I've seen recommendations here that for large screens, plasma is the way to go. But, then on avsforum I read about people having issues with image retention. If my wife pauses the Tivo and then forgets about it, will that ruin the tv? That scenario really has me considering a Sony XBR55HX929 LED/LCD for $2450 vs a Panasonic P55ST30 plasma for $1250.
55" TV for Gaming + NFL - worried about burn in
- Thread starter Rekonn
- Start date
General Kenobi
Senior member
- Sep 29, 2011
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You are correct in saying that plasmas are often preferred by people who are going for a bigger TV. They offer wider clear viewing angles* than most LCDs without having to turn the TV itself, and they generally cost a lot less than size equivalent LCDs.
*This is useful if you have people over for a game.
Plasmas are also thin and easy to transport, but with LED LCDs now being equally as thin, you shouldn't consider this to be an advantage when buying a plasma. You'll mainly be looking at the aforementioned size/price ratio.
As for the burn in, please read this article:
Plasma TV Burn In: Is It Still a Problem? @ Plasma TV Buying Guide
You'll also find more useful information on plasmas on that site. And if you decide to go for an LCD, check out the LCD TV Buying Guide.
*This is useful if you have people over for a game.
Plasmas are also thin and easy to transport, but with LED LCDs now being equally as thin, you shouldn't consider this to be an advantage when buying a plasma. You'll mainly be looking at the aforementioned size/price ratio.
As for the burn in, please read this article:
Plasma TV Burn In: Is It Still a Problem? @ Plasma TV Buying Guide
You'll also find more useful information on plasmas on that site. And if you decide to go for an LCD, check out the LCD TV Buying Guide.
I didn't think it was a problem with the new plasma's I have a Panasonic one for 3 years now and have no burn in issues
I would like a good wide viewing angle, especially for gaming and watching sports with friends. But, that article makes me want to stay away from plasma. I just can't guarantee that we'll never have a paused screen for 20+ minutes. Do plasmas come with a screensaver you can set to go at 15 minutes of static image?
I was between the 55HX929 and the 55VT30. Eventually I was swayed to the 55HX929 because I didn't want to risk burn-in and the TV is in a relatively bright room and is used for a really large variety of things. Love the TV so far. The picture quality is so far superior to anything I've ever seen.
I would choose the HX929 hands down. The ST30 is Panasonic's value plasma whereas the HX929 is Sony's high end LCD. If it were between the HX929 and the VT30, then maybe it would be closer.
Just get the HX929. It is a GREAT set. The only LCD better is the Elite, but it doesn't come in 55" and is considerably more expensive. I'd actually take the Elite over any TV (LCD or plasma) on the market today.
mmntech
Lifer
- Sep 20, 2007
- 17,501
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Modern plasmas have better methods for dealing with burn in. They still get occasional after images though, which makes them a poor choice for computer monitors.
The biggest advantages plasma has over LCD are refresh rate and response time. Plasmas run at 600hz compared to 240hz for the fastest LCDs. This gives you a butter smooth image.
The biggest advantages plasma has over LCD are refresh rate and response time. Plasmas run at 600hz compared to 240hz for the fastest LCDs. This gives you a butter smooth image.
Should have been more specific about the gaming - I won't be using this as a computer monitor, almost all gaming will be with an xbox 360.
I need to visit a store and actually look at them, but from what I've read so far, the picture quality on the value panasonic plasma should blow me away. (I'm currently using a 4-5 year old 37" Westinghouse LVM-37W3) If that's the case, then spending an extra thousand probably won't be worth it for me. (diminishing returns) I'm fine with spending more if I need to; but so far the only thing causing that need is something I'm not even sure is a problem, the image retention of plasmas.
I actually do not like the ST30 from an aesthetics point of view. The HX929 looks much nicer in that regard, but this is very subjective. No doubt the ST30 will look much better than your Westinghouse, especially since your are looking at a 55" set. That in itself would make a big impression. But again, the Sony HX929 is just a better set. If you want to save some money, get the ST30. There is a chance of IR, but I wouldn't be too worried about it. IR isn't permanent and Panasonic plasmas handle IR much better than Samsung plasmas.
I have the ST30 and can tell ya i've had no issues with IR/burn in at all. I've got probably 250 hours on the set now with half of it being soccer. Which is 90 minutes of a channel logo in the upper right corner and the score/timer (similar to football) in the upper left. I watch it straight (prerecorded) so its literally 90 minutes straight of the logo's. Havent even had IR so far. image quality is great as well. I havent played with setting more than using settings found online and it looks wonderful.
Even gaming on my old panasonic C2 set i'd play MW2 for hours. Have a bit of IR but it would be gone after watching a movie or running the anti-retention setting on the set itself.
At that price though you are better comparing the VT30 to the Sony as they are the same prices.
For the price though the ST30 is a great set. Theres a reason so many people recommend it over at avs
Even gaming on my old panasonic C2 set i'd play MW2 for hours. Have a bit of IR but it would be gone after watching a movie or running the anti-retention setting on the set itself.
At that price though you are better comparing the VT30 to the Sony as they are the same prices.
For the price though the ST30 is a great set. Theres a reason so many people recommend it over at avs
FWIW, don't get Image Retention and Burn-In confused. I have a 2 year old Samsung plasma that still gets image retention when I play 4:3 programming on it or maybe the ESPN ticker for more than about 20 minutes. It goes away after about 5 minutes of full screen programming, however and I have yet to see real Burn-In on a plasma that's newer than 2008. The Pannys are more IR resistant than the Samsung, but Samsung's last two model years have quickly been catching up.
