“What sucks about HDTV” tries to illuminate common complaints, shortcomings and general misconceptions about HDTV. We all love HDTV but many people have shelled out thousands on an HD monitor expecting to be in total viewing nirvana only to find there are limitations. What sucks about HDTV has its own category so you can compile a list of What Sucks About HDTV!
LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), or Liquid Crystal on Silicon, has been around for decades. It’s a well tested and proven technology found in popular HDTVs, computer monitors and Sony’s new PSP. LCD offers a bright fixed pixel display with remarkable contrast and highly detailed images. But like all display technologies, it’s not without its downside and if you’re in the market for any LCD based display device you should be aware of the dreaded dead pixel.
A dead or stuck pixel is a single pixel or dot in the screen that is stuck on a single color and doesn’t change. This occurs when the liquid crystal doesn’t respond to the input voltage that causes that pixel to change color. The result is a tiny spot on your monitor that stays a single solid color, especially annoying if it’s in the middle of your screen and downright horrible if you have many of them. To learn more about LCD dead pixels check out the detailed and slightly technical article at Tom's Hardware page and for a more personal experience of a consumer read one writer’s experience with Samsung.
What’s particularly troubling about this problem is that a certain amount of dead pixels is considered acceptable by manufacturers. It’s a common problem with how they’re made, usually pixels don’t “go” bad after use, they’re born bad. Large LCD panels are very difficult to make with a reasonably small number of dead pixels. This is why you don’t see LCD panels any bigger than 32” inches; 50” TVs using LCD based technologies are rear projectors. Because of the nature of the dead pixel problem, it’s not covered under most manufacturers’ warranties. This is very important to note, especially if you’re in the market for any LCD device. You should obtain permission from your vendor to take back your display if you don’t like it, no questions asked. Even if you get a good look at your new TV before you buy, a dead pixel may take some time to emerge. You’ll need to look at your screen under a variety of colors and images to determine if it has any troubled spots. But once you notice a dead pixel on your screen you’ll always see it.
Sony's take on the dead pixel is typical for any display manufacturer. Sony’s knowlegebase article C312288 describes the symptom of the dead pixel and as a solution states:
“This is normal. This is a structural property of the LCD panel and is not a malfunction.”
Before you buy, make sure you understand the retailers return and exchange policy very well. Ask them specifically about a dead pixel. Since manufacturers give you no leverage, you rely totally on your vendor’s policy in this matter. It wouldn’t hurt to get a guarantee from your retailer that you reserve the right to exchange your new display device for any reason within a set period, and thoroughly examine your new TV in that period of time. If you use your new display device as a computer monitor you can go to websites that offer simple tests to expose a dead pixel.