Projection Television

Rear Projection LCD TV Secrets

2007-07-09T21:27:00.000-07:00

The least expensive type of large TV is a rear-projection LCD TV. Some projection TVs have three cathode-ray picture tubes (CRTs), which are like smaller versions of the tubes used in conventional sets. The images from those small tubes are projected onto the back of a 40 inch to 60 inch plus screen, giving them the name rear projection TV. Other rear projection TV sets use LCD, digital light processing (DLP), or liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS) technology in place of CRTs. These high tech rear projection TV sets are thinner, lighter, and as a result more expensive than comparable CRT-based sets – but they produce a higher-quality picture.

Major brands of rear projection LCD TV sets include Hitachi, Mitsubishi, Panasonic, Philips, RCA, Samsung, Sony, and Toshiba. The most popular models are HD capable, and there are three basic types of HD TVs.

So how do you choose the right rear projection LCD TV for you and your viewing needs? First, consider the space you have available before you worry about the screen size itself. Most rear projection LCD TVs have screens measuring from 42 to well over 60 inches. You might be tempted to purchase one of the biggest screens, which can span as much as 70 inches or more, but first determine how much floor space you can spare, and plan to view the TV from around 7 to 10 feet away for optimal picture quality.

Also consider depth and price. Once you know how much room you have, decide whether size or price is more important. CRT-based sets are floor-standing models with deep cabinets mounted on casters. Some take up as much space as an armchair or loveseat. Many rear projection LCD TV sets are tabletop units, or you can buy a separate stand for a few hundred dollars.

Then focus on picture quality. The best rear projection LCD TV sets deliver very good picture quality with HD content and good picture quality for DVDs and regular TV programming. Rear projection LCD TV screens provide much better picture quality than CRT models.

Also check the viewing angle. Some rear projection LCD TV sets display a better image from off-center than older sets did, which is important if your TV will be watched by several people at the same time. Before buying a particular model, see how the picture looks if you step off to the side or move up and down. With some rear projection LCD TV sets you'll see a dimmer, washed-out image as your viewing position angles away.

Once you’ve made your choice, it pays to think about whether you want an extended warranty on your rear projection LCD TV. While extended warranties may not be worth it for most products, they may be for high-priced TVs. Because rear projection LCD TV sets are expensive, check into the cost of a service plan. Find out whether in-home service is covered and whether a replacement is provided if your rear projection LCD TV can't be repaired.

Author : Linda Harrison

Lens Flare - The Hidden Enemy Of Rear-Projection TVs

2007-07-04T02:33:00.000-07:00

While one expects CRT-based rear projection televisions to deliver good black levels, there is a factor that can compromise black level performance in any rear-projection display.

This factor is something called lens flare. Lens flare is most commonly seen in photographs. It usually occurs when the photographer is shooting in the general direction of the sun. Bright sunlight enters the lens at an angle and bounces around inside the lens body. As it reflects off of the interior parts of the lens, some of it ends up getting on to the film, usually in the form of bright circles or shapes, broad smears of light, or lines.

Binocular, telescope, and camera lens manufacturers all try to make the inside of their optical assemblies as dark as possible and also add light baffles to try to waylay the misdirected light so that it does not spoil the image

Rear projection televisions also suffer from lens flare. The best place to see lens flare is usually during the end titles of a film. Often the titles are bright white on a black background. Look for a small single title, and pause the player at that point. Look at the black areas of the screen around the title. Is there a halo, ring , or general smear of light of the same color as the title? That unwanted light is most likely due to lens flare.

If you want to see the flare at its source, pull the screen off the TV and look into the lenses while a bright field is being displayed by the TV. Look for light being reflected off of shiny interior parts of the lens assemblies by moving your head around so you can look down into the lenses and see the insides of the lens assemblies. (Don't run your head into the mirror while trying to do this.) The light bouncing off of those interior edges and surfaces is the problem.

Your "black screen" black level very probably is quite good on your RPTV, especially if you have done the work to line the interior of the cabinet with light absorbing material, and view your TV in a darkened room. However, one small bright object on a otherwise black screen may cause light pollution on the supposedly black areas of the screen due to this problem. In images with a lot of bright areas mixed with some supposedly black areas, the black level of the supposedly black areas will suffer considerably.

Preparations for Reducing Lens Flare

CAUTION!

The following actions if performed carelessly will ruin your television. Further, lens flare can be reduced but don't expect to completely eliminate it. The cathode ray tubes which are the light source for many RPTV's emit lots of light at all angles, and it is really tough to keep some small amount of it from getting out of the lens in a direction we don't want. Expect that you'll be able to make some improvement, but you will not completely eliminate the problem.

