We've certainly seen
mixed reviews for
VIZIO plasmas, but it seems that those very reviews will be the last of their breed. According to the
New York Times, VIZIO co-founder Laynie Newsome has confirmed that its existing PDPs will be the last the company sells. Looking back, you'll notice that only LCDs were
introduced by the outfit at CES, and while
Pioneer may or may not completely abandon its TV initiatives, Americans can now definitively count on just three
major players to provide for their plasma desires: LG, Samsung and Panasonic. Newsome stated that the decision was made for a number of reasons. First, PDP sets simply "don't show as well in big box stores," and VIZIO wanted to "devote all of its available shelf space to the technology that moves off the shelves fastest." We're a tad torn as to whether we should weep here, but regardless, a fond farewell is in order.
posted Feb 11th 2009 3:30PM
So ... "quantity over quality" is LGs motto now?
Wait, then nothing's changed.
I meant Vizio... still angry about my Vu's bugs... ;)
I am a TV noob, whats the main differences between LCD and Plasma?
Plasma TVs generally give better blacks and more natural colors. However, they usually have glossy, reflective screens. They are generally cheaper than LCD at sizes above 46" and don't really exist at sizes below 42". Plasmas use roughly the same type of technology as direct-view CRTs (smaller TVs with glass screens, not big-screen rear-projection TVs) - that is, phosphorescent pixels that light up to directly emit colors to your eye. As such, they have an overall quality that is very much like the direct-views most of us have been watching all our lives.
LCDs tend to do better in bright rooms thanks to higher potential brightness and don't have as many reflection problems, but have worse black levels - that is, the blacks tend to be noticeably gray, especially in a darkened room. Also, LCDs, even the fancy new 120- and 240-Hz varieties, have ghosting and blurring during action and sports. LCDs basically shine a backlight through a matrix of transparent pixels of varying colors. As such, they tend to have a different sort of overall quality than what most of us are used to TV-wise.
Difference are several, plasma gave you better picture due to higher ratio, deep black color also has much faster response. Price is lower inch per inch. LCD use less energy, last longer? do better in light reaction (next to windows) Plasmas doesn't sell as well because of their early model that kill off many reputation such as burn issue and shorted life cycle, but most issue is been fix on current model.
Plasmas typically have better color gamut, darker blacks, superior viewing angles, and are more forgiving to standard def video, however, they also use more electricity and are heavier due to the glass.
LCDs have closed the gap with Plasma in terms of color, black levels, and viewing angles, but aren't quite as good (save for some high end LCDs). They are light weight and more energy efficient.
Jon - "they usually have glossy, reflective screens."
Haven't looked at a Plasma in a while have you? Basically ALL plasmas have anti-reflective coatings now. I personally hate the coating, it makes the picture look slightly less sharp, but plasmas no longer have "glossy reflective screens".
Basically, plasmas suck. They are fuzzy, whereas LCDs are nice and sharp. WHile older LCDs did not have the deep blacks of plasmas and plasmas have slightly better color accuracy, LCDs are far superior. Sony's new XBR8 Triluminos LCDs kick the crap out of the best plasma ever made. Buy an LCD, plasma is dead for many good reasons.
The difference is that plasma has superior picture quality but LCD makes the manufacturers more money.
The important difference between them, and the one that has really killed Plasma, is that LCDs are capable of putting out a MUCH brighter picture. In a big box store, and to the untrained eye, the brighter LCD is going to sell before the dimmer, less vibrant Plasma every time. Where Plasma's shine though, is in displaying a natural picture with blacks that could truly pass for black (on higher end sets) and colors that are much more accurate than equally priced LCD's (you'd have to get an expensive IPS panel LCD TV to match the color). On top of that, like others have said, Plasma's do not have the motion problems that LCD's do with fast motion content.
An even bigger difference (right now anyway) is that plasmas are much cheaper per inch. I recently bought a 50" Panny for 1400ish that is 1080p, and right up there with the Pioneer Kuro as one of the best TV's produced today. The Kuro has come down to just below 2000, and I'm considering dumping the Panny for it and paying a little bit more. Either way, you wouldn't find a comparable 50" LCD at 1080p for that price. You can find a 1080p LCD at 50" for that price, but it's most likely going to be a TN panel (with horrible colors and viewing angles) or a PVA (with input lag).
Basically you'll get the best picture, at a bigger size. The only caveat is that you aren't going to find a plasma at sizes smaller than 42inches (except the vizio, which I'm told is awful) so it's not a good technology for a bedroom TV, etc.
(must...not...spend...600 more...on...Kuro.....gahhhhhh)
WHAT!?!?!?!?!
WHAT?!?!? is Phelps doing swimming inside of that screen? Shouldn't he have his mouth round a crack pipe or whatever?
