hey guys I`m excited this christmas I will be getting a new TV at Walmart they have a Magnavox ( phililps) 42` for [EDIT] or a Sanyo 42` for [EDIT] both are HI DEF sets. I also have been informed that they will drop the price some more before Christmas :D . [EDIT] I will get a new TV but which one??
Thnaks for the help guys

Spend some time (a fair bit!) reading through this forum, and I think you'll come to the conclusion that (1) this gets debated / discussed A LOT, (2) there are consistent pros / cons between the competing technologies, and (3) the right answer for you, or for anyone else, will be heavily influenced by your own environemtal conditions (room characteristics, mix of external conditions in which you use the display, mix of differnet source material like SD TV, HD TV, gaming, computer use, etc.), and (4) your own personal preferences regarding the competing technologies' picture quality output, taking into account the influence of item 3 above, and your sensitivity to some of the current technological limitations referenced in item 2 above.

Put another way, one might say: "So you use your display quite a bit in low lighting conditions or in conditions where you can achieve low lighting conditions if you choose, for video / TV sources, and you are personally sensitive to contrast and black level quality? Plasma all the way, dude." And, similarly: "So you use your display quite a bit in bright ambient light situations and often with direct sunlight on the display (and are unwilling to use drapes or blinds to control the natural light), for 4:3 content or gaming for extended periods of time, including many images involving static features over long periods of time, are not personally all that sensitive to lesser quality black level contrast / color, but hate when reflections or glare are visible on the display glass? LCD all the way, dude."

Edit: It should go without saying, but I'll say it anyway, if you are limited to choosing one of the two specific sets availabel because you're only going to buy from that particular source, then in addition to the above you should spend a good amount of time fiddling with the picture adjustment capabilities of the two sets and making sure that the picture quality of one or the other is pleasing to you personally, even if your own room / viewer characteristics point you in one direction or another. You'd not be happy concluding that the overall balance of characteristics internal in the technologies point to one choice and then buying based on that choice, only to find that you're really not happy with the quaility of the picture that the technology, as embodied in that particular set, produces compared to the other set.

That's a hard choice. How about choice C of neither? They're both not so great brands. How about the 42" Hitachi plasma from Wally World?

The Hitachi would be nice but I would have to stick with my budget of 1400 or less.

I would head over to Costco and pickup a 42" Vizio plasma.

well costco has some nice HDTV but since I get 20%. on 1 item I choose wally world and I have a small budget to work with :)

imo you're gambling if you go for a Magnavox or Sanyo

I am in the same boat as you and picked the panasonic TH-42PX60U[EDIT]

It's top teir and is a great price, I am just going to have to play with IR since I play alot of videogames from the ps2.

I lie in the: can control my lighting - care alot about quality section(plasma),... but also play alot of static images(lcd). The price diff pushed me to the panny which made a 3:1 on needs.

Also wal-mart's 3 year extended warrenty is only $100 bucks.

Since when did Wally World carry Panasonic plasmas?? That's new to me.

i have seen panny 32" lcd's in walmart stores but have only seen their plasma's online. yes, you CAN get a decent flat screen thru them but if you still want that 27" sd emerson tube tv for a bag of peanuts................................go for it! :eek:

hey guys thanks for your help!!

a Magnavox ( phililps) 42` for [EDIT] or a Sanyo 42` for [EDIT]

a 42 foot plasma! Wonder how much electricity that consumes.

I just couldn't resist :D
('=feet "=inches)

gbal4........Is the Magnavox 42 lcd you are looking at the following model number....42MF521D/37

I saw this the other day at my local walmart at a low clearance price. It seems to be selling out fast at other walmarts around me from what I hear. Does anybody know of any reviews, pros or cons about the lcd model?

Gbal, check out the Philips 42" plasma (9630 or 9631) or the Panasonic plasmas available at B&M retailers or Costco.

gbal4........Is the Magnavox 42 lcd you are looking at the following model number....42MF521D/37

I saw this the other day at my local walmart at a low clearance price. It seems to be selling out fast at other walmarts around me from what I hear. Does anybody know of any reviews, pros or cons about the lcd model?

YES this is one of the models in my price range

Wally world also have a Polaroid with 1080 P I think this is the new format that is out correct??

I wouldn't touch a Polaroid LCD either.

How far back do you sit?

