Purchasing a Big Flat Screen TV needs quite a bit of time maybe over several weeks just researching and window shopping for the right set. Here is a quick summary of the various options. There are many varying opinions out there to support one option or the other. To simplify things, let’s us take for example a need for a set larger than 40 inches. Take note that none of the technologies is perfect so you just have to weight the pros and cons to fit your particular situation.

Three popular options for big screens:

Rear Projection - Rear projection sets comes in two form whether LCD or DLP. They are much cheaper than either flat panel LCD’s or plasmas of the same size. Very large rear projection sets of 50” and 65” are easy to find. The only problem is the viewing angle. A simple test of walking past the screen from one side to the other, reveals that the brightness appears to fade when you are not directly in front and level with the set. Another thing is that it is bulky, but not heavy for their size as compared to the weight of a CRT. Obviously, they cannot be hung on a wall. In terms of viewing quality they tend to be less bright than both flat panel LCD and plasma. Better check your wallets for they have an expensive bulb that must be replaced on a periodic basis like maybe 2 years. How much just around $150 to $400. Anyway, the two most significant advantage is price and screen size.

LCD Flat Panel - LCD’s have nice bright picture, compared to Rear Projection Screens, but it is not as sharp as a Plasma screen. LCD’s also have this tendency of blurring or producing artifacts when rendering fast movement on the screen. It’s good to check the screen’s “dead pixel” warranty as LCD’s can be prone to pixels going out. Though there are softwares to remedy this one. Similar to Rear Projection screens, the viewing angle on LCD’s is not very good. They are, however, thin and light and can be easily hung on a wall like the Sonny Flat Panel. The only thing to think twice of LCD’s as they are usually expensive and don’t have sets as large as what is available in either plasma or rear projection.

Plasma - May not have the color brightness of LCD’s, but have the best overall picture when it comes to detail, motion and contrast. Plasma’s tend to be heavier than their LCD counterparts and require more power. Heating up is a problem. It can be hung on a wall similar to LCD’s. The Plasma’s viewing angle is almost similar to that of the old tube television (CRT), even on the sides the pictures are quite clear. Plasma’s becomes cheaper for larger sets. If compared with an equivalent featured and sized LCD set it’s a little bit cheaper, but the price gap is shrinking quickly. Plasma sets due to the heating problem were prone to burn-in. New technologies diminished the chances of burn-in , but it is still something to keep in mind if you think you will be frequently watching static images for long periods of time.

Visiting the nearby Zeer, IT Mall shows an array of major brands of big flat screens. Among the quality and price range criteria, my personal choice is the LCD Sonny Flat Screen to replace our old SonnyTV. I hope that you have a clearer picture of which one is a good choice. Good luck and happy viewing on your big flat screen.