LCD TV Considerations

LCD TVs vary in their brightness and contrast which affects the picture quality. The contrast ratio is a measurement between the lightest and darkest pixels.

Brightness is a measurement of the intensity of light and like most things in life, the higher the number the better.

Philips claim that their 42PFL9803 LED TV has a contrast ratio of around 2,000,000:1, which is better than pretty much anything else on the market, however you must remember this is the manufacturers' quoted figure.

Okay so what is the difference between a 1080p LCD TV and a 1080i The "p" actually stands for "progressive" and the "i" stands for interlaced. They are two different scanning methods. Without getting too technical the 1080p is the better of the two, it loses none of the signal from the start point to the destination.

There is also the frame rate to take into consideration. On a 1080i TV set the frame rate is 30 frames a second while a 1080p TV is double the rate. However, before you run out looking for the best TV money can buy there is one more thing to consider.

You only see the true benefit of the 1080p signal when watching a blu-ray DVD. The 1080i signal is the best possible over current tv broadcasting standards. It is not possible to broadcast a signal of 1080p over the air and due to the bandwidth size the signal requires we are not going to see that change anytime soon.

If you are not into blu-ray movies or you cannot justify the extra price tag over standard DVDs then you need to ask if the extra cost is worth it.

A few months ago the question would have been does the TV have a HDMI socket, now it is a case of how many. Make sure you have enough connections for all your devices. A blu-ray player, a PS3 or Xbox, your Popcorn hour media player and your satellite or cable receiver box, that's 5 possible HDMI connections straight away.

You should also make sure you have some analogue sockets like a composite, scart and S-video, that send your signal to the TV from older devices like a standard dvd player, video camera or the Nintendo Wii.

There is no such thing as an LED TV, it is marketing hype. When you see a TV in a showroom labelled an LED TV what it really should say is an LCD TV with LED technology. For years LCD TVs were lit with fluorescent lamps, now LED lighting is causing a storm.

Basically there are two kinds of LED lighting being used, Dynamic RGB LEDs which are positioned behind the panel or white Edge LEDs positioned around the rim of the screen which use a special diffusion panel to spread the light evenly behind the screen.

Lighting a screen in this manner means a clearer picture; the problem with a fluorescent lamp is that it is always on. Being always on creates a problem when viewing anything that is meant to be dark or in black as light leakage occurs. In comparison banks of LED lighting can be dimmed or switched off completely when dark scenes are being displayed.

When it comes to LED backlit TVs it isn’t all about the greater picture quality. Fluorescent lamps use mercury, LEDs do not. Fluorescent lamps use on average 30% more power than an equivalent sized LED lit television so in all LED is far better for the environment and your pocket when the energy bill arrives.

On a personal note, I think the slimness and sleek design make them a far more sexier item to have in your home.