Need help buying a famicom

[133MHz]

I'll never understand why CRT is frowned upon in favor of the LCD and Plasmas though.

Easy, big screen CRTs take too much space, and they look so 90s. People want low footprint screens that look like modern furniture instead of antiquated lab equipment. Also most people don't care about brightness, response time, scaling, etc. They just want that sexy flat screen TV in their fancy living room.

I watch my movies and play my modern games on my projector. For older consoles and casual TV viewing I used to have a Sony 21 inch TV. I've had it since 1990 and it gave up the ghost on December 2008. Now I'm using a 14 inch TV that a friend picked up from the dumpster. It was full of mud, the plastic frame is burnt, scratched, broken and it had multiple problems, but after a bath and some capacitor replacing it works like a charm!

[Medisinyl]

I don't like the bubble CRTs however.  My retro gaming set (24"--seems plenty large enough for games) and computer moniter are of the flat glass variety.  Though I do think movies look much better on Plasma, especially for widescreen stuff.  I'd also play my PS3 on there (has been a dedicated DVD player), but all the games have been crap so far...even R&C was a disappointment.  Still waiting for God of War III, Castlevania, and Twisted Metal to finally have a game I should expect to like. 

[ericj]

Easy, big screen CRTs take too much space, and they look so 90s. People want low footprint screens that look like modern furniture instead of antiquated lab equipment.

CRTs produce blacks like no plasma or lcd ever could. I really don't care about the size of my tv, but they are big. 

[jordon456]

All of my current gen consoles are hooked up to a LCD. I have a CRT but it's in a different room. I want all of my consoles in one room. I'm looking for 20 inch CRT or smaller. Which I can still find new I just haven't gone out a purchased one yet. Hopefully It will be this weekend.

[Medisinyl]

/\ Don't buy a new CRT...a new $140 CRT can be had for $20 on Craigslist or other local listing.

[shoggoth80]

I believe that CRTs will last longer too. Sure, they take up more space, heavier, and all that jazz.... but if you get a good quality one, you won't be replacing it any time soon. I've heard that CRTs measure life in decades, and that LCDs measure life in hours. Haven't validated that yet though. However, only the computer monitor at home is a LCD... I personally use a CRT...but my PC lives at a friend's house because I live in the sticks and have to deal with 56K dialup.

[133MHz]

I had a 20+ year old TV set whose picture tube was still going strong. When a CRT gets old, it gradually loses brightness. It's so gradual over time that you probably will never notice it unless you have another identical new set for comparison. Also the cathodes get depleted of electron emitting material, leading to poor focus and trailing lines on the picture. CRTs last for decades if used with care, and they wear out very slowly.

LCD screens don't emit their own light, they have a fluorescent tube behind the screen (the backlight) which provides the necessary light for the panel to function. As with any fluorescent lamp, it will eventually dim, flicker, and burn out. If the lamp burns out the screen will go dark, but it's still working, you just can't see it because of the lack of light. You could theoretically keep replacing the tube and the screen will last forever, and it will work just as when it was brand new.

Luckily LCD backlights seem to last a long time. I have a 12 year old laptop and a 7 year old desktop LCD monitor, both still work. The monitor is not as bright as it was before but it's pretty acceptable, and the laptop LCD looks dim and yellowish when started from a cold boot, but given some time to warm up it gets good brightness and white balance. LCDs last forever, their fluorescents don't. Keep brightness low to maximize lamp life.

Plasma screens on the other hand aren't made to last. They consume lots of power and they're pretty sensitive to screen burn in. It's like a CRT but with accelerated wear. Don't expect a Plasma screen to be working decently on the next decade unless it has never been removed from its sealed packaging.

[nintendodork]

How long are plasma screens supposed to last?  I've have a 20'' plasma TV in my room for 5 years, and it's fine.

[133MHz]

I did some reading to catch up with the times and it seems that many improvements have been made concering the lifetime of Plasma displays. Most manufacturers claim 60.000 hours of life on their 2008 models, while displays manufactured in the early 2000s were lucky to have more than 5 years of useful brightness at moderate use. Also they're still some serious power hogs. Guess we'll have to wait and see.

BTW dork, I've never seen a plasma display in such a small size. Plasma TVs around here start at 42", while LCD fills the lower segment.

[nintendodork]

I got it for $150
We have one in our living room that's 32 inches, but it's much nicer than mine...
Walmart can bring amazing things...I'll tell you that right now...you wouldn't believe some of the stuff I've seen in there