Technology debate notwithstanding, other practical aspects against plasma: plasma sets are still a lot of glass, so they're heavy and they also have to be transported upright. (Never really seen what happens when you lay one down, what, does the plasma slosh around or something? :-) --- okay, so maybe no sloshing, but what *does* happen if you lay one flat?)
If you lay a plasma screen down in a delivery truck there is potential for the glass to crack (if the ride is bumpy). Most plasma TV packaging is reenforced on the top and bottom.
vizio sucks and now it apparently wants to continue the business model of dumping out low end crap. sadly, i'll bet this works to their advantage. Their advantage meaning: selling terrible HDTVs to consumers who think buying an HDTV will automatically make the signal HD. There are still millions of those people out there somehow.
My uncle bought a 40 in samsung with crazy specs, 1080p... and he said the SD channels looked terrible and wanted to return the TV.
So I Pimp-smacked him, and in 2 days the HD-DVR receiver should be arriving :)
Pffff!! I bet you only buy Monster Cable for your "high end" gear, huh?
@Dead_Rebel
no sir. i just do research instead of relying on the misinformation often received at the big box stores. This is the bad practice that the majority of american consumers rely upon which leads to Vizio and Insight purchases. FYI: I go to monoprice for my cables, dirt friggin' cheap.
I don't think Vizio sucks at all. They offer televisions at a lower price with nary a bit of lessened quality IMO. I have had one 42" Vizio Plasma television for about a year now, and couldn't be happier with it.
Plus for like 700 bucks you can have an awesome 42" plasma TV! Even if they only lasted a year (which mine and I'm sure they all do) it would be worth the money.
I dunno what you're talking about. Vizio produces good-quality sets at affordable prices. Consumer Reports rates Vizio sets as
"Recommended"
@alex so... because you pay $700 for it that means it should only last a year?
What are you basing that on? Vizo and Sceptre make some great low cost TV's. You realize only a few companies manufacture LCD panels. Alot of the brands use the same panels, so your basically spending hundreds extra for the brand name and a fancy bezel.
@Rudolphe
Actually I'm saying that at that price point it would still almost be affordable if it only lasted a year. I love me Vizio TV, and couldn't be happier with it.
I also love my 32" Vizio VU32L. It gives a great picture, is easy to use, and hasn't been the least bit buggy. These HDTV snobs need a dose of reality.
I work at a big box store, and Vizio TVs suck.. at least now. In 2007 they were a good alternative to a name brand TV because they were much, much cheaper. In 2008, name brand (Samsung, Sony, Panasonic) LCD costs plummeted while quality increased. For the first 2/3 of 2008, all Vizio did was change the color of their TVs and put out a really crappy plasma line. The prices that used to be drastically lower were now only about 10% cheaper than the name brand size equivalent. By the end of the year, Vizio went "spec crazy" and pumped out a bevy of "feature" TVs, such as a 32-37 inch with 1080p, and a 42-47 with 1080p and 120hz. This sounds good, except Vizio failed to improve the terrible contrast and black level of these models, so they still look worse than the Samsung/Sony LCD price equivalents. Vizio TVs also go on sale less often than Panasonic and Samsung TVs, which usually means a good name brand TV is cheaper than the "budget" Vizio line. Word to the wise, look for a good Samsung (LCD) or Panasonic (Plasma) Model.
Wow!
I looked at their LCDs and Plasmas, concluding that their Plasma panels were inferior to much of the competition. Their LCDs were superior across the board.
Since it's easier to source components for LCDs, they probably looked at long term margins and determined that LCD is a better bet... which it is.
Noooooooo. Panasonic you better not cancel your line before 2012
The end is nigh
Engadget forgot to mention Hitachi still makes Plasma TV's
http://av.hitachi.com/tv/plasma/index.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUHFIBuIcYE
Yeah - I bought my 42" Plasma from a Circuit City outlet a couple of years ago. They only sold sets that were returned within the first 30 days of ownership. My set is perfect - I wondered why it was returned (at all). The sales person said most returns are from uninformed consumers who think getting a large flat screen tv will bring them all the wonder of HD on every channel. Disillusioned customers return these things all the time. Oh well, their loss was my gain!
I returned mine because it developed a Red line on the screen that can be repaired.
Since this was 3.5-years ago and LCD wasn't where it is today, I got 50" Samsung DLP set. It's great and I just used my one free replacement bulb from the Circuit City warranty. Good thing I used it before they went out of business.
They returned it because PLASMAS SUCK! DLP was the best. My Sony SXRD kicks the crap out of every other TV ever made, except maybe for the XBR8 Triluminos LCD.
^^^Nothing like DLP. Well, as long as you don't want to wallmount it.... and don't mind sitting within a 40 degree "sweet spot"...and don't mind only watching in a mostly dark room... and don't mind a very gray "black level"... and appreciate the joys of a $250 "consumable" lamp every few years.
