Television and Hi-Fi - Photo Copyright Diametrik (cc)

This article lists the different types of televisions available in the UK.

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Television is a huge part of family life, and most households will own at least one. Some people have one in every room of the home.

There are lots of different types of televisions available, so if you are thinking of buying one you might want to find out more. Let’s take a look at the different types of television available.

Contents

HD – High Definition

HD-Ready TVs are able to display HD (high definition) content, from sources such as Freeview HD, Sky HD, PCs/laptops or Blu-ray / HD movies.

Most new high quality TVs are now HD-ready. The main thing you will want to check are the amount of HDMI inputs, type of inputs, and whether the TV is 720p or Full-HD 1080i.

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Full-HD 1080

Full HD 1080 gives the highest level of resolution.

720p

720p has a minimum vertical resolution of 750 pixels when in widescreen, which is good enough for many people.

LED Screen

The LED screen is a relatively new technology when it comes to television, and it is fast becoming a popular thing to have. LED screens work by emitting light as opposed to reflecting it. The result of this is a much brighter image than what you would get with a standard screen. Another plus point of the LED screen is the fact that it responds incredibly quickly, especially when being switched on and off. As you can see, there are a lot of things that make the LED screen a popular choice when it comes to televisions.

LCD Screen

The LCD screen is very different from the LED, yet still a popular choice. LCD stands for Liquid Crystal Diode; the technology behind the screen. The LCD technology works by blocking light, which gives a higher quality image. However, the problem with the LCD screen is that it is slower to respond than the LED screen. This means that when there is a break in the electrical current such as when you switch the TV off, the image becomes blurred for a brief period of time.

Plasma Screen

The plasma screen seems to be a very popular choice these days. A plasma screen is layered with millions of cells that are coloured with red, blue and green. It emits ultraviolet light when the built in computer chip tells it to. The image produced is usually of a very high quality. However, some people still prefer the older models of televisions.

Rear-Projection Television

Home theatres are incredibly popular these days, and many people prefer to watch movies at home rather than at the cinema, possibly due to cost but mostly due to comfort. Rear-projection televisions are designed to project the image of the movie onto a huge screen. The image produced by rear projection televisions are usually very high quality. Due to the popularity of this type of television there are a lot of affordable models out there at the moment.

Conventional Tube

This is probably the most widely used types of televisions. It works on the same principal as the plasma screen with the coloured cells; however, there are some very noticeable differences. For instance, Conventional Tube televisions are far heavier and bulkier. They also burn more energy. Although these things are true, many people still use these types of television today.

Conclusion

As you can see, there are a lot of different types of television. There are ones to suit every type of home, and every budget. Each one has their own advantages and disadvantages, it all comes down to personal preference and the budget that you are working with.

Videos

Great 10 minute video from NewEgg.com on the different types of TVs available.

Has some pros and cons of the different types of TV technology (Plasma, LCD and LED), screen size (and viewing distance), connection types and other specs.

Beginners level video, but still quite useful.

How to choose the best television.

Covers TV size, technology and frame-rate in an easy to understand format.

Short (2 minute) video from Comet (UK).

Quite a simple basic / beginners level video video looking at the difference and best choice of TV (plasma, LED or LCD).

Not really for advanced viewers.

TV Manufacturers / Brands

A list of the different television manufacturers and brands available in the UK.

  • Acer
  • Alba
  • Bush
  • Epson
  • Hitachi
  • LG
  • Panasonic
  • Philips
  • Samsung
  • Sharp
  • Sony
  • Toshiba

Useful Websites

A selection of useful websites for someone who wants to buy or find out more about the different types of televisions:

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