HDTV and Home Theater

Shopping for the right HDTV is easy once you know the basics of the various types of TV's available. With HDTV screen sharpness described as number ranging from 720 to 1080, and display types of LED, LCD, and Plasma, the variety of HDTV's has never been better. In the past, traditional tube TV's had a resolution of 480 visible lines. By contrast, HDTV's have screen resolutions of 720 or 1080 vertical lines. In general, more lines equal higher resolution especially as the screen size increases. So a modern HDTV with 1080 vertical lines is more than twice as sharp as a traditional tube TV. The other part of the resolution specification you will see is a letter I or a letter P. In specifying HD resolutions the "p" and "i" stand for "progressive" and "interlaced". Progressive is a single scanned line while interlaced is an alternating of lines (odd & even).

Despite the obvious difference in pixel count, 720p and 1080i both look great. In fact, unless you have a very large television and excellent source material, you'll have a hard time telling the difference between any of the HDTV resolutions. It's especially difficult to tell the difference between 1080i and 1080p sources. The difference between DVD and HDTV should be visible on most HDTVs, but especially on smaller sets, it's not nearly as drastic as the difference between standard TV and HDTV

If you want to get a good overview of the differences between a traditional 480 line standard definition TV and the various HDTV resolutions click HERE. This file should be viewed at full size to properly compare them.

At RitzCamera.com we have all of the leading HDTV screen types to choose from: LED, LCD, and Plasma. They all deliver stunning pictures and picture quality. Depending on your budget and room layout, one type or the other may be the best choice for you.

LCD HDTV
LDC HDTV technology is essentially a matrix of thin-film transistors (TFTs) which supply voltage to liquid-crystal-filled cells sandwiched between two sheets of glass. When hit with an electrical charge, the crystals untwist to an exact degree to filter white light generated by a lamp behind the screen. LCD monitors reproduce colors through a process of subtraction: They block out particular color wavelengths from the spectrum of white light until they're left with just the right color. And, it's the intensity of light permitted to pass through this liquid-crystal matrix that enables LCD televisions to display images chock-full of colors-or gradations of them.

Plasma HDTV
Plasma HDTV technology consists of hundreds of thousands of individual pixel cells, which allow electric pulses to excite rare natural gases-usually xenon and neon-causing them to glow and produce light. This light illuminates the proper balance of red, green, or blue phosphors contained in each cell to display the proper color sequence from the light. Each pixel cell is essentially an individual microscopic florescent light bulb, receiving instruction from software contained on the rear electrostatic silicon board. Plasma HDTV are know for rich black colors and a wide viewing angle.

LED HDTV
LED HDTVs are fundamentally LCD televisions that use LED lights for back lighting instead of the flourescent CFL lighting traditionally used for LCDs. Both employ the liquid crystal diode (LCD) technology front panel containing the "twisting crystals" which define LCD technology. Today, LED back lighting is changing how we view LCD television technology as the latest technology advance in HDTVs.

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