Why Plasma is Better

Digital television is now a reality-- but you're not going to see it the way it was meant to be seen using yesterday's TV sets. Today, we're in the midst of a digital video revolution, thanks to HDTV, DTV, DVD-Video, digital satellite broadcasts and computer video. Plasma display technology is the only way to fully enjoy the dramatically improved image quality of all these digital video sources

Here are some of the many advantages plasma displays provide.

• Higher resolution
• No scan lines
• Exceptional color accuracy
• Widescreen aspect ratio
• Perfectly flat screen
• Uniform screen brightness
• Slim, space-saving design
• Wide viewing angle
• Universal display capability

How do I input a television signal to a plasma screen display?

Plasma monitors do not come with built in tuners. An NTSC/PAL television signal must be passed through a satellite box, cable box, HDTV receiver, VCR/VHS device, or an outboard tuning device. Most of these components offer an RF style cable input (what we think of as a cable connection). Signals are then passed to the plasma TV using the following connections:
1. From a satellite box an s-video cable is normally utilized.
2. From a cable box a composite RCA to RCA or RCA to BNC connection is used.
3. From an HDTV decoder box a 15 pin VGA to 15 pin VGA cable is normally used; though 3 cable component RCA to component RCA or BNC is also often an option.
4. From a VCR/VHS an RCA to RCA or BNC is normally used though S-video is better option if available on the VCR.
5. Optional decoders will have a mix of the above options.

Plasma / Flat TV Video Signal Format

Most video devices accept composite and S-video as two types of signal transmission. Almost all plasma tvs will accept both inputs. However, there is a new standard known as component video. Some of the new DVD players offer a component video output signal in addition to composite and S-video. You will also be able to get component video signals from some satellite systems. Televisions and projectors that are equipped to handle the component video signal will produce a superior video image than those which cannot. If you are interested in optimizing video performance, and you have a video source that offers component video output, check to see which of the plasma tvs on your list are capable of accepting a component video signal. The spec sheet may say component video, or alternatively (Y, R-Y, B-Y) or YPby

Just how do plasma tv screens work?

Plasma TVs use thousands of sealed, low pressure glass chambers filled with a mixture of neon and xenon. Behind these chambers are colored phosphors, one red, one blue, and one green for each chamber. When energized, these chambers of "plasma" emit invisible UV light. The UV light strikes the red, green and blue phosphors on the back glass of the display making them produce visible light.

Plasma TVs Above the Fireplace?

We receive a lot of e-mails asking about the plausibility of placing a Plasma TV monitor above a fireplace. So the following are a few comments to pre-answer some of those inquiries.

Living room configurations often put the fireplace as the central focal point. This leaves a question about where to place the focus in reality - the television. Until recently, there was no way to integrate these two in one space, however with the introduction of plasma TV it became a possibility. The short story is that mounting a plasma display above the fireplace is a great space saving, attractive way to display the panel. This is a very common application.

Will the heat from the fireplace harm the plasma TV?
There are a few precautions to take before implementing this TV application. First, take a thermometer and tape it to the wall above the mantel (where the plasma TV will be placed). Then and build a fire, let it roar while. Check the thermometer. If the temperature is above 90 degrees then the area is receiving too much heat - either escaping from the front of the fireplace and rising up the face, or radiating through the chimney to warm the outside wall. In this situation it would not be advisable to run the plasma for a long period of time while its environment is hot. Though the Plasma TV has its own cooling system, the surrounding heat will force the Plasma TV to work harder to cool itself, thus shortening the life of the unit over time. The Plasma TV may still be run for short periods without harming the unit even with the environment heat at 90 degrees or above.

If the plasma display is not turned on during the operation of the fireplace, then the unit will not be harmed at all even though the temperature surrounding the unit may be warm.

Can the Plasma TV be mounted onto a brick fireplace?
Yes, cement anchors may be used with the wall mount to secure this application.

