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"One of the biggest benefits of plasma..."

Posted by C.B. on December 28, 2004 at 08:30:53

In Reply to: Re: wall mounted thin style tv/monitors. what should i be looking for ? posted by avjguy on December 25, 2004 at 18:02:27:

"...to me is the high contrast picture quality that does not change as you move around the room."

Sorry, but I can't leave that comment alone!

Plasma displays almost always show a reduced or truncated contrast scale, compared with conventional CRT displays.

You can see this plainly on any of the video test discs currently avaialble. ICIA sells a DVD, for example, that contains a graduated gray scale in 100 steps, from 100% white to 100% black (I believe the same thing can be found on the Video Essentials disc). On a typical plasma display the last 8-10 steps of this scale (near black and near white) are indistinguishable from pure black and pure white, whereas on a good, properly calibrated CRT they can usually be seen. I know, I've seen this demo'd at InfoComm.

This contributes to the typical "washed-out" look of plasmas. Although plasmas have improved substantially sinced they were first instroduced, the limited contrast scale is still a liability IMO. For serious movie viewing, I prefer a CRT.

I'll grant you that the image from a plasma does not have a limited viewing angle the way a RPTV does. That, and the cool-looking, slim profile, are the only positives I can see to owning a plasma.

But then, why would anybody a piece of gear just because it "looks cool"? I'd rather own something that has a great picture.

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