If you do not know how to get at your lens assembly, do not consider yourself qualified to attempt this procedure. If you have butterfingers, do not even think of trying to do this. Read the whole process first, and familiarize yourself with the required steps before commencing. Scared? Good!

All of the above been said, those who are not scared off can see IF they can remove the first lens assembly. I'm going to assume you have purchased the service manual for your TV so that you know how to do this. BIG CAUTION!!!! Some lens assemblies also hold down the cover which seals in the cooling fluid that sits on top of the CRT's. The service manual will tell you about this, usually by indicating which of the screws on the CRT top cover/cap/lens assembly MUST NOT be removed. If you ignore these warnings, you could be buying a new TV. (Don't ask how I know this.)

If the lens assembly frame cannot be removed, it may still be possible to rotate the inner lens assembly to its highest position, and then pull the inner lens assembly up out of the frame. This will require the removal of the locking wingnut assembly which is used to lock the inner assembly for proper focus. Yes, that's right, you will also have to re-focus the 3 lenses after this whole job.

Find a CLEAN, WELL-LIT, UNDISTURBED place to work. No kids, pets, significant others, etc. should be able to disturb you.

Get some clean, washed cotton cloths on hand. Used White T-shirts are good choice. Clean white cotton gloves are also a good thing to have when doing this job. In addition, I highly recommend you obtain a source of clean, dry compressed air.

Examine the lens assembly. Determine how the lens assembly comes apart. In the case of the " Delta Digital 265 " lens assembly from Corning Precision Lens Inc, (This assembly is used in the Toshiba 50HDX82 RPTV, and this lens assembly is what I will refer to throughout this discussion.) the threaded screw which carries the wing nut used to lock the mechanical adjustments of focus must be removed. The end of the screw has been squared off. A small "Vise-Grip" plier can be used to gently turn this screw counterclockwise to remove it from the plastic assembly it mounts in.

Then the whole internal lens assembly can be rotated fully clockwise. Note that as you rotate this assembly that two plastic studs are turning in a couple of spiral slots to move the lens assembly up and down in the lens frame. If the lens assembly is rotated fully counterclockwise the studs will hit the end of the slot. You'll then notice that there is a groove running up the inside of the lens frame to allow those two studs to slip up inside the frame so that the inner lens assembly can be removed from or inserted into the frame. You may want to use a small hobby knife to put a bevel on the start of that groove to make it easier to push the lens assembly up out of the frame. Some gentle prying and cursing may also be necessary.

Realize that any contact with the front or rear lens while you are doing this may mean either a dirty or damaged lens. Wearing clean cotton gloves at this point is a good idea.

The lens assembly can now be disassembled by removing the screws holding the two halves together. Remove one half in such a way as to leave the lenses resting in the other half of the lens shell. Make a drawing at this point of exactly how the lenses fit into the lens shell. Which lens goes in which position, and which way does the lens face? Be sure about this, as you don't want to keep handling these lenses unnecessarily.

Note that the Corning lens assembly has glass AND plastic lenses! Glass or plastic, all of them must be handled with the utmost care. ONLY TOUCH THE EDGES OF THE LENSES, AND THEN WITH GLOVED FINGERS. The plastic lenses are shaped like cups, and thus can be safely rested on a flat clean surface with the curved side up. The center glass lens should be supported only by its edges. Some sort of cloth-lined trough of an appropriate size to support the lens should be arranged.

Now that the lenses are out of the way, you can take a look at the plastic shell that held them. In the case of the Corning assembly, the shell is molded out of black, but shiny, plastic. We want to get rid of the shine.

In addition to the shine problem, the lens retaining rings inside the lens shell may have blunt edges which also can reflect the light. Those blunt edges can be sharpened to knife edges through careful carving or through shaping with a Dremel tool. This step is time-consuming, and any burrs generated must be cleaned up, or the flare could be worsened, not made better. Afterwards, wash the shell halves thoroughly to prepare them for painting.

A high-quality flat black paint should be applied to all of the interior surfaces of the shell. (A search of the Web recently did not produce any "super" flat black paints available to us ordinary mortals. 3M Corp. used to make something nice, but they discontinued it. Arg!)

I ended up using Badger brand "Model Flex" No. 16-119 flat black paint. This is a water-based acrylic paint of good quality. It is available at better hobby shops.

