panasonic TH42PZ80U Im trying to decide between this and the samsung 40 A550 lcd for the bedroom.

Im leaning towards the plasma but I wanted to know what you guys think ?

I sure it is plasma since it is in plasma section but do you think a 42 is too big for the bedroom?

Its a good display. What is your viewing distance and room size?

Chris

Agree, the pz80u is a very good display. Superior to the vast majority of same-size displays. Blacks are very good. Color is also very good, deep and saturated, although not quite as accurate as the step up panasonic models. Like any display, color accuracy is vastly improved with the right settings. Setting the TV to movie/cinema mode is the best start if accuracy is important to you.

As creemail said, viewing distance is important. I would hazard a guess that 42 inches is a good size, as it is for many bedrooms as long as they are not on the small side.

7 ft would be where the viewing would be

42 inches is good for that viewing distance.

Im wanting to hang this on the wall so I need a decent mount any suggestions for a cheap good mount?

Is this tv a older model as in will newer pannys come out by the end of the year. I want to buy this for christmas so I may wait until the end of nov to buy Im not sure if this one will come down in price?

The price of it now is good enough for me and circuit city seems to be the cheapest that I have found besides ordering off the net.

I have directv so I will need anther hd dvr combo to go with this tv.

I keep on thinking maybe I should look at the lcd the sammy 40 but Im really leaning towards plasma and the panny

I would stick with a plasma especially in a bedroom setting where it will probably be very dark at times & I've found that the "Whites" on the LCDs in a dark setting can be very trying on the eyes. This model is part of this years 2008 Panny lineup & should'nt be replaced until around next April or so.

November & the "Black Friday" sales are usually the cheapest time to buy & can even be cheaper than the closeout prices. Some years December prices have gone up for the holidays so if you find a good deal on the tv in November I would grab it.

I'm in the same situation looking at the same exact TVs. The thing that worries me about the Panny is that there are not a lot a reviews out there, so I can't get a good idea of what the TV offers and how good it is. With the Sammy, there are many great reviews.

I also play a lot of video games and the possibility of burn-in worries me, even though I hear the problem has been virtually fixed.

Color is also very good, deep and saturated, although not quite as accurate as the step up panasonic models. Like any display, color accuracy is vastly improved with the right settings. Setting the TV to movie/cinema mode is the best start if accuracy is important to you.


As a 50pz80 owner, I disagree on the color. The red error is pretty noticable and almost impossible to completely correct while maintaining good overall color saturation. I've tried everything short of professional calibration and still am not completely satisfied. The Samsung plasmas have better color IMO.

The thing is that normally color problems don't bother me much. But when skin tones are that far off it is quite annoying. I've been told that the pz80/85 red problems are NOT are result of bad calibration, but rather color decoding errors which would mean they are unfixable. I'm not sure if this is true or not but it would explain the difficulty I have had in trying to get a middle ground on skin tones between "sickly green" and "sunburned". It requires service menu access just to get it close, which is another issue with these TVs. The only way to get decent color is to tinker within the service menu, which is a prospect I would only recommend to geeks like me who don't mind diving into that kind of thing. That or professional calibration.

For the bedroom, plasma is probably your best choice and best PQ for the buck, so I'd suggest giving the Samsung pn42a550 a look. But look for yourself, the color might look OK to you. Just keep in mind you probably won't be able to get those sunburned skins to look much better with basic adjustments.

Sorry if this sounds like a rant, but if you look around you will find many complaints about the red push and I really think Panasonic has not lived up to their reputation this year. I would not buy a pz80 again.

It doesn't have very good color, if you need a second opinion ask anyone that does professional calibrations on this site. plmn is right the red error is too much. I see lots of owners and a dealer coming in to defend this TV, but why? you could at least tell him why it's possible he might not like it. If you need more reinforcement do a search in the user thread with the words red push, you'll find lots of comments on it, probably even a few of my own. At , first I tried to convince myself it was bearable, like many others. Then it was too much, I had to change TVs, this isn't just something the trained eye sees it smacks you right in the face.

I have a 2005 Panasonic CRT HDTV, and it too has the red push that apparently makes it mark on all their TVs regardless of technology. I don't regret buying the TV and I still feel it's only 2nd to the Sony XBR TVs of the time, which sold for maybe a thousand dollars more. I've found a decent balance with color saturation and reds. Here I am though about to buy my first plasma, and I'll probably get a pz85u. Call me ignorant, but I'm just turned off by the Samsung name, that's me though.

