How to choose a TV for your home - expert opinion. Which TV is better to buy - LED or LCD

Liquid crystal television models today do not surprise anyone, and they can be found in almost every modern apartment. However, if you have just decided to exchange your old TV for a new one, then when choosing a model you may be faced with the fact that the word LED will be indicated in its name or characteristics. You've probably heard about these types of displays, but before you make your choice in favor of an LED or LCD model, you should understand how one technology differs from another.

Device of LCD and LED TVs

They are two transparent panels with electrodes, between which crystals in liquid form are located. Such crystals are arranged in a certain order in order to be able to transmit a picture. LCD monitors also have filters that create a polarizing effect and color filters to create a color image. In addition, TVs created using this technology have a backlight lamp, which is located at the back of the screen. This lighting is called CCFL.

Ice TVs have exactly the same production technology, only instead of a conventional cold cathode lamp, LED lighting is used for backlighting. That is, a large number of small LEDs are located on the sides of the screen or along its entire perimeter at the back.

As a result, we come to the conclusion that the only difference between these TV models is the type of screen backlight.

What is better anyway?

To decide which TV is right for you, you should familiarize yourself with the characteristics that each of these TV models has.

• Color rendition much better on ice screens, as LEDs allow you to create brighter colors and a greater number of shades.
• Black level and contrast also much better in LED backlit panels. This is due to the fact that the overall backlight of the TV will make the black pixels not dark enough, causing the contrast and black levels to be lower than those of an LCD TV.
• Energy efficiency. LCD TVs do not consume much less electricity than models with LED backlighting, so deciding which one is better in this regard is difficult.
• Price LED TVs are currently still higher than conventional LCD models with the same diagonal and interface.
• Viewing angle. Previously, this was significant, since older LCD models had matrices that could not provide a sufficient viewing angle and when viewing the TV from a certain angle, it looked too dark, or simply distorted the colors. Modern models no longer have this problem, and you can safely buy them. However, the winner in this category can be called an LED TV, since even in the very first models the viewing angle was at least 160 degrees.
• Fast response is currently the same in both technologies. However, if you decide to save money and buy an older model of LCD TV, you may encounter a slow response speed, which is why the picture may have a so-called “trail” when watching a fast-moving video, for example, “Formula 1”.
• Interface In TVs of both one and the other, the technology is the same. Both have support for game consoles, connectors such as MHL, USB, HDMI, and so on.
• Durability. LEDs last much longer than conventional lamps, which means your LED display will last longer.
• Dimensions. Ice TVs are noticeably thinner than conventional LCD displays. This is due to the fact that the LEDs are located around the perimeter of the monitor, and not behind it, so they take up less space.

conclusions

Technologically, there is no difference between LCD and LED TV, but judging by the characteristics, LED technology is still better. Therefore, when choosing a TV model, you should proceed from your own requirements for this device and preferences.

So, if you are going to install the TV near the wall, then you can safely choose an LCD TV model, since you will only see it from the front, which means its thickness will not be significant.

If you want to enjoy a bright, contrasty image and like to watch TV in the evening with dim lights, then it is better to choose a model with LED backlighting, as it has better color rendering and black depth, judging by the characteristics.

Also, LED TVs will look better if you want to place the screen on the wall using a bracket. This way it will protrude much less, which will look better.

However, if ideal color rendition and the thickness of the TV are not particularly important to you, or you do not want to spend a lot of money, then you can choose one of the modern models of LCD displays. To the naked eye there will be virtually no difference.

Today, LED backlighting has, for many, turned out to be an additional feature that often complicates the choice of a particular device, since you need to think about the advantages of each individual option in order to make an informed decision.

Indeed, when buying a TV, you don’t want to end up making the mistake of buying something that is actually yesterday’s technology that makes no sense to use in today’s realities. Fortunately, there are actually no serious difficulties in this issue, and its importance is quite exaggerated.

Advantages and disadvantages of LED as such

Each version of LED technology has its own advantages, namely:

• Higher degree of efficiency.
• The ability to create televisions with fairly thin screens.
• Complete absence of mercury content in LEDs.

These advantages are considered in relation to other backlight technologies that were previously used in other types of TVs.