Brush or spray a THIN, EVEN coat of the paint onto all of the interior surfaces of the lens shells halves. Set them aside to dry thoroughly.

Working on the Lenses

The plastic lenses in the Corning lens assembly do not have painted edges. This allows light to bounce around the inside edges of the lens and bounce back out where it should not. For painting the lenses, a top-quality small brush should be obtained at the same place where you bought the paint. The flat faces along the outer circumference of the plastic lenses, the flat outer edges of the lenses, and the outer portion of the rim of the curved face of the lenses should be painted black. As you might guess, one slip or drip could mean the purchase of a new lens assembly.

The center glass lens set in the Corning lens assembly already has some painted edges. Do not add more paint as painting the glass any more actually worsens the internal reflections from the glass lens assembly. (Don't ask how I know this, either!)

Before you start painting, put the lenses back in the shell once the paint is dry in the shell. Look through the lens assembly, particularly at the curved outer faces of the lenses. You want to identify how far in from the edge of the lens you can paint without blocking light coming through the lens assembly. I ended up painting the outer rim of the curved face of the lens on a line about 1/8th of an inch in from the circumference defined by the molded plastic retaining rings on the shell.

If you are uncertain about handling this lens painting part of the job, either skip it , or practice painting objects of the same general shape as the lenses until you feel confident. Do not load the brush heavily with paint, as this will promote paint drips running where you don't want them. This lens painting job must be done very carefully, so do not attempt it when you are rushed or distracted.

Once the paint on everything is thoroughly dry, it is time to bring out the compressed air. Blow off all dust particles and dirt from the lenses and the shell assembly halves. Use appropriate lens cleaning material and liquid to remove any fingerprints or smudges. This is another place where it is easy to scratch the lenses, particularly the plastic ones. Take your time, and think about what you're doing.

Place the lenses back in the proper order in one of the shell halves. Use the compressed air again to blow the lenses clean one more time and reassemble the shell around the lenses. Inspect the shell and lens assembly for freedom from dirt, and correct any remaining problems.

Reassemble the shell assembly back into the frame, and reinstall the screw that the focus-locking wing nut rides on. Reinstall the remaining hardware on the lens assembly. Re-inspect the entire lens assembly for cleanliness and any other problems. Correct as necessary and then set the lens assembly aside in a clean place, if you were able to safely remove the whole lens assembly.

In the Toshiba 50HDX82, the lens assembly sits atop the main CRT gun assembly. The top of the main CRT assembly just under the lens assembly consists of a cooling liquid-filled chamber with a lens molded into the top. This lens is shaped like a cup, and thus automatically gathers dust particles and dirt at the bottom, right in the main path of light going up to the lens. Use your compressed air to blow that dust out of this cup-shaped lens. The top inside rim of the cup has been blackened, but it still has a somewhat shiny finish which contributes to the lens flare.

A tremendously brave person could try to paint that blackened edge with the flat black paint we used previously on the lenses. I'm not that brave. Instead, here's what I recommend you do:

Order some black "flock paper" from Edmund Optical Supply. This paper has one side which has a light-absorbing texture. Get the thin stuff without the adhesive backing. Cut a ring-shaped piece of this flock paper. (A drawing compass is very helpful in drawing circles of the right diameter on the back of the flock paper to help as a guide for the cutting.) The outer diameter of the ring should just fit into the circular depression which surrounds the cup-shaped lens. The inner diameter of the ring should be small enough to block reflections from the edges of this "cup lens" and other off-axis light without reducing the main light beam brightness too much. I found a 5 centimeter center opening to be about right.

Use small pieces of double-sided tape attached to the back (non-flocked side) of the flock paper ring to attach it in place around the edge of the lens cup. You may want to make several trial pieces with different inside diameters for this flock paper ring before you figure out the best balance between knocking down lens flare at this point in the optical path, and reduction of screen brightness. A smaller center opening in the ring will improve the flare problem, but the main light beam can get choked off too. Another way to estimate this ring's effect is to put the lens back on over the flock paper ring, and look through the lens. If the flock paper ring is not visible through the lens once the lens is in place, go smaller on the center hole size of the ring.

Once you are satisfied with your treatment of the area underneath the main lens assembly, clean it out one more time with compressed air and reinstall the lens assembly.

Now you only have two more lenses to do, unless you have a TV with a single lens, which may be the case if your rear-projection TV is LCD, DLP, or uses some other new alphabet soup technology instead of the old-fashioned CRT's.

