flat screen

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sidecutter

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Nov 28, 2008
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looking for a flat screen TV in the 50"ish range. best/worst ? pro's/con's ? price really no problem. thanks paul
 
We're considering one when we get our income-tax refund, my preliminary research on CNet reviews and such indicates Samsung fares very well.
 
I used to work in Consumer Electronics and for me the best ones I played with were either Sony or Panasonic.
 
make sure you look at the contrast ratio before any other specs. it makes a huge difference for any kind of TV watching during the day, unless you blackout your house.
 
I would rank the top three as follows:

1) Panasonic 50'' 1080p Full-HD Plasma TC-P50V10
2) Samsung 50" 1080p Plasma PN50B850
3) Panasonic 50" 1080p Full-HD Plasma TC-P50G10

The Panasonic G-Series is very close to the Samsung 8-Series. If the price doesn't matter, I would definitely go with the Panasonic TC-P50V10.
 
just the kind of info i'm looking for. actually, i have'nt bot a TV in 20+ years. things have changed a little since then. :D
 
I too have been looking in to purchasing a new flat screen. I've pored over reviews, browsed endless consumer sites, and visited Best Buy about 40 times. Here's what I've figured out so far:
The plasma's picture quality didn't knock my socks off like I thought it would. I looked mostly at Panasonics, as they got the best reviews of the plasmas I could afford. So, that combined with the higher energy usage, and heat output, kinda ruled them out for me. Price is nice, though.
That left LCD's, and the latest iteration of those, the LED-LCD flat screens. My parents have a 50" Sony, but I have to say I wasn't real impressed by the picture quality of these either. Blacks weren't real deep, and the processing wasn't very good. Not sure if it was a 120 or 240 hz, but I think it was 120. After doing a lot of research online, I decided to look mostly at Samsung, and LG, as they got consistently good reviews from consumers and electronics sites. So I picked comparable 46-47" LEDs from each manufacturer, and went to Best Buy to check them out. The Samsung looked just fine by itself, but compared side-by-side with the LG, it lost out. The LG kicked it's butt in every aspect (color rendering, motion processing, black depth). It really looked good! Here were the 2 I compared at Best Buy:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Samsung+-+46%22+Class+/+1080p+/+240Hz+/+LED-LCD+HDTV/9293579.p?id=1218076082869&skuId=9293579
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/LG+-+47%22+Class+/+1080p+/+240Hz+/+LED-LCD+HDTV/9318623.p?id=1218084410226&skuId=9318623
IMO, the LG won out based on picture quality, and price. But you wouldn't go wrong with either one, methinks.
EDIT: Furthermore, the LG is a back-lit LED screen, whereas the Samsung is edge-lit. The significance of this, as I understand it, is you get a better picture quality with back-lit screens, but sacrifice thin-ness of the panel (edge-lit screens can be made very thin, nearing ~1" now). So the LG that I looked at comes in at about 4" thick. Not so great if you're looking for a sexy, wall-mounted TV. But if you're considering plasmas, you kind of give that up anyway.
My final verdict: I'm going with the LG 47" noted above. It passed the eyeball test, it's cheaper, and I'm planning on getting an entertainment center for it anyway, so thin design is not a huge selling point for me. The plasma was a contender, but I just couldn't get past the energy use/heat issue. The Samsung 46" I referenced above would be choice #3 in my book. Price was the primary deterrent, especially when you consider what you get for the extra $600 (basically a 1.2" thin panel) over the LG. Hope this helps a little, and keep us posted on your decision...
 
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I looked at many and liked the Sony and Samsung pictures best. I ended up with the Sony because I liked Sony's matte screen finish a little better than Samsung's shiny/glossy finish for my particular lighting conditions (and the Sony was a few bucks less). Your room lighting situation could be different and you might prefer the Samsung.

Even the stock speakers on the Sony are pretty decent.

I had the Sony out of the Amazon box, set up on the pedestal, cabled, and working in about ten minutes. I thought it would take a half hour or more. After 6+ months or so, I'm very happy with it.

DancesWithKnives
 
thanks for all the advice guys. pretty much got it down to the samsung /sony. BUT the problem now is the stand. my interior decorator ( sister ) cant decide what SHE wants. redoing my whole den/living room so she wants to get it all at one time. i just supply the check book. oh well.:D
 
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