Coffee Talk #68: What Kind of Television Do You Play Games On (DLP vs LCD TVs)?

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, WWE doing a brilliant job hyping The Royal Rumble, the “I’m with Coco” campaign, or the Haiti tragedy possibly leading to Floyd Mayweather vs. Shane Mosley, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Televisions play a vital role in gaming (duh). Pressing buttons on a controller isn’t that much fun unless dazzling graphics and thrilling sounds accompany the input. The advent of high-definition gaming has made TVs more important than ever. Getting the most out of your $60 games and $500 consoles requires a quality television. Today I wanted to see what kind of TV you use for games.

As for me, I’m a DLP (digital light processing) guy. The market is currently dominated by LCD (liquid crystal display) models, but I prefer DLP for several reasons. To me, most LCDs are too bright. DLPs produce truer color that’s more balanced. After several years, LCDs go bad and have to be ditched. DLPs can last three to four times longer, though they require a bulb change every few years. If you’re in the market for a large TV (60-inches and up), DLP offers a much better value and a picture that’s every bit as good. If you move around every few years then I highly suggest that you go with DLP; the screens are much more durable than LCDs. My biggest pet peeve with LCDs is motion blur, which can ruin fast-paced games, as well as sports and action movies (a lot of newer models are much better at dealing with this, to be fair).

Now don’t take this as me bashing on LCDs. They’re much better for rooms that get a lot of natural light. The viewing angle of LCDs beats the pants off of DLPs. A lot of people love that they’re so thin that they can be wall mounted. Some people prefer the brighter image that LCDs offer.

Like I mentioned earlier, I want to know what kind of TV you use for games. Any chance you’re in the market for a new set in 2010? If so, what televisions and technologies are you looking at?

Author: RPadTV

https://rpad.tv

48 thoughts on “Coffee Talk #68: What Kind of Television Do You Play Games On (DLP vs LCD TVs)?”

  1. 50 inch sony bravia lcd..im actually waiting for the 3d technology to become more prevalant, when this happens, ill prolly cough up the 2 or 3 grand to upgrade, even though im not sold yet on the potential of 3d, im an electronics whore who HAS to be up to date

  2. We had a 42' Sony LCD. Once we get the insurance money, I'd like to upgrade to one of those snazzy LED displays.

    I worked at a Tweeter(Sound Advice in Florida before they went under) almost 4 years ago, and I loved the DLP displays then. Even though they were slightly bigger in size, their weight ratio was wonderful, and the colors were always vibrant. They tended to market them as the bargain brrothers of the LCDs.

  3. couldnt get a dlp, cant replace bulbs every year or two or whatever…

    hey i sure hope that yosemite super volcano doesnt erupt this year, cause if it does, we are SCREWWWWed

  4. 42 LCD Magnovox (Phillips cheap brand) @1080p. I have no intention of upgrading any time soon because the only things in my house that actually take advantage of this TV are my PC and the Zune Marketplace on my 360. Consoles can't actually handle 1080p (this gen) and most likely won't handle more than 1080p (next gen), so I'm good with my TV for a long time, assuming it lasts through 2 gens.

  5. For my 360 I play on a 32in Magnavox LCD and for my PS3/wii since those are shared consoles those get played on a 47in Samsung LCD. I would get a DLP but the two rooms they would be used in have a lot of natural light and LCD's are the way to go if you have a lot of natural light coming in.

  6. I have a 52inch Sony Bravia XBR with the bravia 3 engine. This allows everything to be at 60fps. I also like how bright it is. 240hz. Love it.

    I bought a new tv recently. I bought a 50inch Panasonic Plasma;G10 model. This is the most amazing set I have ever seen. The colors can't be beat, the price was amazing, and it has now kicked my Sony out of the mancave.

    I did my homework before I bought my plasma, and I think I will stick with Plasma for the foreseeable future. Colors are better (certain models) and the price is right.

