AT&T Counts 51K U-verse TV Subs
Sharp Introduces Worlds First THX Certified LCD   TVs
Thieves choose Blu-ray over HD DVD in mass disc heist
Xbox 360 Sees Sales Rise
DEG: 52 mil HDTV homes in U.S. by '08
'Heroes' HD DVD Previewed at Home Media Expo

 

Listener Greg's Power consumption analysis:

The article about power gadget power usage consuming half of a household's electricity seems a bit sketchy to me. A 23-watt CF bulb will give out as much light as a 100-watt incandescent bulb. Similarly, newer refrigerators, AC units, washing machines and dryers are all substantially more efficient then they were five years ago.

Consider the following (I've used smaller numbers for the example):

A house uses 300w for 'appliances' and 100w for 'gadgets' for a total of 400w. The owner of the house buys new light bulbs, appliances, gets better windows and insulation and cuts his/her 'appliance' power usage in half (from 300w down to 150w). Meanwhile, he/she buys a bigger TV and his/her 'gadget' power usage goes up 50% (from 100 up to 150w). In the 'new' house, gadget power usage makes up half of the powerusage. However, the house uses less total power (300w total, instead of 400w).

  

Back in April of 2005, Episode #2 in fact, we did a comparison between LCD, DLP and Plasma as your three main choices for living room HDTVs.  The landscape has changed a little since then, so we've decided to update the comparison.  We also had to add flat panel LCD and LCoS to the discussion.  Like the original, we're sticking with only the digital display types.  Sorry CRT fans.

HDTV Options

RP LCD vs DLP vs LCoS vs Plasma vs Flat LCD

Plasma
Pros

• Best color reproduction
• Excellent contrast ratios
• Excellent viewing angle
• Very bright screens
• Instant picture response
• Flat form factor / wall mountable
  

Cons

• Susceptible to screen burn-in
• Fairly expensive in larger screen sizes
• When they die, they're done

Flat LCD

Pros

• Not susceptible to screen burn-in
• Newer technologies overcome motion delay (120 Hz)
• Newer technologies overcome lack of color gamut (LED)
• Newer technologies overcome poor off-angle viewing (IPS)
• Flat form factor / wall mountable
• Power friendly
  

Cons

• Newer technologies are more expensive
• Motion blur (without 120hz)
  
• Lack of full color gamut (without LED)
  
• Poor off-angle viewing (without IPS)
• Not as good with black levels and contrast
  
• When they die, they're done

DLP
Pros

• Very good color reproduction
• Lightweight
• Excellent lamp life
• Good price point
• Not susceptible to screen burn-in

Cons

• Projection based, not flat panel (not wall mountable)
  
• Older models (pre-HD2) may not perform as well as upper scale CRT projection systems
• Potential for "Rainbow Effect" in single chip systems.
• Bulb replacement can be expensive

RP LCD
Pros

• Excellent clarity
• Lightweight
• Newer units sporting better contrast levels
• Excellent price point
• Not susceptible to screen burn-in

Cons

• Projection based, not flat panel (not wall mountable)
• Perceive "Screen Door" effect common in lower cost front projectors
• Lamp life
  
• Color representation may not be the best
• Delayed picture response (blocky-ness or pixelation)

LCoS

Pros

• Very good color reproduction
• Lightweight
• Excellent contrast and black levels
• Very good price point
• Instant picture response
• Not susceptible to screen burn-in

Cons

• Projection based, not flat panel (not wall mountable)
• Not many options available
• Lamp life

 

 

 

The HT Guys love their Starbucks. If you want to say thanks, a cup of joe will do just fine!