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So we’ve decided that in the next little while that we’re going to be buying an HDTV. Maybe an Lcd or a plasma HDTV.

To say that its a confusing thing to do is a mild understatement. You’d think it would be just as simple as going to future shop or best buy looking at which size of HDTV best suits your needs and then buying. Theres a few tips you need to know how to buy an HDTV

But nooooo it would’nt be that simple huh. Turns out that there’s quite the difference between an LCD and a Plasma. Then theres the difference between 1080p and 1080i. The Refresh rate (speed at which a single pixel goes from off to on to back off again.Which type of dvd player you have or are thinking of buying or using if you already have one.

I went out a few weeks ago to Future shop here in town to have a looky look, you know so I could see what was on sale, which types and models of HDTV’s there were, the price range. All so I could budget for the purchase after Christmas. Funny thing I was all good to go until I had a sales rep give me the low down and start asking me a whack of questions.

The questions ran the gamut of and perhaps these are probably good questions before you decide to make the leap from your Current T.V to HDTV.

1. What types of shows do you watch
2. Are you going to be mostly watching sports and fast action shows.
3. Just watching DVD’s
4. Are you going to be gaming on this HDTV
5. Do you have windows in your tv room.
6. Is your tv room dark.

Some quick tips to consider when Buying LCD or Plasma HDTV’s:

• If you want something smaller than 42 inches, look to LCD televisions,
• In 42-inch and 50-inch sizes, plasma had been less expensive than LCD
• in the case of 1080p resolution displays (currently the highest possible resolution), LCD is now the better value
• Plasma TVs are known for their better ability to display dark colors as compared to LCD TVs
• If your room is brightly lit, an LCD TV may be a better choice
• Plasma TV screens have wider viewing angles than LCD flat-panel televisions

So I decided to go on the hunt for some reviews and information so, yo uknow I’m an educated consumer and don’t look like a total fool when Im talking the talk with the sales rep. Hey I’m a guy I have to know these kinda things.

So the first thing I did was type HDTV into google. and came across Cnet and their article on 1080p vs 1080i

Which was somewhat illuminating. Here’s a snippet fromt he page about 1080o vs 1080i

Why 1080p theoretically is better than 1080i 

1080i, the former king of the HDTV hill, actually boasts an identical
1,920×1,080 resolution but conveys the images in an interlaced format
(the i
in 1080i). In a tube-based television, otherwise known as a CRT, (what I have right now) 1080i
sources get "painted" on the screen sequentially: the odd-numbered
lines of resolution appear on your screen first, followed by the
even-numbered lines–all within 1/30 of a second.

Progressive-scan
formats such as 480p, 720p, and 1080p convey all of the lines of
resolution sequentially in a single pass, which makes for a smoother,
cleaner image, especially with sports and other motion-intensive
content. As opposed to tubes, microdisplays (DLP, LCoS, and LCD rear-projection) and other fixed-pixel
TVs, including plasma and LCD flat-panel, are inherently progressive in
nature, so when the incoming source is interlaced, as 1080i is, they
convert it to progressive scan for display.

SO from that I get that 1080p HDTV is a better choice, than 1080i HDTV.

The next thing I had a question about after reading that was what media formats support 1080i or 1080p. This is where I got confused?

What content is available in 1080p?
Really, nothing at this point. Today’s high-def broadcasts are done in
either 1080i or 720p, and there’s little or no chance they’ll jump to
1080p any time soon because of bandwidth issues. Umm ok so do I go with 1080i then?

Ok So I watch more tv than I do movies, so 1080i is better for that.

But what If I want to watch DVD’s?

Make sure your DVD player has an upconversion to HDTV or get a blu ray DVD player. Ok so ours is well a little outdated. Looks like I’ll have to budget in a blu ray or look for a newer style dvd player that upconverts to HD (hi-def). Ok so what the hell does upconverting mean?

