Direct sunlight on rear projection HDTV

I don't know with any authority but I have an old rear projection TV (not HDTV)that has been angled against my gameroom window since 1990. The sunlight hits the left side and the rear of the TV. It is a 41' Mitsubishi and I don't think the light has hurt it. For the first 5 years someone would come out to clean the lenses. They never mentioned anything about it being in front of a window.

I once had a "discoloration" of the plastic projection screen in my rear projection. It looked normal with the set off. However, it manifested in blotchy brightness in different areas of the screen when the TV was on--some areas brighter than others. It was still under the extended warranty so it was replaced for free--a $900 savings, $600 just for the part. When the tech was replacing it I asked him what could cause that. He said that it could be caused by sunlight. Ever since then, I have closed the blinds on the window across from the TV when I leave for the day. I don't know for sure if sun caused my damaged screen (particularly because there was no pattern to it), but the tech said he'd seen them damaged by sun before. If you think of it as a piece of plastic and think about the fact that just about every substance known to man bleaches after a year in the sun, it's not hard to imagine that the sun's rays could damage the screen. Remember the frisbee you left in the backyard for the summer?

The orginal poster's TV (all HDTV's I have ever seen) uses a lenticular screen (underneath the glare producer -- oh I mean the protective screen). A lenticular screen will not pass very much light back through it (as opposed to how the TV works -- light reflecting off the mirror and through the screen). Furthermore, even if light did pass back through it there is very little inside to damage (this amount of sunlight is not going to harm the CRT's).

I would be concerned about 2 things. The TV is probably made of MDF. Depending on the finish, this material will fade over time. Secondly, your not going to be able view the TV properly in any room with that much light.

Hope this was helpful...