# LED vs LCD / Newer televisions - sugggestions?



## Beaver101 (Nov 14, 2011)

Hi,

My search on the forum didn't produce any specific result on this topic (and a google-search produced hundred of sites that's just overwhelming to read on) so thought I just ask directly here. Does anyone know what is the difference between an LED and an LCD television? And if you were to pick (or buy) a newer television, supposingly to last for at least 5 years, what specification and model would you be looking for? For an electronics dummy, (yes, I still own a 15 years old CRT tv with cable) all I know is for the latest, a HDTV with 1080 resolution would produce excellent viewing results. I'm looking for something no bigger than 40" (spacing and cost restrictions). Thanks for any input.


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## Guigz (Oct 28, 2010)

Given that your requirements are pretty basic, I would say that either would do!

My first gen LCD TV is nearly 10 years old and still going strong.

I suggest you go in the store and compare the image quality. Purchase the one with the best picture for the price.

If I were you, I would also pay special attention to the amount of power consumed by the TV. Over 5-10 years, a seemingly insignificant difference of a few dozens watts can add up to a significant amount of money. If you can, try to find out about the phantom load of the TV. Some TVs consume as much as 50 watts when they are off!


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## ddkay (Nov 20, 2010)

They don't make LED TVs for the mass market yet. There is LED backlit vs. CCFL(compact fluorescent) backlit. LED backlights are more energy efficient (in theory but not always in practice), tend to last longer without losing brightness and allow a thin profile design. Most LED sets are "edge-lit", meaning the manufacturer put lights on edges then use diffusion panels to spread light onto the rest of the screen. Edge-lit LED displays can't reproduce true colours like Direct-lit LED can so they are much cheaper to produce. In fact, most manufacturer's stopped making direct-lit a few years ago because of the cost. This picture below shows a comparison between edge-lit (left) and direct lit (right) LED: http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4050/4538355053_10bd4c233f_o.jpg. Edge-lit is good enough for most people, and can still be impressive, just read all the reviews you can and see one in person before making a final decision.

I also recommend a Kill-a-watt meter if you're curious how much electricity specific stuff you own consumes, it's very cheap on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00009MDBU/


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## HaroldCrump (Jun 10, 2009)

Many (if not most) public libraries will let you borrow a Kill-a-Watt meter for 1 or 2 weeks (depending on policy).


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## My Own Advisor (Sep 24, 2012)

We've had a good experience with LG:

http://www.lg.com/us/tvs/lg-47LE5400-led-lcd-tv


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## MoMoney (Apr 1, 2011)

With LCD TVs so cheap, buy a base model as OLED tech is just around the corner. 

OLED represents the true next gen technology, the whole LCD vs LED vs LED back-lighting thing is just splitting hairs as they are not evolutionary jumps in the industry.

OLED pricing will probably stabilize by holiday season 2015 and that's when the pricing will come down to reasonable levels.


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## kcowan (Jul 1, 2010)

We bought a 39" Panasonic LED in 2008 because the form factor was perfect for our bedroom which is brightly lit.

We also had a 50" Panasonic Viera Plasma in the LR. It had a great picture but was a power hog. We just replaced it with a 50" Samsung SmartTV LED.


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## marina628 (Dec 14, 2010)

http://www.bestbuy.ca/en-CA/product...spx?path=e09c1197ab8532a96aa5c2aa55128b34en02 we bought this one about a month ago when it was on sale for $1999 and the store had additional $250 off in store that day.We love the 3d option been watching lots of kids movies lol.
Here is another TV we own which is really a great tv too , read reviews Samsung definitely #1 in quality.
http://www.bestbuy.ca/en-CA/product...spx?path=182df90b06b575a408a8e4ae62299156en02


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## jcgd (Oct 30, 2011)

I've got a 37" LG I bought for around $600 four or five years ago. I really like the button layout and menus. The style is a touch dated. We bought a 32" Samsung for the bedroom for around $350 about three years ago. I like the picture on the Samsung a little better, it looks more vivid to me. Both TVs are 60hz refresh rate, 720p and they do just fine for me. I like to buy the somewhat dated technology because I have no interest in paying to be an early adopter. 

If I was buying today I'd likely get a bigger TV with 1080p (for anything over 37" where you start to see the quality degrade a lot) and 120hz or possibly 240hz refresh rate if I could get a good deal. I've learned that the boxing day sales at FS/BB on most models is the new spring price for after all the holiday sales. So if you wait a few months after boxing day you can get the same price as boxing day plus haggle for a free HDMI cable or warranty or other high margin item. On boxing day I find they won't give these items along with the 40% boxing day blowout door stopper special.


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