    @Larcenous

    I need LED to be out another 2 years before I buy it. I got burned when Samsung put out 120hz for the first time, need them work out the bugs.

  7. 42 inch LG LCD. When I was shopping for an HDTV I did my homework and researched all the different tvs. I found that LCD is the best way to go. They have a 180 degree viewing radius and that don't hold glares from light like the others. Plasmas will hold a glare from light and projectors are only good if you have a dark room.

  8. thanks for the link thundercracker. It was hilarious! I missed Conan because i thought it was Sunday still. MLK day threw me off.

  9. yeah no problem tokz

    im considering banning nbc totally….i cant think of any good shows on that network anywhos, and i hope leno gets booed when he gets his fat ass back at 11 30

    conan on comedy central ftw

  10. Come on, Leno didn't fire / layoff Conan. Leno is just doing what any of us would do…accept a fat check.

  11. with worries of burn in and the fact that Plasma has a loud hum at high altitudes, I'm all for LCD.

    Besides, LCD has come a long way from where it was several years ago. The picture quality is almost indestinguishable. Especially on a 52" Sony Bravia *grins widely*

  12. @Rpad – all my research has indicated that LCDs last a minimum of 60,000 hours. at 8 hours per day that's almost 20 years. now I've never had a TV longer than 2 (I always want the next best thing) but to me that equates to quite a lifespan. I know DLP can get as much as 80,000 or more with bulb changes but those are cost prohibitive, after a while you'd rather buy a new TV then spend the money on bulbs

  13. @shockwave

    Burn ins can happen on LCDs as well. Not too mention, plasma has come a LONG way. Burn ins aren't an issue anymore.

    Also, a good plasma beats a good LCD.

  14. @Smartguy

    Those Saints are looking good man and Reggie Bush finally looked like a 2nd overall pick.

  15. @smartguy – I'm with you on 60fps – especially for games, it just looks a lot better than 120 to me, I don't like the blur

  16. @Snmartguy – Ya for performance I know Plasma edges out LCD but in Denver I wouldn't really consider a plasma, the liquid doesn't like the altitude. at any rate if you're going to get LCD there's nothing better than a Bravia

  17. @Smartguy

    "Also, a good plasma beats a good LCD."

    The glare from that window over there will prove you wrong and the person sitting of to the side of your plasma who can't see the picture disagrees with you.

  18. side note – recently a friend of mine went out of town and his friend was watching his house. the friend left a porno on a specific scene at the guys house and now his Plasma has a permanent D*ck on the screen

  19. @RROD – the glass screen is exactly why I don't have a samsung anymore. the contrast ration looks a little better for it but it wasn't worth the glare. I do like the viewing angle of a good LCD

  20. @Shockwave – I saw a story like that on craigslist. Dude was giving his TV away for free, caveat to that was the burned in image of gay man love on the screen.

  21. @RROD

    That is why I put it in a spot where a window can't hit it. I think ahead.

    @Shockwave

    Use the wash cycle and it will be gone.

  22. @larcenous – part of me wouldn't be so surprised if that was him. either that or another guy with crappy friends. he's more of an out of town aquaintance.

  23. I couldn't do the bulb thing. When I was in high school we had a projector and the bulb would get about 400 hours on a good run, $400-500 per replacement. I don't know what DLP bulbs cost comparatively but that hurts big time

  24. Speaking of TVs. Anyone here have their TV hooked to their PC. When I was running windows XP I had my Radeon 4850 running a DVI to HDMI converter and 20' HDMI cable out to my TV so I could watch Hulu and stuff on my TV. I had to get a separate driver so it would output the sound through the video card. Now with Windows 7 my LCD TV doesn't even show up as an option. I hit force detect but still nothing. Any clues???

  25. i play on a 21 inch acer monitor. lame, i know, but it runs on it can reach 1080p, and runs on 60hz. my dad wont let me play at the big tv's in the house because it drains a lot of electricity, and the bills just go way up.

