I'm in the market for a new big screen. DLP has really blown me away, I'm surprised by how much better it looks than LCD rear-projection. The only ones on the market so far are the ultra high end RCA Sceniums (odd, RCA and high-end in the same sentance) and Samsung DLP units. I'm looking for a 50" unit. Does anyone have any experience with either of these tv's?

Picture wise, the Samsung's appear to have a slight advantage, but the Sceniums blow them away feature wise (built in web browser etc..). I've only viewed them in store though, both are very slick looking.

I know a lot of high end stores steer clear of RCA as a brand just because they've flooded their market with their crappy low-end gear but I have no problems dropping $5k CDN into one of their products if it's going to kick some major butt.

When looking up specifications for a rear-projection TV, it is worth treating them as with looking for a projector.

Standard projector systems like those used in presentations project an image on a screen. Rear-projection TVs work the same with the exception that the screen and projector are built in to a fixed single unit, the screen is translucent and the projection equipment is fixed behind set within the set.

Specifications such as DLP/LCD technology, contrast ratio, lumens work the same for both front and rear projection systems. I plan on setting up a thread to give more detail on each each specification is about, although you will find some useful information on Howstuffworks's how projection TV works. This shows a good explanation of each system; both rear and front projection

DLP and LCD each has its advantages and drawbacks. LCD uses similar technology to a TFT monitor by blocking light using individually coloured pixels. DLP uses pixels composed of miniture mirrors which alternative back or fourth to show or hide a pixel. As a result DLP gives higher contrast ratios and darker 'Black' than TFT as you may have noticed. However TFT tends to have supperior colour rendering to DLP.

The main things to look out for are contrast ratio and lumens. Many manufacturers try sticking on bonus features to tempt users to their products so look at the specification first. Lumens specify the maximum light output (like that of a light bult - 750 lumens = ~60 watt everyday light bulb). Contrast ratio specifies how many times the brightest white is compared with the darkest black. Just note that some models aim to make their contrast ratio look impressive by brightening the bulb on bright secenes and reducing it on night time or dark scenes.

Happy TV hunting

Well I have my eye on a Samsung 43 inch model. Here is a review on the 61 inch DLP. I got to see them both at the Great Indoors store side by side. Frankly, I like the 43 inch better due to the price, plus in the case of this store the smaller unit was much "brighter" picture. I have to do some more digging to see if it was a setup error or what. Check out this one that is coming out soon and here is another blurb


Samsung's 56” W HDTV Monitor TV with DLP Technology (HLP5685W )

New chips are on the way with much higher resolution someting like 1820X ???. Also alot of more manufacturers are jumping on the DLP bandwagon, so by the end of the year I'm hoping for market pressure to provide a higher resolution TV at a lower price. Also consider that the same resolution chips are used in the 43" that are used in the larger systems..that is same pixel count spread across greater area gives somewhat less resolution. My ideal size for my room is 50-55".
I also want to assure I get a DVI TV so I can add the Bravo D3 DVI Mpeg4, Meg2, WMV-HD player coming out. A few WMV- HD dvds are out now and have 6x the resolution of a standard DVD.

"Also consider that the same resolution chips are used in the 43" that are used in the larger systems..that is same pixel count spread across greater area gives somewhat less resolution. My ideal size for my room is 50-55"

That's what it is then. Thanks. My opinion was the smaller 50 inch samsung had a great picture as I said when compared to the 63. Now I know the reason.
Thank you very much!

Dan