Non-motoring > Question for Zero...:-) Miscellaneous
Thread Author: Stuartli Replies: 33

 Question for Zero...:-) - Stuartli
Three years ago, when I bought my Panasonic TX-42G20B plasmas TV, you said the end of the world was nigh for such sets.

Just been checking out plasma TV availability at present and Panasonic offer 10, LG 28 and Samsung 24 models...:-)

Still think their demise is almost nigh...?
 Question for Zero...:-) - Dog
Glad I bought my TX-P42G30B last year, was never happy with LCD for some reason, now I know why ;)
 Question for Zero...:-) - mikeyb
I went plasma a couple of years back with a panny TX-P46G20BA.

Personal thing but I found the reproduction of colours, picture quality and ability to watch from any angle sold it to me.

Not sure if its still the case, but when I got mine you got a lot more spec for your money with plasma
 Question for Zero...:-) - Stuartli
Glad people realise now just why I did - and most of my friends and family, including those who work(ed) or owned outlets in the audio/video/appliances retail trade.
 Question for Zero...:-) - Zero
>> Three years ago, when I bought my Panasonic TX-42G20B plasmas TV, you said the end
>> of the world was nigh for such sets.
>>
>> Just been checking out plasma TV availability at present and Panasonic offer 10, LG 28
>> and Samsung 24 models...:-)
>>
>> Still think their demise is almost nigh...?

Yes, now tell me how many LED sets are available? You paid over the top and are still paying with the very much higher power consumption.
Last edited by: Zero on Sun 24 Mar 13 at 20:39
 Question for Zero...:-) - Zero
Oh also, how many Plasma Sets do Sony offer?
 Question for Zero...:-) - -
We recently bought a new large telly, the best bargains did indeed appear to be Plasma but,

when comparing the heat given off Plasma and equal sized LED the difference was vast, the Plasma giving off nearly as much as reasonable room size radiator where the LED's were relatively cool, checking power consumptions showed a marked difference.





 Question for Zero...:-) - Stuu
>>Plasma giving off nearly as much as reasonable room size radiator<<

So buy a TV, get a radiator free? Sounds like a good deal!
 Question for Zero...:-) - R.P.
I thought that !
 Question for Zero...:-) - -
>> So buy a TV, get a radiator free? Sounds like a good deal!
>>

Good point, turn off and go on holiday for the 2 week summer we might get this year and huddle round the Plasma for the the other 50.
 Question for Zero...:-) - Londoner
>> Oh also, how many Plasma Sets do Sony offer?
>>
Zero, Zero. (Couldn't resist that!) :-)

Do S-LCD Corporation still make the LCD screens for the Bravia, now that Samsung have bought out Sony's shares in that (formerly jointly owned) company?
Last edited by: Londoner on Sun 24 Mar 13 at 22:04
 Question for Zero...:-) - Stuartli
>> Yes, now tell me how many LED sets are available?

You paid over the top and are still paying with the very much higher power consumption. >>

Because they are cheap at the lower and middle end of the market.

My Panasonic has an average power consumption of just over 140 watts (rated at 290w) and, on Standby, requires only 0.4 watts (according to Panasonic's website). Certainly its heat output is very low and much less than the 21in CRT it replaced. I do have a 26in LCD (it was a gift), but it's rarely used.

www.panasonic.co.uk/html/en_GB/Products/TX-P42G20B/Specification/3569566/index.html

As for running costs, I pay a fixed amount per month for gas and electricity, which is based on the average annual consumption...:-)
Last edited by: Stuartli on Mon 25 Mar 13 at 10:12
 Question for Zero...:-) - Zero

>> As for running costs, I pay a fixed amount per month for gas and electricity,
>> which is based on the average annual consumption...:-)

Well if you had an LED TV you would be paying less then, because your average annual consumption would be lower.
 Question for Zero...:-) - Stuartli

>> Well if you had an LED TV you would be paying less then, because your average annual consumption would be lower. >>

As I said, I do have an LCD set as well -rarely used. The running costs don't worry me in the slightest and even less so in view of the, to me, vastly superior benefits of a plasma TV...:-)
 Question for Zero...:-) - Dog
>>The running costs don't worry me in the slightest and even less so in view of the, to me, vastly superior benefits of a plasma TV...:-)<<

I'm with this geezer.

