I'm bout to get a new flatscreen TV. Wondering what everyone else has and some pros and cons of the 2. I can get a 52" plasma pretty cheap, and I'm swaying toward getting it. Any comments are welcome.

 

After about 5 years plasma screens run out of plasma and are basically junk, and you gotta buy a new one. LCD are more exspensive now but will last much longer. I had a LCD tv and i had to replace a bulb on it after 5 years, only cost 150$. To refill plasmas it generally costs as much as a new one.

 

that is about the dumbest thing I heard. Plasma's are great and the only downside to them is the glass screen because it reflects everything. Plasma's use more watts and generally run a little hotter but with new laws in place most TV's use 150 Watts or less and in return run cooler.

Burn-in is like a myth now with new plasma's. I have left my plasma on overnight with one screen and it had a image burn but with the screen eraser got rid of the burned image after 10-15 minutes.

I have a LCD flat screen as well but its an 2006 build panasonic so it is a little behind on the powercurve to what LCD's are today.

Overall you will be happy with whatever you get. I see 40"+ tvs for less than a grand so deals are out there.

 

Either way , plasma or LCD, you will be happy. Plasma is on the way out, as they do run warmer and use more power. Whatever you do, please don't shop by price. You'll def. want one that is 1080P, 120HZ. Choose a general size range you are interested in, then go look at them in person. _______ may be running a great deal on ________ 52" plasma, but it may be a lower resolution, or a junk model, or just plain not look good. The latest generation of LCD and plasma TV's have resolved most of the burn-in, lifespan, and other concerns that were there when they were "NEW" technology. Now, they are all pretty much well built, most brands are very good. Modern plasma sets are just as reliable as LCD, it really is a matter of personal preference between the two. Rule of thumb, if you never heard of the manufacturer, walk away.

 

I got a deal on my 42 inch plasma last year so i went with that. the LCDs the same size and contrast ratio were twice as much.

the only thing that really bugs me is the shadowing (like a temporary burn in) goes away after a little...but kind of gets annoying. oh welll...I'd rather have a 42 inch nice plasma than a 30 inch decent LCD.

 

i just got a 42" Vizio LCD 1080p and it is really good. i couldnt ask for anything more for $700. i really like it.

whenever i look at a plasma, it has a flickering look to me that really buds be. but thats my only gripe with plasmas.

oh, and plasmas get half as bright every 3 years or so. meaning in 3 years, it will be half as bright as it was brand new.

 

I got a 46 inch LCD 1080p that I got last year black Friday And couldn't be any happier. Well actually I could be happier because I want another.

 

Samsung LCD. Badass TVs. Prepare to pay up for one though.

 

lcd or be sorry.

 

I have a Samsung 32" LCD and absolutely LOVE IT!!! I was wandering around Brandsmart the other day and I saw the most wonderful thing I've ever laid eyes on... an 83" Samsung LCD tv. :O OMG I was in love... til i saw the price... $4700 bucks.

 

I can't see a need for anything bigger then my 40" to be honest.

 

what about the new LED TV's?

 

Eh me either really but it was HUGE Dustin!!! Would be neat to have it. the people on the screen were almost life sized lol

 

Plasma. I hate LCD's.

 

My 5 year old lcd tv was 6400....D:

 

**** i luv my 52" DLP its awsome with my ps3 and blu ray movies

 

have fun with the glare.

 

All of this stuff based on "Years" is bogus. Please do yourself a favor and completely disregard Deathdiesel's post, that is without a doubt one of the dumbest things I've ever read on this board. Televisions lose brightness based on use, if you use a plasma for 24 hours a day it would supposedly be half as bright in 3 years (according to the posts in this thread).

24 x 365 = 8,760 hours x 3 = 26,280 hours. Most Plasma TV's half life is 30-60,000 viewing hours. Do the math.

I've had my 42" Vizio Plasma for almost 2 years now and have noticed no change in brightness or functionality from day one.

