Lou Attia Episode 2 segment on “Tech ER”

Question: Should I Buy an LCD or a Plasma TV?

Answer: The decision as to what type of flat TV to buy (LCD or Plasma) is really up to you; but I’m here to run you through some of the advantages and disadvantages of both. Let’s start with Plasma.

Plasma Television Advantages

Plasma TV in comparison to LCD:

1. Have better contrast ratio.

2. Have better ability to display deep colors like blacks

3. Have more color depth, i.e. richer colors

4. Have better motion tracking (response time)

5. And finally are more available in very large screen sizes

Plasma Television Disadvantages

The disadvantages of Plasma vs LCD include:

1. They are more susceptible to burn-in. This means if you leave the same image on the screen for too long a shadow or outline of that image might be burned in to the screen forever. But this is not as much of a factor now, due to technology improvements in the past few years.

2. They tend to generate more heat and therefore consume more power.

3. They don’t not perform as well at higher altitudes.

4. Because the screen is made of a more shiny material. They tend to glare in brightly lit rooms.

5. They are heavier in weight and more delicate to ship.

LCD Television Advantages

LCD television advantages in comparison to plasma include:

1. No burn-in

2. cooler running and less power consumption

3. Less screen glare

4. More functional at high altitudes

5. Generally have a longer life (although improvements are being made in Plasma screen life)

6. Looks better in brightly lit rooms

7- Another note is that LCD televisions have made great improvements in increasing the pixel resolution, with a growing number of sets offering a full 1080p (1920x1080) display capability at affordable prices in screen sizes ranging from 37-inches and up.

8- One other factor is that LCD TVs are lighter (when comparing same screen sizes) than their Plasma counterparts, making wall installation easier.

LCD Television Disadvantages

LCD televisions do have disadvantages in several areas vs Plasma televisions:

1. Lower contrast ratio. The colours aren’t as rich.

2. The deep blacks are not as good as a plasma TV,

3. And it’s not as good at tracking motion (although this is improving, especially on higher-end models).

4. Even though LCD TVs do not suffer from burn-in as plasma TVs, it is possible that individual pixels on an LCD televisions can burn out, causing small, visible, black or white dots to appear on the screen. Individual pixels cannot be repaired, the whole screen would need to be replaced at that point, if the individual pixel burnout becomes annoying to you.

5. Finally, large screen LCD TVs are usually more expensive than the same sized Plasma version, although the price gap is getting less.

Closing Thoughts

I suggest you go to a store that offers a wide variety of sizes and brands and really take a look at several Plasma and LCD televisions and compare their performance based on the factors I mentioned and narrow down your choices.

Then make your decision based on which one will give you the best image while being within your budget.

Finally I would like to say that both Plasma and LCD televisions are very good options for home theatre use, gaming or just watching regular television. And with the improvement of technology and lowering of prices you really can’t go wrong with either choice these days.