Lens assemblies from other manufacturers will certainly be different in detail, but the general sequence outlined above will still apply.

Conclusion and Results
It must be noted that the television on which I did this lens treatment still exhibits lens flare, it just has been reduced due to this effort. Your mileage will vary. Please look at the image below to see the difference between a treated and untreated lens assembly.

Author : Eli Aloisi

"LIGI HDTV", The New Projection TV

2006-06-26T00:47:00.000-07:00

“LIFI HDTV”, I have never heard of this product before, but it is a very bright and beautiful LCD rear projection TV. I was not familiar with it, but it's a new model prepared for this year's CES.

The application of the new “LIFI” light source is one of its key developments; it has such a long lifespan that you no longer need to change the lamps, and it has an extremely short start-up time of 1-2 seconds. Furthermore its range of color reproducibility is 1.44 times more than the HDTV standard. In addition to this phenomenal color reproducibility, it has many other alluring specifications.

Although “LIFI HDTV” is a new line-up that has just been introduced, it certainly has joined the ranks of other alternative full high definition flat-screen TVs.

PROJECTION TELEVISION WARNING

2006-06-17T20:35:00.000-07:00

DO NOT USE YOUR NINTENDO WITH FRONT OR REAR PROJECTION TV

Do not use a front or rear projection television with your Nintendo Entertainment System ® (“NES”), Super Nintendo Entertainment System ® (“Super NES”), Nintendo ® 64 system (“N64”), or any NES, Super NES or N64 games. Your projection television screen may be permanently damaged if video games with stationary scenes or patterns are played on your projection television. Similar damage may occur if you place a video game on hold or pause. If you use your projection television with NES, Super NES or N64 games, neither Nintendo nor any of Nintendo’s licensees will be liable for any damage. This situation is not caused by a defect in the NES, Super NES, N64, or NES, Super NES or N64 games; other fixed or repetitive images may cause similar damage to a projection television

Rear-projection Television

2006-06-05T01:31:00.000-07:00

Rear-projection Television
If a very large screen size is important to you, look into rear-projection televisions. These sets don't have the same size constraints as direct-view televisions because they don't use the cathode ray tube for the display. Instead, they use a projection screen. There are lots of different types of rear-projection televisions. They include:
Cathode ray tube (CRT), which uses three CRTs, one each for red, green and blue. These can produce a great picture with good contrast but can also be heavy and bulky.
Digital Light Processing (DLP), which uses one or three digital micromirror devices (DMDs) to create all of the pixels that make up the image. DLP sets also create a good picture, but gaps between the micromirrors can produce a screen door effect. Some users also notice a rainbow effect when moving their focus from one part of the screen to another in sets that use only one DMD.
Liquid Crystal Display (LCD), which directs light through liquid crystals and magnifies it for projection. An LCD TV can be lightweight and slim, but it doesn't have a good black level -- the ability to produce a true black, which is important for good detail and contrast.
Liquid Crystal on Silicon (LCoS), which is like a cross between DLP and LCD. LCoS doesn't have the screen door or rainbow effects that DLP can produce. It isn't as common as other display types, and some sets don't have a very good black level.

Some rear-projection sets may have a smaller viewing angle than direct view sets. No matter where you sit in front of a direct-view television, the screen maintains the same picture quality. If you look at a rear-projection screen from an extreme angle, the picture may be much darker and you won't be able to see what's happening on the screen. Newer projection sets use high-quality screens that work well from most angles, but older sets may have a fairly narrow viewing area.

If you're looking to buy a rear-projection television, the main things to compare are size, resolution and screen quality. Even a top-notch picture can look muddy on a bad projection screen, so be sure to pay attention to screen material. Darker screens are better because they present an image with better light-and-dark contrast. You should also look for a screen made of glare-resistant material.

Are Plasma Or Projection TV's Better For Your Home Theater?

2006-05-23T01:58:00.000-07:00

Which One Is Better, Plasma Or Projection TV?
By Tim Gorman

When you are setting up your home theater you need to decide on what is the best way for you to watch. Many people would not have anything other than a projector as it adds to the cinema theme as well as giving you a very good image as big as you want. But many others do not want to deal with projectors and screens and would rather have the convenience of a TV style screen that you just turn on and play the DVD in as you would in any other room but on a bigger screen.

If you are using a projector then it is a good idea to make sure that your room has good thick curtains so that you can block the light from the room. As the image is produced through a projected light then it is best to use a projector in a fairly dark room. With some of the latest projectors they have a light sensor so that if the light is too bright for the image then it brightens the light to make it stronger. You also have to set up a projector for the movie and put up the screen. But it does give you a really good sense of being at the cinema as well as a really good, large picture that is very high quality.