The main thing that you want to look for is contrast ratio, In my opinion you need at least 10,000:1 or higher to have the best depth and to show true black/color. There are some manufacturers that claim some insane contrast ratios like 250,000:1.. I think that's a little gimmicky and probably not accurate. There are several other things to consider as well, one of the main things would be, where are you going to put it? Are there windows directly behind or in front that would produce a glare? Use these links to decide for yourself.

http://www.plasmatvbuyingguide.com/p...-lifespan.html

http://plasmatvbuyingguide.com/plasm...ma-vs-lcd.html

Personal opinion: I do agree that Samsung has the best picture on the market, especially with blu-ray technology. The picture that their televisions produce is nothing short of amazing, but if you don't use blu-ray and don't plan to, there's no point, get something cheaper.

 

Anyone know any good deal on blue ray players since were talking about them now? I want to get my dad one for xmas.

 

I get all my electronics from www.newegg.com, you cant beat em, and the shippings always 3 days, and if ur close to their warehouses its 2 days or less. Thats the best part, then they have great prices, thats where i'd go. BUT on topic of Plasma and LCD. The best choice is LCD, or if u can afford get a new LED tv, but LED is VERY expensive. The new organic LED tv's will be even awesomer. Regardless, get a LCD, they have been around longer and are a much simpler and better design. Of course, plasma will have good picture for a lower price, they just dont seem practical to me. As mentioned above, you look for 1080P IF your using a good satellite with HD, if not id prob look for 720P because if you run standard definition with a 1080 it will look liike **** as compared to the lower resolution of the 720. a plasma one thing could go wrong a screw the tv, in LCD u have individual pixels that can go out, but not the whole tv if one does. Bottom line look for a LCD with good contrast ratio. I'm using a LED backlit LCD monitor and it has a great contrast of 25,000:1.

 

Thanks for all the input everyone.. Went at looked at a bunch of TV's today and we are probably gonna go with a 50" plasma. Panasonic has a bunch nice ones as well as Samsung and Sony. But some of them don't have A/V input hook up's? I can't see why they wouldn't. Anyway Panasonic has what we're looking for for about 800 to 900 bucks.. Plus free delivery.. . Now I can get rid of my 36" Box TV, that resembles a small apartment..

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16889005085

you can get that for 760,, no taxes, and free shipping.. 720p with the AV ins. AND its a LG.

However, we didnt know you wanted a BIG tv. lcd's arent made large and cost effective like plasmas, so that is your best bet,, but the thick glass on plasma can produce alot of glare, but no worries, enjoy your life size tv! and call some friends over to see football games. =)

 

We usually keep the den pretty dark, only 1 window and 1 outside door, Glare will not be a problem. My kitchen leads to the den and I spend a lot of time watching tv from there. So 50" will be great from 20 ft away. Also my Wii will be great fun too. Can't wait to hit the greens with a big screen.

 

My Samsung has a tons of inputs... you should be using HDMI with a high capability tv anyway.

 

Plasma is the way to go. Everyone else, no offense, is totally off from the real truth except for WNRacing.

Plasma's are rated higher in every single aspect than LCDs hands down. Contrast ratio, refresh rate, black/white levels, and realistic skin tones give you the best value you can possibly get.

LCDs are over-priced, underrated, and you're pretty much just paying for the fact that it costs more to produce than plasmas, not the fact that their better (because they aren't).

Panasonic and Samsung are going to both be very very good brands and have a long history to back themselves up. I mean hell, anyone who can knock Sony out of the top spot must be good.

The X1, which I believe is the one you're looking at, is an amazing TV. The 720p factor is the only downside, but once again it becomes a personal preference over how much 1080p will actually be used.

I will say one thing though, I would look into getting it calibrated, especially with it being a plasma. IF you get it calibrated I could guarantee you that it'd look better than any other TV on the shelves of any store. With plasmas the big thing is the fact that the guys who calibrate the TV can actually turn down the temperature that the TV runs at to produce the picture, but without hurting color or brightness quality. For a plasma this means less power usage, and also longer life (less heat equals less problems that can go wrong and a longer time until half-life occurs). Also, if you ever look at a plasma closely you'll noticed that the black levels are so high that it actually causes the other parts of the picture that are dark to become TOO dark and therefore just blend in with the black.

There are also adjustments for color and for sharpness/gamma as well, but they are not as major as the heat and black level adjustments.

