Resolution, Contrast Ratio, Brightness etc

[Raigmore]

OK, we want to buy a new TV for the lounge in the £500 to £650 range and there seem to be a few good models around. I am not very technical, but based on what I know and have read, have made a few points and raised a few questions. Please advise.

- I felt that Sony, Panasonic, Toshiba and Samsung makes are worth checking out.

- I understand that LCD TVs are better and more relaible than Plasma TVs. Correct?

- All models that I have looked at have a resolution of 1366x768. Is this about correct for good quality home movie viewing (Satellite TV and DVDs) without being too picky?

- There seems to be a significant difference in the Contrast Ratio between similarly priced models. For example, among two supposed "bestsellers", the Toshiba has a CR of 20,000:1 whereas a similarly priced Panasonic has a CR of only 7000:1; is that going to make a big difference and if so in what way?

- But the Brightness factor is given as 400 CD/m2 for the Toshiba & 500 CD/m2 for the Panasonic. How important is this? PS: We like rich colours.

- Finally, we have several old VHS tapes also that we do not plan to convert to DVD at this stage. In addition to the DVD player, if we wanted to also connect our VHS player to the TV, what connection should I look for in the specs?

Please help!

[Flyer]

Hi, got no idea about lcds but there are a lot of factors that affect your choice...do you have a HD feed like SKYHD or are you looking to use a standard feed? My set up is freeview normal HD / XBOX360 HD / upscaled dvd / VHS recorder (oh the shame!:() until I descide which DVD/Hard disk recorder I want / Wii on component. My mate has a Toshiba 37" LCD & on standard tv (freeview) my Panny 42" plasma blows his away, there's not a lot between them on Xbox360 HD / Wii / upscaled DVD tbh though. We watch a lot of SD stuff at the mo' & the plasma seems to give MUCH better pictures than any of my mates LCD screens tbh. Sorry if this doesn't help much!:( The telly I have can now be got for £630.00!! TH42PX80B:notworthy. Best of luck:)
Edit: Oops...for VHS you'd need a telly with at least scart socket on.

[Raigmore]

We have had Sky-Digital for years but so far not the HD channel subscription. Upgrading the Sky package will not be a problem. Almost all the TVs that we want to buy come with a Freeview package and I want to check if this interferes with Sky-digital.

[Flyer]

Well the general consensus (not scientific or backed up by me in any way with proof) is that plasmas tend to handle sd better than lcds. I can only back this up with my own finding (technically called "watching telly / playing games" on both types!:))& doing LOADS of comparisons with different sources in store & at mates houses. It is correct that it seems to be best to do certain amount of burn in, 200hrs appears to be the suggested time frame, with all the contrast, brightness, colours etc turned to half to help the screen bed in though so this may be where you have heard that plasmas aren't as reliable as lcds...although you do have the worry of stuck / burnt pixels / backlight flooding etc with lcd so each type has it's potential pitfalls...

[LouBarlow]

Plasmas can have stuck pixels too and other associated problems.

I would always get a plasma over an LCD though I have only had one of each in my time, so probably not best to comment scientifically.

[ROne]

Don't get too hung up on spec, CR and RESOLUTION numbers are one thing but our films are made up of more than absolute black/white level and a resolution chart.

The implementation of the technology is perhaps the most important thing, and how it's set-up and calibrated having a strong bearing on PQ.

That said - Plasma can produce a more natural picture in colour saturation terms for me (as well as much purer greyscale), I'm not convinced by flat panel LCD technology just yet.

[snoopstah]

- I felt that Sony, Panasonic, Toshiba and Samsung makes are worth checking out.
Quite probably, but bear in mind that there'll be some bad TVs made by those companies and some good TVs made by other companies - limiting yourself to those four might mean you miss something good.

- I understand that LCD TVs are better and more relaible than Plasma TVs. Correct?
Can open, worms... everywhere!

Better is subjective - only you can decide which is 'better'. LCDs probably are slightly more reliable than plasma screens in that there's slightly less to go wrong, but it's not really worth worrying about too much.

- - All models that I have looked at have a resolution of 1366x768. Is this about correct for good quality home movie viewing (Satellite TV and DVDs) without being too picky?
That's fine, but if you can afford a full HD set (1920x1080) you'll be able to view HD content in all its glory if/when you get HD sources. But it depends on your budget.

- There seems to be a significant difference in the Contrast Ratio between similarly priced models. For example, among two supposed "bestsellers", the Toshiba has a CR of 20,000:1 whereas a similarly priced Panasonic has a CR of only 7000:1; is that going to make a big difference and if so in what way?
Contrast ratio determines the difference between the blackest blacks and the whitest whites (in simple terms!) Typically on LCD screens it's an indication of how black the black bits are - LCDs typically let the backlight 'leak' through, so that even when the TV tries to show a completely black image, some light gets through and it looks grey.

However, manufacturers tend to measure contrast ratios in different ways, and will almost always use settings that would not be desired for home use, so it's probably not worth putting too much faith in the numbers - better to see the TV in action.

- But the Brightness factor is given as 400 CD/m2 for the Toshiba & 500 CD/m2 for the Panasonic. How important is this? PS: We like rich colours.
Brightness isn't that important - all modern LCDs are typically extremely bright anyway - generally you'll end up turning down the brightness, especially if you watch it in a dark room. The brightness might be an issue if you plan on watching the screen a lot in the middle of the day and have a very bright (south-facing, lots of windows) room, but realistically, again, this figure is more about advertising headlines than anything else.

The good thing about LCDs is that they're excellent at rich colours!

- Finally, we have several old VHS tapes also that we do not plan to convert to DVD at this stage. In addition to the DVD player, if we wanted to also connect our VHS player to the TV, what connection should I look for in the specs?
Depends on what your VHS player outputs - I imagine it's got SCART out, so you'll probably want a TV with 3+ SCART sockets (one for Sky, one for the DVD player, one for the VHS). If the DVD or VHS have a passthrough you could get away with only two though.

[ROne]

Brightness, Black-level and Backlight get confusingly inter-changed on spec for LCDs.

[Raigmore]

Thanks everyone. Actually, there was an unexpected development when we went to Currys on this BH Monday. They had some very good discounts and a staff member who I know well showed me some very good offers. The wife and I decided on the spot to replace both our TVs and went for a 42" Panasonic Viera Plasma TV for the lounge to marry to the Home Cinema speakers and a 32" Sony Bravia LCD for the bedroom. Free Home Delivery & Installation next week!

[LouBarlow]

Sounds like a good choice.

I forgot to say, don't get too hung up on resolutions. It's becoming my catchphrase I know, but a decent 720p panel will always outperform an average 1080P one, especially at these screen sizes.

I have a 720P Pioneer plasma, and have not seen a 1080p set yet that has beaten it, in the same price bracket.

[Flyer]

Top choice mate, nice one & glad we were able to help.