It is worth noting several disadvantages that are typical for all types of LED backlighting:

• Initially, this type of backlight does not improve the viewing angles of the LCD.
• Thinner models with edge lighting may suffer from uneven screen illumination.
• LED backlighting can ultimately cause unwanted local dimming of the image on the screen.

Of course, such shortcomings in the vast majority of cases are eliminated in various models of monitors and televisions, as the technology is continuously improved. At the same time, you need to correctly understand that not only the backlight affects the quality of the picture on the TV.

The high image quality that modern TVs allow you to watch was largely due to the fact that developers began to use LED backlight technology. At one time, the advent of LED TVs was able to produce a real revolution in the market, because the new backlight provided a significant improvement in color rendering quality, and also significantly increased the brightness of the image. However, many people have a well-founded question about what is better to choose - Edge LED or Direct LED. After all, each option has its own advantages and disadvantages, which must be taken into account in the selection process.

What are their main differences?

Today, all existing major TV manufacturers use only two types of backlights - Edge LED or Direct LED.

They differ from each other in the number, as well as in the geometric arrangement of LEDs. Depending on how the latter are located, the characteristics of the matrix may change, and each type of backlight has its own characteristics and advantages. It is for this reason that when choosing a TV, in each individual case you need to weigh all these points and think about what is better to choose - Edge LED or Direct LED. Next we will look at the features of each option.

Edge

The use of this backlight involves the distribution of LEDs on the sides of the screen. In this regard, this technology is often called side lighting.

Advantages of Edge

This technology has several advantages:

• An extremely thin matrix, and in connection with this, the TV itself.
• Relatively high brightness.
• Acceptable contrast level.

The main advantage of using this technology is that the TV can ultimately become ultra-thin, which is often a deciding factor in favor of choosing such devices. Today, there is a clear trend towards the fact that when choosing between Edge LED or Direct LED, people often give preference to the first option for the reason that modern manufacturers produce ultra-thin screens with this technology.

It is also worth noting the fact that the lateral distribution of LEDs provides a high degree of energy efficiency.

Disadvantages of Edge

The technology also has certain disadvantages:

• Glare at the edges of the screen.
• Problems with backlight uniformity on certain models.

If you choose Edge LED, then you should immediately be prepared for the fact that the cost of such a TV will be slightly higher, since they use a specialized reflective surface, which is necessary for an extremely even distribution of the backlight, as well as eliminating any noticeable differences in brightness. If we talk about what the disadvantages of this technology are, it is also worth highlighting the presence of certain highlights at the edges of the screen, and when reproducing, for example, a bright snowy landscape near the edges of the screen, the snow will be much brighter compared to the image in the center.

In dark scenes, you can also quite often pay attention to the effect of a kind of flare, and, in particular, this is due to the fact that the LEDs are located around the perimeter of the screen, and the brightness in this area is quite logical. It is worth noting the fact that different TVs exhibit light in different ways, so there is always the possibility that you will be able to find a device that has the minimum possible picture differences. If the TV has such a function as local dimming, then in this case you can completely forget about what glare is, and that they can spoil the mood from watching certain moments.

Direct

The Direct LED backlight type provides for the distribution of LEDs over the entire area behind the matrix.

In this case, local dimming technology can be used extremely effectively and quite conveniently, when the processor sets the brightness level of certain groups of LEDs, thereby increasing the contrast level, while ensuring extremely uniform illumination.

Advantages of Direct

Considering the advantages of Direct LED technology, it is worth highlighting the following:

• Uniform illumination.
• Quite a high contrast level.
• No glare at the edges.
• Acceptable brightness level.

Disadvantages of Direct

Also, LED Direct backlight has some disadvantages compared to its analogue:

• Higher power consumption.
• Not such a thin matrix thickness.
• Relatively large Input Lag.

What to choose?

As mentioned above, there is no precise definition of which specific option is more relevant in a given situation. In this case, you can pay attention to many factors, choosing between which option is more optimal - Direct LED or Edge LED: where the picture quality is better, where more energy is consumed, in the end, which TV has a more attractive design in itself.

