jfbari Posted April 7, 2007 Posted April 7, 2007 Technical expertise is not my foray so please excuse my ignorance. I keep hearing and reading that true blacks are currently better on Plasma displays than LCD's although LCD's are getting much better at it. Reason im led to believe is that with LCD's they rely on a backlight in order to operate so true black is not technically obtainable. On the other hand, Plasma does not rely on backlight of any sort and in fact when a black/dark image is shown then the pixels are actually turned off by the panel, hence a true black? Correct me here please if I have the wrong idea. Now for my question, if the above is close to a basic truth, how does a Plasma over time loose the ability to display true blacks when to attain its blacks it turns off the pixles?? I have read on this forum that Plasmas tend to loose their ability to accurately display true blacks over a period of time and ending up with a dark grey. Shoot me down if im off the track completely. Cheers,
croops Posted April 7, 2007 Posted April 7, 2007 This whole 'true blacks' debate is bullsh*t. Don't get sucked in. Buy the TV that - in your eyes - looks best to you.
tom_tank Posted April 7, 2007 Posted April 7, 2007 Technical expertise is not my foray so please excuse my ignorance..........Now for my question, if the above is close to a basic truth, how does a Plasma over time loose the ability to display true blacks when to attain its blacks it turns off the pixles?? I have read on this forum that Plasmas tend to loose their ability to accurately display true blacks over a period of time and ending up with a dark grey. Shoot me down if im off the track completely. Cheers, Pixels in plasma's don't lose the ability to produce true blacks over time. The pixels are "primed", which generates a small amount of light. This is there from new - You will (more or less) get the same blacks over the years. So - before you purchase, view the panels you like in the same lighting conditions in which you're likely to use yours. There is a promise of true(er) blacks on some upcoming panels however. LCD's on the other hand, are also getting closer to being able to block the backlight you mention, completely (or close enough to not make any difference).
jfbari Posted April 7, 2007 Author Posted April 7, 2007 Appreciate the education. Now I understand a bit more. BTW, already made my purchase a few months ago, Pana TH42PX600A, and couldnt be happier.
AndrewWilliams Posted April 7, 2007 Posted April 7, 2007 If you're going for home theatre and want a top quality picture, blacks are critical but for the average Joe who just wants a TV for the lounge room it's not as important.
nis200979 Posted April 7, 2007 Posted April 7, 2007 Now for my question, if the above is close to a basic truth, how does a Plasma over time loose the ability to display true blacks when to attain its blacks it turns off the pixles??Cheers, What they lose is brightness. Possibly owners of older (and more likely rubbishy) plasmas with excessive wear are turning up the brightness to compensate for the darker image. Obviously when you have a constant contrast setting (most early plasmas, or plasmas on default dynamic setting, are on 100% contrast) and you turn up brightness you get brighter whites, AND brighter blacks. Old plasmas had only 10-20,000hr ratings on them, now we have 60,000 half life, or Fujitsu with 120,000 hrs (full life-same thing, just the usual marketing bullsh!t) And new plasmas are much brighter to start with. Most good quality plasmas can be adjusted well with VERY low brightness settings and 75-80% contrast settings. As they wear, you can up the brightness, and hopefully up the contrast ratio too, and still have a quality image. Like LCDs, plasmas have improved incredibly in the last 2-3yrs.
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