the most. I have been a plasma owner since I got into HDTV's, but I have experience with most types of displays.

Each type of display has it's problems, but some more than others. I have always felt that Plasma is the way to go for home theatre, and LCD for gaming. I am obviously biased because I own a Plasma, but I just love Television and I have always looked for the most balance in a set. I watch a lot of movies, sports, and I play a lot of video games... probably like most people here do. I have been an Ottawa Senators fan all my young life, so this past year was awesome, HD just made it that much better. Please cast your vote accordingly, and feel free to knock my T.V. while you're at it.

If there are question marks below, that means I have no experience other than store viewing with this display type. I also left out CRT.

Display Type - The Bad
- The Good

Plasma - Image Retention, uneven phosphour aging (Burn-in), screen glare
- Picture depth, Black levels, window effect, physical size

LCD - Motion Blur, Banding, clouding, uneven backlighting, Black levels
- Contrast, brightness, physical size, video games look awesome

DLP - Geometry, overscan, viewing angles, bulb exchanging
- Image quality to cost is unrivaled

RPTV - Screen-door effect, physical size
- Colours, brightness, contrast, screen size possibilities

LCD Projection - ?

Front Projection - Lighting and window control
- Possible screen size

LCD LED - ?

Rear Projection in Poll is meant to be front projection.

Blu Tiger · 08-09-2007, 04:42 PM

Plasma...all the way. Just waiting for Pioneer to release their entirely new plasma technology.

ground chuck · 08-09-2007, 04:45 PM

i own 2 dlp samsung sets one is a 50" 720p, over 2 years old and have not had to replace the bulb yet. the other is my 56" 1080p.

the price i paid for my 1080p tv vs LCD or plasma, is the biggest part of why i love my tv. also, i'm not hanging my tv on my wall as we have one of those large ikea entertainment centers. so, my 56" pretty much fills in the gap. the picture is sharp, some blacks could be better, but for the most part this tv rocks.

the cons, my kids and wife can't tell the difference so, its double bonus b/c they don't even notice.

my motto, if you're not going to hang the tv on the wall, why pay more.

martinstraka8282 · 08-09-2007, 04:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blu Tiger

Plasma...all the way. Just waiting for Pioneer to release their entirely new plasma technology.

Yeah, those Pioneers are gonna be unreal! No one in my city stocks Pioneer, and I got my Panny 65" for $6500... couldn't pass it up.

Iceman_II · 08-09-2007, 04:53 PM

I simply can't buy into the whole limited lifespan of a plasma set, and whats up with little black spots where the pixels fail? Have you checked your warranty, how many of these have to fail before it becomes a warranty issue? I bet it is a whole lot more than 1.

I looked at DLP projection side by side with LCD projection, and ended up getting the LCD... at the time it was a better picture IMO than the DLP technology (DLP may have improved since) and it is definately more bang for the buck than flat panals.

As for bad and good of LCD projection, I think it has all the good of LCD flatpanel, but as for the bad, I really don't notice any bluring or banding. One thing I have noticed lately is a small bit of SDE.

Before the LCD projection, I had a CRT projection (I think you call it simply "rear projection") one of the biggest negatives you left out was convergence issues.

Y3k Bug · 08-09-2007, 04:54 PM

I voted for LCD, although to be honest I'm a plasma convert. When HD sets started coming out I always thought the plasmas looked better. Warmer colors less noticble pixelation, etc...

Then when the 1080's (resolution) came out I said "#$*&! I can't see a difference anymore". So I went with the less expensive LCD over plasma.

I still wouldn't turn down a plasma if someone wanted to give me a free one.

victorvondoom88 · 08-09-2007, 05:03 PM

Dang, I meant to vote for LCD projection I guess I should read all the options first.

