My Cart - At Electronic World we love knowing that we can help our customers find the perfect TV for their home. Whether this is through our trademark dedication to high quality customer service, or through our up-to-date in depth blog, we always strive to make sure you’re equipped with the best information to make an informed decision on your purchase.
This month we’ve addressed one of our most common queries relating to just how much screen size matters, but our Electronic World team wanted to bring it back to basics and provide you with a TV screen jargon guide.
Whether you’re looking for a modest cheap 40 inch TV or a more immersive cheap 50 inch TV, you needn’t allow confusing terminology cloud your judgement!
We have compiled some of the terms that appear to cause the most confusion among our customers when it comes to TV screens – so allow us to help you wade through the quagmire of potentially confusing terminology, with Electronic World’s TV screen jargon buster!
TV Screen Glossary
1080p
This was the king of screen resolutions prior to the rise of 4K, and the dawning of 8K. It essentially refers to the screen’s 1,080 vertical pixels, and is what is known as a progressive scan, ultimately allowing for a super-sharp image to be displayed on the screen. (FYI, they have 1,920 pixels horizontally!)
4K / 8K
The K relates to the thousands of horizontal pixels involved in these unbelievably clear 4K/8K TV screens. You can check out our cheap 4K TVs for yourself, although 8K still remains a little out of most people’s price ranges – for the time being!
Frame Rates
Frame rate relates to the frames per second (fps) of the media you are watching. A higher rate means a smoother picture. Most commonly, you’ll find films use 24fps, although 48fps has been used in such blockbusters as The Hobbit and Avatar.
HD
Quite simply, this stands for High Definition. This not only relates to the picture quality but also the sound quality. Essentially, a HDTV offers a picture four times the quality of Standard Definition, producing a sharper image with greater depth and vibrancy.
LCD
An LCD TV is a television with a Liquid Crystal Display, and offers a fantastically sharp image. However, many people have been moving away from LCD and towards LED TVs, citing them as… well, read on below!
LED
An LED TV provides a more power efficient alternative to the LCD TVs of yore, and even offers a brighter image. Standing for Light Emitting Diode, LED refers to the mode in which the image reaches the screen – using an array of LED lights to represent the pixels.
OLED
We’re getting pretty acronym heavy now…! OLED stands for Organic LED, and refers to each pixel being separately lit – or shut off – on a screen to display the desired image. As such, it provides a more versatile and higher quality image than a standard LED, perfect for the avid gamer!
Pixels
Pixels are essentially the basic unit of a digital image; it doesn’t matter if you’re looking for a smaller screen or a cheap 42 inch TV, a 4K TV is always 4,096 pixels horizontally and 2,160 vertically. The more pixels there are, the sharper the image, enabling for more detail, depth and clarity to be displayed.
Plasma
Plasma TVs provide a smooth image with a particularly fantastic colour display. While they offer a large canvas on which to display an image, with a particularly thin screen, many people find themselves drawn towards the allure of the 4K TV.
Ultra HD
Ultra HD is often considered another name for 4K technology – and it does an incredibly similar job – although Ultra HD TVs actually offer a marginally lower resolution; providing 3,840 x 2,160 pixels compared to 4K TVs with 4,096 x 2,160.
We understand how it can get a bit overwhelming when purchasing a TV, but we hope that’s cleared up any ambiguity you may have had towards any TV screen vocabulary! With so many awesome technological features surrounding our TVs, it can become daunting to know what it is you’re actually looking for!
But that’s why we’re here! If you have any queries, don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team either online, via our Live Support, or contact us on 0121 327 3273; and allow us to set your home up with the ultimate addition to your entertainment system!
