HDTV Questions and Answers Thread

[Chrono]

Re: Plasma or LCD TV??

I've got a 62 inch Mitsu DLP in my basement, and a 37 inch Olevia LCD in my bedroom. It's a little hard for me to compare them since their size is so different, but two things (that you may already know from researching) are very noticeable.

My DLP does black levels MUCH better then the LCD. I can really notice it when i'm watching them with the lights turned down/off. We watch movies on our big screen with the lights dimmed, so this works out nicely. Granted it doesn't really bother me much on the LCD, but it's certainly a noticeable difference between my TV's.

On the flip side, my LCD has "brighter" looking colors then my DLP. I'll often start watching Sunday/Monday night football on my DLP in my basement, and then watch the 2nd half on my LCD in bed. This is when I first noticed a difference in brightness... the uniform colors just seem to jump out at you more. Not sure if this is due to brand, settings, or the fact that the screen is smaller... but it's a noticeable difference when going from one to the other. Granted, i've never watched my DLP and thought, "gee I wish the colors were brighter" so go figure!

To conclude, I don't really think you can go wrong with either technology. Just do your research and see which pros/cons are more important to you. I absolutely LOVE both of my TV's, and it would be hard to pick one or the other which I think looks better... i'm a little partial to my DLP, but it's much bigger and is hooked up to my surround sound. Man just typing about this makes me want to go home, crank up my surround sound and watch a movie!

[ExtremeGamer]

Re: Plasma or LCD TV??

My next TV will be a LCoS, I think that will be the next big technology, and the few I've seen so far have had brilliant pictures.

[Artman22]

Re: Plasma or LCD TV??

I've got a 62 inch Mitsu DLP in my basement, and a 37 inch Olevia LCD in my bedroom. It's a little hard for me to compare them since their size is so different, but two things (that you may already know from researching) are very noticeable.

My DLP does black levels MUCH better then the LCD. I can really notice it when i'm watching them with the lights turned down/off. We watch movies on our big screen with the lights dimmed, so this works out nicely. Granted it doesn't really bother me much on the LCD, but it's certainly a noticeable difference between my TV's.

On the flip side, my LCD has "brighter" looking colors then my DLP. I'll often start watching Sunday/Monday night football on my DLP in my basement, and then watch the 2nd half on my LCD in bed. This is when I first noticed a difference in brightness... the uniform colors just seem to jump out at you more. Not sure if this is due to brand, settings, or the fact that the screen is smaller... but it's a noticeable difference when going from one to the other. Granted, i've never watched my DLP and thought, "gee I wish the colors were brighter" so go figure!

To conclude, I don't really think you can go wrong with either technology. Just do your research and see which pros/cons are more important to you. I absolutely LOVE both of my TV's, and it would be hard to pick one or the other which I think looks better... i'm a little partial to my DLP, but it's much bigger and is hooked up to my surround sound. Man just typing about this makes me want to go home, crank up my surround sound and watch a movie!

Ur right in a way but i prefer an lcd. I own an lcd hdtv. If u buy a cheaper tv ill admit that the blacks are not that good but if u spend some extra cash and buy a good lcd u will see a big difference. I have a samsung and u have to see how great it looks. Sure it was more expensive then a westinghouse or many other affordable lcd's but it was worth it IMO. The contrast is 4000:1 and the blacks are just as good as a DLP. As opose to the cheaper lcd's that only have a contrast ratio of about 1000:1 or maybe 1500:1. The trick to it all is spending that extra cash on a better brand. Ive tested many different tv's and the best for gaming to me is lcd then DLP. I wouldn't really recomend plasma cause it's more expensive to maintain and sometimes get damaged screens do to gaming.

[rudyjuly2]

Re: Plasma or LCD TV??

Ur right in a way but i prefer an lcd. I own an lcd hdtv. If u buy a cheaper tv ill admit that the blacks are not that good but if u spend some extra cash and buy a good lcd u will see a big difference. I have a samsung and u have to see how great it looks. Sure it was more expensive then a westinghouse or many other affordable lcd's but it was worth it IMO. The contrast is 4000:1 and the blacks are just as good as a DLP. As opose to the cheaper lcd's that only have a contrast ratio of about 1000:1 or maybe 1500:1. The trick to it all is spending that extra cash on a better brand. Ive tested many different tv's and the best for gaming to me is lcd then DLP. I wouldn't really recomend plasma cause it's more expensive to maintain and sometimes get damaged screens do to gaming.

