TV specs may be significantly inflated
While LCD TVs take the vast percentage of flat-panel sales, LCD manufacturers have been playing catchup when it comes to picture quality. The industry has been introducing technological tweaks to improve LCD's ability to handle motion, increase contrast, and display colors more accurately.
But according to a new study by DisplayMate Technologies and supported by Insight Media (a consultancy), LCD as a technology continues to come up short when compared to its competitors.
DisplayMate tested 2008 top-of-the-line LCD sets from Samsung, Sharp, and Sony, and a top-of-the-line plasma display from Panasonic. The company's aim was not to single out specific models but to look for issues common across the technologies.
DisplayMate's owner , Dr. Raymond Soneira ,pulls no punches in describing the effect of picture enhancement technologies employed by all TV manufacturers. Using names like Dynamic Backlight, Dynamic Contrast, Dynamic Black, Dynamic White, and Dynamic Color, Dr. Soneira says that they are all "essentially marketing gimmicks. They all reduce picture quality and accuracy and introduce ugly image artifacts."
Dr. Soneira was particularly critical of LCD TVs' inability to maintain picture quality when the sets were viewed from an angle. Contrary to industry claims, his tests showed that LCD picture quality (accurate colors, brightness, and contrast) deteriorated as soon as someone sat just 10 degrees off center.
"All of the LCD units have a noticeable color shift at less than ±15 degrees, while the Panasonic Plasma is visually indistinguishable from face on viewing well beyond ±45 degrees," the report said. "This is true for both the measurements and the viewing tests. The significance of this is enormous, because it means that the 'sweet spot' for seeing an accurate picture on an LCD HDTV is only one person wide, even for these top-of-the-line models, so essentially everyone looking at an LCD HDTV will see a picture with noticeably different coloration.
"The differences were amazing and astonished everyone that came to see and compare the HDTVs side-by-side, including industry experts, manufacturers, engineers, reviewers, journalists, and ISF instructors."
DisplayMate had no kinder words for other TV specs. Speaking of quoted contrast and brightness levels, the report said that the numbers given were "significantly misunderstood as well as significantly abused and exaggerated. The values published by most manufacturers are now so outrageous that they are close to absolute nonsense." LCD TVs that include displays with "extended color gamuts" are promoting a feature that "is just a marketing gimmick."
Yet none of this may matter to consumers. "My brother and sister-in-law buy TVs, they're awful," Dr. Soneira said. "Awful cable reception, awful lighting, and they're happy as can be. Many people simply don't care."
And even if they do, there are times when LCD is the right choice, he said. "With high ambient lighting, watching TV in the daytime, plasma may not cut it for you. If viewing angle and picture quality is important, you need a plasma."
Source: New York Times
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