^_^
 Question for Zero...:-) - Zero
>> to me, vastly superior benefits of a plasma TV...:-)

And they are? Picture quality wont cut it btw - The quality of your, now old, Plasma is not as good as a modern LED TV. SO what are the vastly superior benefits?
Last edited by: Zero on Mon 25 Mar 13 at 11:38
 Question for Zero...:-) - Stuartli
Never seen an LCD TV yet that has truly impressed me and I see them in various big stores quite regularly.

The picture quality of my Panasonic is still as top notch as the day I bought it (no settings have been changed) and is the envy of quite a few of my family, friends and neighbours...:-)
 Question for Zero...:-) - rtj70
How much did you pay for it out of interest? £699?

Also how did you measure the average power consumption? You didn't just read the manual and round 143W down to 'just over 140W'?
Last edited by: rtj70 on Mon 25 Mar 13 at 12:29
 Question for Zero...:-) - No FM2R
>>The picture quality of my Panasonic is still as top notch as the day I bought it

It may well be; but mostly people can't tell for sure unless its next to another screen for comparison. And your judgement is often affected by the picture you're used to (hue, tone, blend, brightness etc).
 Question for Zero...:-) - Manatee
Plasma, schmasma.

Our TV is a 26" Sony LCD.

You still get the same programmes you know. It makes no difference to me what I watch most of them on.

The only thing that I struggle with is the picture round on Pointless.
 Question for Zero...:-) - DP
Blacks are deeper on a plasma display. You can't get a true black with a backlit panel. Plasmas are also generally better when viewed off-axis.

However...

LED backlit panels have made huge strides in recent years, and now are more than good enough in these areas. They are also lighter, significantly more energy efficient, run cooler, and are more reliable. The LED advantages are much more significant than the disadvantages, IMHO.

Last edited by: DP on Mon 25 Mar 13 at 14:01
 Question for Zero...:-) - Armel Coussine
Nothing wrong with the Panasonic lcd in the other room. But there's nothing wrong either, apart from its bulk and weight, with the Sony digital wide-screen tube in this room. The image is very bright and adjustable, giving away very little to more modern screens, more than good enough for me. It also has very good stereo sound.

The youngters have a projector thing that can project video discs or (with a bit more cobbling) live TV onto a big screen. That's all right if you sit far enough away from it, but is a bit fuzzy if you are too close.
Last edited by: Armel Coussine on Mon 25 Mar 13 at 14:11
 Question for Zero...:-) - Stuartli
>Our TV is a 26" Sony LCD. >>

Do you get smearing on it? That's one of the things I used to detest about LCD sets, especially the bigger Sony Bravia models.
 Question for Zero...:-) - Old Navy
Our main TV is a Sony KDL40W2000. Not noticed any problems with it but I probably don't have HD eyes these days. When it dies it will be replaced by a LED backlit LCD TV.
 Question for Zero...:-) - Duncan
Lifted from a consumer magazine.

LCD vs LED vs Plasma TV

In terms of features and functionality, the different types of TV have similarities, although you'll now rarely find an LCD TV with internet or 3D.

But the million-dollar question – which flat-panel TV technology actually looks better on the screen?

Picture quality
Despite the differences in television technology, in reality the issue is less to do with the hardware and far more to do with the digital processing software inside the TV.

LCD, LED and plasma TVs have to upscale and de-interlace television pictures, and instead of scanning them directly onto the screen like a CRT television, they store pictures and place them onto the TV screen a frame at a time.

The quality of the digital processing software used to hide the side effects of all this, not the technology per se, will often dictate the quality of the picture.

Hence it's the brand of TV rather than the technology which is usually a better indication of quality.

Best TV brand guide - see how Sony, Panasonic, Samsung, LG and other brands perform.

