LCD v Plasma, power consumption

[admin_exported]

Hi, One of the arguments thrown around duing the usual Plasma versus LCD debates is that LCD uses less power than Plasma. The current view seems to be that while the maximum wattage of the Plasma is considerably higher than the LCD, in actual use there's not much difference, particularly when watching dark scenes.

What I can't seem to find out is how much of difference there really is. The manufacturers may have done measurements but don't seem to release actual figures. There's a few scattered tests done by home users that can be found on an internet search but nothing definitive. Has anyone got a link to some more comprehensive figures?

I want to buy a new TV with my initial thoughts being a Panasonic LCD. Comments on this site are suggesting that Plasma is the noticably better picture. As someone with a slightly green agenda the final decision may well be decided by the power usage. Big differences would mean staying with the LCD, but if the results are not significant then I will change to Plasma. Of course I ought to be considering a Total Cost of Ownership (inc repairs etc) across a 10yr lifespan but I'm not sure how you would work that one out.

The quick way to get these figures is to ask those who already have a modern TV to stick a Kill A Watt or similar (http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?TabID=1&ModuleNo=38343&doy=10m4 for example) on the plug and report the results. However we all watch different types of programmes and for different uses. I'd like to suggest that the What HiFi team start to include power ratings as part of thier tests. I assume that they go through a similar set of programmes, films and games when testing each product, so this would provide an ideal baseline for power use. The full gamut of figures would I suppose include measurements for each of the different program types, but I would be happy with an average 'in-use' figure and a standby figure (there are reports that some TVs use more power in standby than in use!)

Whether you are a tofu eating tree hugger or a hummer-driving climate change denier the results should be of interest to all users. The more power you use the more money it costs. And power is not going to get cheaper.

 

[southdownswolf]

Good comments, any response from the What Hifi team? Surely it would not be too difficult, especially in group tests, to measure how much power is used?

 

[Anonymous]

I got the recent Which? report on flat panel tv's and in their tests they found that Plasma's on the whole had higher power consumption, up to 30% more than an LCD.

 

[FuzzyinLondon]

I don't trust any of the findings from Which? magazine when it comes to televisions. Having been a member and reading their reviews of televisions, it's clear that they have absolutely no idea of how to set up a television properly. They seem to test them straight out of the box without any effort to tweak them for normal usage. Read their review for the Pioneer 428XD. This is a tv that is universally acknowledged by journalists, retailers and anyone who knows anything about TVs to be the best 42" flatscreen available. The Which? review for it goes against everything I've seen with my own eyes. With this in mind, it wouldn't surprise me if the Plasmas tested were all left with their out-of-box settings when tested. Hence the picture would be too bright and the power usage would be higher than normal. For LCDs this wouldn't make a difference as their power usage is constant.

 

[Anonymous]

However, so far the Which report seems to be the only place for figures; so it is the best for this information. Their setup may seem unoptimal, but then again they may have done a good job. Unlike power usage, viewing experience quality is subjective. They do state (and thanks Pavgub for the Which tip off, I'd forgotten about them) that they test the power usage in a variety of situations which would affect screen brightness and power saving modes, Until a 'more-discerning' review magazine such as WHF starts measuring the power usage then readers who are interested in the cost of running a TV will prefer the Which reviews.

My main issue with Which is the fact that they always seem to be behind the times. They haven't yet reviewed the 08 models, but from the comparable 07 models we get the following power usage figures.
TX-37LZD70
Power consumption - normal viewing (Watts) 129.6
Power consumption - standby (Watts) 0.44

TH-37PX70
Power consumption - normal viewing (Watts) 249.8
Power consumption - standby (Watts) 0.58

At normal usage that's not 30% more, it double the power usage! Based on these figures the LCD wins hands down.

Any feedback from WHF editors on whether they will be including power usage figures at any point in the near future?

(And is there a better way of getting line breaks than manually typing XHTML tags?)

 

[Clare Newsome]

[quote user="TobyT"]
Any feedback from WHF editors on whether they will be including power usage figures at any point in the near future?
[/quote]

It's under consideration. In the meantime, we've suggested this useful site several times, which quotes manufacturers figures for all appliances.

Personally (and this IMHO, not mag policy), there are many, many other things in life I would (and do) rather sacrifice than the performance of my home entertainment kit in the quest to go green/save pennies. Turn the heating down, the lights off, pop on a jumper and enjoy the best picture/sound of your life - not a poorer-performing product just because it uses less juice....

 

[Andrew Everard]

And given that climate change is inevitable, and nothing to do with CO2 emissions, it's just down to whether you'd rather spend money on electricity bills or not.

 

[Anonymous]

[quote user="TobyT"]Hi,

I want to buy a new TV with my initial thoughts being a Panasonic LCD. Comments on this site are suggesting that Plasma is the noticably better picture. As someone with a slightly green agenda the final decision may well be decided by the power usage. Big differences would mean staying with the LCD, but if the results are not significant then I will change to Plasma. Of course I ought to be considering a Total Cost of Ownership (inc repairs etc) across a 10yr lifespan but I'm not sure how you would work that one out.

;.[/quote]

thought you might like to know that the new panny plasmas are supposedly lead free! [opposed to other plasmas]
and claimed 100,000 hours viewing so lets face it that tv will easily last 15yrs and at the end of that you dont have to worry about disposing of any harmful lead

 

[Clare Newsome]

Yep, we reported that the new Pana plasmas are lead-free (and much lower electricity consumption than their forebears). You'll see a lot more of such eco-friendly developments from manufacturers, and a good move, too - as long as the performance doesn't suffer, it's good to have more efficient, cleaner kit.