They currently have a 32" Sony CRT that can do 480i/480p/720p/1080i. The only issue is that for widescreen/HD content it is kind of a small screen (but a humongous television).

Criteria:
Budget: ~$1500-$2000 (probably buying online, so MSRP higher than that is fine)
Size: 45-55" 1080p
What they watch: Television. Lots of sports. Mix of SD and HD.
What they don't watch: Movies in the dark. No gaming.
Room: Very bright. Either the blinds are open during the day or they have lamps on either side of the couch on.

From reading online I had been leaning towards a plasma for them, probably a Panasonic TH-50PZ85U. However, I went to a Best Buy today to look at screens and the glare on the plasma screens are pretty bad. The Sharp LCD's were what really caught my eye. The glare was the only real downside to the TH-50PZ85U that I looked at today.

With the above criteria should I be looking harder at the LCD's or just go for the TH-50PZ85U. The Best Buy I was at only had two large Sharp LCD's and one of them was way out of my price range (at least with the BB price). Can you get a good LCD that meets the above criteria or should I just deal with the glare and get the Panasonic?

The glare on the plasma sets shouldn't be any worse than the glare from the CRT. If lyour parents don't have a problem with glare on the CRT, then they wouldn't have a problem with a plasma.

They currently have a 32" Sony CRT that can do 480i/480p/720p/1080i. The only issue is that for widescreen/HD content it is kind of a small screen (but a humongous television).

Criteria:
Budget: ~$1500-$2000 (probably buying online, so MSRP higher than that is fine)
Size: 45-55" 1080p
What they watch: Television. Lots of sports. Mix of SD and HD.
What they don't watch: Movies in the dark. No gaming.
Room: Very bright. Either the blinds are open during the day or they have lamps on either side of the couch on.

From reading online I had been leaning towards a plasma for them, probably a Panasonic TH-50PZ85U. However, I went to a Best Buy today to look at screens and the glare on the plasma screens are pretty bad. The Sharp LCD's were what really caught my eye. The glare was the only real downside to the TH-50PZ85U that I looked at today.

With the above criteria should I be looking harder at the LCD's or just go for the TH-50PZ85U. The Best Buy I was at only had two large Sharp LCD's and one of them was way out of my price range (at least with the BB price). Can you get a good LCD that meets the above criteria or should I just deal with the glare and get the Panasonic?Plasmas are much less reflective than a tube TV. If your parents are tolerating the glare and reflections on their current tube TV then the Panasonic Plasma will be even easier to see and will be less of a problem.

Sports and SD content will look considerably better on the Panasonic Plasma than on any LCD TV. HD on an LCD can look almost as good but most people think that Plasma still looks better. I have yet to see any current top-of-the-line LCD that renders HD as good as my PZ700U.

If you or they are a Costco member you should look into their TH-C50FD18 which is their version of the 50PZ80U. These are a teensy notch below the PZ85U but the price is low, the return period is long, and they add a year to the factory warranty.

Here's an older thread about Plasma glare and reflection. Note that the Anti-Reflective coatings on the current Panasonics are a little better than they were on my 2005 PX50 model in my pictures:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=769318