There are some really good plasma screens around now and the cost is dropping. But you still get the sense that you are watching TV. Although if you put it on the wall then it is a lot more like a real screen. Plasmas have an advantage over projectors if you have a small room, as they did not need any space to project an image. Although plasma TV does not have the same movie theater aspect to it as a projector does it is very easy to use and does give you a very good image.

If you want ease of use and a great quality picture and are happy either to have a smaller screen, or you are able to pay for a very big one, then plasma might be best for you. But a projector can give you a really good quality image that is as big as you want and there are some very good projectors that are very cheap. But you also have to set up the screen as well as the projector whenever you want to see a movie. But whatever you choose it is always worth trying it out in the store so that you can see which is the best for you.

For additional money saving information regarding home theater projectors, home theater components and home theater systems visit ShoppingForHomeTheaterSystems.com located at http://www.shoppingforhometheatersystems.com

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Plasma TV, Projection TV

Front Projection Television

2006-05-14T00:00:00.000-07:00

Front Projection
An Affordable Big Screen Option for your Home Theater

A great deal of consumer appeal for rear projection TV systems arises out of the shear simplicity that this product offers as an immediate solution to getting a bigger TV. In addition, most big screen high street retailers seem to give the impression that rear projection television systems are cheaper than most front projection TVs.

This may be true in retail stores, but not necessary so when buying online. On the internet, it is most likely that for a given budget level, front projection TVs will deliver a much more cinema-like experience in terms of picture size and quality than any other TV picture technology. (Should you decide to buy online, please check out Projection TV Buying Guide for more information.)

Clearly, there is market for both - the main decisive factor being your home theater room size.

At the same time, one cannot ignore the fact that front projection TVs seem to offer a number of advantageous over rear projection. In particular, a front projection setup:

- Supports a larger screen size,

- Does not suffer from poor viewing angles or screen reflections.

- Is more compact in terms of floor or wall space.

- You wouldn't be stuck with a fixed screen aspect ratio.

We take a detailed look at each of these issues to further expose the main differences between rear and front projection TVs.

Screen size: An obvious difference but worth thinking about for a moment. Front projection TVs would easily deliver a 100" screen - that's four times the surface area of a 50" rear projection TV. Yet a home theater projector for your front projection setup would not cost more than a good quality 50" rear projection set.

Viewing angles: Rear projection sets have a rather small optimum angle of view; move away to either side of the optimum viewing position, and color, contrast, and brightness degrade considerably.

This is not so much of an issue with front projection TVs - the image is both larger and much easier to view from a wider angle - though the use of a good quality projection screen surface is essential to ensure the best results when viewing the picture from different positions.

Reflections: Reflections may create a serious degradation of picture quality in Rear projection TV systems. Front Projection TVs do not normally have reflection problems - especially with matte screen surfaces.

Optimum use of floor-space: A rear projection TV is a large box that will stand out from the wall by as much as 30 inches - shrinking the viewing space by approximately three feet.

It is true that some of the latest LCD and DLP rear projection TVs are getting extremely slim; a case in point is the popular 50-inch Samsung HL-R5067W reviewed on our site, which at 14 inches in depth, is one of the slimmest in its range. (For a review of the Samsung HL-R5067W, please click HERE).

BUT still, a rear projection TV is difficult to disguise when not in use. With a front projection TV setup, the screen is usually either wall, or ceiling mounted. Therefore it lets you use the full room depth for viewing. A wall mounted screen can be covered with a curtain when not in use, while a ceiling mounted electric screen can be retracted. A great advantage of front projection TVs is that the projector and screen combination gives you more flexibility in terms of 'making it disappear' when not in use, while using no floor-space.

Aspect ratios: A serious issue with any video display system is aspect ratio management. Rear Projection TVs come with a fixed aspect ratio of either 4:3 or 16:9. But today video material comes in a variety of aspect ratios. So if you are designing your own home theater, it is important to give this issue careful thought.

The aspect ratio of a video image is the ratio of its width to its height. Standard television screens are 4:3 (1.33), which means they are four units wide for every three units of height. All standard (non-HDTV) television broadcast material today, as well as most older classic movies, come in the 4:3 format.

However, modern films are normally produced in one of several widescreen formats. On the back of many DVDs you can find the movie's actual aspect ratio in the fine print; a most common aspect ratio is 2.35.