Matt X · 08-09-2007, 05:18 PM

personally I wanna see what Laser HDTV's look like - supposedly very good contrast, cheaper to produce - If it looks viable and really *is* cheap, laser projector for me...........

martinstraka8282 · 08-09-2007, 05:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iceman_II

I simply can't buy into the whole limited lifespan of a plasma set, and whats up with little black spots where the pixels fail? Have you checked your warranty, how many of these have to fail before it becomes a warranty issue? I bet it is a whole lot more than 1.

I looked at DLP projection side by side with LCD projection, and ended up getting the LCD... at the time it was a better picture IMO than the DLP technology (DLP may have improved since) and it is definately more bang for the buck than flat panals.

As for bad and good of LCD projection, I think it has all the good of LCD flatpanel, but as for the bad, I really don't notice any bluring or banding. One thing I have noticed lately is a small bit of SDE.

Before the LCD projection, I had a CRT projection (I think you call it simply "rear projection") one of the biggest negatives you left out was convergence issues.

I have owned 3 plasmas in my life and have only had 1 pixel fail on me, it was a stuck blue pixel that I could only see withing 3 feet of my tv. I actually returned a Sharp LCD before I bought my current TV because there were 7 stuck pixels, and my local audiotronics accepted without any complaints. I was unhappy with the Sharp for various reasons other than the stuck pixels though... It just did not perform for home theatre the way I had hoped. I think plasma lifespan was an issue years ago, but they are now guaranteed for 60,000 hours (same as LCD), and I doubt I will even know what dump my tv is in by the time I use up all those hours. Plasma is definetely expensive, and DLP and LCD projection are the cost effective way to go for sure as quality to cost is 2nd to none.

Blu Tiger · 08-09-2007, 05:24 PM

Is there a better tv right now than the Pioneer Pro-FHD1? (PQ)

chrisshea · 08-09-2007, 05:27 PM

lcd all the way for me
52" sony bravia XRb2 1080p
37" westinghouse 1080p
22" lg 2ms 1650-1050 3000:1 Pc monitor

tiger roach · 08-09-2007, 05:27 PM

Plasma FTW!

When we were shopping I liked the images on the top-of-the-line LCDs as much as the plasma though - it ended up almost being a coin-toss. I finally got the Panny 50" plasma because it was almost the same price as the Sony 46" LCD we liked.

We have had the panel only a week and a half now, but no complaints so far. HDTV looks great and blu-ray is stunning.

CptGreedle · 08-09-2007, 05:29 PM

The DLP and other projection tvs tend to have a narrow viewing angle. Often it is measured by the degrees which you can look with minimal distortion from side-to-side, but if you stand up, it is painful obvious on many models.
Projectors tend to be really nice but have no black setting at all so it is completely dependent on the light level in the room. Plus the screen you watch it on is important and can be costly.
I prefer LCD cause it is more durable than plasma, it uses less energy, more environmentally friendly, looks great, and has a good price.

martinstraka8282 · 08-09-2007, 05:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blu Tiger

Is there a better tv right now than the Pioneer Pro-FHD1? (PQ)

Some reviewers feel that the new Panasonic TH-50PX750U isf'd is better... I don't though, I find the blacks a bit crushed. I owned the new 1080P Panny for about 3 weeks before bringing it back for my 65". I am much more impressed with my current set than the 50" panny, probably because it is their flagship model. The Pro-FHD1 is impressive, and the new Pioneers coming this year are gonna make the pannys look ridiculous imo. Either way, I am just so glad I took back the Sharp LC-52D92U before being stuck with it. BTW, the Audiotronics store hates me, I returned 2 T.V's in a month.

BluBerry · 08-09-2007, 05:30 PM

When I was researching in preparation for my HDTV, I got the sense from a lot of tech guys that plasma displays are not very reliable. There was always talk about image retention, burn-in, dead pixels, phosphor levels, contrast degredation--there seemed to be an aweful lot of drawbacks to owning one.

martinstraka8282 · 08-09-2007, 05:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BluBerry

When I was researching in preparation for my HDTV, I got the sense from a lot of tech guys that plasma displays are not very reliable. There was always talk about image retention, burn-in, dead pixels, phosphor levels, contrast degredation--it seemed like an aweful lot of drawbacks owning one.