Thus, if the thickness of the device does not matter to you, and you have no intention of using it as a monitor for various computer games, then Direct backlight technology is quite suitable, but if you are a fan of extremely thin devices, then in this case Edge is the optimal choice. It is better to independently compare the performance of each backlight in the store so that you can decide for yourself which particular option is more acceptable. According to users of such TVs, in the end, the choice of backlight is largely a matter of personal taste.

In order to answer the question of how LCD differs from LED, it is necessary to say a few words about the technology of LCD displays itself. LCD, as you may have guessed, is short for Liquid Crystal Display. Thus, it becomes clear that LCD and the more well-known popular name LCD are one and the same. To understand the difference between LED and LCD, it is worth taking a closer look at LCD display technology.

1. Differences between LCD and LED

As mentioned above, LCD is a technology for manufacturing liquid crystal screens. The essence of the technology is the use of liquid crystal molecules, which are located between the layers of the matrix. These molecules are able to change their location depending on the strength of the electric field, thereby refracting light at different angles. In other words, liquid crystals are a kind of light filter that, depending on the voltage, blocks or transmits one of the primary colors.

The first LCD TVs used fluorescent lamps as a light source. However, this solution did not allow the production of large screens with good image quality, since it was impossible to achieve uniform light distribution. It is because of this that a new lighting system was developed - LED.

LED is a technology for illuminating crystal molecules. It is economical and efficient. LEDs in LED backlighting provide brighter and more uniform light.

In addition, due to the compactness of such a system, it became possible to implement several options for implementing LED backlighting:

• Side lighting;
• Illumination around the entire perimeter (top and bottom, as well as on the sides);
• Backlight.

Thus, it becomes clear that there are no differences between LCD and LED, since LED is a backlight method in an LCD screen. It is not correct to say that there is any difference between LCD and LED, since these are two components of the same technology.

Due to incorrect marketing advertising, many people believe that there is a difference between LED and LCD TVs. But as mentioned above, there is no difference. Considering all of the above, there is no difference between LCD and LED. The difference may be in the way lighting is implemented in LED displays. Today there are two options:

• LED – LED backlight;
• Fluorescent lighting.

The second method is already considered obsolete, although fluorescent-illuminated TVs can still be found in stores. Their advantage is low cost.

2. LED backlight

LED lighting was developed and introduced relatively recently. Its main advantage is bright and even lighting, as well as economical energy consumption. Thanks to LED technology for illuminating crystal molecules in LCD displays, it has become possible to achieve uniform illumination of even large screens. Thanks to different design solutions for implementing LED backlighting, manufacturers have the opportunity to produce large LCD TVs that have high quality that is not inferior to small displays.

Nowadays, thanks to LED technology, LCD TVs are not inferior in quality to their direct competitors - plasma panels. In some parameters, LCD TVs are even superior to plasmas. For example, an LCD display has a longer lifespan, that is, it is more durable.

Another advantage of LED backlighting is its high flicker frequency. Few people know that the frequency of 100 Hz, which we cannot see, affects the organs of vision, and even the human psyche. This is primarily expressed in a feeling of eye fatigue, as well as general fatigue when watching TV for a long time. The LEDs in the LED backlight have a flickering frequency of 480 Hz, which is absolutely harmless and has no negative impact on humans. In addition, this frequency improves image quality.

Modern LCD TVs with LED backlighting, thanks to their obvious and undeniable advantages, are in greatest demand among buyers all over the world. They are more economical and durable.