Samsung gets great reviews but the quoted contrast ratio of 4000:1 is overblown imo. From people I've talked to, there is no standard in contrast ratios and Samsung inflates theirs. Someone posted some tests from a home theatre magazine that did independent tests on various LCD TVs to illustrate how similar the contrast ratios were on some TVs despite a huge discrepancy in the specs. I don't think a single TV including the sammy was over 2000:1 per their standards.

[Seether4113]

Re: Plasma or LCD TV??

Alright, thanks!


Any word on how serviceable ESPN is?

SD ESPN? As long as you're in viewing distance it looks pretty good. If you're <5 feet, it looks pretty grainy. If this means anything: I absolutely LOVE watching football/basketball games on it, even in SD.

[mjb2124]

Re: Plasma or LCD TV??

Samsung gets great reviews but the quoted contrast ratio of 4000:1 is overblown imo. From people I've talked to, there is no standard in contrast ratios and Samsung inflates theirs. Someone posted some tests from a home theatre magazine that did independent tests on various LCD TVs to illustrate how similar the contrast ratios were on some TVs despite a huge discrepancy in the specs. I don't think a single TV including the sammy was over 2000:1 per their standards.

Exactly. Contrast ratios are often overblown. I've always heard to take them with a grain of salt.

I think DLP's will almost always produce better blacks than an LCD - even more expensive LCD's. It's just the nature of the beast. However, a nice plasma puts both to shame IMO.

EG also has a good point about LCoS. I haven't seen one in person, but everything I've read makes them sound great.

[Artman22]

Re: Plasma or LCD TV??

Exactly. Contrast ratios are often overblown. I've always heard to take them with a grain of salt.

I think DLP's will almost always produce better blacks than an LCD - even more expensive LCD's. It's just the nature of the beast. However, a nice plasma puts both to shame IMO.

EG also has a good point about LCoS. I haven't seen one in person, but everything I've read makes them sound great.

Put it like this. I have a friend who just bought an olevia 32" lcd hdtv on Black friday. He paid $500 for it on that day but it's normal price is $699. I paid $1300 for my samsung and it's only a 26". His tv has contrast ratio of 1600:1 mine has 4000:1 and even he admits that he prefers my tv even though it's smaller. The pictures looks much more alive and the colors stand out much more and it has nothing to do with tv calibration either. I mean u can tell the difference clearly. The blacks are 10times better. Right now i want to buy a 32" 1080p tv but im waiting to for a samsung or a good brand to go down in price.

[rudyjuly2]

Re: Plasma or LCD TV??

Put it like this. I have a friend who just bought an olevia 32" lcd hdtv on Black friday. He paid $500 for it on that day but it's normal price is $699. I paid $1300 for my samsung and it's only a 26". His tv has contrast ratio of 1600:1 mine has 4000:1 and even he admits that he prefers my tv even though it's smaller. The pictures looks much more alive and the colors stand out much more and it has nothing to do with tv calibration either. I mean u can tell the difference clearly. The blacks are 10times better. Right now i want to buy a 32" 1080p tv but im waiting to for a samsung or a good brand to go down in price.

That's not a fair comparison at all. Smaller TVs will generally look better and Samsung is the leader in LCD TVs. Its a great TV. Olevia is a 2nd tier TV that simply won't look as good. Your sammy probably does have better black levels simply because its just a much better TV but that doesn't mean the 4000:1 contrast ratio is an accurate number. Its no doubt higher than the Olevia but doesn't mean that 4000:1 isn't exagerated. I don't think any other LCD maker even touts an LCD TV above 2000:1 besides Samsung and yet Sharp, Panasonic and maybe Sony and LG are considered to be just as good. You have to be careful how literal you take those numbers. Like I said earlier, an HDTV magazine independently tested a lot of these TVs to develop a consistent number and the contrast ratios were all less than what the manufacturers were touting.

The 3251 Sammy is beautiful and the newer version (3296?) has a reported 5000:1 contrast ratio. They looked great and get great reviews - see Cnet.com but it still doesn't mean that the 5000:1 is accurate. There is no standarized rating system that each manufacturor uses to report these numbers.

[mjb2124]

Re: Plasma or LCD TV??

Put it like this. I have a friend who just bought an olevia 32" lcd hdtv on Black friday. He paid $500 for it on that day but it's normal price is $699. I paid $1300 for my samsung and it's only a 26". His tv has contrast ratio of 1600:1 mine has 4000:1 and even he admits that he prefers my tv even though it's smaller. The pictures looks much more alive and the colors stand out much more and it has nothing to do with tv calibration either. I mean u can tell the difference clearly. The blacks are 10times better. Right now i want to buy a 32" 1080p tv but im waiting to for a samsung or a good brand to go down in price.

