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Would you say this is a good deal on a plasma TV?
BlochWave
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
I'm trying to keep the before tax price below 1000
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Panasonic+-+VIERA+/+50%22+Class+/+1080p+/+600Hz+/+Plasma+HDTV/9298404.p?id=1218079342566&skuId=9298404
I'm bad at judging the quality of these things, but it seems to be well reviewed. I've looked around on the web and can't find a 50 inch 1080p plasma under a 1000 bucks of comparable quality. Anybody have any comments on the quality of that TV or the value of the deal?
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Panasonic+-+VIERA+/+50%22+Class+/+1080p+/+600Hz+/+Plasma+HDTV/9298404.p?id=1218079342566&skuId=9298404
I'm bad at judging the quality of these things, but it seems to be well reviewed. I've looked around on the web and can't find a 50 inch 1080p plasma under a 1000 bucks of comparable quality. Anybody have any comments on the quality of that TV or the value of the deal?
BlochWave on
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You can only tell by looking at the TV in person if you ask me.
The thing about stores is that you see a lot of TVs at showroom settings showing video signals of differing quality (like when I was wandering around Fry's Thanksgiving weekend, I saw some of the display TVs showing HD signals and some showing SD, which makes comparing them useless) but I guess I'll at least take a look.
...its a Panasonic.
How it looks in a store, unless it's a specific high end speciality AV store, doesn't mean fucking anything, and I say fucking to enhance my point, not just because I like to swear. It is totally useless judging a TV on how it looks in a store.
Panasonic and Samsung make some of the best panels out there, you'll be happy as long as it has the features you want. Don't forget to calibrate it after the first 100 hours or so.
I disagree because in store they'll let you do whatever you want to test a tv in hopes that you buy it. One thing people do is hook up gaming systems to it and see how that looks. All you need to know is how a blu-ray looks (I say use the Dark Knight's beginning bank robbery scene) with the right settings and a console game. Since most stores have their TVs hooked up to a bluray and you can adjust the settings to whatever you like... it makes a difference.
Also, I didn't realize that was a panasonic when I click on it which is my bad.
EDIT - also some stores showing SD on HD tvs suck (I haven't seen this in a while), but if you ask someone they might be willing to show you what a bluray looks like on whatever tv you want.
I really cannot find any flaw in it at all.
I paid 700 for the 42 inch, so 1000 for a 50 seems pretty reasonable.
Keep in mind the box is huuuuge, I was barely able to fit the 42 inch box in my Accord. So unless you've got a truck... prepare to pay for delivery.
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I've got friends with trucks, which is good because if your Accord couldn't take the 42 incher, I'm thinking there's not a snowball's chance in hell I get the 50 inch in a Civic! Thanks for the warning though, I had nearly convinced myself I could do that.
The U series is lacking:
-AR coating
-Game mode
-NeoPDP panel
it is also listed as having a 900p moving resolution rather than full 1080p.
I am used to Canadian pricing, but for $1000 it seems like it would be a good buy. If AR and game mode were huge selling points, you might want to spend the extra for the S series.
But there's this: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Panasonic+-+VIERA+/+42%22+Class+/+1080p+/+600Hz+/+Plasma+HDTV/9317287.p?id=1218084032650&skuId=9317287
In your knowledge, how effective is the AR coating?
I just googled game mode, and it sounds like it's an anti-lag feature for older games in lower resolutions? That may not be a big deal, I think I'm going to get a PS3 too, I haven't owned a console in a long time and it'll double as my blu-ray.
My inclination is that neither is a deal breaker, but do feed me your opinions!
YMMV with the AR filter. If there will be light striking the tv pretty much all the time then usually no AR filter will 100% fix the problem. If you are putting the TV where lighting will be varied throughout the day, then it will diminish the glare during those times where you would get the most glare (morning, daytime). If it is going into a basement, then obviously no real benefit. Essentially if your lighting in the room is always going to be hitting the tv and you have no curtains or control for the lighting, you should probably look at an LCD instead of plasma.
Probably a little higher than the $1000 mark, but I have sold it for quite low in Canada:
http://www.lge.com/ca_en/tv-audio-video/tv/LG-plasma-tv-50PS60.jsp
Not as high quality a name as Panasonic, but it is THX certified and uses a single pane to create the panel (which is pretty spiffy), and is also usually quite a bit less in price compared to an equal Panasonic.
You are not supposed to lay them on their sides.
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Also I'm on the fence about referencing reflective screens as a plasma con. All those Samsungs are pretty damn reflective themselves. I'm not convinced this is still a plasma-only issue.
PSN: TheScrublet
You have to look at it at a hell of an angle to see any sort of image distortion.
