still looking for a TV...giving plasma a double-take (1 Viewer)

[brian__pratt]

i posted a while back that i had purchased a 42" sony lcd rear projection and ended up returning it due to being disappointed with the dvd and broadcast quality.

i'm still stuck with requirements that it must be light (no more 250+ lb tv's for me!). i noticed that one of the lower cost EDTV plasmas looked ok on the showroom floor and wanted to see if anyone had experience with:

samsung 42" EDTV plasma SPN4235

list is $3999...my local dealer quoted me $3500. this is more than any of the lcd/dlp units i looked at. curious to see what you peeps think of this one? i'm hesitant to go with lcd again. still kind of warry of the quality issue i had with the sony. :frowning:

 

[Gabriel_Lam]

The Samsung isn't quite as nice as the Panasonic offerings (6UY model), which you can get down to about $2800-3000 or so.

 

[Mort Corey]

If you're looking for a full TV with tuner, speakers, etc....the Panasonic offering TH42PA20 has a far superior picture to the Samsung model at about $400 additional cost. My experience with Samsung products (generally speaking) has been mixed. It seems that if you get a good one (of any of their various products) it works well and lasts a long time....if you get a bad one it's almost not worth repairing.

Mort

 

[DaveGTP]

Panny indeed has the superior low-price enhanced-def plasma, available for as low as $2900 shipped at reputable online etailers.

 

[Rich H]

Take the Panasonic over the Samsung. No ifs ands or buts.
It's simply better picture quality all around. Why pay more for less?

 

[brian__pratt]

i'll give the DLP another look at the store...the lcd sony just gave me a bad experience so i'm hesitant to try that type again.

i'll also check out the panny plasma in person. sounds like it's pretty unanimous that it's the way to go if plasma is the choice.

thanks!

 

[Justin_T]

What exactly did you not like about the Sony Brian? I'm considering purchasing the 50 LCD Grand Wega. What problems did you have with it?

 

[Mort Corey]

If you're in the store comparing the ED Panasonic and the ED Samsung, DON'T turn around and look at the HD Panny PX20 unit (you'll be sorry as it looks that much better)

Mort

 

[brian__pratt]

the sony lcd just didn't have the PQ i wanted. i almost wonder if it was a bad unit...since so many others rave about it. i found that dvd looked ok...HDTV was very good...but broadcast (digital cable) was TERRIBLE. my viewing position is ~9 feet. that may be part of the problem. the PQ was very granulated for all but HDTV.

i was switching from a 36" panny tau hdtv...and the quality on that was awesome to me. i realize the bigger the picture the more flaws are noticable...it just seemed too much for me to deal with.

 

[Jeff Gatie]

i found that dvd looked ok...HDTV was very good...but broadcast (digital cable) was TERRIBLE.

HDTV should look better than DVD. Digital cable is GIGO, garbage in, garbage out. If you find the picture is bad with the Sony, you may be experiencing the curse of the picture size upgrade - all lousy sources are magnified, so they look that much worse. Nothing you can do about that.

 

[brian__pratt]

i picked up the 42" panny EDTV this weekend and am very happy with it. i have noticed that one of the HD channels (HDNet) becomes pixelated during scene transitions alot...and i think it's due to the processing/conversion time from the panny...but the image and all other channels look GREAT.

normal digital cable channels look MUCH better than on the sony rear LCD i had...