Fabrications! I have never seen an image burned into a plasma, image retention yes but never burn in. Dead pixels occur more on LCD than on plasma imo. I think for a plasma you want to have room to move with the contrast, if it is cranked out of the box and that's how you want it and leave it, your set will degrade and you wont be able to turn up the settings over time. One thing wrong with joe-blow types is that when they buy a tv they are used to contrast and brightness cranked way up, because those are the factory settings for all tvs. Calibration is key, professional or at home... turn down the contrast, tv was not meant to be viewed this way!

john_1958 · 08-09-2007, 05:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blu Tiger

Plasma...all the way. Just waiting for Pioneer to release their entirely new plasma technology.

I'm not impressed with plasma
I rather buy hd-ila or sxrd or dlp

saw blu-ray on plasma "snooze"

martinstraka8282 · 08-09-2007, 06:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by john_1958

I'm not impressed with plasma
I rather buy hd-ila or sxrd or dlp

saw blu-ray on plasma "snooze"

I guess we all see things differently. I love the sony sxrd's but I have never been able to get much joy out of DLP.

I usually have a lot of people over to watch movies, so viewing angle is important, which pretty much takes DLP out of the question. Also the overscan issue has been debated many times, but it can be very bad on some DLP's. I actually prefer LCD projection over DLP.

Trust me Blu-ray on my plasma is not snooze, I had a supposed top of the line Sharp LCD, and It was awesome for gaming, but movies seemed to lack depth, seemed almost 2d. I have always felt that in the store LCD looks better than plasma, but in the home in a home theatre type environment Plasma kills lcd.

AV_Integrated · 08-09-2007, 06:36 PM

It is completely impossible to accurately vote on this poll since many of these technologies fall into completely different requirements categories. Let's list the typical scenarios:

1. Basement setup, not a ton of light, but a fun all-purpose room.

Perfect for rear projection technologies including DLP, LCoS, and LCD. DLP is near the top for image quality, but RBE may force those who may want one to buy into something else. LCoS is easily in the same league as DLP, but tends to be a bit more expensive. Yet a JVC or Sony LCoS display can deliver 60"+ in size for not a crazy amount of cash and look perfect in this environment. LCD rear projection is not quite on the level of LCoS or DLP, but still looks really good for the money.

Also, these technologies tend to produce the least 'digital' looking images with solid black levels and smooth image quality. Far less likely to produce anti-aliasing effects than flat panel models.

Winner: Best bang for the buck and quality in a subdued light environment.

2. Fully light controllable room:

Front projection, choose a technology. Hands down front projection can kick a$$! 100+ is the starting point for what you can get and the list of quality projectors is just growing all the time. You gotta add your own speaker setup to make it all work, but for under $2,000 you can truly achieve 7.1 surround and 100+ inches of viewing pleasure (PS3 not included).

Winner: Best bang for the buck - period. Downside - must have those lights out for best performance!

3. Typical family room/bedroom/other room - High light levels but no windows directly in line of reflecting on screen (ie: above a typical fireplace)

Plasma. The thin profile of these displays keeps them from protruding into the viewing space the way rear projection does. The wide viewing angle makes them great for all seating locations and they are plenty bright enough to enjoy day or night. Plasma, despite tremendous improvements in LCD flat panels, still has an edge on contrast ratio and overall image quality for most displays at most price points. Also, plasmas tend to cost a bit less than LCD while stil delivering excellent image quality. Also, at larger sizes, like 50"+ you can still maintain a halfway affordable price level.

Winner: Best flat panel display quality! Downside, don't want a window to reflect off the glass surface or you won't see what is going on.