Will the Plasma Display TV be too high? Can I tilt it?
Even though plasma TVs typically have a 160 degree viewing angle, tilt wall mounts may be purchased if the mantel is high. A tilt wall mount application will allow the user to tilt the unit from up to 15 to 25% vertically. With this mounting installation the user will have the choice between a flat or tilted affect while adding only 1.75 inches depth to the plasma TV. A flat wall mount can add as little as 1.25 inches to the depth. So, the difference is only half an inch.

Can I just place the plasma on the mantel?
A typical table stand for a Plasma TV is between 4 and 6 inches in depth.

Plasma VS. LCD

Which is better, Plasma or LCD? It depends. This is a complicated and detailed topic between two technologies that process and display incoming video or computer input entirely differently. Both technologies are advancing rapidly and both are bringing down costs and end user prices at the same time. The collision between the two will take place in the 40" (diagonal) range of monitor/TV in the very near future.

following are some advantages of each technology and how those advantages relate to a purchaser of either - for different uses:

1) SCREEN BURN-IN
LCD has almost no static image screen burn-in factors to consider. LCD (liquid crystal diode) technology uses essentially a fluorescent backlight to send light through its pixel design, which contains liquid crystal molecules and polarizing substrate to give form to light and color. The "liquid" crystal in an LCD is actually used in its solid state.
Plasma technology does have static image screen burn-in factors to consider. Static images will begin to "burn-in" the image displayed in a short period of time, approximately 15 minutes in some cases. Though the "burn-in" can generally be "washed" out using gray images or continual full color ranges over several hours, burn-in is a significant factor and hindrance to the plasma technology.

Advantage: LCD For applications such as airport displays with flight information, or retail static sales images displaying the same information or pictures on a continual basis - an LCD monitor will be the superior choice.

2) CONTRAST
Plasma technology has come a long way in developing higher contrast images. Plavo now boasts that its plasma displays have a 3000:1 contrast ratio. Plasma technology simply blocks the power emitted (through complicated internal algorithms) to specific pixels in order to form dark or black pixels. While sometimes hurting gray scaling, this technique does produce dark blacks.

LCD by contrast has to increase the power voltage to make pixels darker. Thus, the higher the voltage surging into and through the pixel, the darker the LCD pixel. Though there are improvements in LCD contrast and black level, even the best producers of LCD technology such as Sharp can only produce a contrast of between 500:1 to 700:1.

Advantage: Plasma For scenes with lots of dark and light shown simultaneously from film originated material, DVD content, or action in games relying on lots of black content, plasma will outperform.

3) LONGEVITY
LCD manufacturers claim figures between 50,000 and 75,000 hours for LCD monitors/TVs. An LCD can last as long as the backlight (and backlight bulbs can actually be changed out). This is because the light is passing through a prism effect of the liquid crystal to produce the light and color. It's a substrate so there is nothing to effectively burn out.

Plasma by contrast uses a small electric pulse for each pixel to excite the rare natural gases argon, neon and xenon (phosphors) used to produce the color information and light. As electrons excite the phosphors oxygen atoms dissipate. These rare gases actually have a life and fade over time. Manufacturers of plasma place a time stamp of 25,000 to 30,000 hours on the life of these phosphors and thus, the display itself. They cannot be replaced. There is no phenomenon of "pumping" new gases into a plasma display.

Advantage: LCD by double or more. Again, for applications requiring industrial/commercial use such as 24/7 storefront displays, LCD is superior for longer use, without regard to picture requirements.

4) COLOR SATURATION
Color information is more specifically realized and accurately reproduced in plasma because all of the information needed to manufacture every color in the spectrum is contained in each pixel cell. Each pixel contains a blue, green, and red element to produce accurate color detailing. The saturation resulting from the plasma pixel design produces the most vibrant colors of any type of display in my opinion. Chromaticity coordinates are much more accurate on good plasma panels than on LCDs.