There are various ways to deal with different aspect ratios:

Image stretching to fill the available screen.

Use of black or gray bars on top and bottom or on the sides of the screen to show the movie in its correct aspect ration as originally filmed - but then the effective film display will be smaller.

Pan and scan editing where only the most important portion of each frame is shown with the rest being discarded.

'Image stretching' and 'horizontal/vertical bars' can be extremely irritating while in the 'pan and scan' you are giving up film information to have a full screen view. Worst of all, in the case of CRT based projectors, prolonged use of black or gray bars to adjust aspect ratio may lead to tube burn-in at HUGE costs to you.

The incompatibility between screen formats renders the decision on aspect ratio a rather complicated issue when choosing a rear projection TV set.

With front projection TVs, aspect ratio is less of an issue. Mind you, digital video projectors still come with a fixed native aspect ratio, but a front projection setup makes it possible to use a manual or electrically-driven black masking system that adjust the projection screen border to suit the image source aspect ratio (more on this in our projection screen section).

For best results, you still need to match the projector native resolution with that of the incoming video signal if you do not want to loose picture information when adjusting the image aspect ratio.

Price: Are you still being faced with the dilemma of choosing between a rear projection system and a home theater projector set-up? If you are interested in the higher quality digital systems available today, in particular, if you are thinking in terms of a digital projection setup that is both 480p and HDTV compatible, then price-wise, a 100-inch front projection set-up would fall within the same price bracket as some of the latest 55inch 16:9 DLP or LCD rear projection TVs.

For example, the Toshiba 52HM84 52" HDTV-Ready Projection DLP TV referred to earlier on, is presently selling online at amazon for around $2,000. Similarly, the slightly bigger Gateway 56" Widescreen HD-Ready DLP Rear-Projection TV is presently selling at around $3300.

At these price levels, you can get an HDTV-compatible Panasonic PT-AE700U Home Cinema LCD Projector complete with a high quality 100" projection screen. This means that for the same level of investment, you will get a front projection TV solution that is capable of delivering a more theater-like result and a bigger image size.

Making the Choice: The bottom Line - Your Room Size!

If you are looking for a high quality rear projection TV and your viewing room can accommodate an 80" to 100" screen, do not overlook the possibility of a front projection TV setup.

Price-wise, if you can afford a good quality 50" rear projection HDTV, you can also afford a good quality home theater projector and projection screen.

Article Source : The Best Guide To Television Technology

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Projection Television, Front Projection Television

Sony KDFE42A10 - The Review

2006-05-13T03:16:00.000-07:00

By J. B. Mccord (San Diego, CA)

Well, after wayyy too much research and hemming and hawing, I finally decided on this 3LCD RPT by Sony. What finally swayed me was the sweet combination of picture quality (PQ) and price. In side by side comparisons I just couldn't detect enough (with my eyes at least) PQ difference between this RPT and the plasma tv's to justify spending twice the money. While standard definition signals are only mediocre, the HD and DVD signals are simply awesome.

I use component cables and a Motorola set top box (stb) provided by Adelphia. The side to side viewing angle is greatly improved over previous generations of projection tv's (as is the brightness and crispness), but beware; the vertical viewing angle is quite narrow. My built-in media niche is elevated a bit, which puts the tv above my head when seated on the couch. There is a very slight dimming from this angle. However, it's nothing that I haven't been able to compensate for with some picture adjustments (or a subtle shim ;-)).

The remote has a "Wega Gate" feature that works kind of like the "Start" button in MS Windows. I think it's pretty user friendly, but I don't use it much since I mostly just use the remote from the Adelphia stb. As an engineer, I also appreciate the other features this LCD RPT technology offers over plasma. It uses less energy, generates less heat (a factor when building it into a wall unit with tight clearances), it's light enough for one person to move around (the salesperson in the store carried this 42" tv singlehanded!), the plastic screen has less glare than glass, and the single bulb is user serviceable.

Best of all; no burn-in issue to worry about! Just plug it in and start watching tv, use it as a computer monitor (I haven't tried this yet), or just run a static image all week. Who cares! Sony offers this tv in a 50" version, but because our viewing distance is 8'-10', I didn't want to go any bigger. If you get too close to these screens you will see some screen door effect. After having this tv for several weeks now, I can honestly say that I am very pleased with my purchase.

