LCD and Plasma Bargains

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So I went into cats digital yesterday and had a look at the screens.
I looked at that Samsung 42" c430 plasma and the Samsung 46" c550 lcd (they never had the 40" on display, which is what I wanna buy). I also looked at the Soney 40EX400 but I didn't like the look of the tv.. The Samsungs are just prettier.

Now this is what I felt when viewing them side-by-side and both were displaying the same HD feed. Bear in mind the 40" LCD is R6999 (I was looking at the 46" which is exactly the same, just 6" bigger) and the plasma is R5799 .

Plasma
pros
R1200 cheaper
Extra 2"
Better viewing angle
600Hz as opposed to 50 (edit)

cons
only 720p
Screen was almost like a mirror with dark images
Colour was actually was better on the lcd as it was brighter
Text was not as good on the plasma
Less hdmi ports


When you up close the plasma looks really good, but when you take a few steps back and they side by side, I felt the LCD had better image quality. Granted it's not that much better to warrant R1200 extra, but the res is what got me, and so I've decided to go LCD.
 
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I think your post is incorrect, naked.

You mentioned plasma and cons ... is that a typo?
 
Guys, Yes, you two doing the sniping.
Stop spoiling a good thread. You have rehashed your (informed) opinions many times. Now you are just spoiling it for the rest of us.
Howabout using PM's until you agree to differ?
Look at the name of this thread.
 
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Spectrum - is there anything wrong with my previous post, aside from the tongue in cheek first paragraph?

There was no reason to reply IMO *shrug*
 
BeLgaRiOn said:
Hi guys,

I am in the market for a TV for my apartment. I'll be using it mostly for HD movies and streaming through my pc. I will eventually hook it up to a PS3 or XBOX. Is this a good tv for its price? http://www.catsdigital.co.za/samsun...m_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=shopping+comparison .

Also, do you know if the above TV runs at 100Hz?
Click to expand...

I don't think the Series 5 is 100hz.

By the way, pricewise I'd definatley take a look at a Digital Experience in Fourways. I went yesterday and they had a few decent specials on and have a huge array of TV's to look at and compare
 
BeLgaRiOn said:
Hi guys,

I am in the market for a TV for my apartment. I'll be using it mostly for HD movies and streaming through my pc. I will eventually hook it up to a PS3 or XBOX. Is this a good tv for its price? http://www.catsdigital.co.za/samsun...m_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=shopping+comparison .
Also, do you know if the above TV runs at 100Hz?
Click to expand...


I see here thay say 50 Hz :wtf:
http://www.samsung.com/hk_en/news/newsRead.do?news_seq=18567&gltype=localnews

I thought it was over 100 actually.. :( will have to add more pros to the plasma
 
For futureproofing, I would definitely not consider 50Hz.
Add to that must-have features like Interconnectivity, USB etc, and you prolly have the foundation elements of the next gen TV's. Also size does count (if you have room for it).
Personally I believe that LED's are still too new and the technology still has to sort out problems, but IMHO LED's are the way of the future (2013?). However, I just recently went for LCD and am happy.
 
Spectrum1 said:
For futureproofing, I would definitely not consider 50Hz.
Add to that must-have features like Interconnectivity, USB etc, and you prolly have the foundation elements of the next gen TV's. Also size does count (if you have room for it).
Personally I believe that LED's are still too new and the technology still has to sort out problems, but IMHO LED's are the way of the future (2013?). However, I just recently went for LCD and am happy.
Click to expand...

You do realize that the so-called LED tv's are LCD tv's that are LED backlit, right? They're not actual OLED screens by any means. In any case, they do seem to offer very vibrant colours, which results in a more pleasant viewing experience.
 
Dolby said:
Why do you feel you need to jump in to every post and correct me?
Click to expand...

PostmanPot said:
This all has very little relevance to you, but I am compelled to reply because if you are not careful, Dolby will try to keep you in the dark by confirming your misconceptions about plasma.
Click to expand...

Everything in that post - opening IR paragraph aside - is the truth and factual?
There's nothing wrong with anything said - but you feel the need to reply and say pretty much ... nothing of value?
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Firstly, show me how dimmer whites would affect colour accuracy (whites are totally different to blacks). Secondly, show me where plasmas always have dimmer whites.

Call it LED, LED-LCD, LED lit LCD, Light Emiting Diode Liquid Crystal Display or whatever you want - we all know what it is. There's no secret about what it is and we all are talking about the same at the end of the day.
Click to expand...

