DLP: The "Other" Flat-Panel TV

Our last issue of HEJ focused on LCD (“Liquid Crystal Display”) televisions. This issue is all about “Digital Light Processing” (DLP) televisions. DLP is a proprietary technology developed by Texas Instruments, which works quite differently than LCD, and is being used in both wall-mounted projectors and thin flat-screen units. The leading electronics manufacturers who are betting on DLP include Toshiba, Samsung and Sharp. Read on for a brief overview of DLP technology — as well as our picks for the best DLP TVs currently on the market.

All the best,

Steven R. Mitchell
Editor — HomeElectronicsJournal.com

The Color War Continues

DLP and LCD TVs display color in different ways. LCD projectors contain three separate glass panels, one each for the red, green, and blue components of the video signal. With DLP technology, instead of using separate panes of glass to reflect an image, the DLP chip incorporates reflective surfaces that light bounces off of.

At the core of every DLP projection system is an optical semiconductor, which contains more than a million hinged mirco-mirrors. By switching these mirrors on and off at a rate of up to more than a thousand times per second, DLP creates a light or dark image on the projection surface. When switched on more than off, it creates a lighter image, and vice versa. A spinning color wheel then adds red, green or blue, or a combination thereof, to project one of more than 16 million colors on the screen for a single-chip DLP system. A three-chip system can produce no fewer than 35 trillion colors.

Here are a few of our favorite DLP TVs:

The InFocus Play Big IN76 ($2,999)

Infocus gives you the big picture in a little package. Fully loaded with native 1280x720, 16:9 widescreen resolution, and the famed 720p DarkChip2™ DLP® technology, this unit packs a high-definition punch from any HD source. And, have we mentioned the picture quality? 3000:1 contrast ratio makes images twice as bright as most movie theaters. All of that, plus a sleek, futuristic, low-profile shiny black case that makes it lovely to look at and simple to place on any convenient surface.



Toshiba's 72" Cinema Series 72MX195 ($5,299.99)

The silvery beauty of Toshiba’s 72MX195 with 1080p resolution is a 72-inch sight to behold. With an unobtrusive cabinet, this full-featured HDTV has — unlike many models today — bottom-mounted 40W silver SRS® three-dimensional sound speakers that highlight the black frame of the set. Included is a DTVLink (IEEE1394) for the attachment of Toshiba's Symbio 160HD4 HD hard-disc recorder. Home entertainment just got a lot prettier.


Samsung 67'' HL-R6768W DLP Display ($6,199)

Offering the largest amount of screen area while using the least amount of cabinet space, this 67-inch, high-definition 1080p display is dressed to impress. The screen appears to float away from the cabinet, due to the flat black color of the bezel that blends into the background in low light. The set can also be custom-fitted into a cutout and mounted into a facade so that it appears to be framed. Hip features like a speaker grille, floating bezel, and an impressive high-speed seven-segment color wheel under the hood make this beauty worth every penny.


© 2006 Home Electronics Journal Magazine. All Rights Reserved.

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