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Which Plasma to buy?

post #1 of 8
8/20/11 at 7:15am
Thread Starter 
After three years with a 40" 1080p Toshisba LCD (which looked great) I am looking to upgrade to a larger display. I have been doing a lot of research and at this point I am thinking of a 50" plasma----either Samsung PN51D530A3 or Panasonic TC-P50S30. These both are on sale for around 800.00 though I would be willing to go higher (up to around 1200.00) for displays that might be significantly better. I have no interest in 3-D or gaming and rarely watch sports, my primary interest is watching movies either via HD cable or blu ray.

My only concern is the problem of burn in. I watch a lot of movies which are widescreen and I know that can be an issue. Would I be better off with another LCD or LED? If so, any models that could be recommended in this price range?
From what I can tell, despite some negative user reviews, these are both reliable products.

Thanks for the help.
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post #2 of 8
8/20/11 at 9:30am

In my research burn-in is not really a problem with Plasmas these days. I looked at LED and Plasmas when I bought mine. Overall I love my Panasonic Plasma and would highly recommend them. Home Theater Magazine just did a review of the GT, ST and VT series Plasmas. They gave the GT and VT Top Picks. 

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post #3 of 8
8/21/11 at 11:57am
another point on plasma burn-in.

If you keep the brightness and contrast "reasonable," it's not a significant problem. If you run it in "torch mode," like you might find at a big-box store, well, that's different.

I once heard a number for a brightness measure off of the screen, but I don't remember what it was, but I seem to recall it was probably a NIT measurement, which I have no idea what a NIT actually is. (Why can't they use foot-candles, or...)

As an aside, if I didn't have front projection, except for one early year (probably in the late 1990s,) I'd buy plasma. And then it'd be Panasonic. The one year that was an exception would have been Pioneer.

Leo
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post #4 of 8
8/21/11 at 3:38pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks guys. I would certainly calibrate the set myself and that always means bringing the brightness down. I am always amazed at the number of people who invest in nice sets and then run it in one of the pre-set modes which really make the image quality very poor.
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post #5 of 8
10/9/11 at 10:56am
Thread Starter 
Still waffling... would I be better still with the Panasonic TC-P50ST30? It is one step up the ladder from the TC-P50S30. Even if I have no interest in 3-D, the image quality still might be better on this set. Any opinions? Thanks.
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post #6 of 8
10/9/11 at 12:02pm
I to am looking to upgrade my current KDF-E50A10 50" three chip LCD rear projection HDTV and have been looking at the Panasonic and Samsung. The new Samsung plasma's are supposed to be nicer than the Panasonic's how ever I do not think you could go wrong with ether one. Depends on what one looks better to you as long as the retailer has a good display that is properly calibrated.

I can get a Samsung PN51D7000 51 Inch 1080P 600Hz Real Black Filter WiFi Full HD 3D Plasma Smart TV from the following retailer online and they are an authorized dealer for $1,399 and they say free shipping outside of Texas! This is a sale price and I hope to buy it before the sale ends!

http://www.modia.com/Samsung-PN51D7000-51-Inch-1080P-600Hz-Real-Black-Filter-WiFi-Full-HD-3D-Plasma-Smart-TV_p/pn51d7000.htm
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post #7 of 8
10/10/11 at 3:12pm
Here is an is an ar5ticle on the Panasonic

http://www.hometheater.com/content/panasonic-tc-p50st30-3d-plasma-hdtv
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post #8 of 8
10/20/11 at 1:00pm
Thread Starter 
I ended up buying the TC-P50ST30 and am so far extremely impressed. I have never seen blacks so deep and even though I am not using the 3-D functionality, it has a 3-D quality. Great too that standard dvds also shine on this set. Color and detail are amazing.
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