Problems: Plasma vs LCD vs CRT

[Nicholas]

Hi guys

Is it just me or do plasmas generally seem more unstable than the LCDs?
I like the colors on plasma, but I still think the image is somewhat unclean
and cannot hold up to scrutiny up close.
I've had several plasmas, and they all seem to have a somewhat problematic
picture in areas. Not the sparklies fault, but a sort of slight grain in certain areas.
I also observe banding to some extent.

Also, plasmas reflective screen with the coating looks horrible. Maybe I should just
remove the coating once and for all

As my main viewing device, I have a Marquee 8500 CRT projector. When I
go up to the screen, the image is smooth and nice. No artifacts or any
problems. The projector was made in 1999 and I bought it in 2003. Running
ever since, with no problems. (I removed the coating on the lenses years ago)

So what do the experts say? Is plasma the problem-child of the three
technologies, or is it just me?

Nicholas

[Moreno83]

Re: Problems: Plasma vs LCD vs CRT

I dont really agree with you. Im definately not a expert.....

I got a Philips 8404 ambilight LCD tv with digital television ( full hd input via glass viber ) and the picture is really amazing! ( Tv is from 2010 ) However , if i look from 15cm distance the picture is not that good , well its good but i also see little blocks.
When i do the same with my GT20E plasma the picture is even better and i prefer plasma over LCD.

CRT is a whole different story and i dont think you can compare those 3 with eachother because its total different technology.
And IF you compare then you need 3 of those from the same year.

You probably will get less problems with CRT but there is not much technology in these screens and dont forget , nowadays it must be the best in quality for less less money

[tom66]

Re: Problems: Plasma vs LCD vs CRT

You're probably seeing dithering (pixels flickering between levels on otherwise solid colour), and yes, it's one limitation of plasmas. The issue being that plasmas can only make pixels lit or not. So, they break each display period into 10 fields where each pixel is lit or not in a given field for a different length of time. These fields combine to give the display a wide intensity range. It's still not enough though, so most plasmas will use spatial and temporal dithering to create the illusion of more bit depth.

Banding exists on some plasmas, mostly a software limitation, I don't see it on Kuros or modern Panasonic sets, with the exception of Dynamic False Contour, which will appear if you flick your eyes over the screen quickly. Not a major issue for me, it's due to the subfield multiplexing technology.

However, I don't think this is a problem with the display tech as long as you watch it from a normal viewing distance of at least 6 feet and don't try and flick your eyes over the screen all the time.

Reflections? Kuro and modern Panny/Sammy bond the filter to the glass... no more internal glass reflections... but it is a glass screen which does mean you will get reflections from light in the room (this is one thing that makes plasmas not ideal for brightly lit rooms)

Plasma offers superior contrast, colour rendition and motion performance. But, it uses more power, and has lower large-area brightness. I personally have a 6 year old Pioneer Kuro, it is the best plasma... well, the best TV I have ever owned.

[tom66]

Re: Problems: Plasma vs LCD vs CRT

One of the main issues I have with LCD (more specifically thin LED-backlit LCD) is the poor picture uniformity on black and terrible image contrast. And the motion trails! I have a Samsung UE46ES8000 - it's my brother's TV I'm fixing - it's a top-of-the-line 46" 1080p 3D Smart LED TV... and the picture is absolutely terrible. I mean, yes, it's bright, but there's NOTHING else redeemable about it. It's over-saturated, black levels are sky high, moving stuff trails like nothing else, and there's huge non-uniformity issues with the black levels...