Actually we all don't know what it is, unless you are talking about people with experience with TVs. Why would I ask you to name it correctly when speaking to people in the know? Obviously I am talking about when you are speaking to people less frequent to this forum. Use your thinker, mate.

Constrast is the difference between the deepestblacks and the brightestwhites - it's got nothing to do with colour. Liquid Crystal Display TVs (also known as LCD - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LCD_television) have brighter whites. If they have deeper blacks, the difference between them is greater and therefore contrast is greater. Does it make sense?
Click to expand...

No need to get "smart" and type out LCD in full, you've already made your point about LED-LCDs. Also, no need to get smart and think I do not know what contrast is. Bright whites are a lot less significant than deep blacks, so you must be really clutching at straws if you're using it to punt LCD. Show me where plasmas suffer as a result of having dimmer whites, seems the best TVs in the world (plasmas) don't suffer.

Furthermore, why are you telling us about dynamic contrast ratio and making out as if it's important to end users? Give us the native contrast ratios for a true indication of performance.

No - I meant the letter code referring to the year. Yes - I know what the codes mean. A Series 6 from 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 , 2010 and 2011 - have different pictures and black levels. Had I said 'the series 6 has equivilant black levels' it's be incorrect as from what I've read, it's 2009 models onwards (ie B, C etc) do.
Click to expand...

Fair enough, although the letters do not refer to years, as A and B seemed to have both been out in 2009? And besides, the Series 6 came out in 2008/2009 from what I see. I get your point though, I was under the impression they were for the most part the same in image quality.

You mentioned lighting when you explained what Light Emitting Diode Liquid Crystal Television systems really are ie edge lit. I agreed with you - don't be so defensive.
Click to expand...

I didn't explain what LED-LCD is technically, and I didn't mention anything about lighting. I merely said it's slimmer and requires less power. You addressed rtzouves, unless you were addressing a previous post that I made which he wouldn't have seen?

As for the 'best TV in the world being plasma' - I have no idea what you are trying to say ... ?
A random sentenance thrown in for what ... ?
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It means that the best plasma beats the best LCD, and therefore plasma is overall better - simple, really.
 
Dolby said:
As for me being anti plasma - that's also incorrect.
Click to expand...

It's correct because a lot of your negative plasma views are based on your experiences with old technology plasma, meaning you cannot fully grasp how newer plasmas have improved, especially in terms of IR and IB-I.

You're anti LCD without ever owning one - ever. You're protecting your own investment.
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I don't need to have owned one in order to make a correct judgement. You're saying that it's impossible to test one without owning one. Yeah right. Liek I've said in the past, 90% of my friends have LCD where I've spent considerable time. Am I only allowed to test LCD once it's in my house?

I'm not anti LCD, I just know at the lower end of the market, they suck at SD TV and sport, which is what I use my TV for. And, I know at the higher end of the market, plasmas are better, i.e. the plasma technology overall is superior. I have no problem in admitting that they are both very similar at the mid range of the market.

At least I bought a plasma and had it for 2 years before making the switch and realised it wasn't idea for me. And technology couldn't have changed that much as my issue was IR ... which even now, people are pointing out.
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Okay, you had no friends with plasma in order to decide. Different to my case of having friends with LCD. The technology has definitely changed since you were of the opinion you could burn my plasma in after 2 hours of Xbox gaming, when we have multiple forumites commenting on their awesome plasma gaming experience with absolutely no burn-in.

The difference could be that I don't want to have to wait 5 minutes for things to settle and clear?

Nor do I, and nor do many other plasma owners, because of the improvements. Many plasma owners get no IR at all. Those that do are simply less paranoid than you.

I don't want to stop viewing and take a break from gaming etc every 2 hours?
I don't want to sweep the screen with special Pixel software?
Click to expand...

Well you should in order to help your eyes out.

Your purposes are very different to those of people who want TV/sport, and therefore do not apply to those sorts of people. Stick to advising PC users/gamers LCD, as I do.
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nakedpeanut said:
So I went into cats digital yesterday and had a look at the screens.
I looked at that Samsung 42" c430 plasma and the Samsung 46" c550 lcd (they never had the 40" on display, which is what I wanna buy). I also looked at the Soney 40EX400 but I didn't like the look of the tv.. The Samsungs are just prettier.

Now this is what I felt when viewing them side-by-side and both were displaying the same HD feed. Bear in mind the 40" LCD is R6999 (I was looking at the 46" which is exactly the same, just 6" bigger) and the plasma is R5799 .

