Poll: Do you prefer plasma or LCD?

by Darren Murph posted Jan 17th 2009 at 12:00PM

The conversation already got going on our Plasma vs. LCD post yesterday, but now we're straight-up putting it out there. If you had to choose (and you do), would you opt for an LCD or PDP? Oh, and why? It's time to let your true fanboyism shine though, so don't stop with just dropping your vote below -- hit us up in comments with your supporting arguments.

Filed under: Displays, LCD, Plasma

Tags: display, display technology, DisplayTechnology, hdtv, lcd, lcd hdtv, LcdHdtv, pdp, plasma, poll, polls

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)

Low Ranked

GundamWingEW @ Jan 17th 2009 12:02PM

LCD looks just as good to me at my Best Buy store when compared to plasma.

In short I feel that plasma is overrated. And the price you pay for some of them is just ridiculous considering the very little increase (if any at all) in PQ.

Highest Ranked

ScCr988 @ Jan 17th 2009 12:21PM

Umm what are you talking about overrated? LCDs are always more expensive than Plasmas, and most people think LCDs are better than Plasmas.

Lowest Ranked

GundamWingEW @ Jan 17th 2009 12:27PM

That's not what I've seen where I'm from....

LCDs are always cheaper and to me their a better deal.

Highest Ranked

Spiza @ Jan 17th 2009 12:55PM

I read gundam's post as a confession of his ignorance.

Highly Ranked

roygilmer @ Jan 17th 2009 1:45PM

Take 40-49" TVs from bestbuy.com and in Magnolia the SONY KDL-46XBR8 is the most expensive indoor TV. (The Sunbrite is more expensive and still an LCD.) The KURO elite PRO-111FD is cheaper and blacker http://www.engadgethd.com/2009/01/16/lcd-vs-plasma-in-2009/.

In the non MAG category you have to pass the SONY KDL-46XBR6 and the Samsung LN46A850 to get to the TH-50PZ80U from PANASONIC.

Plasmas provide better MOTION LINES of Resolution, Better CONTRAST, and Better COLOR Accuracy, hands down. Some of the newer ones also provide that energy star new spec crap.

Neutral

abigcityfalcon @ Jan 17th 2009 6:01PM

The KURO Elite plasma is without a doubt the best picture on any HDTV. I'll take a top-end LCD over any plasma other than the KURO.

Neutral

JermTool @ Jan 18th 2009 2:33AM

Plasmas are cheaper than plasmas is most instances (Pioneer Kuro would be an exception), unless you shop at Wal Mart where they have one plasma to chose from. Look online and you will see this. Who knows where you are from? You're probably a typical person who thinks they know something about TVs and say you like LCDs better because they are much brighter and have more neon colors, inaccurate colors. When you break it down however, plasmas have better black levels, higher [native] contrast, more accurate primary colors, and handle fast motion better (even when compared to LCDs with the 120Hz gimmick).

Highly Ranked

DrXym @ Jan 18th 2009 5:20AM

Plasma undeniably has better contrasts but LED LCDs will mostly put paid to that advantage. And despite what some claim, power consumption is awful compared to LCD. Not in every case but in general.

I am not certain that the EU is specifically banning plasmas, just any model which exceeds some maximum consumption criteria, which just happens to be *most* plasmas. That alone will doom the format.

I don't think LCDs should rest on their laurels. For those devices which meet the EU criteria, they will still have to show an energy rating. I very much hope the rating motivates the industry and consumers to seek out more energy efficient devices. I know that all things being equal I would prefer an A rated device over a B or lower. Ultimately it means HDTVs that are cheaper to run which is no bad thing.

Highly Ranked

Spiza @ Jan 18th 2009 2:33PM

Those EU things are stupid. They've already severely hurt consumer electronics with the stupid lead ban which banned the use of about 5% of lead in consumer products. They left out the biggest users of lead with CRTs and lead acid batteries. Now our products are shit and are thrown away much faster filling our land fills with harmful substances other than lead faster.

Neutral

SimbaDogg @ Jan 19th 2009 8:30PM

gah'd i knew your name looked familiar. you were the one on joystiq saying how much of a star wars nerd you are, but you had no idea what star wars battlefront was about. nice to see your'e on joystiqs sister site spewing the same idiotic chatter

Lowest Ranked

bikehorn @ Jan 17th 2009 12:16PM

They both seem about as good. I went with LCD...rather spend the extra cash on a power conditioner with an isolation transformer to get those 'blacker blacks'.

Highly Ranked

glenn s @ Jan 17th 2009 1:56PM

Huh? How exactly does a power conditioner get you blacker blacks? And where are you shopping that LCD is cheaper than Plasma?