"In DTV, the conversion from a lower-resolution input signal to a TV
capable of displaying higher resolutions, such as from an SDTV 480p
signal to an HDTV 1080i native display"

Ok so with all that out of the way. It looks like I’m going with 1080i. The next thing I had to consider was what size. Right now our tv is 21" which is an ok size considering I watch mostly T.Tv, and well now that its hockey season Im watching alot of hockey (Go Sens Go!!)

What Im comfortable with is anything really between 21" and 42" , actually a 42" HDTV is just huge, maybe a little too huge.

I guess you’ve noticed up to this poitn that I have steared clear of the difference between LCD HDTV’s and Plasma HDTV’s

Plasma TV vs. LCD TV

Again I googled it and found this article on Plasma and LCD HDTV’s

Plasma
televisions and LCD TVs are both capable of delivering a relatively big picture
within a thin case, but there are some differences between them.

Plasma
TVs were once mainly available in 42-inch and 50-inch screen sizes, but larger
sizes are now becoming more common. If you want something smaller than 42
inches, look to LCD televisions, which come in a much wider range of sizes.
In 42-inch and 50-inch sizes, plasma had been less expensive than LCD, but
that gap has greatly closed — and in the case of 1080p resolution displays
(currently the highest possible resolution), LCD is now the better value.

Experts
still say that neither plasma nor LCD can quite equal the image you’d get
from a conventional CRT-based HDTV. However, CRT TVs top out at about 32 inches,
and they are both bulky and heavy. But while they might be thin, be aware
that plasma TVs are still quite heavy, often requiring professional installation
(for wall mounts) and good venting to keep them from overheating. LCD TVs
weigh less, but they’re still cumbersome to mount on a wall.

Plasma
TVs are known for their better ability to display dark colors as compared
to LCD TVs. This makes them a good choice for movie watching where dark scenes
are common, and it’s the reason why most reviewers say plasma is a better
choice for a home theater. LCD TVs appear brighter, but they don’t usually
display details in shadowy areas as well. If your room is brightly lit, an
LCD TV may be a better choice. That’s because plasma TVs can sometimes look
washed out in a bright room, and they often have problems with reflections
and glare. The latest plasma screens have anti-reflection or anti-glare coatings,
helping them better cope with ambient light. Reviewers also say that the best
LCD TVs are beginning to catch up to plasma TVs in their ability to display
deep blacks and good shadow detail.

Plasma
TV screens have wider viewing angles than LCD flat-panel televisions. That
means you can sit at more of an angle and still get the best picture. With
most TV technologies, including plasma TV, the picture stays the same from
virtually any angle. With LCD TVs, however, sitting too far to one side will
result in a loss of brightness. In addition, LCD televisions can sometimes
have problems with moving images. That’s because it takes longer for LCD pixels
to switch color than for plasma pixels to change. However, according to reviews,
that is becoming less of a problem in the latest LCD TVs.

You may
have heard of an issue called "burn-in" with plasma TVs. If you
leave the same image on the screen too long, there is a small risk of it being
etched permanently into the screen, creating a lasting impression. Text "crawls" across
the bottoms of news stations and network logos are particular problems. New
technology, however, reduces the risk of burn-in, and analysts at PC Magazine
say that burn-in is no longer a concern. LCD TVs have no burn-in risk.

Plasma
TV panels contain a gas that loses brightness over time. Because of that,
some buyers have been concerned about the life expectancy of a plasma TV.
However, the latest sets have panels that are rated to last up to 60,000 hours
before they lose half their brightness, which translates to over 20 years
if you watch TV eight hours a day. Clearly, most buyers will have long since
replaced their TVs before the plasma panel wears out.

Virtually
all plasma TVs today are HD (high definition), with screen resolutions of
1024 x 768 or 1024 x 1024 (for 42-inch TVs) or 1366 x 768 pixels (for 50-inch
and larger TVs). While that’s still not quite enough to do 1080i HDTV full
justice, all the models can easily handle 720p, which is the other commonly
used HDTV standard. (For more on HD resolutions, see our report on HDTV.)
Full-resolution (1920 x 1080) plasma displays are also now becoming more available
in sizes ranging from 42 to 65 inches

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