Comparative

Study of LCD
and Plasma
Screen TV’s
Project Proposal
Prepared for: Ginger Vandament

Created by: David Vandament

Completed report due: 6/17/2011

Introduction
During our conversation, you mentioned that your current LCD television has stopped
working. When you purchased your current television, you were upgrading from a rear
projection big screen television that served your needs, but took up too much space. You
stated that you were overwhelmed by the different types of technology and options
available. When purchasing the television, you were confused by the difference between
LCD and Plasma screen HDTV’s. You eventually just chose the largest LCD television
that fit your budget and that was in stock at the store. You also mentioned later that you
regret not doing more research as some of the options available would have been nice to
have.

You stated that the new television must have certain features. It must have a screen size
that is 46” or larger. It should be a flat panel format to limit the amount of space that it
consumes in the home as well as provide a multitude of mounting options. The
component inputs must include multiple HDMI ports, a VGA port, as well as other
popular connections for today’s electronic devices. It must support the highest resolution
supported by Blu-ray and digital cable. To take full advantage of your Blu-ray movies,
you would like a higher refresh rate than your current 60Hz television. You showed
interest in having the option of later utilizing 3D technology as long as it fits within your
budget without sacrificing the other features. You also mentioned that you would like to
keep the price around $1500. Lastly, your current television is a Samsung unit which
linked to your Samsung Blu-ray player. You liked this feature for ease of use, it is not
necessary to stay with this brand for this feature, but you would like to have Samsung
included in the research.

Based on these criteria, I have found some possible televisions that may work for you:

 Panasonic Viera 50” plasma

 Samsung 50” plasma

 Samsung 52” LCD

 Sony Bravia 55” LCD

I have decided to use the following criteria to assist in selecting your next television:

 Price

 Maximum resolution

 Refresh rate
  Contrast ratio

 3-D support

 Supported resolutions

 Inputs

 Unique features

The purpose of this proposal is to explain the process and methods I will use to find a
solution for you in your search for a replacement television as well as provide a schedule
and budget for the report. The sections included in this proposal are: Project Procedures
(Significance of problem, Project Methods, and Task Schedule), Qualifications and
Experience, Budget, and Initial Bibliography.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions, comments, or concerns so that we can
address them.

Project Procedures
This section will describe, in more detail, the importance of this report as well as the
criteria in which the options will be evaluated. The methods of research and a
schedule are also discussed.

Significance of Problem

Your television is the main source of entertainment for you and your family, including
your two little girls. Both you and your husband are attending college full time and use
the television to keep your children occupied during times when you must focus on
course work. With the current television malfunctioning, you need to find a replacement
that will fit your budget as well as serve its role in your home theater as family movie
night is important to you. On occasion, you have family and friends visit to watch
important televised events or sports events. Having a large format screen and high
resolution greatly improves the viewing experience.

Below are some options that I found that align closely with your criteria:

- Panasonic Viera - 50” plasma, 3-D ready, 600Hz, $1100

- Samsung PN50C7000 - 50” plasma, 3-D ready, 600Hz, $1550

- Samsung PN52A550- 52” LCD, 1080p, 60Hz, $1300

- Sony Bravia - 55” LCD, 1080p, 120Hz, $153

In order to make an educated choice from the options above, I will compare each of them
with the criteria below:

- Price – I will make sure the televisions I am comparing are close to your budget.

- Maximum resolution – The televisions must support the maximum standard

resolutions supported by Blu-ray and HD cable

- Refresh rate – This will depend on the manufacturer and the technology used

- Contrast ratio – This refers to the difference between white and black. The higher
the contrast ratio, the better picture the television puts out.

- 3-D support – While not a requirement, I will list if the televisions support 3-D
and what it will take to upgrade to this feature

- Supported resolutions – Not all input streams support the same resolution, from
over the air broadcast, video games, to Blu-ray, I will list what each resolution
each television supports so you can be sure your devices and programming will be
compatible.

- Inputs – I will list all the inputs available on each set.

- Unique features – Any unique features to each set or worth mentioning will be
listed and compared.

Project Methods

The research that I will be conducting will be split into three categories. Each of these
categories will help me distinguish which criteria are most valuable in selecting the
proper television for you.