You'd just about have to do it on purpose in order to get burn-in on a Samsung or Panasonic plasma.
You'd just about have to do it on purpose in order to get burn-in on a Samsung or Panasonic plasma.
amdhunter
Lifer
- May 19, 2003
- 23,332
- 249
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Same here. If I watch a letterboxed program, I'll get the retention on my 1 year old LG panel. Annoying, but it only lasts for a few minutes - or so I'd like to think.
Exactly. I have an 8 month old daughter that likes to watch Baby Einstein videos that are all in 4:3 format so the TV spends a good chunk of time with the letterboxes on the sides every day. I worry about aging the pixels prematurely more than IR or burn-in though. I run the scrolling bars across my TV for an hour each week, just to clear anything up.
Thanks guys, you've convinced me that burn in isn't anything to worry about for new plasmas. Worst case, a few minutes of image retention that goes away by running the scrolling bars, or just watching something else is a minor inconvenience.
That said, I was at Best Buy on Sunday comparing sets, and am going with the Sony HX929.
In their home theater section they had the HX929 and a GT30. That area was darker than my living room (which has multiple windows), and I still appreciated the extra brightness and AMAZING picture of the sony.
PS - comparing screens at BB is a real pain in the ass. Most of the time, the screens are playing video that changes very quickly - so by the time you turn your head to look at another screen, it's a different image already. Then they showed some clip about Pearl Jam that looked like it was shot on grainy 8mm film...ugh. Then, finally, the content switches to a national geographic special on colorful and (slow moving!) seahorses. And some dude with serious BO stands right in front of me... Sorry to vent, but looking at big screen tvs required way more patience and was much less fun than I thought it would be.
That said, I was at Best Buy on Sunday comparing sets, and am going with the Sony HX929.
In their home theater section they had the HX929 and a GT30. That area was darker than my living room (which has multiple windows), and I still appreciated the extra brightness and AMAZING picture of the sony.PS - comparing screens at BB is a real pain in the ass. Most of the time, the screens are playing video that changes very quickly - so by the time you turn your head to look at another screen, it's a different image already. Then they showed some clip about Pearl Jam that looked like it was shot on grainy 8mm film...ugh. Then, finally, the content switches to a national geographic special on colorful and (slow moving!) seahorses. And some dude with serious BO stands right in front of me... Sorry to vent, but looking at big screen tvs required way more patience and was much less fun than I thought it would be.
You'll love that set Always loved the Sony lcd's. Parents still have a xbr from ~2006 that still looks great. out of curiosity were you able to compare it to other higher end models? Like a panasonic VT30 series? Or maybe a Samsung 8000?
On a plus the Sony hx929 just got second in the lcd/led catagory in the hdtv shootout at valueelectronics "Lost" to the Elite Pro-60X5fd which is also twice the price of any tv they tested there.
Always loved the Sony lcd's. Parents still have a xbr from ~2006 that still looks great. out of curiosity were you able to compare it to other higher end models? Like a panasonic VT30 series? Or maybe a Samsung 8000?On a plus the Sony hx929 just got second in the lcd/led catagory in the hdtv shootout at valueelectronics
"Lost" to the Elite Pro-60X5fd which is also twice the price of any tv they tested there.You'll love that set
On a plus the Sony hx929 just got second in the lcd/led catagory in the hdtv shootout at valueelectronics
I didn't see a VT30 to compare with, but after I saw the GT and a couple other plasmas, that kinda ruled them out for me. If I had a darker room to work with, I'd certainly consider them more. I took a quick look at the Samsung 8000 and thought it looked great. But I never gave it a real chance due to a rough review by cnet highlighting screen uniformity issues. That, and I have a personal preference for black vs silver for the stand.
its probably a bit of personal taste. i have an ST30 60" and here is my living room/dining room.
The two windows in the dining room are the biggest pain. With the blinds up theres a bit of glare and its pretty noticeable at all times. With the blinds closed i barely notice any glare/reflection of the blinds except in dark scenes. in the summer when we had sun it would be annoying even with the blinds down for the couple hours the sun was at those windows. Its been sunny the last few days here and watching soccer matches i've had no issues with glare/reflections at all.
Hope that helps!
The two windows in the dining room are the biggest pain. With the blinds up theres a bit of glare and its pretty noticeable at all times. With the blinds closed i barely notice any glare/reflection of the blinds except in dark scenes. in the summer when we had sun it would be annoying even with the blinds down for the couple hours the sun was at those windows. Its been sunny the last few days here and watching soccer matches i've had no issues with glare/reflections at all.
Hope that helps!
Both would be good. i'd go with the VT30 personally though if you arent worried on the light. Both get rated highly but seems like the VT30 gets better scores when comparing both. And its cheaper for the 55" or get the 65" Vt30 for slightly more than the 55" hx929
Course those are my opinions but if i had to pick and based on the research i did when looking for tv's it seemed to be the common pecking order.
Course those are my opinions but if i had to pick and based on the research i did when looking for tv's it seemed to be the common pecking order.
Anubis
No Lifer
if you are willing to spend the $$ for the Sony you should be considering the Pannsonic VT30 and Samsung D8000 plasmas which are the top 2 plasmas right now, all 3 are excellent.
im a plasma fan but if i had to buy an LCD it would be the Sony HX929
really cant go wrong with those 3
im a plasma fan but if i had to buy an LCD it would be the Sony HX929
really cant go wrong with those 3
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