I saw that Magnavox 42 42MF521D/37 tonight at Walmart and I thought it looked better than the rest of the lineup, some costing hundreds more. Very tempting for the price.
It's just that everything I get at Walmart breaks within 3 or 4 months.

Wally world also have a Polaroid with 1080 P I think this is the new format that is out correct?? this is also a 42 inch for 1500 the model number is FLM-4201

Just understand that long-term reliability and lack of features will be the tradeoff.

Magnavox is the 'cheap' side of Philips. Personally, I'd go with the PF9630 or 9631 (I did). ;)

I saw that Magnavox 42 42MF521D/37 tonight at Walmart and I thought it looked better than the rest of the lineup, some costing hundreds more. Very tempting for the price.
It's just that everything I get at Walmart breaks within 3 or 4 months.
Well no matter if it breaks down or not Wally World will take it back I`ve have a 31 inch RCA in my bedroom since 2001 and have had no problems.

Well no matter if it breaks down or not Wally World will take it back I`ve have a 31 inch RCA in my bedroom since 2001 and have had no problems.

If you like it, go for it. We can only tell you what works for us -- not saying other things won't work for you.

But so far, the HDTV and SD picture on my Philips plasma is much better than RPTV or DLP sets owned by friends. Will compare soon to a friend's LCoS.

I bought the Magnavox 42MF521D/37 last week and the picture quality on this lcd tv is amazing. I would highly recommend this tv.....I looked at other places best buy, circuit city, sears, and few other places and the magnavox had the best picture out of all of the others that I had looked at and also the best price.

As far as it coming from wally world that does not bother me they have a 90 day return policy. I can also purchase a extended 2 year warranty from wally world for 78 dollars which would kick in after the magnavox 1 year warranty expires.

I also bought the 42MF521. I got it off of Ebay for a great price. I already have a Samsung HLP5063 DLP and I got the Magnavox for my basement. Before I set it up downstairs, I hooked it up side by side with the Samsung. I can't say I'm a great videophile, but I spent a lot of time working to set the Sammy up when I first got it. I expected to compare the TVs and spend some time on the Magnavox to make it match. But to my surprise, I thought the Magnavox out of the box looked more natural (that is after taking it out of the "hot" very bright setting they use in stores). I did make a few adjustments to the Magnavox, but I made far more adjustments to the Sammy. I've just had it for a week now, but I'm real happy with the picture. I would have liked to have a VGA input also, but since I paid basically the lowest price you can find for any 37" LCD off the net and got a 42", I wasn't going to be picky. I've got my fingers crossed that the reliability is as good as the picture is.

@gbal4: For future reference, you can use smart quotes rather than the ugly `. They only work with unicode-enabled applications:


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umm okay :confused:

It is my understanding that the SD picture is better on plasma than LCD. Any truth to that?

It is my understanding that the SD picture is better on plasma than LCD. Any truth to that?

Maybe marginally, but I'm not sure that true universally from set-to-set when comparing.

If it is better on plasma, it's probably a miniscule improvement.

Maybe marginally, but I'm not sure that true universally from set-to-set when comparing.

If it is better on plasma, it's probably a miniscule improvement.

My own experience has shown it to be true. Both sets were using HDMI connections and from Direct TV. The SD on the Philips 42" plasma was almost perfect. The SD on a Panasonic 37" LCD was a bit fuzzy. Of course it's the HD picture that counts.

My own experience has shown it to be true. Both sets were using HDMI connections and from Direct TV. The SD on the Philips 42" plasma was almost perfect. The SD on a Panasonic 37" LCD was a bit fuzzy. Of course it's the HD picture that counts.

I think SD will look better on plasma, but it's a marginal improvement that probably depends on signal quality and which TV you get.

You are right, SD on my Philips 42" 9631 looks great, almost as good as my 27" CRT. No complaints at all. SD on friends' RPTV LCD and a DLP was nowhere near as good -- checking out a friend's LCoS SONY later this month to see how that stacks up.

I just bought the Magnavox 42MF521D/37 the other day and I am very happy with this TV.

The Philips/Magnavox 42MF521D/37 uses the same technology as Polaroids 37''.

I saw the Magnavox plazma 42MF231D at a local store in town for $750.00. Is it worth it to buy considering the reviews? I'm not familiar with Philips or Magnavox.

thanks for you help,
dtprkr