Flat panel TV alternatives

June 15, 2004 6:02 PM

With the proper amount of cash, what is the best alternative if I want a flat panel television?

I've been looking at the Dell LCD 30" and drooling in the mall. But I'm wondering if there are other, better ones, or if I'm better of waiting a while.

Ideally, I would like to have my computer act as my DVR, hook it to this LCD panel, and use this for all my computing and TV watching needs (since I write on my laptop anyways).

posted by benjh to shopping (11 comments total)

Are you trying to identify the best alternative to flat panel televisions or the best alternative among flat panel televisions?
posted by NortonDC at 7:39 PM on June 15, 2004

The best alternative is currently to wait. A lot of new technologies (and big improvements to existing ones) are being rolled out or are about to, and pricing on big LCDs is sure to fall significantly. I'd stay away from plasma; it's a dead-end technology, doesn't have as high a resolution as other technologies, and suffers from fade and burn-in.

If you don't necessarily want an ultra-thin display, just a flat one, DLP (micromirror) technology is probably the most bang for the buck right now, and the Samsung models are considered the best values. However, LCOS is beginning to hit the market and promises to give DLP technology a run for its money. I personally am waiting at least for the next generation of DLP (with Sequential Color Recapture) before buying into HDTV, and at that time I will probably choose between DLP and LCOS.

By the way, the Dell you're looking at won't do native 1080i HDTV, if that matters to you.
posted by kindall at 8:12 PM on June 15, 2004

I'd say wait as well. Neither LCD or plasma are ready for prime time, at least not unless you're willing to spend serious cash.

Look at LCD's carefully. Not with the gosh-wow of the store, but look for things that will irritate you when you've had them for a year.

For me and my taste, they still can't keep up with motion well enough. Turn on a football/soccer game, and wait for a big pan including the stands as someone runs down the field. Odds are, the screen (or at least the parts with the crowd) will disintegrate into a big, jumbly mess. I don't even like football (or soccer), but seeing that once was a reminder that the tech still has Serious Flaws. Certainly the picture will nowhere near as good as with a $2500 CRT tv.

And plasmas still only last something like 5 years. No point at all.

And if you're going to spend $10K+, go get a front projector. Hell, even if you're not going to spend $10K, think hard about putting a projector in one spot and a flat panel (ie, a screen) on the wall.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 11:27 PM on June 15, 2004

You can do the projector and screen for quite a bit less that $10K, can't you? This particular solution is really intriguing to me, but I would be worried about being able to get enough brightness. Anyone have any experience with projectors?
posted by mr_roboto at 1:54 AM on June 16, 2004

Brightness is easy with projectors. The problem is proper darkness.
posted by Jairus at 2:43 AM on June 16, 2004

I was also considering the projector idea, which I think I have enough room for. (Front projection, I don't really like the rear projection televisions.)

However, aren't there issues with burn in, especially with things like game systems? Or is that only things of yesteryear. Anyone have any experience with these know how many lumens it should be to get a proper viewing in normal light?
posted by benjh at 4:15 AM on June 16, 2004

My roomate and I have an InFocus X1 in our living room, pushing out 82" of glory. If you want size, this is the way to go. We run our DVD, DirectTV, XBox, and Computer through it. The big downside is brightness of the picture. It needs to be pretty dark to get a good picture. We need to go into 'Vampire' mode to watch TV during the day, which is a bit of a inconveinence. As well, some people complain of a 'Rainbow' effect, where you see blotches of RGB when you blink / pan your eyes. Some people complain it makes it unwatchable after awhile. I had a similar effect at first, but I think once my eyes quit darting all over the screen, everything was fine. The picture is brilliant and well worth the $1250 investment. Plus its portable!
posted by jasondigitized at 4:34 AM on June 16, 2004

As well, some people complain of a 'Rainbow' effect, where you see blotches of RGB when you blink / pan your eyes.

This is an artifact of DLP and is supposed to be significantly reduced by Sequential Color Recapture, which is what I'm waiting for.
posted by kindall at 8:39 AM on June 16, 2004

My brother has an InFocus X1, with a shuttlePC and an HD tuner card. To do the setup right can be tricky -- you need long VGA cables in the ceiling, maybe a quiet box, etc. It's a fantastic setup, though, as long as you're OK with having to dim the lights to watch television. Also, regular TV blown up to giant size isn't all that pleasing; the flaws are magnified. I think you get used to the rainbow effect over time.

I have a large Sharp Aquos LCD. It's damned good but it isn't perfect; it doesn't produce the absolute best picture in the universe. Plasma makes a better picture and is cheaper at the same size; however, plasmas consume lots of power, run hot and have a small risk of burn-in.

It did a lot of research before buying, but there were still some things I overlooked -- some pleasant and unpleasant surprises. I've been working on a generalized buying guide but it isn't done yet.

My advice is this: Start with the room. Think about the dimensions of the room you're putting it in, and also about the dimensions of the room you may put it in next. Where will you sit, and how large do you want the image to appear? Most of these technologies work in a specific size range that doesn't completely overlap with the others. Example: LCDs go up to 37 inches, but not much larger. There's a 45" Sharp coming out but it costs too much. Plasmas go from 37 inches to 60 inches. Front projectors go from 60 inches up. DLP rear projectors are in the plasma range, but I wouldn't buy one for other reasons.

Oh. And read the plasma and flat panel display forum at avsforum.com. It's very plasma-centric but there's a lot of good information in there.
posted by coelecanth at 8:58 AM on June 16, 2004

Unless you just have to have flat, you can get a good 61" (or is it 60"?) Sony DLP for under $4000. I had a friend who got on several months ago and it's amazing. I have to admit that if I had a little less impulse control I'd get one right now.

I was underwhelmed by plasma and LCD but DLP seems to be where it's at. It's basically "flat" and for a 61" TV it only was 120 pounds. The only problem is the screen is too good. There aren't many HD channels (namely Discovery HD, ESPN, HBO and a few HD movie channels) with the DirecTV HD package they got. Consequently the screen has to upscale the crappy resolution to its HD quality. It looks crappy but you get used to it. And by used to it I mean just watch HD channels. Watching a discovery program tour America in HD is seriously like being there. If you can make a bunch of jaded, cynical college students watch a show on small town america for an hour then you know it's gotta be good.
posted by geoff. at 9:38 AM on June 16, 2004

We have a Samsung 43" DLP, and it rocks. You wouldn't know it's a projection TV. Great black levels and brightness. Anything in HD is just breathtaking.
posted by swank6 at 3:15 PM on June 16, 2004