Should I Buy A 40″-46″ Samsung Lcd Tv, Or Plasma, Or Dlp?
Written by admin on Nov 10th, 2009 | Filed under: Computers and Technology
Went looking at tv’s today. I checked out all the brands. They best picture (color, pixelation, picture change) we found was Samsung (the runner up was Sony). We didn’t like the black tones in the DLP, but the salesman said it’s better in the dark. (I know the picture overall is better, but color pixelation?) The plasma and the LCD were beautiful, but I have read in user reviews that they have problems. The plasma has burn-in issues and the LCD TV would mute itself randomly. I guess there was a firmware update for the LCD that fixes it. Also, they mentioned Samsung has crappy customer service. Am I reading the rantings of a few or should we go with a different brand? PLEASE HELP! All experiences appreciated!
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I can’t speak of Samsung, but I can say a little about plasma and LCD.
Plasma burn in will be something to consider through the life of the plasma, but should be a little more a concern during the first 100 hours. That is normally a break in period. If you expect your family will be doing a lot of gaming on there, then I would recommend LCD simply because the games have static scores that can typically wear into a plasma screen. If you watch normal TV afterwards or activate the plasmas white screen then there isn’t anything to really be too concerned about.
LCD is typically a little brighter and the whites are whiter when compared to the plasma. However, the plasma’s blacks are typically better. With LCD though you don’t have to worry about burn in.
One downside to LCD, or at least use to be a downside was the fact that LCD had a lamp to show the image. This would create uneven brightness and make the image viewed best from directly in front. Meaning if people watched from the sides they wouldn’t see as nice of a picture. With plasma this was never the case because each pixel has its own gas that gets ignited. So like an old CRT tube a person can happily watch the image from anywhere they can see the screen without worrying about the loss of brightness and hence loss of picture enjoyment. With the newer LCD’s they have improved upon the technology so much this downside has probably been eliminated, in which you should base your purchase off of what you like in terms of satisfaction.
To comment on DLP, the salesman is correct. DLP does show better in the dark because it’s contrast ratio is much higher than LCD or plasma typically. With that said I think LCD or plasma will be the way for you to go.
Good Luck!
Edited to add:
Burn in does not lessen the life of the plasma screen. It can be annoying if an image gets permanently burned in, but the plasma is still fully functional and can still be used. Most of the time the burned image isn’t noticeable when watching TV or DVD’s.
Me and my buddies have been doing extensive brand research on this lately and we’ve concluded that LCD is the best bet right now. However, we are still gonna wait just a little while longer before committing because there are some major shakeouts due in this market soon.
The fundamental thing to appreciate is that LCD is the best choice. Plasma TVs will not last as long due to the burn-in issue. Whatever that demo LCD TV was doing with ‘mute’ in the showroom can be sidestepped, it is just a minor/local issue.
Another reminder is to not rely on showroom salesmen, they often are underqualified on technical issues with these TVs. There is plenty of resources available on the web. Yahoo Tech, for example. CNET. Consumer Reports. Videoguys.com. Red Herring. Wired. Gizmodo.
Anyway the manufacturer we think is the best is Sony. Phillips and Pioneer have good models, but Sony convinced us.
I have a 50″ Samsung DLP and I love it.It is great for video games since it does not suffer from burn in.
I have sold plenty of Samsung TV’s and other products, and I do not hesitate to recommended them! I agree wholeheartedly that they are one of the best brands on the market. Sony very nice also, but pay alot more for similar quality. Besides, Sonys screens are made by Samsung anyway.
Here put simply is the differences between Plasma and LCD (Not a fan of DLP because of “Rainbow effect” which affects many people) - When scan eyes across screen, see rainbow colours!
LCD’s: Higher resolution, brighter, non-reflective.
PLASMA: Faster processor for movement, (Smoother images) more natural colours and 3 dimensional look. Most people are buying LCDs, as with HD TV they look that much sharper, etc. If you are a sports fanatic, recommended Plasma still, because of lots of movement, but for general TV and Dvds and sports, LCD. Follow the trend!
Recommend: Samsung LCDs. Samsung/Panasonic/Pioneer plasmas.
Samsung make a lot of components and screens for most companies anyway!
Hope this helps.