LCD Plasma Televisions

An "LCD Plasma Television" is actually not a plasma television at all. LCD stands for "liquid crystal display." Liquid crystals, discovered by Friedrich Reinitzer in 1888, are substances that simultaneously have both liquid and crystalline properties. To make an LCD television or computer monitor, a liquid crystal solution is sandwiched between two sheets of polarized glass, and an electric current is passed through it. Depending on the broadcast information, the current causes crystals to block light or allow it through. Thin film transistor (TFT) technology allows LCD TV pixels to turn on and off more quickly, making TFT LCD televisions competitive with CRTs in image quality.

LCD televisions share many advantages with Plasma Televisions, such as lightweight screens and sharp, bright pictures. LCD technology in particular creates low-power, portable displays that can be seen clearly even in direct sunlight. Potential disadvantages are a limited viewing angle and a color not quite as "true" as the most expensive CRT. In the past there have also been problems with "motion distortions," or blurring of high-speed images, but technology is already being developed to counter this problem. There is some current debate about LCD vs. Plasma Televisions, which we also address on this website.

Popular Plasma Television Brands

Although Philips was the company that first brought plasma television to the attention of the public in 1998, today there are many competing popular brands. Currently Panasonic dominates the plasma market with 4 of the 5 top-selling models, but people all over America are buying flat-screen TVs from Sony Plasma Television, Pioneer Plasma Television, Zenith Plasma Television, Hitachi Plasma Television, Sharp Plasma Television, NEC Plasma Television, and Gateway Plasma Television, among many others.