Flat Screen TV Comparison: Plasma vs LCD
Flat screen TV is one of the most popular and exciting TV
technologies today. At only a few inches thick, flat screen TVs
offer unparalleled flexibility and convenience. Older
conventional TV's, in fairness to them, did offer crisp and
vibrant images. However, these TV's, which operate through a
cathode ray tube (CRT), suffered from one major drawback, they
were bulky. As screen size increased, so did the bulk and
weight. However, the TV of old has reached its twilight years.
New television technologies have enabled TV manufacturers to
create TVs with wider screen size yet still only a few inches
thick. Thus, flat screen TVs usher home entertainment into the
21st century.
Flat Screen TV basically refers to two technologies: Plasma and
LCD. The advances in these two technologies have enabled TV
makers to build thin, lightweight TV screens with a large
picture area. Plasma and LCD both offer similarly large,
lightweight, flat screen TV's but the similarities are skin deep
for their inner workings are different.
Plasma or LCD?
Plasma and LCD TVs generally look similar however they use very
different technologies. Plasma utilizes a grid of tiny cells of
gas plasma that light up and create a picture when charged by
precise electrical voltages. LCD (liquid crystal display) screens on the other hand are
made of liquid crystals sandwiched between two glass plates and
create images by varying the amount of electrical charge applied
to the crystals. Both Plasma and LCD offer excellent picture
quality. The following are their strengths and weaknesses and
edge over the other.
1. Plasma screens can display blacks more accurately compared to
LCD. Thus, pictures in a Plasma TV have richer contrast and
better detail especially in dark TV and movie scenes. LCD TV's
are catching up however.
2. Plasma TV has better viewing angles than LCD TV. How far you
can sit on either side of the screen before the qualities of the
pictures are affected is what the "viewing angle" is. In LCD
TVs, brightness and color tend to shift when angled too far
while that of Plasma TVs remain solid.
3. Plasma TV can
produce brighter color while light leakages in LCD screens
affect the color saturation.
4. Plasma TVs are priced relatively less than their LCD
counterparts especially in the large screen segment. Plasma TVs
offer much larger sizes than LCDs, yet are still priced lower.
5. LCD has a higher native resolution than plasma TVs of the
same size. This results to sharper images and makes LCD TV the
better choice for HDTV.
6. LCD TVs consume almost 30% less power than Plasma TVs.
7. LCD TVs are generally lighter than similar sized Plasmas.
8. Among the two, LCD screens have a longer life span than
plasma screens. LCDs can last up to 60,000 hours compared to
Plasma that average from 30,000 to 60,000 hours.
9. Plasma TVs are more prone to screen burn-ins compared to LCDs
although newer plasma technology are less susceptible to these.
If you are looking for a large flat screen TV, Plasma TV is
recommended. Plasma TVs can give you better value for your
money. The price difference between Plasma TVs and LCD TVs is
big. However, if you have money to burn, then LCD TV is the
better choice especially if you want the sharpest images. For
smaller flat screen TVs at the range of 15" to 36", LCD is the
way to go. Ultimately, both technologies are still evolving and
new innovations and improvements are definitely in the works.