Large Screen Televisions: Plasma or LCD?
So it’s time for you to choose a new television.
Likely things have changed since you last looked at televisions. The big choice now is between LCD and plasma high definition televisions.
So what are the differences between them and which display type is your best choice?
When large flat screen televisions first came in, almost all the available screens were plasma. Now you have the option of LCD as well, except at the really large sizes where LCD technology hasn’t caught up yet.
An LCD screen is made up of lots and lots of small dots or pixels. These are activated as needed but if a pixel dies, it will show on screen as a black dot. You’re most likely to notice this on a PC screen but it also shows up on television screens. You’re less likely to notice it in this situation unless a cluster of nearby pixels fails, which will then start to bug you as you watch. You can guard against this to an extent by making sure that your manufacturer’s warranty covers pixel failure but some guarantees put a minimum number of failed pixels before the warranty applies.
Plasma screens create their colors by sending an electrical charge which is then passed through a pixel grid a bit like the old fashioned television screens.
It is generally regarded that plasma screens produce a blacker black than the same size LCD screen, which tend to display a dark charcoal gray instead.
At the very largest screen sizes then plasma is probably your only choice because of the technicalities of producing flawless LCD screens.
One of the current best 50 inch HDTV screens is the Panasonic Viera TH-50PZ800U. It has a high 30,000 to 1 contrast ratio which makes for stunning television viewing and game play and it’s quite affordable. You can find out more about the Panasonic TH-50PZ800U here.