Plasma
pros
R1200 cheaper
Extra 2"
Better viewing angle
600Hz as opposed to 50 (edit)

cons
only 720p
Screen was almost like a mirror with dark images
Colour was actually was better on the lcd as it was brighter
Text was not as good on the plasma
Less hdmi ports


When you up close the plasma looks really good, but when you take a few steps back and they side by side, I felt the LCD had better image quality. Granted it's not that much better to warrant R1200 extra, but the res is what got me, and so I've decided to go LCD.
Click to expand...

I'm glad you've made your decision after checking out both in store. For mainly gamers, LCD is definitely the way. However, there are a few points which I'm interested in.

Were you able to have the salesman display 1080p on both TVs, and look from viewing distance? Or is the 720p thing just a factor in the back of your mind, where you weren't actually able to test the difference?

Plasmas are more reflective (perhaps since you are prepared to fork out R6,999 on the 40" LCD, you should have compared to the 42" PS42C450 at ±R6,500 which has a better anti reflective coating, so I've heard). I also want to know, is your room as bright at Cats?

Colour being better on the LCD sounds like a result of stores being bright, which is where plasma loses out as it is better suited for rooms with less bright light/curtains/blinds. LCD is definitely more suited for bright rooms.

The point I find most interesting is that you say the plasma looks better close-up. This is the opposite of what most people say, because the plasma's plasma cells "bounce" around when you're up close. Unless you are referring to other factors, but I can understand how the bounciness would be most noticeable when comparing to LCD up close.

I'm happy you've made your decision. The sheer size of these screens, regardless of LCD or plasma, is enough to bowl anyone over, Enjoy your new screen!
 
BeLgaRiOn said:
Hi guys,

I am in the market for a TV for my apartment. I'll be using it mostly for HD movies and streaming through my pc. I will eventually hook it up to a PS3 or XBOX. Is this a good tv for its price? http://www.catsdigital.co.za/samsun...m_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=shopping+comparison .

Also, do you know if the above TV runs at 100Hz?
Click to expand...

Hi

Sounds like LCD would suit you well. You should still check out plasma though as many prefer it for movies to LCD (I'm talking entry plasma vs entry LCD).

The LA40C530 is a 60Hz TV, but since you're not into sport, you should be just fine without it. I'm not sure how much of a difference gaming is on 100Hz, but I've gamed plenty on 60Hz LCD and have been more than happy, never noticing any motion blur. Entry plasmas are 600Hz which is why they suit people who watch sport.

Go to a store and check out the LA40C430 (±R7,000) vs the PS42C430/C450 (±R6,000) to get a good idea of which you would prefer. I'd say LCD.
 
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Dolby said:
I think your post is incorrect, naked.

You mentioned plasma and cons ... is that a typo?
Click to expand...

That would be relevant/funny if people actually said plasmas have no cons. These are obviously people from your dream world who claim plasmas have no cons. :p
 
Dolby said:
Spectrum - is there anything wrong with my previous post, aside from the tongue in cheek first paragraph?

There was no reason to reply IMO *shrug*
Click to expand...

Your tongue in cheek reply was the whole problem, because an ignorant person would believe it, as it would confirm their misconceptions. You should word your posts more clearly so they are more balanced and be weary of the effect you can have on the less informed.
 
Messugga said:
You do realize that the so-called LED tv's are LCD tv's that are LED backlit, right? They're not actual OLED screens by any means. In any case, they do seem to offer very vibrant colours, which results in a more pleasant viewing experience.
Click to expand...

Furthermore, the LED-LCDs we see are only edge-lit by LEDs.

Back-lit LED-LCDs (where the entire LCD matrix is back-lit by LED) that allow local dimming are very expensive.

And yes, OLED are crazy expensive and IIRC are not available in sizes bigger than ±10" at this stage.
 
BeLgaRiOn said:
Thanks guys! I think I'm going to settle on the Samsung LA32C630 . It's slightly smaller but at least it's 100 Hz. (http://www.justcat.co.za/index.php?...m_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=shopping+comparison)
Click to expand...

That's a great 32" LCD TV, but from what I know they are end of life? Is JustCat Cats' online shop? Never heard of it. Many of these online shops have outdated products/pricing. I tried looking for a 32" Series 6 before I got my plasma, but even the Samsung distributors could not get them. This was 6 months ago.

Don't forget to check out 40" LCD/42" plasma - the size might be enough to win you over. Perhaps you're overlooking the 60/100Hz thing.
 
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