My price range is $0-2750. I've been looking a lot at the Westinghouse LCD's, but on this forum, it seems to me that Plasma's are the favored TV. I won't buy anything until late-July early-August, so I'm strongly considering the new 42" Panasonic that's coming out in July (the Panasonic 42-inch TH-42PZ700SK, I believe). But honestly, I'm 100% open to any input. I really don't know anything about HDTV's, except that I salivate every time I see a blue-ray movie on a 1080P set.

Oh yeah, would it be possible for someone to tell me the difference between a 'monitor' and a HDTV? On Westinghouse's site, they have 1080P monitors in a separate section from their HDTV's...That confused me.

Monitors have no tuner so you can't watch tv without a cable or satelitte box.

good chance you can get the th50pz700u for that by the time july or august gets here.

Monitors have no tuner so you can't watch tv without a cable or satelitte box.

So, that's why the 'tvs' that are called monitors are generally lower priced than HDTV's with identical specs? I see, but...in the end, I guess, you'd end up paying the same (or more) because you need the box.

good chance you can get the th50pz700u for that by the time july or august gets here.

You think the 50" will be around 2800 bucks by July? I'll have to think about it. I really don't know if I want to go that big though. I'm only going to be about 8-9' away from the display...

This morning I took a trip to Best Buy and checked out some Plasma's and LCD's in person. Honestly, I didn't see a HUGE difference in the picture, but there was the occasional dark scene, and in those dark scenes, the Plasma's looked a bit better. That's strange though. The LCD I was comparing a plasma with had a contrast ratio of 6000:1, and the plasma's was only 10,000:1. I'd think the black's would be on both would be the same, but why did it look 'crisper' on the plasma? I fully expected the 1080P LCD to give a better picture than the 768P plasma (they were both running the same blue-ray movie).

From what I read though, LCD's seem to be more popular than plasma's. Why? Was my experience an anomoly? This forum seems to both confirm and deny my experience...AAAHHHHH!!!!! I'm very confused.

I'm also a little worried that I'm caught up in some dumb numbers game. How much do the numbers really matter? Is it worth an extra thousand bucks to get something with a contrast ratio 10 times higher than something else?

The TV will be used for lots of blue-ray movies, and between my girlfriend and I, lots and lots of games. I really want the next several years to make for a great veiwing experience. I am investing a lot of money in this thing, and I want to make sure that I'm making the best/most informed decision possible. I let a sales-man talk me into something I didn't want/know much about before, and I've regretted it ever since.

games may be easier on the lcd, slightly less suseptible to burn in

games may be easier on the lcd, slightly less suseptible to burn in

I was under the impression that burn-ins were a thing of the past...

I was under the impression that burn-ins were a thing of the past...

For the most part, it is. Both technologies can suffer IR which 'normally' is completely reversable.

There are many plasma panels with ZERO IR.

The TV will be used for lots of blue-ray movies, and between my girlfriend and I, lots and lots of games. I really want the next several years to make for a great veiwing experience. I am investing a lot of money in this thing, and I want to make sure that I'm making the best/most informed decision possible. I let a sales-man talk me into something I didn't want/know much about before, and I've regretted it ever since.
Make sure, then, not to get TV that has a problem with digital TV lag (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=558125), at least if you're using any consoles from before the Wii/360/PS3 generation. The Panny plasmas are supposed to be very good in this regard. Also, a guy did some tests on some LCD screens here: http://hdtvlag.googlepages.com/results

There are many plasma panels with ZERO IR.

Most LCDs experience ZERO IR.

Most LCD owners report they can not detect motion blur or lag. However, due to the nature of the beast (the LCD) it does exist. If you can detect it or not will depend upon the quality of the panel and your own eyes. Plasma users report no lag.

As for the CR numbers. They can not be comapred set to set. Manufacturs play all sorts of games to achieve the highest numbers. Would it surprise you to hear that a calibrated Sony XBR2 has better black levels and CR than a calibrated Pioneer FH1? Its true. But numbers don't tell the whole story. This Sony had other issues.

1080p is another area where there is a lot of discussion. Most agree that on sets of 50" or less, the extra resolution is wasted as you would not be able to see the difference.

The bottom line - Use your own eyes. YOU are the one that will be watching this set, not the rest of us.