In LCD, controlling light waves at different speeds to allow them to pass through long thin crystal molecules is a more difficult templatefor producing accuracy and vibrancy in color. Color information benefits from the smaller pixel design of most LCD monitors, but would not be as impressive as plasma at the same size pixel level.
Advantage: Plasma by a good margin. For video content especially fast moving images, plasma technology will excel. LCD is preferred when displaying a static computer image, not only because of burn-in, but because it will also produce nice smooth color with this type of setting.

5) ALTITUDE
As mentioned earlier, LCD is a backlit technology with crystal molecules deflecting light at angles to give color and definition. As such, there is nothing to pressure the unit at altitude and no real limitations. This explains the use of LCD screens as the primary viewing screen for the airlines in flight video material.
Since the plasma display element on a plasma TV is actually a glass substrate envelope containing rare natural gases, thinner air causes increased stress on the gases inside the envelope. This increases the amount of power required to run and cool the plasma which causes louder buzzing or fan noise. These problems usually start to occur at around 6500 feet.


6) VIEWING ANGLE
Plasma has always boasted a 160 degree viewing angle, which is as good as it gets. LCD has come a long way toward improving viewing angles. The substrate material on newer generation LCD's by Sharp and NEC has been improved drastically as well as increasing dynamic range. However, they did have a long way to go and there is still a noticeable difference between the two technologies when viewing from angles.

Advantage: Plasma Each cell is lit on its own allowing for superb brightness through every pixel. No backlit device (like LCD) will match up well from the angles with plasma.

7) COMPUTER USE
LCD displays static images from computer extremely effectively and with full color detail, no flicker, and no screen burn in.
Plasma is challenged with static images from computer. Though it will display them well, screen burn in is an issue as well as a "step" effect in the lower resolution panels when displaying static lettering (Powerpoint). Video images are good but there can be some flicker depending upon the manufacturer quality of the unit and the resolution being displayed. Plasma still wins out on angle viewing of course.
Advantage: LCD except at harsh angles.

8) VIDEO PLAYBACK
Plasma will get the nod here because of the excellent performance with fast moving images, high contrast levels, color saturation, and brightness.
With LCD there can be a "trailer" effect during fast pace scenes from video as the technology is much slower reacting to color changes. This results from the light prisms that must be produced from controlling voltages applied to "bend" the light. The higher the voltage applied to the crystal, the darker the image in that section of the LCD panel. This is also the reason for the lower contrast levels.

Advantage: Plasma by a good margin. For DVD, or any streaming video content, TV or HDTV - plasma will deliver non distracting, high contrast (depending on the plasma), high color saturation viewing. LCD has come a long way but is still challenged at the same size comparison while looking great at the smaller sizes.

9) PRODUCTION SIZE AND COST/PRICE
Though both panels are difficult to produce in large panels, plasma has proven the easier of the two as manufacturers have produced plasma panels in the 60" to 63" range. While these displays are still very costly, they have proven that they operate effectively and reliably.

LCD substrate material is difficult to produce in larger sizes without pixel defects. The largest LCD at this moment is a 40" commercial version by NEC. Before that Sharp stretched the LCD horizon from 20" to 22" then 30" and now is just starting to ship its new 37" diagonal widescreen panel.

Advantage: Plasma Even though costs and prices are coming down on both technologies (except the very large plasma panels), plasma still holds the lower cost and higher production capacity and thus pricing advantage. The 50" plasma panel size is extremely popular and is quickly gaining market share from the previously dominant 42" size. This trend of plasma being the lower cost and price producer will likely continue for at least 2 years.

10) VOLTAGE REQUIREMENTS
By using a type of fluorescent backlighting system for light production, LCD has much lower voltage requirements than its plasma counterpart. Plasma by contrast has the challenging requirement of powering hundreds of thousands of transparent electrodes to provide light and excite the encased phosphors of each cell.