What was I thinking buying a flat panel LCD?? DLP is the way of the future!
After seeing some of the latest Sharps with LED backlighting, I can finally say that plasmas are on their way out.
I love my Panny 42", and hold its picture up against almost every LCD on the market, but clearly the LCDs are improving. Their picture quality will surpass that of plasma soon, and that will mean game over.
Vizio's just ahead of the curve. (Yeah, right!)
With all the recent news about plasma production, I'm really glad that I picked up my Panny in December. So much better than the LCD it replaced.
I swear there's a conspiracy to eliminate decent picture quality. First, most manufactures drop IPS and PVA PC monitors in favor of inferior TN panels, and now most manufactures are dropping plasma televisions in favor of LCD's inferior black levels and unnatural colors. Hold onto your old PC monitors and HDTVs, because pretty soon you won't be able to buy anything with as good of picture quality, at least not until OLED comes out in mass.
Najakwa you have no idea what you are talking about...I own a 61" Samsung 1080p DLP HDTV, 70" Sony LCD Rear Projection HDTV, 32" Vizio Silver LCD HDTV, 32" Vizio Black LCD HDTV and a 32" Vizio 1080p LCD HDTV and all 3 Vizios especially the 1080p hold their own with my other 2 HDTVs. Vizio sells good quality televisions and soon blu-ray players for low prices and they have good customer service from my perspective. Samsung and Sony on the other end are very high priced televisions that offer little to none more than the Vizios do but you pay almost double that for an equal television set. Plus Samsung just so happens to have one of if not the WORST customer service ever, I would know because I had to have them come fix my Fan No. 2 on my DLP and it took them nearly 2 weeks to show up because they'd cancel the appts. So next time before you start bashing on a good company like Vizio do a little research and not make yourself look like such an idiot on here.
Generally speaking, DLP and rear projection TVs produce lackluster results when compared to flatpanel LCDs and Plasma. I don't think its a question of brand when it comes to that. It also sounds like you haven't dealt with Vizio customer service and parts replacement. So how can you compare one to the other in that respect? Vizio TVs do seem to get worse ratings than other brands, cheaper components, shorter lifespan. After all this though, I am glad to see that you are happy with your Vizios. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. After all this, I throw my carcass to the wolves. :\
Naw, plasmas have always looked crappy, with fuzzy pictures and oversaturated colors. Too bad Sony quit making the DLP SXRDs, they have the best picture of any TV ever built. The Samsung rear-proj is pretty close at the top end, so much better than any plasma could ever hope to be.
It saddens my heart, but it's not unexpected. Plasmas are an enthusiast's choice for displays with their high-end blacks and refresh rates. Of course, this is open to debate...they also cost more to run, generate more heat, and weigh considerably more. I own a plasma, i've owned and LCD, I got the plasma to be different and I absolutely love it for reasons that differ from my love of LCD. What's sad to me is that it's still a viable platform, and companies like Panasonic are making breakthroughs in the technology, and to hear that one of the world's up and coming distributors is dropping it simply because it doesn't move the units isn't progress. Sure, they don't turn a buck like the LCDs do, and it's good business to drop a product that doesn't work, but dammit, it's still good stuff...
(unpauses miniDisc Player and continues playing Dreamcast.)
I have had a Samsung LN46A650 LCD for a year or so, and just had a Pioneer 5020 Kuro Plasma delivered Monday. I had been very happy with the Samsung picture right up until I watched the Planet Earth Blu Ray on the Kuro. The Kuro has better blacks, better color and no ghosting at all while playing games. I'm glad I ordered my Kuro when I did since they are not making them anymore:(
Plasma is a dying tech. The newest LCD's have surpassed their image quality. Sure, when they first arrived, LCD could not match Plasma's black levels and clairty. But looking at a brand new Vizio, Sony or Sharp LCD compared to any Plasma and the difference if painfully obvious. LCD's black levels are just as good if not better, and the color spectrum in between the darkest blacks and brightest whites is rendered much more accurately. Plasma blows out colors, especially greens and reds.
This being said, DLP is still better than both of them.
You don't know what you are talking about... there is no way LCD can EVER be better than Plasma for the colour black. Thats why I really recommend if you like Black & White movies like my BF does that you get Plasma.
Here is a hint: In LCD there is ONE lightbulb. In Plasma there are millions of lightbulbs, and when one pixel is turned off, it truely is black. In LCD you never ever get true blacks. The only technology to replace Plasma truely is OLED.
Your total right. Plasma>LCD in image quality. (proud owner of a Panny 800U)
Mr. Jason here is a prime example of why Plasma is dying. He clearly doesn't really know what he's talking about and spreads his "knowledge" to anyone who will listen.
A few of his comments give away the fact that he's clueless. Let me quote a few of the more hilarious examples.
