Official New Panny thread: 42PD50, PX50, PX500

[napple]

To consolidate the info we have so far...






LAS VEGAS, NV (January 5, 2005) - Panasonic, the leader in high definition and plasma TV, once again demonstrates its commitment to exceed expectations with its new line of plasma displays. The company is introducing six digital models for 2005, all with integrated ATSC1/NTSC/QAM tuners and all featuring the latest plasma panel technology for unsurpassed performance.

"Panasonic is escalating plasma panel development to meet the remarkable growth the market is experiencing," said Andrew Nelkin, Vice President, Panasonic Display Group. "We are committed to continually providing the very best for our consumers, in technology, performance and value. All of our plasma displays are produced solely by Panasonic. From R & D to the manufacturing of panels and electronics to control of the production process, Panasonic is setting the benchmark from start to finish."

The new line builds upon the superior quality and reputation Panasonic has established in the flat-panel display arena with technologies such as sub-pixel control, which individually addresses the red, green and blue charges within one pixel, resulting in a 30% increase in horizontal resolution over previous models. The new panels are capable of reproducing a maximum of 8.6 billion colors, with thousands of gradations within the red, green and blue spectra, and the highest contrast ratio in the industry, to render an incredibly vivid picture with enhanced detail in dark scenes. Further advancements have been made in optimizing color purity with 3D color processing, and in ensuring outstanding picture quality in a wide range of ambient lighting conditions.

"More and more high-definition programming is becoming available over the air, on cable, and via satellite," said Nelkin. "This year's plasma sets employ the best new technologies to enhance picture quality beyond conventional standards, to realize the true HD dream."

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Confirmed! The new plasmas are 8th generation panels.

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TH-50PX500U HDTV 720p
50" diagonal - MSRP - $5999

TH-42PX500U HDTV 720p
42" diagonal - MSRP - $4499

TH-50PX50U HDTV 720p
50" diagonal - MSRP - $5499

TH-42PX50U HDTV 720p
42" diagonal - MSRP - $3499

TH-42PD50U EDTV 480p - -NO CABLECARD and NO PIP.
42" diagonal - MSRP - $2499

TH-37PX50U HDTV 720p
37" diagonal - MSRP - $3???




Manual for the 42PD50U is available at http://service.us.panasonic.com/operman/ (maybe other manuals are coming soon?)

[david8613]

any idea on the prices on these, and i mean street prices not msrp. i just got my income tax check and its buring a hole in my pocket. i was going to get the current panny consumer ed model...but if this is better technology for less i will wait a little... i noticed the newer panny ed model doesnt have cablecard slot or is this a misprint?

[PerryU]

There were some speculative MSRP prices from another site posted in the original CES thread... try a search. Summary: cheaper.

Man, every time I see the PD50 I want to cry. Could they not have put even a narrow grey or black bezel?? All that silver just looks so... cheap. I don't mind the PX50 or PX500 at all. Looks like the same cabinet as the PX50; maybe I could switch the surround when nobody's looking?

Also mourning the loss of the 37 ED, if indeed it's gone from the lineup; especially as I'm about to move, probably to a condo with much smaller rooms.

[david8613]

i dont think it has that cheap plastic silver you see on some sets, i think from the photo it has that shiny metal look, something like the samsung dlp sets have. if looks anything like the samsungs i think it will look great with my silver denon 3805 reciever and 3910 dvd player... did anyone see these at the show that can tell how they really look physically...ps the black bezel does look nice...

[jcpzero]

Originally posted by PerryU
There were some speculative MSRP prices from another site posted in the original CES thread... try a search. Summary: cheaper.

Here is a link to post #45 of the Panasonic CES Teaser thread - with some estimated MSRPs from 16nine dot com:

Post #45 Panasonic CES Teaser

Here is a direct quote from 16nine dot com:

"The Panasonic TH-42PX500U and TH-50PX500U will carry unofficial list prices of US$4500 and US$5500, respectively"

JCPZero

[jrock65]

Hm, wonder if they'll price the 50PX50 at $5000, or $500 less than the 50PX500. That'll be awesome.

[david8613]

what about the ed model, i wonder by how much they will be lowered... did anyone see them at the ces show, maybe took some pics...

[pstrisik]

I'm hoping the new 42" ED has memory for settings on each input in better implementation than the current model. Other than that it's a go (if I try to like the silver).

[david8613]

any more info on these new sets? like demisions, price and such?

[Bender_unit_22]

so what is everyones opinion on this?

keep the TH-42PD25U I bought 2 weeks ago?

or

return it and wait for the new TH-42PD50U?

will the new model have all the features of the old one?
cable card, pc imput, sd??

I love my set, but feel that I bought at the worst time with new models comming out very soon

I know next to nothing about all this stuff

I need help!

