Need Help with Plasma Burn In vs. DLP Decisions

There are two issues- one is after image retention--sometimes described as burn in, and the other is uneven phosphor wear, also described as burn in. You are discussing the latter. IN any case, I have used my plasma for over 2 years and the pic is perfect as evaluated by a widescreen reviewer who is part of our HT group. However I dont watch anything in 4:3; many DVDs have bars along the top and bottom however due to aspect ratio and my choice to see the dvd as was intended as opposed to zoomed or stretched.

It is important to avoid long periods of bars in the first 100 hours of plasma use. After that, the chance is greatly lessened for this problem. In fact, no plasma owners I know have this problem at all. Most plasmas have a reverso function- so if it does happen you can essentially wash your screen inside out- meaning white on ends black in middle; restoring even phosphor wear.

The only burn in I have seen is in older plasmas used in commercial settings with static screens, like airports with schedules of flights. Even the Panny Smithsonian plasmas, all three of them show no burn in despite continous daily use of the same material over and over again. Its in the future of flight area by a split open DC-3 with stairs going up.

DLP gives a distinctly less accurate picture- sorry to offend here, but between rainbows, lack of decent contrast ratios etc, there isnt anyway to get that looking through the window videophile picture. I actually dont recall anyone touting DLPs at CES 2005 this year- it was all plasmas, LCDs, and front projectors-- all of which are improving. I also personally dont like the physicial bulk of a DLP, although they are very lightweight ( I do like that).

in the same buying situation...looking at plasma & dlp.

looked at dlp's and got turned off by the "rainbow" effect... do have to say the price has gone down and the quality has gone up in regards to rear projections...

really like the plasma's but concerned about "burn in" is a concern.

Please review my post. I dont know of anyone who has a burn in issues with any plasma in the residential setting.

The ability to correct any issues exists should they come up. The only places I see burn in mentioned as an issue is in review magazines and periodicals that receive a great deal of advertising money from LCD manufacturers.

Three years ago, I took the leap of faith to purchase a Panasonic plasma. Up until now, I don't see any burn in. I watch HD channels on cable, but not that much b/c my box keeps getting tiling, i.e. trying locking in signals as signals do get dropped. Today, whether it is HD or non HD, there are always network logos on them. Thus, I should see burn in. However, I have not seen any burn in, and this is not a 'halo' effect, meaning to defend my purchase. If it lasts me another three years, I would be very happy b/c it's probably time for another upgrade, i.e. newer, better, and cheaper plasma. :> ) Let's see if it can stand against the test of tim. My two-cent thought.

I agree with Lej... I've had my Panasonic plasma for over 2 years now, and have had no issues with ghosting or burn-in. I use the "justified" aspect to stretch 4:3 images. At first it was weird, but you quickly forget about it.

I also watch movies "as intended" with letterboxing if the aspect does't match the 16:9 of the plasma. After watching a movie, I use the built-in screen saver for about 5 or 10 minutes as a "just in case" to prevent burn in or ghosting.

The other thing that I don't think anyone mentioned is to tune your plasma carefully. Out of the box the units are dialed way too bright and saturated. This helps sell units in brightly lit stores, but is just too unnatural in a properly lit HT or living room. By dialing down the "picture" setting, you will extend the life of your unit and get a much more realistic image.

Also, even in older plasmas, the half-life of the unit is something like 80,000 hours -- 10 years if you run it 24/7.