If you are happy with it that's all that matters, not what I or others are saying. However this user is concerned with his performance relative to other TVs performance and I'm just giving him the straight facts, in 2008 out of the major plasma brands and in it's own class the 80/85U loses in almost every way. It's only saving grace are it's good black levels. Yes you can be happy with it, but if you're critical which the OP obviously is he might want to look elsewhere.

and it too has the red push that apparently makes it mark on all their TVs regardless of technology.

That's just simply not true, not all TVs are like this and not this bad either. I have a 2005 34" TAU which is I'm guessing the same model you're referring to, it looks no where as bad and it's fixable too, unlike the plasma.

I'm in the same situation looking at the same exact TVs. The thing that worries me about the Panny is that there are not a lot a reviews out there, so I can't get a good idea of what the TV offers and how good it is. With the Sammy, there are many great reviews.

I also play a lot of video games and the possibility of burn-in worries me, even though I hear the problem has been virtually fixed.

Burn in is not a problem anymore, be aware you need to break in the TV though before doing any serious gaming.

At , first I tried to convince myself it was bearable, like many others. Then it was too much, I had to change TVs, this isn't just something the trained eye sees it smacks you right in the face.

Exactly. Even my wife noticed it immediately. Maybe my set is just worse than others, but I don't know how anybody could be happy with the color. I spent a month messing around with it, telling myself it was just a matter of finding the right settings. By the time I realized it went deeper than that it was too late to return it. I just didn't expect such a glaring, unfixable problem at this price point.

It's too bad really, because other than the red push it is an excellent TV overall.

While virtually all TVs have red push (going back decades), the Panasonics seem to have an especially annoying implementation of it. I had to get rid of my Panasonic 700u because it drove me crazy. The 800u and possibly 850u are exceptions.

You may not notice or care about it, but personally I would look at the Samsung 550 or 650 plasmas. The A550 LCD should have pretty decent color but the viewing angles are not good. In a bedroom, where you may be lying down or sitting up, that can really impact the viewing experience.

Interesting about the red push I had no idea this is good to know.

Any other plasma to consider that is 42 inch and is 1080p.

Im not looking at going bigger because I have a 60 inch sony sxrd KDS A2000 in the living room that has been great for 2 yrs now.

Is this problem present in the 800U series also?

No, the 800U has really good color when set to it's THX mode

Interesting about the red push I had no idea this is good to know.

Any other plasma to consider that is 42 inch and is 1080p.

Im not looking at going bigger because I have a 60 inch sony sxrd KDS A2000 in the living room that has been great for 2 yrs now.

Panasonic is the only manufacturer of 42", 1080p plasmas. The 800u should have very nice color but it's expensive.

How far will you be sitting/laying from the TV? Are you sure you need 1080p?

I'm not talking about ALL TVs. I'm talking about all Panasonic TVs (minus the THX certified ones so I hear). It was an issue back in 2005 when I was here researching (and ended up with a Tau), and here I am again 3 years later looking at plasma, and what do you know?.... Panasonic = red push (again).

That's just simply not true, not all TVs are like this and not this bad either. I have a 2005 34" TAU which is I'm guessing the same model you're referring to, it looks no where as bad and it's fixable too, unlike the plasma.

Panasonic is the only manufacturer of 42", 1080p plasmas. The 800u should have very nice color but it's expensive.

How far will you be sitting/laying from the TV? Are you sure you need 1080p?

I will be sitting laying about 7 ft away

I feel if I do not buy a 1080p I will be kicking myself later for older equipment.

I will be sitting laying about 7 ft away

I feel if I do not buy a 1080p I will be kicking myself later for older equipment.


7' is borderline as to whether or not you will see the difference or not but I doubt you would. I completely missed the fact that Samsung doesn't make 42" plasma and there really aren't any other quality ones in that price range.

I like plasma, but IMO the pz80/85 red push is glaring and overrides plasma strengths, especially for casual viewing in a bedroom. I'd probably go with the LCD as I don't think the viewing angle issues are as bad as people make them out to be and the ln40a550 is generally well-regarded. But you'll have to look in person and decide for yourself.

All HDTVs have flaws, people here can tell you what the flaws are but nobody can tell you which ones are deal-breakers for you.

I have noticed allot of green trailing on my Panny 80U, it dosen't effect video too badly but games at some points are breathtaking and at other, faster moving points are blurs.

It may have something to do with video processing? although im using a 360 outputting 1080 p and i at times as well and a well callibrated set.

My point i guess is that if youre used to playig timing sensitive games or shooters on a CRT and you switch to this TV youll need to get allot better. That was the case for me, 2 weeks or so of getting pwned every round in halo until i got used to the slight horizontal blur/lag issue, wich i believe is caused by the phosphor trailing.