looking for a 40 or 42 for general use
what did you buy and why?
i think i prefer the gloosy (glass) like screen of the plasma but there are so many faulty ones for sale on the bay that it makes me wonder?also
though there are loads of knackered lcd's too.so which one will last to 13 months?
thanks rich
[Edited on 5/9/09 by ruskino80]
I went for a 42" Samsung plasma which I'm very happy with.
We went through this about 3-years ago and were advised to go with Plasma if we had young children (we don't) who could press things onto the
screen but otherwise go LCD.
Eventually we bought a Samsung LCD which has been excellent. (But we also bought a Samsung HD recorder which was C***).
John.
below 32" = LCD
Above 32" = Plasma
got a 40" sony bravia thing. its good stuff
Got a Panasonic Viera 42" Plasma. LCD looks really good in the shops, but when you have one in a normal living room they can be very bright.
As said before, for larger screens, it best to go with Plasma, although the size is changnig, as they improve LCD technology.
If you can wait a year then wait, the latest OLED 'organic LEDs' are about 50% better than anything else on the market at the minute. Have
you any HD sources to feed the screen with?
Also do you need a screen that big? how far away from the screen do you sit?
Samsung 40" LCD - brilliant.
Samsung 40" LCD for me too.
Got Sky + HD and really can hardly tell the difference between HD and non-HD the picture is so good!
As above got a 42" philips lcd and again virtually no difference between hd and normal.
Also ask carefuly about the life on the plasma gas before you loose half brightness.
No-one seems to re-gas them these days.
Roger
Samsung 46inch LCD. Full HD
Couple years old now and still fine.
42" panasonic plasma for me, although I just purchased the screen, no tuner as I already had a decent digi box.
Apart from being cheaper by just buying a screen you get a more commercial grade device.
Only thing to watch is the hidden costs, electricity, when I went from CRT years ago to plasma I estimate the electricity bill increased by £25 a
month. LCD must be much cheaper to run.
Regards Mark
you certainly can't go wrong with a Samsung LCD, all my tv's are samsungs and never had a problem!!
I also have a Panasonic 42" plasma and thought it would use less than my old CRT but when I checked it is 250 watts against 150 watts for the old
one, it does make a good extra radiator in the winter .
Paul.
quote:
Originally posted by mark chandler
42" panasonic plasma for me, although I just purchased the screen, no tuner as I already had a decent digi box.
Apart from being cheaper by just buying a screen you get a more commercial grade device.
Only thing to watch is the hidden costs, electricity, when I went from CRT years ago to plasma I estimate the electricity bill increased by £25 a month. LCD must be much cheaper to run.
Regards Mark
If You`re a gamer and have a light gun for shooting games they won`t work on a plasma so you must get an LCD. One point to think about........
No reflection etc with an LCD either
u2u me mate regarding tv's. i am electrician and also do home cinema and surround sound systems. plasmas are defo better than lcd in a screen the size you want. contrast is so much better and a wider viewing angle. lcd's brighten colours to un natural levels.where a good plasma shows more true colours! for referance i have a 50" pioneer PDP508XD which although is about 2 years old is stunning. the good pioneers are by far the best on the market. but panasonic make some good full hd tv's at about half the price!
also like the above, i'm a vision engineer, work on live tv broadcasts, mainly HD broadcasts so know a thing or two about TV's and quality, whats needed etc. let me know you're requirements and I can suggest whats best.
quote:
Originally posted by Madinventions
Samsung 40" LCD - brilliant.
Although i am only a stills photographer now, like franky i have some film and video experience.
Plasma is the better image by far with the larger screens.
BUT
they have a shorter working life than an LCD, the Panasonic power modules have had some problems and are probably the only part that can be replaced,
at a big cost.
You need a big room to watch a big LCD. Sitting too close you see every pixel, over 32" you need to be at least 3 metres away. This is all my opinion from my own observations so if your eyes work different to mine please ignore.
I've got a 42" Panasonic Viera and after spending some time setting up the brightness and colour it's great. Bluray is ace but I have
it all setup with a Sony surround system which makes for a nice package. You may find that when you upgrate your TV that it makes some of your other
kit seem a bit below par.
I also have my PC hooked up to it at the moment - Optical sound to my Sony amp and HD out of the PC into the TV - gaming now takes on a whole new
experience
42" Pannie Viera for me too. Had it for a year or so and no worries. Got John Lewis to pricematch Empire Direct and got the JL 5 year free warranty with it.
Ha!!! ^^^^we did the same - price match and they threw in their 5 yr guarantee free!!
Steve
quote:
Originally posted by Phil.J
Samsung 40" LCD for me too.
Got Sky + HD and really can hardly tell the difference between HD and non-HD the picture is so good!
quote:
Originally posted by rgrs
As above got a 42" philips lcd and again virtually no difference between hd and normal.
You'll find that with a none HD source the picture is normally worse than a CRT screen. Or even a badly set-up monitor.
As a few posts up 32" is the best size for home viewing, maybe going up to 36". Being a boy only a shiny 40+ inch screen will do though!
I keep getting stuck at this point as I think plasma is what I want but LCD seems easier.
G/f has a 40" Samsung LCD and its NICE!!!!
(i keep trying to steal it and she's having none of it)
I have never been that impressed with LCD or Plasma, I have seen them in people houses and in the shop and think the screen quality is not that much
better than CRT.
Certainly not to justify the price! We have a big sony CRT which we got from a friend for free after they upgraded to a LCD so we are happy.
I guess i am not that bothered about TV enough to get a really good one.
Though I have seen the new LED tvs in store and they look amazing! would get one of those if it wasn't for the £1500 price tag 
[Edited on 7/9/09 by trogdor]
quote:
Originally posted by trogdor
I have never been that impressed with LCD or Plasma, I have seen them in people houses and in the shop and think the screen quality is not that much better than CRT.
42 inch Viera plasma here too, I did a lot of research when I got my TV, had a look at lots too, for that size plasma are still the best for truer
colours and depth of blacks.
And to the guys saying they're regular picture is as good as HD, then there is something wrong with your HD, my HD picture is out of this world
and cannot compare with even the best standard def programmes.
If you don't have megabucks get a Panasonic, if you do get the Pioneer, nothing comes close.