Types of Research:

Manufacturer information – This information will be directly from the

manufacturer for each television being reviewed.

Independent Web Sources – This information will come from websites that have
nothing to gain from their data. Sales site will not be used. I will only use sites
that have what appears to be unbiased data that is backed up with studies or other
sources.

Interviews With Existing Customers – This information will come from people
that I know that have had recent experience in purchasing LCD or Plasma
televisions.
Sources:

The following sources will be used in gathering data for the report.

Manufacturers:

The following manufacturer websites will be used to collect data on the

specifications of each television being reviewed.

Samsung – (5/17/2011)
The Samsung website will provide the manufacturer’s
specifications of the Samsung televisions covering all of
the criteria required.

Panasonic – (5/17/2011)
The Panasonic website will provide the manufacturer’s
specifications of the Panasonic televisions covering all of
the criteria required.

Sony – (5/17/2011)
The Sony website will provide the manufacturer’s
specifications of the Sony televisions covering all of the
criteria required.

Independent Websites:

The following sites are independent and should gain nothing from reviews
they provide. The will give expert opinions on the features that these
televisions offer as well as their quality and usability.

CNET – 5-17-2011
CNET is the premier destination for tech product reviews, news, price
comparisons

Televisions.com – 5-17-2011
Televisions provides independent televisions reviews of LCD and Plasma
televisions, the latest TV News, and articles on televisions technology
from LCD to Plasma
 Interviews:

I will interview the following people to get input from their experiences in
purchasing televisions

Diane Broman – Toshiba LCD owner May 2011

Ms. Broman recently purchased a 40” Toshiba LCD television. It is fairly
entry level. She did not do any research prior to acquiring the television. It
was a unit that was on sale and in stock at a local retail store.

Dan Klepac – Sony LCD owner May 2011

Mr. Klepac about a year ago purchased a 50” Sony LCD television. He did
some amount of research prior to purchasing the television. He eventually
purchased a bundled package from an online retailer.

Clint Phillips – Philips Plasma owner May 2011

Mr. Phillips purchased a 42” Philips Plasma within the last year. He did
some research on his own prior to acquiring his television. He paid retail
from a local electronics store.

Task Schedule

Task Start Date End Date

Preliminary Research May 1st, 2011 May 16th, 2011
Project Proposal May 1st, 2011 May 16th, 2011
Research Documented May 16th, 2011 May 29th, 2011
Progress Report May 17th, 2011 May 29th, 2011
Interviews May 22nd, 2011 May 29th, 2011
Data Report May 30th, 2011 June 12th, 2011
Final Report and Recommendation May 17th, 2011 June 17th, 2011

Qualifications and Experience

I am currently enrolled in English 235 (a technical writing course) at Bellevue College in

my pursuit of a technical degree in the computer field. The skills I have gained in this
course will be applied to this report.

In my working career as a project supervisor, I have experience in preparing documents

of this type for my superiors as well as our customers.
I have also had personal experience with purchasing televisions. I bought a television
recently that is similar to the criteria you have laid out, so I am familiar with the variables
involved in making an educated decision.

Budget
The following table itemizes the costs associated with the report.

Item Unit Cost Number of Units Total Cost

Research/interviews $10/hour 10 hours $100.00
Authoring Report $10/hour 10 hours $100.00
Misc. Office Supplies $ 7.50
TOTAL: $207.50

Initial Bibliography
Broman, Diane. Telephone interview. “date pending.”

Katzmaier, David. "Flat-panel TVs: Plasmas, LCDs, and How They Compare."
CNET.com. CNET Reviews, 20 Feb. 2009. Web. 17 May 2011.

Klepac, Dan. Telephone interview. “date pending.”

Panasonic Corporation of North America. Panasonic.com. Panasonic. n.d. Web. May

2011.

Phillips, Clint. Telephone interview. “date pending.”

Salmutter, Elmar. "LCD and Plasma TV Buying Guide." Televisions.com.

Televisions.com, 19 Apr. 2010. Web. 17 May 2011.

Samsung. Samsung.com. n.d. Web. May 2011.

Sony Corporation of America. Sony.com. Sony. n.d. Web. May 2011.