the RCA DLP TV Web Site

RCA DLP TV

Welcome to our website for the RCA DLP TV where you can find various vendors and suppliers when shopping for a DLP set, in addition to finding parts that will keep your RCA DLP TV set going for a long time.

The Digital Light Processing (DLP) technology was originally invented by Dr. Larry Hornbeck of Texas Instruments in 1987, and has been applied in the development of DLP TV front projectors and DLP TV rear projection sets.

DLP, along with LCD and LCoS, are the latest display technologies behind rear-projection television, having leap-frogged the technology of CRT-rear-projectors. These rear-projection technologies compete against LCD and plasma flat panel displays in the HDTV market.

DLP is also one of the leading technologies used in digital cinema projection that is currently used in a lot of state-of-the-art movie houses.

Inside the RCA DLP TV 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. The number of mirrors corresponds to the resolution of the projected image (800x600, 1024x768, 1280x720, and 1920x1080 for HDTV). These mirrors can be repositioned rapidly to reflect light either through the lens or on to a heat sink. Rapidly toggling the mirror between these two orientations (essentially on and off) produces grayscales.

Color in DLP Projection
There are two primary methods by which DLP projection systems, such as the RCA DLP TV, creates a color image --  those utilized by single-chip DLP projectors, and those used by three-chip projectors. A third method, sequential illumination by three colored light emitting diodes, is now out in the market, and is currently used in sets manufactured by Samsung. Another method, color LASERs, is currently in use by Mitsubishi in their LASERVUE products.

In a projector with a single DLP chip, which can be found in older RCA DLP TV models, colors are either produced by placing a color wheel between the lamp and the DLP chip or by using individual light sources to produce the primary colors. The color wheel is divided into multiple sectors: the primary colors: red, green, and blue, and in many cases secondary colors including cyan, magenta, yellow and white.

The DLP chip is synchronized with the rotating motion of the color wheel so that the green component is displayed on the chip when the green section of the color wheel is in front of the lamp. The same is true for the red, blue and other sections. The colors are thus displayed sequentially at a sufficiently high rate that the observer sees a composite "full color" image.

The Rainbow Effect
A single-chip projector alternates between colors and produces separate red, green, and blue images when displaying a moving image.

DLP projectors utilizing a mechanical spinning color wheel may exhibit an anomaly known as the “rainbow effect.” This is best described as brief flashes of perceived red, blue, and green "shadows" observed most often when the projected content features high contrast areas of moving bright-white objects on a mostly dark-black background. The scrolling end credits of many movies are a common example, and also in animations where moving objects are surrounded by a thick black outline. Brief visible separation of the colors can also be apparent when the viewer moves their eyes quickly across the projected image. Some people perceive these rainbow artifacts frequently, while others may never see them at all.

The rainbow effect can only be perceived by a very small percentage of the general population, but it is still important that you check a few RCA DLP TV sets at the showroom, before purchasing, to see if you are one of the unfortunate few. The newer DLP technology, such as multi-color LED-based and LASER-based single-chip projectors, are able to eliminate the spinning wheel and minimizes the rainbow effect.

Three-Chip Projectors
A three-chip DLP projector uses a prism to split light from the lamp, and each primary color of light is then routed to its own DLP chip, then recombined and routed out through the lens. Three chip systems are found in higher-end home theater projectors, large venue projectors and DLP Cinema projection systems found in digital movie theaters.

These three-chip projectors used in movie theaters can produce 35 trillion colors, which many suggest is more than the human eye can detect. The human eye is suggested to be able to detect around 16 million colors, which is theoretically possible with the single chip solution.

The main light source used on DLP-based rear screen projection TVs, such as the RCA DLP TV,  is based on a replaceable high-pressure mercury-vapor metal halide arc lamp. The newer DLP projectors models use high-power LEDs or LASERs as the source of illumination.

DLP Lamps
For metal-halide arc lamps, the light output declines as they age. The lamp's end of life is typically indicated via an LED on the unit or an onscreen text warning, necessitating replacement of the lamp unit.

Older projectors would simply give a warning that the lamp life had expired but would continue to operate. Newer projectors will not power up until the lamp is replaced and the lamp hours are reset. Most devices include a lamp hours reset function for when a new lamp is installed, but it is possible to reset a projector to continue to use an old lamp past its rated lifespan.

When a metal-halide lamp is operated past its rated lifespan, the efficiency declines significantly, the lightcast may become uneven, and the lamp starts to operate extremely hot, to the point that the power wires can melt off the lamp terminals.

LASER-based DLPs
The first commercially-available LASER-based DLP HDTV was the Mitsubishi L65-A90 LASERVUE, which also eliminated the use of a color wheel. Three separate color LASERs illuminate the tiny mirrors in these projection TVs, producing a richer, more vibrant color palette than other methods.

Use of DLP in Digital Cinema
DLP is the current market-share leader in professional digital movie projection, largely because of its high contrast ratio and available resolution as compared to other digital front-projection technologies. There are now more than 6,000 DLP-based Digital Cinema Systems installed worldwide.

DLP Pros and Cons
Pros
* Smooth at 1080p resolution with jitter-free images.
* Perfect geometry and excellent grayscale linearity achievable.
* No possibility of screen burn-in and makes an excellent platform for game consoiles
* Less "screen-door effect" than with LCD projectors.
* RCA DLP TV sets generally have a smaller form factor compared to bulky CRT projectors.
* RCA DLP TV sets are much cheaper than LCD or plasma flat-panel displays and can still offer 1080p resolution.
* The use of a replaceable light source (i.e. lamps) means a potentially longer life than CRTs and plasma displays.
* The light source is more-easily replaceable than the backlights used with LCDs, and on DLPs is often user-replaceable.
* New LED and LASER DLP TVs and projectors eliminate the need for lamp replacement.
* Lighter weight than LCD and plasma televisions.
* Unlike the LCD and plasma sets, DLP screens do not rely on fluids as their projection medium and are therefore not limited in size by their inherent mirror mechanisms, making them ideal for increasingly larger high-definition theater and venue screens.
* RCA DLP TV projectors can process up to 7 separate colors giving them strong color performance
* RCA DLP TV projectors do not suffer from “Color Decay” often seen with LCD projectors in which the image on the screen turns yellow after extended periods of usage.

Cons
* Some viewers are susceptible to the "rainbow effect" as discussed above.
* Not as thin as LCD or plasma flat-panel displays, although some models are becoming wall-mountable
* Replacement of the lamp/light bulb. The average life span of a TV light source averages 2000-5000 hours and the replacement cost for these range from $99 – $350, depending on the brand and model. Newer generations units use LEDs or LASERs which effectively eliminates this issue, although replacement LED chips could potentially be required over the extended lifespan of the television.
* Some models may have fan noise.
* Dithering noise may be noticeable, especially in dark image areas. Newer chips have less noise than older ones.
* Error-diffusion artifacts caused by averaging a shade over different pixels, since one pixel cannot render the shade exactly.
* Response time in video games may be affected by upscaling lag. While all HDTVs have some lag when upscaling lower resolution input to their native resolution, DLPs are commonly reported to have longer delays. Newer consoles such as the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 do not have this problem as long as they are connected with HD-capable cables.
* Reduced viewing angle as compared to direct-view technologies such as CRT, plasma, and LCD.

DLP, LCD, and LCoS Rear Projection TV
The closest competing system to an RCA DLP TV is known as LCoS (liquid crystal on silicon), which creates images using a stationary mirror mounted on the surface of a chip, and uses a liquid crystal matrix (similar to a liquid crystal display) to control how much light is reflected.