LCD TV's 120 Mhz Flat Screen Panels - A must have or have not?
Its seems the new buzz around flat panel screens is the 120Mhz refresh rate upped from 60 Mhz technology of a year ago. What does this mean? Compared to the 60Mhz model, there is less blurring or artifact in motion sequences. The buzz keyword last year was 1080P. Now most companies are producing TV's that are 1080P. So all the companies, like Sony, Sharp, Samsung and Phillips are jumping in the new feature 120 Mhz. Is it a must have that all of the consumers who have bought TV's with the old 60Mhz refresh rate must upgrade to the 120 Mhz model? Well hopefully, here's an opinion of a gadget flat screen lover.
Most of the high tech enthusiast will welcome the smoother picture and less ghosting, especially when it comes to action movies or sports. For a normal person watching the sequences, they will not notice the difference unless you specifically look for it. What would matter to the normal consumer is the quality of the picture and size of the flat panel and of course price.
Sharp LC52D92U
These extra buzz features such as 120Mhz would cost ie. $800 more to purchase the size set but a lower model. Let's take the example of the Sharp LC52D92U. It is the top of line 52 inch model with 120Mhz refresh rate and a couple more features than the Sharp LC52D62U with 60Mhz model. The normal consumer would not see the difference and would prefer the more bang for the buck lower model.
As a consumer, I may be looking for a 46-inch LCD such as the Sharp46D82U which is the top of line of the Sharp 46inch family. It has the 120mhz frame rate conversion or I could us this money and pay a little more to purchase the Sharp LC5262U. I think most people, would be jumping on the bigger set. You can use the analogy that when people come to your house, they notice the size of the clarity of the picture, they don't notice the slightly blurred motion of an action scene.
So to answer the question, do I need to buy a 120Mhz refresh rate flat panel when I come shopping for a new television. Most will answer "no", unless you a picky enthusiasts and have deep pockets. Anyways, technology and pricing is changing so fast that in five years, you could have double the size of the screen for today's prices and features. Yes we boys like our big screen TVs.
 |