That's nice and all and a Samsung LCD is certainly better than an Olevia LCD, but the fact remains that the contrast ratios listed are typically exaggerated.

[Seether4113]

Re: Plasma or LCD TV??

That's nice and all and a Samsung LCD is certainly better than an Olevia LCD, but the fact remains that the contrast ratios listed are typically exaggerated.

Yup, most of them list the dynamic contrast ratio, which is white separate from black, not them together.

And ART1bk: dont worry about getting 1080p in a 32" set. Im not even sure if its available yet, but at that size, the extra resolution wont be noticable unless you are sitting within a couple of feet. 40" is even borderline for getting the 1080p.

[jjoe]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answers Thread

I am debating between getting the Samsung on-s3251D or the larger 4051D for my bedroom. My concern is whether 40 inches is too big for my bedroom. I usually sit about 5-6 ft away for gaming. Also am concerned if LCD TVs are always clearer and sharper on a smaller screen. The 40 incher is only $150 more at Circuit City and it seems like you get a lot more screen for that nominal amount. What would you suggest?

Also, is it true that DLP will not be as sharp as a flat panel tv because of the projection system?

[ExtremeGamer]

Re: Plasma or LCD TV??

Exactly. Contrast ratios are often overblown. I've always heard to take them with a grain of salt.

I think DLP's will almost always produce better blacks than an LCD - even more expensive LCD's. It's just the nature of the beast. However, a nice plasma puts both to shame IMO.

EG also has a good point about LCoS. I haven't seen one in person, but everything I've read makes them sound great.

Yeah, they are basically a combo of DLP and LCD. Liquid Crystal on Silicone, from all accounts, it may be the best technology yet. I saw a 720P TV at a high end store and was blown away by it. It's still a few years away from being affordable for a good set (since the ones out now are like 500:1 contrast and what not), but when perfected, it might be the best type out there.

[rudyjuly2]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answers Thread

I am debating between getting the Samsung on-s3251D or the larger 4051D for my bedroom. My concern is whether 40 inches is too big for my bedroom. I usually sit about 5-6 ft away for gaming. Also am concerned if LCD TVs are always clearer and sharper on a smaller screen. The 40 incher is only $150 more at Circuit City and it seems like you get a lot more screen for that nominal amount. What would you suggest?

Also, is it true that DLP will not be as sharp as a flat panel tv because of the projection system?

The 3251 gets amazing reviews but I don't think the 40" is considered as good a quality. Not sure why but the 32" model is top of the line while the 40" is considered middle of the road. Cnet.com rated the 3251 the top 32" LCD TV for the ones they had reviewed earlier this year. Either way you should be able to find a great deal over the next month.

[ODogg]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answers Thread

I am debating between getting the Samsung on-s3251D or the larger 4051D for my bedroom. My concern is whether 40 inches is too big for my bedroom. I usually sit about 5-6 ft away for gaming. Also am concerned if LCD TVs are always clearer and sharper on a smaller screen. The 40 incher is only $150 more at Circuit City and it seems like you get a lot more screen for that nominal amount. What would you suggest?

Also, is it true that DLP will not be as sharp as a flat panel tv because of the projection system?

Get the 40", it's not too big I don't think (although it is of course a matter of opinion). I generally sit about 7 or 8 feet from my TV and I was worried my 50" would be too big for my bedroom but it's not, in fact I kinda wish I'd spent another $150 and gotten the 56".

The only reason I didn't get the 56" is I simply didn't have enough money at the time and didn't want to wait another 2 weeks for payday. As for sharpness, I dunno about comparison but I can tell you that it's a non-issue as far as my Samsung 50" is concerned, it's extreme sharp, like cheddar

[pistonpete]

Re: HDTV Questions and Answers Thread

anybody got any expertise with lcd projectors? i want to hook my ps3 up to my epson powerlite s3 lcd projector, but it only has (hd) a vga connection. my 360 looks awesome thru this connection and since the 360 upscales it enhances the image bigtime. i know the ps3 a/v cables work on the ps3 but i don't know if the ps3 supports vga connections in the XMB and the geniuses at Sony just told me "it may or it may not support this connection". that's like saying "it may or may not rain tomorrow" anybody could make that statement! but anyway, i was wondering if anyone has any firsthand knowledge about the above or if anyone knows if a hdmi to vga converter/cable sold on hdtvsupply.com would work. btw, does anybody know of any vga splitters where, if the ps3 via vga works, i could connect both to my projector without unplugging them all the time?

any help would be great

pistonpete