  26. @SlickyFats

    Try updating the driver and making sure it is a Win7 update. My GTX285 works just fine through the TV. Also, if you are using a separate drive for audio, then make sure that is up to date as well. Vista drivers do have issues on Win7 sometimes.

  27. @Sandrock

    I am already running CCC 9.12 which was released mid December and there aren't any updates yet. I am fairly sure I downloaded the software for my 64-bit Win 7. As for the audio driver, it isn't installed yet because I can't even get a picture. I Googled it and it appears to be a wide-spread problem. I have contacted tech support but I haven't heard back. I was hoping someone else had already gone through this a fixed it.

  28. @shockwave

    It's an option on plasma TVs. It may be called White Washing depending on the make of the TV. Additionally it is a good option to use once every month or two to maintain the screen. It reduces or eliminates image retention.

  29. Ech, I forgot to mention that DLPs use less electricity than LCDs or plasmas. If you're concerned about your electricity bill or try to live a somewhat green lifestyle, that's another plus.

    @Shockwave562 Bulb replacement is around three to five years, depending on use. The bulbs cost between $75 to $150 depending on the model.

    @Everyone Jon Heder was pretty awesome on Raw. That's two weeks in a row with strong celebrity guest hosts! Unfortunately next week is a bone for USA, with the stars of Psych.

  30. @SlickyFats

    Don't know what to say other than wait for ATI to release a new driver with a fix. I'm not sure how ATI does their drivers, but NVIDIA has beta drives. Try getting a beta driver from ATI and see if that works, assuming ATI does that like NVIDIA.

  31. @rpad

    I was disappointed in this week's raw. I am beginning to see the turn of Randy Orton into a possible "face" and i don't think that fits his character. The whole i'm going to win from everyone at the end was too much.

  32. @rpad

    Oh by the way did you see that Mosley and Mayweather camps have begun talking to fill the empty card on March 13th?

  33. @tokz_21 I have indeed! However, it doesn't look like it will be for March 13. That's not enough time to sign a deal and start promoting.

    I do agree that Orton doesn't work as a face. He's too good at being a dick. I mostly enjoyed Raw. The Taker/HBK promo was excellent, the company did a great job at hyping The Rumble, and I love Heder.

  34. @Rpad

    I agree that's not enough time to promote it but knowing Golden Boy they may try to do it just to take revenue away from Top Rank. It will just feed into the rivalry.

    I agree that Taker/HBK was a good promo and Heder did a good job taking bumps but besides those highlights nothing else stood out on Raw. Oh wait, Santino being the Italy's president of the Don Johnson fan club was great to me and Carlito's little moment as Napoleon Dynamite (a movie he never saw).

  35. @tokz_21 I like how they used Kofi and Sheamus too. It's nice to see new guys getting pushed.

    I think it would be bad for the sport if GBP aggressively went for March 13. Plus, I don't think Mayweather has started training.

  36. @rpad

    I agree with Kofi's push. I like how the WWE had almost made me forget that they had him talking with a Jamaican accent even though he's from Ghana. I'm glad they got rid of that, I feel bad that he's got to stay with the Kofi Kingston name though. I'm not enjoying Sheamus' push because it might lead to Randy's turn as a "face".

    As for GBP, i think that Schaefer and ODH might go ahead and do it anyways. They are trying to stand up to Arum and show him that his time will be coming to an end soon.

  37. @tokz_21 It totally wigged me out when I was eating with him at Summer Slam last year. I had my mark hat on and it didn't occur to me that he wasn't Jamaican (even though I knew he went to school in Boston). He started speaking in his real voice and I had to stop eating.

    I disagree that they'd do it purely out of spite. That's more like Arum than GBP. If they want to maximize money for the fight then they should move to a date that wouldn't have them competing with another big boxing attraction.

  38. We have a 42" Sony Bravia LCD.

    And the Colts are one step closer to the SB, as long as they keep their starters in!

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