I'm weighing the choice between getting a 50" Samsung or Panny (5054/64, or 50PX75/77U) vs. my would-be first choice: the Pio 5080. This would be an easy choice if not for the fact that Samsung/Panny prices continue to sink, making the Pio ~$800-1k more expensive.

To make a more informed decision, I want to evaluate the importance of some minor features that the Pioneer has that the Samsung/Panny may not. I'm not looking to evaluate the PQ of each set here, as numerous threads have well established the major points of PQ between the brands.

1) HDMI 1.3a -- As far as I know, all 3 manufacturers have it, so this would be a non-issue, regardless of its importance (or lack thereof.

2) Ability to accept a 1080p signal -- As far as I know, only the Pioneer can (among the 768p plasmas). Will sending a 1080p signal vs. a 720p/1080i signal have a noticeable improvement for blu-ray/HD-DVD movies?

3) Response lag -- From what I've read, Samsung has notoriously poor response lag. I'll be doing a lot of 360/PS3 gaming. How are the default response lags for each manufacturer and how much does their game modes improve on it (and how bad is the impact to IQ from game mode)?

4) IR & Burn-in -- Pio 5080 owners have reported no IR when the orbiter is enabled, so it seems to be a non-issue for Kuros. I've heard a variety of things about the current Samsungs and Panny's. My concern: Is it safe to game up to, say, 3 hours at a time on a broken in (200+ hours) Samsung or Panasonic -- or am I seriously risking burn-in?

Thoughts?

I've got a Sammy 42", and it has excellent PQ, response times and no burn in. Playing games on it is truly a joy to behold.

That said, I am currently looking at upgrading to the 50" Sammy, because of the HDMI 1.3 and 1080p.

2) Ability to accept a 1080p signal -- As far as I know, only the Pioneer can (among the 768p plasmas). Will sending a 1080p signal vs. a 720p/1080i signal have a noticeable improvement for blu-ray/HD-DVD movies?

3) Response lag -- From what I've read, Samsung has notoriously poor response lag. I'll be doing a lot of 360/PS3 gaming. How are the default response lags for each manufacturer and how much does their game modes improve on it (and how bad is the impact to IQ from game mode)?


Thoughts?



The panny will accept a 1080p signal as well.

The panny will accept a 1080p signal as well.

Ah, I didn't know that. Can you see the difference in sharpness between the 1080p and 720p signals?

Ah, I didn't know that. Can you see the difference in sharpness between the 1080p and 720p signals?

Generally scaling down a picture is better than upconverting it. As the processor itself is 1080p on the Panny, then the picture quality would be better if the original signal sent was 1080p. However, I doubt it would be noticeable to the human eye on a 42 or 50 inch TV - it would be more of a factor for very large screens or people with Superman vision.

Generally scaling down a picture is better than upconverting it. As the processor itself is 1080p on the Panny, then the picture quality would be better if the original signal sent was 1080p. However, I doubt it would be noticeable to the human eye on a 42 or 50 inch TV - it would be more of a factor for very large screens or people with Superman vision.

If you play games it makes a difference. I do so 1080p was a factor.

Ask any PC gamer if they would prefer 1280x720 or 1920x1080 from a close viewing distance.

If you play games it makes a difference. I do so 1080p was a factor.

Ask any PC gamer if they would prefer 1280x720 or 1920x1080 from a close viewing distance.


His question was in regards to Blu-ray/HDDVD 1080p movies.

If you play games it makes a difference. I do so 1080p was a factor.

Ask any PC gamer if they would prefer 1280x720 or 1920x1080 from a close viewing distance.

Well, none of these panels can actually *display* 1920x1080. My question was essentially asking whether converting down from 1920x1080 looked discernably sharper than upconverting from 1280x720. If I was playing PC games on a 768p plasma, I would set my PC to output 1360x768, of course.

But, for instance, the Xbox 360 has its own internal scaler. All 360 games are internally rendered at 720p, but can be instantly scaled to 720p, 1080i, 1080p, etc. Would I notice a difference between having a 768p plasma like the Pio or Panasonic take in the 1080p signal to downconvert as opposed to upconverting from 720p on the Samsung?

And does downverting from 1080p to a 1365x768 require less processing (and less processing lag) than upconverting from 720p??

I like the Samsung 5054/64 as a value choice, but if the Panasonic will be able to produce a sharper picture because of being able to accept 1080p/60, then that may swing my opinion back the other way. I'd be able to feed 1080p from my 360 & PS3, so I'd be using it for games and blu-ray movies.