Hey all,

From what I can tell the 2008 Samsung plasmas have no fans on the back where the 2008 Panasonics have a number of fans depending on the panel (I currently have the 50PZ80U but am returning it) The salesperson at BB told me that the Samsungs run hotter and use more wattage than their counter parts made by Panny and Pioneer. Is this true, and if it is wouldn't it hold that the Samsungs may not last as long, as excessive heat is hard on electronics.
I would like to hear all opinions of owners of each as I am interested in the 50A550 but will scratch it off my list if the heat and extra wattage is an issue.

the new Tv's these days are amazing, the samsung a550 and a650 series is supposed to be jaw dropping. if you got the cash, get the a650. i had teh fpt-5084 and it barely gave off any heat..

I can't talk about longevity cause I have only had it a week, but I am very happy with the 42 inch sammy plasma I got at sams club for less then my G.W. Bush buy a TV check.

Talon,
I wouldn't go by what some 19 year sales kid told you at BB. I'm sure the engineering team at Samsung knew what they were doing when they designed the fanless Samsung.
Keep in mind too that with a fan it adds or will add at some point more noise. Additionally it will eventually suffer from some mechanical failure.
I have a Sammy and it's heat dissipation seems no better or worse that other brands.

Thanks for all the replies. I just want to get something that won't heat my house up, and will last. I would hope the engineers would know what they are doing. Thanks for the reassurance!

Well, according to cnet the 50pz800 draws 286 watts, the samsung 50a550 draws 373 watts, and the pioneer 5080 draws 228 watts. These are post calibration numbers. Although looking at cnet's settings, the displays appear to be running a little on the bright side.