3. TFT/LCD monitor: Video

We often come across the abbreviations LED and LCD when choosing monitors or TVs. As a rule, consultants in stores begin to intensively sell goods that are more expensive, but none of them can explain what the fundamental differences are between seemingly different technologies.
It’s worth mentioning right away that you can’t compare a real LED display with an LCD: the technology used is completely different. Essentially, LED is a matrix in which each pixel is formed by LEDs. Such screens glow on their own, and they do not need light from outside. This technology is used in outdoor advertising or (if we talk about OLED) in the production of small screens for electronics. However, for the end consumer, the abbreviation LED still means displays with LED backlighting - televisions and monitors.
LCD displays- flat displays created on the basis of liquid crystal matrices, used in the production of televisions, monitors and other electronics.
LED displays- a type of liquid crystal. The difference between them lies in the method of illumination - this is what the abbreviations in catalogs and price lists tell us. Liquid crystals themselves do not glow, so they require an external light source to form an image on the screen. LCD means backlighting with fluorescent or fluorescent lamps, LED means LED lighting.
LCD displays are inferior in terms of color rendering and image quality to LED screens. The clarity of the picture on LED is much higher, as well as the scanning frequency and contrast are higher. However, this is absolutely true only for the RGB variety of LED backlighting, which is used in professional monitors. In the standard version, the differences are not noticeable by eye. But the transition to newer technology is beneficial for the end consumer. Thanks to Edge-LED, which consists of placing LEDs around the perimeter of the screen frame, the thickness of the devices is minimized.
In economic terms, we can say that fluorescent lamps are less durable than LEDs, they fail more often and their energy consumption is slightly higher. In addition, they require disposal under special conditions. But traditional LCDs are cheaper than LEDs and more common.

TheDifference.ru determined that the difference between LED and LCD (LCD) is as follows:

The LED matrix uses LEDs for backlighting, while the LCD uses fluorescent lamps.
The quality of the image transmitted by LED displays is higher.
LED consumes less energy.
LCD displays are cheaper to manufacture and sell.
LED displays made using new technologies can be much thinner than LCD

LCD displays have taken over homes and offices, so it's no surprise that when you're shopping for a brand new TV, you're choosing between LCD and... LCD, LCD and LED. Some will advise taking LCD as a more affordable option, others will recommend LED as a more advanced technology. But you shouldn’t be guided only by this: first, be curious about the difference between an LCD and an LED TV.

In fact

The difference between LCD and LED TVs is the backlight method. Firstly, it is luminescent or fluorescent, and secondly, it is LED. In turn, LEDs can be located entirely at the back or only on the sides of the LCD panel, which affects the quality of image transmission and the price of the device. The LED matrix can be formed from diodes of one or three colors (RGB).

Technically, this is the main difference between an LCD and an LED TV. And this is not a fundamentally new technology, but just a different approach to lighting. However, do not forget: no lighting - no image (the crystal itself does not glow), good lighting - high-quality picture. Therefore, conventional and LED LCD displays differ in their pros and cons.

In favor of LED-TV

RGB LED displays offer higher levels of brightness, clarity, and contrast because each individual pixel is illuminated (the pixels are essentially LEDs). Thanks to this, a richer and more accurate color reproduction is achieved.

No additional lighting is required, which is why LED screens have a thinner body that can easily find a place on furniture or be mounted on a wall.

These displays are more environmentally friendly because LEDs do not contain mercury, unlike the lamps used in LCDs.

LED-backlit TVs consume 40% less electricity. The uneven illumination of solid matrices also contributes to savings: some areas are darkened, others are brighter, and to create a deep black color on the screen, the diodes in the corresponding areas are simply turned off.

This leads to another plus: better black reproduction than conventional LCD screens.

LED models are often more functional (due to their, so to speak, novelty): they are equipped with a lot of additional connectors and interfaces, wireless communication modules, and also support many multimedia formats.

At the same time, if you compare LCD and LED TVs, you can find many points in which LED models are inferior to standard ones.

In favor of LCD TVs

What makes LCD different from LED TV for the better is its lower cost and selling price.

Although not so bright, contrasting and colorful, LCD models are free from the problems of unnatural colors, color heterogeneity and color spots, which sometimes plague LED models backlit with multi-colored LEDs.

Driving groups of LEDs to solve this problem can cause a slight flicker on the screen, which is not the case with LCD displays.

If LED is deep black, then white is more natural in LCD models.

Conventional LCD displays do not have the problem of “bluing” of the picture, which LED TV owners complain about.

Total

If we talk about the difference between an LCD and an LED TV and which TVs are better: LCD or LED, it is worth noting that there are differences between each other. Compared to conventional LCD models, edge-lit LED TVs consume less energy and are thinner, but do not offer much different image quality. LED TVs made using Direct technology (solid backlighting), on the contrary, are brighter, more contrasty and clearer, but not much thinner and more economical than their LCD counterparts. Each type is good in its own way.

You can read more about the differences between display technologies in the article about smartphone and tablet screens. A