What is the difference between a 50 inch Plasma TV and 42 Plasma TV?

Question

I have heard that Plasmas deal with resolution differently than LCD, where LCD will keep the same pixel count whereas Plasma loses pixels. That being said, is it a waste of money to buy anything less than the 50 inch Plasma because you'll be losing out on resolution? Or is it not noticeable?

Answer 1

There is so much misinformation out there on plasma TVs that it just amazes me. A 50" plasma TV can be 1080p or 720p. Only 5% of the human population can see the difference between a 1080p or 720p 50" plasma TV at an 8' viewing distance. If you view this sized TV from over 10 feet, no one can see the difference. This fact has everything to do with the way the human eye works and not how a plasma TV deals with resolution.



On the other hand, a 40" LCD TV with a 720p resolution, though not grainy, will show significant screen dooring (an artifact common to LCD TVs) while you will not see this same artifact in a typical 40" diagonal LCD with a 1080p resolution. At 46", a 720p LCD TV will start to show significant graininess and screen dooring while you will NOT see this in a 1080p 46" LCD TV. I would never recommend a 40" or larger LCD TV with anything less than 1080p, yet a 50" plasma TV with 720p resolution can look great depending upon your viewing distance!



Additional Details: Plasma TVs use to be manufactured in smaller sizes than 42". When LCD TVs took over this market space, the plasma TV manufacturers retreated to the larger sized TVs where they had a significant cost advantage. You are now seeing plasma TVs economically produced and marketed in these smaller sizes again. Expect to see all major plasma manufacturers return to this market space with newer plasma TVs as there is NO technical reason for them to remain outside of this market.



Additional Details: A 720p broadcast supplies a video signal at a resolution of 1280 x 720. A TV with a resolution of 1366 x 768 must up-convert that signal to its native resolution. 86 pixels per line must be invented/interpreted from the incoming signal. 48 additional lines must also be invented/interpreted. Likewise, a TV with a resolution of 1024 x 768 must down-scale the horizontal information. 1280 pixels of received information must be compressed into 1024 horizontal pixels per line. 48 additional lines must also be invented/interpreted.



In the case of a 1080p or 1080i video source, a 720p TV (either 1024 x 768 or 1366 x 768) must down-scale both the horizontal pixel information per line and the number of lines to fit its native resolution.

Answer 2

As far as I'm concerned, the side-by-side test at the store rules. (I made them change channels, let me mess with the settings, etc.) After much online research, I was sold on spending the extra $$ on a 1080p, and was strongly leaning toward LCD. After visiting a few stores with the sets side by side, the 720p plasmas there blew the "affordable" 1080p's (lcd or plasma) away in picture and color quality, time after time. Why? I don't know. But they did. The guy at the store said this was because the lower end 1080p's are not tweaked like the more established 720p's, and they're cutting corners to make them cheaper. (I'm thinking it was the store's broadcast quality that didn't show off the 1080p's true capability?) In any case, after comparing affordable (not $6000) sets side by side for days, I ended up buying a 50" Samsung 720p plasma for $1300, and a PS3 to celebrate the price savings. They're awesome. At 42", I'd say you'll have NO problem with a 720...but only you know if it will bug you in the future.

Answer 3

Plasmas are limited to larger sizes because they are composed of cells containing gas. Typically you won't find a plasma smaller than 42" (the exception is a 32" Insignia at Best Buy). Also, the shape of the cell is important and why until this year, there was no 46" plasmas available (Panasonic created a new cell shape which allowed for a 46" model). But specifically answering your question, you can get full 1080p resolution (the highest currently available on a consumer level) on a plasma TV. So more importantly than what resolution you'll receive, you should worry about size and if plasma is even right for you. Goto your local Best Buy and talk with a salesman there... they aren't on commission so you won't feel like they're just telling you stuff to make a sale.