[jrock65]

I don't think the PD50 and PX50 have PC input, PC slot, or SD memory slot. But they both have the CableCard.

[Foos-Man]

I would take it back, if it were me. The way I look at it, when the new models start to come out, the older one's will drop in price. So worst case is you get a better deal.

Just keep in mind...the cycle when the new model comes out is usually a significant drop in price in the older model, but then they eventually clear out. Don't get greedy and keep waiting for additional drops, or there won't be any left.

[jcpzero]

TH-42PD50U

Summary of Dimentions provided in this post:

Panny 42pd50u Availability Date Confirmed at Best Buy

42" W
3.8" D
27.6" H
72 pounds


JCPZero

[housecor]

MSRP listings here:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...82#post5224582

[x-spyder-x]

Any size dimensions on the 50px50u or 500u?

[bubba451]

On a lark, I decided to search for the TH-42PD50U and TH-37PX50U on Amazon. As of February 28, they are listed, though they are listed as "not stocked or discontinued." As such, there's no price.

Interestingly, if you add them to your wish list, you'll get a price. The 42 is just a bit below what's been advertised as its MSRP. The 37, though, is quite a bit lower than what's been quoted. It makes me wonder if the MSRP on the 37 is lower than we expect (which would explain the disappearane of the ED model). Of course, it could also mean that Amazon has no real pricing info and is just guessing.

[Bud-man]

TH-42PM50 (New Model)
SRP $1,999.95
Available S-9
Standard Features Plus
• 42” 16:9 Diagonal Screen
• 852x480 Resolution
• Up to 5000:1 Contrast Ratio
• Aspect Ratio Control
• Optical Digital Audio Out
• Director Lighted Home Theater Remote
I'd be looking at a PM model for sure, i dont care about cable card slots or hd tuners.
Probably sell them at costco's for 1799 like the akai's

[R Harkness]

Originally posted by Bud-man
TH-42PM50 (New Model)
SRP $1,999.95
Available S-9
Standard Features Plus
• Up to 5000:1 Contrast Ratio
•

5000:1 contrast ratio?

That's new.

I wonder what's going on there? Increased brightness? (Black levels likely the same).

[yobob]

The TH-42PM50 wasn't included in the early Panasonic news releases. Does anyone know where it came from? Are we sure it is going to be available here? I don't see any mention of sub-pixel control.

The reason I ask is that the 37"ED is posted on the Pany site in Germany, but apparently won't be available here.

[tomboyter]

How come their cheapest model has the best contrast ratio of any of their sets?

[Bud-man]

MSRP listings here:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/show...582#post5224582

I got that info from the above link, i did a search on google for the PM and theres a lot of japenese sites including panasonic that lists it, i'd like to see there spec's.

[yobob]

Japanese sites. Hmmmmmm . . .

The question remains: Will it be available in the US?

When I did a Google, almost all the sites were .jp urls. When I did a search on the US Panasonic site it came back negative (I know, I know, THAT doesn't mean much).

Hoping.

[Bud-man]

Well being a japenese company they do release and test there models way before they sell to us...........

[yobob]

Yup! And I'm still gonna hope!

[matwags]

Hey all,

I have called 2 BB's in the Dublin OH area. Neither of them had any information on the new TH-42PD50U. They said that without a SKU number, they could not find out when the new TH-42PD50U would be coming in, what the MSRP would be or if there was a discount for pre ordering.

Does anyone know what the SKU for BB is? What type of discount are we talking about.

Cheers,

Matt

[yobob]

I doubt there will be any B&M chain discount for the first few weeks (months?) - just because it is a new release. Hope I'm wrong.

On-line forum sponsors, on the other hand, might offer some. Keep your eyes peeled for the AVS special offers. Membership has its bennies.

[Bud-man]

Should i buy the costco's PA or wait a few months and hopefully they will have the '05's?, i dont know how long i can take watching this akai!!!
I figure i could buy it now and then after 6 months take it back if the new models pan out.

[yobob]

Costco's PAs (if you're talking about the Panny PA25), seem like they might be a stock sell-off, as the new model is due out in a couple weeks.

If the same situation should repeat itself, and that is really anybody's guess, I think it might be more than just a few weeks before they have the new models. But you'll see them in the B&Ms and forum sponsor sites.

[mangelo]

In my experience, more than 75% of the people who work in the Home Theater department of Best Buy don't really know how to use their computer system all that well. Most cannot find the new Panny, even though it's on their system. In case anyone wants to go to their local BB to have them pull it up, the SKU is 7006134. With that number, anyone should be able to pull it up. It's on sale currently, and has been since Sunday. I'm not sure if that's only for this week or what. Hope that helps some of you out.

Mangelo

[matwags]

Thanks Mangelo. They do have that SKU number and were able to give me a price. Sale is on at BB until 3/5/05.

Cheers,

Matt