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That's not what I'm talking about. Plasmas historically reflected ambient light much more than LCDs. So buying a plasma for your sunroom would not be the best idea as you wouldn't be able to see the image. However, the coming of the glossy screen (heralded by Apple) on LCDs has made them pretty reflective too.
As far as the angle goes you'll never see image distortion on a plasma from any angle. You will on an LCD, and anyone who says otherwise is an ignorant idiot. Unfortunately losing color/brightness accuracy at off angles is inherent to the concept of LCD, and there will never be a fix for it.
PSN: TheScrublet
Actually, most plasmas have an issue with viewing angle. Instead of washing out colours, like you will see on LCDs, you usually can see multiple images overlaying when you view plasmas at harsh angles. This isn't the case for Pioneer plasmas, or higher end Samsung panels. An easy way to test this is to place a penny or pen tip to the screen and see how far the screen is from the panel, the further away it is the worse it will be for viewing angles. Still, this is an incredibly small flaw and probably not even noticable for most people. At least compared to how bad some LCDs can be when viewed from an angle.
But there's no doubt that Plasma looks infinitely better in low lighting.
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Most TVs in retailers aren't calibrated. They're right out of the box and onto the wall. The factory settings are meant to look best in that atmosphere, granted, but an actual calibration is much more intensive.
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I would still go with the S1, the new NeoPDP panel is worth it alone.
It's too bad because bestbuy had the 50" S1 at $999 less than a week ago, I got the 58" one for $1499.
However, as of now, Sears has it for $999, you have to add it to the cart to see the discounted price, hopefully it's available in your area. You're welcome.
Link
The bottom line is, unless you are a hardcore videophile or it's related to your profession, you're not going to be disappointed with the U1 or S1. And even to videophiles, the only cons the U1 and S1 have are some color inaccuracies and limited picture controls, which doesn't help with the color inaccuracies. But again, even after pointing it out, you're still not going to see the difference as an average user, the inaccuracies are very minor.
Damn that's nice.
Anyhoo, we got a PS3 and hooked it up, got Uncharted 2 and MGS4 (yay I finally get to play that!) We played Uncharted 2 and it had black bars on the top and bottom. I've got the contrast and stuff down to 50, and I noticed after I had flipped on the TV's menu while the game was playing, it ghosted the menu a little in the black bar region. It went away after we went back to regular TV and ran the little scrolling white bar thing. I remember hearing that they'll ghost kinda easily at first and that it's not permanent.
Just to ask people who clearly own them, how careful do I really HAVE to be to avoid any problems? Is that ghosting normal or something to be concerned about?
Make sure you configure all your resolutions and video modes properly on both the PS3 and the TV... you shouldn't get black bars in a game at all from a PS3 if you are using an HDMI cable.
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Somehow, in years of keeping track of this stuff and checking tons of different sources, I've never come across this. Can you link to any justification for this comment? I've never heard of the problem you are describing. Plasmas are historically fine from any realistic viewing angle (0-160 degrees)
PSN: TheScrublet
I can definitely vouch for the multiple-image overlay thing... only at extreme angles at certain distances and lighting...
Like 75-80 degrees.
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ok, we weren't using HDMI cables, I haven't bought those yet because everyone tells me not to let myself get ripped off. It looks like Frys might have some for something reasonable, so I'll try them, if not I guess I'll order them online
You can get 6 footers on Amazon for less than a dollar.
http://www.amazon.com/HDMI-meter-foot-cable-1080P/dp/B00123WZWK/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1260048456&sr=8-4
I have 3, they all work fine.
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Amazon cheapest 6ft HDMI + shipping: 0.21+ 2.98=2.99
Alright, you win for buying a single cable, but surely Monoprice is the best when you're buying multiple and/or need options.
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Actually it is just something I learned from another salesman at work recently.. Checked it out with about a half dozen plasmas and it appears to be valid. Tried finding something online about it but maybe I am not wording it correctly to find results. Like I said, it isn't nearly as noticable as with LCDs and is more of a layered image issue than any sort of washing out of colours. Try it out next time you are in a store.
As for the ghosting, so that's not a big problem so long as it goes away quickly? And probably less of one after I get everything displaying right?
Another thing to keep in mind is the break in period for your plasma, don't leave anything on the screen that you think might burn in for an extended period of time for the first 100 or so hours.
Try giving this a read as well: http://www.avforums.com/forums/plasma-televisions/289947-plasma-faq-updated-01-08-06-please-read-before-posting.html
This is why I went to Fry's to look at the TV that I eventually bought through Amazon. Their entire HDTV area was much darker than the rest of the store for optimal viewing, and their sales people will bend over backwards playing with settings and whatnot if it might help them make a sale. The guy I talked with was actually so helpful that if the difference in price wasn't so significant (hundreds of dollars) I would have bought then and there at Fry's just so he'd get the commission.
Thanks guys! *holds out fist for fistbump*