which technology really has the best picture

Northwoods-maine, I use a Sony as well, but it's an LCD. I thought it was the best taking all things into account. Better than plasma on some points, inferior on others, but overall, it was my preference; although, I thought the Panasonics gave it a run for its money. LCD's don't have the brightness of plasma, but I find the plasma pixels so large and obvious that I find it annoying. Like most pepole, I believe that CRT is the best picture, but the current version is dead, forget it. The market doesn't want it, and they don't come in large sizes. The reason why SED is getting so much hype is because it is a CRT based technology. So you get all the advantages of CRT, but in a flat panel. If it's properly priced, no other current technology will have an advantage over it on any point. And as far as waiting 5-10 years, the head of Toshiba said he plans to put it on the market in less than two, and he said that a year ago. Whether it's true or not, we'll see. It's OLED's that you will be waiting 5-10 years for.

Plasmas have the best image quality

I recall a visit by the head of Sony in which he said 40" was the limit of high quality CRT technology. My current monitor is a Sony 36 XBR.

I've toyed with the idea of a 70" SXRD RP, but after seeing a demo of Sony's new SXRD FP (VPL-VW50), I've concluded that a combination of a 50" plasma (Panasonic or Pioneer Elite) for casual viewing with a 100" pull down screen for movies etc. is the way to go. Nothing seems as immersive as FP right now, but the ambient light problem makes it unsuitable for casual viewing.

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Donbellphd - You're on almost the exact same track with your thoughts as I am. I'm thinking 60' Sony SXRD for day to day viewing, and the Sony VW50 with 100" screen for special events, DVD concerts, etc. I had looked hard at the Sony "Ruby" but the $1,000. replacement bulbs put me off. From what I was told, Ruby's little sister (VW 50) has a different bulb technology with a more realistic replacement price. Plus I can buy both the RP and the FP for the same or less money than the Ruby. Now if I could just convince me wife that both of these have moved from the "want" category to the "need" category!

>>I am responding because you gave me more info to go and because the post from Rlwainwright was incorrect. <<

Hmmmm.

>> Plasma is the best choice when there is a lot of light and you want to be bigger than 42". <<

Where, exactly, in his post did he mention high levels of ambient light? And, this statement completely discounts the experience of 10s of thousands of very satisfied owners of mid to large screen RPTVs.

Face it, most every HDTV available, regardless of the technology used to display the image, looks quite good and will satisfy all but the most fussy and anal-retentive viewer.

>> My $0.02 worth. The first thing I would do in your case is decide on screen size. If you are sitting 12' from the display, a 50" screen size is going to look like a postage stamp, especially in the context of a 21' long room. <<

Wrong. I am sitting 11.5 ft. back from a 51" Hitachi RPTV in a room that is 26 ft. long. The picture is quite large enough. I would have preferred the 57" model, but funds at the time wouldn't allow for it. Nonetheless, the picture is absolutely large enough to provide a very satisfying viewing experience and I don't regret my purchase whatsoever.

-RW-