Hi-def Tv - Which One To Choose?
DLP, Plasma or LCD? Oh my!
Now that you’ve made the decision to create a home theater room for the enjoyment of your family, there is a great deal of planning that needs to be done. The first of which revolves around the centerpiece of your new space: High Definition TV or HDTV.
Currently, there are three main types of High Definition Television available: plasma, LCD and DLP.
DLP
Let’s first look at with the least expensive, the DLP. DLP is an abbreviation for Digital Light Processing, and is in reality a rear projection TV. In DLP projectors, the image is created by a matrix of tiny mirrors, with each mirror representing one pixel on the screen. Though priced lower than other hi-def options, this technology can still deliver 1080p resolution - the highest currently available.
While DLP televisions weigh approximately the same as the other hi-def TV types, they are quite a bit thicker (about 15-20 inches) and are not designed to be wall-mounted as of yet, though that may change in the near future.
There have been reports of audible fan noise in some models, and since the technology is more “mechanical” than plasma and LCD, there is the possibility of a higher incidence of breakdowns. Projection televisions of any type also are burdened with poorer viewing angles than the direct view types, and color resolution may not be as striking.
LCD
We now move on to the next price point: Liquid Crystal Diode televisions, also known as LCD.
LCD televisions utilize a pair of “polarized” panels that sandwich a thin liquid-crystal gel. That gel is divided into individual pixels, each of which can be darkened or lightened according to how much measured voltage is passed through it - the more voltage, the darker the pixel. Since a small amount of light always leaks through the gel, a true black screen is extremely hard for an LCD television to accomplish, but advances in LCD technology have put these TVs on an almost equal footing with plasma.
Weighing much less and having a much smaller footprint than the old CRT monitors, LCD technology quickly became the technology of choice for computer screens. The smaller screen sizes created sharp LCD images, so small-screen TVs became LCD’s niche. But with recent technological advances screen size has grown larger and larger while still keeping sharp focus, and the previously poor viewing angles have become as good as plasma televisions can offer. Liquid Crystal Diode technology is now a viable competitor to plasma televisions on the home entertainment field.
Plasma
Built in a similar manner to an LCD TV, in that a sandwich is created by two panels of glass, the material between the two panels is not a liquid gel, but rather a gas.
Though the gap is narrowing, plasma TVs generally exhibit greater brightness and sharper contrast then their competitors - especially at larger screen sizes. Plasma televisions can be may measure under 5 inches, and have a very wide viewing angle.
Plasma TVs can be expected to last as much as 60,000 hours - which means you can watch television for 6 hours a day for 27 years. Hi-Def plasma televisions often achieve contrast ratios of 30,000:1, a significant advantage over competing technologies. Although screen “burn-in” has been an issue in the past, the latest in screen technology has significantly lowered the incidence of this drawback.
How to Choose
As with most of the features of your new home entertainment center, your budget will be the final determining factor in your choice. You would need to itemize the equipment and furniture you have to get, and prioritize it.
Consumers who value high fidelity sound may decide to spend more money on a sophisticated surround sound system; others might choose to turn over the lion’s share of the budget to the designer. Regardless of your choice, though, rest easy knowing that every option open to you are vastly superior to to what was available even a few years ago.
Ingrid Preube
High Definition TV or HDTV