Hi all,

I’m in the process of finishing a basement remodel and will be putting in a plasma along one wall. Viewing distance is going to be (approximately – I don’t have the furniture installed yet) 10 feet. I’m pretty locked into a Panasonic and right now am torn between the PZ800U and the PZ85U. Obviously the cost savings on the 85U aren’t something to be sneezed at, but am I shortchanging myself by going down a step?

Thanks for the insight!

Hi all,

I’m in the process of finishing a basement remodel and will be putting in a plasma along one wall. Viewing distance is going to be (approximately – I don’t have the furniture installed yet) 10 feet. I’m pretty locked into a Panasonic and right now am torn between the PZ800U and the PZ85U. Obviously the cost savings on the 85U aren’t something to be sneezed at, but am I shortchanging myself by going down a step?Both TVs look great. If you don't need the extra features or cabinet design of the PZ800U then the PZ85U will perform virtually the same for a lot less money.

Thanks Randy - outside of the THX mode, I'm really only looking at a loss of an HDMI port on the 85 compared to the 800, correct?

here are key features of the differences:

-80U has the least amount of features

-85U adds a PC input, and audio for the PC input

-800U has 5120 shades of gradation instead of 4096 like the 80U and 85U. 24P playback. THX mode. Different speakers. 1 Extra HDMI.

-850 adds Studio Ref Mode. Pro Settings. RS232C input. VieraCast (Internet). 850 loses the THX mode but adds a wider color gamut (Digital Cinema Color)

I'm also looking at buying a 42inch 85U for $950 shipped. The 800U is so much more expensive. I have a PS3 and hope to use the 24p mode, but reading other reviews their is flicker introduced.

Is there a substantial NR difference between models?

Has anyone heard of flicker in the 850's

I'd go for the 85 every time unless the 800 cost almost the same. The main thing is the THX mode, but cinema mode with a few tweaks on the 85 works fine. The problems there are really overblown on this forum.

Then there's the 48Hz but that's only relevant for movies. Even then a lot of people find the regular 60hz looks nicer.