How to Buy a Flat-Screen HDTV

flat widescreen

If you decide that a flat-panel HDTV is the way to go, you still have to determine which kind to buy: plasma or LCD. For screens smaller than 42 inches diagonal, your only choice is LCD. Almost all sets on the market now, both plasma and LCD, are wide-screen models. Translation: Such sets have a 16:9 ratio of screen width to screen height (aspect ratio), which is the standard for HDTV and very close to the ratio used for most modern movies. You can find the latest prices on both plasma and LCD TVs in PC World’s Shop & Compare center.

Plasma

Essentially all current plasma displays offer HDTV resolution. Screen sizes begin at 37 inches diagonal and typically range up to about 65 inches (occasionally moving up to the downright ridiculous 150-inch sets that companies trot out for trade shows). Typically you get what you pay for in both plasma and LCD.

A budget plasma model will usually have lower contrast and poorer reproduction of black and of dark grays, yielding a picture with less punch and detail. The most expensive plasmas in a given screen size are typically 1080p models, which offer 1920 by 1080 resolution. The smaller the screen, the closer you must be to it to fully appreciate the benefit of a higher display resolution. Like CRTs (picture tubes), plasmas use phosphors to generate light, which means they can be subject to “burn-in”–or, at least, older plasma sets are susceptible. You can find the latest prices on plasma TVs in PC World’s Shop & Compare center.

LCD

LCD screens range from desktop-friendly 15-inch models up to 65-inch wide-screen wonders complete with speakers and TV tuners. At screen sizes smaller than 30 inches, HDTV LCDs still come at a premium price relative to conventional picture-tube sets, but the cost difference is much smaller than it once was.

A 26-inch high-definition LCD, for instance, could sell for as little as $400. (A 26-inch wide-screen display has about the same screen height as a 21-inch TV with a conventional 4:3 aspect ratio.) And in large screen sizes of 50 inches and up, LCDs are now price-competitive with plasmas. According to the DisplaySearch Monthly Global TV E-Tail Pricing & Specification Database, the global average Internet price for LCD TVs fell by an average of 22 percent as compared with last year.

LCDs continue to play catch-up with plasma models in picture quality, however. LCDs are often one to several inches thicker than plasmas and have a somewhat narrower effective viewing angle. LCDs also run cooler than plasmas, which minimizes the need for potentially noisy cooling fans.

LCDs work well in bright-light situations that would be tough for most plasmas. You can find the latest prices on LCD TVs in PC World’s Shop & Compare center.

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