1) LCD's black levels are just as good if not better. [The only way this is even close to being true is if you buy an LED backlit LCD, which cost an arm and a leg, and still pale in comparison to a good VIERA or KURO]
2) Plasma blows out colors, especially greens and reds. [Obivously he's never reviewed any technical head to head comparisons or technical test reports]
3) DLP is still better than both of them. [This is a hilarious, while DLP handles colors and blacks fairly well, their screen brightness uniformity is horrible, and the viewing angle is a joke. Unless you like sitting exactly in front of your TV and having the corners be dimmer than the center of the screen, DLP is not for you.]
Clearly he's not seen a high end VIERA or KURO.
Jason, ignore these pole waxers. If they are happy with their fuzzy, out-of-focus plasmas with oversaturated, unrealistic colors, let them wallow in their foolishness. My Sony SXRD kicks the shite out of any plasma, period. And their new Triluminos XBR8, well, the argument over black levels is now done.
@ mrnico
You just might be the first DLP troll I've ever seen.
Your idea that DLPs are better than Plasmas just makes me laugh.
Plasma uses too much darned electricity. I don't want my lights to dim when I turn on my TV and PS3 at the same time!
You should check your electric wiring...
[quote]Newsome stated that the decision was made for a number of reasons. First, PDP sets simply "don't show as well in big box stores," and VIZIO wanted to "devote all of its available shelf space to the technology that moves off the shelves fastest." We're a tad torn as to whether we should weep here, but regardless, a fond farewell is in order.[/quote]
He's right about the not showing well part. The big box stores are well lit, and the ultra bright retina burning LCD's look better under those conditions. Try watching a movie on it in a theater-like setting i.e. dimly lit room, and you'll go blind like staring at the sun. Other features you'll enjoy are motion blur, and the absence of the color black.
I love my PDP. Would like to get another one for bedroom. It probably wouldn't have been a Vizio anyway...since Pioneer and Panasonic have them beat like a step child when it comes to picture quality.
haha that picture is the same tv i got right now :D
Whoever can say Vizio sucks most likely hasn't owned one. Sure, some models have had issues, but I haven't had any with mine. They're very good for the price. Usually people will like to bash anything that's very cheap or an "off brand".
I have a Sony Bravia 46" XBR2 and it's probably the best TV i've ever owned, but for displays in other rooms I did not want to spend a lot of money. If my Sony dies I may end up just getting something cheaper.
I have a 32" 720p Vizio in my bedroom and a 1080p 37" Vizio in my living room for Xbox 360 games. Only negative about my first Vizio (the 32") is the sound quality is pretty bad, but lately they've gotten much better. My new 37" has improved sound quality and it's enough to not have to hook up a receiver and speakers to it.
Hey! A swimmer!
After seeing pictures of an OLED screen on my LCD monitor I can confidently say that LCD is on its way out.
I can not believe the sheer amount of half truths, pure BS and absolute lunacy being spewed about in these comments.
It reminds me of the old lady and her grandson I overheard at Costco the other day looking at TVs. When grandson asked grandma what she was looking for she answered, "Well I definitely don't want Plasma." To which the grandson replied, "No way, they burn out way too quickly." After which I may have muttered an audible, "Idiot..." To be blunt, the 20 years those PDPs have to 50% brightness is probably a longer life expectancy than grandma had.
I will simply state that both LCD and Plasma have their place. I understand Vizio's decision to back out of the PDP market, but it saddens me to hear of the dwindling options. I am just very happy and fortunate to have placed my order for a Pioneer Kuro 5020FD yesterday. In my opinion there isn't a TV on the market that can touch it in terms of value and performance right now. Especially not from the LCD camp.
What about lcd tvs with led backlights? Vizio has one coming out in the summer time for $1999?
If any reputable tech publication or website reviews the next gen 50" Vizio LED backlit LCD and states that the performance is superior to the Pioneer Kuro 5020FD I'll eat my shoe.
I have not owned a Vizio, so obviously, I don't have an educated opinion about them. Them backing out of the PDP industry is understandable. I have my doubts that they would be able to compete against Panasonic plasmas or Samsung's. Especially not against Pioneer. Therefore, they would not be making a reliable profit off them. Maybe one day when I decide to put another tv in a living room, I'll check out Vizio.
BTW, Plasmas are great! The color is amazing and the blacks are very good. Furthermore, as the phosphors continue to "burn", the picture quality increases. Proud owner of Panny 85U :)
Teh guy who does drugs is on tV!
I think Vizio means Costco and Sams Club units are so fracking lit up that you can't see the advantages of a plasma and justify the price.
Wait till they get that LCD home and watch ANY movie in the dark. I love my Kuro.
Have you guys ever looked at the way they connect the screens in the showrooms. You will notice all the LCD's are connected with HDMI cables... and they will have all the Plasma's in the back connected with coax. Thats why LCD's look so much better in the store when your shopping.