LCD or Plasma TV for PC Gaming...

[Patrick Wolf]

Looks good on my LCD monitor.

BTW, didn't Pioneer quit making Plasma TVs?

Yes, but Panasonic will/has taken over their tech. And aside from the compression @ 720p that video looked damn nice on my HDTV LCD. Though I'm sure it looks better on a plasma.

I wonder about Plasma's staying power. Unless you do some research online and see one properly adjusted in optimal lighting conditions they aren't appealing at all. The plasma's at most big box stores always look worse than everything else. And the increased interest in LED sets doesn't help any.

And of course if OLED pans out it will replace everything.

 

[RussianSensation]

LCDs have won the format war.

So just because a product is more popular, doesn't always make it better. Honda Civic, Honda Accord, Toyota Camry and Toyota Corolla have better reliability, less electronic problems, better fuel economy, and better resale values and probably outsell the BMW M3 or Mercedes Benz C63 AMG by 1000:1. This means by the logic of "the most popular product is the best", they are all > BMW M3 or C63 AMG, which is of course non-sense. If Justin Bieber gets voted as the artist of the year at AMAs, we can also conclude that he is the best new vocal artist?
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Patrick, I am not sure why you think Plasma looks worse in the store. It may be because all the LCDs/LEDs have their contrast turned way up, backlighting to 100% to create warmer/brighter colours that a lot of consumers prefer. However, LCDs simply don't have the same black levels or response times. Generally speaking, for movies and sports, LCD simply doesn't compare. I think most consumers have been mislead by marketing to believe that LCD is somehow superior. Given the higher price premium of LED LCD TVs, the stores that sell LCDs actually benefit more if you purchase an LCD or an LED over a Plasma. So why they want to recommend you a cheaper TV over a more expensive TV?

However, if you go into a knowledgeable/non-biased shop that sells TVs, you will almost never be recommended an LCD or LED over Plasma.

 

[toyota]

I am confused about Plasmas because they almost always say 1024x768 is the native res.

 

[RussianSensation]

I am confused about Plasmas because they almost always say 1024x768 is the native res.

That's probably for some budget $499-599 models. I still see those ones in a while advertised as 720P plasmas.

There is absolutely no difference in resolution between a 1080P Plasma and a 1080P LCD. In the past, older generation TVs (both LCDs and Plamsa) could accept 1080P signal (i.e., Blu-Ray) and downscale it to their native resolution (which used to be 1024x768, 1366x768 or the expensive models had 1920x1080). The non-1920x1080 models used to be called 1080P-compatible, or 1080P-ready iirc. It took a lot longer for Plasmas to move to true 1080P 1920x1080 at reasonable price levels. But they still had to compete with LCDs that already did 1920x1080 at lower prices for a while. So they started tacking on 1080P for some models despite the fact that those models didnt' actually have 1920x1080P as native. Of course some LCD makes did the same thing.

Nowdays, all 1080P Plasma TVs actually have 1920x1080 native resolution. So this marketing trick is no longer relevant.

Keep in mind, just like there are budget LCDs from the same brand, there are also budget Plasmas from the same brand.
For example, $1000 Panasonic Plasma 50in "G-series" has far inferior image quality to their $2000 Panasonic Plasma 50in "VT-series."

 

[toyota]

yikes, 2000 bucks to get a good Plasma? I was looking for something for gaming on since I am tired of sitting at my desk. I cant justify that kind of expense though.

 

[Patrick Wolf]

Patrick, I am not sure why you think Plasma looks worse in the store. It may be because all the LCDs/LEDs have their contrast turned way up, backlighting to 100% to create warmer/brighter colours that a lot of consumers prefer.

All of that. Plus the excessive lighting in the stores. I've seen graininess or sparkles in the image or it just looks dull overall with greyish blacks. I think I saw some recent Panny's that looked alright, but the PQ didn't really stand out against the LCD's around it. I'll need to take one home and play with it before I can say yay or nay.

 

[Patrick Wolf]

Keep in mind, just like there are budget LCDs from the same brand, there are also budget Plasmas from the same brand.
For example, $1000 Panasonic Plasma 50in "G-series" has far inferior image quality to their $2000 Panasonic Plasma 50in "VT-series."

Nothing stood out in their review of the G25 & VT25 except for the improper handling of 1080p/24 sources and poor SD quality on the G25. Is that what you consider far inferior? The VT25 is also a 3D set which probably adds like $600.

 

[jacktesterson]

One thing I will say....

A Budget Plasma looks better than a Budget LCD in any TV I've been able to see, for sure.

As I said earlier, a quality Plasma still is a better looking TV than any modern LCD/LED

 

[BladeVenom]

Yes, burn in. I've left my TV paused during a game for hours. I have no permanent burn in.

Oh wow a plasma TV can work for hours. I've had my LCD monitors on for years.

If I had used a plasma TV, I'm sure I would have the taskbar permanently burned into the screen, icons, and the images of my favorite games.

If you really believe plasma is an acceptable for gaming, then leave the same image on your plasma for a month to prove it. I'm sure I've had the same image on my LCD for more than a month with no problem.

 

[RussianSensation]

If you really believe plasma is an acceptable for gaming, then leave the same image on your plasma for a month to prove it. I'm sure I've had the same image on my LCD for more than a month with no problem.

I think there are 2 separate uses discussed in this thread though. If you have to choose only 1 screen for office work + movies + games, you are likely going to grab an 30 inch 2560x1600 LCD. It will be better for office work without any of the burn-in concerns over 8-10 hours of constant office work. However, if you have a 22-24 inch LCD for the PC already and want to grab a larger 37-50 inch screen for games only, then Plasma starts to make sense.

 

[RussianSensation]

Nothing stood out in their review of the G25 & VT25 except for the improper handling of 1080p/24 sources and poor SD quality on the G25. Is that what you consider far inferior? The VT25 is also a 3D set which probably adds like $600.

You are right ! :awe: I confused the G series with their budget U and S series which I have also seen for $900-1000.

Here is the comparison table.

 

[BeKure]

I have a 50" Panasonic Plasma that I plan on using for a PC monitor mainly for gaming. In the near future I also plan on grabbing a 65" Plasma for my living room and I want in hook up a gaming console to it. (I haven't decided yet whether I want a Xbox One or PS4)

The Plasma I have is a 2012 model and this thread is a couple years old so I'm wondering if I would have better results using the TV as a PC monitor since the TV is a fairly recent model. I have yet to hook up a console or a PC to it but reading text via my Apple TV user interface is effortless. To be honest, it is by far the best looking TV in the entire house, which contains a 42" LCD TV and a 32" LED TV.

Opinions are appreciated. Thanks in advance.

This is the 50" Plasma that I currently own.

 

[JumBie]

I used LCD/LED tv's for PC gaming and I personally find them better than plasmas. Honestly, any cheap toshiba, samsung, or phillips will do. You can grab a 39" for $399, I saw a smart TV Phillips 40" for that price the other day.