I am in the market for a new large screen HD TV. I am one of those people whose TV is on constantly when I am at home, so I am taking about 4 to 5 hours per night. I need to know what type of HD TV is cost effective as far as energy is concerned. In other words, which will cost me less to keep on more? Thank you. Then of course there is that issue of plasma as opposed to LCD. I am thiking of going to about 42 inch screen.

Hi,

LCD's are usually better on power than plasma or the older CRT's. I upgraded about 6 months ago from a 27" CRT to a 42" Samsung LCD and they both use about the same power. I've measured the Samsung at about 144 watts with a meter even though it says 180.

I have not seen my electric bill really change and it's on a good 4 hours a day easy.

Look for an Energy Star rating on the TV you do decide to purchase.

Well there are a couple of factors that you personally must consider when looking at TV's. I say this because you pointed out that it will be on quite a bit and power usage is a concern.

After reading your post, LCD is the choice I would go with. Here are my reasons.
Plasmas use more power than LCD TV's. Also with Plasma TV's you have to worry about ghosting or burn ins.
Screen burn-in - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Plasma vs. LCD: Which is right for you? - TVs

Two interesting links above. Check them out. The second link should be a deciding factor.

Rick