Flat Panel TV Buying Guide
When purchasing a flat panel tv, there are a few things to keep in mind. Here, we’ve listed a number of considerations for you to evaluate.
High Definition Upgradeable or HDTV-Ready
If you see this term used when deciding to purchase a flat screen tv, it
means that the tv is capable of producing the highest resolutions
possible for digital television today. “Upgradeable” means that you’ll
need to first add a separate hdtv receiver before you can view the
pictures in high definition mode (1080i or 720p). But, even if you don’t
upgrade, the picture will still look fantastic. When watching regular
dvd’s or tv broadcasts, the picture will be almost as good as real hdtv
because most have line-doublers to improve the picture.
16:9 Aspect Ratio
Unlike conventional televisions, new plasma, lcd and rear-projection
televisions most likely have a wide, rectangular screen that is very
similar to the shape of a movie screen. This is known as 16:9 aspect
ratio—for every 16 inches wide, the screen is 9 inches high. Compared to
conventional TVs, which are 4:3 in aspect ratio, the field of vision is
wider for a new flat screen tv.
When watching dvd’s at home on a 16:9 wide-screen television, you will be able to enjoy the full screen effect of the movie the way it was intended. On the other hand, when watching regular, standard definition television (like a news broadcast or talk show), you will need to either set the television to fill the screen entirely or watch with vertical black bars on either side of the picture.
Finally, remember that even though most television broadcasts are in 4:3 format, 16:9 widescreen format is the way of the future. Many events are shot in HDTV format (for example, the Olympics, special sporting events, nature documentaries, etc.) and as more and more people purchase high definition television, all broadcasts will be in high definition within the next few years.
Reverse 3:2 Pulldown
Television shows are usually shot on film at 24 frames per second. When
transferred to video running at 30 frames per second, the picture
quality is distorted in the translation. New televisions are able to
correct those distortions through a series of reconversion techniques
which reverse the distortions. The result is a smoother and cleaner
picture.
When looking to buy a new plasma, lcd or rear-projection television, look for this feature.
3D Y/C Digital Comb Filter
The 3D Y/C digital comb filter’s job is to take the cable signal coming
from the wall and separate the color, sound, brightness information into
useable information. New plasma, lcd and rear-projection televisions
have digital 3D Y/C comb filters that do a pretty good job of this so as
to avoid what is know as “dot crawl” where the edges of objects appear
rough. In addition, a good digital comb filter will also counter the
effects of moiré, where still objects appear to move and ripple.
Most high end plasma, lcd and rear-projection televisions also have component inputs from video sources (such as a dvd player) that separate the signal before reaching the tv and bypass the digital comb filter. This results in an even clearer and brighter picture.
Picture-in-Picture
Picture-in-Picture (or PIP) allows you to watch two shows at once, with
the second show in a box in a part of the screen. PIP is fairly common
these days to all sorts of televisions. However, consider getting a dual
tuner PIP plasma, lcd or projection television since that allows you to
watch the second channel without needing an external tuner (for example,
from a vcr). In addition, there are also TVs that will show different
channels side by side—these are called twin view PIP TVs.
Inputs
“Inputs” refer to how related audio/visual components connect to your
plasma, lcd or rear-projection television. The highest video quality
input is known as “component video”. With component video inputs, the
color and brightness information from the cable is separated into
useable data before entering the television. The next best input is
S-video input which give a picture almost as good as component
video—whereas component video separates brightness, blue signal and red
signal from each other, s-video just separates brightness from blue and
red signals.
All new plasma, lcd and rear-projection televisions will also have inputs for various multimedia devices such as dvd players. In addition, some will allow you to connect a computer.
More articles at our Flat Screen TV Articles page.