Now, I'm sure someone will come on here and try to tell my that Calibration is a scam. Here me out, all of the TV's tested by Consumer Reports and Cnet are all professionally calibrated by an ISF certified calibrator. Every single person that I have ever personally seen get their TV calibrated stated that they would never buy a big screen TV without getting it calibrated. No, this is not something you can do through your TV's remote and no it is not something you can buy a disk for to get it calibrated. To get it done correctly, you need an ISF certified calibrator to come out to your house and calibrate the TV for you.

This is a sticky will tell you everything you need to know. And will explain it better, without me making a HUGE post.

http://www.highdefforum.com/hdtv-cal...libration.html

Good luck with the shopping! If I was personally going to buy a TV right now it'd be a 50" Panasonic. Actually, that's what I'm buying with my Christmas money after I get enough saved up. But probably the S1 with 1080p since all I ever do is watch blu-ray movies or play Xbox/PS3.

 

If size and 1080P are the only requirements, and you have the room, you can't beat a Mitsubishi rear-projection DLP TV. The screen size to cost ratio is awesome. I looked at LCD's, plasma's, LED's, and projection's. Since space in the living room was not an issue, we were able to get a massive 73" TV for $1500. You can't beat the picture quality, football, XBOX360, and Blu-ray look great on it.
Just throwing it out there.

 

wow.... im sure ill read more on this as the thread continues, but I have to say this is the stupidest thing i have ever heared. Do you actually believe this? refilling plasma? are you high?

Even plasmas 5 years ago have 30,000 hour half lives, they last as long as any LCD out there.

Refilling a plasma? WOW man, you fail hardcore on electronics. lol

 

wrong man, yer talking about half life. my 4 year old 480p Panasonic plasma had a 30,000 hour half life. meaning after 30,000hrs of use the screen with be 1/2 brightness.

if you have NO life and watch tv 8 hours a day, 365 days a year, for 10 years you will hit your halflife mark.

newwer plasmas boast 60,000+hr halflives.

i cant comment on the flickering, neither of mine flicker nor does any other plasma i have seen. they dont look any different than LCD tv's that my friends have.

 

the problem with the DLP tv's (which do have an AWESOME image) is the DLP tax, every 2-3 years you have to replace the bulb, sooner or later depending on usage, and the bulbs usually run over $200.00. My folks had a toshiba for 3 years with very light use and the bulb went out on them. they got fed up and bought a plasma

 

RebelYell

Here is some Solid Advice.

If you buy plasma, go for Panasonic Viera line FIRST.
If you buy LCD, go for Sharp FIRST
if they have neither, Samsung does awesome in either catagory.

Bargain brands that have "Big brand name" displays in them never include the rest of the electronics needed to pull the best out of those displays, and they are usually b-stock or surplus of yester-years displays, and are not on the current generation. You CAN get a great TV for a great price, but i would always preffer a well established name when buying something this expencive.

When looking at LCD, make SURE you get 120hz refresh rate.

There is a LOT of **** information out there on plasma. I have 2 panasonic viera plasmas and i can assure you the following.

1) They do NOT require a refill of the plasma. That is absolute horse ****.
2) They do NOT Flicker, if they flicker, you might want to get it serviced under warranty
3) They do NOT lose thier brightness after x amount of years. The halflife on Plasmas is insane, trust me, you will probably throw it away before it reaches its halflife in 15 years.
4) They use the same amount of power as 6 60watt bulbs, which is less than a lot of chandaliers.
5) Burn in is almost non existant, i play plenty of video games on mine with the static informational icons on the screen, i have never seen the slightest burn in, i have seen some ghosting on the screen when the TV is turned off, but that goes away faily quickly.

LCD Vs Plasma, dont waste your time worrying about it. LCD weigh less and use less power. Plasma has consitantly time and time again showing far better contrast ratios, less motion blur, better black levels, etc, etc.

in the real world when viewing them you wont see a scrap of difference. Go with what is in your budget, stay with brand names, and you cant go wrong.

ill admit, im a Plasma Fanboy, i have several friends with LCD and they look just as good. Anyone who claims to be able to visually determine the current lineup of LCD vs Plasma's on quality name brands is full of ****.