Plasma vs LCD television: Tired of trying to become a wise buyer?

We'll try to answer these questions: Which type of display is better? Which will give you a hit on your finances—plasma or LCD? Are there significant differences between plasma and LCD technology? Which HDTV technolgy fits your needs?

Many buyers have been perplexed as to which one to pick — plasma vs LCD television. As suggested by the name itself, plasma screens uses matrix of tiny gas plasma cells while LCD or liquid crystal display are in layman’s terms sandwiches made up of liquid crystal pushed in the space between two glass plates where images are created by varying the amount electrical charge applied to the crystals. Read on and find out for yourself the strengths and weaknesses of each technology.

The picture quality differences in plasma vs LCD television 's are just a small factor. What’s important is how the screen performs as a television. These technologies are steadily improving with every new generation.

One advantage plasma has over LCD is its ability to offer better viewing angles even from afar. This is because you tend to see some brightness and color shift when you’re on too far of an angle with LCDs, while plasma’s picture remains fairly solid. But newer LCD models have improved significantly so much so that the difference in performance between LCDs and plasmas in this regard is diminishing.

The price is another considerable advantage plasmas have over their LCD cousins, particularly in the large screen end of the market. Plasmas, unlike LCDs typically come in larger sizes than LCDs—and at a cheaper price. Plasma is also the screen of choice for sports or fast moving media events. LCD TVs still tend to have a slight motion blur.

For the LCD TVs it’s not all gloom. LCD TVs tend to have a higher resolution than plasmas of similar size, which means more pixels on the screen. Recently LCD TVs have made strides in duplicating the deep blacks that plasma TVs offer. The deep blacks are important because it improves the contrast ratio that is so important for that large screen WOW factor the plasmas enjoy.

LCD TVs also tend to consume less power than plasma screens, with some estimates of power saving at up to 30 percent less than plasma. LCD TVs are also generally lighter than similar-sized plasmas making it easier to move around or to mount on walls. LCD televisions also have a longer life span than plasma screens.

Plasmas also often suffer from screen burn-in, an affliction not associated with LCD televisions. This is important for those video games your kids leave paused on the screen. However, newer plasmas are less susceptible to this, thanks to improved technology and other features such as built-in screensavers. But we still hear anecdotal reports of burn-ins with new plasmas.

So now, if you’re in the market for a big screen television considering forty-two-inches and above, which do you think is better value to you — plasma vs LCD television? For us, plasma is a safe bet. Plasmas give more bang for your buck, while LCDs can assure you of better resolution but the price difference is a little wide for the moment. But in the event money is not an issue and all you care is to have the sharpest image in town, then a large LCD TV is a nice catch. For the average buyer, plasma vs LCD television, plasma seems the way to go.