Highest Ranked

WebDev511 @ Jan 17th 2009 12:13PM

If I ONLY have those two to choose from and I'm buying, then LCD with LED back lighting.

If you're buying and footing the electric bill, the Kuro please.

Lowest Ranked

John Ashby @ Jan 17th 2009 12:14PM

LCD is the choice for energy conservation, and new LED backlighting will make it an even more attractive choice for lifecycle. Since 1080p came along, any quality differences are pretty subjective - even with true hi-def media (which I'm not so sure the big-box stores are showing you).

Highly Ranked

Aaron Smith @ Jan 17th 2009 1:16PM

You must have horrible vision then. If you can't notice the superior contrast and color on a Pioneer plasma over any LCD (even LED lit) then there's no hope for you. Resolution is usually noticed after both contrast and color. If you actually had these televisions in your home and not sitting in the sun at Best Buy it is easy to tell the difference for anyone with 20/20 vision.

Plasma at any size over 40" is cheaper.

I have never noticed a change in my electric bill by using a 50" 'inefficient' plasma. They are making them more efficient though, for those who care.

Highest Ranked

Shadowguitar @ Jan 17th 2009 12:29PM

I have to say LCD. Personal preference, mostly.

Highest Ranked

Papa Midnight @ Jan 17th 2009 4:30PM

I'll second that, especially as a heavy gamer. Plasma has come along way in terms of reducing burn in, but simply stated, I fell into LCD as a preference and I doubt that will change for a while.

Highest Ranked

chase17 @ Jan 17th 2009 12:44PM

Anyone i know who's first concern is picture qualty goes for plasma.

Highly Ranked

urfloormatt @ Jan 17th 2009 6:17PM

There's a difference between picture quality in optimum conditions and picture quality in typical conditions. I prefer LCD because it's less reflective, which means I can put it anywhere without having to worry about light reflecting off the screen and ruining the picture. I can watch my LCD without sitting in darkness, and I can put my LCD in any room in the house regardless of windows/sunlight.

If I had a sunless room and I was content to always sit in the dark to watch HDTV, then I'd go plasma. As it stands, I'll stick with LCD.

Highest Ranked

Mr. B @ Jan 17th 2009 12:47PM

LCDs just don't come close to the blacks on my Panny plasma... not that there's anything wrong with the nice little Samsung LCD in the bedroom.

Plasma is still king

Highest Ranked

Mike @ Jan 17th 2009 12:54PM

ill take the lonely dlp sitting in the corner, and with the money i saved, i'll take a bluray player. thanks.

Neutral

L3 @ Jan 17th 2009 12:53PM

@ Altitude. Wouldn't risk the plasma.

and, I'm scared of it because of the name.

Highest Ranked

Patrick @ Jan 17th 2009 1:09PM

Plasma. Because picture quality is really all I care about.

Neutral

TJ @ Jan 17th 2009 1:03PM

Plasma. Better motion reproduction, and generally better contrast do it for me. I'm sick of the motion blur I get on my Westy LCD, and will probably pick up a Panasonic plasma later this year.

Highest Ranked

kevinp @ Jan 17th 2009 1:06PM

You tend to get what you pay for. I don't think you can generalise. I bought a plasma as it was cheaper. But I do notice a lot of reflection which seems to be a plasma trait. It has a pretty poor picture when watching satalite tv. much better when using a component connection to a dvd player.

Neutral

Tom @ Jan 17th 2009 1:16PM

Plasma. I've had both, but I love my Panasonic 42PZ85U that I got in December. The contrast is amazing. I love this TV and picked it up for $870 thanks to a deal I found on TechDealDigger.

Highly Ranked

Philip S @ Jan 17th 2009 2:33PM

I replaced a Sharp LCD with a Panasonic 42PZ80U in December and I agree that plasma is better. I love the black levels and lack of motion blur on my Panny.

Highly Ranked

cwnyc @ Jan 18th 2009 7:19AM

Thank you!

I encourage everyone who has both plasma and LCD sets at home to speak up.

Who would you trust more? Someone with only one type of technology or someone with both types and can do direct comparisons, at home?

There are a few here with both plasma and LCD sets at home (I am one of them) and ALL of them so far stated plasma technology provides superior video performance than LCD technology.

Neutral

charles @ Jan 18th 2009 9:15PM

i have both plasma and lcd. my lcd is a lot brighter than my plasma and it looks like a lot of the colors are so bright that they seem to be artificial. my lcd is a sony kdl-32s3000 this lcd is okay because my wife is the one that uses it the most.

now on the plasma set, the colors are natural and smooth not so intense like the lcd especially that it has no motion blur and artifacts my black levels and contrast are awesome. now this set is in my home theater room it's a 50" pioneer kuro pdp-5010 know were talking awesome.

in my opion is lcd is to bright for my taste and the screens are plastic, but there getting better.
plasma is the one for me because it's like having an old crt set in the room i prefer a glass screen over plastic.