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Projection Television, Rear Projection Television

Sony KDFE42A10 42" LCD Rear Projection Television

2006-05-11T02:08:00.000-07:00

Bring a true cinema experience into your own living room with the 42-inch Sony KDFE42A10 rear-projection LCD TV, which features a new design with a thin dark black bezel, a compact body and invisible speakers located at the bottom of the set. It features built-in analog (NTSC) and HDTV digital (ATSC) tuners. (Digital high-definition programming is available via terrestrial signals (over-the-air) or unscrambled cable signals provided by your cable company.) It's also Digital Cable Ready, so you can enjoy digital cable without an additional box or remote.
The KDFE42A10 uses the 3LCD video projection system, which combines three LCD panels to produce an image for a brighter picture in well-lit rooms, intensly vibrant natural colors, and spectacular HD performance. It's driven by Sony's WEGA Engine System, which delivers superb picture quality from any video source by minimizing the signal deterioration caused by digital-to-analog conversion and stabilizing the signal processing.

The Digital Reality Creation line doubling feature replaces the signal's NTSC waveform with the HD equivalent, while doubling the number of vertical and horizontal lines. This results in four times the density for quality sources, such as DVD, satellite and digital camcorders. The CineMotion technology feature uses reverse 3-2 pull down technology, providing smoother picture movement when playing back movies or other video sources on film. Other features include the Steady Sound audio equalizer (for consistent output between programs and commercials), parental controls (V-chip), Favorites channel list, front AV Inputs for connecting camcorders or video game consoles,and an HDMI connection for uncompressed, all-digital audio/video interface between the TV and any HDMI-equipped audio/video component.

It has a 24-watt stereo audio system (two 12-watt speakers) and TruSurround XT compatibility. It features the following video and audio connections:

- Composite AV In (RCA): 3 (1 front)
- S-Video In: 1
- RF In: 1
- Component Video In: 3 (1 front)
- HDMI In: 1
- PC In (D-Sub 15-pin): 1

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Projection Television, Rear Projection Television

Projection Television Technologies

2006-05-07T00:14:00.000-07:00

What are the Projection Television Technologies Available For Me?
by: Bill Ransom

There are four types of rear-projection TV's available currently. These are the older CRT rear-projection, DLP rear-projection, LCD rear-projection and LCoS rear-projection. Most available today are HD ready and can display digital signals.

CRT Rear-projection : these are the projection TV's that have been on the market for years. CRT or Cathode Ray Tube technology is the same technology that your old TV set's used. There are three tubes in these projection TV's each for a primary color and they project the light onto the TV's screen. Since they require three CRT tubes these TV's are very big and deep. Most CRT projection TV's come in 50 inches or larger screen size. CRT rear-projection TV's are becoming extint and many companies do not make them anymore. They need to be adjusted frequently to keep the colors in line and the image quality and viewing angles are not as good as the next three rear-projection technologies.

DLP rear-projection : (Digital Light Processing) are based off of technology developed by Texas Instruments. They produce an image by sending light through a spinning wheel of color which then sends the light to almost a million small mirrors. These mirrors produce the image onto the screen. DLP rear-projection TV's have slimmer cabinets than CRT rear-projection TV's. The biggest complaint with DLP rear-projections are the "rainbow effect" many people see. Also the bulb that produces the light for the TV needs to be replaced usually every 8,000 viewing hours.

LCD rear-projection : LCD rear-projection's use a LCD screen which is projected unto the screen. These TV's like DLP rear-projection are slimmer than the CRT rear-projection TV's. Image quality on LCD rear-projection is not as good as DLP and viewing angles are not that large. Viewing an LCD rear-projection from the center position is recommended. Also many buyers complain that moving images are pixelated and I have seen this first hand.

LCoS rear-projection: is the newest technology of the four types of rear-projection TV's. Liquid Crystal on Silicon rear-projection TV's is basically a hybrid between an LCD rear-projection and a DLP rear-projection. In these TV's light shines through LCD panels and is then modulated through these panels by the liquid crystals. The liquid crystals do the job that the mirrors do in DLP rear-projection TV's. LCoS are touted as not having the "rainbow effect" and can be made thinner than the other rear-projection TV's. A downside to these TV's is the technology is still very expensive so many companies do not make them.

