Confused between LCD, LED and all other jargon before buying a TV? Read this

If you want to buy a TV or any tech, as a matter of fact, what is the first thing you do? 

You search it in Google. 

But here's the thing: searching in Google for which TV to buy will basically make you spend hours pondering on the World Wide Web. 

But all you wanted to do was to buy a TV, and getting confused while doing so results in bad purchases. 

This article is the one-stop solution to prevent that exact thing.

While buying a TV, you have to keep in mind that the single most important component of a television is its display. Choosing the right display based on your needs should be the foremost priority. 

LCD TVs

These are the most common and often the most affordable televisions in the market. 

If you go for a television with an LCD display, you will most likely end up getting a good value for money. But you have to sacrifice in terms of viewing angle, meaning that looking at the display from different angles will have an impact on the viewing experience. 

While they are good for bright rooms, if you sit off to the side, the picture might look a bit faded or even discoloured.

LCD uses liquid crystals sandwiched between two layers of glass to produce images. They tend to be thicker than other modern televisions. 

LED TVs

LED TVs are basically like an upgraded version of the LCD TVs. They use tiny lights (LEDs) for better picture quality and are much thinner than the LCD TVs. 

They're also more energy-efficient, meaning that they use less electricity, and usually have a brighter display. According to Diffen.com, these power savings typically range between 20-30%. 

However, the display size and other factors, such as the sound system, may increase the overall consumption. 

LED TVs tend to be more expensive than LCD TVs. 

Here's the deal: if you want to spend less when buying a television, you go for an LCD TV. But you trade it off with more electricity bills. 

Choosing LED, on the other hand, will make your purchase more expensive. But you will be paying less electricity bill. 

OLED TVs

Here's where we start entering into the "fancy" area.

OLED televisions have amazing picture qualities. The colours look super vibrant, and the blacks are really deep. And they are usually the most expensive.

Each tiny part (pixel) of an OLED TV lights up on its own, so it's great for watching movies or playing games. 

Blacks being deep may not sound like much, but this significantly enhances the overall watching experience, especially when there are no external light sources nearby. 

LCD TVs cannot produce true black because they use a backlight that always emits light, whereas OLED can, as each pixel generates its own light and can turn off completely.

OLEDs also tend to have faster refresh rates. The big televisions that you see playing buttery smooth videos in the showrooms are, most of the time, OLED TVs. 

It all sounds too good to be true, right? But here's where things go a little downhill.

OLED panels have an issue called "screen burn-in." This happens when you leave a static image (like a channel logo or a video game menu) on the screen for too long, and it gets kind of "burned" into the screen. 

You'll see a faint outline of the logo even when you're watching something else. 

The worst part? It cannot be fixed. Manufacturers, however, are trying to fix and compensate for it. 

LG has already started providing two years of burn-in warranty in the US, according to a Verge article published this August. Meanwhile, Samsung has a Pixel Refresher feature that they advise to run when there's any burn-in. 

QLED TVs

QLEDs live in the middle ground between LED and OLED. 

While they have a bright and colourful display, they don't get screen burn-in like OLEDs.

The trade-off? They are not that good at showing deep blacks. 

While QLEDs can be pricey, they usually cost less than OLEDs. 

What other things to consider

Televisions come with different resolutions and smart features like Android TV. 

In terms of resolutions, it goes up to 8K. But you will most likely end up watching things that are not in 8K resolution. There's also the matter of internet speed required to stream such a high resolution contents. 

Right now, 4K is a sweet spot for most of the users. 

Having an Android TV would be very helpful due to the availability of native apps like YouTube, Netflix and other streaming platforms. 

How to decide which one to get

When choosing a TV, the first thing that needs to be put under consideration is how much you want to spend on it.

You should also think about the size of the room where you are going to put the television in, how bright that room is and what you will be using the TV for. 

When it comes to televisions, it may seem like the bigger it is, the better. But that's not necessarily the case always. 

You have to ensure the television "fits" in your room. The bigger the television is, the more distance you have to sit away to view the content properly. 

According to Samsung's TV Buying Guide, this distance is 5.5 ft for a 55-inch TV. The distance is increased by 0.3 ft for each 10-inch increase and is 9.8 ft for a 98-inch one. 

If you're into the latest tech and best picture, and don't mind spending more, you should go for an OLED or QLED TV. But if you want something more budget-friendly, an LED or LCD TV will still give you a good experience.

If you are more into watching movies at night when all other external lights tend to be switched off, OLED televisions can do wonders due to its true black capabilities. It will also take the gaming sessions to a whole different level. 

In the end, the best TV for you depends on what you need and like.