# help me buy a plasma TV? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 24, 2004, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-buy-a-plasma-tv/225857 "2004-01-24T01:45:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![abby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/48db29/32.png) [@abby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/abby)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2004, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-buy-a-plasma-tv/225857/1 "2004-01-24T01:45:25Z")
Hi I want to buy a plasma TV. I have the money, but not much knowledge, and most sales people of course, are more concerned about making the sale on anything, than getting the best thing for the job. I have looked at a bunch of different brands, and they all look pretty similar (I am not able to view them side by side, so it’s hard to mkae a better comparison). I guess my main question is, are there any “gotcha’s” with these? Am I going to buy it and have some problem and have to listen to people say “Oh, what did you buy a SONY for - everybody knows they fail after only n hours”, or “eeek, panasonic! NOBODY pays more than y for one of them!”. Well, on price, the places I go to are being competitive… I just want something good. Is there that much different between brands of the same size and similar specs? Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2004, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-buy-a-plasma-tv/225857/2 "2004-01-24T19:49:46Z")
IANA TV expert, but was talking to a fellow who does large-scale video support at live concerts and corporate meetings. He said to WAIT ONE YEAR or so. Why? - Apparently plasma TVs are good, but the gases used in generating the picture lose their effectiveness after 5 - 7 years. - In about a year a new large scale format is going to be released - something like “Rear Projection Digital” or something like that. Apparently it is as clear at scale as Plasma, doesn’t have the directionality problems of LCD, doesn’t lose acuity over time and will be much cheaper that the other large screen formats. I have done NO RESEARCH on this, but the guy was a professional and sounded like he knew what he was talking about… If you find out anything, do let us know. ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2004, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-buy-a-plasma-tv/225857/3 "2004-01-24T20:11:31Z")
IANA TV expert either, but I work for a place where they pay them lots of money. They just bought three of them and put one in the lobby. Everyone’s pretty much in agreement that it looks terrible, no matter where you stand. Up close, you can count the pixels. Further back, the picture looks squashed and stretched. And this is after careful alignment by the Chief Broadcast Technician. I overheard one of the tech guys saying “well, that’s 24 grand down the toilet…” I’d heed the advice of WordMan, and wait at least a year. I think the technology is too new and they have more bugs to iron out of it before you should drop a boatload of cash on it. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2004, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-buy-a-plasma-tv/225857/4 "2004-01-24T20:22:24Z")
Over Christmas when the office was pretty empty we hooked up the overhead projector in one of the conference rooms to a TV aerial, instead of the computer it was attached to. Everyone who watched it agreed they would rather have that at home than a TV that costs 3 to 4 times as much. Watching sport where the image is almost life size is pretty cool. ---
**Author:** ![psychomonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/dec6dc/32.png) [@psychomonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychomonkey)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2004, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-buy-a-plasma-tv/225857/5 "2004-01-24T20:42:25Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > IANA TV expert, but was talking to a fellow who does large-scale video support at live concerts and corporate meetings. He said to WAIT ONE YEAR or so. Why? > > - Apparently plasma TVs are good, but the gases used in generating the picture lose their effectiveness after 5 - 7 years. > > - In about a year a new large scale format is going to be released - something like “Rear Projection Digital” or something like that. Apparently it is as clear at scale as Plasma, doesn’t have the directionality problems of LCD, doesn’t lose acuity over time and will be much cheaper that the other large screen formats. > > I have done NO RESEARCH on this, but the guy was a professional and sounded like he knew what he was talking about… > > If you find out anything, do let us know. Having done the research, I can say that yes, this is very true. Plasma TVs need to be recharged every so often. The people I know with money to spend on this kind of thing are going with the RPD. And dont trust your eyes in the store, they all generally use poor quality input signal that makes things look worse than they are. ---
**Author:** ![Muad\_Dib](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/35a633/32.png) [@Muad\_Dib](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muad_Dib)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2004, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-buy-a-plasma-tv/225857/6 "2004-01-24T21:41:51Z")
I am still waiting for the OLED screens to come out and make _everything_ else obsolete. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Ash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71c47a/32.png) [@Mr.Ash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Ash)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2004, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-buy-a-plasma-tv/225857/7 "2004-01-25T00:25:50Z")
> [@psychomonkey](#): > > Having done the research, I can say that yes, this is very true. Plasma TVs need to be recharged every so often. Most research points to “recharging” plasmas being a common myth. Here’s an exhaustive [FAQ](http://www.avsforumfaq.com/~plasma/#refill) that may help you with any other questions you may have about the technology. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2004, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-buy-a-plasma-tv/225857/8 "2004-01-25T05:56:28Z")
Not sure of your location but plasma also has a problem either above a certain elevation or when subjected to a certain temperature range… I think it’s the elevation. My F-I-L, who lives in Colorado, bought an LCD instead for this very reason. Someone in a recent thread on this topic also intimated that better technology and lower prices will likely find union within a year or so, making frenzied bastards of us all. ---
**Author:** ![drm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e57/32.png) [@drm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drm)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2004, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-buy-a-plasma-tv/225857/9 "2004-01-25T17:51:58Z")
There is something coming out callled Liquid Crystal on Silicon (LCOS). According to one of my teachers (who is an expert in this area), the other high resolution displays are much harder to manufacture and don’t have the resolution of a Liquid Crystal on Silicon display. LCOS’s resolution can be as high as 1920 by 1080 which is higher than anything else out there. Instead of my trying to explain it, here’s some info [here](http://www.intel.com/design/celect/technology/lcos/). Philips has one out for about $4300 but I’d wait a year or so until they’re worked out any kinks the first generation might have and they use the technology to the height of it’s potential. The best advice I can give though is to go to a high end electronics store (as opposed to Best Buy or Future Shop or whatever other chain stores are in the USA). They know their stuff and know that there’s too much at stake to try and screw you into buying a TV you don’t need. They have always been very helpful to me. ---
**Author:** ![abby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/48db29/32.png) [@abby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/abby)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2004, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-buy-a-plasma-tv/225857/10 "2004-01-28T03:22:27Z")
Thanks for your help guys, I really appreciate it. abby ---
**Author:** ![Teelo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8491ac/32.png) [@Teelo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teelo)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2004, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-buy-a-plasma-tv/225857/11 "2004-01-28T05:50:09Z")
I’d like to know why I have never seen a ‘Normal’ TV beside a Plasma TV in a store like Best Buy. Everyone says Plasma is better, but I personally have never seen anyone show you the comparison to see first hand.