Highest Ranked

Andy Sullivan @ Jan 17th 2009 1:30PM

When comparing LCD vs Plasma from a price standpoint you have to look at top of the line LCD's with the latest technologies like LED back lighting and 120hz to accomplish plasma like black levels. Even then, according to the latest reviews in Sound & Vision Magazine and Home Entertainment Magazine the off angel viewing is horrible. Even a few degrees off center degrade the PQ of the best LCD's. With plasma's the situation is much easier for the consumer to compare. You're basic 1080P 50" plasma's from Panasonic, Samsung, Vizio, can be had for between $1100 and $1800 street value. Compared to a top 52" LCD with LED and 120hz from Sony, Samsung, Toshiba, Sharp, Hitachi will run you from $2200 to over $3000. Even a Pioneer Kuro will street for around $2500. Plus, have you priced any LCD over 52"? It's very difficult to shop for LCD's with any degree of confidence in what the hell your looking at.

Neutral

Sirhc @ Jan 19th 2009 7:14PM

I have a Pioneer 5070 plasma, and love it EVERYTIME I turn it on...Still look at tv's in stores and see a lot of better than before LCD's but still prefer a plasma hands down.
I too can't stand motion blur, narrower viewing angles, and not as good blacks like plasmas...
LCD's are getting better, but just look at the newest Pioneers, and Panny plasmas. Still ahead of LCD's, and seeing what Panny has coming soon (2009 CES ) it still looks like they will stay ahead.
If plasma was not as good / on it's way out, why would Panasonic have a 103'' out and 150'' coming out soon?

Neutral

Billy @ Jan 17th 2009 1:30PM

I like LCD better

Lowest Ranked

Bob S. @ Jan 17th 2009 1:30PM

Still more than happy with phosphors. Have no need to see TV programming in phantasmical resolution and no interest in the retreads and comic books Hollywood is pumping out. When the Panasonic CRT does finally die, I'll likely go with LCD; the picture quality I've seen on well-adjusted sets is fine with me.

Highest Ranked

Kyle @ Jan 17th 2009 2:59PM

Well if you're more than happy with phosphors then why the hell would your next purchase be a LCD, do you understand how a Plasma panel works? Plasmas ARE phosphors and basically a thin picture tube TV.

Neutral

Bob S. @ Jan 19th 2009 1:53AM

As others have pointed, out, plasmas are great for folks who like sitting in the dark or worrying about burn-in. And LCDs tend to be lighter and generally have smaller bezels than plasmas.

Highly Ranked

Covarr @ Jan 17th 2009 1:31PM

While I like the clarity and black levels of plasma, I can't watch in a controlled lighting environment, and the glare ruins it for me. Also, my house has crappy wiring, and I don't think my bedroom could handle a plasma TV. Also, my LCD TV seems to be better than many.

If I could choose whatever I wanted, I'd set up a projector and a big-ass wall screen in a lighting controlled room. A setup like this, when done with high quality parts, beats the pants off of both plasma AND LCD.

Neutral

LB @ Jan 17th 2009 1:35PM

I give the picture quality to plasma. However, the plasma picture starts to fade with age. I work on TV's for a living and the repair record for plasma is terrible. I think only about one in twenty is economical to repair. Better buy the extended warranty!

That being said, the LCD isn't bad and the new Sony's have LED backlighting which should give great color balance and a bright picture for the life of the set.

Highly Ranked

glenn s @ Jan 17th 2009 1:51PM

I voted for Plasma, but really I think it depends on what you are going to use it for. I have a 3 year old Plasma, and at the time LCD wasn't close in either price or picture quality on many levels. Now it is quite different. If I were buying a TV strictly for watching TV and movies, I think I would still pick a quality Plasma over a quality LCD. But since I also use an HTPC and play video games on the TV, LCD has its pluses too. On the whole, I don't think the technology used is as important as the individual capabilities of the set that you buy. Even though I've never had a problem with burn-in, I have had temporary ghosting on my Plasma. So when I'm using the HTPC in desktop mode, I have the screen saver set to go in just 10 minutes, because I'm paranoid that I'll forget about it if I leave the room to do something else.

Neutral

Evan @ Jan 17th 2009 11:51PM

Projector!

But if I had to choose a flat panel, I'd definitely go with Plasma for it's superior color and black levels (at least until OLED arrives).

