Congratulations! You have upgraded your home theater to a Flat Panel TV. Now what? You have the latest and greatest surround sound, and the most comfortable chairs, which will in turn allow your favorite team to reach the championship, we are all convinced! What happens if you have kids who just like to touch things,….like the screen on your new tv? The images are so clear on these things that someone reported their dog actually attacked a cat that was on the tv during a commercial! Flat Panel ownership is not a chore, it is a joy, and maintaining them for years of enjoyment is quite simple. Here are a few tips on what to do to best protect your investment when the need arises to clean the surface of the screen.

On most flat panel televisions, the front of the display panel has been specially treated. Wipe the panel surface gently using only a soft, lint-free cloth.

For fingerprints and smudges, or if the surface is particularly dirty, soak a soft, lint-free cloth in a weak detergent solution and then wring the cloth completely, to remove excess liquid. Use this cloth to wipe the surface of the display panel. Then, with a dry cloth of the same type, immediately wipe the surface evenly until the surface is dry.

To avoid scratching the viewing surface, be sure to use very soft, lint-free cloths and avoid contact to the screen with hard objects.

You should also avoid using harsh abrasive cleaners, excessive water or moisture, or volatile substances such as insect sprays, solvents and thinners.

All of these tips should lead to years of viewing pleasure for your flat panel tv. Be sure to check your owner’s manual before using any of these tricks to clean your screen. Some manufacturers may advise different cleaning options for your speciffic brand or model.

With anything in technology and electronics, there is one constant. Technology is always changing, most often for the better. For gadget geeks, that can mean hours of pouring over tech specs and user reviews. For the average electronics consumer, it tends to cause more confusion than good. As far as projectors and rear projection tv’s go, the latest and greatest in technology is best reflected in the open competition between three technological advances, DLP, 3LCD, and LCoS.

DLP, or digital light processing: In DLP projectors, the image is created by microscopically small mirrors laid out in a matrix on a semiconductor chip. Each mirror represents one or more pixels in the projected image. These mirrors can be repositioned rapidly to reflect light directly through the lens. Colors are either produced by placing a spinning color wheel between the light source and the micro-chip or by using individual light sources to produce the primary colors.

3LCD or 3 Liquid Crystal Display: In short, 3LCD is a sophisticated technology that utilizes 3-chips to deliver color. The light source projects white light onto a combination of mirrors that split the light into its three basic video colors. Each of the three LCD chips take the electrical signal they receive and creates the image. The three color images are combined using a prism to form a full-color image consisting of millions of colors. The singular, full-color image passes through a lens and is projected onto a screen.

LCoS or Liquid Crystal ove Silicon: LCoS is a “micro-projection” or “micro-display” technology typically applied in projection televisions. It is a reflective technology similar to DLP projectors; however, it uses liquid crystals instead of individual mirrors. By way of comparison, 3LCD projectors use transmissive LCD chips, allowing light to pass through the liquid crystal. In LCoS, liquid crystals are applied directly to the surface of a silicon chip coated with an aluminized layer, with some type of passivation layer, which is highly reflective. Thus, the light source reflects off of the silicon chip as opposed to being passed through the liquid crystals.

As is the case with any technology. there are advantages and disadvantages in the three examples here. Picture quality, projector or tv size, and cost are all considerations one should make before choosing any of these three. Armed with these explanation, one can most certainly make a well informed choice.

The down turn in the economy has everyone feeling the pinch. People are working longer hours, spending longer on their commutes to and from work, and finding it more difficult to balance career life, and family life. When there is time away from work, families spend a great deal of it, and a great deal of money on family entertainment. One way to offset the cost of entertainment, at least in the long run would be to invest in home theater/entertainment.

It is said that the average family spends around $200 per month in entertainment. It is not hard to see that this is an average amount, as the cost of a professional sporting event would eclipse that dollar figure rather quickly, for a family of four. The average coast of admission for a movie is $10 for adults, and $8 for kids under 12. The math on this suggests that just getting to a movie a few times a month would also pass the average monthly figure for entertainment. For argument’s sake though, lets use the $200 number and show how home theater would be a great way to entertain your family and be a great value in the long run.

$200 per month over 1 year would be $2400. Using that $2400 to invest in home theater equipment would allow for a wide range of options to choose from. Choosing the gadgets you want is a matter of budget, taste, and personal preference. Flat panel televisions are a great option. They are low to no maintenence, relatively affordable, and they produce extremely clear images. Mounting options for flat panels can range from simple fixed mounts on the wall to pivoting wall arm mounts. The lone drawback in selecting a flat panel tv as the centerpiece for your home theater would be the cost of the tv. There may not be much left over from the $2400 budget to get accessories like surround sound, or the mounting option you choose.

For the most bang for your buck, and if you have the space in your home, try the projector and screen. The advantages here are that you can have a much larger display than a plasma or lcd tv. In addition, the look and feel of a movie theater is easily accomplished with a screen and projector. Here is a great example of an all inclusive home theater package that falls well within the $2400 budget.

There are do-it-yourself options for home theater enthusiasts. You can also choose to select each piece individually. Choosing the all-in-one package leaves enough room to hire an installer as well. So, even though the economy may be challenging for all, family entertainment does not have to suffer because of it.

As a home theater enthusiast, this may be an early question you have to answer. Like anything else in technology, changes, upgraded tech in an item, the newest model/latest version/update dejour means there is always some other bit of info to consider before buying whatever it is you are looking for. Whew! That said, I will try to answer some basic thoughts about LCD or Plasma tv’s, and which is better.

Plasma televisions are an exciting innovation that uses plasma gas to produce the images in the pixels. LCD technology is simply Liquid Crystal Display in the pixels. The debate is over which one produces the best picture. This is a matter of individual preference, I have found. Both technologies deliver a high quality picture, with varying ranges of brightness. LCD brags about having a brighter clearer image, while Plasma is touted as the best for producing true colors, especially black.

If you are in the market for a flat panel, your choice will come down to what you watch the most on your tv. If you are a sports nut, LCD is a wise choice, as there is no “action blur” or fuzziness in the images of the players on the field. If you love to watch movies, the true black and rich colors given by plasma technology would be a wise choice. Both Plasma and LCD are available in HD formats, so that feature is a wash in comparing the two.

So the nuts and bolts of this new but age old question rests with the individual user. If you watch an equal amount of sports and movies, either technology would work for you, but the distinction between picture qualities will lie in your own eyes. There is a large selection of sizes shapes and options to choose from in Flat Panel televisions. Prices vary as widely as the opinions on which technology is better. Be sure to choose a tv that fits your budget, viewing preferences, and most of all, one that fits your own eye!