LED Vs Plasma flat screen

scottmandue · 03-20-2014, 01:09 PM

In a strange turn of events out TV died and our tax return arrived.

Therefore next week I'm of to Costco to buy a new 50" flatscreen.

From a price-point plasma seems to more screen for your buck.

What say ye PPOT?

Noah930 · Noah930's Garage

My TV is placed in a room with a lot of natural light, so I'm not sure a plasma would be good (too many reflections from the various windows). That would be the deciding factor between those two choices for me. Right now I've got a LCD TV that I'm happy with. The LED might not offer much of an improvement on picture quality, but it uses less electricity for the green-factor. Maybe not necessarily enough to offset the difference in purchase price between LCD vs LED, though.

scottmandue · 03-20-2014, 01:22 PM

Yeah, my biggest concern is ambient light... however most of our viewing is at night and we have pretty good light blocking drapes in the living room.

Another point is Costco seems to be the default for this type of purchase, any point in checking at Target, BestBuy, etc.?

Mike80911 · Mike80911's Garage

I have a Plasma in the den and an LED in my bedroom. I think they both have great pictures but the LED is a bit sharper and the colors are clearer. I am not an expert but I would say either choice is a good one.
I just purchased the LED from Newegg and it was a bit cheaper than all of the big stores as well as free shipping and no tax so you might want to look at them to compare prices.

plumb4u2 · plumb4u2's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by Noah930

My TV is placed in a room with a lot of natural light, so I'm not sure a plasma would be good (too many reflections from the various windows). That would be the deciding factor between those two choices for me. Right now I've got a LCD TV that I'm happy with. The LED might not offer much of an improvement on picture quality, but it uses less electricity for the green-factor. Maybe not necessarily enough to offset the difference in purchase price between LCD vs LED, though.

I'm sorry but you are incorrect

Plasma and LED are recommended for rooms with high natural light

LCD is recommended for darker rooms

masraum · 03-20-2014, 01:29 PM

Go to whatever stores have the models that you are interested in and then check Amazon for price. If Costco is better, then purchase there.

Gogar · 03-20-2014, 01:30 PM

Plasma = Darker, uses more juice, and generates more heat. Some folks like the look better, though.

And it's cheaper!

IMO I'd research brands more than type of TV.

I really like the CNET reviews, very informative about what you should and shouldn't worry about; what's marketing fluff and what isn't.

TV Reviews: LCD TVs, flat-screen TVs, plasma TVs, 3D TVs - CNET Reviews

plumb4u2 · plumb4u2's Garage

this is my living room which obviously gets a ton of light and my new 60" LED which just replace my 50" Plasma
both Tvs show great in my room

scottmandue · 03-20-2014, 01:38 PM

Pretty sold on Samsung... we have about a dozen here at work and they run seven days a week six hours a day... but they are all LED

Bottom line is I only have $600 and want 50-55 inch so I think I am stuck with a Plasma.

scottmandue · 03-20-2014, 01:45 PM

This is what we are looking at: (sorry for the cell phone pic, taken last week)

Vipergrün · 03-20-2014, 02:31 PM

Got a 60" Samsung LCD from Costco. Hard to beat when you consider the cost, return policy and extended warranty option. I did not want/need a smart TV, so it worked out perfect.

rfuerst911sc · 03-20-2014, 02:37 PM

We have a Panasonic 42 " plasma in our living room and a Toshiba 42 " in our sunroom both pictures are damn near perfect. We purchased the plasma first, to our eyes it was a superior picture. Yes it does get warm but picture quality is great. When we decided to purchase for the sunroom many stated the glass screen of a plasma was not good for natural light/reflections. That's why we bought the Toshiba, I guess LCD/LED TV's have a plastic screen. Anyway my wife and I can't tell the difference between the two they are equally great. My advice, go check out various brands/sizes and buy the one that looks the best to you ! Regardless of what technology it is.

Noah930 · Noah930's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by plumb4u2

I'm sorry but you are incorrect

Plasma and LED are recommended for rooms with high natural light

LCD is recommended for darker rooms

Sorry, I am not an AV expert. My information comes from what's widely printed on the web:

Plasma TV Problems - What Are the Problems With Plasma TVs?
Plasma Screen TV Problems | eHow

I've never had a plasma, so cannot comment from FHE. Maybe they don't have reflectivity problems, contrary to their reputations.

herr_oberst · 03-20-2014, 03:39 PM

I've got a 60" Samsung plasma.

Great picture, kills more watts than an LED/LCD, and there is burn-in, but the ghost images go away after a while, and there is a utility built into the tv to "wipe" the ghosted images.

kach22i · kach22i's Garage

I have a 60 inch Panasonic Plasma, second best one they make, would not go much lower in the line up.

Costco doesn't sell plasmas the last time I checked.

Like others have said, if you have windows which let in a lot of light and you do any daytime TV watching on the weekends go with a LCD.

Otherwise in a dark room plasma reigns supreme.

However to be appreciated sources like antenna TV and Blu-ray are best. In addition the LG LCD I have does a better job of automatically adjusting to the proper aspect ratio, the Panasonic plasma often requires me to push a button on the remote.

Some people get caught up in "features", and you will find more "features" on the LCD's, the money goes into the basics with plasmas.

My thread from a year ago"
http://www.whatsbestforum.com/showthread.php?7694-Panasonic-Plasma-TV-Product-Line-Up-Hierarchy

Now everyone is raving about OLED's.
http://www.whatsbestforum.com/showthread.php?7694-Panasonic-Plasma-TV-Product-Line-Up-Hierarchy

Aurel · Aurel's Garage

I have a 46 Samsung LED smart TV and and 42 LG LCD. All I can say is The LED image quality is better than LCD. No experience with plasma though.

kach22i · kach22i's Garage

LED is just another form of back lighting, it is still a type of LCD.

Plasma is another animal.

What is the Difference between LCD and LED HDTVs? — QVC.com

Quote:

First, the technical side of things: to truly understand the difference between LCD and LED, one thing is very important: LED (light-emitting diode) TVs are actually a type of LCD (liquid crystal display) television. LCD HDTVs use standard compact fluorescent tubes to illuminate the picture. LED HDTVs, on the other hand, replace those fluorescent tubes with backlighting technology. This technology adjusts the picture beyond the capability of those fluorescent tubes to create much clearer images, and is the main difference between LCD and LED.

MBAtarga · 03-20-2014, 04:13 PM

Costco's return policy is not near what it used to be. Don't make it a deciding factor on where to make your purchase. (Disclaimer: Our last 2 TVs we bought at Costco.)

5String43 · 03-20-2014, 04:50 PM

I dunno - we bought the 47-inch Sony LCD, Absolutely wonderful picture, great black levels, terrific performance in lighted situations - we're very happy with it. But then we would be, having moved up from a 12-year-old 34-inch set.

slakjaw · 03-20-2014, 04:59 PM

When I got my new tv I was watching a lot of old black and white Bette Davis flicks. I started with an LED and ended up returning it for a plasma. Blacks looked all blocky and wonky to me. The plasma has really great color and contrast. Blacks are smooth.

But plasma is becoming a thing of the past.