Is it true that tube tv's last longer than HD tv's?

Question

Im not sure whether I should spend it on a bigger tube tv or go for the HD for the flat panel and the 1080p or just save my money

Answer 1

Both plasma and LCD / LED televisions have a finite life before they need attention.

In the case of the LCD televisions, it is usually just the special lamps (Cold Cathode - sort of mini flourescent tubes) - however the cost of having these replaced is typically massively more than the true cost of the replacement and labour.

Plasma tv's are worse. When the screen finally dies you need a new one - and as the screen accounts for about 90%+ of the caost of the set, PLUS labour, it is usually cheaper to dump it and buy a new one.

If you are the sort of person that puts the TV on when you want to watch something in particular, this is not likely to be a problem. If you are someone who tends to have the TV on from the moment you wake up to the moment you go to bed, then you will be forever buying new flatscreen - they jsut don't have all that many thousand hours on them before they need replacing.

A good old fashioned CRT will often last 20 years or more - in fact there are some TV's going strong that are well past 25 years - this is impressive because not only must the tube be half decent but also the electrolytic capacitors must be of a superb quality - as most of the mass produced ones eventually "dry out"..

You could always consider rear projection TV - Sony do a very nice Bravia 50" for little more than £1000 - problem is you need a new bulb every 2000 hours or so - or three bulkbs a year if you watch the thing from morning to night.

Choices choices - but al come at a price if you want a flatty :)

Mark

Answer 2

Cathode ray tubes can last for 15 years under normal use before they start to show deterioration. Much of this improvement in life (in the 1950's many of them failed after 1 or 2 years) was due to the tube pre-heaters. This technology does not apply to modern flat screens.

Honestly, domestic televisions with LED or Plasma screens haven't been around long enough to get any meaningful data on their life. People can only guess at their life based on laboratory predictions.
Remember that lab conditions are not the same as typical domestic use and abuse. Also note that compuer displays do not use LED or Plasma technology so any prediction based on that will be dodgy.

A CRT may be able to display HD quality providing the electonics are capable of it. I don't know of any CRT sets which are advertised as HD Ready.
The tube itself may be limited in resolution, depends who made it (not necessarily the name on the tv set) so you may find that you can't watch HD tv on one anyway. Domestic tv tubes were not made to the same resolution and geometric quality as Studio Monitors.

Answer 3

Buying a tv is confusing, there are many decisions
-Plasma consumes more power
-plasmas are better in daylight, evg a room with lots of daylight
-plasmas reflect interior lighting in the screen which may be a pain (eg in a shop)
-when plasmas fail they only half fail so probably end up watching a half good TV for 5 years before you decide to replace it. Other TV fails completely, so you get a new one straight away.
-LCD tvs low on power consumption
-LCD not real good for watching fast action like car racing
although this has been improved - try before you buy
-LCD does not reflect interior lighting and reasonable in daylight
-LCd should last a long time
-Rear projection TV through a LCD screen have low power consumption but when you have to buy a $300 -$500 lamp every 18 months they are no cheaper to run than a plasma
-rear projection TV are useless in daylight lit rooms, but they doo not reflect interior lighting on their screen.

This a limit to my knowledge so if anyone can add about HDTV's please do

Answer 4

HD Tv quality varies according to the type. Generally most TVs have a mtbf of 5yrs. Hence most retailers who sell Tvs such as Lewis's, have a 5 yr gaurentee on new Tvs.

LCD Tvs typically last longer than Plasmas

Answer 5

Actually, today's plasma and LCD units have the ability to last longer than 20 years - longer than the average consumer will use that TV as their "main TV".

Samsung's plasmas have the ability to go to 60,000 hours until they reach half-brightness, and LCD's, depending on the model will go 60,000+ hours before reaching the half-life.

Think of it like Ford's Model T. It was never designed to go 50,000 miles. Today, they go 100,000 miles before you have to get the FIRST tune up!

The advances in HDTV is that the technology is better, more accurate and getting better every year. Companies like Sony, Samsung, etc. all invest millions of dollars into research and development to make the next year's models do better.

Answer 6

All electronics last longer if:

1. Using a surge protector

2. Shutting off when not in use

3. Not turning on and off too often

4. Disconnecting from power during a thunderstorm

5. Buying the better brands

Life really depends on usage

Answer 7

No, sorry... it will not be worth anything. Put it on Craigslist for "$100 obo" and see what you get. If you have no offers within a week, try it at $50 obo. Then $25 obo.

Answer 8

Well my sister has a Sony Trinitron that is still going and it is 30+ years old. If you have an HDTV in 30 years time that you bought today i'll be suprised.

Answer 9

i have read that they last longer .I am trying to decise about this same thing