4. Higher light environment with lots of windows to reflect off of:

LCD. Yup, now it's time to go with LCD. These suckers are the no-brainer go to products. You just pick one up, stick it in almost any environment and you will get a good picture. Yep, more expensive than rear projection and front projection for less size. Yes, typically a worse image than plasma will deliver. But, you will get a good image under almost any situation you throw at it. The tough part is that LCDs vary wildly in quality from manufacturer to manufacturer and care must be taken on the lesser expensive side of things to actually get a good display.

Winner: Most versatile display on the market Downside: Size is still a bit limited and tends to be very expensive at larger sizes.

I have lcd, plasma, and front projection in my home and have recommended both DLP and LCoS rear projection for my clients - and have installed them. All of them really are winners and have their time and place.

Footloose301 · 08-09-2007, 08:00 PM

LCD FTW!

If you watch a lot of sports or play any games then you'll want the LCD. Besides, its cheaper to get the LCD at 1080P than it is for a plasma at 1080P. You just get more for your money.

However, if you have money to burn then grab a plasma if you're watching movies most of the time.

View Poll Results: Plasma vs. LCD vs. DLP vs. RPTV vs. LCDP vs. LED LCD vs. Rear Projection
Plasma	106	33.33%
LCD	126	39.62%
DLP	44	13.84%
RPTV	8	2.52%
LCD Projection	12	3.77%
Rear Projection	13	4.09%
LCD LED	9	2.83%
Voters: 318. You may not vote on this poll

08-09-2007, 04:35 PM	#1
martinstraka8282 Expert Member Member since:Jul 2007 4K collection:401 Blu-ray collection:1466 DVD collection:1 Trading Score:1	Poll: LCD vs. Plasma vs. DLP vs. RPTV vs. LCDP Well I've been reading the threads for quite a while here at Bluray.com, and I can't help but notice the underwhelming support for Plasma T.V. I want to know what people prefer, and what dissadvantages of the different types of displays bother them the most. I have been a plasma owner since I got into HDTV's, but I have experience with most types of displays. Each type of display has it's problems, but some more than others. I have always felt that Plasma is the way to go for home theatre, and LCD for gaming. I am obviously biased because I own a Plasma, but I just love Television and I have always looked for the most balance in a set. I watch a lot of movies, sports, and I play a lot of video games... probably like most people here do. I have been an Ottawa Senators fan all my young life, so this past year was awesome, HD just made it that much better. Please cast your vote accordingly, and feel free to knock my T.V. while you're at it. If there are question marks below, that means I have no experience other than store viewing with this display type. I also left out CRT. Display Type - The Bad - The Good Plasma - Image Retention, uneven phosphour aging (Burn-in), screen glare - Picture depth, Black levels, window effect, physical size LCD - Motion Blur, Banding, clouding, uneven backlighting, Black levels - Contrast, brightness, physical size, video games look awesome DLP - Geometry, overscan, viewing angles, bulb exchanging - Image quality to cost is unrivaled RPTV - Screen-door effect, physical size - Colours, brightness, contrast, screen size possibilities LCD Projection - ? Front Projection - Lighting and window control - Possible screen size LCD LED - ? Rear Projection in Poll is meant to be front projection. Last edited by martinstraka8282; 08-09-2007 at 04:54 PM.

08-09-2007, 05:30 PM	#15
BluBerry Active Member Member since:Jun 2007	When I was researching in preparation for my HDTV, I got the sense from a lot of tech guys that plasma displays are not very reliable. There was always talk about image retention, burn-in, dead pixels, phosphor levels, contrast degredation--there seemed to be an aweful lot of drawbacks to owning one. Last edited by BluBerry; 08-09-2007 at 05:34 PM.

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08-09-2007, 04:42 PM	#2
Blu Tiger Special Member Member since:Mar 2007 Location:Denver, CO Blu-ray collection:725 Trading Score:27	Plasma...all the way. Just waiting for Pioneer to release their entirely new plasma technology.

08-09-2007, 04:45 PM	#3
ground chuck Power Member Member since:May 2007 Location:Charm City Blu-ray collection:75 Blu-ray reviews:48 Trading Score:18	i own 2 dlp samsung sets one is a 50" 720p, over 2 years old and have not had to replace the bulb yet. the other is my 56" 1080p. the price i paid for my 1080p tv vs LCD or plasma, is the biggest part of why i love my tv. also, i'm not hanging my tv on my wall as we have one of those large ikea entertainment centers. so, my 56" pretty much fills in the gap. the picture is sharp, some blacks could be better, but for the most part this tv rocks. the cons, my kids and wife can't tell the difference so, its double bonus b/c they don't even notice. my motto, if you're not going to hang the tv on the wall, why pay more.

08-09-2007, 04:53 PM	#5
Iceman_II Expert Member Member since:Jan 2007 Location:Ft. Worth Home Theater Gallery:2 Blu-ray collection:308 Blu-ray reviews: 4	I simply can't buy into the whole limited lifespan of a plasma set, and whats up with little black spots where the pixels fail? Have you checked your warranty, how many of these have to fail before it becomes a warranty issue? I bet it is a whole lot more than 1. I looked at DLP projection side by side with LCD projection, and ended up getting the LCD... at the time it was a better picture IMO than the DLP technology (DLP may have improved since) and it is definately more bang for the buck than flat panals. As for bad and good of LCD projection, I think it has all the good of LCD flatpanel, but as for the bad, I really don't notice any bluring or banding. One thing I have noticed lately is a small bit of SDE. Before the LCD projection, I had a CRT projection (I think you call it simply "rear projection") one of the biggest negatives you left out was convergence issues.

08-09-2007, 04:54 PM	#6
Y3k Bug Senior Member Member since:Jun 2007 Location:Arizona Blu-ray collection:666	I voted for LCD, although to be honest I'm a plasma convert. When HD sets started coming out I always thought the plasmas looked better. Warmer colors less noticble pixelation, etc... Then when the 1080's (resolution) came out I said "#$*&! I can't see a difference anymore". So I went with the less expensive LCD over plasma. I still wouldn't turn down a plasma if someone wanted to give me a free one.

08-09-2007, 05:03 PM	#7
victorvondoom88 Expert Member Top contributor Member since:Jan 2007 Location:middle of nowere, IL. Home Theater Gallery:26 4K collection:39 Blu-ray collection:656	Dang, I meant to vote for LCD projection I guess I should read all the options first.

08-09-2007, 05:18 PM	#8
Matt X Senior Member Member since:Feb 2007	personally I wanna see what Laser HDTV's look like - supposedly very good contrast, cheaper to produce - If it looks viable and really is cheap, laser projector for me...........

08-09-2007, 05:24 PM	#10
Blu Tiger Special Member Member since:Mar 2007 Location:Denver, CO Blu-ray collection:725 Trading Score:27	Is there a better tv right now than the Pioneer Pro-FHD1? (PQ)

08-09-2007, 05:27 PM	#11
chrisshea Active Member Member since:Mar 2007 Blu-ray reviews:3	lcd all the way for me 52" sony bravia XRb2 1080p 37" westinghouse 1080p 22" lg 2ms 1650-1050 3000:1 Pc monitor

08-09-2007, 05:27 PM	#12
tiger roach Special Member Member since:Aug 2007 Location:Houston, TX Blu-ray collection:141 Blu-ray reviews:1	Plasma FTW! When we were shopping I liked the images on the top-of-the-line LCDs as much as the plasma though - it ended up almost being a coin-toss. I finally got the Panny 50" plasma because it was almost the same price as the Sony 46" LCD we liked. We have had the panel only a week and a half now, but no complaints so far. HDTV looks great and blu-ray is stunning.

