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Does the newest LCD or PLASMA HDTV last longer than 4 years?

#1
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7/11/06 at 10:52am
  • Joined: June 1999
  • Post Count: 258
Does the newest LCD or PLASMA HDTV last longer than 4 years? I've been reading a lots of posts where people start complaining about their LCD and PLASMA HDTV sets after just a few years. Thus, is this still true for the newest sets? BTW, which set is better for GAMING, LCD or PLASMA (for console gaming rather)? Oh one final thing, will these newest set last more than, say 6 or 7 years?

Thanks.

Regards,
orestes
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#2
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7/11/06 at 11:27am
  • Joined: July 2006
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Re: Does the newest LCD or PLASMA HDTV last longer than 4 years?

There are a lot of myths surrounding LCD and Plasma TVs, and most are unfounded. Hey guys, how do I recharge my plasma gas?

Though your post doesn't mention any specific problems, I can assume it's probably either dead pixels on an LCD or backlights going bad.

In theory, both LCD and Plasma displays have a projected lifetime of about 20+ years, but stuff can still go wrong with them.

While there isn't anything you can do about dead pixels, other than send it back to the manufacturer if it's still under warranty and you meet the required number of dead pixels, a lot of backlights are user-replaceable these days. You'll probably be looking to replace your tv long before the backlight goes though, but amount of use and all that other jazz might shorten the lifetime of it.

As for which is better for gaming. It's really 50/50. Aspect ratio and resolution are more determinant factors for gaming than LCD/Plasma. I still see some 4:3 LCDs floating around out there which are good for PC gaming, but for consoles, get a 16:9 720p TV or better.
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#3
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7/11/06 at 1:19pm
  • Joined: June 1999
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Re: Does the newest LCD or PLASMA HDTV last longer than 4 years?

Thanks Steve for your input; however, this was mostly a generalized question, for I have seen lots of posts lately where people start complaining about either their PLASMA or LCD HDTV sets after just a few short years and not just 20! In most cases, the major complaint has been not just dead pixel, but wash out color, and the screen losing the sharp PQ that the unit has during its first year of life. In some cases, people generally or usually say that these TV sets or units only have half-life of most other type of sets (CRTs, for instance).

I don't own an LCD or PLASMA, but I am starting to think about getting a new HDTV set some time next year. Again, thanks for your input.

Regards,
orestes
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#4
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7/11/06 at 9:09pm
  • Joined: April 2003
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Re: Does the newest LCD or PLASMA HDTV last longer than 4 years?

I haven't seen anyone complain about LCD TVs getting washed out or losing sharpness. They usually perform fine until the backlight goes and if that happens it's bright to black. The hazard with LCD TVs is dead pixels which show up as little black dots (or stuck pixels that stay one colour), but again if it works fine when you get it, it should be fine for a long while as long as you treat it gently. As for loss of sharpness, each pixel in an LCD is physically separated so I don't see how this could happen.

LCD projectors on the other hand lose brightness and colour over time. The brightness can be fixed with a new bulb but the colour loss is due to polarizers burning which would need to be replaced.

Plasmas these days seem to have long lifespans. I'm not sure of their exact halflife but it should be fine for years and years.
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#5
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7/13/06 at 5:37pm
  • Joined: August 2000
  • Location: Santa Clara, CA
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Re: Does the newest LCD or PLASMA HDTV last longer than 4 years?

I've seen 60,000 hrs as the typical half life for plasma (and LCD, btw). That is defined as the amount of time at which the brightness has dropped to 1/2 the original value. But there are 2 points to keep in mind:

1) You can keep recalibrating it every few years so there is *no* noticeable drop in brightness.

2) And especially if you properly calibrate it to begin with, with much lower than "torch mode" settings, you can now begin to see that it would last much longer than 60k hrs because you have more room to increase brightness later on to keep the same picture.

I personally think that a lot of users who start to complain about their displays after a few years simply have seen the technology get better, and they want an excuse to get a new set.

If it's not worth waiting until the last minute to do, then it's not worth doing.

KevinVision 7.1 ...

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#6
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7/13/06 at 5:50pm
  • Joined: April 2005
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Re: Does the newest LCD or PLASMA HDTV last longer than 4 years?

It kinda depends on the kind of games you're playing. Neither are particularly good for fast action, pixel perfect games. Still too much lag.

You ain't seen me, right?

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#7
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7/19/06 at 9:30am
  • Joined: March 2002
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Re: Does the newest LCD or PLASMA HDTV last longer than 4 years?

Does the newest LCD or PLASMA HDTV last longer than 4 years?
They better...or I'll be paying some geekness prime dollars next 'purchase' who loves to fiddle, to rebuild me a houses worth of CRT's.

Seriously.

I have run into one issue on a LCD past 6000 hrs, which would not be solved by a user (Avia etc) calibration. A pro that knows the model should be able to deal with these type issues.

Forgive me not looking up the proper tech terms for this (I just do these things ....then it goes right out of my head). My display started having an issue with a red ghosting. Talking heads (CNN) etc were double visions! I did some web research and found that the manuf had factored that something would go out of alignment so had a timer for the set to change its Image Revision parameters at a certain hour count of usage.
These sets are not needing the adjustment as early as manuf expected so the set automatically readjusting creates a big problem.
I found how to enter my Tech, Service Menu, (a little complicated first time out) and ‘fixed’ the problem without having to hire help.
You've been dreaming. Dreaming of Sea Captain who haunted this house.
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