All you need to know about flatscreen TVs Part 1.
Plasma v. LCD
Plasma and LCD TVs continue to flatten the existence of CRTs like gym-goers flattening the excess padding on their tummies after an indulgent Christmas. Some estimate the death of the ‘big box’ in the next six years, but even before its demise, its inevitable successor, the flatscreen TV, is fast becoming the main focal point of home entertainment systems in Smart-Homes. When plasma’s and LCD screens first started capturing the hearts and wallets of consumers there were issues concerning each technology that meant people were fanatically asking which was the one to go for. Recent developments mean that the ongoing battle is about to get tougher as manufacturers of each competitor frantically work towards amending any Achilles heals each technology suffers from. Here are the main issues in the debate thus far:
Size
Plasmas still dominate here as it’s still cheaper for manufacturers when you’re getting into those really big sizes. LCDs are catching up though and are getting larger every year. With no need for heavy glass fronts or gas-filled chambers LCDs also tend to be slimmer and lighter. It should also be remembered that having the right screen size for the room is very important and in the case of small rooms where a screen needs to be smaller than 32in, this just isn’t viable for plasma technology.
Picture Quality
Traditionally plasmas were the clear winners in this area. Firstly, in terms of colour saturation, they turn off pixels when not needed so that no stray light can dilute its colours. With LCDs on the other hand there’s always some stray light in the mechanism, which adds a greying influence to colours and thus makes authentic tones more difficult. Secondly, plasma technology can deliver superior grey scale subtleties, which means they can usually provide more detail in dark image areas. On the other hand LCDs usually win on the issue of brightness and now that we have moved on from slow response times the gap has truly been shortened.
Viewing angle
On the whole, plasmas retain their quality up to around 160° whereas LCDs start to lose a lot of contrast and colour at much smaller angles.
Screen burn
Plasmas are susceptible to screen burn whereas LCDs are not. Screen burn occurs when a bright image is left on the screen for an extended period of time. The constant saturation fatigues the plasma phosphors, leaving a permanent shadow of the bright image behind.
Screen life
LCDs last roughly twice as long as plasmas however most plasmas should last for 25,000 hours, which equates to over 17 years at 4 hours use a day.
Power consumption
To power hundreds of electrodes to stimulate phosphors in plasmas means that it is a very power consuming technology, this also means that they get very hot and need fans to cool them down. LCDs do not operate in this way and so are cooler, thinner and use less energy.
As the difference between the user experience continues to become less noticeable the question of ‘Plasma or LCD?’ is really the wrong question. In most applications the two screens are really quite interchangeable, either a plasma or a LCD screen will be suitable. The million-dollar question, or more realistically the £1000 - £10,000 question, depending on your budget, is “which flatscreen TV?” See All you need to know about flatscreen TVs Part 2 for the essential guide on how to choose your soon-to-be most popular wall-mounted item, even superseding your favourite piece of art.