08-09-2007, 05:29 PM	#13
CptGreedle Blu-ray Ninja Member since:Jul 2007 Location:Sworn super-hero now services Atlanta (and suburbs). Blu-ray collection:128 Blu-ray reviews:5	The DLP and other projection tvs tend to have a narrow viewing angle. Often it is measured by the degrees which you can look with minimal distortion from side-to-side, but if you stand up, it is painful obvious on many models. Projectors tend to be really nice but have no black setting at all so it is completely dependent on the light level in the room. Plus the screen you watch it on is important and can be costly. I prefer LCD cause it is more durable than plasma, it uses less energy, more environmentally friendly, looks great, and has a good price.

08-09-2007, 06:36 PM	#19
AV_Integrated Senior Member Member since:Jan 2005	It is completely impossible to accurately vote on this poll since many of these technologies fall into completely different requirements categories. Let's list the typical scenarios: 1. Basement setup, not a ton of light, but a fun all-purpose room. Perfect for rear projection technologies including DLP, LCoS, and LCD. DLP is near the top for image quality, but RBE may force those who may want one to buy into something else. LCoS is easily in the same league as DLP, but tends to be a bit more expensive. Yet a JVC or Sony LCoS display can deliver 60"+ in size for not a crazy amount of cash and look perfect in this environment. LCD rear projection is not quite on the level of LCoS or DLP, but still looks really good for the money. Also, these technologies tend to produce the least 'digital' looking images with solid black levels and smooth image quality. Far less likely to produce anti-aliasing effects than flat panel models. Winner: Best bang for the buck and quality in a subdued light environment. 2. Fully light controllable room: Front projection, choose a technology. Hands down front projection can kick a$$! 100+ is the starting point for what you can get and the list of quality projectors is just growing all the time. You gotta add your own speaker setup to make it all work, but for under $2,000 you can truly achieve 7.1 surround and 100+ inches of viewing pleasure (PS3 not included). Winner: Best bang for the buck - period. Downside - must have those lights out for best performance! 3. Typical family room/bedroom/other room - High light levels but no windows directly in line of reflecting on screen (ie: above a typical fireplace) Plasma. The thin profile of these displays keeps them from protruding into the viewing space the way rear projection does. The wide viewing angle makes them great for all seating locations and they are plenty bright enough to enjoy day or night. Plasma, despite tremendous improvements in LCD flat panels, still has an edge on contrast ratio and overall image quality for most displays at most price points. Also, plasmas tend to cost a bit less than LCD while stil delivering excellent image quality. Also, at larger sizes, like 50"+ you can still maintain a halfway affordable price level. Winner: Best flat panel display quality! Downside, don't want a window to reflect off the glass surface or you won't see what is going on. 4. Higher light environment with lots of windows to reflect off of: LCD. Yup, now it's time to go with LCD. These suckers are the no-brainer go to products. You just pick one up, stick it in almost any environment and you will get a good picture. Yep, more expensive than rear projection and front projection for less size. Yes, typically a worse image than plasma will deliver. But, you will get a good image under almost any situation you throw at it. The tough part is that LCDs vary wildly in quality from manufacturer to manufacturer and care must be taken on the lesser expensive side of things to actually get a good display. Winner: Most versatile display on the market Downside: Size is still a bit limited and tends to be very expensive at larger sizes. I have lcd, plasma, and front projection in my home and have recommended both DLP and LCoS rear projection for my clients - and have installed them. All of them really are winners and have their time and place.

08-09-2007, 08:00 PM	#20
Footloose301 Special Member Member since:May 2007 Location:Fort Myers, FL Home Theater Gallery:38 4K collection:2 Blu-ray collection:2 Blu-ray reviews: 1	LCD FTW! If you watch a lot of sports or play any games then you'll want the LCD. Besides, its cheaper to get the LCD at 1080P than it is for a plasma at 1080P. You just get more for your money. However, if you have money to burn then grab a plasma if you're watching movies most of the time.

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