Neutral

Daniel @ Jan 17th 2009 1:55PM

where is the oled option. I wished sed had made it but oled it the future.

Neutral

Garst @ Jan 17th 2009 2:00PM

I like LCD mostly because of the heat and weight issues with plasma. I know no one moves their TVs around too often, but who wants to have to ask a buddy over when your mom wants to rearrange the furniture? Even if the LCD is too big for one person, your mom is likely able to help with them, because they are only slightly too heave for one person and the real reason she'll help is because the screen size is too big for one person to handle.

Highest Ranked

Tommy @ Jan 17th 2009 2:03PM

Where i'm from we don't get a great selection of HD channels on cable so half of my tv watching is in 480 res. And nobody say "switch to satellite" because where i'm at, its way too unstable.

Ever watch an analog or low-def signal on an LCD? It looks like crap!

Plasma does much better on low-def. Period.

Something that more ppl should talk about, especially if you're far removed and don't have a great selection of HD material like me.

Lowest Ranked

Spanbauer @ Jan 17th 2009 2:16PM

The only plasma anyone actually talks about — the Kuro — costs over four grand and doesn't come in a size smaller than 50 inches. So as far as I'm concerned a great plasma's going to cost more than a great LCD. That aside, I went with LCD because I didn't want to have to babysit my television, break it in properly, or worry about image retention. I also don't care for the dark, smokey yellow whites Plasma's seem to have, although I am of course jealous of their deeper blacks in a dark room.

Highest Ranked

cwnyc @ Jan 17th 2009 3:31PM

Newer plasmas often has an image orbiter feature, which shifts the image a few pixels at a very slow rate that cannot be detected by the human eyes, but solves the issue of image retention on the most part...

I fell asleep many times while leaving my 60" Kuro on 4:3 programs, and my screen is just fine.

So you do not have to "Baby" plasma screens anymore..,..

Neutral

Nick @ Jan 17th 2009 9:50PM

What the hell are you talking about, saying Kuros all cost over 4k. Yeah, if you are looking at the ELITE models, but the regular Kuro's are only like 2500. I would much rather have a 50" Pioneer than ANY LCD. Care to revise your statement about Kuro's costing over 4k?

Highest Ranked

SKim @ Jan 17th 2009 2:24PM

This is a no brainer. High quality plasmas always beat high quality LCDs hands down (Have read endless amounts of professional reviews). They are cheaper also. This is a win-win situation. Some people state that they are worried about plasma image burning, sucks up more electricity, and have shorter life span.

Due to technology plasmas have about the same life span as LCDs, image burning is no longer an issue. Yes plasmas do burn more electricity, but do your math. I'd pay extra $2 a month for the better picture quality.

I love my 60" Kuro! My friends are absolutely blown away by the picture quality.

Highest Ranked

ChadT84 @ Jan 17th 2009 2:34PM

The ignorance of people in this thread is sickening. There are two things about plasmas that you can not deny. One, they have a better picture quality over LCD, and second, they are cheaper than LCD. People need to leave Walmart and shop at a store that has a desent selection of tvs with good quality. I would never buy a tv at Walmart. LCD tvs are catching up to plasma, but I still wouldn't buy one. I can't stand watching movies at 120hz.

Neutral

Shoeboy @ Jan 17th 2009 3:11PM

Sorry for my ignorance but what is wrong with a movie at 120Hz?

Highly Ranked

glenn s @ Jan 17th 2009 6:29PM

The purpose of 120hz is to allow for smother playback of movies, which are filmed at 24fps (120/24 = 5). So for each real frame of the movie, the 120hz screen is creating 4 extra frames out of thin air. The purpose of this is to eliminate the jitter of playing back 24fps that is often seen on a 60hz screen. (3:2 pulldown). The net effect is a somewhat softer looking image that many refer to as the "soap opera effect", and many movie purists would rather live with the jitter (or jutter, or whatever it is called). There was a pretty good write-up on the whole thing at projectorcentral.com a few months ago.

Neutral

cwnyc @ Jan 18th 2009 6:59AM

100% agree. Unfortunately, I think many here were misinformed due the push for LCD sets from sale persons of generic electronic stores like BestBuy and CircuitCity...

I have heard how sales persons pitch for LCD sets with false information and myths from such stores over and over again... These sales persons have no clue what they are talking about, and once a shopper already invested a lot of money on a LCD set, they are inclined to WANT to believe they spent their hard earned money wisely so will fiercely protect the misinformation they were fed, so misinformation gets spread over and over... This is not any different from talking to anyone who were scammed into buying an over priced BOSE sound system... What is easier for them to do? Admit that they have been scammed by misinformation or keep believing they bought the best technology...?

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