PRO'S:

PRICE

larger screens than Plasma or LCD displays

CON'S:

Depth of TV cabinet

image deficiencies such as the "rainbow effect" and washed out images in well lit rooms

viewing angles are inferior to Plasma and LCD displays

*In most cases a Plasma or LCD display will have overall better image quality than any of the current Rear-Projection Televisions on the market today. Projection TV's just cannot reproduce the contrast and color accuracy or saturation that the current Plasma Technology can achieve. DLP and LCD rear- projection and the newer LCoS technology has all come a long way since the days of the CRT rear-projection television but cannot equal a good Plasma or LCD display. Plasma and LCD technology also have DLP and LCD rear-projection beat in the areas of viewing angles and being used as a computer display. While most new rear-projections can be hooked up to a Xbox or Playstation they are not meant to be computer displays where LCD Televisions where.

Where DLP and LCD rear-projection TV's do come out ahead is with Price per viewing inch. Do not get me wrong DLP and LCD rear-projection TV's are great and unless you are the type of person that will get upset if the images you are viewing are not perfect then a 50 - 60 inch projection television provides a superb viewing experiance by all means. If you are a HDTV junkie and need that perfect video image then go with a Plasma or LCD Display but remember you will pay alot more.

About The Author

Bill Ransom has been in the technology industry for many years as well as retail electronics. An avid fan of flat panel television and the latest technology surrounding them.

http://www.flatscreenbuyers.com

Television Technologies

2006-05-05T01:22:00.000-07:00

The transmissive projection types include CRTs and liquid crystal displays (LCDs). Here's a brief overview of how they work:

CRT

A CRT projector uses much smaller tubes than a standard television. These tubes create the picture the same way a standard TV does -- by firing electrons at a phosphor-coated screen.

A CRT projector can include:
One color CRT with red, green and blue phosphors
One black-and-white CRT and a spinning color wheel that adds the color
Three CRTs, one each for red, green and blue

Liquid crystal display (LCD)

Electrical currents can cause liquid crystals to change their shape. This allows them to act as light valves -- different amounts of current allow different amounts of light to pass through the crystal. This lets the LCD device create a greyscale image. To add color, most projectors use a series of mirrors that split the light into red, green and blue beams. Each beam passes through a separate LCD, and a lens collects the three beams and projects the image on the screen. LCDs can also be used to create flat-panel televisions.

DLP

A DLP projector uses a digital micromirror device (DMD) - a small, rectangular device made of microscopic mirrors -- to make a picture. The mirrors point toward or away from a projection lens, depending on whether the corresponding pixel needs to be light or dark. Most DLP rear-projection sets have one DMD and a spinning, multicolored wheel that adds color. Some front-projection units have separate DMDs for red, green and blue.

LCoS

LCoS is simultaneously reflective and transmissive, and it's like a combination of DLP and LCD technology. In an LCoS set, light passes through a liquid crystal layer, then bounces off a reflective surface. When the light passes back through the liquid crystals, the crystals act as light valves to create the light and dark areas of the picture. Most LCoS projectors use separate devices for red, green and blue, and a lens combines the three colors

Flat-panel models are another option for people who are looking for a larger TV. Plasma and SED-TV sets can provide a very large picture in a set that's only a few inches thick. Flat-panel LCD sets are another option, but they're limited in size to about 40 inches diagonally.
All three flat-panel set types tend to be more expensive than most projection models. In addition, plasma screens are susceptible to burn-in -- if the same image stays on the screen for a long time, it could become permanently seared into the plasma.

There are a few other lesser-known TV technologies, like grating light valves. But if you're shopping for a projection TV, the ones you're most likely to see will use CRT, LCD, DLP or LCoS to create a picture.

When you start shopping for a projection TV, your first major decision will be whether to buy a front-projection or rear-projection model. Both types use the same technology -- CRT, LCD, DLP or LCoS -- to create the picture. However, front and rear projection have some substantial differences. Here's what you should consider when making your decision:

The size of the room and the screen: Front-projection setups don't take up a lot of floor space like a rear-projection TV can. Front projection can also provide the biggest screen size. But if you want a huge picture, you'll need to be able to sit far from the screen. A good rule of thumb is that your distance from the screen should be 1 ½ times its diagonal measurement. In other words, if you want a 100-inch (250 centimeter) front-projection screen, you'll need to sit about 12 feet (3.7 meters) away.
How you plan to use your set: Front-projection setups work best in dark rooms. Even models with very high luminance, or light output, can't really overcome the light in a sunny room. They may not be the best choice for daily TV viewing or for rooms with lots of ambient light.
How much money you have to spend: Some projectors cost about as much money as a high-end rear-projection set. But a projector on its own isn't very useful - you'll also need a screen and speakers. If you want to watch television shows on your set, you'll need a TV tuner, too. The total price for all these components add up to substantially more than a rear-projection set.