Flat Panel Televisions

Flat screens: LCD and Plasma; buying guide

Before making an investing in a new TV, take a minute to learn about the different options that you may find in your local TV shop. As you may already know, the most popular technologies are LCD and Plasma televisions.

Nowadays you can walk into any electronic's store and find that traditional televisions (CRT) have almost disappeared. Now, any self-respected shopper will get one of the famous "Flat Panels," LCD and Plasma are the most popular, although there are emerging technologies like OLED and SED that promise better resolutions and lower power consumption, among other benefits. However, that's a bit in the future, for now we should focus our attention to our new best friends, LCD and Plasma televisions.

And the questions that is on everybody's mind is... What is better, Plasma or LCD? and on this you can find a lot of information everywhere, sometimes it can be confusing, so here's the brief version.

Plasma and LCD technologies are similar, but they differ in key aspects, as we will see.

Plasma tv's are based on individual pixels, or single dots of lights that fill your screen, there are hundreds-of-thousands of pixels in any given Plasma Tv, so they give you the idea of a continuous, sharp image.

Now for what's important for you. Plasma televisions usually have high contrast ratios, which is the difference between the whites and the blacks. The higher the contrast ratio, the better. I've seen tv's with contrast rations as high as 8000:1, that's an amazing array of shades of gray in between!

So What's better, LCD or Plasma?

It is important to remind the reader that Plasma and LCD are two different technologies, and I wouldn't say that one is necessary better than the other, they're just... different, and offer a different set of advantages and disadvantages.

Both, LCD and Plasma have:

The same resolution. You have High definition Plasmas and High definitions LCD's.
The same picture quality. The difference in picture quality is minimal.
The same sizes. Until recently, Plasma TVs where known to be bigger, but now you can find the size you need in both technologies.
A close price range. It used to be that prices where so different between lcd's and plasmas, but now the price gap is closing.

Lcd and Plasma differences:

LCD televisions display whiter whites
The trick is that crystals move away to let the light go through, that's how you get pure white. However, when the same crystals are rendering "black" they move to block the light, and in theory this is Ok, but in reality some light passes through the blocking crystals so LCD black levels are not "pure black", kind of what you see when you enter a room, during the day, with the curtains down. That's why on LCD televisions blacks sometimes look like a dark shade of gray or blue.

Plasma televisions display blacker blacks
Plasmas have the opposite effect, to display the color black, plasma television only need to stop sending electricity to a specific pixel on the screen, when there's no charge going through, there's no light. And like magic, you get a more defined and pure level of black.

What about Resolution?

Resolution is the amount of detail you can get on your high-definition Television. The higher the resolution the sharper, more detailed image you can get. In the world of HD television there are 3 main resolutions: 780p, 1080i, and 1080p. However, only Blue-ray disks and some high-end video games can render a full 1080 resolution. Usually everybody can get a nice HD experience at 780p.

1080i or 1080p? In today's high-definition TVs (P)stands for progressive, and the (i) for Interlaced. Progressive offers a smother image transitions, specially when displaying movement, like sports or action movies.

"BEFORE YOU BUY" TIPS FOR FLAT PANEL TVs

If you're shopping for a Flat Panel TV, there are some very important things you need to know before you buy. You'll find these cool-looking Tvs in big numbers and a wide range of sizes. Flat panels are the most popular, fastest growing TV market in the U.S.

Tip#1 - Do some comparison shopping online
You'll be amazed to find the differences in prices from vendor to vendor; you can save as much as 30% just by shopping around for your next TV. Some good places to start your search are Froogle.com and Ecost.com

Tip#2 - Read Reviews!
Is not a secret that some TV models just don't work as you'd expect, even on well-known brands. Sometimes a specific model come out with some glitches or inconveniences that will annoy you at the very least. Honest reviews from actual owners will save you trouble. Some great sites to find reviews are Cnet.com and Consumer Reports.

Tip#3 - Determine the right size
With cheaper, bigger Flat Screens TVs coming out every month, it's hard to determine which one you'd enjoy more. Keep in mind that not always bigger is better. How much space do you have in your TV room, or your entertainment center may determine what's best for you. Very important is the distance you put between the TV and the viewer:

Suggested Viewing Distance
Size of your TV	Distance
19	4.75 Feet
22	5.50 Feet
26	6.50 Feet
32	8.00 Feet
36	9.00 Feet
40	10.00 Feet
42	10.50 Feet
50	12.50 Feet
56	14.00 Feet
60	15.00 Feet
72+	18.00 Feet

Tip#4 - If you can... wait!
Prices on LCD's and other flat panel televisions are dropping very fast. If you find a TV you like, and wait a month, chances are you'll get a price drop between 10 and 20% lower than the previous month. Of course, don't find yourself waiting for ever, when you find the TV you like, at a good price, go for it!