whats the basic differences between plasma and lcd tv and which is more reliable?

Answer 1

This is one of the best Plasma Vs. LCD articles.

http://www.plasmatvbuyingguide.com/plasmatvreviews/plasma-vs-lcd.html

I personally like Plasma TVs over LCDs, they just look so much better. As far as reliability, they're about the same as traditional CRT televisions in terms of reliability. Worry about picture quality!

Answer 2

This question has been asked many times, so I've formulated my standard answer. Here it is:

Picture quality of plasma is brighter, better color, better blacks than LCD. (There is something about looking directly at glowing phosphors!)

Sharpness is the same for equivalent pixel counts. Some newer LCDs have 1080 x 1920 resolution, most plasmas still in the 768 x 1024 range.

Plasma is heavier and uses more power than flat panel LCD.

There are reports that plasmas are not as reliable or they don't last as long, but that is no longer true with the latest models. (Both LCD and plasmas have 60,00hr expected lifetime.) Plasma phosphors dim slowly over time (but not as fast as CRT phosphors); but direct view LCDs use flourescent lamps which also dim and eventually burn out (some are replaceable). Projection LCD sets have bulbs of limited life, but are replaceable and the lifetime is a few thousand hours of viewing.

Plasmas are subject to burn-in. A stationary image left on the screen for a long time could produce a permanent ghost image. The most risk is when viewing a lot of 4:3 ratio pictures (non-HD), which are displayed with vertical dark areas on the left and right to fill in the wide screen. Newer plasma designs have minimized this problem and here are ways to avoid it: many sets have a "stretch" mode which widens the picture to fill the whole screen, or will use gray bars instead of black bars. Burn-in also be a problem with extended playing of video games if there is a background image that remains stationary.

Plasmas come in larger sizes, although large flat panel LCDs are coming out, but they are expensive. LCD projectors can be 70".

LCD contrast and brightness can be reduced when viewing from off-center (both flat and projector, but sets will vary). At present, plasmas have very reflective front surfaces which could be a problem in room with lamps and windows that can be reflected by the screen. LCDs look better in bright environments, while plasmas look better in darker rooms.

Answer 3

Plasmas have superior picture quality but get dimmer over the years. So they have a shorter lifespan. As for other aspects of picture quality see the link below: