What is a Plasma television

[This Just In]

Good evening, FReepers. We are not hooked up to satellite or cable, but view DVD's and video's on occasion. I am shopping to purchase a television and it's been quite a while since we've bought a new set. As a matter of fact, it has been so long that I have come to realize they don't make televisions the way they used to.

Just as going out to simply buy yourself a cup of java has become a major undertaking(For goodness sakes, one must take a class in: How To Order At Starbucks, just to navigate your way through the process. Why, just a few weeks ago we visited family in Las Vegas. I went to a trendy coffee shop. Ordered a hot cup of coffee. And when they called my name, I stood there perplexed as I looked at the COLD, dark, drink which I held that was covered with frothy cream and a light dusting of cocoa powder. Not wanting to draw attention to my ignorance while standing in the midst of what seemed like a mob of coffee connoisseur's on the verge of caffeine withdrawal's if they didn't get their fix, I confidently strode out of the cafe', artifully placed the horrid tasting drink in the recepticle, and promptly began experiencing caffeine withdrawals as I drove off and made my way to the nearest McDonalds), purchasing a television is no longer simply deciding what size screen you wish to buy, and/or how much you wish to spend.

There is the question of whether or not you want a flat screen. Do you want your television mounted on a pedestal? There's the "pixel" factor, and finally, do you want a plasma, LCD, HDTV, or ???????????

Now, I must inform all of you that we live in a remote area of the country. So remote, in fact, that Santa ignores us all together. Christmas shopping, if we choose to drive somewhere, is quite an undertaking. We must travel a long distance. To save us the hassle, we often times shop online.

Which brings me, finally, to my question. Would someone please explain what a "Plasma" television is, and what is the difference between a "Plasma" and "LCD"?

Your input would make my shopping far more convenient and hassle free than ordering a simple hot cup of coffee at Starbucks.

Forever Grateful, TJI

[reagan_fanatic]

I bought a Mitsubishi 55" 1080i HDTV about a month ago. It's a projection type (so you have the three tubes to converge) but once it was set up, it has a gorgeous picture and I enjoy it immensely!

[A CA Guy]

The one I got was listed for $7500, but I picked it up for under a thousand a couple of years ago.

If you want a real good theater experiance, get a 2500 lumens or better xga projector with a digital connection.

There are some now on Ebay for under $2000 that are pretty good.
Just find a seller with lots of sales and great feed back.

Example: This one looks like a good one for someone on a budget from a good seller IMO.
http://cgi.ebay.com/INFOCUS-LP-790-XGA-Projector-3000-Lumens-LP790-HDTV_W0QQitemZ8728914787QQcategoryZ41842QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[Las Vegas Dave]

I am on several HDTV forums, I suggest the following for possible technical information, (you may have to navigate to different areas of these forums), I prefer satelliteguys.us for most information, but they all are good.

http://www.satelliteguys.us/search.php?searchid=964338

http://www.highdefforum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=38


BTW: I bought a Sony 34" XBR (CRT) TV in April (paid $2k then, now they are a few hundred $$ cheaper), great picture and the picture tube is "super fine pitch"!!

If you have any questions, please freepmail me.

[Pete'sWife]

Thanks very much!

[Pete'sWife]

And thank you very much!

[Las Vegas Dave]

Try this link,
http://www.satelliteguys.us/forumdisplay.php?f=4

[A CA Guy]

Gives you an idea of where to go.

I and another friend have digital projectors with 3000+ lumens.
HD broadcasts are much better experiances than going to the movies.
Also get a DVD player that upgrades the 480P dvd to 720P, like this one on ebay that I own.
http://cgi.ebay.com/LG-LST-3510A-HDTV-RECEIVER-TUNER-DVD-Player-REGION-FREE_W0QQitemZ5836143883QQcategoryZ11072QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Not only do I get the bump up in resolution on the DVD, but it is also an OTA HD tuner. In Los Angeles there are 43 digital free OTA channels to view (last I counted).

[A CA Guy]

Regarding speakers, if you have a large budget, maybe hide some Bose speakers up in the walls.

If you don't mind seeing the speakers and can handle floor speakers, get the inexpensive KLH brand speakers. They blow away the more expensive JBLs and Yamaha IMO.

I found a pair of 250w large floor speakers which I had delivered from Ebay for $70.
I bought 2 pair on sale from best by of KLH 150w speakers.
I pair one for the main center channel and the other two over the big floor speakers to enhance the sound from the front.
I bought a powered Yamaha floor sub-woofer and have large bookcase sized KLH back speakers for the rear sound.

Speakers all came to about $260 and sound close to the $1800 Bose sound. :-)

All KLH speakers are magnetically shielded, meaning all the magnets in their speakers are shielded from ruining your other electrical componets.

[Delta 21]

JBL L-112 Bumps!

[A CA Guy]

I'm sure they do, I just posted about a great way to use a little money to make a very good home theater system.

[Delta 21]

I have had my JBLs since 82. Have rebuilt them twice and they are due for a third. In the long run I dont think I could have spent less and gotten a better sounding set of speakers. I lucked out when I wuz young and didnt know any better.