Sound quality
Whereas the picture quality of TVs has steadily improved over the last few years, sound quality has generally deteriorated over the same period. The fashion for ever slimmer televisions means there's less space for a good set of built-in speakers.

Though this can be applied to all types of television, LED TVs tend to be the slimmest and tend to perform more poorly in our audio tests.

Energy use
Taking size into account (typically the bigger the screen the more power it will use) LED TVs are currently the most energy efficient televisions available.

This table shows the average energy use of 42-inch LCD, LED and plasma TVs.

LED, LCD and plasma TV average energy use
Type Screen Size Average energy use Average annual energy cost
LED 42 inch.............. 64 watts.............. £17
LCD 42 inch.............. 107 watts.......... £28
Plasma 42 inch.......... 195 watts ................£49
Table notes
Energy readings are all during normal operation using optimum picture settings. Based on results of testing TVs in 2011 and 2012.
Cutting energy use
No matter what type of TV you have, check what eco features it has. Turned on, they can slash energy use - although they can also sometimes have an adverse effect on picture quality.

 Question for Zero...:-) - Stuartli
Also see:

www.trustedreviews.com/opinions/plasma-and-lcd-tv-tech-explained
 Question for Zero...:-) - Roger.
No "smearing"on our new LED TV, but one of my criteria was a decent refresh rate, which it seems to have.
A super picture too, HD of course where available, but even SD is much better than our old plasma.
 Question for Zero...:-) - Old Navy
What is considered to be a good refresh rate these days ?
 Question for Zero...:-) - rtj70
Well doesn't standard broadcasting on PAL (is that applicable for Freeview etc?) run at 30fps. So I'd say at least 600fps ;-) You get such smooth transitions between each of those frames if the TV updates them 20 times each refresh cycle. And my how clever interpolation fills in that extra details too. And your standard definition broadcasts are upscaled to 1080p and the TV guesses the missing details so well.
Last edited by: rtj70 on Mon 25 Mar 13 at 20:26
 Question for Zero...:-) - Roger.
Frame rate: 400Hz is what ours is. About middle of the road as far as I can see. Cheaper tvs are 50 to 100 HZ. More expensive are up to 800Hz.
 Question for Zero...:-) - rtj70
Cheaper TVs are 50 or 100Hz.... the broadcast is 50Hz in the UK (60Hz in the States). And isn't it still interlaces? So actually 25Hz for changes to frame. More complicated with digital with p-frames etc.

I said 60Hz above but of course UK was always 50Hz.
 Question for Zero...:-) - Stuartli
>> Frame rate: 400Hz is what ours is. About middle of the road as far as I can see. Cheaper tvs are 50 to 100 HZ. More expensive are up to 800Hz.>>

Perhaps you are thinking of this feature (in the case of my Panny)?

"600Hz Sub-field Drive technology lets you view superb full-HD motion and still images with 1,080 lines of resolution. For even greater clarity with motion images, Panasonic uses its own unique image-analysis technology. This technology converts the motion in each scene into data. And each frame is practically displayed for a shorter length of time than in previous systems, to reduce after effects. "
 Question for Zero...:-) - Robbie34
"In terms of features and functionality, the different types of TV have similarities, although you'll now rarely find an LCD TV with internet or 3D"

That is hogwash. Most LCD sets have Internet capability, and most of the 3D TVs are LCDs.

I have a six month old Sony 46" LED backlit that has an Internet connection. I could also have 3D if I'd paid extra for the bits and pieces required.
 Question for Zero...:-) - Manatee
>> >Our TV is a 26" Sony LCD. >>
>>
>> Do you get smearing on it? That's one of the things I used to detest
>> about LCD sets, especially the bigger Sony Bravia models.

It does say Bravia on it.

I don't see any smearing - though it's not the sharpest, close up. From 12 feet away it's fine.

I'll replace it when it dies, if I haven't.

Although I have noticed a trend for tiny writing on TV recently - presumably because they think everybody has a big TV.
Latest Forum Posts